00:00 - Meet Your Host: Jamie DuBose Kicks Off the Rambler Takeover
Jamie DuBose [00:00:00]:
Hey everyone, welcome to The Landscaper’s Guide podcast. Today we're doing things a little differently. The Ramblers are taking over this podcast episode. I'm Jamie DuBose, Sales and Marketing Manager here at Ramblin Jackson, and our Ramblers are working with residential and commercial landscape companies all across the country, helping them build sales and marketing strategies to get found online and grow their businesses. So for this special podcast episode, I thought it would be great to hear directly from them real world insights that they've learned by helping landscape companies overcome challenges of scaling, improving their marketing, and landing more Hell Yes Customers. From refining your sales process to working on your business instead of in it and boosting your online presence, you'll hear actionable tips that you can start using right now to help grow your landscape business. Let's get into it and hear what the Ramblers have to say.
Chris Brown [00:00:51]:
You look around the room and you think, these could be people I'm working with.
Rebecca Lorenzen [00:00:54]:
So you need to be able to actually analyze your return on investment to make sure that your marketing efforts are paying off.
Robert Felton [00:01:00]:
How do you communicate and show that trust so they can trust to invest more money with you?
Chris Brown [00:01:05]:
Just seeing them smile and nod to some of the ideas and see that fuel get added to their fire.
01:11 - Why You Need to Work On Your Business, Not Just In It
Jamie DuBose [00:01:11]:
Why is it important for landscape professionals to take a day to work on their business instead of just in their business?
Erin Kaufold [00:01:18]:
Hey, this is Erin. I'm the Senior Executive Assistant here at Ramblin Jackson. The main goal is to help you step back from the day to day chaos of running your business and focus on big picture growth. Spending a day working on your business, rather than just in it, helps you refine your sales and marketing strategies and prepare your business for long term success by improving both your processes and your profit margins. When you're constantly focused on immediate demands like client calls, job sites and managing your team, it's easy to lose sight of the bigger picture. Stepping back allows you to assess what's working and what isn't, so you can make strategic decisions that improve your overall efficiency and profitability. At Ramblin Jackson, we emphasize the importance of refining your sales and marketing processes to attract better leads and streamline operations. By dedicating time to improving these systems, you not only reduce the chaos, but also create sustainable growth opportunities.
Erin Kaufold [00:02:16]:
This could mean automating parts of your sales process, optimizing your online presence, or improving your client onboarding to save time and increase satisfaction. In the end, working on your business helps you gain more control, build a stronger foundation for growth, and focus on scaling without getting overwhelmed by daily tasks.
Jamie DuBose [00:02:35]:
Thanks, Erin. That sounds great. And we do have an awesome opportunity for you, if you're listening, to join us for the 5th Annual Landscaper’s Summit coming up on October 10 from 9:00a.m. to 03:00p.m. Mountain Time, where you can take that day and work on your business instead of in your business.
02:53 - Client Success: How The Landscaper’s Summit Inspires Action
Jamie DuBose [00:02:53]:
So what do you love most about The Landscaper’s Summit and how has it inspired our clients to take action?
Chris Brown [00:02:58]:
Yeah. Well, I'm Chris Brown. I'm a Project Manager here. So I really love the energy and actionable advice that I see coming out of The Summit and the inspiration that you can see from the clients that I'll be then hopefully working with to build their project. So it kind of carries over some of that enthusiasm that they have hearing that, hey, I might be able to get some Hell Yes Clients, we might be able to do some great things with our marketing, capture that, and then I get to spend a few months working with them to build the site. So it's a really, really good follow through to kind of continue that enthusiasm.
Jamie DuBose [00:03:29]:
So what I'm hearing is it all starts at The Landscaper’s Summit. We get all those ideas rolling, and then we're able to see them through on the project side whenever they get to you as one of our new Hell Yes Clients.
Chris Brown [00:03:40]:
Yeah, definitely. It's fun because you look around the room and you think, oh, these could be people I'm working with and I would want to work with. And just seeing them smile and nod to some of the ideas and see that that fuel get added to their fire from what's being discussed at The Summit, you know, a full day of activities and insights that kind of fire them up to get going. So then I know that I'm coming at it with a client that's really interested and with advice that they've gotten from us to implement in their own processes.
Jamie DuBose [00:04:13]:
Awesome. I love hearing that from you, Chris, especially with you being one of our Project Managers over at Ramblin Jackson. So hopefully we've got people watching today that would love to work with you in the future.
