As contractors venture further into unfamiliar business territory, they should begin to identify targets for their new services. This involves offering clients irrigation services in addition to current lawn maintenance and lawn care and highlighting their satisfaction with add-on services as a reason to try something new, said Joe Goetz, president, Goetz Landscaping and Irrigation, Centerville, Minn.
“We keep a mailing list, and we use that particular list and say, ‘This is what we’re doing,” he said. “If you have enjoyed the quality of what we’ve done in the past, this is another service we’re offering.’” In addition, publish irrigation rates in advertisements so clients know the investment up front, he said.
Further, Sidney Showalter, Showalter Landscaping & Irrigation, Naples, Fla., identified monthly inspections as a key time to make sales calls and inform clients of the company’s new direction.
Yet, new services mean stretching the company at the seams, so be sure the business can handle the influx of irrigation services before offering them to current and potential clients, he suggested. “I’d rather tell them I can’t take care of them and refer them to another company if we’re busy,” he said. “Don’t make promises you can’t keep.”
In fact, by avoiding false customer guarantees, streamlining client lists and following through with quality service, contractors can establish their company as one clients look to for prompt, efficient service.
Although many irrigation contractors in his area have drastically cut prices as a means of competition, Robert Kinnucan, president, Kinnucan Co., Lake Bluff, Ill., focuses on service to set his company apart from the rest. “Service responsiveness is what we’re selling,” he noted. “Irrigation companies often are not very responsive to their clients, and even though clients have system problems, they may not be out for two weeks. Many times it’s just a matter of a straightforward, simple repair and that was one of the reasons we went into irrigation as an add-on service.”
Also, offering irrigation services establishes a trusting relationship with the client. Showalter explained that when the same employees install sprinklers, mow and maintain the property, clients recognize who is on their property and feel more comfortable with familiar faces. Additionally, doubling-up employees between landscape and irrigation maintenance saves time – and prevents damages – for the contractor, he said. “They know where the pipes are so they won’t hit them when mowing, they know if the system will be blocked by a certain plant, etc.,” he maintained.
Since many irrigation controllers are located within a client’s home, servicing systems necessitates face-to-face, personal conversations with clients, as well as their trust. “I think irrigation really solidifies your client relationship,” he said. “Systems always involve entering the home itself to turn on the system, or to go in the garage to set the controller, so you get a bit personal with the client.”
When irrigation installation requires a veritable yard overhaul, prepare the client for appearance of their properties during installation, added Jeff Kaufmann, owner, Jake’s Lawn Care and Irrigation, Fort Worth, Texas. “When you bring that trencher on that person’s yard and they have a nice manicured yard, it’s going to look like a bomb hit their property,” he joked. “But we tell them that by 5 o’clock it’s going to look like we’ve never been there.”
The author is Assistant Editor – Internet of Lawn & Landscape magazine and can be reached at kmohn@gie.net.