November 2010

T h e O f f i c i a l P u b l i c at i o n o f t h e T e xa s N u r s e ry & L a n d s c a p e A s s o c i at i o n

Rate My
Marketing!

Four landscaping companies

put their marketing documents
to the test.
pag e 12

No Comparison:
Branding
Yourself as
One-of-a-Kind
pag e 23

Branding:
It’s More Than Just a Logo
P lu s :

21 IPM: Winter Woes...

25 Making Cents: Change Is
Are you the first company your customers think of? the Only Constant
A good brand cuts to the customer’s subconscious,
plays on their emotions and memories, and builds
unending loyalty.
s ta r t i n g o n pag e 6
© 2010 OHP, Inc. Discus is a registered trademark of OHP, Inc.
Discus
Insecticide
N/G

W
Greenhouse Nursery
NE

Excellent knockdown
Broad spectrum
3-4 weeks foliar control of sucking / chewing insects
800-356-4647 | ohp.com
 November 2010

F EAT U RES
6 Branding: It’s More than Just a Logo
A strong integrated brand is a powerful business asset. Learn how

8 to develop real personality, emotion, and excitement in your brand.

By Rick Holberg.

12 Rate My Marketing!
Three seconds. That’s all the time you have to capture a customer’s
attention. Five landscape companies put their marketing materials to
the test, getting rated by marketing professionals.

C o lu m n s
21 IPM Winter Woes... by Kevin Ong, Ph.D.

19


23
25
27
Marketing No Comparison: Branding Yourself as One-of-a-Kind by Jeffrey Scott
Making Cents Change Is the Only Constant by Charlie Hall, Ph.D.
Tradeshow Tips Exhibiting Magic: Part 1 by Susan A. Friedmann, CSP

Departments
19 Newsbites 28 Classified Ads
28 New Members 29 Calendar of Events
28 Newly Certified 29 Advertisers Index

21
Texas Nursery & Landscape Association
7730 South IH-35
Austin, TX 78745-6698
phone: 512.280.5182 or 800.880.0343
fax: 512.280.3012
email: info@tnlaonline .org

www.tnlaonline.org

3
TNLAGreen
TNLA G r e e n TNLA G r e e n

the official publication of the

Texas Nursery & Landscape Association
Pr esident’s Letter
November 2010 • Vol. XII No. 10
Dear Members
Officers
Chairman of the Board
Mark Harris, TCLP, CLP . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Houston A Message from Eddy D. Edmondson, President
Chairman-Elect
Robert Cartwright . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Tyler

Immediate Past Chairman
James Wilhite, TCLP . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Tyler
President
Eddy D. Edmondson . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Austin
B OAR D OF D IRECTORS
Region I Billy Long, TCLP . . . . . . . . . . . . . San Antonio
Region II James Curtice, TCLP . . . . . . . . . . . . . Houston
Region III Mark Chamblee, TMCNP . . . . . . . . . . . Tyler
Region IV Paul S. Tomaso, TCNP . . . . . . . . . . . . . Dallas
Region V Sam Weger, TMCNP . . . . . . . . . . . Fort Worth
Region VI John Smothers, TCNP . . . . . . . . . . . Lubbock
Region VII Jon Klement, TCLP, TMCNP . . . . . . McAllen
Region VIII Larry Best, TCNP . . . . . . . . . . . Cedar Park
Supplier Director Bobby Spence . . . . . . Fort Worth
Landscape Director Johnette Taylor . . . . . . . Dallas
Grower Director April Herring, TCNP . . . Magnolia
Retail Director Mark Baxmann, TMCNP . . Houston
TNLA S ta f f
President . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Eddy D. Edmondson
Vice President . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Amy Graham
Comptroller . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Jo Tucker
Accounting Assistant . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Jenny Garcia
Communications Manager . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Judi Hays
Region Services Coordinator . . . . . . Kenny Pettitte
Director, Legislative and
Regulatory Affairs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Jim Reaves
Education Manager . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Chelsey Robles
Exhibits Manager . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Amy Prenger
Exhibits Manager . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Mike Yelverton
Administrative Assistant Expo . . . . . Dena Guerrero
Certification & Membership
Coordinator . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Marisol Ybarra
Office Operations Assistant . . . . Nancy E. Sollohub
T
his issue is set to come out right around Election Day. We’ve
got a very important year ahead of us in the Texas State
Legislature, so if we’ve caught you in time, please be sure to
vote—and if we’re catching you after the fact, thank you for
voting. We’ll have an update for you next month on the results
of the election, and then we’ll have our legislative primer in the
January issue of TNLA Green, telling you all about the critical
issues coming up in the 82nd Legislature.
Speaking of elections, ballots for the TNLA elections have been mailed to
members. If you haven’t already, in the next few weeks you’ll receive up to three
separate ballots: one for State Chairman-Elect, one for State Regional Director,
and one for State Business Segment Director. Please voice your opinion, since this
is your Association and we want it to best represent you.
Being as we are in a seasonal industry, business looks quite different now than
it did even a couple of months ago. Growers are out looking for frost blankets
to protect their crops through the spring, garden centers see a lot less traffic,
and many landscapers turn to hanging Christmas lights as an offseason service
offering. Something else to think about in the winter is working on your business
strategy for the coming year. If you want to rebrand yourself, build a new
website, create your 2011 marketing strategy, or recruit and train new hires,
there’s no better time to do that. To that end, this month’s main feature is a truly
informative piece by Green Industry branding expert Rick Holberg on how to
build a great brand. We’re also discussing that subject pretty heavily in the 2011
TNLA Management Workshop on January 14–15 in Fort Worth. Titled “The
Efficiency Perspective,” this year’s Management Workshop will provide you ideas
to improve the efficiency of your people, your systems, and your marketing.
Also, read this month’s Newsbites page, since we’ve got several members who
received awards or accolades in recent weeks. m
Sincerely,

T N L A G r e e n S ta f f
Editor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Judi Hays
E d dy D. E d m o n d s o n
Editorial Coordinator . . . . . . . . . . David Kassin Fried
President
Art Director . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Marie Leonard
Advertising Coordinator . . . . . . . Carol Miller, TCNP

TNLA Green magazine is a member service of the Texas Nursery

M i s s i o n S tat e m e n t
& Landscape Association, and is published monthly with the The Texas Nursery and Landscape Association’s mission is to enhance
annual exception of a combined July/August issue. Advertis-
ing information is available from TNLA, 7730 South IH 35, members’ business success through legislative/regulatory advocacy,
Austin, Texas 78745, online at www.tnlaonline.org, or by calling education, networking, and promotion of professionalism.
800-880-0343. TNLA office hours are weekdays, 9 AM - 5 PM CST.
© 2010 Texas Nursery & Landscape Association

