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Karlie Elam SBM 338 Spring 2010 Portfolio Service: Rick’s Lawn Service.
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Karlie ElamSBM 338Spring 2010PortfolioService: Rick’s Lawn Service
1. What is the opportunity or problem we see? Currently, Rick’s Lawn Service isn’t advertised in the community of Great Falls. They use word of mouth advertising along with having the business sign on the work truck. There is a great opportunity to advertise the services offered by Rick’s Lawn Service and make it known as an excellent, top-quality service. There is also a great opportunity to gain new clients and grow the business. 2. What do we want our advertising to do (inform/persuade, etc.)?The advertising for Rick’s Lawn Service will inform Great Falls and the surrounding communities about the services that are available and persuade them to either start using a lawn service (Rick’s Lawn Service, of course) or to use this service instead of the competition. 3. Whom are we trying to reach/what is our target market?The target market for Rick’s Lawn Service is somewhat blended. The advertising needs to appeal to homeowners, businesses with landscaping, working people who may not have time to care for their lawns, and elderly who may need assistance caring for their lawn. 4. What media will we use? How will we use it? When will we use it? The weather has everything to do with when business starts up in the spring. Weather-permitting, the plan would be to introduce flyers, newspaper ads, and launch local web-ads sometime in March. The flyers would be displayed in local businesses. Then in mid-April, brochures would be made available in the businesses that are already clients and then to prospective clients as well. A month later, in mid-May, radio ads, TV commercials, and billboards would be launched. These would make the service known to everyone when the lawn-mowing season is beginning to get underway. Also, an ad in the yellow pages would be added in the lawn care section as soon as possible so it could get in the next edition printed. Advertising Strategy
5. What doubts or fears do our prospects have, what are their perceptions about our product, our brand, our industry, the competition? Prospective clients surely have some doubt about the need to hire someone to do what they can do for themselves. There are several different businesses that offer these same services. Therefore, prospective clients may not know which business to use for their lawn service. I believe the main issue is to persuade people to use a lawn service first, and then worry about which one they will use. 6. Who are our competitors, and what makes them effective? There are several competitors in the city of Great Falls. Some of them include Mr. Green Lawn Services, Scotts Lawn Service, Dale’s Lawn Services, Dr. Lawn Landscaping Services, and Nitro Green Professional Lawn. I think the key reason that they may be more effective than Rick’s Lawn Service at this time is their advertising. More research on the competition may reveal some other reasons that make them more appealing to clients. 7. What will be our key persuasion, our key benefit? The key benefit of Rick’s Lawn Service is that the lawn care is detail-oriented and guarantees quality at a reasonable rate. It relieves the homeowner of having to care for their lawn. Instead, they put it in the trusted hands of Rick’s Lawn Service and their lawn becomes the envy of the neighborhood without the client having to lift a finger. 8. What will be the tone of our ads? The ads will be graphically eye-catching with an energetic, up-beat tone. This will appeal to people who are too tired at the end of the work day or run out of time in their busy day to take care of their lawn. The energetic tone of the ads will say “hey, let us take care of that for you!”
9. What supporting facts do we have to support our key benefit? Right now, supporting facts include client testimony. Otherwise, the business has let the detail-oriented work and happy customers speak for itself.10. What is our positioning strategy? The positioning strategy is to find out what people think of Rick’s Lawn Service and then find out what they think of the competition. With those results, we would establish where we want to be in consumers’ minds. To do this, we will use advertising to promote the service as one that makes life easier, makes the client’s yard the envy of the neighborhood, and all for a reasonable rate. I think success in this area will start with acknowledging that a lot of people feel like they can live without this service. Our goal is to make them see that they would be better off with it. 11. Are there legal issues of concern, e.g., disclosures or disclaimers? Permissions?At this point, the only legal issues I can think of would be permission to print and use client testimony and making sure that the logo and slogan for the business is trademarked.12. What are our ad requirements in terms of dimensions or run time, deadlines, and other production specs? The lawn mowing season is primarily summer, with other services starting in the spring. The deadlines for the first part of the campaign would be mid-February, with the next deadline in mid-March. The summer campaign would need to be completed and ready to launch at the beginning of May. The newspaper ads would run once a week to begin with, and then 3 times a week as the summer season draws nearer. The commercial and radio ad would run 3 times a day, every day, for 2 weeks. If another launch of these ads is needed, it could run 2-3 weeks later. 13. How will we measure the effectiveness of our advertising? The effectiveness of the advertising will be measured by the number of new clients and the percentage of growth experienced by the business. 14. Are there any obligatory client or agency elements?I don’t believe that there are any obligatory clients or agency elements at this point in the business.
