If you love spending time outside — eating on restaurant patios, walking the dog after work, indulging in outdoor recreational activities like fishing, hunting, or camping — then looking out your office window all day might not be enough to keep you happy. By investing in a franchise that focuses on commercial landscape services, you can spend more time outdoors and change things up every day as you go around your community providing the commercial landscape services that clients need.
Here are three reasons why investing in a franchise that provides commercial landscape services is a savvy business move for an entrepreneurial-minded working professional.
There are so many reasons why working in a cubicle or stuck behind a desk can drain you of your life force that we hardly know where to begin. While working in a traditional corporate environment may be a good fit for many people, for those of us with entrepreneurial spirits and love of being outside, it can be difficult to stomach sitting indoors all day.
Owning your own landscaping business offers stark contrast to working for someone else in an office. As the owner, you are in control of everything from the hours you work to the people you hire to the goals you set. No more having to listen to your coworkers’ personal calls or smell their tuna sandwiches in the office fridge.
While you will have to spend some time at a desk as the owner of a business—managing the budget and prospecting for new business don’t happen by themselves—you still have the freedom to choose when and how you do it. The rest of the time you will be performing commercial landscape services, enjoying the smell of freshly cut grass and pride of a job well done.
It is estimated that the average American adult spends 93 percent of their time inside (87 percent in buildings and six percent in vehicles). Experts recommend that children spend at least an hour outside every day to enjoy the benefits that the outdoors have to offer. Children aren’t the only ones who can benefit from spending time outside, which has been linked to:
On top of all that, if you are they type of person who relishes time spent outdoors, working in commercial landscaping will give you more opportunities to be outside giving your customers outstanding commercial landscape services.
Being a business owner is unlike any other job; you have the control to make the decisions that are best for you and your business. Even better, you can take pride in being part of something that is bigger than yourself, as the landscaping services you provide will keep your city beautiful and employ members of your own community.
It is no coincidence that research shows that business owners are the happiest people. Owning your own business gives you the flexibility to build the career and life you have always wanted, all while being proud of the work that you do.
Investing in a franchise is a way to enjoy these benefits of being a business owner, with the added perks of a proven system and network of support. U.S. Lawns is the No. 1 commercial landscaping franchise in the nation because we give our franchise owners 700-plus tools to help them succeed.
Check out the steps to getting started as a U.S. Lawns franchise owner.
Whether you are just getting ready to invest in a lawn treatment franchise or you have been in business for 10 years, it is always important to set goals. Remember, as a business owner you can’t wing it and hope that your business succeeds and grows. You need to have a plan of action, and setting goals is essential to that plan.
Here are four tips for setting goals and how to work hard to reach them.
Experts have come up with the acronym “SMART” to help business owners set goals that challenge them and help them grow. Make sure each of the following applies to your goals:
SPECIFIC — Goals that are too vague or try for too much aren’t going to get you anywhere. Try to keep your goals as specific as possible. A non-specific goal like, “Contract with enough customers to hire more employees” is difficult to accomplish because you don’t know exactly what you are striving toward.
MEASURABLE — If you can’t measure your goals how will you know whether you have accomplished them? For example, “Be more active on social media” is hard to measure. Instead, try to spend two hours a week answering Facebook questions and responding to comments.
ATTAINABLE — There is certainly nothing wrong with challenging yourself to improve, but it is important not to get carried away. If it is your first year owning a lawn treatment franchise, it is probably unattainable to shoot for $1 million in revenue. Instead, choose a realistic goal that pushes you to work hard without burning yourself out.
RELEVANT — It does not do your business any good if the goals you set are irrelevant to where you are. Your goals will be dependent on how long you have been in business, the size of your company, the economic climate, and so many more factors. Make sure that your goals are cohesive and work together to further your company as a whole.
TIME BOUND — Set both short- and long-term goals with predetermined end dates on them. That will help you measure your goals along the way and adjust your work accordingly.
Imagine your goal is to add a certain number of new clients each month for a year. That is a measurable goal that you can set based on your existing revenue and client base, so tracking your progress is simple. The key to achieving this goal — and any goal — is to assign an action to it each day or each week. Essentially, that breaks up your big, year-long goal into smaller goals that you work on regularly.
In this example, you can devote an hour a day to prospecting for new business. Or you can call and schedule meetings with a certain number of potential clients each week. Regularly setting aside time to work toward your goals is the only way to accomplish something major with your lawn treatment franchise.
At the start of a new year everything is exciting, the world seems new and fresh. Most of us make personal and career goals at the beginning of the new year when anything seems possible. As the year goes on, however, sometimes things change. Maybe the goal you thought was realistic turned out to be unattainable. Maybe you overestimated your motivation or underestimated the amount of time a task would take. Maybe life and work just got in the way.
When that happens, it is easy to get discouraged, but keep your head up and keep working hard. There is no shame in reevaluating your goals and adjusting them to better reflect where your business is. As long as you are still challenging yourself to work toward goals that will strengthen your business, you are on the right track.
