Customer Recognition
Quote from TURF magazine:
The customer is always right—but, the customer doesn’t want to just be right, they want to be recognized, celebrated and cheered. Perhaps that explains why some in the industry have adopted the practice of honoring their customers with gifts and awards.
Carlos Johnson got the idea from corporate America. “I used to be a drug representative for a major pharmaceutical company, and having spent 15 years in corporate America, it was common to give rewards to customers. So, I took that concept with me when I started working full time in the maintenance business,” says Johnson, who now operates Johnson Enterprise (www.mississippiyardcutters.com) in Jackson, Miss.
Johnson offers a Yard of the Month promotion to recognize several customers each month. “I never want to single out just one customer as having the best yard, so my wife and I and some of the guys will draw five names each month. Of those, one of the yards will be the most outstanding, so they’re featured on the Johnson Enterprise Web site. But, we also have prizes for the four other customers, anything from something for their home to a garden tool,” he explains.
The winner also gets a gift certificate or a discount on landscaping services, and has a “Yard of the Month” sign installed in their yard for that month, a practice that many homeowner associations follow to help recognize landscaping excellence. In particular, Johnson says that customers really like having the sign in front of their house, and, “It’s an advertising tool for me, too,” he points out.
Johnson likes the system of drawing names, saying, “I just don’t like to single anyone out. Of our 320 customers, over the course of a year, everyone is going to have their fair chance.”
The Yard of the Month program isn’t the only way that Johnson has found to reward and recognize his customers. He also offers a referral program, with kickbacks for customers who refer new customers. “About one year ago, I started offering just $10 or $15 discounts to help them fill the gas tank, for example. People really appreciate that, especially in these difficult economic times,” he explains.
