Stop Marketing Like It's Spring All Year Long Ep 107. - Branded Bull Podcast

Summary5 min read

Branded Bull Podcast – Episode 107
Stop Marketing Like It's Spring All Year Long
Host: Adam Fullerton
Date: July 7, 2026

Episode Overview

In this episode, host Adam Fullerton tackles one of the most common and costly marketing mistakes made by small businesses in the green industry: marketing only for the immediate season, instead of planning ahead. The episode provides actionable advice on how to strategically stay ahead of the seasonal cycle, making marketing efforts more effective and keeping your business top-of-mind for customers before they even begin searching for services. Adam emphasizes the importance of proactive planning, educating customers early, and maintaining consistent marketing that evolves throughout the year.

Key Discussion Points and Insights

1. The Common Marketing Mistake

Reactive, Not Proactive
Adam calls out a prevalent issue: many businesses focus their marketing on services relevant solely to the current season, rather than anticipating customer needs for upcoming seasons.

“Oftentimes too many businesses market the season they're currently in instead of the season that's coming next.” — Adam Fullerton [00:57]
Lagging Behind Customer Intent
By marketing “in season,” companies often miss customers who already started their research or hired someone.

“By the time you're marketing those services, many homeowners have already started researching, comparing companies, or even hired someone else.” — Adam Fullerton [01:34]

2. The Value of Anticipatory Marketing

Show Up Before Demand Arrives
Businesses that grow consistently are those who communicate with customers before the rush.

“Marketing isn't about showing when demand is already here. It's about showing up before demand actually arrives.” — Adam Fullerton [01:52]
Educate, Build Trust, Position Early These leading businesses use early engagement to both educate customers and position themselves as the obvious choice later on.

“They're building trust early, they're answering questions before they're asked, and positioning themselves as the obvious choice when it's finally time for customers to take action.” — Adam Fullerton [02:10]

3. Examples of Seasonal Shifts in Marketing

What to Promote and When
Adam details when to start marketing certain services:
- Summer: Begin talking about fall aeration, overseeding, landscape renovations, drainage improvements, snow contracts
- Fall: Prep for winter services
- Winter: Get homeowners excited for spring projects, cleanups, and installations
- Spring: Continue spring promos, but also introduce projects with longer lead times like patios, irrigation, and large landscapes
“There's nothing inherently wrong with [talking about current services]. But there's also a perfect time to begin talking about things like fall aeration … and even commercial snow contracts. Those are the services that may not be needed right now, but they're exactly what many customers will begin thinking about over the next several weeks and months.” — Adam Fullerton [02:37]

4. Year-Round, Forward-Thinking Planning

Always One Step Ahead
Adam’s main point: “You should be one step ahead or one season ahead in terms of what you're talking about, what you're promoting, and what you're trying to sell in the minds of potential customers.” [03:43]
Avoid “Checklist Marketing”
Rather than random, day-to-day posting, Adam urges listeners to use an intentional, proactive approach, such as building a marketing calendar.

“Many businesses treat marketing kind of like a checklist. They post whatever comes to mind that day without much planning behind it.” — Adam Fullerton [03:54]

5. Four Questions for Intentional Marketing

Adam suggests sitting down quarterly or yearly to ask:

Which services are customers buying today?
Which services should they be thinking about next?
What questions are they likely asking before hiring someone?
What photos and videos should be captured now that we’ll want to use later?

“Those four questions alone can completely change how intentional your marketing becomes.” — Adam Fullerton [04:30]

6. Apply This Beyond Social Media

All Marketing Channels Matter
The concept isn’t limited to social media but should carry through to websites, Google business profiles, newsletters, blog articles, ads, and more.

“Your website, your Google business profile, your email newsletter … they should all evolve with the season or as the year progresses.” — Adam Fullerton [04:43]
Images and Content Must Match the Moment
Don’t showcase spring lawns in October—show what’s relevant now and preempt the next need.

7. Consistency Wins

Growth Comes from Consistency
Top performers are not always the highest spenders, but the most consistent, proactive marketers.

“Companies seeing the most consistent growth aren't always the ones spending most money on marketing, right? They're simply the ones who stay consistent throughout the year. They educate more than they sell.” — Adam Fullerton [05:27]

Memorable Quotes

“Stop asking yourself, what should I market today? Instead, ask yourself, what will my customers be searching for in 30, 60, or even 90 days from now?” — Adam Fullerton [06:01]
“If you build your marketing around that answer, you'll often find yourself having conversations with customers long before your competitors even realize demand is changing and they try to catch up.” — Adam Fullerton [06:17]

Actionable Challenge & Takeaway

This week’s challenge:
Ask yourself not what you should promote today, but what your customers will be looking for one to three months from now — and let that guide your marketing calendar and messaging.

“If you build your marketing around that answer, you'll often find yourself having conversations with customers long before your competitors even realize demand is changing.” — Adam Fullerton [06:17]

Notable Segment Timestamps

[00:57] Introduction to the marketing mistake of staying “in season”
[01:52] The principle of showing up before demand
[02:37] Examples of promoting off-season and future services
[03:54] Warning against ‘checklist marketing’
[04:30] Four questions to guide intentional planning
[04:43] Applying seasonal thinking to all marketing channels
[05:27] The link between consistency and growth
[06:01] The actionable mindset shift and challenge

Tone and Approach

Adam’s tone is friendly, straight-talking, and practical—avoiding jargon and focusing on guidance built for everyday realities of the green industry. The advice is clear, actionable, and grounded in real-world experience.

