Local Companies

RGus · Jul 9, 2005

I have never really paid attention to the local tree care companies in my home town until recently. As I was driving through town the other day I saw a chip truck and it had the company name and the services the company provided. The last item on that list of services was "Topping". I looked in the newspaper and phonebook to see what other companies there were, and there were 2 more companies that advertised Topping.

I live in a smaller town outside of the Minneapolis/St. Paul area in Minnesota. There arnt any larger tree companies that service this area, the majority of them are one or two crew operations.

Do any of you come across this often with smaller cities or tree companies?

JasonCraig · Jul 9, 2005

Steve Connally · Jul 10, 2005

There are a lot of tree companies in my area thad advertise topping. They are not the ones with arborists!

Oxman · Jul 10, 2005

PlantAmnesty has a "Nasty Letter" writing service to politely notify Seattle tree services that advertise topping that the practice is unethical because it damages trees. PlantAmnesty

Rupe · Jul 10, 2005

The problem with terms like Topping and Lopping are that they are still the terms that the public or lay person use to describe almost any form of tree work.

If I advertised that I do topping I might get more invites to quote for work. I could then use my knowledge to inform the client of the correct pruning for there situation and maybe get lots of work from it.

However I would not use that term purely because of other companies seeing my ad and assuming I'm a hack. There is a long way to go to inform the public of what we do but in the meantime if we stick to our integrity as arborists then they can call it what they like.

Mark Chisholm · Jul 10, 2005

Rupe,
I'd say you're better off not using those terms in the ads. We have never advertised that but still get called to look at trees that they want "topped". I don't think it makes much difference. Keep advertising proper tree care like you've been doing!

Rupe · Jul 10, 2005

Yeah, I wasn't considering using those terms, just suggesting that the use of the word topping doesn't have to mean that you actually do it.

Although, I guess using it would serve to stregthen its place in the vocabulary of the customers which is not what we want.

Ok, all companies that advertise topping are hacks! End of!

jerseywild · Jul 10, 2005

I have seen topped trees every where I go, PA,MD,NJ,FL the list goes on and on. If I stay at a hotel someplace new I grab the phone book to steal I mean borrow ideas for my advertising but I also check to see who has topping listed in their ads.

Treespotter · Jul 10, 2005

Yea Mark,

But you are invited for your looks, some for their smell and others for the way they drive to work /forum/images/graemlins/pbj.gif

No serious Rupe,

Don't advertise with something you don't agree with.
Even if it means having once in a while a unwanted day off to clean up your desk at the "office" (in my case a modified bedroom). In the end it will pay off.

Wolter