A plain-English guide to running Facebook and Instagram ads for a landscaping business. What leads cost, which jobs pull, and the seasonal timing that makes or breaks it.
Landscaping is one of the best trades there is for Facebook ads, and the reason is simple: it's visual and aspirational. A great before-and-after of a tired backyard turned into a stunning outdoor space stops the scroll and gets homeowners imagining their own yard. That's exactly what Facebook and Instagram are built for. The catch is that most landscapers either post the odd job to their page and call it marketing, or run ads with weak photos. This guide walks through how to do it properly, in plain English.
Quick note on wording. "Facebook ads", "Meta ads" and "Instagram ads" all run through the same platform, because Meta owns both Facebook and Instagram. Landscaping is one of the trades where Instagram genuinely earns its keep, because the work is so photogenic. You run across both feeds and let the system show your transformations to the people most likely to want one.
Cost per lead depends on your city and your offer more than your trade. Across the NSW trade campaigns we run, cost per lead has landed roughly between $14 in regional areas and $44 in Sydney, with most leads in the $20 to $40 range. Landscaping often does well here, because the work is so visual: a strong before-and-after photo lifts engagement, and Facebook rewards engaging ads with cheaper leads.
Budget around $300 to $600 a month in ad spend to start, plus a management fee for someone to set up and run the campaigns. Expect cheaper leads in spring when demand is naturally high, and a bit dearer in the depths of winter. For the wider picture, see our guides on cost per lead for Sydney tradies and what Facebook ads cost for tradies.
Your photos are your budget multiplier. Two landscapers can spend the same money and get wildly different results based on photo quality alone. A genuine, well-lit before-and-after will out-perform a flashy graphic every time. Build a library of your best transformations.
Both, doing different jobs.
Google Search catches people already looking. Someone searching "landscaper near me" or "retaining wall builder [suburb]" is high-intent and close to ready. A strong Google presence and Google Business Profile are hard to beat for those active searchers.
Facebook creates demand. It shows your transformations to local homeowners who are dreaming about a better garden but haven't started ringing landscapers yet. Because landscaping is so visual, Facebook is especially good at sparking that interest from a standing start.
Most landscapers do best with both: Google for the ready-to-go searchers, and Facebook ads to fill the pipeline with inspired homeowners. We compare the two in Google Ads vs Facebook Ads.
Facebook works best for the visual, high-value projects homeowners aspire to. The strongest performers for landscapers tend to be:
Use your best before-and-after photos to sell the transformation, and lead with the project type that's most in season.
From running trade campaigns, a few things separate the ads that pull from the ones that flop, and for landscapers the photos do most of the heavy lifting:
Timing matters more for landscapers than almost any other trade. Demand climbs into spring and summer as homeowners get their outdoor spaces ready for warmer weather and entertaining. The smart move is to ramp up ad spend in late winter and early spring, ahead of the rush, so you're booked out when demand peaks rather than scrambling for work.
You can run year-round at a lower level to keep the pipeline ticking, then push harder seasonally. Quiet winter months are good for maintenance offers and for locking in spring projects early, while everyone else waits for the weather to turn.
Get ahead of spring, don't chase it. The landscapers who win the busy season start advertising before it arrives. By the time the first warm weekend hits and everyone's thinking about their garden, you want to be the business already in their feed, not just starting your ads.
Lead form ads are the best starting point. They let a homeowner send their details without leaving Facebook, which removes friction and captures the enquiry while your transformation photos are fresh in their mind. In the trade campaigns we run, lead forms consistently beat sending people to a website. Add a question or two about the project type and yard size to qualify the lead, and follow up fast, because a homeowner inspired by a photo can cool off quickly.
Here's the short version for a landscaper thinking about Facebook ads:
Win one garden makeover or retaining wall off a month of leads and the ads have usually paid for themselves several times over.
This is exactly what we do: Facebook and Instagram ads for landscapers, run for local landscaping businesses across Sydney, the Northern Beaches and beyond. Every campaign starts with a free quote and a plain English plan, no lock-in contract, no jargon.
If you'd rather have everything handled in one bundle (ads, Google Business Profile, SEO, monthly reporting, and review management) our Monthly Growth Retainer is the best value option. You deal directly with the founder, not an account manager, and you can see exactly what we're spending and what's working at any time.
Related reading
Facebook Ads for Landscapers · Facebook Ads for Electricians · Cost Per Lead for Sydney Tradies · Monthly Growth Retainer
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