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 TNLA G r e e n

Branding:
It’s More Than
Just a Logo

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By R i c k H o l b e rg
Let’s conduct a little experiment. If someone says
“athletic shoes,” what’s the first product you think
of? Now what pops to mind if they say “fast food?”
And how about “soft drink?”
G
ranted, our individual answers
might be slightly different, but
most of you probably thought
of Nike, McDonald’s, and
Coca Cola. Why? Because
Nike, McDonald’s, and Coca Cola
are the most powerful brands in their
respective product categories.
Now let’s localize our thinking to the
area where you do business. If someone
says “garden center,” who do you
think of? How about “landscaper?” Or
“grower?” Now our collective answers
will be completely different, but I’d bet
the farm that you immediately thought
of the best branded businesses in your
local market—those that have made
the strongest impression on you; those
that have paid the most attention to
their customers; those that have realized
that a brand is more than just a logo,
it’s a collection of thoughts, feelings,
and emotions that you associate with
a business. A brand is an unspoken
promise a business makes to operate
by a set of values that it consistently
embraces and communicates for an
extended period of time.
Creating a strong integrated brand
can be a powerful business asset. It
can create top-of-mind awareness in a
consumer’s consciousness, just like Nike,
McDonald’s, and Coca Cola. It can drive
consumer preference, create distinct
A brand is an unspoken promise a business
makes to operate by a set of values that it
consistently embraces and communicates
for an extended period of time.
No v e m b e r 2 0 1 0 / T e xa s N u r s e ry & L a n d s c a p e A s s o c i at i o n
TNLA G r e e n
6 Keys to
Successful Brand
Implementation
1: Add branding to the budget
The best way to ensure dedication to
a brand development program is to
competitive advantages, and generate
buyer loyalty. And all of that can help
commit monetary resources to it. It will
add to your bottom line. become an intangible business asset.
2: Consider a phased approach
Buyer Loyalty Most small businesses need to
Many people consider brands purely from implement a brand identity program
the retail perspective, associating it with over several months (or years).
the product or the logomark. That’s brand Subtle changes over time will also be
identity. But a strategically planned, fully more comfortable from a customer
integrated brand goes much deeper than
perspective.
that. It cuts to the customer’s subconscious
and plays on their emotions and memories. 3: Start easy—achieve some
Done well, it creates loyal “I won’t buy immediate success
from anyone else” fanatics. Think about getting the most brand
bang for your buck. Implementing your
For example, how many Apple fanatics new logo and repainting your facility
does this country now have? How many in the new brand colors is an easy,
people carry the new iPhone 4 in their impactful way to signal a brand change.
pockets and brag about their new apps
every chance they get? Is it the best 4: Don’t overlook internal branding
smart phone on the market? Maybe, Make sure everyone in your business
maybe not—Android certainly doesn’t understands what the new brand
think so. Does it get the best coverage signifies: The meaning behind the
area? Verizon’s “Maps” campaign argues new logo, tagline, and messaging is
emphatically that it doesn’t. Is it the the approach you expect with every
cheapest? Not by a long shot. customer interaction.
But although there are now a dozen 5: Don’t slide
choices for similar smartphones, millions Change can be stressful, so expect some
of Americans won’t even consider internal pushback. But your new brand
them. Why? Simply because of brand represents a new promise to customers
loyalty. Apple customers are willing to and a new attitude in everything you do.
look beyond higher cost and possible Don’t revert back to old ways that might
performance issues because of past seem more comfortable.
experiences with the company and their
(continued on page 8) 6: Get feedback and adapt to it!
Find out what customers think of
the changes you’ve made in your
store (or your business). Carefully
consider their opinions, and use that
as the basis for continuing your brand
implementation.
/ w w w . tNLAo n l i n e . o r g 7
 TNLA G r e e n

(continued from page 7)

products. They inherently trust Apple.
The Green Branding Process They desire to own their products.

GreenBranding recently completed a rebranding project for Herbein’s Garden Wouldn’t you want the same loyalty
Center in Emmaus, PA (near Allentown). After reviewing the property, they used for your green industry business? Your
images from the garden center and surrounding areas to build brand visuals, brand can help make that happen.
capturing the colors of the buildings and the look and feel of the Pennsylvania
Dutch street signs local to the area. They looked specifically at higher-end Owning Your Brand
shops, the upper class client being an essential target in Herbein’s brand. Whether you realize it or not, your
business already has its own brand. The
question is whether you’ve embraced it
and/or whether that brand is true to what
you really want your business to stand for.

Try to take an objective look at your

business from your customer’s point
of view. What do they see? And more
importantly, what do they feel? If
someone asked them to think of a
garden center (or landscaper, grower,
or supplier), would yours be the first
business that pops into their minds?

Consider your business’ brand touch

points. There are myriad aspects that
Th e r e s u lt: The muted tones in the color palette give it a subtle, help define your brand position in your
sophisticated look, with the red (which communicates passion) drawing in marketplace:
the history of the region. The typography brings an extra layer of elegance
• logo
(Herbein’s) with a bold understatement (Garden Center), and the icon—an
• fonts and colors
inverted tree—evokes the nature of the business, while avoiding the brand
• slogan and tagline
cliché and providing a memorable “Easter egg,” as many people won’t notice
• advertising and media messaging
the trunk or the branches of the tree on first glance.
• your unique selling proposition
• the quality of your products or
services
• pricing strategy
• how your employees personally
interact with customers
• how you answer the phone
• reputation

The list is almost endless.

Are all these touch points consistent with

what you envision your brand to be? Is
your tagline modern and trendy when
your products and/or services are not?
Is your advertising messaging friendly
and inviting, while your employees come
across as cold and detached? Do you pride
yourself in selling the newest products on
the market, while your logo is the same as
it’s been for the last 15 years?

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 TNLA G r e e n

Green, brown, and tan have been overused.

Develop a unique color palette, and
customers are more likely to remember you.
ent
r an d d evelopm Start with your ownership brown, and tan have been overused, so
nsive b rand
c o mprehe d esign, b and management team if you develop a unique color palette,
Fo r a g lo g o elines,
g ra m , includin r p a le tte guid and work out from there. customers are more likely to remember
pro ual, colo aging
ds man d mess Every employee needs to you. GreenBranding has developed logos
standar lo pme n t, a n
la y of $10,0
00
understand and “live” for garden centers using blues and reds
d e v e o u t
tagline ne-time e tricky
g y , e x pect a o ion is th
your brand: the tone, as the main color. Webb’s, a popular
strate n ta t tore
0 0 . Im plem e
c il ity c olors, s the messaging, and the English garden center, uses purple, and
to $15,0 fa
e logo, t graph
ics, attitude. From the sales they pull it off beautifully.
. R e p la cing th s, fle e
part uniform ing, and floor to the installation
s, e m ployee n a l a dvertis
sig n xt e r ,000 team to the stock room, Internally, your logo should represent
it e , in ternal/e $ 3 0 ,0 0 0 to $50
web s st s or if they can’t live it, they an image and a core idea that your team
ill t y p ically co n y s to refront
so on w out ma process
need to get off the bus, can get behind. Have you seen the arrow
b u s in ess with s is that this or the brand dissolves in the FedEx logo? Their employees all
a w
for ood ne rs and
c a t io n s. The g e w c ustome (weakens). know it’s there, and they know what
lo
brings
in n e end
e re n tly y a lt y , with th it means: always moving. Conversely,
inh omer lo
ed cust better y
ou! With your employees, just because you’re a nursery, does the
improv w a n d look at what you’re silhouette of a green tree really say
f a ne
result o currently known something unique about you? Or is it
for—the actions confused with the tree trimming business
and attitudes that down the road?
your managers and employees
elicit, and what that says about you as Externally, your logo should give new
a company. Then ask yourself what you customers a visual clue as to what to
want to be known for. If you could create, expect from your brand experience, and
Remember, a brand is a promise. If you from nothing, the perfect company, what it should give current customers a strong
promise one thing but deliver another, would it stand for? reminder of positive brand associations.
you’re suffering what’s known as “brand Now that you’ve noticed the FedEx
dissolve” and quickly diminishing any Once you know where you’re going arrow, you won’t help but see it pop out
brand equity you’ve built. internally, the best way to make the at you every time you pass one of the
change externally is with your visual company’s delivery trucks.
Building Your Brand identity, the core association your (continued on page 11)
So what do you do if you’ve taken a customers have with you. If you want to
hard look at your current brand and you change their perception, put on a new
don’t like what you see? Or perhaps you face, and update your logo.
want to change the image you have in
the marketplace. Strong brand visuals start with an iconic
logomark: a graphic that presents a core
Branding takes a real commitment on a meaning about your business to your
customers (and to your employees).
Downloaded from www.freelogovector.com