Campaign Proposal Target Audience: homeowners (age 25+)Product Strengths:Detail-oriented, quality serviceAffordable ratesExperienced crewDependable Offers services in rural townsProduct Weakness:Service is controlled by weatherLack of advertisingCompetitor’s Product Names:Dr. Lawn Mr. Green(these two are the main competitors)Competitor Product Strengths:Large crewsMore equipmentSeen all over townA lot more advertisingMore than just lawn care (lot sweeping, insect control, pot hole repair…)Competitor Product Weakness:Not as detail-oriented Some specialize in large area accounts and commercial lots (not really ideal for the average homeowner.)Offers services primarily in Great Falls
Describe the advertising campaigns for your top four competitors. Where do they advertise? How often do they advertise?Dr. Lawn advertises on the web with their own site, a listing on google.com when the search for lawn care in Great Falls, MT is ran, and in the phonebook with an ad in the yellow pages. These ads are running year round. Also, their vehicles display their logo and contact information as well. That may be the best advertising because people see them mowing a lawn and know who the work is being done by. Mr. Green has their number listed in the yellow pages, listed on google.com, and sends out mailings. These two service providers are the top competitors. Other businesses that offer similar services that have ads in the yellow pages are Rousta Bout, Nitro-Green, and Greenup Lawn & Sprinklers. Scott’s Lawn Service is the only other one (that I’ve found) to have a website. The other businesses listed in my google.com search are: Dale’s Lawn Services, Greenbelt Lawn Service, Nitro-Green, Scott’s Lawn Service, and 4 Seasons Property Maintenance. Evaluate the competition’s ads. Are they effective? Why?I think that the two businesses that have websites have an edge over the rest of the competition because it gives people a chance to learn all about their services in detail. The yellow page ads are effective because they stand out over just a number listed. I would probably choose to call a business that had an ad if I was searching for a new service because it gives more information. I also think that mailings are effective and a way to get people thinking about their lawn care even before spring gets here. What are the unique selling propositions (USPs)/the big ideas used by your competitors?Nitro-Green wants to make your lawn “healthy” and “attractive.” I didn’t really get anything unique about Dr. Lawn or Mr. Green when it came to their ads. There wasn’t a main selling point for Rousta Bout either. Scott’s Lawn Service wants to “transform your lawn” and “make it thick and green.” What will be YOUR USP?The USP for Rick’s Lawn Service will be delivering the highest quality guaranteed at affordable prices. The USP developed throughout the campaign into focusing on the incredible attention to detail that Rick’s Lawn Service gives each lawn. Where will YOU advertise?We will definitely advertise in the phonebook with an ad in the yellow pages. We will also run newspaper ads before the business starts up for the year, as well as hanging flyers in businesses along with brochures. Direct mailings would also be effective as a means of advertising and getting the word out there about the service. What is your advertising concept, your advertising theme? The theme for our advertising will be a “convenient service that will make your yard the envy of the neighborhood.” As the ads developed throughout the semester, the theme was narrowed down to being the envy of the neighborhood, leaving out the “convenient service” part. What “thread” will run through all of your advertising regardless of medium chosen?The tagline “Driven by Sweat, Fueled by Desire” will run in all of the ads. The common thread will also be mentioning the quality of the work with the “envy of the neighborhood” theme.
Print Ad 1: Magazine Ad 1 The target audience for this ad is homeowners, and more specifically, fathers. The USP for this ad isn’t as clearly defined as it is in the ads later in the campaign. The USP is the service’s “incredible attention to detail” that is mentioned at the bottom of the ad along with “affordable rates” and “experienced crew.” The USP is more developed in later ads. I chose the background of a beautifully manicured lawn because that is what lawns look like when people use Rick’s Lawn Service. The headline “Your neighbors will be jealous. We promise.” draws the attention because people will want to know how this will happen. The body copy explains that Rick’s Lawn Service can help you out by taking care of your lawn so you don’t have to and that your neighbors will be jealous when they have to work in their yard but you are playing in yours. The image of a father playing soccer with his son is an example of what you can be doing because your lawn is already taken care of. The image is a stock photo, which is why it has lines and letters on it, but it would be replaced by an original photo for the real campaign. The name of the business along with the tagline is in a lighter green color to give the impression that it is mowed into the lawn. This ad is consistent with the campaign proposal and advertising strategy because it appeals to the target market of homeowners and displays the service’s key benefit. It has an energetic tone as well. This ad focuses on the service’s strengths that were discussed in the campaign proposal. This ad fits the theme of being the envy of the neighborhood by promising that your neighbors will be jealous when you hire Rick’s Lawn Service to take care of your lawn.
