February 2016
Greetings!
Are you making the most of the slower season?
Many contractors use the slower months to organize, inventory and prepare for
the spring rush. If
you want to gain a competitive edge, use the off-season to learn new things.
Managers can identify and plan new revenue sources. Team members can learn to complete
tasks more efficiently.
Keeping up with new technology and better solutions is always a
challenge. We can't keep doing things the same way.
You owe it to yourself and your team to invest some time in training. Education
for your employees has significant paybacks in increased productivity, reduced
errors and overall retention.
Forget about dusty textbooks. Today's professional education is better
and more relevant. Hands on classes, insightful videos and on-line
seminars provide knowledge that is easy to absorb and understand.
Grow your professionalism by taking advantage of all of the learning
opportunities we offer.
6 Ways to Keep Landscape
Customers More Loyal
You
know the old maxim, "it's easier to grow existing customers than to find
new ones." But keeping customers loyal can be a challenge in
a competitive market. Here are 6 ideas to help you keep your
customers more loyal:
1. Be
reliable: Customers consistently say the best contractors are
the most reliable ones. Keep your promises. Be on time.
2. Return phone calls,
emails, and texts promptly: Yes, customer calls can be
painful. Promptly replying to an inquiry (within 24 hours should be the
benchmark) demonstrates that you care.
3. Think helpful.
Helping is more important than making a sale. It creates trust that gets
customers to come back and to recommend you to their friends.
4. Find out their
additional needs: Ask what needs the client may have and see if
you can help them with these needs or if you can refer them to someone who
can.
5. Keep in touch:
Don't just contact them at contract renewal time or when it's time for a
seasonal service. Touch base regularly. Send cards, thank you
notes, e-newsletters, etc.
6: Make it impossible
for them to leave
: Do your job so well that it makes it seem foolish to the
customer to look anywhere else.
|
Maximize Your Profits in
2016!
Register Now for Our On-Line
Training Portal
We are providing this new on-demand learning environment to help you access the latest
in industry knowledge in landscape construction, irrigation installation and
troubleshooting, contractor business operations and more.
On our site you will find an unbeatable line-up
of helpful courses and videos from leading manufacturers and best practices
from experts. There's content to keep you coming back again and
again. Learn more about the
content on our video.
With our portal, you can access the courses and videos 7 days a week / 24
hours a day to train your employees on best management
practices and product updates.
To participate, contact Craig at MPR to register your team. [email protected]
Courses are eligible for Irrigation Association CEU credits.
|
Steer Clear of Spring Cash Flow Problems
Half
of all small businesses fail within 5 years, and one of the biggest contributors
to these failures is poor cash flow.
You work your butt off night and day until all the work is done. While
you wait for the next job, you may realize that you don't have enough money
to pay your workers or fill up your gas tanks. Cash-flow problems happen when companies need to pay business
expenses, but don't have any cash because they are
waiting for customers to pay them. While you try to get loans to keep your
business afloat, now is the time to make sure you don't have this problem again.
Plan ahead to steer clear of the
following cash-flow pitfalls.
Get money up front.
You have lots of up-front costs and can't afford to wait until after the
season starts to get your first payments. Require your customers to pay their
first and last month's payments upon signing the contract. Always collect
fees up front and save yourself from big headaches later. Provide incentives
of 2-3% off services if customers pay the entire season upfront.
Bill as you go.
This is a common small-business fail. You may really enjoy maintaining your
equipment and driving your skid-steer loader, but don't
like sitting at your computer trying to figure out how your business is
really doing. Field-service software like Hindsite can really help you
organize everything and make better sense of everything.
Be sure you're
profitable on every account. Businesses need to
carefully evaluate each type of customer they serve to make sure they are
making money on each account. Some properties are more profitable than
others, but if you are losing money on a client, changes need to happen.
Collect.
This is the most common cash-flow
problem in small business. You can prevent this easily by having your
customers pay in advance. You can also encourage your customers to sign up for
automatic payments by offering a small discount. Make sure you set up your
contract to include penalties for late payments and details on sending unpaid
balances to collections.
|
Free Training Video - Troubleshooting a Valve That Won't
Activate
What should you do when a valve won't activate
from the controller?
