Top Landscaping Websites – Strategy and Execution Mean Everything

These days, a landscaping business needs a website that looks good and drives business. Learn from some of these great examples!

These days, few things are more important to a landscaping business than a good website. In fact, studies have shown that within a seven-second window, a website viewer has already subconsciously made the decision whether the content seems relevant and worth engaging with. For this reason, a website needs to pack a punch—and do so quickly. This all-important seven-second window can make or break a business online.

Think of a website as a snapshot of your organization. At a glance, your site needs to grab a user’s attention and give them something clear to do to move forward with (generally via some sort of call to action). When users land on a page, what jumps out to them typically determines if they will leave or navigate further into the site.

At Smart Service, many of our clients own or operate landscaping businesses. Accordingly, we come across a wide variety of landscaping websites. We’ve noticed that many landscaping websites focus too much on looking pretty and not enough on converting traffic. While a website needs to look good (especially in an aesthetic field like landscaping), it also needs to work. It needs to drive business. A few simple functionality changes can go a long way to converting visitors into customers.

We spent a long time scouring the web for the best landscaping websites we could find. The websites we chose all passed the aesthetic test, and, more importantly, utilized effective site structure and web marketing techniques to maximize revenue. So, without further ado, let’s take a look! Below you’ll find some of the best landscaping websites on the internet today.

Brightview –  Commercial Landscaping Services

Brightview captures user attention with a bright banner section featuring some of their best work. Further down the homepage, large, interactive icons attract users with color and keywords that can motivate action. Images help break up the written content and engage the user, beckoning them to “click here.” Verbs, such as “design,” “develop,” and “maintain” subconsciously elicit demand and compel readers to take action. These words (on top of vivid outdoor images) allow customers to relate the services offered to their own yard, which lures them further into the site.

Davey Tree – Professional Tree Care Since 1880

When looking at the site for Davey Tree, the user instantly notices the content spread out in an “F-pattern.” Across the top header, icons from left to right offer Davey Tree services, and this pattern continues down the page. Similar to the keywords on Brightview, the designers here organized content in a structured pattern on the page, putting keywords in prominent locations. According to neurological research, when users scan content, such as a web page, the dominant reading pattern resembles an “F” shape, with the concentration focused at the stem of the F. For this reason, content should follow this form when organizing information.

TruGreen – Lawn Care Maintenance and Treatment Services

Any website should drive new traffic and build brand visibility. One way to accomplish both of these things? Building a website with search engine optimization (SEO) in mind. TruGreen serves as an exceptional example of implementing SEO best practices. With a strong backlink profile, meta descriptions and meta titles that target landscaping services, and a lot of unique and informational content, TruGreen presents a website with a lot of information and context for both users and search engines. When a search engine returns a search results page (or a SERP), it ranks pages by relevance and authority. Pages with higher authority get pushed to the top of the results, and good SEO practices help ensure a site has an authoritative profile. The higher your site ranks, the more likely it will obtain traffic.

Lawn Doctor – Lawn Care Services

Though a website should contain engaging and relevant content, it is important not to underestimate the dynamics of a page’s aesthetics and layout. These tools catch user attention, an age-old marketing tactic. Sites that have blocks and blocks of content either lose the interest of the viewer or get skimmed over.

The Lawn Doctor uses columns to shape the page and images to break up content. It divides the information into much more manageable segments. When users utilize a mobile device, their attention spans decrease drastically. Smaller paragraphs and images ensure readers see sections in their entirety, regardless of whether they use a desktop or mobile device. This layout technique also provides an excellent way to place material in deliberate locations, ensuring keywords and links get seen. Links and images also present the opportunity for SEO tags, providing an invisible advantage over regular content. Lawn Doctor also puts a form front and center in the above-the-fold “hero” section on the homepage. This gives visitors an easy and obvious means to interact with the company.

Bartlett Tree Experts – Tree Care

Show, don’t tell. In your images and in your writing, don’t embellish the message you want to get across to the viewer. Bartlett Tree Experts shows very concrete images of storm damage and disease management, two common enemies of land and homeowners. By creating poignant messaging and showing the realities of these natural disasters, Bartlett’s site demonstrates how their services offer real value.

Before and after images give businesses another great way to showcase value. Powerful imagery, whether written or visual, will evoke a reaction from visitors. Captivating users in this way increases visibility and bolsters the site’s authority.

Design Scapes Inc. – Outdoor Space Design

Design Scapes Inc. strikes a balance between design and functionality by stacking one on top of the other. The top section of the homepage shows off some of the previous work they did, then positions a highlighted call-to-action button right on top of it. This gives visitors a chance to get excited about the work the company can do for them, then immediately act on that excitement by clicking the Contact button.

SunBlest Lawn Care – Lawn Care

Another great way to grab someone’s attention? Humor! SunBlest’s website features a big, bright image of a smiling dog relaxing on a pristine lawn, along with some text calling attention to the dog’s goofy smile. With all that cuteness, how can you help falling in love with this company right off the bat?

Precision Landscape Services, Inc. – Landscaping

Right away, Precision Landscape Services gives us a few things to like. A banner across the top of the page provides the company’s phone number, and a few email options. This gives visitors an easy means of reaching out to the company.

Additionally, the site’s hero section features a bright, colorful call-to-action button that really pops from the background. This directs eyes straight to the place the designers most want them to click.

Important Features of a Landscaping Website

The site examples showcased above strike a terrific balance between aesthetics and functionality. When developing your own landscaping website, consider incorporating the following website features in order to capitalize on visibility, usability, and conversions:

• Clear content that speaks to your business and values
• Easy-to-use navigation
• Mobile compatibility
• Strong imagery
• Portfolio imagery and/or case studies
• Online forms potential customers can use to contact you
• Strong branding
• SEO and search engine visibility
• Blocks, icons, and images to break up written content
• Call-to-action buttons and phrases