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Tree service marketing ROI What got you here won't get you where you want to go. Grow from your own numbers
Performance is the GROWth System™ stage for tree care companies that already have steady demand and have outgrown the owner holding everything together. We help you answer every inquiry fast, follow up on every estimate, bring past customers back, and see which marketing turns into booked estimates and sold work, so your next dollar spent goes where it generates the best return.
Tree care companies we work with Trusted by tree care companies that lead their markets
Why tree companies stall between $2 million and $3 million The phone rings. The work is there. So why doesn't the profit match the effort?
You're past the stage of wondering whether anyone can find you. The calls and forms come in. Your crews are busy. But somewhere around $2 million to $3 million, we often see companies start to come apart at the seams.
You used to know every lead, every estimate, and every customer worth calling back. Now there are more crews, more estimators, and more calls than one person can track. Here's what we often hear from owners at this point:
I know we miss calls when the office is slammed, but I don't know how many.
Estimates go out and some just sit there. Nobody follows up consistently.
My Google Ads spend keeps creeping up, but I can't tell which campaigns make money.
We get plenty of leads. Half of them aren't jobs we want.
Last year's customers never hear from us until they need something.
I make budget decisions on gut feel because I don't trust the numbers.
Every one of those is a leak in your growth pipeline. You've already paid to bring the lead in. When it goes unanswered, gets a slow callback, or ends with an estimate nobody chases, that money walks out the door, usually to the competitor who called back first.
Now picture the same busy season with the leaks fixed:
- Every call, text, chat, and form gets a fast, professional response, even after hours.
- Estimates get followed up automatically until the customer says yes or no.
- Past customers hear from you about plant health care, maintenance, and storm season, and send their neighbors.
- You can see which marketing produces quotable leads, booked estimates, and sold work, and whether you're on track for your goals.
- Your ad budget moves toward the campaigns that pay and away from the ones that don't.
- Your company runs on a system and your numbers, instead of your memory.
That's what Performance is built to do.
What the Performance stage includes A strong trunk and branch structure for your growth
Everything from Momentum keeps running: your website, local search visibility, Google Business Profile, reviews, monthly content, Local Services Ads, and your Weekly and Monthly Leads Reports. Performance connects the rest of the customer journey, from the first call to the repeat customer, and adds four things on top.
Paid search that earns its keep
We manage and optimize your Google Ads, with landing pages built for the work you want. Your ad budget goes straight to Google.
A fast response and follow-up on every inquiry and estimate
Customers expect to reach you on the channel they prefer and to hear back quickly after hours. Miss them, and they call the next company. We set up an AI chatbot trained on your business, instant replies to new inquiries, and automated follow-up for missed calls, unfinished forms, unbooked leads, and estimates that haven't closed. Emergencies and high-value jobs go to a person on your team.
How the Conversion Engine worksPrograms that keep customers coming back
Recurring care programs for plant health care and maintenance, email newsletters, Storm Response Customer Care, a referral program, and an AI Pricing Estimator that gives website visitors a price range before they call. Add Database Reactivation to bring back old estimates and lapsed customers.
Know your numbers
Your Leads and Results Dashboard goes well beyond lead source. See what each lead wanted, how the call went, where the upsell opportunities are, how much work comes from existing customers, and how you're tracking against your goals. With HubSpot or Jobber, we connect your CRM both ways, so each lead ties to its quote and sale value. With other CRMs, we send lead details in.
How Revenue Intelligence works
Where Performance sits in the customer journey
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Respond and qualify
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Conversion EngineUs + your teamWhat was answered, missed and worth quoting
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Book and follow up
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Conversion EngineYour team + usLeads in follow-up; booked estimates as CRM data connects
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Win the work
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Your teamSold work tied to its source
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Keep and grow customers
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Conversion EngineUs + your teamShare of work from existing customers
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Know what works
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Revenue IntelligenceUs + your leadershipWhere the next dollar should go
Tree service marketing strategy and reporting Reports you can act on, from people who know tree care
A report you can't act on is just noise. Your Client Success Manager (CSM) meets with you every month to check progress against your 6-month growth strategy and KPIs, with a strategist's support. When the numbers say something needs to change, we revise the strategy with you. Each quarter we step back and review the strategy together, and once a year we build your growth plan together.
Between meetings, we're available during business hours by phone, text, or email. You'll never have to wonder where things stand.
We also keep working on the processes behind your marketing. We check in on the lead follow-up practices you put in place during Foundation and help you tighten them as your team and volume grow, so your team is running the system instead of you.
Performance also gives you your own dashboard. Most agencies don't offer this level of detail or dashboard customization. Open any lead to see who called, where they came from, what they need, and how the call went. Then step back to see your whole marketing picture in one place.
Every lead, in full detail Your marketing, in one dashboard
Want it built around your company? At the Scale stage, we customize your dashboard into a custom executive dashboard.
Is the Performance stage right for you? Built for companies with demand to spare and leaks to fix
Performance usually fits tree care companies around $2.5M to $5M in annual revenue. Revenue is only a guide. What matters more is how your business runs.
