[trees]

Didn't know exactly where to place this thread, but given the acrimonious previous thread, this seems like a good place. Just put my daughter to bed, kicked back with a Corona and am reflecting on another busy spring day. Bare with me, I wax philosophic at times...

One of the biggest challenges we face in this industry is the industry itself. The perception out there is that anybody can do what we do. If you have a mower, blower, truck, spade and rake you can call yourself a professional landscaper. That has lead to a great many lowered expectations of the consumer. Even in the weathiest (and saviiest) neighborhoods, cut-rate know-nothings are taking work from those of us that acutally care.

We work A LOT in this industry, that's a very common theme. BUT, we also love what we do. Only the luckiest (not just the best) of us will become wealthy from this line of work. We do it because it burns inside.

What many don't understand is that it takes A LOT to do what we do. I am constantly humbled and awed by this field. You could study for two lifetimes and only know a portion of what there is to know. The best of us are not only landscapers, we need to have some level of understanding of engineering, hydrology, architecture, biology, horticulture, microbology, chemistry, pathology, not to mention a level of physical prowess, mechanical know-how and an undeniable artistic flair.

We deal with several fickle, and sometimes downright bitchy mistresses: Mother Nature and the Public. Add to that labor issues, dealing with vendors and keeping your own house in order, and there's nothing cut and dry about what we do. Sometimes I long for the security and absoluteness of a cushy government job, but what else is out there that gives me all that I've outlined above???

[Stonehenge]

Funny you write this - a week or so ago I had a radon mitigation system installed in our home. One guy, with about $1,000 in tools and a van, roughly $100 in parts, 2-3 hours, $750.

And he only had to have knowledge of a very small piece of this big world...he left and I thought I wonder if I should sell all my landscaping equipment and buy a van....

[VoodooChile]

Well said Jesse!

[Stonehenge]

Oh yeah - kudos from me, too. Very well written. I do hope your employer sees clear to turn over the company to you - sounds like it'd be in good hands.

[jwholden]

Jesse,

I agree with your thoughts 100%. It is amazing what is involved in working in this field.

I used to think I could work at a job in corporate america. After watching my wife come home from work after endless layoffs and mindless management decisions I have come to realize I'm doing exactly what I should be.

I'll never have a second home, I'll never retire at 50, I'll never die with three million dollars in the bank. I will be as happy as I can with what I have and enjoy seeing what I built as I have 'matured' over the years.

[Rose]

You're absolutely correct about never knowing enough. Coming from another field, I assume most fields are like this. However, the only difference is in the amount of passion and desire held to pursue additional learning.

I've spent over 20 years working for corporate America too! And I can't take it anymore. I need to do what I love, not work for the biggest buck like have been. It's just that I'm the only breadwinner and I'm trying to sustain financially.

Just having a hard time breaking in. Seems the pay rate is minimal, at least in my area. I understand the problems associated with low wages, turnover. Quality personnel does not come cheap. I'm hoping to trade off my past experience for someone that needs support staff.

As in my current field, the uninformed eventually hang themselves. Bad reviews are told over 20 times, whilegood reviews are lucky to get 3 tales. However, it's the good reviews that keep you in business because they love to share the satisfaction of a good job with others and think they have the inside track.

Over the years, the majority of my business always came by referral, they ARE your best advertising. Do you know that I recently met a past client who misses my services as he stated, "no one out there does the quality of work that you provided me with". Good for me ego wise, bad for the industry though (different trade).

Good luck to you. Don't worry about the inexperienced guys, they never last.

[agla]

Let us not forget psychology. Screening calls, gut feeilings you get, and so forth. It takes a lot to fine tune those. But, when they are fine tuned, you suspicions are raised. When they are raised, you gently press for reactions that confirm or deny those suspicions. In a matter of minutes, your "client" shows you his true colors.

Hmmm, what made me think of that.

