We recently completed a Green Industry Benchmark survey designed to give green industry contractors insight into how they’re performing when compared to their peers. As part of the survey, we asked what advice the respondent would have for someone just starting out. Below are some of our favorite responses:
1. “Develop long, mid and short term goals, both personal and business. Make detailed plans on how to achieve the goals. Work, work, work. Read a great deal about successful people and their businesses. Emulate them.”
This is excellent advice. We wrote a post a while ago about how to set SMART goals. One of the best things we’ve done at HindSite is set goals. We set long-term (10 year), mid-term (3 and 1 year) and short-term (quarterly) goals. Setting goals has helped us focus on what matters. If something comes up, we have to ask ourselves if it aligns with one of our short-term goals. If it doesn’t, we push it back and discuss at our next quarterly prioritization meeting.
We’re also firm proponents of learning from others. Whether that is through a book (some great ones we’ve read include Delivering Happiness by Tony Hsieh, Good to Great by Jim Collins and Traction by Gino Wickman) or through being a member of a peer group (like Leader’s Edge for the landscaping industry or Vistage International for a cross-industry group.)
And of course, hard work is inevitable if you want to succeed.
2. Focus on quality of product or service not quantity. Having a lot of work that isn't profitable will not get you far. Be honest! Don't bull crap your way into getting a job. Keep appointments that you make. Be quick to respond to customer interest. Make sure you enjoy the work, because as you grow there will be some customers and some employees that will lesson your joy.
Great advice. You can have higher margins if you do higher quality work. Take Apple. People are willing to pay a pretty significant premium to get an Apple product because it’s well crafted, they stand behind their product and they make it easy to use. They have never been the market leader as far as units sold, but that hasn’t stopped them from being the most profitable hardware manufacturers out there.
Take a page from Apple. Make your service so good that customers will pay a premium to have you mow their lawn, trim their trees or fix their sprinkler system.
Honesty is also underrated. Honesty and integrity can win you a lot of repeat and referral business. As can showing up on time and responding quickly to customers and prospects. And you better enjoy the work, because you’ll be doing a lot of it.
3. Join PLANET and get certified. Take advantage of the materials they have for members. Attend every PLANET event you can. The environment is very welcoming to new people and the networking is second to none. Any industry event outside of your area is good because peolpe that aren't your competitors open up to you. I always come home with info I can use.
Our survey found that green industry businesses are heavily involved in local, state and regional business associations. And for good reason; as this comment shows, there's a ton of knowledge out there - especially through PLANET - that can help you learn and grow your business.
And don't miss out on networking opportunities. When I'm at the annual Green Industry Conference that PLANET hosts, I'm always networking and talking to other contractors to learn how their business is going and if they have tips for success. It's a great opportunity for me, as a vendor, to take the pulse of the green industry. For a contractor, it's an invaluable opportunity to learn more about how to run a profitable business by listening to those that are facing the same issues you're facing.
4. Make sure you have a solid background with adequate experience in today's competitive market. Brand yourself slightly different than the rest of your competitors. Be fully knowledgeable about the product(s) you are selling. If you have employees, form a knowledge management outlook/timeline and take the time to personally meet with them. Get feedback from clients and employees. Frequently review cash flow. Make sure to collect balances at all times. Be ready to spend the extra hours -- you are not entitled to run a business; you made the decision to work extra hard to serve others, not yourself.
So much great insight in this comment. First, it's important that you understand what makes you different from other contractors. Figure out what makes your business uniquely qualified to service your market. If there isn't anything that makes you uniquely qualified to do your job, then you've got a problem.
And know your products and services. Knowledge goes a long way; a huge part of selling your service is trust. If your customers don't trust you, your business won't be successful.
Employee relationships are also a key to running a successful business. If you can't keep employees around, you'll have problems. Experience is valuable, and every time you replace an experienced employee with an inexperienced one, there's a learning curve that inevitably will lead to bumps in the road.
Don't forget to constantly talk to your customers. What do they like about you? What don't they like? At HindSite, we're in the middle of our annual customer satisfaction survey. It's given us invaluable information that not only helps us improve what we offer our customers, but also better understand our customers’ needs. If you lose touch with what your customers want, you'll soon lose a lot of business.
And never feel like you're entitled as a business owner. If something goes wrong, own up to it and make it right.
5. Form the foundation with clear goals, determine your market you want to work, select good people to work for you ( not the first that apply) train those people to become great, (develop , develop, develop). Understand your costs, never give your work for less than your cost. Plan and set goals
Successful businesses need goals. At HindSite, we've set an audacious 10-year goal as well as 3-year, 1-year and quarterly goals. It may seem like a lot of effort spending all that time setting and tracking your progress for your goals, but without them, businesses lose focus and start chasing every shiny ball that crosses their path.
Understanding your market is also vital to success. If your territory hasn't yet embraced a green philosophy, it probably doesn't make sense to position your irrigation company using green, water-saving messages.
Finding the right employees is also important. In the sports world there are always examples of teams with less talent that play well together and beating more talented teams. Put together a cohesive team and continually give them opportunities to learn and grow, and you'll have a successful business.
And always understand your costs and set profit margins that help you consistently grow your business. If you find that your costs are too high, consider ways to reduce costs or make your employees more productive (like field service software).
Owning your own business can be difficult, but if you follow the advice of your peers, you'll create a profitable - even fun - business environment.
Have a business tip to share? Drop it in the comments!