Chris Brown [00:04:24]:
Thanks, Jamie.
04:26 - How Ramblin Jackson's SEO Helps Landscapers Get Found Online
Jamie DuBose [00:04:26]:
How is Ramblin Jackson's SEO Process unique in helping landscape companies get found online?
Kevin Kawa [00:04:31]:
Hi, my name is Kevin Kawa. I'm the Senior SEO Strategist here at Ramblin Jackson. How? I think Ramblin Jackson's SEO processes are unique are more than just the SEO process. I believe that it starts right from the first contact with potential clients, with Robert, figuring out if that client is a good fit for Ramblin Jackson, and if we're a good fit for that client, from there it goes to the project managers. And the project managers like Chris and Rebecca spend a lot of time just talking with our clients, figuring out what makes them unique, both in the industry and in their area. From there, the Ramblin Jackson Process moves on to developing great websites. And without a great website, you're just not going to be found online. And Lou does a great job of taking what the client's looking for and really making these great websites that are beautiful to look at and also function properly, which is important.
Kevin Kawa [00:05:37]:
From there, I can take everything that Robert's learned about the clients, everything that the project managers have learned, the clients just looking at the website as it's being developed and using those unique keywords, unique sales processes that the clients do, and crafting good SEO, which ultimately will help our clients get found online. We've spent a lot of time developing our processes, sales process, projects process, SEO processes, accounts processes, and have really dialed it in so we know what works when it comes to ultimately the whole Ramblin Jackson Process. And again, part of that is just how SEO can help them get found online.
Jamie DuBose [00:06:33]:
Thank you so much for sharing that, Kevin. It's really cool to hear how by the time a client gets all the way to the SEO process, we have already done all of these steps to ensure that what you are doing on the SEO side is exactly what needs to be done for that client to rank higher, to find more of their Hell Yes Customers, and to ultimately grow their business. So I appreciate you being on the podcast today.
Kevin Kawa [00:06:56]:
Thank you.
06:58 - The Foundational Four: How the Summit Boosts Your Online Presence
Jamie DuBose [00:06:58]:
How does The Landscaper’s Summit reflect Ramblin Jackson's Foundational Four and why is this important for landscape companies?
Rebecca Lorenzen [00:07:05]:
Hi, I'm Rebecca Lorenzen, the Strategic Projects Manager at Ramblin Jackson. I work in our accounts team as well as projects team and on some special projects with the company at Ramblin Jackson as well. The foundational for branding, website SEO reviews, they really all impact your online presence. And so when people are online searching for landscaping companies, having a great show in all of those areas of your marketing is going to be important. We've really seen that firsthand how it helps our landscape clients attract their Hell Yes Customers. At Ramblin Jackson, we talk a lot about branding. Branding to us is more than just a logo. It's more than your colors.
Rebecca Lorenzen [00:07:47]:
It's really all about your brand, who your Hell Yes Customers are. We even dive into sales process. All of those things really make a difference in why someone selects a company, having your website really showcase all of your branding, your process reasons to buy is going to be important to site visitors. It's giving them clarity on why they should work with you. If they go to your website, see all of that information, and then go to somebody else's website without that information, it's going to be an easy choice for them. When selecting a landscape company, it's going to generate more, Hell Yes Customers. Those customers who really want to bring in the door because they're already educated on how to work with you. The whole process of working together is going to be even easier.
Rebecca Lorenzen [00:08:34]:
Local SEO is super important. As I said, everybody's online searching for companies nowadays. And so if your website is set up to rank for all of those big keyword phrases that you want to get shown for, you're going to obtain that many more potential customers. And then those online reviews really help back that up. So they're finding you in Google, they're seeing how you're ranking for everything. They're going to your website and learning about what sets you apart through your branding. And then your reviews really tie it all together because they're handing, they're seeing firsthand from clients how they feel about working with you. Not only that, it also plays a part in how your website is going to rank.
Rebecca Lorenzen [00:09:18]:
So in that map pack in Google with more reviews, you're going to rank a lot better than someone that doesn't have those many reviews. So all of those factors really play nicely together for the Toundational Four. The Summit is going to be a great way for you to really strengthen your Foundational Four, giving you steps to implement afterwards so that you can really attract those helioth customers and get a solid Foundational Four in place for your company.
