The landscaping industry continues to grow as an increasing number of homeowners are interested in paying for someone to look after their lawns and exterior home aesthetic. Thus, it’s no surprise that entrepreneurs are recognizing the opportunity this presents and are setting up landscaping businesses to compete within this thriving industry. After all, a landscaping job is a flexible and exciting career for a lot of people. Aside from working outdoors, you also get to set your working hours and directly enjoy the benefits of profit and growth. (1)
However, like any other business, your startup landscaping business is also vulnerable to external factors and business management mistakes. While mistakes are part of your business growth and development, they can be costly and lead to financial loss, especially when made repetitively. Thankfully, many of these issues can be identified quickly and are avoidable as long as you recognize them and know how to deal with them effectively.
To minimize stress and begin your business venture positively, here are six common mistakes to avoid when starting a landscaping business.
- Underquoting
As a startup business, many entrepreneurs start by offering very low prices for their services to attract customers and begin to establish a client base. While this has short term advantages and may work in some cases, unfortunately, some customers’ expectations may be that this is a fair deal for them and that a higher rate would be unacceptable. Moreover, people tend to associate low cost with low quality. Hence, you end up selling yourself short and devaluing the service you are providing. Giving out cheap rates can only go so far. (2)
When at the stage when you are pricing your services, you need to consider employee wages, equipment and materials used, competitor pricing, and profit margin. Competitive pricing alone won’t be enough in establishing the rates for your services. Most importantly, once you’ve finalized your prices, often the best way to secure a job is to showcase your work and publish positive testimonials which can be done on your website or any marketing collateral. This demonstrates your high-quality output and professionalism and proves why your business is worth the investment of your customers.
- Overlooking the admin tasks
The landscaping business is centered on providing outdoor services like lawn mowing, gardening, landscape designing, and so on. But while you and your team are working on other people’s lawns, make sure you still prioritize time for administrative tasks. Otherwise, overlooking these responsibilities will mean things like job enquiries are not responded to, estimates are not sent out, invoices are sent out late, and all this begins to affect your cash flow and sales pipeline. To help you with all these tasks, you’d be well advised to utilize lawn care management software to help you multitask and juggle your admin and on-site responsibilities. Technology such as this has been designed specifically to help businesses operating within this niche and can be highly effective at making you significantly more effective and productive with your time. (3)
Integrating lawn care management software into your business will help you monitor and oversee all your tasks from one application. Remember, your landscaping business is not the same as doing a summertime hobby. With an organized work team and proper delegation of tasks and workflow, you are empowered to provide a better level of service to your customers. (4)
- Overspending on equipment
When starting your landscaping business, you’ll need to invest in materials and equipment to help you get started. However, when you’re starting out, be conservative with what you choose to buy and consider renting any very expensive equipment. Then, when you establish a base of loyal customers and have secured a steady revenue, that might be the time to consider purchasing more. Overspending on equipment will only increase your startup costs and could be the difference between leading you to debt, or not. Take considerable time at the beginning to carefully plan your finances, including how much you should spend on your materials and equipment.
- Improper employee training
Generally, you’ll need to hire at least one or more workers to help you service your customers. However, don’t fall into the trap of sending them out on jobs without first giving them proper training. The performance of your employees and way they conduct themselves does influence your customers’ impression of your business. To get this right, instill in your team the traits you want them to demonstrate to customers and invest in their development. (4) (5)
Regular training sessions will help to keep your team motivated and collaborate on new and better ways of working, as well as sharing relevant industry news and updates.
- Forgetting your phone
Your company phone is the bridge between your current and potential customers. Forgetting your phone while you’re working outdoors means you could miss important new inquiries and appointments from your customers, which may negatively affect your job pipeline. So, whatever you do, always bring your phone with you and make sure you don’t miss any calls from your clients.
- Lack of communication
Like any relationship, maintaining effective communication with your team and your clients is crucial for your landscaping business. Proper communication between your workers is essential to ensure they know exactly what they have been tasked to do, when and where. At the same time, communicating with your clients is equally vital to ensure both parties are aligned in what they want and can meet their expectations. Remember, the trust between your customers and your team is built through effective communication.
Key Takeaway
These common mistakes are generally part of your experience when starting a landscaping business, at one stage or another. However, if you can avoid them, or at the very least keep them to an absolute minimum, you can ensure that you and your business are set for a great start.
References:
- “It’s A Booming Time For These Backyard Businesses”, Source: https://squareup.com/us/en/townsquare/backyard-businesses
- “Low Cost Business Model”, Source: https://businessmodelanalyst.com/low-cost-business-model/?msclkid=c98c3ea5b0ee11ec8dd8f6008b29613c#Disadvantages_of_low_cost_business_model
- “Personnel management – tasks, functions, and goals”, Source: https://www.ionos.com/startupguide/productivity/personnel-management/#:~:text=In%20general%2C%20it%20is%20the%20personnel%20administrator%E2%80%99s%20task,goal%3A%20to%20establish%2C%20maintain%2C%20or%20expand%20employee%20satisfaction.?msclkid=d62c93e9b0f211ec8abb1d7401a1ba8a
- “Big Mistakes To Avoid When Growing A Landscape Company”, Source: https://landscapewriter.com/7-mistakes-avoid-growing-landscape-company/
- “What Not To Do When Starting A Landscaping Business”, Source: https://fundbox.com/blog/what-not-to-do-when-starting-a-landscaping-business/