Working with a mentor can be an immeasurable help to you as a business owner. Even better than one mentor? A whole network of experts in your field who have been in your exact position before. Working with a franchise gets you a built-in network of franchise owners, home office employees, and resources that can help you set SMART goals.
U.S. Lawns is a lawn treatment franchise that is eternally focused on helping our franchisees succeed. Our Roadmap for Success is a proprietary tool that lays out the steps for your business, so you know exactly when to grow and how to do it. Read about how we train and support our franchisees to help them build successful businesses.
Interested in learning more about franchising with U.S. Lawns? Contact us today to speak with a representative and begin your franchising journey.
For people in the green industry, winter can be a tough time. If you live in a climate that doesn’t stay green all year long, then the cold months can put a damper on your landscaping business. But your business doesn’t have to suffer just because of the cold weather! Partnering with a franchise to focus on commercial landscape improvements, as opposed to residential clients, will help you thrive even as the season dies down.
Keeping your business efficient throughout the whole year allows you to do more than just survive during the winter months. It is not unusual for franchise owners to remain profitable in the winter months, as long as they take the proper steps to stay that way.
Our top two tips for doing more than just surviving during the winter?
One of the biggest struggles for landscaping companies comes from working with residential clients. If the majority of your clients are homeowners, then it makes sense that the majority of your business ends when snow falls or the ground is too cold for grass to grow. Working with a franchise empowers you to find commercial clients, earning you greater opportunities for year-round work.
Commercial landscape improvements are more than just mowing bigger lawns. Because businesses are running all year, commercial work is contractual, meaning that you are still earning revenue from these clients even as residential business decreases.
As winter approaches, it is important to create a plan for the slow months and the coming year. Ask yourself some questions, including:
The answers to these questions can help you set goals for the coming year and then implement a strategy to accomplish them.
Joining forces with a franchise is helpful when you are making plans because you are working with a network of experienced business people who can help you make and accomplish your goals. A franchise network like U.S. Lawns has the resources to help you thrive all year long. Take advantage of the franchisor’s business management experience and tools to help you with revenue projections and budgets.
But even more important than the tools themselves is knowing how to use them to your advantage. When you join a franchise network, the experts you are working with can direct you on how and when to use the tools at your disposal so that you can get the most out of those resources. Knowing what your business needs at any given moment — based on revenue, properties, employees, and more — is what makes franchises stand out as a great option to scale your business.
If you are ready to learn more about converting your business into a franchise, look into the U.S. Lawns franchise opportunity, and then contact us today to speak with a representative about beginning your franchising journey. We take commercial landscape improvements seriously, and we cannot wait to work with experienced, passionate landscapers like you!
What do you do when you are sick of your job, tired of working for someone else, and sick and tired of the corporate grind? You can either keep doing a job you don’t like, or take the leap to do something different. Owning your own commercial landscaping business lets you take control and be your own boss, unlocking your potential for greatness.
If you haven’t considered investing in a franchise as a way to work for yourself, take a look at these three reasons why franchising can be the perfect solution!
If you’re going to spend fifty-plus years of your life working, it makes sense to do work that you love. If you don’t like the corporate job you are working now, then it is time to branch out on your own. There are franchise opportunities in virtually every industry, so you can find one that lets you marry your passions with your work.
Opening a commercial landscaping business lets you enjoy working outdoors. In addition, a landscaping franchise gives you the chance to be creative and business savvy at the same time. Becoming a business owner lets you use the business skills that you have learned — things like personnel and project management, balancing budgets, marketing, selling, and more — to further your business’s goals. The best part? When you choose a franchise, you will get all the training you need to fill in the blanks in your skill set, ensuring that you have everything you need to thrive in your new role.
One of the best ways to serve your community is to own a local business. A popular misconception is that franchisees aren’t local business owners, but that couldn’t be further from the truth! As the owner, you are stimulating your local economy and providing outstanding service to businesses in your area.
Investing in commercial landscaping means that you will serve your community by keeping commercial properties beautiful. Whether you are designing new landscape installations or maintaining smooth turf, your community will be more beautiful because of the work you do.
The best franchisees are the ones who are interested in helping others while simultaneously helping themselves, and investing in a commercial landscaping business lets you do that. Creating opportunities for your employees is great for your business and great for your local economy. You can take pride in being part of something bigger than yourself as you build a strong business and career track for your employees.
Franchising makes it easier to create these opportunities, because you have the support of an entire franchise network to help you scale your business, hire the right people, and get your business on the right track from the beginning.
If you are ready to unlock you potential and work for yourself, it is time to invest in a franchise. U.S. Lawns is a commercial landscaping business that specializes in training and supporting our franchisees to build strong, scalable businesses.
You can learn more about the 700-plus tools and resources available to our franchise owners by downloading our eBook!
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