|
Brandon,
The toughest thing about the landscape design business is that it is a free for all. The best thing about it is that it is a free for all. In other words there are no standards.
There are no standards for who can be a landscape designer, how much they charge, what they deliver for a product, or anything. There is also no standards on the client's side, what they are willing to pay, what is the background of their designer, what services they expect of their designer, ... The two standard that is there from the client's perspective is that they feel you know what they think you ought to know to do their work and they perceive that you bring a lot more value into the outcome of the project than what it will cost to have you involved.
Until clients are seeking you rather than you seeking clients, you can not make much more than wages for your time. The single biggest obstacle is getting work to come to you. Design/build landscape companies are very well placed in the market for getting a stream of inquiries simply because they are recognized as the "makers" of the landscapes that the client likes and were very visible through well marked trucks at the time of construction, and the trucks are seen repeatedly around town which reminds them each time of the work they did. Secondly, the client knows that the job can go from start to finish with one contact. The latter is a much bigger deal than you might think. When all else is equal, the designer who works for the design/build is going to get the job every time.
The thing that will elevate you most and fastest in the market is if you seek out a successful design/build company that is doing somewhat similar work that you want to do and try to work for them for a couple of years. That will get you in the loop and teach you much more about managing a landscape site than doing backyards in your neighborhood. Whether you can even land such a job is going to tell you more about where you are as well. The learning that you'll get is much more about how the business works than how to design. It will get you into the network of suppliers and work sources. It will fill your portfolio with built work of your designs and tie the recognition of the company you worked for to you.
I call that the moving sideways strategy vs. the climbing the ladder strategy which you and so many others typically try to do. After a few years of working for someone else, you are essentially in their market and you have a much better shot at remaining in it when you go on your own. There is a lot less competition there. By starting from scratch, you have the competition of every design/build and every aspiring landscape designer to compete with in a saturated market.
The typical thing that happens is you start out with one or two good opportunities of doing work for friends or others that have faith in your potential and trust you as an individual. After that, it is real life. Typically, you'll wind up taking on smaller jobs that you can build yourself in order to keep the money coming in. Before you know it, ten years passes and you are still working out of a pickup truck. I'm not saying this is your destiny, but it is the most common image of an independent landscape designer.
Your (or my) ability to design is the last skill set you get to apply of all the skill sets needed to make a living as a designer.
Think like the client:
1. where do I look for a landscape designer?
2. what has this person done vs. what the other three I met?
3. what will this person do to get my job complete vs. the others?
4. why is this person better for me than the others?
|