business owner’s part: both in time and

money. Even just updating your logo can
take anywhere from three weeks to three
months, so plan your brand identity
rollout accordingly. And it’s a very
important change, so hire a professional
branding and design firm, and carve
out some of your marketing budget
specifically for brand development and—
just as importantly—implementation.
Generally, good logos are easily
recognized and understood, convey
essentially the same meaning to all target
audiences, and evoke positive feelings.
Consider what would be appropriate
styles, graphics, colors, and fonts for You may not know the
your business. Don’t get trapped in the language, but you still
expected—that won’t differentiate your know what it says.
brand. In the Green Industry, green,

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 TNLA G r e e n

(continued from page 9)

Next, take a look at another critical
brand touch point: your tagline. If
your logo sets the pace for all of your
marketing materials, your tagline
sets the tone. In a few well-crafted
words—“The King of Beers” or “The
World On Time”—you’ll define your
brand and lay the foundation for all of
its messaging. Start by making a list of
words, thoughts, and feelings that you
want customers to associate with your
business. Steer clear of hackneyed terms
like “quality,” “solution,” “value,” and
“service.” They are so overused, they
no longer have real meaning or truth in
consumer’s minds. Start to put together
three to six word combinations. Say
them out loud. Think creatively about
what you’re trying to communicate to
your customers. Eventually the right
tagline will evolve. Just do it.
Implementation
With an updated logo and new focused
tagline, your brand can hit the ground
running. But remember to think
FedEx’s award-winning logo
is famous for its power and
subtlety. Early design drafts
had the arrow—a common
icon for businesses that want
to be associated with speed—more prominently
featured, but in the end they used this customized
typeface to build the arrow out of the font’s negative
space, creating a mark that’s developed legendary
status in the branding world.
strategically about implementing your
new brand. Every piece of marketing
communications, sales collateral, and
external imagery should be a reflection
of your brand’s core image and message.
So make a plan. Include adopting the
new brand visual and characteristics into
all facets of your marketing—retail or
yard signage, vehicles, sales flyers and
service brochures, advertising visual
layouts and messaging, your web site,
your social media “personality,” sales
staff training, and so on.
Once the brand is set internally, roll
your brand out to the community with
a media blitz. Pay for appropriate,
targeted advertising, use your blog
and social media, and search out PR
opportunities. But make sure all of your
external communications speak your
brand through visuals, words and tone.
Be consistent. Good brands change
only slightly over time. Consistency
is the key to brand awareness, recall,
and penetration in the marketplace.
If your customers don’t know what
to expect from your brand because of
inconsistency, they can’t form a solid
brand association with your business.

Build Your And most of all, be passionate. Brands

Brand Essential
Benefit
can actually take on familiar human
characteristics, like love (Hallmark),

Pyramid sophistication (Rolex), or trustworthiness

(Volvo). Develop real personality,
Product/Service Pricing emotion, and excitement in your brand.
Use words and images that evoke strong
Logo Slogan & Tagline positive feelings. Make what is truly
unique to your Green Industry business
the driving force that guides your brand,
Advertising Marketing builds top-of-mind awareness, and creates
loyal, enthusiastic fanatics. m
Customer Interactions Corporate Culture
Rick Holberg owns Holberg Design,
Reputation Customer Experiences a branding, marketing, and advertising
agency serving a national clientele.
GreenBranding was born as an offshoot
One way to work on your brand is to build a graphical depiction, known in 2005, following a rebrand for one
of the top 20 garden centers in the U.S.
as a brand pyramid. The pyramid places the essential benefit at the
Members of ANLA, GreenBranding
top (the emotional experience you’re committed to evoking) and the staff have presented brand development
company’s reputation as the foundation. and implementation seminars at
industry events nationwide. Learn
u Click here to download a blank Brand Pyramid worksheet. more at www.holbergdesign.com and
www.gardencentermakeover.com.

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 Rate My
TNLA G r e e n

Marketing
by M e l i s s a Pa l m i e r i
E xa m p l e # 1 :

T
hree seconds. It’s the amount of
time an offensive player can hang Business Card
out in the key in basketball. It’s
Th e Co m pa ny 
just under the generally accepted Weed Pro, www.weed-pro.com
amount of time you can leave a piece Sheffield Village, OH

of food on the ground and still eat it. Th e g o a l

And it’s the amount of time marketing When designing this business card,
Director of Marketing Shaun Kanary’s
experts say you have to grab someone’s goal was to create a conversation piece.
attention with your message. “Realizing that you don’t always have
the opportunity to have that personal conversation,
One. Two. Three. That’s it. this piece needed to tell Weed Pro’s story,” he says. “It
allows customers to engage with the card, our brand
overall and experience our story firsthand. In plain
Why, then, do so many lawncare and words, ‘We get rid of weeds. Guaranteed.’” At the same
landscape companies spend thousands time, Kanary wants to ensure the card maintains its
functionality and an affordable price point (20 cents
of dollars on poor marketing pieces? each compared to 12 cents for standard glossy cards).
Why don’t they invest those dollars
Th e e x p e r t
in halfway decent websites? We can’t Jennifer Myers, owner of Either/Or Media, a Laguna
answer those questions, but we can Beach, CA-based communications firm.
show you some real green industry
Expert’s Keys for Improvement
marketing pieces, how our experts Imagery. My first concern is that the dandelions, while
rated them and what tips they offer for technically a weed, look too much like pretty flowers
to be considered weeds at first glance. I would suggest
how to improve them. We found some using the later stage, or “blowball,” dandelions instead
customers to weigh in, too. for full effect.

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 TNLA G r e e n

E xa m p l e # 2 :
Direct Mail -
Postcard
Th e co m pa ny
A & S Lawn and Land Care
www.aslawnlandcare.com
Powhaten, VA

Th e G o a l
A&S wants to develop recognition
(and eventually gain new business)
among a select group of commercial
accounts in several ZIP codes where the
company has existing business. The 205
recipients were selected by crew leaders/
managers as prospects. “We plan to
mail out similar postcards to the same
recipients once per quarter, adding new
businesses to the database,” says Laura
Matherly, director of marketing. “As
this was our first mailing, we did not
expect any response, and it’s living up
to our expectations so far! Our goal
is that continued mailing will develop
recognition.”

Th e E x p e r t
Ed Delia, president of Delia Associates, a
digital brand communications firm based
in Whitehouse, NJ.

