3 Reasons Why You Don't Want to Get Stuck in Residential Landscaping

If you are considering owning a landscaping business, you need to weigh the pros and cons of residential and commercial landscaping. Some companies do exclusively one or the other, while other companies do a combination of the two. Although there are benefits of both residential and commercial clients, getting stuck doing residential landscaping is not where you want to be. Here are 3 reasons why.

#1 Revenue Possibilities

It goes without saying that smaller properties bring in less revenue. It takes several residential contracts to earn the same revenue that comes from just a few commercial properties. Serving a whole bunch of residential properties requires a lot more work for you, even if the square footage is the same. Servicing more properties means managing more client relationships and remembering more rules or preferences, all on top of more time spent driving to and from your destinations.

On the other hand, when you work exclusively with commercial clients, fewer contracts earns the same (or more!) revenue. In addition to having more square feet than typical residential properties, commercial properties can require more in depth landscaping, including things like flowerbeds, shrubs, hardscapes, irrigation, and more, translating into more earnings for your business.

#2 Client Relationships

Some people say that one of the benefits of residential landscaping is that you get to work closely with the homeowner, developing fulfilling relationships with clients. It is not only possible to have relationships like these with commercial property managers and owners, but it is just as likely.

In commercial landscaping, not only are you working on a personal level with your clients, but you are also helping them achieve their business goals. Landscaping can have a huge impact on a business—whether it is a retail center, a municipal building, a restaurant, a hotel, or anything else—because it is an outside expression of what customers can expect to find inside. As the professional landscaper, you have an affect on that when you work with commercial clients.

#3 Contracts

Perhaps the biggest downfall of residential landscaping work is the way that contracts are done. In fact, with residential clients, you probably won’t have contracts at all, making the work even more unpredictable. Paying a professional for landscaping is seen as a luxury in most homes, and when household budgets fluctuate luxury expenses are the first things to go.

Compare that with commercial landscaping, where companies typically have grounds maintenance written into their monthly and yearly budgets. Property managers and owners have incentive to spend their budgets on experienced professional landscapers who will do a great job. Additionally, commercial properties continue to need maintenance throughout the year on things like snow and ice management in cold climates.

At U.S. Lawns, we work exclusively with commercial clients, and we aren’t shy about it! We know that the benefits of commercial landscaping far outweigh the benefits of residential, so our franchisees stick with what works.

You can learn more about the U.S. Lawns franchise opportunity and how we help our franchisees succeed by downloading our eBook.