Summary

This episode is a must-listen for any green industry business owner who wants to get ahead of the competition—not just by working harder, but by thinking ahead. Adam Fullerton’s advice is simple but powerful: plan your marketing like a season ahead, educate before you sell, and stay consistent so your business is top-of-mind long before customers are ready to buy. Use a marketing calendar, ask the right questions, and apply this strategy not just to social media, but across all your marketing channels. The businesses that win are the ones who are already there—long before demand peaks.

Loading summary

Transcript4 lines

[00:02]
A
Jim Fullerton here with Branded Bull. And if you've been thinking about upgrading your website, now's the time. Through July 31st, we're taking $500 off our proven starter and growth website packages during our dog days of summer promotion. So whether you're looking to build credibility, showcase your services, or generate more qualified leads, a professional website is one of the best investments you can make in your business. To get started, visit Brainable.com and to learn more and sign up today.
[00:30]
B
This is the Branded Bull Podcast, a show dedicated to helping take your business to the next level with winning marketing and branding tips and strategies built for today's competitive world, ready for your business to make its mark and stand out from the competition. Let's get into it.
[00:54]
A
Hey guys, welcome back to another episode of the Branded Bull Podcast. I am your host, Adam Full, and this is a show built to help green industry businesses stand out, get found, and win more work. Today I'm going to talk to you guys about a mistake I see time and time again. It's simple, but it has a major impact on how whether your marketing actually generates leads or simply adding noise to the market. Oftentimes too many businesses market the season they're currently in instead of the season that's coming next. So every spring, social media fills up with posts about lawn fertilization, mulch installation, spring cleanups, etc. Etc. Right? Come fall, though, everybody suddenly starts thinking about leaf removal. Then the first snowstorm hits, and every contractor begins advertising snow removal. And the problem is that by the time you're marketing those services, many homeowners have already started researching, comparing companies, or even hired someone else. The businesses that consistently grow understand something different. Marketing isn't about showing when demand is already here. It's about showing up before demand actually arrives. The companies that stay ahead are educating customers weeks or even months before those customers are ready to make a buying decision. They're building trust early, they're answering questions before they're asked, and positioning themselves as the obvious choice when it's finally time for customers to take action. Think about where you are right now. It's in the middle of summer. Most of you guys listening are still thinking about mowing. Or I should say talking about mowing, weekly maintenance and colorful flower beds. And there's nothing inherently wrong with that. But there's also a perfect time to begin talking about things like fall aeration, overseeding, landscape renovations, tree and shrub planting, drainage improvements, and even commercial snow contracts. Those are the services that may not be needed right now or today but they're exactly what many customers will begin thinking about over the next several weeks and months. And if your company is educating them now, you're already going to have their attention before they even start searching online. This same mindset should continue throughout the entire year, to be honest. So during the winter, your marketing should begin to to get homeowners excited about spring, talk about spring cleanups and mulch installation and fertilizer programs, design projects and getting their property ready for warmer weather. As spring arrives, continue promoting those seasonal services while introducing longer lead time projects like patios or outdoor living spaces, irrigation systems, and just larger landscape projects or installations. By the time summer rolls around, your focus should gradually shift toward fall services. And as fall approaches, you should already be planting the seed for winter services while encouraging customers to reserve projects for the following spring. Right? So the whole point is that you should be one step ahead or one season ahead in terms of what you're talking about, what you're promoting, and what you're trying to sell in the minds of potential customers. And one mistake I see is that many businesses treat marketing kind of like a checklist. They post whatever comes to mind that day without much planning behind it. Instead, I encourage everybody listening to build a simple marketing calendar. We talked about this on the last episode on how to use AI to help you with your marketing. But sit down once a quarter, or even once a year, and ask yourself a few questions. Which services are customers buying today? Which services should they be thinking about next? Which questions are they likely asking before they hire someone? What photos and videos should be captured now that we're going to want to use later in the season or the year? Those four questions alone can completely change how intentional your marketing becomes. This idea extends will be on social media, just for the record. Your website, your Google business profile, your email newsletter if you have one. Your Google Ad campaigns, your blog articles, the videos you share on social media. They should all evolve with the season or as the year progresses. So imagine visiting a landscaping company's website in October and seeing nothing but bright green spring lawns and fresh mulch. While those photos might be beautiful, they don't reflect what customers are experiencing today and what they're looking for today. Instead, your marketing should meet customers where they are while simultaneously helping them prepare for what's next. And that can get tricky. But you have to think, what are they looking for now and what are they looking for in the future? And one thing we've learned from working with hundreds of you guys in the green industry is that companies seeing the most consistent growth aren't always the ones spending most money on marketing, right? They're simply the ones who stay consistent throughout the year. They educate more than they sell. They remain visible before customers begin searching. They and they understand that marketing isn't just about generating work for today, it's about filling the schedule for next month and next season as well. So here's my challenge for you guys this week. Stop asking yourself, what should I market today? Instead, ask yourself, what will my customers be searching for in 30, 60, or even 90 days from now? And if you build your marketing around that answer, you'll often find yourself having conversations with customers long before your competitors even realize demand is changing and they try to catch up. So that's what I've got for you on this week's episode. Thank you so much for listening. As always, if you guys found today's episode helpful, we'd really appreciate it. If you subscribe, leave us a review and share this episode with any other green industry business owners that you might work with. So that's it until next time. Keep working to stand out, get found, and win more work and I will catch you guys on next week's episode.
[07:13]
B
Thanks for listening to this episode of the Branded Bull Podcast. The podcast dedicated to giving you expert advice and actionable ideas so that your business can make its mark and stand out from the competition like what you heard in today's show. Visit brandedbull.com to see how we can help you achieve your marketing and branding goals. Also, please consider leaving a five star. And again, thanks for listening.