Target market. The second concern is that the hillside in the background Expert’s Keys for Improvement
doesn’t suggest a home lawn environment. Assuming that the suburban 1. What’s in it for me—the recipient?
homeowner is the target market with their product, a house or houses in Self-mailers need to establish recipient
the background would create a sense of that surrounding for the recipient. value first and foremost. The front of
this mailer is all about A&S Contracting.
Details. The card is so good overall it was hard to find improvements, so
the third item is a little nitpicky. I would turn the word “PULL” around 2. Engage the recipient immediately. The
(not shown) and use a small arrow to indicate how the recipient should most compelling point in this mailer did
access the image underneath. not show up until the second paragraph
on the back (not shown). Consider
Th e C u s to m e r ’s V i e w leading with a thought-provoking
Jamie Lewis, Homeowner, Uniontown, OH question regarding the environment, if
First impression. I really like these; they’re very creative. that’s going to be the focus of the piece.
So, would you call them? I would give them a call based off the business
card. It makes them seem like an innovative, unique company. 3. What do you want the recipient to
do? Call, go to the website, read a white
E x p e r t ’s R at i n g : paper, complete an evaluation, schedule

HHHH a consultation? The mailer does not

invite them to take action.
(continued on page 14)

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 TNLA G r e e n

(continued from page 13)

4. Why A&S Contracting? The mailer E xa m p l e # 3 :
needs to establish the company’s unique
value proposition to give recipients a
reason A&S should be on their radar. Web site Th e E x p e r t
“Copywriting Maven” Roberta
Being a quality commercial grounds
Th e co m pa ny Rosenberg, the founder of Clarksville,
management firm is not enough. What
Greenland Landscape & Masonry MD-based MGP Direct, is also the
is A&S best known for? What does it
www.landscapemasonrydesigns.com landing page makeover specialist for
do uncommonly well? A&S needs to go
Dacula, GA Copyblogger.com.
further to establish a unique difference
among its competitors. 
Th e G o a l Expert’s Keys for Improvement
Greenland Landscape & Masonry, led Completely revamp your site design—
5. Is the communication R.E.A.L.?
by husband and wife co-owners Mike now. A homepage’s main job is to give
Try this acronym with every outbound
and Marta Garland, want their website your visitors enough information to
communication:
to provide informative content for their drive them deeper into the site. Like
prospective customers and ensure search a display window for a traditional
Remarkable: Mailer should have
engine optimization. storefront, the homepage must present
a remarkable factor, inspiring
enough “goodies” to entice the prospect
recipients to tell others about it or
inside where the real selling takes place.
at the very least keep it because
the communication in and of itself
What you’re using right now has no
“wowed” them.
introductory statement or “unique value
proposition” (more on this in No. 2) that
Easy: Mailer should be easy to
immediately telegraphs what’s unique and
understand. Recipients should know
special about the company. It doesn’t use
at a glance precisely what A&S is
standard site conventions for navigation
communicating to them and how
placement. Visually, it looks amateurish
A&S will provide unique value.
and unprofessionally homegrown.
Actionable: Mailer should invite
recipients to take immediate action I’ve taken a commercially available
in multiple ways—call, e-mail, visit WordPress template (less than $100 to
website, etc. purchase) that you can use with just about
5 the original any web-hosting company and modified
Legit: Mailer should demonstrate
some proof (credentials, clients
served, testimonials, etc.) that A&S is
a top-quality firm.

Th e C u s to m e r ’s V i e w
Michelle Feher, Property manager –
The Keyes-Treuhaft Co., Cleveland, OH

First impression. A business that can

handle most of your landscaping needs.
They’re looking to help you succeed in
your business by making you look good
with your clients.
So, would you call them? If it was a local
company, I would.

E x p e r t ’s R at i n g :

HHH

14 w w w . tNLAo n l i n e . o r g / T e xa s N u r s e ry & L a n d s c a p e A s s o c i at i o n / No v e m b e r 2 0 1 0

it as an example of what GL&M could
be using for its website presence. Notice
how we’re able to introduce so much more
about your services both in word and
pictures. You could easily swap out the
main static image with an image gallery
for an even jazzier look.
Identify your company’s unique value
proposition. A unique value proposition
(UVP) is a statement of what only your
company can say about its product/
services that your competition can’t. For
example, if GL&M is the only company
of its kind to combine landscape and
masonry—then say so. It’s your value
proposition. If, on the other hand,
you’re one of many landscape/masonry
companies but the only one in the
Atlanta metro area—then say so. That’s
a value proposition, too.
A fast way to create your UVP—and
ultimately your tagline—is to fill-in
this sentence. “Only GL&M, located
in Metro Atlanta, does/offers/makes/
provides _____ for its valued landscape
design customers.”
Draft a few dozen of these until you get
two to three that really hit the mark.
Choose one and use it as a jumping
point to craft a new tagline, headline
and focus for your content. Remember,
you’re not shooting for clever—you’re
shooting for content clarity and service
differentiation.
Revise your site navigation to help your
visitors find the information they’re
looking for, fast. Your current navigation
doesn’t reveal enough of what your
visitor is looking for upfront. I’ve revised
the navigation to read instead:
HOME | CURRENT PROJECTS | GALLERY |
CLIENT TESTIMONIALS | NEWSLETTERS |
ABOUT US | CONTACT US
No v e m b e r 2 0 1 0 / T e xa s N u r s e ry & L a n d s c a p e A s s o c i at i o n
TNLA G r e e n
You’ll also want to add a site search
box so that visitors who know precisely
what they’re looking for can quickly
determine if you provide it or not.
Use social media—and a newsletter—to
help visitors turn into prospects
and prospects into clients. Commit
yourselves to producing a regular online
newsletter (outsource this project to
others if need be) on those topics where
you can really showcase your experience
and expertise. Ask your visitors to
subscribe—offer them an incentive to
do so—as this list represents one of
your best assets to growing a successful
service business.
In addition, consider the benefits of
expanding beyond your site and using
social media to find and engage with
your prospects.
Working on a new project? Make a
video and put it on your own YouTube
channel and link back to your site. Want
to share landscaping tips? Use Twitter
and get the link back. You can even
grow a GL&M fan base on Facebook—
and get lots of links back.
Best part—none of these social media
tools costs any money to use or create;
they just take some time. Better yet,
all the additional links you create help
support your search engine optimization
(SEO) efforts to help visitors find you on
Google, Bing and other search engines.
Strengthen your search engine rankings
with better SEO tactics. This is your
current meta—or hidden page—title:
<title>Greenland Landscape and
Masonry</title> Here’s the problem.
Unless folks are specifically looking for
your company by name, your company
isn’t necessarily going to get found.
Google uses the meta title plus your site
/ w w w . tNLAo n l i n e . o r g 15
content to determine your topic and site
relevancy. So here’s what I suggest:
<title>Landscape—Hardscape—
Masonry Designs | Metro Atlanta |
Greenland Landscape & Masonry 770-
822-9272</title>
I didn’t do the research to determine
if these are indeed the best keyword
phrases, but you get the idea. Frontload
the terms that your prospects are using
to find you into your meta title. Make
sure every page of your site has its own
meta title, too.
Lastly, make sure you write your content
using the same words, terms and phrases
your best prospects use. That will also help
boost your search engine rankings, as well.
Th e C u s to m e r ’s V i e w
Marc Kruskol, Homeowner,
Palmdale, CA
First impression. The company looks like
it does good work. But at first glance,
the website looks like a template. Not
that it’s a bad thing per se, it just looks
very generic. There is too much of a mix
of fonts. The captions under some of the
photos are barely readable. Some of the
photos are good, but most are too dark
and don’t really pop.
So, would you call them? As critical as
I am, I would still contact the company.
Again, they probably do good work,
they just need someone to guide them
in creating a better website. The photos
do, in fact, show the scope of the work
that this company does, so I’d call to
talk to them.
E x p e r t ’s R at i n g :
HH
(continued on page 16)

