Years ago a long-time client in a male dominated industry told me I was part of their "good ole' boy" network - and he wasn't talking about social either. It was "the club". Needles to say, I was flattered, but I was also shocked.

I mean, I don't play golf (yet), go fishing or attend sporting events with any of my clients.

The only answer I could come up with is . . . I develop long-term working relationships with my clients. We respect and like each other. We're team mates and, most importantly, we're friends.

Topics: lawn and garden public relations, lawn & garden public relations, Garden Media Group

The Lawn and garden industry knows how to work social media; it’s free and a fantastic way to get the word out about new products and to foster a conversation with both new and loyal customers. Yet, there’s a major split on how garden businesses use social media.

A new study shows that garden and lawn businesses fall into one of two categories when using social media. Which one are you, a social butterfly or hyperconnector?  

Learn more about each type to see where you and your garden business fit best!

Topics: lawn and garden public relations, garden industry public relations, social media

Social media is an ever-evolving (and increasingly important) medium! LinkedIn changed their pages a few weeks back and now, Twitter’s spicing their platform up a bit.  Below, we’ll fill you in on how to use and master the new profile all while creating a cohesive message.

Topics: Public relations, lawn and garden public relations, Twitter, social media

According to Shareaholic, a provider of social sharing buttons and widgets with more than 200,000 publishers using its tools, Pinterest is now sending more traffic than Yahoo search.

We've blogged about Pinterest, and are self-proclaimed Pinterest addicts! Are you using Pinterest to drive traffic to your website? If not, you may want to start!

Topics: lawn and garden public relations, garden marketing, social media

Here at Garden Media we talk a lot about garden marketing and public relations.  We hope it helps clients, potential clients and anyone looking for a PR firm understand the science and technique behind what we do.

I recently came across this post from Henson Consulting about five qualities that make a potential firm a great fit for your lawn and garden business.

 

Topics: lawn and garden public relations, hiring a public relations person, lawn & garden public relations, horticultural marketing communications, Garden Media Group, garden industry public relations

How can Social Media Help Grow Your Garden Business? According to a recent Garden Writers Association report:  "More consumers are turning to social media sites and YouTube for gardening information, both showing an increase of 3-5% from last year." 

For your company, the question is not, "should I use social media?' But "what is my social media plan?"

Topics: lawn and garden public relations, garden marketing, social media

If you are looking to hire a PR firm, you should get proposals from a few contenders. But, how do you differentiate among public relations firms?

Topics: lawn and garden public relations, lawn & garden public relations, horticultural marketing communications, garden industry public relations

I recently saw a post on the Facebook group for garden centers asking, "How do I write a mission statement?" WOW! This is a tough question and a hard task.

Topics: lawn and garden public relations, horticultural marketing communications, Garden Media Group

INC., online had an interesting article about how successful people in business, from the garden industry to the finance industry, approach their work, and how they think.  You'd be surprised to know that most of them share the same perspectives and beliefs.

Topics: lawn and garden public relations, PR Strategy, marketing communications

Every year the American Society of Landscape Architects surveys its members who specialize in residential design and asks them to “rate the expected popularity of a variety of residential outdoor design elements”. These popular trends are important to know for any garden marketing executive who wants to get ahead of the curve. Not surprisingly, the category of gardens and landscape spaces was at the top of the list with a 96.6% rating it somewhat or very popular. It was followed closely by kitchen and entertainment outdoor livings spaces at 91.5 percent. Surprisingly, across all categories grills rated higher – 97.4% than the demand for low maintenance landscapes which scored a close 96.6%, followed by fireplaces/fire pits - 95.8% and dining areas 95.7%.  Which leads ASLA to conclude Americans want outdoor spaces for lots of entertaining that are not demanding on their time? This easy living at home in backyards for entertaining has been a trend since we first saw it emerging in 2001, and this love affair with the backyard shows no sign of slowing down. According to the 2012 Residential Landscape Architecture Trends survey, consumers still want kitchens and dining options, comfortable seating, and water features. Lighting remains popular with a score of 93.1% “as Americans plan to take more of their lives outside once the sun sets.” The economic recovery and bad real estate market continues to drive Americans to stay home and turn their yards into a paradise. The staycation is still alive and well. The survey showed that Americans still love their pools (79.2%), but love their spas a little more (80.4%). But other decorative water elements such as waterfalls or bubblers top even those scoring almost 90%. The good news for gardening companies is that Americans are being more practical and sustainable in their gardening practices.  Some 86.3% say their customers want native plants -- yeah! -- 85.4% drought-tolerant plants and 81.2 % are planting food/vegetable gardens. And more than half of them prefer to be organic 61.2%. There is hope. Additional information on residential landscape architecture can be found at www.asla.org/residentialinfo. Want to know more trends? Download our 2013 Garden Trends Report hot off the presses from the OFA Short Course.

Topics: lawn and garden public relations, garden marketing, horticultural marketing communications, Garden Media Group, garden industry public relations, Garden Trends