OPPORTUNITY SALES GUIDE

LATE SUMMER & EARLY FALL

This guide will provide you with ideas and tips on the best services to offer your clients in the late summer and fall. Keep in mind that

training is always available for you and your crews to maximize your sales opportunities this late summer and early fall.

www.treecarescience.com | info@treecarescience.com | 877-272-6747

Companies are so busy in the spring that they often have little time to focus on adding or growing their tree healthcare services. By late summer, the ongoing del-uge of client calls begins to taper off. This is the perfect time to grow your business by offering tree healthcare services for the fall season.

LATE SUMMER SELLING FOR THE FALLThe late summer is a great time of year to begin selling services for the fall. It is often during this period that trees begin to show signs and symp-toms of common plant healthcare problems.

You can treat for many of these plant healthcare problems immediately

WHY FALL IS IMPORTANTWe often think of the fall season as a slower time of year for plant health-care business. The days get shorter and colder and winter is just around the corner - a time when very little to no plant healthcare is being com-pleted. But the truth is that there are a lot of opportunities during the fall

and continue treating through the fall, allowing you to extend your business even further into the season.

Check out the Late Summer and Early Fall Treatment Quick Guide at the end of this document for a complete list of plant healthcare services to offer in the fall.

that many tree care professionals do not take advantage of.

The key is to actively engage your customers during the late summer. This guide will provide you with tips and information on how to develop a successful fall tree healthcare marketing and sales plan.

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TREE CARE SEASONS

TREE CARE SEASONS SERVICES TO OFFER IN LATE SUMMER & FALL

Trees Showing SymptomsSymptoms from many insect, diseases, and abiotic issues are apparent in the late summer and early fall.

Treat late summer/fall for:

• Sycamore anthracnose• Chlorosis• Mild chronic tree decline• Planted too deep• Japanese beetle damage

You’ll want to identify:• What are the 2-3 most common trees in the area?• What are the 2-3 most common symptoms or issues

associated with these trees?• Get on the property:

- Identify the trees - What tree healthcare protocols can I propose? - What pruning can I propose?

Preventive TreatmentsFall is a great time to treat for many common invasive pests (such as Emerald Ash Borer) to prevent attacks in the following year.

Treatments in the fall also help to reduce your produc-tion workload in the spring - while still providing effec-tive control for the following year.

Treat next spring for:

Sell For Spring TreatmentsSome issues which generate visible symptoms in the late summer and fall cannot be treated during the fall. This is a good opportunity to pro-actively visit with your clients and offer treat-ment services for next spring. Damage from fo-liar diseases such as apple scab or anthracnose is highly visible in the fall, so be sure to let your clients know that they can get on your spring schedule for treatment.

Treat this fall for protection next spring for:

• Borer damage• Scale insects• Cool-season mites• Aphids

Chlorosis is easy to diagnose and is prominent this time of year.

• Early spring insects including plant bugs, white pine weevil, aphids, soft scales, leafminers, emerald ash borer, and more

• Winter moth and other spring caterpillars• Bronze birch borer• Two-lined chestnut borer

• Apple scab• Anthracnose• Powdery mildew• Bacterial leaf scorch• Gypsy moth

• Bagworm• Pine wilt disease• Diplodia• Rhizospharea

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Focus Your EffortsSure, you offer dozens of tree health services, but to reach your objectives for fall sales it is best to narrow your focus. This makes it easier to communicate to your customer.

• Since you are focusing on 2-3 services, it is much easier to schedule applications which can result in higher profit margins by increasing your operational efficiency.

• See the Late Summer and Early Fall Treatment Quick Guide for ideas on 2-3 services that would be a good fit for your clients.

Ideas & Tips For Sales And Special Offers

Fixed pricing “Green-up your tree for $150!” will generate a greater response from current clients, as they are not as willing to go through the consultation/pro-

posal/acceptance process this time of year.

Loyalty discountsOffer fall savings programs for clients that used

your services earlier in the year.

Easy add-on servicesOffer to treat other trees on the property for a small fee, or offer an additional service for a tree you are already servicing. For example, offer to treat their birch tree for an additional $35 if you are already

treating their ash tree.

Utilize Your Current Customer DatabaseFall is not always the best time to be looking for new clients. Focus on sifting through your current customer database in the late summer for the best potential post-summer sales op-portunities.

• Do you have an inventory of your customers’ trees? Having a database that can allow you to filter your properties by tree species can be very useful for creating a client list for late sum-mer and fall marketing efforts.

• Reaching out to a smaller group of your clients with a smaller offering of services will yield a higher return in responses.

DEFINE YOUR OFFER AND MAKE IT SIMPLE

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REACH YOUR CLIENTS

WHAT?

REACH YOUR CLIENTS

Decide on 1-3 services to focus on (see the Fall Treatment Quick Guide).

If you have the ability to filter your client list by tree species you can ensure your message reaches your ideal customer (for example, only send a ‘Protect Your Ash Tree’ message to clients with ash trees). Target a problem with observable symptoms the client can see.

WHO?

HOW?

Nothing’s worse than generating a ton of leads with no way to call them back. Be sure you have a plan for following up with leads.