Print Ad 2: Newspaper Ad The target audience for this ad is all homeowners. The USP is the incredible attention to detail. This is displayed in the headline “Not a Single Blade of Grass Will be Ignored. Guaranteed.” This ad would run in the Montana section of the Great Falls Tribune as well as in the Hot Ticket feature in Friday’s paper. I kept this ad very simple because after looking in every section of the Great Falls Tribune, all of the ads are simple and basic. This ad focuses on the benefit of attention to detail. This is what sets Rick’s Lawn Service apart from the competition. The image of someone trimming the grass with a pair of scissors gives the reader an image of every inch of their yard being manicured. The body copy is short and sweet, focusing on the USP. I didn’t use many colors, again keeping it basic because newspapers aren’t the right media for lots of colors and details. This ad is consistent with the campaign because it focuses on the main strength of the service, which is the attention to detail. This is where the color theme of using black with bright green lettering is first seen. It is used throughout the rest of the campaign. The line that says “Go ahead. Make the neighbors jealous.” is what ties the campaign theme into this ad.
Print Ad 3: Magazine Ad 2 This ad is modified to reach a different target audience. The target audience for this ad is still homeowners, just a different segment of homeowners. More specifically, the target audience is retired homeowners. The USP is not as obvious in this ad as it is in other ads in this campaign. This ad is more focused on appealing to the target audience. The USP is mentioned at the bottom of the ad, as it is with the first magazine ad. It says “Incredible Attention to Detail. Affordable Rates. Experienced Crew.” This line sums up Rick’s Lawn Service and includes the USP, which is the attention to detail. I used the same great lawn that I used as a background in the first magazine ad. The headline grabs the attention of retired people and suggests that reading this ad will show them something that will make their life better. The copy is short and sweet. It basically encourages retired people to go do whatever it is they’ve been waiting to do and Rick’s Lawn Service will take care of their lawn. The image supports the body copy because it is an elderly couple looking out on their beautiful lawn dreaming of going to Paris and on a cruise. Doing these things all while their lawn is looking fantastic will no doubt make them the envy of their neighborhood. The bottom of the ad contains all of the necessary information, which is the same as the previous magazine ad, just a different color to make the ad more cohesive. I used a different font in this ad because I didn’t want to use the same bold font for this target group. I think the font fits the target group very well in this ad. This ad fits into the campaign very well because the theme is obvious in the body copy and the images support it as well. The benefit to the client is also obvious.
Brochure The target audience is all homeowners. The goal of the brochure is to inform potential clients of the services that Rick’s Lawn Service offers, answer some Frequently Asked Questions, and provide pictures of current clients’ lawns. The USP is not the focus of the brochure. It is mentioned in one of the answers to the FAQ’s. It says “not a single blade of grass will be ignored.” This explains the USP, which is the incredible attention to detail. I chose to use the lawn image as a background because it ties in with the magazine ads and also seemed more appropriate than a plain white background. The inside of the brochure has pictures of both residential and commercial lawns. I included this because we can talk about how great their lawn will look, but I think it will be really beneficial to show some examples as well. These pictures would be replaced by actual photos, which I couldn’t get because it’s winter! The right panel of the brochure includes a fold and tear out detachable business card. I chose this feature so that people can tear it out and give it to someone else to spread the word or keep it and put it on the fridge or somewhere else as a reminder. The middle panel features the services that are offered and also features a warning that “you neighbors will be jealous.” This ties it into the theme of the campaign. The left panel features some questions people may be thinking when considering hiring a lawn service, along with the answers. The bottom of that panel features an actual member of the crew. This helps put a face to the crew that keeps being mentioned in the campaign. The phone number is featured on the business card as well as on the cover of the brochure. The one thing that I wish I had more information on to put in the brochure is about the prices. I inquired with the owner of the service and he didn’t want to give numbers out. He just said that it varies by the size of the lawn.
