Clients of commercial landscaping companies have widely varied ideas about the value...
Clients of commercial landscaping companies have widely varied ideas about the value of the services that we provide to their properties.
Some see us as a necessary evil.
“If I could, I’d just pave the whole thing. Then I wouldn’t have to worry about paying somebody to cut the grass.”
Not exactly what we want to hear, but we understand. Landscaping isn’t a major concern for every property.
Fortunately, most of our clients care a great deal about the health and appearance of their property’s landscaping.
They’ve already acknowledged that landscaping is the face of their property – important because it creates the first impression about the people who live, work, and visit there. These are the clients that are looking for something much more than “somebody to cut the grass”. They conduct thorough RFP processes and interview several reputable firms before choosing a landscape service partner.
The challenge in serving these clients well is that their expectations will rise with every passing month. That’s certainly not a bad thing, but at some point, if we deliver like we should, their property will be much healthier and it will look much better than it did when we first started serving them. Over time, they will start to forget their old expectations and set new, higher standards for us to maintain. At this point, the end result alone isn’t enough.
Here are a few things that we’ve found helpful in raising our client’s expectations about their commercial landscaping service:
Open, Honest Communication
Admittedly, this one should be a given, not a value add. This one should really be a requirement for every service business, but we find it rings especially true for commercial landscaping. Open and honest communication means that clients get to hear it all – good news and bad. Likewise, clients are free to tell us anything, good or bad.
Certified Landscape Professionals
The appearance of their landscaping is just part of what clients expect. Clients deserve access to people that have made landscaping a career. We hire talented, degreed professionals from some of the best colleges and universities in the South and then we teach them how to provide great customer service. Responsive, polite, and detail oriented people are found at every level of the best commercial landscaping companies.
Creative Landscape Designers
How the property looks today is important, but some clients need some help envisioning what their property could look like in the future. This is where Landscape Design comes in. Landscape Designers create a digital view of the property’s potential. Clients can participate in the process and see enhanced versions of featured areas within their property – all before the first plant is installed.
The great thing about our business is that each season brings new challenges. New opportunities to raise or to reset expectations. Each year we can choose to do better than we did the year before.
Looking for more from your commercial landscaping company? Let us help you raise your expectations. Contact your local Austin Outdoor.
Credit to Seth Godin’s post on The paradox of rising expectations.