Exam pl e #4:
Trifold Brochure
Th e co m pa ny
Ohana Lawn Service
www.ohanalawnservice.com
Kailua, HI
Th e G o a l
Creating a direct mail piece is uncharted
territory for Ohana Lawn Service, which
has never advertised in its 25 years in
business. As such, the company isn’t yet
sure how this new-business generator
is faring, says General Manager Sam
Wilhoite, so management is looking for
some pointers on its trifold brochure.
Th e E x p e r t
Carolyn Rhinebarger, chief brainstormer
at Strategic Guru, a Raleigh, NC-area
firm specializing in direct marketing for
small and medium-sized businesses.
16 w w w . tNLAo n l i n e . o r g
TNLA G r e e n
Expert’s Keys for Improvement
Message. It is very important to create
and repeat one single compelling
message that will resonate with the
audience. All messaging needs to present
and reinforce the benefits of using your
company vs. someone else. It’s all about
them, not about you.
In this case, the message about adding
value to your property through a
well-cared-for landscape is the most
important message. Other messages are
secondary and should be used to support
the main message. Specific pointers:
• Add brief customer testimonials—at • Make all calls to action focused on this
least one from the pictured property— single message. For example, instead of
to support the message. prompting recipients to call for a free
• Make all headlines focus on this single estimate, offer them a complementary
message, reinforcing benefits. For landscape consultation where you can
example, change the “Family Owned show them specific things to do to
and Operated” headline to “Beautifying improve their property value and then
Landscapes for Over 25 years.” quote them on your services.
/ T e xa s N u r s e ry & L a n d s c a p e A s s o c i at i o n / No v e m b e r 2 0 1 0
 TNLA G r e e n

Layout. A trifold brochure has six panels
and they must work together well to
communicate a single compelling message.
Move the panel entitled “Family Owned
and Operated” to the inside left so that
when the trifold is first opened that message
and the list of services are side by side.
Mail panel. Add a call out with a special
offer for new customers here. Adding a
time limit makes it more compelling. Try
something like: Get 10% off your first
month! Call 222-2412 by June 1. (Offer
you’ve created. Better to add some white So, would you call them? Probably not.
space to allow room for folding variations. It’s not enough to entice me.
Th e c u s to m e r ’s v i e w E x p e r t ’s R at i n g :
Mary Pitman, Homeowner, Vero Beach, FL
HH
First impression. The before and after
shots give them credibility. I like that it’s Reprinted from the June 2010 issue of
Lawn & Landscape magazine. For more,
family owned. I never know if bi-weekly
visit www.lawnandlandscape.com.
is once every two weeks or twice a week.
Texas Mutual Insurance Company

valid for new customers only.)

Copy consistency. It’s easy to fall into the

trap of multiple and mixed messages. You
have so much to say and so little room
to say it! The inside panel of the piece
© 2009

could be improved by focusing on the

key message—adding to and protecting
the value of your home. For example,
rather than bolding the words “weekly”
and “biweekly,” consider changing
the sentence to: “Weekly or biweekly
maintenance provides flexible scheduling
that ensures your property always looks
its best.” This conveys the same message
while framing it within the context of
preserving property value.

Always remember that the reader’s eye

jumps to bulleted items, bolded text,
large text and colored text. Read your
text out loud, reading just the headlines,
bullets, bolded text and call to action and
make sure it tells the main message in a You’re great at growing green stuff – what about saving it? With workers’ comp
coherent way. group discount programs, it’s easier than you think. The Texas Green Industry group
discount program, through Texas Mutual Insurance Company, gives growers, nurseries
Printing. Creating printer-friendly design and landscape contractors lower premiums and the potential to earn individual and
will help make your printed piece go group dividends. And with the workers’ comp health care network, eligible businesses
from good to great. Images must be high- save an additional 12% annually. That’s real savings to help you grow a strong business.
resolution, printer-ready art. Avoid colored
panels or text that runs across fold lines
because when the piece is printed and
folded, color crocking can occur (cracks
in the ink on the paper). Creating lines
and demarcations—such as the landscape
before and after photos that are placed
The TGI workers’ compensation group discount program is endorsed by TNLA.
next to each other– can create folding
Call your agent or Hotchkiss Insurance Agency at (866)959-2525.
errors because the design demands the Dividends are based on performance and are not guaranteed.
Texas Mutual Insurance Co. has services for non-English speakers available upon request.
piece be folded exactly along the line

No v e m b e r 2 0 1 0 / T e xa s N u r s e ry & L a n d s c a p e A s s o c i at i o n / w w w . tNLAo n l i n e . o r g 17
 TNLA G r e e n

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18 w w w . tNLAo n l i n e . o r g / T e xa s N u r s e ry & L a n d s c a p e A s s o c i at i o n / No v e m b e r 2 0 1 0
 TNLA G r e e n

Newsbites
Patrick Brewer Calloway’s
Named Arborist Nursery Receives
of the Year Readers Choice
The Texas Chapter of the
International Society of Arboriculture
Awards
honored TNLA Member Patrick This summer the readers
Brewer (Bartlett Tree Experts) as of the Star Community Newspapers
Arborist of the Year at the 2010 voted TNLA member Calloway’s
Texas Tree Conference. The award goes to an individual who contributed
outstanding leadership, commitment, innovation, impact, and sustainability.
Congratulations to Patrick and to everyone at Bartlett Tree Experts!

u Click here for more. Nursery as their garden center of

choice in their annual Readers
Choice Awards. Calloway’s was
recognized for its outstanding

Small Business Jobs Act Signed into Law customer service and for each
location’s support to its respective
In the final days before going home to campaign, Congress passed community.
the Small Business Jobs Act, which has now been signed into law by President “Helping customers achieve
Obama.  The law has a number of provisions beneficial to Green Industry success in the garden is simply a part
businesses, including: of our daily process; however, we are
• Allowing qualifying businesses to write off the cost of certain capital extremely pleased to be recognized for
investments in the year they are acquired. the work we do in the communities
• An extension of “bonus depreciation.” we serve,” says Kimberly Bird, vice
• Removing the onerous recordkeeping requirements to have cell phones qualify president, retail marketing.
as a business expense.
u Click here for more.
• Various measures to increase small business lending and loans.

u Click here for more information.

TNLA Grant-Funded Research Project

Published in Academic Journal
A research project that was partially funded by a TNLA E&R Foundation
grant has been summarized and published in the October issue of HortScience. The
article, “Landscape Coefficients for Single- and Mixed-species Landscapes,” examines
resource management in urban landscape irrigation and concludes that reference
evapotranspiration can be used to produce significant water savings. The lead author
of the article is Tim Pannkuk, Ph.D., from the Department of Agricultural Sciences at
Sam Houston State University. The cover of the issue featured a photo of his work.

u Click here to read the abstract.

u Click here to make a tax-deductible donation to the E&R Foundation.

No v e m b e r 2 0 1 0 / T e xa s N u r s e ry & L a n d s c a p e A s s o c i at i o n / w w w . tNLAo n l i n e . o r g 19
 TNLA G r e e n

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A MARRIAGE OF STRENGTHS A Marriage Of Strengths

In February 2009, FX Luminaire was acquired by Hunter Industries. With similar foundations in forward-looking product innovations, reliability,
and superior customer service, both companies have come together in an obvious marriage of tradition and reinvention. Combining forces with
Hunter will allow FX to bring resource-efficient landscape components, such as the LED-based Lumineux, to its customers with a distributor
and sales support network that will continue to define the industry.