A good fit if
- Leads come in steadily, and you want more of them to turn into sold work
- You've outgrown tracking every lead and estimate yourself
- You're unclear on your marketing's return, lead quality, or how many leads become booked estimates
- Someone other than you answers the phone and follows up during business hours
- You'll give us CRM and sales data access and work with us on your follow-up process
Probably not yet if
- Your website, Google presence, or tracking still need fixing first (that's Momentum)
- You're booking estimates four or more weeks out and can't take on more work yet
- You're not interested in growing
You don't need to know your stage before you talk to us. We work it out with you on the first call, and we confirm it as we build your Foundation.
Booking estimates four or more weeks out? Tell us. We won't generate demand you can't serve. We'll fix what lets prospects slip away before anyone quotes them.
Add the GROWth Team When the bottleneck is people, we train them
Sometimes the leak is a person. The office is stretched thin, new hires don't know a cabling job from a crown cleaning, and follow-up depends on who's having a good day. The GROWth Team trains and certifies your office staff as Tree Care Growth Coordinators, with scripts, standard operating procedures, workflows, and CRM training, so every serious lead gets a reliable next step. And you can stop wondering how to train, monitor, and coach the people who are often a customer’s first impression of your company.
The GROWth Team is optional and can be added to any stage. We're accepting pilot participants now.
What Performance clients say about working with TCMS Data-based decisions, made with you
Tree Care Marketing Solutions ‘gets’ our business. In the years we’ve worked with them, they’ve always delivered, whether it’s ad campaigns, email newsletters, local SEO, or amazing articles on our website. Plus, they stay up-to-date on all the latest changes in online marketing, proactively make strategic, data-based updates to our marketing tactics, and always have ideas for new ways to get in front of customers. They truly are our marketing partner, not just a vendor.
CJ BowkerAmerican Climbers · Hopkinton, MAI leave the Google paid ads and local search ads in TCMS’s hands and let them run with it. We’re getting plenty of calls – we couldn’t do much more even if we wanted to.
Bobby GatesOwner, Godspeed Tree Service · Winston-Salem, NC
Growing into the Scale stage What comes after Performance? A canopy that keeps growing
You can stay at the Performance stage as long as it fits your business. Some companies grow into Scale: opening new locations, acquiring other companies, or expanding into new markets and services. That's when complexity becomes the problem, and you need to see every location and service line side by side. When that starts to happen, your CSM will raise it with you. Nothing you build in Performance gets thrown away. Scale builds on top of it.
- Momentum
- Performance
- Scale
Performance stage FAQs Questions owners ask about the Performance stage of the GROWth System
Why do so many tree companies stall around $2 million to $3 million?
That's where we most often see the owner stop being able to track everything personally. More crews, more estimators, and more calls mean leads and estimates slip through. Performance puts connected systems and real numbers in place so the company doesn't depend on one person trying to hold it all together.
Can I start at Performance?
Every new client starts by building a solid Foundation to ensure they have everything in place that Performance needs to run on. If your business fits Performance, that's what we build toward during Foundation, and you move into Performance when it's done.
How much do I need to spend on Google Ads?
At least $2,000 per campaign each month, paid directly to Google. Below that amount, you can’t get enough clicks and conversions to optimize your campaigns. That means you’ll pay more per lead and get more of the wrong leads. We’ll recommend a realistic budget based on your goals, current performance, and local market.
Do I have to change my CRM?
No, you keep your existing CRM. Where it allows a connection, we link it to our Arborist Operating System™ (AOS) Lead Hub so you can see quotes and sales by source right in your own CRM. We have two-way integrations with HubSpot and Jobber, with a few other CRMs expected in early 2027. With other CRMs, we send lead details in and work out the best way to match leads to sales with you.
Will an AI chatbot sound like a robot to my customers?
We train it on your business and on general tree care questions, so it can answer common questions about your services and point people to the next step. We can even give it a personality and speaking style that fits your business. Emergencies, high-value jobs, and anything it shouldn't handle go straight to a person on your team. It’s always your decision whether you want Cassie (that’s what we’ve named it) to tell people she’s an AI assistant.
Is there a long-term contract?
No. After your Foundation is built, Performance is month-to-month. A few enhancements that can be added when needed, like Storm Response Customer Care or Targeted Direct Mail, have a separate 6- or 12-month commitment (they’re also sold as stand-alone services).
What does Performance cost?
We set the investment after we've talked with you and understand your company and where it's headed. Because every company is different, we don’t want to do you the disservice of forcing you into a one-size-fits-all package that may not fit your needs. Each Performance client’s program is tailored specifically to them. You only pay us for the services we provide. Ad spend and postage are always paid directly to the provider with no markup from us. See how we price.
Start growing profitably Ready to improve company performance?
Tell us about your company, your marketing, and where you want to go. We'll tell you honestly whether Performance is the right fit. Just schedule a call to get the ball rolling.