Radio Ad The target audience for the radio ad is all homeowners. The ad will reach different types of homeowners depending on the station that it is heard on. The USP is incredible attention to detail that will make your neighbors jealous. I chose to use 4 different people to record the audio so that it sounded really believable. I chose a male voice for the announcer so that it sounded more authoritative. I chose to include sounds of birds chirping along with other outdoor sounds so that it gave the image of being outside with people looking over a fence into their neighbor’s yard. Keeping the ad to 15 seconds was a real challenge. Had there been a few more seconds, it would be slightly slower, but I think the way it turned out will keep the listener’s attention from start to finish. The stations that we would air our radio ad on are 97.9 FM (The River), because it is a station that has a middle-aged listener base and is also commonly played in workplaces, and 94.5 FM, because it plays a different kind of music (country) and will reach a different group of listeners. We would also air our commercial on 560 AM (KMON) because the listeners are an older generation that we also want to reach. We would run the radio ad on Thursdays around noon and again at 4:30. We chose this time on this day because it would be reaching people on their lunch break as well as after work on their way home. We chose Thursdays because it is close to the weekend, when people want to have their lawn already taken care of but realize their time to get it done themselves is running out. It’s a perfect time for people to call Rick’s Lawn Service. The radio ad is consistent with the campaign because it gives a voice to the “jealous neighbors” and briefly explains that the incredible attention to detail is responsible for making the neighbors jealous.
CLIENT: Rick’s Lawn Service TITLE: “Jealous Neighbors” LENGTH: 15 seconds SFX: BIRDS CHIRPING/OUTDOOR SOUNDS NEIGHBORS: (SOUNDS OF ADMIRATION) Ooooooh! Wow! That’s incredible! ANNOUNCER: Want people to be jealous of your yard? Call Rick’s Lawn Service. Affordable rates. Experienced crew. And attention to detail that will make your neighbors – well, you heard them. NEIGHBORS: (MORE SOUNDS OF ADMIRATION) I wish mine looked like that! Me too! ANNOUNCER: Rick’s Lawn Service. Driven by sweat. Fueled by desire. (406) 452-6704. Click the image to hear the ad. Radio Ad
TV Commercial The target audience is homeowners, and more specifically in this ad, fathers. The USP is the incredible attention to detail, which the announcer describes when explaining about Rick’s Lawn Service. The theme of my campaign has been “be the envy of the neighborhood”, or some form of that thought. This ad was done from the perspective of the neighbors. I used the same announcer voice as in the radio ad to keep consistency. I used slight humor, with the guy going from looking out the window to the extreme of sticking his head over the fence to stare at the neighbor’s lawn to emphasize that your neighbors will want to know how you got your lawn looking so perfect. The commercial would air on Channel 5 (ABC) and Channel 3 (CBS). I chose these stations because they are local channels and reach our service area. It would not make sense to air the commercial on any station that wasn’t local because we only serve Great Falls and the surrounding areas. The commercial would run on Thursdays and Mondays. I chose Thursdays because the weekend is approaching but there is still time to call. Also, it is the same day as the radio ad, which will hopefully help spark some recognition. I chose Mondays because it is the start of the week, the first business day, and either people didn’t get to their lawn work over the weekend or they did and wish they wouldn’t have had to. The times that it would run are during the 5:30 p.m. and 10:00 p.m. news on channel 3, and during the 5:00 p.m., 6:00 p.m., and 10:00 p.m. news on channel 5. More specifically, it would run between the news and weather segments because some people change the channel after the weather segment. I chose these times because our target audience is very likely to watch the news on those channels during one of those times.