Is the problem the controller, the wiring or the valve?
How can you diagnose the problem without digging?
Regency Wire answers these questions and more in their NEW free training video for
irrigation professionals. Check it out and be sure to share
it with your team!
|
Landscape Lighting For ALL Seasons
Think landscape
lighting is only meant to be enjoyed in the warm-weather seasons?
This is far from the truth!
Spring, summer, fall or winter - landscape
lighting adds value to a home during every season.
The experts at Kichler advise landscape lighting contractors and designers to visualize how each
season will impact the homeowner's yard to determine their fixture choices
and placement accordingly. If done correctly and in agreement with customers'
needs and desires, the year-round enjoyment of their outdoor environment can
be greatly improved.
Here are tips for landscape lighting professionals:
- Snow can impact the
effectiveness of accent lighting fixtures. Place
the fixtures high in trees to create a downlight or moonlighting effect,
or on the trunk of the tree for uplighting.
- In warmer times
where plant material grows quickly, consider installing accent lights on
stems. This way the fixtures will be off the ground and above the plant
to prevent the reduction of light output.
- In areas with heavy
snowfall, use a heavy-duty bollard-style fixture and be mindful not to
place fragile path lights too close to a driveway or sidewalk. They may
become completely hidden or damaged due to snow
accumulation and removal.
- Consider the
beam spread and amount of footcandles needed for different seasons. What might work for a tree in late fall or
early winter may not work as well for that same tree in full bloom. A
tree in the middle of the summer requires much more light than that same
tree after its leaves have fallen.
For more information on Kichler, visit www.LandscapeLighting.com
|
No More Muddy Paws! Build
Dog Runs with UltimateGrass
Constructing a dog run
is a great way to keep dogs active and ensure that they get enough exercise,
but finding the right materials can be tricky. Gravel and dirt are
uncomfortable for dogs to run on and often make for
dirty paws. Natural grass is expensive to maintain and cannot easily be kept
alive in inclement weather. The ideal dog run surface is soft, durable, and offers substantial
drainage. Synthetic turf is the leading green alternative to natural grass,
and with its 100% permeable backing, UltimateGrass
is your dog run surface solution.
In addition to being pet-friendly and low-maintenance, UltimateGrass is
discoloration and stain resistant, making clean-up of dog
messes quick and easy. Safe, non-toxic, and chemical-free, it is also durable
enough to stand up to even the most challenging of pets.
Last year, world renowned dog whisperer Cesar Millan
partnered with EasyTurf, parent company of UltimateGrass, on the 10,000 sq.
ft. installation of artificial grass at his Dog
Psychology Center in Santa Clarita, California. It has also been installed in
countless dog parks, animal shelters, animal hospitals,
pet resorts, and veterinary clinics throughout North America. The experts
agree that installing UltimateGrass makes dog runs cleaner, more comfortable, and more fun!
|
Make Landscape Lighting
Installation Easier with the L-Tool
The L-tool®
from King Innovation® is a new stainless steel multi-tool
designed specifically with lighting contractors in mind. Lighting
installers and professionals have a number of tools required on a daily
basis, and carrying all these items to each site location is cumbersome and
time consuming.
Cousin to the I-tool®, the L-tool focuses on the lighting
industry. The L-Tool
is every landscape lighting professional's best friend, used for lighting
system installations, troubleshooting or repair.
The following eighteen (18) easily accessible, auto-locking,
tools are included in the L-tool:
Wire Stripper, Wire Cutter, Wire Puller, Pliers, Cross Bit Screwdriver, Small
Flat Head Screwdriver, Large Flat Head Screwdriver, 5/32 Hex Key, 5/64 Hex
Key, 3mm Hex Key, Scribe, Brush & Tube Brush, Level, Ruler, Saw, Lift Tool, Knife, Tape Roll Holder (on pouch). Constructed of
sturdy stainless steel, each tool locks into place
after each use. We crafted a lightweight, yet strong, compact tool
to last. In addition, a durable nylon carrying case is included with every tool. The way the L-tool
is organized provides for maximum leverage and easily releases after each
use.
Compatibility with all major lighting brands makes the
|