E-newsletters and E-mail Blasts

These can be cost-effective ways to get a message in front of clients. Send 5 or 5,000 for the same cost.

NEED HELP? We have content and photos you can use to make your campaign a success.

Direct Mail

A postcard can be a great way to get a simple bulletin to your clients.

NEED HELP? We can add your logo and contact info to a postcard you can bring right to a printer to get produced.

Website

Your website should be updated to include your fall services and any specials you may be offering.

NEED HELP? We can help you with what content should be included on a webpage and even provide photos for you to use on your site.

Meet Face-to-Face

Meeting clients in person is the most effective way to let them know the issues their trees may have, and solu-tions you offer.

NEED HELP? We have sell sheets on a variety of tree health care topics that can be fully customized with your logo and info to use when working with your clients.

Decide the best way to reach your client base. Remember that it often takes more than one ‘touch’ before customers make a buying decision, so consider more than one approach this fall.

FOLLOWUP

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AB

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TREE/PLANT ISSUE TREATMENT APP METHOD TIMINGAsh Emerald Ash Borer Mectinite® Tree Injection Up until fall color

Ash Emerald Ash Borer Xytect™ Soil Injection/Drench Until ground freezes

Azalea, Eucalyptus, others

Southern red mite Lucid™ Spray When mites are active

Birch Bronze birch borer Xytect™ Soil Injection/Drench Until ground freezes

Birch ChlorosisVerdur™,

Cambistat™Tree Injection, Soil Injection/Drench

Just prior to fall color and after leaf drop

Birch Leafminer Xytect™ Soil Injection/Drench Until ground freezes

Black walnut, Honeylocust

Fall webworm Lepitect™ Soil Injection/Drench Until early fall

Boxwood Leafminer Xytect™ Soil Injection/Drench Until ground freezes

BoxwoodPsyllid and BLM

controlXytect™ Soil Injection/Drench Until ground freezes

Elm Dutch elm disease Arbotect™ Tree Injection Until fall coloration

HemlocksHemlock woolly

adelgid, ScaleXytect™,

Transtect™Soil Injection/Drench Until ground freezes

Holly Leafminer Xytect™ Soil Injection/Drench Until ground freezes

Honeylocust Plant bug Xytect™ Soil Injection/Drench Until ground freezes

Many species Aphids Xytect™ Soil Injection/Drench Until ground freezes

Many species Compacted soilsAir-Spade,

Cambistat™Air-Spade, Soil

Injection/DrenchUntil ground freezes

Many speciesDrought resis-

tanceCambistat™ Soil Injection/Drench Until ground freezes

Many species Foliar diseasesMyclotect™,

othersSpray Spring

Many species Injured roots Cambistat™ Soil Injection/Drench Until ground freezes

Many speciesPlanted too deep,

girdling rootsAir-Spade Air-Spade Until ground freezes

Solution Center: www.treecarescience.com | info@treecarescience.com | 877-272-6747

LATE SUMMER AND EARLY FALLTREATMENT QUICK GUIDE

6 Rainbow Treecare Scientific Advancements

TREE/PLANT ISSUE TREATMENT APP METHOD TIMINGMany species Reduce growth Cambistat™ Soil Injection/Drench Until ground freezes

Many species ScalesRTSA Hort. Oil,

Transtect™Spray Through dormant season

Many species Soft Scales Xytect™ Soil Injection/Drench Until ground freezes

Many species Spotted Lanternfly Transtect™Soil Injection/

Bark SprayUp until fall color

Many species Thrips Xytect™ Soil Injection/Drench Until ground freezes

Many species Urban tree stress Cambistat™ Soil Injection/Drench Until ground freezes

Many speciesWinter moth (preventive)

Mectinite® Tree Injection Until fall coloration

Many species Whitefly Xytect™ Soil Injection/Drench Until ground freezes

Oaks Oak Gall Wasp Lepitect™ Soil Injection Spring

Oaks2-Lined Chestnut

BorerXytect™ Soil Injection/Drench Until ground freezes

Oaks Oak wilt Alamo™ Tree Injection Until fall coloration

PalmsLethal yellowing of

PalmsBacastat™ Tree Injection N/A

Pin Oak ChlorosisVerdur™,

Cambistat™Tree Injection, Soil Injection/Drench

Just prior to fall color and after leaf drop

Spruce Spruce Gall Adelgid Xytect™ Soil Injection/Drench Until ground freezes

Spruce White Pine Weevil Xytect™ Soil Injection/Drench Until ground freezes

Spruce Spider mite Lepitect™ Soil Injection/Drench Until mid-fall

Spruce (especially CO Blue Spruce)

Cytospora Canker Cambistat™ Soil Injection/Drench Until ground freezes

Spruce, other conifers

Spruce spider miteLucid™

BifenamiteSpray When mites are active

Spruce, other conifers

Spruce spider mite Lepitect™ Soil Injection When mites are active

Sycamore Anthracnose Arbotect™ Tree Injection Until fall coloration

©2019 Rainbow Treecare Scientific Advancements

Solution Center: www.treecarescience.com | info@treecarescience.com | 877-272-6747

Treatment Quick Guide continued...