The home service industry is more competitive than ever, with businesses vying for attention in a crowded marketplace. Tree service companies, in particular, face unique challenges—fluctuating demand, intense local competition, and the constant struggle to find high-quality leads. Some companies thrive despite these obstacles, consistently attracting profitable jobs, while others barely stay afloat.
So, what separates the winners from the rest?
To find out, we spoke with Fridolin Hammer, co-founder of TreeServiceLeads Unlimited. They’re a digital marketing agency that specializes in helping tree service companies grow. According to him, the difference comes down to one crucial factor: control.
“Successful tree service businesses don’t just wait for leads to come their way,” says Fridolin. “They take charge of their online presence and make sure that they’re the ones showing up first when potential customers are searching for their services online.”
The Harsh Reality of Tree Service Marketing
Most tree service owners are experts in arboriculture, not digital marketing. Many don’t know what SEO is, how Google Ads work, or why online reviews can make or break their business. Yet, they hire marketing agencies or freelancers, often without knowing how to evaluate whether they’re getting real results.
This leads to a cycle of wasted money and frustration. “We talk to tree service owners all the time who have been burned by bad marketing,” says Fridolin. “They’re either overpaying for generic marketing that doesn’t work or relying on outdated tactics that keep them invisible online.”
The truth is that relying solely on word-of-mouth or lead marketplaces (where jobs are handed out to multiple contractors at once) is a losing game. The best home service companies take control of their lead generation by owning their online presence—which starts with mastering SEO, PPC advertising, and reputation management.
SEO: The Foundation of Long-Term Success
Knowing that about 46% of Google searches have local intent, showing up at the top of search results can be the difference between a steady flow of high-paying jobs and struggling to stay busy.
SEO (Search Engine Optimization) is the process of optimizing a website so it ranks higher in search results when people look for services like “tree removal near me” or “stump grinding in [city].” When done right, SEO turns a website into a lead-generation machine, bringing in consistent business without having to pay for every click.
A key component of SEO is backlinks—links from other reputable websites that point to yours. “Think of backlinks as votes of confidence,” explains Fridolin. “The more high-quality sites are linking to your business, the more Google sees you as trustworthy, which helps you rank higher.” However, not all backlinks are created equal. Cheap, spammy links from irrelevant websites can hurt rankings rather than help.
TreeServiceLeads Unlimited specializes in building strong, natural backlinks through content marketing, partnerships, and outreach strategies that boost search visibility and help tree service companies outrank their competitors.
Google Ads: Fast-Track to High-Quality Leads
While SEO is a long-term investment, Google Ads (PPC) provides an immediate way to generate leads. But just running ads isn’t enough—if they’re not optimized correctly, they can drain your budget with little return.
“We see a lot of tree service companies wasting money on Google Ads because they target the wrong keywords or don’t have landing pages that convert,” says Fridolin. “In our experience, SEO and PPC show significantly higher returns than social media management. In fact, we wouldn’t recommend any tree service owner to spend their hard-earned money on social media management until they’ve built a solid foundation with those core strategies first.”
A well-run PPC campaign includes:
- Highly targeted keywords and segmented ad groups (avoiding broad match keywords and irrelevant traffic)
- Geo-targeting (ensuring ads only appear in profitable service areas)
- Custom landing pages for different services designed to convert visitors into paying customers
By refining these elements, specialized agencies like TreeServiceLeads Unlimited help local contractors lower their cost per lead and book more profitable jobs.
Online Reviews: The New Word-of-Mouth
In today’s digital age, Google reviews have replaced traditional word-of-mouth. Studies show that 96% of consumers read online reviews, and businesses with high ratings get significantly more clicks and calls.
Encouraging satisfied customers to leave a review can have a direct impact on lead generation. “Many tree service owners don’t ask for reviews simply because they forget,” says Fridolin. “But having just five or ten more positive reviews than a competitor can make a huge difference in winning jobs.”
TreeServiceLeads Unlimited coaches its clients on simple, automated ways to collect more reviews to make sure their online reputation works for them and not against them.
Why Some Tree Services Thrive While Others Struggle
Companies that consistently grow and dominate their markets don’t rely on luck. They:
- Rank high on Google through SEO and strong backlinks
- Use Google Ads strategically to capture high-intent leads
- Have a steady flow of positive reviews that build trust
- Own their marketing instead of depending on lead-buying platforms
The result? Predictable, profitable growth.
Specialized marketing providers like TreeServiceLeads Unlimited are often able to achieve higher returns for their clients than marketing providers that work with every industry because they build out tailored marketing systems that are honed in to serve one specific industry extremely well.
Freedom Through Smart Marketing
Beyond just business growth, successful digital marketing gives home service providers something even more valuable: freedom.
“We started this business because we value freedom,” says Fridolin. “We run our agency remotely, and we want tree service owners to have the same independence—to build a business that doesn’t rely on lead brokers, seasonal swings, or referrals that may or may not come through.”
His co-founder Anne adds, “Our goal is to help arborists take control of their online presence, so they don’t have to worry about where their next job is coming from. We believe in building long-term, sustainable marketing strategies and partnerships that provide real results—not just short-term fixes.”
Google tracks location data even when users turn service off(Opens in a new browser tab)
For any tree service business or other home services provider looking to break free from the feast-or-famine cycle, mastering digital marketing is no longer optional. It has become a necessity.
With new trends in AI technology popping up daily, this development is only expected to increase in the next years. Companies that embrace new technologies and ways of marketing are expected to be leading the markets. For companies that don’t have the budget for a dedicated, in-house marketing team, the best option is to work with specialized agencies like TreeServiceLeads Unlimited.