TV Commercial: Click the image to hear audio TV Commercial
Jumbo Postcard The target audience is all homeowners in Great Falls and the surrounding areas of Belt and Ulm. Rick’s Lawn Service already has clients in these towns. The postcard would not just be sent to everyone in Great Falls, for example, because people that rent or live in a condo do not need to take care of their own lawn. The USP is an incredible attention to detail. The goal for the jumbo postcard is to not only get the name of Rick’s Lawn Service out there, but to also attract new clients. The image on the front of the postcard is a family of four looking over a fence. The headline reads “Warning:”. I chose this image because this family represents the jealous neighbors that will result from hiring Rick’s Lawn Service. The mom and kids have shocked and admiring expressions on their faces, while the dad is less than amused because his family is staring at the neighbor’s lawn instead of their own. In order to see what the warning is for, you have to turn the postcard over to the back. The headline then reads “Your Neighbors will be Jealous.” The image is of a perfectly manicured lawn on the other side of the fence and a family of four who are happy and showing their “thumbs up.” The body copy is on the left side and explains why the neighbors are jealous, and how you can get a lawn that your neighbors will be jealous of too. The reader is prompted to action when it says “what are you waiting for? Call Rick’s Lawn Service today.” It then lists the phone number. The postcard is consistent with the campaign because it illustrates the theme of being the envy of the neighborhood by making your neighbors jealous with your perfectly manicured lawn. The body copy explains the benefits of the service and the colors are consistent with the campaign as well.
Billboard The target audience is all homeowners. The USP is the incredible attention to detail. I chose a simple layout so that the attention is on the words “the difference is in the details”, which is the USP. This basically tells people what sets us apart from the competition. The image is of a perfectly cut lawn and a member of the crew of Rick’s Lawn Service, who is also featured in the brochure. I chose to put his picture on there because his skillful weed-eating is where the detail work comes from. The bottom of the billboard is black with bright green letters that say the name of the company and the phone number to call. I didn’t want to include too much information because people usually only have time to glance at billboards as they are passing by. This gives people the basic information about the service. The billboard is consistent with the campaign because of the use of the black and bright green colors as well as the displaying of the key benefit, which is the attention to detail.
Yellow Page Ad The target audience is all homeowners. The USP is incredible attention to detail. The ad would run in the Lawn and Grounds Maintenance section of the yellow pages. I chose to do a display ad so that our business would stand out amongst the other lawn service ads. The border is a shade of green that will stand out from the other green borders that are currently used in the yellow pages under this section. The headline “The difference is in the details” is the same copy that is on our billboard so hopefully it will spur some recognition. It also makes it consistent with the rest of the campaign. The copy for this ad is basically all of the information that has been in all of our ads condensed into one. It tells the customer everything they need to know about our service other than the price, which varies from lawn to lawn. The only image I included is of a residential lawn to give customers an idea of what their yard could look like if they hired Rick’s Lawn Service. The image, however, is not the focus of this ad. I chose this size, which is the width of two columns and the length of almost the entire page, because it will dominate on the page and there are currently no other ads this size under this section. This size also allowed for a smooth layout and best served our purpose with the amount of information displayed. The ad is consistent with the advertising strategy because it displays the key benefit of the service and sets the service a part from its competitors. The ad is consistent with the campaign proposal because it focuses on the service’s strengths. It is also consistent with the theme of the campaign because it prompts the reader of the ad to “Call today and be the envy of the neighborhood!”
Website The target audience of the website is homeowners. The USP is incredible attention to detail. For the design of the website, I kept everything simple and basic, focusing on the content. I used basic pictures instead of ones that needed editing (other than a simple crop). I chose a green layout and used green font and borders throughout the site. The colors keep it consistent with the campaign. The theme of “making your neighbors jealous” can be seen in the headline on the home page. The focus on the USP (attention to detail) is mentioned several times throughout, mostly on the “about us” page in the description of the crew. I like the navigation on this page because you can get to any page from any other page. This seems to be the best option for easy navigation. I used a simple white background so that the focus would be on the graphics and the text. The website provides the most detail about the service.
Promotion Strategy The target audience for the first promotional ad is all homeowners. The target audience for the second promotional ad is families and students who like basketball. The USP for the service remains the same, which is the incredible attention to detail. I chose to do the promotion with Fuddrucker’s because they are one one of Rick’s Lawn Service’s clients and they have a great relationship with them. This promotion will actually benefit both businesses because it will result in new clients for the lawn service and new patrons to Fuddrucker’s. This ad is simple in appearance and graphics because the focus is on the text which explains the promotion. The main image is of a Fuddrucker’s burger because I want to attract people who like Fuddrucker’s and who will be interested in receiving the reward for signing up with Rick’s Lawn Service. The ad is consistent with the campaign because it uses the same font as the other ads and still explains the key benefit of the service. The promotion will be put in the newspaper as well as flyers put up in the local Fuddrucker’s establishment. I chose to do the basketball promotion for a few reasons. First, there are only so many “sales” you can have with our type of service. Therefore, I chose to have our business sponsor an event. In reality, Rick’s Lawn Service does sponsor this type of event; they have just never done it solo. I created this event because it is a realistic setting for sponsorship. The tournament is at Belt High School, which is where some of the crew goes to school and the owner teaches and coaches there. People not only associate Rick with his lawn service but also with basketball, both as a coach and a former player. This sponsorship also shows the community that Rick’s Lawn Service cares about the school and wants to give back. The idea is to draw teams from Great Falls and the surrounding areas, all within our areas of service. We will have a booth set up at the tournament with our information and opportunities for people to sign-up for our service. We will work with other businesses, such as Pepsi, to get donations for the tournament and barbeque, and in return we will promote their businesses at the tournament. The theme of the poster is all about the tournament, but the bottom clearly promotes the sponsor of the tournament, Rick’s Lawn Service. The ad still communicates the USP of the service and is consistent with the campaign by the use of color and font. This event will be promoted through flyers to be hung up during the month of May at all of the local schools as well as put in the newspaper.
