The growth of a business can be a testing time for a landscape gardening business owner. Initially it will almost certainly create more work for you, but the goal should be to have a successful business and make a profit whilst at the same time taking a step back. When this eventually happens, it is rewarding for a business owner to know their business is making a profit even when they are not there.
Accurate quoting and pricing are vital for the success of your landscaping business. You must ‘know your numbers’ to ensure your quotes cover all business costs plus the profit margin you want to make. Remember to include the business overheads as they can sometimes be forgotten. It may help to do some market research and try to find out what other landscaping businesses are charging in your area.
When you are busy it can be easy to forgo looking at your numbers. Make time to review the profit of each job. It’s all very well making lots of sales but if the jobs aren’t covering the business costs it will be detrimental to your business. By reviewing the profit of each job, you can tweak your future job costing process to make it more accurate and profitable.
The staff are the greatest asset of your business and recruiting the right person is imperative. They need to be trained to your standard as you will not always be there to monitor them. Recruit before you need to and give the new employee a trial so you can scope out their strengths and weaknesses and test if they’re a good fit for your business.
Monitoring the cash flow in your landscaping business is key to success. Make sure invoices are sent as soon as they can, and debtors are chased on or before the invoice due date. Include the payment terms and payment structure in your terms and conditions and show these clearly on your quote and a due date on the invoice.
Growing a landscaping business is an exciting time for a business owner but it also takes a lot of hard work. Work out what your goals are from the outset and keep them in mind as you grow. The goals you set will help steer the business in the right direction, so you get to the right destination.