You can know numbers, you can know plants, but if you don't know people, you won't be able to take this on with a lot of success. For all we read of other people, we have to remember that they are reading us as well. When you quickly sour a lot of people, it means you have work to do on yourself before you even start to worry about what the latest and greatest equipment should be on the shopping list.

Just my opinion, which happens to be right on this one.

[trees]

Absolutely!

We are often called upon to be amateur psychologists. One of my favorite lines is "Marriage counseling is extra."

[Noël]

Jesse brought up a great point, and it is definitely food for thought. I keep coming back to it since he posted two weeks ago.

I would pose this question:

What would you say are the three most important things you and your company do to convey the professional image necessary to get the caliber of clientele, the price -- and the respect -- you desire (and deserve)?

We write about these things often in PRO magazine. It would be interesting to see if most of you list the same 1/2 dozen items, or if, together, you end up with a laundry list of techniques you use to convey professionalism.

I look forward to your comments! (And so do many of the newbies now on the forum, I'm guessing )

[cutntrim]

Knowledge, experience, certification, insurability, capability (i.e. capacity), reliability...

[Noël]

Originally posted by cutntrim
Knowledge, experience, certification, insurability, capability (i.e. capacity), reliability...

Those are all KEY to being professional ... but how do you SHOW knowledge, experience, reliability, etc.?

I guess maybe that is my question. Jesse talked about "perceptions" ... how do professional landscape contractors mold those perceptions by illustrating these very-important-but-less-tangible elements to professionalism?

[Stonehenge]

This is an interesting question, and I may have an interesting answer.

One of the things I had always hated about how I presented myself for larger prospective projects was how I acted like a do-gooder paperboy from the 1950's. I think I was excited enough to make it appear that this project represented something beyond what we had done in the past. Looking back, I'm not sure exactly what has changed, but something has; we've done a good deal of larger projects, so I don't get excited about them like I used to. I'm still enthused, but it's an enthusiasm tempered by age and experience. I know that this won't be our last project, and that I'll need to continue to sell others just as big to keep food on the table. So I believe all of that makes me more relaxed in situations.

Next is being able to present a body of work. Hard to look like you've been there before if you don't have the pictures to prove it. A portfolio is a must.

Conversation. I'm always asking the client if they have any questions they need answered. Always. Everytime we talk. Sometimes I'll even bait them by asking if they want to know how we go about installing pavers, retaining walls, etc. If they do, I try to give them as much detail as I can without making their eyes roll into the back of their heads. I also will share job-site stories that usually start with "I don't know how many years ago this was, but there was a time...." With age and experience has come an ever-increasing body of knowledge, from which I can draw to answer most any question. And where I used to feel like I had to know the answer to everything, I don't anymore. I write articles for the paper, lots of experience, and have some small level of local celebrity - that seems to give me a pass on being a know-it-all.

Popularity. Let's face it, part of making an impression on a client is your ability to make friends quickly. It's easier to sell when the person on the other side of the table likes you. I actively seek out areas of mutual interest during our conversations to divert our chat to personal things every so often, just so they can get to know me a bit and feel comfortable with me. And the power of touch is amazing. Just a brief grasp of an elbow or hand at the right moment seems to break down barriers. But you have to know when to do it.

You'll see I'm spending a lot of time talking about salesmanship and some elements of marketing, which is at the crux of what I think Noël is after. I've known some Einstein-brilliant people that unless you spent weeks with them, you'd think they were transients from the subway. They clearly did not know how to convey the things they knew without a lot of digging and searching on the other party's part. The same is true here. You have to have the knowledge, but you also have to be savvy enough to know how to present that knowledge in a client-friendly manner, so they walk away feeling good about you as a person, with total confidence in your ability to do what they're asking for.

And I left out quite a few important things like uniforms, truck lettering, professional-looking contracts and invoices, business cards, brochures, etc. I left them out because I consider them de facto to professionalism. They are the bare minimum, the expected. If you don't have those things, forget about the rest until you do.

