12 Ways to Grow Your Lawn Care Business

A continuous improvement mindset will get you far in business.

It’ll open the door to new opportunities. It’ll help you stay competitive, even when new lawn care providers come to town. It’ll give you the drive and resilience to reach the next level—whether that means hiring more staff or expanding your service offerings.

If you have that mindset—that motivation to do better—you’re in the right place. We have answers for any ambitious owner wanting to learn how to grow a lawn care business.

First, we’ll explain why lawn care business growth strategies matter. What purpose do they serve? What can you expect to achieve?

Then, we’ll look at some digital growth tactics before focusing on customer service excellence.

We’ll list some of the most impactful marketing channels you can use. To finish, we’ll give you some concrete tips to follow to kick-start your growth journey.

A brand-new chapter in your business growth starts here. Let’s get started.

Why Lawn Care Business Growth Strategies Matter

Good service is exactly that—good. It helps you stay in business.

But to compete and grow, you need more. You need to keep on top of new technology. You need to stay ahead of new competitors. And, you need to adapt to meet changing customer expectations.

You can’t sit still or rely on your past work. You need to proactively chase the future you want, and that’s where business growth strategies come in.

A business growth strategy is an informed plan. It has direction. It lists the actions you’ll take to achieve your goals.

It helps your business become resilient. You can continue winning customers, even when other lawn care operators open nearby.

In contrast, your business will lose ground without growth and a plan to make it happen.

So far, so good. But growth isn’t always straightforward. If you’re like many lawn care businesses, you’re likely facing these common obstacles:

Finding, hiring, and retaining high-quality, talented staff
Managing your increasing overhead costs, like fuel and equipment maintenance
Using your time wisely while still giving every client the personalized care and attention they deserve
Retaining customers, so they choose you time and time again

You can take many different approaches to overcome these challenges. First, we’ll examine digital strategies for growth.

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Digital Strategies for Expanding Your Online Presence

Your potential customers are online every day. If you want to grow your lawn care business, it’s time to meet them where they are.

Do this and reap the following rewards:

Get in front of customers searching for your services in your area.
Prove your expertise by showcasing the very best work you’ve done.
Inform prospects of all the services you offer and what they include.
Give prospects who are on the fence access to social proof in the form of positive reviews that vouch for the quality of your work.
Stand out from your competition, especially those that don’t have a strong online presence.

How can you make all of the above a reality? Here are three tactics to try.

Improve Your SEO

Search engine optimization (SEO) is how you encourage search engines like Google to show your website in results for relevant keywords.

For example, someone might Google “mowing services in Atlanta.” With best-practice SEO, your business’s website might show up as the very first option on the results page.

Research tells us that the #1 result in a search is—wait for it—10 times more likely to be clicked on compared to the page in the #10 spot.

Moreover, the #1 result has an average click-through rate (CTR) of 27.6%. That means that for every 100 people who search for “mowing services in Atlanta,” upwards of 27 of them will click on your site.

Now, that’s just one keyword. Imagine if your site ranked in the top spot for 10 or 20 relevant keywords. That’s a lot of organic, targeted traffic coming your way.

Get started now. Identify the keywords most relevant to your business, like “lawn care [your city]” or “lawn services [your city].” Add these to the titles and metadata on your web pages. Importantly, claim your Google Business profile . Then, make sure it’s complete and accurate.

Generate Online Reviews

Online reviews are ratings and comments customers leave on platforms like Google, Facebook, and Yelp. These reviews help future customers decide if they want to hire you.

Positive reviews are a huge trust-booster. Negative reviews might encourage prospects to take their business elsewhere.

Moreover, good reviews also help with SEO—particularly local SEO.

Get started now. Add a friendly sentence or two to your follow-up emails requesting a review. Include a link to your Google Business profile or Facebook account to make it even easier.

Use Social Media

People do business with people, not shiny brands. By using social media to connect and engage with your audience, you can humanize your business.

There’s a bit to it. You’ll need to come up with value-added posts. These should educate or entertain your audience.

You’ll also need scroll-stopping visuals. Opt for before-and-after photos over stock images. Authenticity is key.

Consider setting up a content calendar to help you manage your content and stay consistent.

Get started now. Decide on which platforms to focus on. Create your accounts and add your information. Create your first post—try introducing yourself!

Customer Service Excellence for Lawn Care Businesses

Customer service is everything when it comes to small business growth. Why? Because happy customers are repeat customers.

It goes even further. Happy customers are brand advocates. They’ll leave positive reviews and suggest your services to friends and family.

This creates a self-sustaining ripple effect. Satisfied customers attract new customers. They become happy customers themselves and leave great reviews. This, in turn, attracts even more new customers.

Here are some ways you can use customer service excellence to drive growth.

Loyalty Programs

Delight your customers and reward them for choosing you again with a loyalty program.

It might work like this: You offer a 20% discount on every fifth lawn care service.

This small incentive can keep customers returning for regular services instead of shopping around. It also shows them you value their loyalty.

Address Complaints Quickly

Problems happen. Disagreements occur. That’s life, and that’s business. The real test is how you handle them.

When a customer complains, respond quickly and professionally. Do not ignore them—that tells them and others you don’t care.

Fast and effective problem-solving builds trust. You may even turn a negative experience into a positive one.

Offer Frequently Requested Services

What do your customers really want? Pay attention and introduce the services they often ask for.

Let’s say a handful of your customers want leaf removal in the fall. Take them up on the offer. It’ll help you reach more customers looking for that specific service.

It also stops customers from looking to other lawn care or landscaping companies for help.

Collect and Act on Customer Feedback

Ask for feedback and act on it. If customers consistently mention a certain issue or request, make changes.

This could be anything from adjusting your service times to improving your team’s communication.

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Marketing Tactics for Generating New Lawn Care Customers

Effective marketing reaches the right people at the right time with the right message. Here are five strategies you can use to get new customers:

Give paid ads a go. There are a bunch of different platforms you can use, from Google Ads to Meta. Whichever you choose, you can target specific areas and interests. This means you can spend money to reach homeowners who need lawn care in your area.
Try email marketing. According to Forbes, “If you have a strategic email sequence coupled with compelling calls to action, you can drive conversions.” Build your mailing list, invest in a platform like Mailchimp, and send helpful tips, service reminders, or promotions.
Showcase your expertise with content marketing. This is all about publishing content on your website, like blog posts or videos. Every piece of content should be valuable to your intended audience. It should also show that you’re an expert in lawn care.
Set up a referral program. This rewards existing customers for referring new customers. The reward might be a future discount or even a gift voucher.
Go old-school and pop flyers in local letterboxes. Yes, a big proportion of your audience is online. But not all of them are. And those who regularly use search engines and social media are bombarded. A well-designed flyer with a concise message and compelling call to action can help you stand out.

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Top Takeaways to Grow a Lawn Care Business

Feel ready to put your new-found knowledge to the test? Grow your lawn care business by:

Defining your target audience. Think about the type of customers you want to attract. Focus your marketing on this group. Tailor your message to speak to their pain points.
Auditing your online footprint. Check your website, social media pages, and Google Business profile. Make sure all your contact information is correct. Update your service descriptions if needed.
Planning a referral program. Decide on an incentive. Map out how you’ll market it—social media posts, a page on your website, and a dedicated email are good places to start.
Running a paid ad. Start with a small budget. Write a clear ad that creates a sense of urgency. Use audience filters to target those who can actually use your services. Run your ad and track your results. Make tweaks to improve conversions.