It costs 5 x as much to attract a new customer vs. retaining the one you’ve got, according to www.Forbes.com. And existing customers are more likely to buy into your entire menu of services sooner than are new customers simply because they are already familiar with the quality of your work. It’s the low hanging fruit.
The obvious takeaway from those two important facts is that you can immediately increase your overall revenues by upselling additional services to your commercial clients. Besides mowing, edging and removing grass clippings, propose additional services to your customer like fertilization, planting trees and flowers, refreshing mulch and biggest of all, performing a facelift on existing landscaping.
The difference between landscaping planted 20 years ago and that being designed today is profound. Sustainability is the dominant theme in present day landscape design. Xeriscape runs a close second. Hardy regional plant materials are favored over exotic or difficult-to-care-for plantings.
Less lawn and more rock are favorites, in part to conserve on water, but that doesn’t mean that lawn isn’t as popular. In fact, grass lawns are probably more treasured today than ever before due to the care and attendance required to keep the lawns looking top tier.
Landscape specialists are yanking out aging evergreen shrubs. They are replacing them with intelligent plantings, purposely placed in architectural rows. Tall grasses are spaced generously apart from each other so as to retain the visual distance between the plantings for the long-term, not just when the plant is newly in the ground.
Bonsai’s are over. Modern flower beds include outdoor art sculptures as compelling additions to the shapes and forms of the living plants. And more of the landscaping installed today is flat with walkways of separated concrete forms in, through and between the overarching landscaping vs. long runs of concrete sidewalk that tends to crack over time.
Commercial landscaping today is more purposeful too. Trees are planted so as to most fully contribute to even heat and cooling of the commercial building. The functionality of matures trees in commercial development cannot be overstated.
The tired rock gardens of yesteryear that were mounds of multi-colord rock in different sizes are over. Today, the rock is limited to two or three types of a consistent size installed in a pattern, either as a ledge wall or as a protective perimeter to the greenery. Choose slow growth plants in order to keep the grounds looking fresh for the longest time. The quicker the growth, the more time it takes to maintain trees and shrubs. Smart landscaping minimizes the time it takes to maintain the property ongoing.
Outdoor living spaces aren’t just for residential use. Corporations are insisting that employees have access to a backyard of sorts immediately off the office space. Perfect for a fresh air break or to catch a private phone call, outdoor living spaces are fast becoming the preferred space to commune with nature and fellow workers. Best yet, the greenery is visible from inside the office creating a more positive workspace.
SHOW YOU THE GREEN
Tap into your database of existing customers to suggest a facelift for the property. Share your reasoning for the recommendations: i.e. to make walkways safer by removing underbrush, or to make the entrance more inviting. If the project is bigger than the customer anticipates, break the landscape makeover into two or three phases over the spring, summer and fall. Or offer half down and half paid in 45 days after completion.
When you demonstrate awareness that everyone has a budget, your customer will be impressed. Clients are proven to trust the vendor who appreciates the importance of controlling capital improvement costs.
Time your blade replacement with your marketing outreach to clients about commercial landscape facelifts. That way you’ll be prepared to proceed immediately with projects your clients need completed on deadline.
Contact www.mowmore.com today to get your equipment order set for 2020. We’ve got what you need.