Waste Management Marketing: How to Market a Waste Management Company

If you run a waste management company, you know what it’s like to roll up your sleeves and do some dirty work. We’re talking about managing your upkeep, making sales, and marketing your business to potential customers.

While hauling junk gets you paid, marketing helps you grow over time. A good marketing strategy attracts potential customers and helps you retain the most valuable buyers at your business.

In this post, I’ll help you create a marketing strategy for your waste management company. We’ll review different strategies for B2B and B2C brands and then wrap up with tips for marketing a waste management business.

Waste Management Marketing Strategy

Your waste management marketing strategy will begin like any other: Start by identifying your target audience. Then, determine which channels you’ll use to engage them, and use tactics like digital marketing, search engine optimization (SEO), and offline marketing to get their attention.

Tip: If you’re brand new to marketing, check out this guide to marketing 101.

Marketing starts with an understanding of your target audience. As a waste management company, there are two core audiences: B2B (business-to-business) and B2C (business-to-consumer) audiences. In some cases, you may even market to both.

If you’re not sure who your target audience is, here’s a breakdown that can help:

B2B Buyers	B2C Buyers
Homeowners associations Property management companies Municipalities Commercial businesses, including restaurants, schools, construction sites, manufacturing companies, and more	Residential homeowners Rural homeowners Junk haul removals

If you’re targeting multiple audiences, the good news is that they share similar concerns and pain points. For example, environmental awareness, recycling, and sustainability impact buying decisions regardless of whether you’re a B2B or B2C buyer, so developing a marketing strategy that highlights those pain points is essential.

To reach both audiences above, you need to consider how they’re searching for your business. Most B2B audiences start online, so SEO and search engine pay-per-click ads (PPC ads) are big parts of a waste management marketing strategy. Direct mailers to local businesses will also be helpful.

B2C audiences might not know your company exists because of larger competitors, and the best place to start is to promote yourself within your local community. A great way to do that is to attend community events such as festivals, charity functions, environmental protection events, etc.

For both audiences, make sure your website and social media pages address everything they need to know about your company. Communicating your unique value proposition will increase awareness of your services, deals, and popular features.

Here’s where marketing campaigns help. Below are eight ways to market a waste management company. Let’s review each and discuss how to use them to grow your small business.

1. Segment your audiences.

The key to building a successful waste management marketing strategy is segmenting your audience into groups with different types of customers. That way, you can personalize your marketing to address each group’s needs and pain points.

For B2B companies, you should create marketing campaigns that target decision-makers, like managers and business owners. They have the power to decide to buy things from your company, so you want to ensure they see your promotions and can contact your business.

Here are three campaigns that you can use to advertise to both audiences:

• Search engine ads. These are text or local map ads (shown below) that appear on search engines. You’ll use these ads to increase brand awareness among people searching for waste management companies.

• Website pages with your keywords. Your audience is probably searching for certain keywords on Google. You can target them by creating website pages that answer questions or promote your services. In the example below, the main keyword on this page is “commercial trash and recycle service.”

• Local area pages. These are web pages for each city in which you provide services. As a local business, search engines need to know which areas you service. Local pages, like the one pictured below, tell search engines you provide services in the areas customers are searching for.

For B2C audiences, include FAQs on your website and social media pages. Each service you provide should have a FAQ section at the bottom, like the example below.

2. Showcase your eco-friendly services.

Eco-friendly services like recycling, composting, and green initiatives are popular with waste management buyers. Highlighting them in your marketing strategy can help attract new customers and grow your small business.

For example, Waste Management’s website features a prominent Sustainability & Recycling section. This page provides information about the company’s technology and highlights events the brand sponsors or attends to support green initiatives.

Your business should add similar pages to its website if it offers the same services. It will help you inform interested buyers and attract new customers through SEO. If you rank for topics related to sustainability, people will discover your business when they search for phrases like “eco-friendly waste management companies.”

3. Promote your bulk pick-up options.

Another popular service for waste management companies is bulk pick-up and junk removal. You should promote these services on your home page and clarify the kinds of items you pick up for each price. Offering free pick-ups or discounts is a great way to stand out from competitors.

Staying with the Waste Management example, you’ll notice a section detailing what large and heavy items the company picks up.

Additionally, when you scroll down the page, you’ll find alternative solutions if the company can’t pick up the item you need. This will direct consumers to use your company in another way instead of finding a competitor who will offer the junk removal they need.

4. Create web pages dedicated to popular pain points.

When you think about your target audience, what are the top pain points that your company solves? Is it recycling? Bulk trash pick up? Construction waste? Electronic waste? Dumpster needs? Whatever combination of those services you offer, it is important to create web pages on your site dedicated to the most popular pain points.

Strategic Sanitation Services’ website features a list of recurring services that show what pain points the company can help with.

Then, when you click one of the services offered, a separate landing page is dedicated to explaining that service. This structure helps search engines find your company when someone searches for those pain points. When a potential customer reaches your site, they’ll see what the service includes, how much it costs, and if you provide it in their area.

Tip: You don’t need a web developer to build an awesome website. You can use a website builder to design a professional-looking site in minutes.

5. Provide great customer service and get good reviews.

You might think that customer service and marketing are separate functions at your business. But customer service is not only a central selling point for small businesses; it’s also one of the most significant topics customers discuss in online reviews.

Online reviews are crucial for small businesses – 97% of consumers use them to discover local brands in their areas. They’re popular because they’re reliable; people trust reviews more than advertising. They’re also what search engines use to rank the best brands in specific areas. For example, if you Google “best waste management services near me,” the top results will have plenty of good reviews.

Review and reputation management is vital to any company, and a great way to get more positive reviews is to have top-notch customer service at your business. You and your team should be kind, informative, and easy to work with on projects. You should also provide different ways to contact your business when customers need support.

By creating great customer experiences, you’ll motivate customers to leave good reviews, which will lead to repeat purchases and new business for your company.

6. Establish connections with local businesses in the community.

To grow your waste management company, connect with local businesses in your community. They can help you find potential buyers and partner with you on marketing campaigns.

Try sponsoring local events and contacting business owners in your area. Trade shows are a great way to meet people, and grand openings show your support for other companies.

Another way to get your name out there is to send direct mailers to local businesses. This marketing strategy increases brand awareness with brands that might need your services. Even if they don’t need waste removal right away, they can keep your mailer on file and contact your brand in the future.

7. Offer specialty services.

I’m not sharing any secrets when I say competing with big-name brands is hard. However, one way to stand out is to offer specialty services and spend most of your marketing efforts promoting those offers to potential customers.

For example, you can offer pressure washing, janitorial services, and even odor control services like the company below. This web page promotes “enclosure pressure washing” services and details its benefits.

8. Be active in your community.

Customers can’t use your business if they don’t know you exist. While being active online is important, you can also build a strong reputation by participating in your local community. The best way to do this is to attend local festivals, charity functions, and environmental protection events.

Some ideas to get you started:

• Offer free or discounted waste removal for charity or non-profit events
• Have a booth at a local festival
• Attend environmental protection events and promote green initiatives
• Build relationships with local event planners

Improve Your Waste Management Marketing Strategy

If you want to grow your waste management business, you need a strong marketing strategy. Marketing helps you retain your customers and attract new buyers to your business. Use these tips to fuel your marketing strategy, and check out the guide below for more resources that can help you promote a waste management business.