[cutntrim]

Professionalism is conveyed by the quality of the work done, the uniformed appearance of employees, and the condition and type of equipment used. Also advertising (yellow pages, website, newspaper, etc...) which points out the aforementioned, plus years in business, association memberships, government licensing, insurability, etc...

Replying promptly to messages (or answering the phone to begin with), and following up on quotes conveys professionalism. Personal appearance, grooming, grammar, courteousness, etc.. when meeting in person also speaks about the professionalism of a company.

Referrals from your existing customers lends weight to your level of professionalism when approaching new customers, as do testimonials from satisfied former/current customers.

[GLAN]

I feel as though I have a realy good response to your question Noel.........I just have to formulate it.

I know exactly what you are asking for...........it's hard to describe.


It's kinda like.......when I drive around town and drive passed so many LCO's out there....I know who the real professionals are. Granted I may know some of them personaly....And also when at a supplier and you hear the chit chat, that and how certain individuals present themselves.

This is not my answer.........but I will give you an example. I have made mention before of LCO's in my area having 2 or more crews. Customers numbering to 400. Well....I happen to know one of those characters alot better now. Cause I had moved into parking space where he is.

Just this evening we were chatting and the conversation went around to throwing out ball park pricing numbers. He kept throwing out numbers that sounded all to familiar to me....He was actualy using numbers that I have been quoting all spring. I confronted him about it and told him that there is no way possible you are getting those numbers. Cause he and I both know that I took over 5 of his accounts where my pricing is no less than $300 more for the year.

He said yeah I know......I had friends shop you to see where your pricing is at........He continued to tell me that he doesn't understand why people will sign with me at my higher prices and to top it all off.........how my customers are completely loyal to me......and we ended this part of the conversation with him admitting he couldn't provide the extreme level of excellence I achieve.....

And yet he scratches his head as to why he looses nearly 1/4 of his business every spring and has to chase the moon to refill the open slots.

There is another big player in my area. That this person is good friends with and I know who he is......though we are not friends. He to does not and cannot provide a high level of excellence. And I just found out this spring........that this other fellow has the same problem in spring........loosing to many customers and desperately needing to fill the voids.

Multiple trucks/crews.........hundreds of accounts

But are these 2 players the picture of "professional"?


1 just admitted to me today.....He doesn't understand how I charge what I do and that I command such loyalty from my customer base.


Let me ponder what you asking for......for a while. I'll come back to this

[jwholden]

The top three ways I show my clients that I am professional

1) Nice clean truck, uniformed employees, stationary, etc. I'll group all of this together.

2) Returning all communications promptly. I'm not saying I don't occasionally slip on this one, but 'most' prospective clients get the idea that something is actually happening on the other side of the phone/E-mail.

If you give a date for a proposal to be done by or a job to be started by get it done by that date. If you are behind let the customer know AHEAD of time and you will look like a real professional.

3) I got this one from AGLA, but I'll put it here. Give a client what they want. Don't sell them an Aquascape pond because you just got back from a seminar, sell them a landscape with year round interest that will screen out the neighbors RV and have a nice patio to spend time with the family on.

When I meet clients they often tell me EXACTLY what they want. All I have to do is listen and make their wants reality. Some of my clients ideas will work, some can't. If they can't work I explain why.

Bonus 4) Know the type of jobs that are your companys strengths and focus on those strenghts. If your company does 80% plantings and 20% hardscapes and has an opportunity to bid on a hardscape much larger and more complex than your norm, thank the potential client for calling you and recommend someone else for the job. The job will end up costing you money and taking longer than anticipated costing you more money in lost time on more profitable jobs.

Who would you hire to install a roof on your house, a guy who does roofs all day everyday or a carpenter who specializes in finish carpentry but currently has a light schedule?

The more years I'm in business the simpler my business model becomes. There is no complicated formula to a succesful business, you simply have to put the time in and will it to happen.