|
Mining the Gold in Your Existing Customer List |
Look around at all of your company's assets : people, tools, equipment, computers, and more. Perhaps your most valuable asset is your list of high-quality, loyal customers. These clients are the backbone of your organization and can be counted on for steady business and referrals, season after season.
To be ready for 2009, make a plan to mine the gold in your customer list to sustain and to expand your business. Wise marketers know the fastest way to grow your project backlog is to sell more to active customers. Now is a great time to see which of your customers might be candidates for a additional services.
Many clients that invested in landscaping or irrigation in the last 5 years will be ready to enhance their investment with lighting, ponds or other landscape enhancements. Make a target list of customers that have the right profile (landscape size, property value, income, etc.) and launch your marketing efforts.
With your targeted list, approach them directly: in-person or by phone. Offer to do a lighting demonstration or to review your project portfolio with them. Show them that additional enhancements could add new impact and areas of interest into their existing landscape.
In addition, begin market lighting to your entire customer base using low-cost tools like billing statement stuffers, flyers, door hangers, and magnetic signs on your trucks. You'll find that simply letting customers know you offer additional services will yield leads from the clients that know you best. Prepare your "gold mining" plan and materials now for quality sales leads all season long.
___
Jeff Carowitz is a leading consultant to green industry businesses and can be reached at 760-532-7034 or Jeff@StrategicForceMarketing.com
|
The NEW Marketing Firepower |
Getting more Customers this Year and Beyond
You want more customers. Marketing Firepower has made changes to its program to help you get what you want. Quite some time ago Marketing Firepower consisted of a set of DVDs that showed you how to make radio work. We want you to know the amazing changes that have occurred with Marketing Firepower. Changes designed to help you get the customers you want:
- Marketing Firepower is media neutral (it does not focus on any specific media)
- Marketing Firepower is 100% online via the all new membership site at www.MarketingFirepower.info
- Marketing Firepower is only $199 for the year and REAMS will coop it 50%!
The biggest change to Marketing Firepower is the unlimited support and coaching at no additional fee. As a member of Marketing Firepower you have unlimited support via email or phone from a Marketing Firepower professional. You don't have to go at this on your own. You don't have to wonder if the decisions you are making are the right ones for you. Ask the Marketing Firepower professionals, its part of your membership.
FREE WEBINAR:
Marketing Firepower has offered to provide our customers with a Free Webinar on Thursday, April 9th, at 9am (CST). This is a great opportunity to listen to a 45 minute presentation titled "Turning Consumers into Customers". You will learn:
- The battle you must win before ever getting a consumer to become your customer.
- The decision making process all consumers go through before becoming a customer of yours.
- The forces working against you and how you can win.
- How to know if your business is ready for more customers.
- Why it's time to stop advertising and start educating.
Here is the link for the Webinar:
https://www2.gotomeeting.com/register/705375660
|
Water Feature Clean Out & Start Up Tips
|
As the Spring is upon us, many contractors have found that a way to increase their early season profits are with Water Feature maintenance. REAMS is here to supply you with a little know how for this ever growing maintenance market with a few tips on Spring Water Feature Maintenance.
Tools Required for Water Feature Maintenance
- Cleanout Pump with 25' of discharge hose
- Pressure Washer or a high pressure nozzle for hose
- Pruning Shears for trimming plants
- Small container to hold fish during clean out
- Two 5 gallon buckets for debris
- Fish Net
- EcoBlast Pond Debris Remover
- EcoStarter to remove chlorine & metals from water prior to putting fish back in pond
- EcoTabs plant fertilizer tabs
Water Feature Clean Out Steps
- Drain Water Feature, whether it be a pond or pondless. Place the pump in the deepest spot of the pond or in the snorkel of the pondless waterfall. Check your local codes before discharging the water into the surrounding areas.
- If there are fish, use some of the water from the pond to fill the holding tank. After catching the fish once the pond level gets to a low point, put the fish in the tank with a net over the top to prevent them from jumping out.
- Once drained, rinse down the rocks from top to bottom with a pressure washer or nozzle. In extreme cases sprinkler EcoBlast on any large areas of algae, allow to sit for 15 min. and the rinse away. Pump out dirty water as you are working.
- Remove any debris from the bottom of the skimmer or snorkel. Remove the media nets and rinse or replace the filter mats and media nets. This process is recommended once a year.
- Reattach the pump that powers the system.
- Now is a good time to do any adjustments of rocks and lighting in the water feature.
- Begin refilling the water feature.
- Once half full, re-introduce the fish back into their new environment. Add EcoStarter to remove any chlorine & metals before placing fish back in the water. Make sure you acclimate the fish to the pond water temperature before putting them back in the pond. Spring maintenance can be an easy and profitable way to start the season. Look for more information from REAMS on Summer and Fall Water Feature Maintenance and also algae control.
|
|
|
Upcoming REAMS Events |
REAMS NEWS
John Koskovich was awarded the 2008 MVP Employee of the Year!
The REAMS Urbandale, IA location was awarded the 2008 Warehouse of the Year!
REAMS Dates
May 25th - REAMS will be closed for Memorial Day |
|
Kichler LED |
|
When designing your next landscape lighting job using Kichler's new LED Fixtures, some care needs to be taken when sizing the transformer.
When using LED fixtures you cannot add the wattage of the LED fixtures to determine the transformer load. You must use the following VA (volts x amps) ratings:
4.5 Watt -> 7.5 VA
8.5 Watt -> 12.2 VA
12.4 Watt -> 16.7 VA
You add up the number of fixtures using the VA rating to determine the wattage of your transformer as in the following example:
Traditional Transformer Sizing
(10) Fixtures x 8.5 Watts=85 Watts
LED Transformer Sizing
(10) Fixtures x 12.2VA (not 8.5 watts)=122VA
Therefore a 100 Watt Transformer would not be large enough!
If you have any questions please contact your local REAMS representative.
|
|
Irritrol's New Contractor |
|
Irritrol's Elite Contractor Program is designed to reward your use of our products with purchase incentives all year long on Irritrol product you use everyday. There will also be additional incentives on other key products during the course of the year. You'll be a member of an elite group of contractors that will have access to product information, training tools, and much more. To register for the program please click on the logo below.
|
|
Contractor's Corner |
FOR SALE
1990 Case Maxi Sneaker
Series C
- Has Boring Rod Connection
- Rods not included
- 3300 Hours
- Shaker box rebuilt 2 years ago.
If interested call Bill Foulk @712-258-3388
FOR SALE
1-23 used Boring Rods for Ditch Witch 255
$50.00 Each
$40.00 Each for 2 or more
If Interested call Moore's Irrigation @ 402-330-9595
Have something to sell?
Send in the details of what you have to sell and we will post it in our next newsletter to help you try and sell it!!!
Contractor Page
The Contractor Page is now up and running. This area is where a REAMS customer can have a link to their website along with their logo to help funnel leads to your site!!!
If interested please send in your inquiry be clicking HERE.
|
|
|