Jamie DuBose [00:09:47]:
Thank you so much for breaking down Ramblin Jackson's Foundational Four, Rebecca. I really appreciate it and it's really helpful to hear from projects and account managers like you so that we can actually see the fruits of the labor from taking it from a theory to an actual project launching for our clients. So I appreciate your time today.
Rebecca Lorenzen [00:10:05]:
Thanks, Jamie.
10:07 - Leadership, Culture, and Communication Skills to Scale Your Business
Jamie DuBose [00:10:07]:
So a lot of our landscape clients are in the process of growing their teams and scaling, and I would like to know how The Landscaper’s Summit is going to help them with leadership, culture and communication while they're growing their business.
Erin Kaufold [00:10:21]:
Leadership and communication are key to scaling your business. At The Summit, you'll learn how to create a strong team culture that drives success and how to communicate effectively with your team to keep everyone aligned with your goals. This isn't just about making sales, it's about building a business that runs smoothly from the inside out. As landscape businesses grow, the challenge shifts from simply making sales to building a sustainable company culture where leadership, communication and teamwork thrive. A strong team culture doesn't just happen by accident. It requires intentional leadership and systems that align your team with the company's goals. At The Summit, you'll learn how to define clear roles and expectations so your team knows what success looks like at every level. We'll cover how to foster open communication, empowering your team to solve problems and contribute ideas, which ultimately strengthens your business from within.
Erin Kaufold [00:11:13]:
Leadership also means guiding your team through growth and change, helping them understand your company's mission and how their work contributes to that bigger vision. By focusing on these leadership skills, you're not just managing employees, you're developing future leaders who will help your business run smoothly, reduce stress, and improve overall efficiency. When your team is aligned and communicating well, your company can take on bigger projects and scale without the chaos that often comes with rapid growth.
Jamie DuBose [00:11:41]:
That sounds awesome, Erin. Thank you so much for sharing that, especially as our Executive Assistant here at Ramblin Jackson, you have a huge part to play in keeping us all on track and helping us all grow together. So thank you.
11:56 - How to Maximize Sales in a Challenging Market
Jamie DuBose [00:11:56]:
How can landscape professionals maximize their sales in today's market despite challenges like high interest rates?
Robert Felton [00:12:01]:
Hey, everybody, I'm Robert Felton. I'm the Senior Marketing Strategist at Ramblin Jackson. One way to still sell and command a higher price with these higher interest rates is to make sure that you're truly communicating the true value of each meeting, each step, and sharing that with your potential customer. Yeah, there's this true balance between organic SEO and advertising that's really important to kind of always be calculating, always trying to be figuring out the best combination. You know, organic SEO is truly getting in front of people who are already looking, and it's going to bring in great benefit when demand is high. So think about the last few years when everyone was looking to build an outdoor kitchen and outdoor living space. Organic SEO was king. But now we're in a market where interest rates are a little bit higher.
Robert Felton [00:12:46]:
So advertising, inspiring, getting people to really want that plunge pool or really want that sauna or that outdoor living space is more important. So finding that balance, make sure you're playing both games and you're maximizing them in anticipation of where you think the market is going to go.
Jamie DuBose [00:13:02]:
Awesome. Thank you so much, Robert. Yeah, so what I'm hearing is it's all about staying visible and building trust over time with your prospects, both through your organic marketing and your paid advertising.
Robert Felton [00:13:15]:
Correct. It's all about finding that balance and trust value building. How do you communicate and show that trust so they can trust to invest more money with you? I invite you to attend The Summit. This is something we are going to talk about. You're going to have marketing and sales experts there like Jack Jostes, Joshua Gillow and more. We're going to cover this topic on how to overcome these objections, how to continue building value, and how to communicate that true value to your customer so they can respect your time and the investment it is to work with you.
13:47 - Making the Most of Your Marketing Budget All Year Round
Jamie DuBose [00:13:47]:
How can landscape companies get the most out of their marketing dollars, especially if they have different budgets throughout the year?
Rebecca Lorenzen [00:13:53]:
That's a great question. So whether you're in lawn care, snow removal, or you focus on residential or commercial businesses or both, you really need to tweak your budget for each season. Just combining the right mix of SEO with other marketing efforts. Important with that is knowing what your ROIis, right? So you need to be able to actually analyze your ROI, your return on investment to make sure that your marketing efforts are paying off. So for example, with Google Ads, you know, you're able to track that data through reports, see who called you, how they converted, whether it was through a landing page or a phone call, and also determine the value of that closed lead. So that is going to be like first and foremost right, like having the right mix, but also knowing what your investment brings back to you on each marketing effort. Really maximizing your marketing budget isn't about just spending more, it's about being smarter with how you're spending. So again, knowing that data, but really also playing to the seasonality, landscaping, obviously a lot of seasonality there.
