The Simple Marketing Framework
That Stops You Wasting Money
Most small businesses don’t have a marketing problem.
They have a clarity problem.
I see it all the time in tree and landscaping businesses:
A bit of Facebook spend here
A new logo there
A leaflet drop
A website refresh
Boosted posts when work is quiet
And then the same question comes back:
“Why isn’t this working?”
The truth is, marketing only becomes expensive when it’s not focused.
That’s where one simple framework makes all the difference:
STP: Segment. Target. Position.
It sounds basic, but it’s the difference between hoping and scaling.
Let’s break it down.
1. Segment: Stop Trying to Market to Everyone
The biggest mistake small contractors make is speaking to “anyone who needs tree work.”
That’s too broad.
Your customers fall into groups, for example:
Local councils
Housing associations
Commercial estates
Domestic homeowners
Developers and planning consultants
Each one values different things.
If you try to speak to all of them at once, you end up sounding like everyone else.
Segmentation means deciding:
Which type of work and customer are we actually building around?
2. Target: Pick the Work That Moves the Needle
Once you know the segments, you choose where to focus.
This is where growth happens.
Ask:
Which clients are most profitable?
Which work is repeatable?
Which relationships lead to long-term contracts?
Where do we already have momentum?
Targeting is saying:
We’re not chasing everything. We’re building something specific.
That’s how you stop wasting money.
3. Position: Give People a Reason to Choose You
Most businesses market like this:
“We do tree surgery, we’re professional, call us.”
That’s not positioning. That’s wallpaper.
Positioning is answering:
Why Beechwood? Why you? Why now?
For example:
Trusted local authority delivery
Safety-first, specification-led teams
Specialist machinery and rapid response
Proven relationships over decades
Consultancy support alongside operations
Your positioning should make the right client think:
“These are the people for this job.”
Marketing Isn’t About Doing More
It’s about doing the right thing, for the right people, in the right way.
When STP is clear:
Your website becomes sharper
Your ads become cheaper
Your sales conversations become easier
Your business becomes more confident
And instead of marketing feeling like a gamble…
It becomes a system.
A Simple Grow Up Challenge
If you want to tighten your marketing this month, answer these three questions:
Who are we actually trying to win work from?
What type of work do we want more of this year?
What makes us the obvious choice for that client?
Get those right, and you’ll outperform businesses spending ten times more.
