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On this episode of the Profit Roadmap, we welcome Naylor Taliaferro!
In this episode, you'll learn:
Naylor Taliaferro is the host of the popular YouTube channel Lawn Care Rookie, and he’s also host of the epic lawn care podcast, LCR Media.
Naylor started his professional career in retail management before making the jump to lawn care about 10 years ago. He did a lot of research and learned on his own along the way. Seeing a lack of resources at the start of his journey, he became a resource to help other lawn care businesses grow.
When Naylor first started, he was very intimidated. He found that as his business grew, he had less time. As a result, he was getting stressed out trying to take care of everything. He decided streamlining his service offerings was one of the best things he could do. Turf care, mowing, and fertilization/weed control, and other light services were among the service offerings he streamlined.
It is easy to want to promise the whole world to your clients. However, if you’re just starting out, you’ve got to pick a handful of specialties you can deliver on—which includes having the equipment to perform those specialties. Naylor knew his strengths as well as what he could offer. In turn, this allowed him to take out a loan from a family member to get his equipment. As a result, he was able to grow his business even more. Plus, he was even able to pay that loan back in a year.
Picking your ideal customer is incredibly important. Naylor looked at his local neighborhoods and saw there were tons of HOA-style neighborhoods with 700 - 1,000 houses each. He put his effort and focus into serving those communities.
By focusing on a certain customer archetype, it was a lot easier to grow his business. He kept going after the same kinds of clients, and it wasn’t long before he was running a second and third crew.
Early on, Naylor started building his social presence. He really liked networking, and this was just one more way he could reach a bigger audience. He has been regularly creating content on his Youtube channel, Lawn Care Rookie, since he started his business.
What most people don’t realize is that Youtube also functions as a search engine. In fact, many people use YouTube to start their search there to find info. For Naylor, he was sharing his journey on his channel. Due to this, he was able to expand his knowledge whilst learning from other lawn care professionals.
Naylor says it can feel overwhelming to handle social media. Trying to find the time to post on social media, figuring out all the different channels, and creating content can all feel like too much.
Naylor recommends you focus on aligning with your personality to result in the most effective actions. The easiest way to get started is to simply block out some regular time to create social media content. This might be very structured, planned-out content with a script. Alternatively, this might mean recording the more spontaneous times on the fly.
What kind of content should you create? It is easy to start by talking about your business and the services you perform. You’re already an expert on these services, so it should be easy enough for you to convert them.
However, the most important thing is to remember to have fun. It might take a little while to get into the rhythm of content creation, but if you are enjoying yourself, your audience will enjoy watching your content too.
Naylor also recommends having a bit of a game plan in terms of creating content. Are there some great before and after shots you can take at a certain property? If so, remember to bring your equipment (which could be your cell phone, if you’re just starting out) and be intentional with your efforts. Without a plan for things like before and afters, it is too easy to get caught up in the day-to-day activities and not be international with creating content that will grow your business.
The important thing is to just get started. Block the time, take some photos and videos with your phone, and then share those moments on social media.
Naylor says that Facebook is still one of the best places to share content. Creating a Facebook business page is a great place to start, and videos are still one of the best ways to reach a wider audience.
Naylor also recommends setting up your “Google My Business” page, which is a listing for your business on Google. This helps with SEO, which ultimately means it’s easier for more potential customers to discover your business via search.
From there, as your business grows, spend some time getting reviews. In turn, this easily helps boost your social credibility. This can be as simple as creating a quick email thanking your customers for being a client. Then, say something like, “If you’re happy with our service, we’d love for you to take a minute and review our service.” Then, provide a link at the bottom, and you’re all set!
Lots of service businesses want to know if they should hire a social media person. Naylor believes that while it isn’t necessary, it is helpful. We all know how much there is to do in a business, and some people just don’t have the personality that gets them excited about posting on social media.
If you’re just getting started, and your budget is tight, it would be wise to focus on creating the content yourself. Although, as you grow and take on more crews, it might be time to start looking for someone to manage your social media presence.
A big part of marketing is growing your brand. When Naylor first started, all he had was a magnet on the side of his truck. Though, for many businesses, branding can be as simple as some company shirts and uniforms with a basic logo on them. This gets people to recognize you in the neighborhood and is an easy way to win new clients.
Naylor says having a professional image is really important and helps build trust with your customers. He would always keep a spare uniform in his car so that he looked good when presenting an estimate.
As mentioned before, once you know the neighborhoods you want to target, you can then focus your marketing efforts on converting them. The traditional methods of door hangers or flyers are still very effective and can be paired with digital marketing and branding to amplify the effect. As a result, you can take over entire neighborhoods to develop condense routes.
It took Naylor time to grow his brand and his social media presence. Be patient with yourself, and don’t expect dramatic results overnight. Keep at it, and be consistent with your efforts on social media.
Want to learn more about Naylor? Check out his links below:
Related: Market and Automate for Growth With Mike Callahan and Mediagistic
Published June 15, 2023 7:00 AM
The following music was used for this media project:
Music: Summon the Rawk by Kevin MacLeod
Free download: https://filmmusic.io/song/4434-summon-the-rawk
License (CC BY 4.0): https://filmmusic.io/standard-license
Tags: Featured Post, Marketing, Podcast, Profit Roadmap
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