The future of FX Luminaire looks bright!

For more information, visit: www.hunterindustries.com/strengths or www.fxl.com/strengths

20 w w w . tNLAo n l i n e . o r g / T e xa s N u r s e ry & L a n d s c a p e A s s o c i at i o n / No v e m b e r 2 0 1 0
 TNLA G r e e n
Inte g r ated Pest Mana gement
Winter Woes . . .
by Kevin Ong, Ph.D.
G
rasses are going into dormancy. Leaves
are dropping from deciduous plants.
Winter is almost here and plants are
going to rest.
Ever wonder what is that pathogen or pest up
to? Are they resting too?
Microbes are an interesting bunch. There
Kevin Ong is an
are many of them, and each have their own
Extension Plant
characteristics. Today, we examine a little
Pathologist and
part of that: What is the relationship between
directs the Texas temperatures and pathogens?
Plant Disease
Diagnostic Lab Ralstonia solanacearum (Rsol) is a bacterium.
at Texas A&M in This bacterium is made up of several races
College Station. and biovars, which are the different ways
that researchers initially classified these
bacteria based on geographical distribution,
carbohydrate and chemical utilization, and
morphology. In other words, we classify it by
where it comes from and what it eats.
Race 1 of Rsol is endemic to the Southeastern U.S.
Races 2, 4, and 5 are present in warm regions
outside the U.S. Race 3 is found throughout the
world except the U.S. and Canada.
No v e m b e r 2 0 1 0 / T e xa s N u r s e ry & L a n d s c a p e A s s o c i at i o n
Rsol race 1 is rarely found to be a problem
north of the Mason-Dixon line, but Rsol race
3 is on the U.S. Select Agent List, because it
is perceived as a severe threat to the potato
industry. Why the difference?
Rsol race 1 is not cold tolerant, hence the cold
winters in the north will reduce, suppress, and
even eradicate the bacteria. Rsol race 3, on the
other hand, can tolerate colder temperatures
and has been implicated in disease problems in
colder temperatures.
Cold, in some ways, can be a friend. In this
example, the distribution range of Rsol race 1
was limited by the temperature. This example
also shows that a related bacteria, Rsol race 3,
is adapted to and able to survive and thrive in
colder temperatures. This is why someone in
a place like Idaho ought to be worried about
Rsol race 3 but not Rsol race 1.
Practically, there are pathogens that can
either survive the cold or not. How can we
effectively utilize this characteristic? The
first thing is to find out more about the
(continued on page 26)
/ w w w . tNLAo n l i n e . o r g 21
 TNLA G r e e n

We see green. With over 30 years of experience, our specialists know what to look for when it
comes to finding cost-effective insurance coverage for your green industry business. As a Trusted Choice® independent
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Call 800-899-3750 today for a quote or no-cost

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22 w w w . tNLAo n l i n e . o r g / T e xa s N u r s e ry & L a n d s c a p e A s s o c i at i o n / No v e m b e r 2 0 1 0
 TNLA G r e e n
Mar keting
No Comparison: Branding Yourself
as One-of-a-Kind
by Jeffrey Scott
T
here are two paths to higher profitability:
Either become the low-cost seller or
become a highly differentiated niche
player. That’s it.
Don’t go in between. If you’re going for the
top, avoid the temptation to cut your prices.
Instead, learn how to brand your business as
a niche player and, in the end, increase your
Jeffrey Scott, landscape
margins.
business consultant and
author of The Referral As a child I remember going to a local grocery
Advantage, built his store called Stew Leonard’s. My father packed
family’s landscape five kids into the car and set out to buy
enough food to last us a month. The store
business into a $10
focused on fresh food and carried no canned
million enterprise. He goods. They claimed to sell more milk than
now facilitates peer any other store in the nation. Entering the
groups for landscape store, the bottling plant that packaged the
professionals who milk was clearly visible. Large automated
puppets—made to look like vegetables and
want to transform and
milk containers—sang songs to the kids as
profitably grow their they walked down the aisles. There was even a
business. To take petting zoo.
the first step and see
if a peer group is Today, Stew Leonard’s has four locations
and is touted as one of Fortune’s 100 best
right for you, visit
companies to work for.
GetTheLeadersEdge.com.
There are three criteria for an effective brand:
It must be unique, desirable, and consistently
communicated. If your brand is completely
unlike anything else on the market, then you
eliminate people’s ability to price shop. If
it’s desirable, they’ll buy it. And if you keep
There are three criteria for an effective brand:
It must be unique, desirable, and consistently
communicated.
No v e m b e r 2 0 1 0 / T e xa s N u r s e ry & L a n d s c a p e A s s o c i at i o n
coming back to that brand identity, reminding
your employees and your customers of it at
every chance you get, then your reputation
reinforces itself over time.
Stew followed the three branding criteria to
a “T.” He picked a unique niche that people
wanted: farm fresh goods. And then he
constantly reminded people that that’s what he
stood for, so now when people think of him,
they think of fresh milk, meat, fish, bread, and
even fresh coffee.
Stew targets the family experience. Children
love the puppets and the petting zoo. And
since the kids are entertained, the adults
are thrilled. Of course, it doesn’t hurt that
they have an efficient store layout, highly
trained personnel, and easy parking at these
mammoth stores, all to reinforce a brand of
family-friendly grocery shopping.
Building a truly unique brand is a lot easier said
than done, and it usually requires completely
throwing out everything you think you know
about your business and starting from scratch.
There’s no way you get from grocery store to
petting zoo by following the pack.
Maybe your landscape company helps to
create “home” by bringing fresh-baked
cookies on all customer visits. Maybe your
garden center hides prizes or has a “kids
center,” where the customers’ children can
play in the dirt. Maybe your nursery brings in
the most exotic new plants and sneaks them
into each shipment.
Have fun and experiment. But know from
the start what you stand for, and then start to
figure out new ways to communicate it. m
/ w w w . tNLAo n l i n e . o r g 23
 TNLA G r e e n

DEFINING QUALITY

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24 w w w . tNLAo n l i n e . o r g / T e xa s N u r s e ry & L a n d s c a p e A s s o c i at i o n / No v e m b e r 2 0 1 0

