Fred Berns

Fred Berns coaches, writes promotional copy for and speaks to green industry professionals nationwide. He's the author of the book "Sell Yourself! 501 Ways to Get Them to Buy from YOU." For more information, visit WhatsYourOnly.com, email Fred@Whatsyouronly.com or call 303-589-3013.

Articles by Fred Berns

• If ‘more sales’ is your answer, what are your questions?

  Wednesday, January 06, 2016

  Green industry professionals looking to close more sales should ask more questions. And they should listen — carefully — to the responses. In fact, listening (and hearing) more and talking less might be a good New Year's resolution for green industry professionals.

• Green industry blogging: ‘Pain’ posts pay off

  Thursday, September 24, 2015

  ​Is your blog bringing you business? That's a key question for green industry professionals at a time when more garden centers, nurseries and landscape companies than ever before are adding blogging to their marketing mix.

• ‘What about’ upselling your lawn and landscape services?

  Wednesday, July 29, 2015

  What's a great way for lawn and landscape firms, garden centers, nurseries and other green industry companies to boost sales in these competitive times? Ask current clients about future needs. Ask: "What about ...?" No question leads to more sales than one with those two words.

• Adding a touch of ‘class’ to garden center marketing

  Wednesday, May 06, 2015

  School is in session at garden centers across the nation. More independent centers are offering more classes on more topics than ever before. It's a way to educate their customers, to be sure, but it's also a way to stand out and get noticed in an increasingly crowded marketplace.

• In green industry social networking, blogging is best

  Tuesday, April 07, 2015

  Futz with Facebook and toy with Twitter all you want, but you're better off blogging. As a green industry professional, you don't have unlimited time to spend on social media marketing. The best use of that time, by far, is on blogging.

• Success may be ‘only’ a word away for garden centers

  Wednesday, March 11, 2015

  Independent garden centers today face more competition than any other division of the green industry. There are now more than 16,000 garden centers in America, and home owners planting their spring gardens this year have more buying options than ever before. In addition to their local garden store, they can turn to supermarkets, convenience stores, big-box outlets, nurseries, online retailers and other resources for their plants, bulbs and other gardening needs.

• Marketing when you’re busy gets the phone ringing when you’re not

  Tuesday, February 10, 2015

  Too many green industry companies use warmer weather and crowded calendars as reasons to put marketing on hold. Bad idea. As spring approaches, many owners of lawn and landscape firms, garden centers, nurseries and other firms have a lot on their minds other than promoting their services. But busy times are the best times to think about slow ones.

• Garden centers need to think outside the (big) box

  Tuesday, January 27, 2015

  ​What does it take to outmaneuver and outsmart bigger competitors with deeper pockets? Independent garden centers are discovering it takes a combination of innovative products and services along with offbeat events.

• Success shortcut: Sell what the other guys don’t

  Tuesday, January 13, 2015

  All too many green industry professionals play the same game of selling. They focus exclusively on selling more perennials and plugs, or more mowing and maintenance, figuring that strategy alone will help them substantially grow their profits. The problem is that virtually all of their competitors — including the biggest of the big-box chain stores and franchise companies — have the same idea in mind.

• Lawn care companies should expect unexpected questions

  Tuesday, December 09, 2014

  ​They're the questions from hell — the ones lawn and landscape professionals hate to hear, but often do. The questions may deal with price (as in, "Why is your company so expensive?"), safety ("The pesticides you use are dangerous, aren't they?") or a variety of other topics.

• Video: A timely, terrific marketing tool for green industry pros

  Tuesday, November 18, 2014

  During a drought years ago, a garden center owner in Colorado Springs, Colorado, mentioned a soil nutrient product during a news segment on a local TV station. Within a few days, his center sold more than 300 bags of that product. It was, Mike Spencer recalled, proof-positive of the power of video exposure.

• 20 keys to a killer website

  Tuesday, November 04, 2014

  ​You don't have to be a techno-wizard, and it doesn't take rocket science to create a killer website for your lawn and landscape company, garden center or nursery. All it takes is 20 steps.

• Free publicity: How to get quoted and promoted in the media

  Tuesday, October 21, 2014

  The best advertising that green industry professionals can't buy is free publicity. And the opportunities to get that publicity are abundant. As lawn and landscape, or garden center or nursery professionals, you have what the media needs: insights about timely and topical subjects that readers, viewers and listeners care about a great deal.

• Green industry marketing: Small is smart

  Tuesday, October 07, 2014

  Little stuff counts. Little stuff is asking about Phase II of the project, before you start Phase I. It's writing a Facebook post about your new client. It's linking your email signature to your bio. It's networking at a meeting of local property managers.