Connect With Today’s Guest: Jeffery Riddle from Alterra Landscape Design
🌳 Alterra Landscape Design: https://alterradesignllc.com/
👤 Connect with Jeffery Riddle: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jefferyriddle/
🏢 Company Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/alterradesignllc/
📘 Company Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/rockmygarden
Get Started With The Landscaper’s Guide
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Why There Are 75% More Landscape Companies Than 20 Years Ago
00:00 – Jack Jostes
There are 75% more landscape companies than there were 20 years ago. So you're approaching year 10 and there are a number of people who've been in it for 20, 30, 40 years. And even those people who have been at it for 20, that have an established brand, have 75% more competitors than they did 20 years ago.
00:20 – Jeffery Riddle
Marketing is kind of like the law of the harvest. You have to plant the seed and then you don't harvest it right away. That harvest happens over the next two, three, four years.
00:32 – Jack Jostes
I think sometimes people are like, oh, well, we don't need to do marketing because we do a good job. And I'm always like, no, you need to do both. You need to do an incredible job for people, earn reviews, ask for them, and invest in marketing. Hey everyone. We are here at an epic landscape installation in Dallas, Texas. I just finished a video shoot with Ramblin Jackson client Jeff Riddle from Alterra Landscape Design. This is, I think, our third video shoot together.
01:03 – Jeffery Riddle
Yeah.
01:04 – Jack Jostes
And it was fun coming here in September.
01:07 – Jeffery Riddle
More fun this time, I think.
01:09 – Jack Jostes
Well, why was it more fun for you?
01:10 – Jeffery Riddle
Well, I was just such a novice last time and so uncomfortable. I got used to it, but it was still sort of like having a wisdom tooth removed.
The Law of the Harvest and Long-Term Marketing ROI
01:23 – Jack Jostes
Well, the other thing is you were in the videos the least this time.
01:27 – Jeffery Riddle
Right.
01:28 – Jack Jostes
So you've grown your staff. You have Tyler and Hayden who are principals in the company, and they were in the videos for the most part. The other thing is we brought the teleprompter.
01:40 – Jeffery Riddle
Right.
01:40 – Jack Jostes
So how was doing the teleprompter versus…
01:42 – Jeffery Riddle
Teleprompter was much easier. You’ve got to be careful that it doesn't sound scripted, but as far as the experience, it's just much easier.
01:54 – Jack Jostes
I think so because you can get those important things down and you don't forget them.
01:58 – Jeffery Riddle
Right.
01:58 – Jack Jostes
And the way we used to do it before, you'd have to look down at the script, memorize a line, look into the camera and do it. And that was brutal.
02:10 – Jeffery Riddle
Oh yeah, that was brutal. That would take 40 minutes to do what we get done in sometimes five or ten.
02:11 – Jack Jostes
Now.
02:11 – Jeffery Riddle
Yeah.
The Backyard Project: Small Pool, Turf, and Design Approach
02:12 – Jack Jostes
We got to enjoy some landscapes. So tell us a little bit about this yard that we're in. You designed this one, right?
02:18 – Jeffery Riddle
Yes. This was a typical north Dallas neighborhood. Just terrible—an old 50-year-old backyard, mud, old grass, a little patio. Not very user-friendly for this young family that bought the house. They have two little girls, and it was very unfriendly the way we found it.
02:48 – Jack Jostes
Yeah, I interviewed Mac, and he was talking about how it was all concrete.
02:52 – Jeffery Riddle
Right.
02:53 – Jack Jostes
So was there concrete even back here?
02:54 – Jeffery Riddle
Yeah, the driveway came from the street down the side and wrapped around back here, so it was basically concrete and mud.
03:06 – Jack Jostes
So you put in a small pool, right?
03:11 – Jeffery Riddle
Yeah. This is a backyard with everything you'd want. A small cocktail pool—what we call a purpose-built pool. We look at your mission for the backyard and design the pool around that. Smaller pool, closer to the house, hot tub, tanning ledge, artificial turf, pool decking, and barrier trees that will create an intimate space in the middle of Dallas.
The Current Landscape Market: Feels Like a Downturn, but Is It?
05:45 – Jack Jostes
One of the things we wanted to chat about was the market—market and marketing.
05:51 – Jeffery Riddle
Right. We're in an interesting time where we're through the COVID rush for landscaping and outdoor living spaces. And you've said it—we're back to normal. It feels like a downturn, but in reality, we're probably back to what’s typical. Maybe a little below that.
06:24 – Jack Jostes
I think a little lower.
06:25 – Jeffery Riddle
And it depends on where you are in the country.
Rising Competition in DFW and National Market Trends
06:27 – Jack Jostes
Here in Texas, I'm actually not seeing it as much… (continues)
08:08 – Jack Jostes
There are 75% more landscape companies than 20 years ago…
08:38 – Jeffery Riddle
It's a function of demand and competition. More people moved in, but more firms moved in too.
Why Alterra Didn’t Cut Marketing—And Invested in a New Website
09:37 – Jeffery Riddle
We haven’t taken our foot off the gas of our marketing budget. We planned to do a new website at the end of this year to launch in early ’26. We had some discussion about whether we should still do it, but we all decided yes.
Harvesting Results From Past Marketing Investments
11:23 – Jeffery Riddle
We're having a very good year. We're reaping the harvest of past marketing investments. The harvest happens two, three, four years after planting the seed.
12:18 – Jack Jostes
I like your participation in the Tree of Good Fortune…
Reviews, Quality Work, and Marketing Working Together
13:10 – Jack Jostes
Customers mentioned your website, reviews, photos, and how well you took care of them.
13:50 – Jeffery Riddle
We've seen it work. The website generated a lot of revenue over the last five years. It’s getting dated, which is why we’re updating it—partly because of AI.
How AI and Search Are Changing (and What’s Overhyped)
14:43 – Jack Jostes
AI hype is way over-marketed. Fear sells. And there’s no data showing Google searches are down.
15:22 – Jack Jostes
ChatGPT usage is growing—but so is Google.
Why Deep Content Helps Companies Win in AI-Driven Search
17:04 – Jack Jostes
AI tools extract info from your website, reviews, videos, social media…
17:38 – Jeffery Riddle
This only helps companies like us who have deep content.
Why Boots-On-The-Ground Content Matters for Landscape Firms
19:58 – Jack Jostes
We’re making pro video content, but boots-on-the-ground content matters too—simple phone videos.
21:09 – Jeffery Riddle
It feels awkward, but it’s a muscle.
How Alterra Uses ChatGPT to Script and Edit Content
23:06 – Jack Jostes
I talk into ChatGPT after shoots and have it draft captions.
23:38 – Jeffery Riddle
We outlined scripts and had ChatGPT draft them. Then we edited.
The Future: Autonomous Robots and What’s Next in Landscaping
24:18 – Jeffery Riddle
It’s bigger than email. Bigger than the Internet.
24:44 – Jeffery Riddle
Robot dogs.
25:05 – Jeffery Riddle
Autonomous robots will soon be planting plants, loading trucks, and more.
25:12 – Jack Jostes
Thanks for coming on the show…
25:30 – Jeffery Riddle
We love working with you guys…