Wednesday, September 28, 2005
Business and Pleasure
This will be the only time that I mention my business by name as I am not one to mix business with pleasure. Today I launch my fall and winter gardening company. I will be changing messages on my answering machine and booking appointments. I know I am crazy to be stating a fall and winter gardening business in the frozen north but there is a real niche for the services that my sisters and I will be offering. The only thing is people need to be educated on why they need our services. Wish me luck. I am not expecting much out of this experience. I'm just hoping to break even. If anyone has some great marketing ideas, let me know.
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8 comments:
break a leg! You'll do great.
I forgot to mention the name. How poor of a business person am I. My sisters and I are The Yard Nannies.
Good Luck alyson, people need to know that fall is the best time for planting bulbs and some new plants as well. Go Get 'Em!
Wow, new adventures, how exciting!
I once took a year-long course on running your own business and a couple of the people who attended had a similar type of business. (Great name, by the way!)
Have you considered targeting seniors in your marketing? Do you have flyers made up (your flyers could do the job of educating people as to why they'd need your services)? As you probably know, that's going to be the most direct way of reaching people right in their homes. You could concentrate your flyer delivery in older neighbourhoods where seniors are likely to live. (If you're targeting seniors, use big, clear type so it's easy to read.)
Gosh, aren't I just being a know-it-all here? Congratulations! You'll do well, I'm sure.
Only target the wealthy people in the beltline. Anyone with some expendable cash is going to be in these areas. You will have the ability of talking to people who care about their yards and have enough money to pay for professional yard care. This demographic is also not going to do the work themselves as they are most likely worrying about other things. The yard work will be left to professionals or neglected all together. According to Statistics Canada one in every 18 people will look at a flyer and one in 20 or so will keep it around for a while but one in only 100 or so of those people will call it. They are a waste of time and money unless you blanket the city with them. The demographic you are going after are even less likely to see the flyer as they rarely get their own mail as it is probably picked up by a nanny or something like that. I have some pretty interesting marketing ideas if you have the time to sit and listen to them.
Thanks everybody.
Darcy if you have the time that would be great.
Alyson,
That is so COOL! Good luck...you'll do fantastic.
K.
Well, now that I see more of what your business entails, it's not quite what I had pictured. I was thinking more along the lines of weeding and raking leaves for frail old ladies -- not the same thing at all!
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