As a landscape contractor, maintaining loyal customers can be difficult year after year. In order to stay top of mind year-round, here are three tips for finding long-term success in a smaller market.

Know your customers

As a landscape contractor, it’s important to consider a variety of details about your customer base. First, consider your customers’ socioeconomics to determine which services and products to pitch to each type of customer. Suggesting high-priced irrigation controllers or an entire backyard renovation to a budget conscious customer could turn them away from asking you for future services.

Also consider your customers’ age. For example, if you’re in an area with an older population, your potential customers might be interested in different products than a younger population.

Once you have a good beat on who your customers are, ask your local Ewing Irrigation & Landscape Supply for tips on which products would be best for each customer. Providing customers with products and services applicable to them will keep them coming back to you for their landscape needs.

Educate your customer

In a smaller market, one of the best ways to grow and retain business is to provide customers with information about new products and resources they can take advantage of. You can do this by first educating yourself. Learn about your area’s water restrictions and rebates, get up to speed on any new landscape or water legislation and learn about new products and techniques for the services you provide.

By educating yourself and your customers, you position yourself as an expert in the industry and customers will turn to you for information.

Play to your strengths

To build an effective business, you have to start with what you’re good at. If you’re great at installing drip irrigation or if you have a special method for applying pesticide that saves time and money, start there.

Provide your customers with the services you are skilled in to showcase the outstanding work you’re capable of. Then, once you’ve developed a rapport with customers, pitch new skills or technologies. If they know you can do good work, they’ll trust you with any new work as well. This will help you retain more long-term customers and ultimately grow your business.