Does Your Landscaping Company Have a Loyalty Program? Here’s Why You Need One!

Smart business owners reward loyalty. Are you recognizing and rewarding your repeat customers? You could be ignoring a very smart business practice if you aren't. Every landscaper or owner of a landscaping company should think about creating a loyalty program for clients.

There's no need to feel intimidated about setting up a loyalty program. The process can actually be very simple and inexpensive for a business owner. What's more, a loyalty program could help to build long-term revenue. Take a look at why your landscaping company needs a loyalty program and how to set one up.

Why Your Landscaping Company Needs a Loyalty Program

Clients love to feel like they are valued. The clients who use your services week after week or month after month deserve some recognition. In fact, feeling valued is the one thing that could prevent a customer from going to the landscaper down the street in search of lower rates. Your goal should be to let your clients know that you appreciate their business and you are always looking for innovative ways to reward their loyalty.

Are you stuck in the mindset that you shouldn't be giving away services for free or at a discounted rate? That type of thinking is counter intuitive. The fact of the matter is that it's cheaper and easier to keep an existing customer than it is to earn a new customer. Most companies actually get about 80 percent of their revenue from 20 percent of their customers. Are you doing enough to keep your special 20 percent happy?

A loyalty program keeps clients looking forward. Knowing that a discount will be coming after a certain number of visits will encourage customers to continue to book services through your company. What's more, even just the act of enrolling in your company's loyalty program will make a customer feel like they are part of your team.

Choosing Rewards for Your Loyalty Program

How should you reward loyal clients? You'll need to set up some tiers for rewards. For instance, a client could receive 10 percent off if they book a year's worth of mowing in advance. You could also offer something like 25 percent off an appointment once a client books a certain number of landscaping appointments. It's really up to you to decide what is realistic for your company’s bottom line.

It's also worth considering small prizes for clients when they hit certain milestones. This can include inexpensive things like a free shrub, plant, garden fountain or some other item that you can purchase in bulk and dispense whenever a client qualifies. These little touches can make customers feel valued and encourage them to keep using your company for all of their landscaping needs.

One of the smartest things you can do before you attempt to launch a loyalty program is to measure just how happy your current customers are with your services. Sending out a quick survey is often the easiest way to accomplish this. A survey can also be part of your plan for identifying which customers you want to target with your loyalty program. You may want to open the program up to all customers. However, sometimes it's only necessary to open up a program to customers who spend at a certain level each year.

Invest in Marketing for Your Loyalty Program

It can really pay off if you dress up your program. What does this mean? In a nutshell, share with your customers information about your loyalty program versus just signing them up for a membership card. You can really reinforce the value of your loyalty program by giving it a strong digital presence.

Members should be part of an email list that receives updates, exclusive offers and more. You are basically enrolling your customers in your email marketing club when you are enrolling them in your loyalty program. This is a great way to drive interactions between your company and your clients. Clients who are enrolled will get emails reminding them to schedule their next sessions or receive tips regarding how to prepare their lawns for the upcoming season.

Encourage customers to send referrals. You might want to offer a special one-time discount whenever you book a new client as a result of a referral from an existing one. This is one of the best ways to get the word out about your company. What's more, it's marketing money that you're spending only after you've secured a sale! It doesn't get much better than that.

Your company's website should also have a special page dedicated to your loyalty program. This is where all of the details and benefits regarding the program will be spelled out for both existing and potential clients. Allow people to sign up digitally for your loyalty program on your website. You might even want to provide incentives by offering a coupon for 10 percent off on any service when they do sign up. This tactic will give you access to email addresses and other information that can be used for marketing purposes in the future.

Be Spontaneous

It helps to create predictable milestones for members of your loyalty program. However, consider spontaneity when it comes to offering discounts. Flash sales that are offered near special holidays can make clients feel like they are getting some pretty great deals. The excitement of getting an unexpected email offer or coupon in the mail can definitely persuade a past client to pick up the phone and book an appointment with you.

Start Planning Your Company's Loyalty Program Today

There has never been a better time to start developing a loyalty program for your customers! You don't have to run a large landscaping company in order to run a successful loyalty program. Simply start with however many customers you have right now. In fact, it can be extremely smart to start a loyalty program just as your company is taking off. You might find that the customers you build relationships with today become part of your company's success story.