Welcome back to the podcast this is We talk about
the real side of building a business. Not the
Instagram version. Not the highlight reel. But
the real hustle. And today I want to talk about
something that a lot of lawn care companies misunderstand.
And that's brain. Because a lot of people think
that their brand is the wrap on their truck.
They think it's their logo, their yard signs,
their hats, their shirts. Don't get me wrong.
Those things matter. But your brand is way bigger
than a wrap. a logo, a shirt, or a hat. Your
brand is you. In segment number one, we want
to talk about the misunderstanding of branding.
A lot of guys think when they get a nice logo,
they wrap their truck, that they've built a brand.
They order shirts. They put signs in yards. Maybe
they build a website or a Google Me page. And
they think that that is branding. But here's
the truth. Those things wraps signs, hats, shirts,
websites, social media. Those things are branding
tools. They're not the brand itself. Because
branding isn't just what people see. Branding
is what people experience. It's the way you answer
the phone. It's the way you treat clients. It's
the way you show up when nobody else is. That
is the brand. It's what you do. When nobody is
watching When you don't have a crowd When you
don't have an audience and you're not in the
spotlight How do you respond what do you do Do
you conduct yourself in a professional manner
that is the brand. Let's take a short break and
let's hear a word from my show sponsor. And I
just want to say how much I appreciate Eartha
Pro. It is a software designed for the lawn care
or service based industries to help you run your
business more smoothly. It eliminates a lot of
office time so you can focus on working on your
business and not in your business. So, Eartha
Bro, thank you for being a show sponsor. Tired
of chasing payments and losing track of jobs?
Eartha Pro Backoffice software makes it simple
for solo guys and small lawn care and landscaping
crews. Schedule, invoice, and organize all in
the same place. We also have a mobile app and
integrate into QuickBooks. Sign up at EarthaPro
.com with promo code THELAWNHUSTLE11 for a $50
Amazon gift card, 10 % off, and personalized
onboarding. Eartha Pro, you run the outside work,
we run the office. And today we're talking about
branding and how we've already discussed branding
is not your rap. Branding is not your logo. Those
are tools to attract attention to you. You are
your brand. Reputation is the real brand. Your
brand lives in the minds of your customers. When
someone in town says your business name, what
do people think? When they're setting around
a table at the restaurant drinking coffee. and
someone brings up your business. What is the
conversation? Where does the conversation lead?
What do they say? Do they say, those guys are
reliable? They show up when they say they will.
They do great work. Or do they say they're hard
to get a hold of? They're inconsistent. They
rush jobs. Your logo doesn't control that. Your
behavior does. Your systems do. Your standards
do. And if you have listened to this podcast
for very long, you've heard me say before, I'll
say it again, it's always right to do right.
We should strive to be men and women of interest.
integrity. Men and women who run our businesses
professionally, yes. Consistently, yes. But with
a spirit of integrity, honesty, and with a servant's
heart. Because we are here to serve our clients.
Do they say you're a man of your word or you're
not reliable? It makes a difference what people
say when you're not in the room. The owner is
the brand. And we hear a lot of people talk about
branding, running out and spending a lot of money
on the wraps, the logos, the webpages, the signs,
the shirts, the hats. And I'm all for all of
those things. But you cannot confuse what the
real brand is. The real brand is the owner, especially
in a service -based industry like lawn care.
You are the face of the company. Now everyone
wants to talk about LeBron James should be the
face of the NBA. I have a very strong opinion
about that. I won't share it with you today,
but I think that would be a major mistake because
the face of an organization makes the difference.
And you are the face of your organization. your
reputation becomes the company's reputation.
If you are not dependable your business will
not be dependable. If you are not reliable your
business won't be reliable. If you are dishonest
your business will practice dishonesty. I'm talking
about being the face of your company. Being the
brand. Being what you want to build. It makes
all the difference. The way you talk to people.
The way you solve problems. The way you handle
mistakes. Do you try to hide them or do you own
them? Well, we didn't do that. Well, who else
did? You're the only one mowing the property.
You're the only one on site. It didn't happen
by itself. Instead of trying to hide it and avoid
it, face it. Own it and correct it. That becomes
the brand. When you get too close to a downspout
and you put a dent in the downspout, own it,
fix it, that becomes the brand. The client thinks
about your business, they think about the time
that you took responsibility, you fixed a problem,
you took care of it, you didn't deny it, you
didn't lie about it, you didn't try to hide it
or avoid it, but you accepted it. And that is
the brand. The client. feel about you, what they
think about you is the brand. I hope this is
making sense. I really want to bring this home
today because too many times we think if I can
just get a logo, I can be successful. Let me
tell you, you can have the sharpest logo in your
city. You can have the greatest wrap in your
city, the best signs, the best shirts, the best
hats. But if you don't run your business professionally,
none of that matters. But if you are professional,
all of that can make a world of difference in
the number of leads you get, the number of contracts
you sign, the amount of revenue you make. But
it all comes back to the brand, you. as an individual
business owner, you are the brand. A wrap truck
might get you attention, but your character earns
trust. And trust is what builds the brand. We're
going to take another short break and hear a
word from a show sponsor, Green Frog Web Design.
And when we come back from this break, we're
going to talk about the small things that build
a brand. I'm thankful for Green Frog Web Design.
If you are in need of a website, visit Green
Frog. Talk with Ezra. He can build you an incredible
web design. So let's hear a word from Green Frog.
Does your website look like it was built in 2008?
Does this sound familiar? Glurry photos, clunky
button, varied phone numbers? That's costing
you leads. At Green Frog Web Design, we build
sharp modern websites built to bring you business.
Not chase it away. Stop hiding behind that updated
website. Visit greenfrogwebdesign .com and let's
fix that website today. So let's talk about the
small things that build a brand. Because the
brand gets built in the little moments Showing
up on time Communicating clearly with your clients
Doing what you said you would do Fixing things
when something goes wrong Answering calls when
the customer has concerns. These things, they
don't go viral. They don't look flashy on social
media. But they build a reputation. And they
build integrity. And they build trust. And the
strongest marketing tool in the world is your
reputation. Now let's be honest, marketing gets
you noticed. A website gets you noticed. A wrap,
a logo, a shirt, a hat. It gets you noticed.
A nice truck can make people look at you. A good
website can get leads. But once you show up,
your brand is how you perform. That's why I say
when you show up, show out. Do the best work
possible. every client's property the same because
that's what decides whether someone calls you
again next year, refers you to their neighbors,
or forgets about your business entirely. So if
you are building a lawn care business right now,
remember this. Your brand is not just the wrap,
the signs, the hats, the shirts. Those are tools.
Your brand is the way you work. Your brand. is
being a man of your word, the way you treat people,
the way you carry yourself as a professional.
Your brand is you. And when you understand that,
you stop chasing attention and you start building
a reputation. and reputation builds a business
that lasts. I've got clients I've served. This
will be my 17th season serving these clients
because I've been able to retain them through
the years because I've worked hard at building
a relationship, building a trust, building a
reputation, by telling the truth, by doing what
I say I'm going to do, by answering the phone,
by showing concern with what concerns my customers.
All of those things are building a brand. because
I am the face of my company. If you got value
out of this episode, share it with someone else
in the green industry. And if you are out here
every day trying to build something real, keep
hustling because this is the Lawn Hustle. Thank
you for listening to the show. We will talk again
real soon