As President Donald Trump’s attorney Rudy Giuliani took to the podium for a campaign press conference on Nov. 7, while Philadelphia counted remaining presidential ballots, viewers noticed something off about the backdrop. Mainly, that he was standing in front of a garage in a vast parking lot.
Some fast googling led many to speculate that the legal team, looking to book the Four Seasons Hotel Philadelphia, mistakenly made arrangements at the wrong space nearby: the Four Seasons Total Landscaping parking lot.
The landscaper quickly became the subject of memes and social media chatter across every platform. Users joked about having a presidential press conference between an adult bookstore and a crematorium and envisioned the phone conversation between Trump’s legal team and the company.
And rather than shy away from the attention, the landscaping brand embraced it.
On Monday, the company released shirts, stickers and masks featuring slogans such as “Lawn and Order” and “Make America Rake Again.” The items sold out by Tuesday but have since restocked online and in-store. The also company shared an image of its parking lot on Twitter and Instagram to be used as a Zoom virtual background. The company is even hosting a charity run on Nov. 29 that spans about 11 miles—the precise distance between the landscaper and the Four Seasons Hotel Philadelphia.
Four Seasons Total Landscaping did not respond to Adweek’s requests for comment, but industry experts say the company can leverage its moment in the sun for long-term success.
Securing a digital presence
Prior to Nov. 7, Four Seasons Total Landscaping only advertised its commercial property services on Facebook and Instagram, catering to potential local clients and posting the occasional meme about waiting for it to snow in Philadelphia. The company joined Twitter on Nov. 8 to address the social media chatter and announce it would be selling merchandise.
A Facebook post from Four Seasons Total Landscaping used to receive anywhere from three to 145 likes. Now, some posts have received more than 11,000 likes. Similarly, the company’s Instagram posts have also risen to between 367 and more than 2,000 likes per post, compared to maxing out at around 100 likes previously.
With more than 39,000 followers on all platforms combined and a neutral stance on politics, the company is an “amazing example of how digital culture takes shape in actual relationship to real things,” according to Alex Sturtevant, director of brand at creative agency Stink Studios.
“They understood the appetite for something that was just a little bit of fresh air, and they don’t take themselves too seriously,” he continued.
Sturtevant sees similarities between this moment and when TikTok user Nathan Apodaca went viral last month after posting a video drinking Ocean Spray while riding a skateboard as Fleetwood Mac’s “Dreams” played. Many people created their own version of Apodaca’s video on TikTok, including former Fleetwood Mac guitarist and vocalist Lindsey Buckingham and Fleetwood Mac frontwoman Stevie Nicks, who created TikTok just to acknowledge the trend. The brand also got behind it, connecting with Apodaca and gifting him a truck.
Sturtevant noted that Four Seasons Total Landscaping and Ocean Spray “leaned into that initial moment,” and that’s what will count in the long run. “[Four Seasons Total Landscaping is] not making a TV ad or something like that. They’re playing the same landscape where the conversation is already happening,” he said.
Sturtevant added that the company has room to play post-election, too.