Change Is the Only Constant
Dr. Hall is the current
chairholder of the Ellison
Chair in International
Floriculture at Texas
A&M University. He blogs
at http://ellisonchair.
blogspot.com.
No v e m b e r 2 0 1 0 / T e xa s N u r s e ry & L a n d s c a p e A s s o c i at i o n
TNLA G r e e n
Making Cents
by Charlie Hall, Ph.D.
T
he most difficult task for any columnist
is to project, due to publishing deadlines,
what the major industry-related issues
will be and what readers will be
interested in a couple of months down the
road. But one would literally have their head in
the sand not to recognize that the elections in
November will be causing the buzz when this
issue hits the streets.
Everyone already knows the 2010 elections are
significant and will be extremely contentious.
Let’s add record-setting to that description. Why?
• 2010 features the most U.S. Senate seats on
the November ballot (37) since 1962.
• 2010 also has the most elections for
governor ever on the same ballot (also 37).
• 2010 has produced one of the highest
percentages of Democratic-versus-
Republican House line-ups in modern
history. Fully 405 out of a possible 435
House races have both a Democrat and
a Republican running for the seat—the
gold standard of basic two-party choice in
democracy. Democrats have nominated 410
candidates, Republicans 430. For the GOP
this is the most congressional districts they
have ever contested.
Elections always matter, and citizens should vote.
But if the past is predictive, only about 40% of
adults in the United States will cast a ballot in
2010, as opposed to a much larger 63% in 2008.
Perhaps the record number of elections—not to
mention the high stakes—will encourage more
Americans to participate this fall.
If history shows us anything, we know
the state of the economy leading up to the
elections is often an important factor affecting
/ w w w . tNLAo n l i n e . o r g 25
the outcome. The latest recession has been
the most egalitarian of all the 11 recessions
since World War II. In various ways, it has
touched every social class through job loss,
pay cuts, depressed home values, shrunken
stock portfolios, eroded retirement savings,
grown children returning home, and anxiety
about all of the above. The Great Recession
(as it is widely called) has changed America
psychologically, politically, economically,
and socially. Just how will be examined and
debated for years.
All of this reminds me of one of my favorite
passages from Paul Seabright’s book, The
Company of Strangers. The author refers to
“politicians,” but the discussion may as well refer
to any member of the crew. It goes like this:
Politicians are in charge of the modern
economy in much the same way as a sailor
is in charge of a small boat in a storm.
The consequences of their losing control
completely may be catastrophic . . . but even
while they keep afloat, their influence over
the course of events is tiny in comparison
with that of the storm around them. We
who are their passengers may focus our
hopes and fears upon them, and express
profound gratitude toward them if we reach
harbor safely, but that is chiefly because it
seems pointless to thank the storm.
Nonetheless, the lackluster performance of
the economy has prompted some to also refer
to the post-Great Recession as the great stall.
Since the recovery began, the economy has
grown at a little less than 3%, which is faster
than its long-term potential (about 2.5%), but
nowhere near the 6–8% usually seen when
coming out of a recession. So far, job creation
has been too weak to lower unemployment
(continued on page 26)

( IPM continued from page 21)
particular pathogen of interest and its
temperature requirement. With this
information, we can consider:
1. Timing the last treatment applica-
tion. Whether preventative or cura-
tive, a pesticide treatment toward the
end of growing season can suppress a
pathogen to a low level and/or stress
it sufficiently that it is more suscepti-
ble to cold and other outside stresses.
TNLA Half Island ad DJ 4/13/10
Ph: 800.814.3496 • Fx: 330.633.9738
www.summitplastic.com • sales@summitplastic.com
© 2009 Summit Plastic Co.
26 w w w . tNLAo n l i n e . o r g
TNLA G r e e n
Attack the pathogen while it is still
active and can uptake the pesticide.
2. Whether or not to treat during winter.
If the pathogen thrives in cooler tem-
peratures or mild temperatures allow
it to remain active, treatment may be
effective as the pathogen can still up-
take and be sensitive to the pesticide.
The caveat, of course, is that the
cold can also damage the plant. For
example, take-all patch is less of a
5:31 PM Page 1
Darden Jones
Regional Sales Manager
dardenjones@summitplastic.com
Cell: 972.809.0946
/ T e xa s N u r s e ry & L a n d s c a p e A s s o c i at i o n
problem after a harsh winter with
prolonged cold, but there is also less
St. Augustine grass, which also did not
survive the cold.
So when planning for winter pest
and pathogen management, pay close
attention to the threats that have been
common to the season in your region,
and familiarize yourself with the winter
behaviors of those pests. Then take
action accordingly. m
( Making Cents continued from page 25)
significantly, which at 9.6% is much as
it was at the start of the recovery. So
what makes this recovery different?
Two widely held beliefs prevail among
economists regarding recoveries: 1)
Deep recessions usually lead to strong
recoveries, and 2) Financial crises usually
produce weak recoveries. But the curious
thing about the Great Recession is that
it was a deep recession kick-started
by a financial crisis and fostered by a
sundry of asset bubble bursts. A growing
body of research has found that such
recoveries tend to be slower than those
after “normal” recessions.
So whether this trend will continue is the
real question. Or is it just another case of
lies, darn lies, and statistics? Either way,
it’s what people will be thinking about as
they cast their vote (or not) on Election
Day, the outcome of which will have no
small impact on the Green Industry and
the rest of the economy. m
/ No v e m b e r 2 0 1 0
 TNLA G r e e n
Tr adeshow Tips
Exhibiting Magic: Part 1
by Susan A. Friedmann, CSP
D
o you ever yearn for a magic wand to
give a quick fix to your trade show trials
and tribulations? Wouldn’t it be nice to
have attendees motivated to flock to our
booths because they wanted to and not because
they had to? The question is, “What magic can
you perform on the trade show floor to help
captivate and charm your prospects with your
Written by Susan products/services?” The following thirteen
magic buttons (six this month and seven next
A. Friedmann, CSP,
month in Part 2) will give you some irresistible
The Tradeshow ideas to get those creative juices flowing.
Coach, Lake Placid,
NY, internationally 1. Use boundless imagination
recognized expert Without a shadow of a doubt, imagination and
creativity need to permeate from every pore
working with
of your exhibit marketing program. How can
companies to increase you tap into the creativity and imagination that
their profitability at exists in your organization to cast prizewinning
tradeshows. spells to enhance your exhibiting program?
2. Stop being an adult
At the core of every attendee is a little child
yearning to escape. What can you do to
help them do that? What can you do that
incorporates what we all loved as children:
fairy tales, story-telling, and make-believe
games? Disney managed it very successfully,
and so did J.K. Rowling. What would a five-
year old do to sprinkle some magical pixie dust
on to your exhibit marketing program?
D at e !
S av e the
August 18-21, 2011
Dallas Convention Center
No v e m b e r 2 0 1 0 / T e xa s N u r s e ry & L a n d s c a p e A s s o c i at i o n
3. Break and bend the rules
To get what you want, you often have to
break and bend the rules, especially when it
suits your purpose. Most advances in science,
medicine, music, art, and design came as a
result of someone being prepared to challenge
the norm and try a different approach. What
scary rules could you secretly break?
4. Do what you know
Take something you know and do well and
add a little something else to it, and then add
something else. Very soon you will take on
the mark of a wizard and transform what you
have into something new. What creative things
can you do with what you know, and what
resources and solutions are right in front of you?
5. Integrate the weird and wonderful
It’s easy to look at exhibiting from only one
perspective, especially when you exhibit within
one particular industry. Often, the best ideas
come from cutting across different boundaries.
For example, how could you integrate weird
and wonderful potions, charms, giants, dragons,
cauldrons, crystal balls, and the like into your
offering? Make a point of looking outside your
particular situation for enchanting ideas.
6. Plot out your plan before you begin
What’s your exhibiting objective, what are you
trying to achieve, and what planning do you
need to do? Draw a picture and make a map
of where you need to go and the things you
need to do. Using pictures instead of words can
add bewitching power and put a very different
perspective on your planning process. It also
helps make it fun! m
Stay tuned for Exhibiting
Magic: Part II in next
month’s issue!
/ w w w . tNLAo n l i n e . o r g 27
 TNLA G r e e n