Rebecca Lorenzen [00:14:59]:
Those dictate how your business runs, what kind of dollars you have coming in every month. So being strategic with how you allocate that money is going to be important. So for example, with Google Ads, we might crank it all the way up come end of winter, early spring, so that you're really getting in those design build leads ahead of the really busy season. But what's important then with that is all of the visibility that you get through local SEO really keeping on top of that. So not just stopping in the winter, your SEO efforts, those take time to rank. And so if you're building out pages every month, continuously improving your SEO come spring, you're going to show up more organically than you did the year before. And so it's important to kind of play to that give it time to rank ahead of spring and take all of the time, extra time that you might have in the winter and spend that focusing on your marketing ahead of spring so you're fully prepared. And then changing that budget again, decrease and increasing your ad spend, your social media spend all of that so that you are saving it for the springtime and maybe just decreasing and saving some more in the winter.
Jamie DuBose [00:16:12]:
That sounds awesome Rebecca. So what I'm hearing is it's not really a one size fits all approach to a marketing budget. It's really important to match your marketing to the season and also make sure that you're analyzing all of that data so that you know that you are making a return on your investment.
Rebecca Lorenzen [00:16:29]:
Exactly. Yeah.
16:32 - How to Convert More Leads Into Paying Clients
Jamie DuBose [00:16:32]:
So landscape companies are always looking to increase conversions from prospects to buyers. What advice would you give to a landscape company who is having trouble converting their prospects?
Alyssa Barilar [00:16:43]:
I am Alyssa Barilar, the Landscape Marketing Assistant here at Ramblin Jackson and this is a question or a concern that I get a lot with the people that I talk with and what's important to remember is that it's actually possible to turn every conversation into a closing opportunity by showing clients the long term benefits of investing in your company. This is also why knowing what sets your business apart from other competitors is so important. This is actually a major part of our Foundational Four that I go over with our prospects. So converting leads into paying clients is all about clearly communicating the value of what you offer. Many clients, they don't fully understand the expertise and planning that goes into the landscape design. So it's essential to frame it in terms that they themselves care about. So whether it's creating a beautiful outdoor space, improving their property value, solving practical issues like drainage and other functionality, that's what they care about. That's what you need to position yourself on.
Alyssa Barilar [00:17:46]:
When you learn how to position your services as a long term investment rather than a one time expense, and start educating your potential clients on what the benefits of working with your company is like, making sure you have a cohesive plan that matches their vision and delivering the results that are going to last. You'll guide your clients through a structured sales process that really builds trust and leads them to the true value of your work. Knowing what sets your business apart from your competitors, whether that's your expertise, your process, or your unique approach, it's crucial to closing more deals. By confidently communicating that differentiation and demonstrating the impact of choosing your company over the competitors, you're definitely going to be able to turn more conversions into those sales.
Jamie DuBose [00:18:31]:
I love what you say about differentiating your specific values and how you set yourself apart, because I feel like that's something that a lot of times gets overlooked, especially when we're putting on our website, like we've been in business for 20 years and, you know, kind of these vague things that matter, but also don't really, like, let your company stand out as much as it could stand out. Thanks, Alyssa. It's always great to hear what you are hearing as our landscape marketing assistant from our prospects here at Ramblin Jackson. And I appreciate you being on the podcast today.
Alyssa Barilar [00:19:06]:
Thank you for having me. Always a pleasure.
19:09 - How Commercial Landscapers Can Scale Their Business
Jamie DuBose [00:19:09]:
So, Robert, can you tell us a little bit about commercial landscape companies and how they can scale their business with measurable results?
Robert Felton [00:19:17]:
Yeah, I talk to a lot of commercial clients, and they really want to, you know, put $1 in the sales and marketing bucket and get $2 out. But it's really a little more like the stock market up and down. But if you make those general investments in sales and marketing, you're going to be able to, you know, scale your business by scaling your sales and marketing department. But it's very important to make sure that you're conscious about this, that you're scaling something that's healthy, that has great processes. And in commercial, it's more important than ever that marketing supports sales. And you need to know, is this marketing effort resulting in sales and also going the other way? Sales is very important. You're in B2B sales. You need to work with people who like each other, that can communicate, that can work together.
