Photo: NALP/FlickrSince April is National Lawn Care Month, landscapers everywhere can find cause to celebrate.
Whether your area is currently experiencing spring-like weather or not, lawn care is still a service that is in high demand. The start of the season is the perfect time to get your customers excited about the many benefits of a well-cared for lawn, and this is an excellent time to take advantage of beautiful lawn and garden photos you can showcase on your company’s media sites.
According to the National Association of Landscape Professionals (NALP), more than three in four U.S. adults have a home with landscaping or a lawn, and 94 percent say that lawn or landscape services were performed at their home in the past year.
NALP also notes that 74 percent of homeowners believe they know how to care for their lawn each season, with 68 percent feeling confident in their lawn care knowledge.
The numbers don’t lie, and as a member of the land care industry, you have the knowledge and skills to help educate your customers on why it’s important to hire a professional. Some customers may be impressed with the basic statistics shared earlier, but others may be curious as to what benefits come with a well-kept lawn.
For starters, one acre of grass produces more oxygen than one acre of rainforest, according to the International Society of Arboriculture (ISA). The Colorado State University Extension says that the amount of rain an average golf course absorbs during a 1-inch rainstorm is approximately 4 million gallons, which helps reduce run-off.
Along with providing fun and beautiful places for customers to lounge and enjoy, lawns have also proven to be at least 30 degrees cooler than blacktop driveways. And for customers who love creativity, having a landscape allows them the opportunity to get a unique design and a variety of plants to showcase in their yard.
If your customers have trees present in their landscape, these outdoor benefits also increase. Trees absorb CO2 by removing and storing it before releasing it as oxygen back into the air. According to Tree People, in the span of one year, an acre of mature trees can provide enough oxygen for 18 people. Trees not only absorb CO2, but they can also take in odors and pollutant gases. They can then filter particulates out of the air by trapping them in the bark and leaves.
The shade provided from trees helps reduce the speed at which water evaporates, and they reduce runoff by breaking rainfall, which allows water to flow into the soil below. This helps prevent stormwater from carrying pollutants into the ocean. Trees can also act as a sponge when mulched and can filter the water they collect to recharge groundwater supplies. When placed on hillsides and stream slopes, they can also slow runoff and help hold the soil in place.
As we mentioned earlier, the benefits of a beautifully maintained yard don’t stop with your customers. You as a business owner can benefit from having photo-worthy projects to show off on your website and social media accounts. It’s true that a picture is worth a thousand words, and this is especially true when it comes to marketing your landscaping company.
With the growing popularity of social media sites, knowing exactly how to capitalize on a beautiful lawn could potentially help you bring in new customers or help you gain dedicated ones who will ask for your assistance regularly.
To find out more about the benefits of a well-maintained lawn, check out the video below.
