Start a Landscaping Service Business

Monday, July 15, 2013

Start a Landscaping Service Business

Grounds maintenance workers held more than 1.5 million jobs in 2008, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Outlook Handbook, 2010-11 Edition. The outlook looks even better as the industry expected a growth rate of 18 percent between 2008 to 2010. The timing could be right for you to start your own landscaping business. There are some clear cut benefits as well. You can start with limited financial resources and enjoy the outdoors while you work. To step on greener ground from amongst the rest, take note of some helpful tips.

Step 1

Develop a business plan and use it as a guide to realizing your long-term vision. Limit your initial landscaping services to what you do best, whether it is mowing lawns, mulching leaves, removing them or specializing in tree trimming services. As your business grows, you may want to hire sales teams and additional grounds maintenance workers. Your strategy can be limitless in terms of profitability and geographical expansion.

Step 2

Set competitive pricing for your offerings. According to The-Lawn-Advisor.com, the average price for cutting a half-acre lawn was between $20 and $40. In addition, a minimum of $75 is charged for trimming a 30-foot tree, such as a Dogwood, but it could be higher than $400, according to Costhelper.com.

Call local landscaping businesses to get an idea of fair market pricing for your services. Take into account your experience and highlight all of the other benefits to your customers to justify pricing. Offer new customers discounts, but also offer special deals for your existing customers.

Step 3

Register your business with the local secretary of state office. While there, find out what other agencies you need to file with in your area. You may need to collect taxes on any associated lawn care products that you decide to sell along with your services. Each state or city agency may have additional and different laws to follow.

Step 4

Become a member of a local trusted business organization. Memberships with the Chamber of Commerce and Better Business Bureau will help you to earn trust among your customers. Subscribe to an industry-based organization so you can stay alerted of trends and law policies that affect your industry.

Step 5

Purchase business liability and workers compensation insurance so you can better concentrate on conducting your business. If you belong to an industry-based organization, you may be able to get discounted business insurance through the association or at minimum, advice on the best suitable resources. Ensure that employees have necessary training to minimize on the job accidents.

Step 6

Obtain certification as a Certified Treecare Safety Professional if you plan to offer tree trimming services. The Tree Care Industry Association provides tree care professionals with the American National Standards Institute A300 standards for tree care. Accreditation lets your potential and current customers know that you follow industry-set guidelines. This fact can also help you promote your business.

Things Needed

Warning

You can lose a good customer through no fault of your own if that particular homeowner relocates or that specific commercial establishment closes down or changes ownership. Therefore, do not underestimate the value of a well-written business plan with a growth strategy. The more repeat and new customers your landscaping businesses has, the better chance of its long-term survival.

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About the Author

Nina Nixon is the owner of Columbus Administrative Services, a firm that specializes in business consulting and writing. She has more than 24 years of experience. Nixon holds the following certifications: Minority Business Enterprise (MBE); Encouraging Diversity, Growth and Equity/Minority Business Enterprise (EDGE/MBE); Female Business Enterprise, Minority Business Enterprise and Small Business Enterprise (FBE/MBE/SBE); and an Historically Underutilized Zone (HUBzone) certification.

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Easy Tips and Ideas to Start Business

Although anyone can start a business, many people fail because of a bad product or improper research. If you want to start your own business, you can improve your chances for success before you even begin. In order to make your business successful, start strong and make sure that your idea will hold out for the long haul.

Have a Good Product

Ensure that you plan to sell something useful. Although you may think that your product is important or special, that doesn't mean the general public will agree. Ask friends, family and strangers what they think of your product. If they don't seem that interested, ask them why. With their suggestions, you can either improve the product or scrap the idea completely. According to Brad Sugars of Entrepreneur magazine, most small businesses fail because they sold a product that didn't have an adequate market. This also applies to small businesses that provide a service. A lawn-care business might be useful for part of the year in a northern state, but it is in-demand year-round in the south. Consider whether people will actually want to use your service and get constructive advice from those not afraid to give their opinion.

Research Local Businesses

Research local companies before starting up your own business. This will not only give you an idea of the amount of competition you will have, but it will also help you price your product or service. If you're looking to start a wedding photography business, you may find during your research that the market is over-saturated in your area. If not over-saturated, you should contact each business and ask them for a price list. Alter your prices so you can stay competitive with the competition in town. Researching similar local businesses will also help you decide where to locate your business location. Try not to start up a store or office close to another business of your type. If your small business is located away from similar business types, this will cause locals to choose you over businesses that are farther away from where they live.

Get Professional Advice

You may know someone who has started their own successful business. Ask him for advice and listen to his stories of how he started his company. You may gain useful advice on the good and bad ways to start a business. Local entrepreneurs can also introduce you to local product providers or advertisers that you may not have met without their help. Accept any advice with open arms, especially if the advice is coming from someone successful in the area.

How to Calculate Business Start Up Costs

Starting a business in no easy endeavor. It takes a great deal of research, perseverance and hard work. While sweat equity will make your small business more successful, you will most likely need real capital to get the business started. Before you start raising capital and/or investing your own funds, the first thing you need to do is determine the total start-up costs.

Step 1

Determine your costs of sales. For most small businesses this means inventory, the cost of raw materials, manufacturing equipment, shipping, packaging, and warehousing. However, not all businesses sell products. In this case, the cost of sales is primarily the direct labor involved in making the sale. For example, to open a small shoe business entails purchasing enough inventory ($10,000) to stock the store.

Step 2

Determine professional fees. Planning your business structure, i.e., limited liability corporation or general partnership, means hiring an attorney. There may also be the need to pay an attorney for help with establishing trademarks, copyrights, and patents. In this scenario, that puts total professional fees at an estimated $20,000.

Step 3

Determine technology costs. Technology can greatly reduce the cost of labor for small business if used effectively. Most small businesses require computers, printers, cell phones, website development, Internet access, software applications, information security, data storage, and outsourced information technology (IT) consulting. If the cost of technology is $10,000 to start, add an additional $5,000 a year for maintenance (hint: maintenance is not included in start-up costs).

Step 4

Determine administrative costs. This varies with business types and may include items such as business insurance, office supplies, product packaging, parking, rent, express shipping, desks, chairs, fax machines, phones, or anything else necessary to operate the business daily. A good estimate for start-up administrative costs would be $5,000 for the first six months.

Step 5

Determine initial sales and marketing costs. Now that you have your product, you need to let folks know about it. Sales and marketing costs generally include marketing materials for presentations, printing stationery, business cards, advertising, trade show events, and public relations. These initial sales and marketing costs can add up to $3,000.

Step 6

Determine the wages and benefits needed to secure a staff. This includes employee salaries, benefits, workers compensation, and payroll taxes. Let's put the cost of wages and benefits estimated at $20,000 for the first three months of business.

Step 7

Add all costs associated with starting the business for a total. Be sure to only include business start-up costs that will be incurred in the first three to six months of operations. For this example, the calculation is: $10,000 + $20,000 + $10,000 + $5,000 + $3,000 + $20,000 = $68,000.

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Monday, July 15, 2013