Booth and Tri-Fold The target audience is homeowners. The USP is the incredible attention to detail which is displayed in both image and text in our booth. Our booth would be featured at an event such as the annual Home and Garden Show in Great Falls, MT. The objective for that event would be to raise awareness of our service among homeowners and get people to take information and sign-up for our service, whether at the event or shortly afterwards. The promotion at our booth is the “enter to win” opportunity. People get to put their name (and phone number) into the box and one person will win a free spring-clean up and power-raking to kick off the lawn service season. At our table there will be brochures (produced earlier in this class), magnets (our newspaper ad turned into a magnet), and our promotional flyers (also produced earlier in this class). The attraction at our booth is the interactive display that has buttons for people to push and “hear what the neighbors have to say.” The image is the exact same as the front of the post card that we sent out as direct mail. Each person in the image has a button below them and two different sayings that can be heard when you press the button. This is a way that makes our campaign theme of “be the envy of the neighborhood” and making your neighbors jealous come to life. It may even give people a little laugh. The “enter to win” is also an attraction that will hopefully draw people to the booth. The booth will be staffed by the actual crew of Rick’s Lawn Service, all wearing green sleeveless T-shirts that say “Rick’s Lawn Service” on the front and “The difference is in the details” on the back. This will give people the opportunity to meet the crew that they are trusting their lawn to and also ask questions to the guys that are actually doing the work. Visitors will browse the material on the table, maybe enter their name in the drawing, and take some candy. Prospects will take the information, talk to the crew, and ask questions.
Booth and Tri-Fold I wanted to keep the booth relatively simple so that the focus would be on the content. Overall, I wanted the booth to be a place to gather information, talk to the crew, and make people aware of our service. I used the same theme as our campaign and took pieces from some of the previous ads and tied them together into one booth. The tabletop display is the biggest and main backdrop that displays our USP through image and words. The free-standing banner lists our services nice and big and easy to read. The free-standing display that is on the floor is the interactive one that is mentioned above. I thought this would be a great addition to the booth because it makes one of our campaign pieces, the postcard, come to life. On the table there is our sales literature, enter to win box, and a bowl of candy. The candy is something that will appeal to families because the adults can browse the information and talk to the crew while the kids eat candy. Plus, adults like candy too! I chose to make the floor of the booth real grass (sod) because it will bring in the smell of being outside and also give our booth the “wow” factor as far as appearance goes. Plus, the grass will be perfectly manicured (at least at the beginning before it gets trampled) and will be a great example of what your grass could look like with our service. The tri-fold is simple and yet ads some detail to the display. I chose to use this space to put pictures of the lawns that are taken care of by Rick’s Lawn Service. The text on the tri-fold is simple and gives an overview of the service. The colors of the tri-fold match the display nicely. The tri-fold will be on the front table. Hopefully after people look at the tri-fold it will make them want to go into the booth and find out more details.