Robert Felton [00:20:02]:
They need to be able to sell. So when the leads are coming in through marketing, you have that. So in commercial, there's a little more importance on balance. And it's really about scaling a process, something that is successful. So you could start seeing that line go up. So it's kind of interesting looking at residential sales, commercial sales, and also looking at, you know, warm leads versus cold leads. If you're used to constantly getting referrals. You mean in commercial? It could be.
Robert Felton [00:20:27]:
Give me an estimate. I heard you were great. Let's move through. But as you start investing in sales and marketing, you're going to need to generate cold leads and then move them to being warm. These aren't people that are being referred to you, so there's going to be more, and you're going to need to spend more time with them, and you're going to need to market to them. It can result in several touches. You might talk to someone, get along with them really well, and they just bought or just got locked into an agreement. Maybe you could break that agreement, but maybe it's more about playing that long game so when they do go to renewal, you're ready.
Robert Felton [00:20:58]:
Do you have tools to help them to give valuable touches to someone who maybe is 612 months away from buying from you? You need valuable reasons to reach out. Constantly staying in front of mind. Visibility is something we talked about earlier. It's vital here, building that trust. Wow. This is the guy I want to buy this from because he's servicing me well, or this person or this woman. So it's just really about building that relationship. And you need a sales tools and marketing to support that and get your touches in.
Jamie DuBose [00:21:31]:
Thank you so much, Robert. It's always so awesome to hear specifically from you because you are talking to landscape companies out there every single day and hearing it first. And it's awesome that you can bring all of that and help share with our audience. So I appreciate your insight.
Robert Felton [00:21:47]:
Always happy to talk to you, Jamie. And always happy to talk on the podcast. And yeah, thanks so much for having me. Cheers, y'all.
21:55 - Landscaper’s Summit Highlights: What to Expect
Jamie DuBose [00:21:55]:
So we've heard several mentions today in this podcast episode about our 5th Annual Landscaper Summit coming up on October 10. So what are some highlights that attendees can expect at this year's Summit?
Hayden Storms [00:22:07]:
Great question, Jamie. My name is Hayden Storms. I'm the Marketing Coordinator here at Ramblin Jackson. This year's Landscaper’s Summit is packed with game changing insights from top industry leaders who are actively shaping the landscape business. You'll hear from experts like Steve Bosquet from Green Profit Academy showing you how to leverage leadership strengths to build a high performing team. Joshua Gillow from Yes Express will break down how treating your landscape company like a hospitality business can create a standout customer experience. We'll dive deep into building a sales process that drives both efficiency and higher close rates, with Lex Mason from Weathermatic discussing how to differentiate your business in a crowded market. You'll leave with strategies to attract your Hell Yes Customers and systems to empower your teams.
Hayden Storms [00:22:50]:
Plus, don't miss the chance to vote for the winner of the first ever Landscape Leader of the Year Contest featuring the finalists live at The Summit. The Summit isn't just about learning. It's a day dedicated to stepping back and focusing on your business strategy, giving you practical tools for real growth as you head into 2025. You can find all the details, the agenda, and more information on The Summit Gift Box at landscapersummit.com.
Jamie DuBose [00:23:15]:
That sounds so awesome, Hayden. Thank you so much for sharing all of those details. And if you're watching, we hope to see you at our upcoming Landscaper’s Summit happening on October 10.
Hayden Storms [00:23:22]:
Look forward to seeing you there.
23:23 - Final Thoughts + Don’t Forget to Register for the Summit!
Jamie DuBose [00:23:24]:
Thank you so much for joining us for this special episode of The Landscaper’s Guide Podcast, and thank you to all of the Ramblers who shared your insights today. If you're a landscape professional who's ready to dominate your local market in 2025, don't miss the upcoming Landscaper’s Summit happening on October 10 from 9:00a.m. to 3:00p.m. Mountain Time. You can find all of the details at landscapersummit.com, and we'll be talking about some of the things that some of our Ramblers shared today in this podcast episode. So if you are ready to invest in your business, learn from the best, and walk away with strategies you can start implementing right away. Make sure you join us and check the link in the show notes for more information. We'll see you next time.
Show Notes:
Watch the full episode + see the transcript at: landscapersguide.com/podcast
Tell us where to send your beef jerky: landscapersguide.com/toolbox
???? Register for the 5th Annual Landscaper’s Summit Here!: landscapersummit.com
???? Learn more about Ramblin Jackson: ramblinjackson.com