How Knowing Your Real Clients Transforms Your Outdoor Lighting Marketing

Marketing is a tough game. At Dayloom, our outdoor lighting design and installation company, we tried nearly everything: direct-mail coupons, home magazines, radio, Google Ads, remarketing, Facebook ads, lead-generation sites, lighting bundles and good/better/best packages. After more than two decades of trial and error since 2002, with a heavy emphasis on error, the lesson that changed our marketing was simple: know who your real clients are.

The client who changed our approach

Plenty of people just want the lowest price on a 5- to 10-light system. We don't turn those clients away, but in 2011 one project changed how we approached the rest.

We had just mailed 10,000 eight-page catalogs. The first client to call was a recently retired business owner planning his daughter's wedding at his stone colonial home, and he wanted it to look stunning. We spent an hour and a half walking the property and talking through the design, and only 10 minutes on products. His direction was simple: "Use whatever product line you would want to light up your house."

The final design came to $25,000, and he signed without hesitation. He chose us over the competition because he thought our designs were better.

From then on, we stopped leading with packages and promotions and led with design. Instead of competing on discounts, our marketing showcased our projects. Instead of offering a menu of fixtures, we simplified the decision with custom designs and heavy-duty luminaires built to last. Our real clients wanted great design, not the lowest price. The next question was how to reach them.

Your audience matters

Targeted direct mail still lets you control exactly who sees your message, and a good mailing list puts you in front of homeowners in the neighborhoods you want to work in. Pair it with a complete Google Business Profile, Google Local Services Ads and well-targeted Meta ads to reach the same audience online. And don't underestimate referrals: one standout installation in an upscale neighborhood can bring in your next several jobs.

Your message matters

When we marketed our design expertise and the quality of the luminaires we install, we sold larger projects to clients who didn't haggle, and we got fewer calls from unqualified leads looking for general electrical work.

Your brand matters

You have only a few seconds to make a first impression, so present your company well. Professional photography has been one of our best investments. Even without a photographer on staff, hiring one to shoot your best installations pays for itself across your website, social media and print.

Marketing is a game you can win if you know your real clients, lead with what makes your designs unique and stay the course. For the planning side, read why you need a marketing plan, and for steady revenue between projects, see setting up maintenance agreements.

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About the author: Patrick Harders, LC, is co-founder and CEO of Sterling Lighting and founder and principal lighting designer of Dayloom. He has more than 25 years of experience designing and installing outdoor lighting, and he's one of only five landscape lighting designers in North America with Lighting Certified (LC) accreditation. His projects have won multiple international lighting awards, including landscape lighting winners in 2018 and 2021, and he leads design of Sterling's luminaires.