International Ad I created a magazine ad to run in Australia. The target audience is all homeowners. The USP is still the attention to detail that Rick’s Lawn Service provides. It is displayed in the phrase “Detailing Down Under one lawn at a time”. When I researched about the culture of Australia, I learned that Australians are down to earth and don’t like giving the impression that they are better than anyone else. Australians also like people who are modest, humble, and have a sense of humor. Once I learned this I realized that my current theme of “being the envy of the neighborhood” really didn’t fit the Australian culture. I decided to do something somewhat humorous. The ad is a two part ad that would run in a magazine at the bottom on two consecutive pages. The first part of the ad resembles the postcard created earlier in the campaign. The characters have changed to appeal to Australia. The first character is a surfer guy. The idea is to appeal to men who can identify with him and appeal to women who think he is good looking. The middle character is an outback-type woman. Using two diverse characters will hopefully appeal to the masses of Australia. The third character is a kangaroo, which is where the slight humor comes in. The text on this part of the ad uses some Australian lingo with the word “crikey.” You would not find this word on an American ad. The next part of the ad reveals what the characters are staring at over the fence. The text says “what a beaut.” This is how an Australian would say “wow, that’s beautiful.” The man and woman are looking at the lawn. It’s left up to the opinion of the reader whether or not the kangaroo is admiring the lawn or the kangaroo sunbathing on the beautiful lawn. I chose to do the ad this way because instead of wanting Australians to be jealous of their neighbors lawn, I wanted it to focus on being attracted to the beautiful lawn that is a result of hiring Rick’s Lawn Service. The images, colors, and fonts are consistent with the campaign. Although the theme has changed a little to appeal to the culture of Australia, the key benefit remains the same.
Business-to-Business Ad The target audience is local business owners who have a lawn on their property. The USP is the incredible attention to detail. The need that the USP is satisfying is giving businesses a lawn that sets it apart from their competition. I created a business-to-business ad in the form of a bi-fold brochure that would be used as a direct mailing. I wanted to do a B2B ad that gives business owners all of the information that could possibly need about Rick’s Lawn Service, and I wanted it to be different than the original brochure I did earlier in the semester. The goal for the cover of the brochure was to have a simple but sharp looking design with clean lines and bold colors. I used the same color theme as the rest of the campaign, which is black and bright green. The first set of inside pages (pages 2-3) has a large image of a beautiful lawn with people cheering. The headline says “want these to be your customers?” The idea behind the image is that the customers think that the outside of the business looks so great with their beautiful lawn that it makes them cheer, just as they would for good service from your business. The body copy gives the necessary information to get the business owner interested and intrigued. Then you turn the page to pages 4-5 and find the list of services and contact information. There are also testimonies from other business owners who are happy with the service they receive from Rick’s Lawn Service. I included this in the brochure so that potential clients would see that their peers are happy with the service. This feature of the brochure also gives the potential client examples of current clients’ lawns that they can check out, and once they do they will want their lawn to look like that too. The final page is similar to the front as far as the design. It just reiterates the contact info and USP. The overall theme of this ad revolves around giving your customers a great first impression with a lawn that will give them something to cheer about. It is also about making your competition jealous. This happens because your lawn has been given an incredible attention to detail.
Ties to the Campaign Throughout my campaign for Rick’s Lawn Service, there are several ties that hold all of the ads together and binds them to the campaign as a whole. One of the ties is the color theme of black and bright green. Another thing that is consistent throughout the campaign is the tagline “Driven by Sweat. Fueled by Desire.” This tagline was never the focus of any of the ads, however, it describes the service in a brief line and can be seen on the ads throughout the campaign. The overall theme of being the envy of the neighborhood is also consistent throughout the entire campaign. It is displayed in different ways, but always points to the key benefit of the service, which is the incredible attention to detail. Some of the ways that it is displayed are through the sounds of envious neighbors in the radio ad, the image of neighbors looking over the fence on the postcard, and seeing the lawn service from the neighbor’s point of view in the TV commercial. If the theme isn’t showed through images, it is displayed in words. There is always a reference to “making your neighbors jealous” or “being the envy of the neighborhood.” Another tie that binds all of the ads to the campaign is the energetic tone and constant reference to the service’s strengths and the thing that sets it apart from the competition, which is our USP. All of the ads have one or more of these features that tie the campaign together as a whole. Overall, this campaign satisfies the goals set out by the advertising strategy. The campaign has gotten the word out about Rick’s Lawn Service, whereas before there was minimal advertising for the service. I think this campaign would definitely gain new clients and grow the business as well. This campaign is very informative as well as persuasive and appeals to our target audience of homeowners. The campaign also erases any doubt that prospective clients may have about the need to hire a lawn service and explains what sets it apart from the other lawn services out there. The campaign is consistent with the campaign proposal as well. It highlights the strengths of the service and focuses on the service’s USP while staying true to the overall theme of the campaign.