New Members
Classified Ads
Welcome TNLA would like to welcome its new members. If you would For the latest job listings visit our
like to become a member, or if you have any questions or concerns about online opportunities.
your current membership, please contact us at 800.880.0343. Visit
KASE Model #3423 -2 yard
www.tnlaonline.org to learn about the benefits of becoming a part of TNLA.
paddle batch Soil Mixer
3 phase electric motor; Water
REGION II REGION I V OUT OF STATE spray pipes; Abrasion resistant
Landscape Landscape Grower tub and paddle package;
FN Landscape Terra Vista Pool, Patio & Sun City Tree Farm Purchased new in 2004 for
Froylan Nino Landscape, LLC Philippe Tort $10,000-used less than 2 months;
PO Box 431713 Brian Masterson PO Box 1809
Houston, TX 77243 3245 Main St, Ste 235-192 Ruskin, FL 33575 Used sale price = $7500 like new!
www.fnlandscape.com Frisco, TX 75034 www.suncitytrees.com Jim and Kay Richardson,
Grounds Maintenance, Irrigation, www.terravistappl.com Trees Richardson Farms, 2850 C.R. 412,
Landscape Designer, Hydroseeding Hydroseeding, Irrigation, Landscape
Designer, Landscape Contractor Retail Rockdale, TX” 76567, 512-446-
Retail Rock Creek Stone & Nursery Co. 2306
Papershell: A Garden Gallery Supplier Charles Teague
Elizabeth Barrow, TCNP Polen Insurance Group, LLC HC 67 Box 962
4802 FM 2218 Michael Polen Market Leader The San
Rattan, OK 74562
Richmond, TX 77469 PO Box 702925 Antonio Market Leader will be
www.thepapershell.com Dallas, TX 75370 Supplier
Enviro-Building Systems, Inc.
responsible for working with the
Nursery/Garden Center
Ron Miller Austin Branch Team (including
Supplier REGION V II 200 S Virginia St 8th Floor the Branch Manager/ Account
The New Nursery Landscape Reno, NV 89501
Taylor Moore
Manager/ Business Development
Branching Out Landscaping, Inc. www.galvacore.com
846 W 27th St Manufacturer, Distributor Associate and others) to help
James Roger Brodnax, TCNP
Houston, TX 77008-1706 1013 Harbor Village prospect viable sales leads
www.newtonnursery.com Corpus Christi, TX 78412 across their designated region.
Distributor, Trees, Woody
Ornamentals, Nursery/Garden Center They ensure quality and efficient
REGION V III landscape management
Student for current clients and their
Jacob Stevens properties, while achieving
Central Texas College
1102 Alberta Cir profit goals for the company
Harker Heights, TX 76548 and consistently improving
market share. They will assist on
estimating new maintenance
work in the San Antonio Market
and developing a hub-based
newly certified individuals market cataloguing process that
will help identify properties and
customers within the market area
Christy Schroedter, TCNP Scott Wiatrek, TCLP that Brickman would aspire to
Turner Landscape, Inc. Preferred Landscape and Lighting partner with.
Corpus Christi Boerne Email resume to
Texas.Recruiting@
Deborah McCarty, TCNP Tina Lynn, TCLP BrickmanGroup.com or visit
TG Trees Nursery and Garden Center Southern Rain Irrigation & Landscape www.brickmangroup.com/
Lubbock Adkins careers/findajob.php.
Thomas Keese, TCLP 75 words or less. $49 Member/$61
Preferred Landscape & Lighting Non-Member. Standard type only,
San Antonio no logos or artwork. All classified
advertising must be paid in advance.
Email your ad to advertising@
Learn more about the benefits tnlaonline.org with “classified
of certification at www.tnlaonline.org. advertising” in the subject line.

28 w w w . tNLAo n l i n e . o r g / T e xa s N u r s e ry & L a n d s c a p e A s s o c i at i o n / No v e m b e r 2 0 1 0
 TNLA G r e e n

November Region
Meeting Schedule Calendar
Region I
San Antonio Area November 2010
Tuesday, Nov 9 at Peterson Brothers
1 TEIL Application deadline. Download Entry Form here.
Region II 2 Election Day.
Houston Area 9 Fall IPM Seminar, Dallas.
Monday, Nov 8 at Plants for All Seasons 17 Water Webinar Series - Ecological Approaches to Water Treatment.
Register at www.watereducationalliance.org.
Region III
East Texas
December 2010
Friday, Nov 12 at Rick’s on the Square
5–7 Irrigation Show 2010, Phoenix Convention Center, AZ.
Region IV 23 Hotel group rate and early registration deadline for 2011 TNLA
Dallas Area Management Workshop.
Tuesday, Nov 9 at
Naaman Forest High School January 2011
7–8 & 14–15 Arboriculture 101, 4-day Tree Care Short Course, Conroe. 8 CEUs
Region V per day available.
North Central Texas
11 82nd Texas State Legislative Session begins.
Tuesday, Nov 16 at
11–15 Sports Turf Managers Association’s 22nd Annual Conference &
Bowden’s in Colleyville
Exhibition, Austin.
Region VI 14–15 TNLA Management Workshop in Fort Worth.
West Texas 20 Water Webinar Series - Nutritional Aspects of Water Quality. Register at
No Meeting www.watereducationalliance.org.
24–28 7th Annual Turfgrass Ecology and Management Short Course in
Region Vii College Station.
South Texas 26–29 ANLA Management Clinic, Louisville, KY.
Thursday, Nov 18, location TBA 27–28 STNGA Tradeshow in Conroe. CEUs available.
Region VIII
Central Texas February 2011
Tuesday, Nov 9, location TBA 4-5 NTNGA tradeshow in Mesquite. CEUs available.
8 Landscape Water Budgeting Workshop, Austin. Contact Charles Swanson
For meeting times and additional (979-845-5614 or clswanson@ag.tamu.edu).
information, please visit your 18 Landscape Training Seminar in English & Spanish at the Dallas
regional homepage by clicking on Arboretum. Up to 6 CEUs available.
your region above.
For an up-to-date calendar of events,
go to www.tnlaonline.org.

BWI Companies, Inc. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24 Kinney Bonded Warehouse . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16

Advertiser s In de x Deep Fork Tree Farm . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24 Living Earth . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
Dig Corporation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22 New Earth . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
Ewing Irrigation Products . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18 OHP . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
FX Luminaire . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20 Submatic . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
Download media kit or
email: advertising@tnlaonline.org Hortica Insurance & Employee Benefits . . . 18 Summit Plastic Company . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26
Hotchkiss Insurance Agency . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22 Texas Mutual Insurance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
Irrigation Station . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24

No v e m b e r 2 0 1 0 / T e xa s N u r s e ry & L a n d s c a p e A s s o c i at i o n / w w w . tNLAo n l i n e . o r g 29
 W
NO

G ISTER
RE

Systems • People • Marketing

J a n u a r y 1 4 - 1 5 , 2 0 1 1 • F t. W o r t h , T X
Participants: ALL Green Industry Professionals

In this innovative, Karl Ahlrichs will help

hands-on, two-day your business help your business
communicate more efficiently, put
workshop you will your people into overdrive and
help you see with a whole new
learn from experts vision (3-E!).
how to improve
Jay Baer will help you harness
the efficiency of the awesome power of the social
Web!  Use technology to efficiently
your people, your market your business by taking
systems, and your what you know and moving to
the next level!
marketing!

Hilton Fort Worth Deadline: December 23, 2010

Group rate for the hotel and early registration

For reservations: 1-800-Hiltons (445-8667) Group Code: TNL

Texas Nursery & Landscape Association • (800) 880-0343 • www.tnlaonline.org