What Are the First Steps in Starting a Landscaping Business?
Entrepreneurs that enjoy working outside and exercising creativity can find satisfaction by starting their own landscaping business. A landscaping business trims lawns, repairs damaged sod, removes weeds and edges lawns along sidewalks and driveways, according to the A Touch of Business website. Before you begin putting together your landscaping business, there are some important tasks to accomplish in order to get off to a good start.
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Certifications and Insurance
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In order to accept checks from customers and pay taxes on your business, you will need to get a business certificate from your local government licensing office. A business certificate will allow you to start a business bank account and keep your business financial information separate from your personal data. When you are doing landscaping for a client, there is a possibility that you could damage the client's property with your mower or edging tools. By getting business liability insurance, you can protect yourself in case of damage to a customer's property.
Experience
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When a customer hires you to do landscaping work on her lawn, she expects a professional result. That means using techniques and attending to details that the homeowner would not know how to do, or think of doing. To become a professional landscaper, you need to train with professionals. The best way to do that is to work for a landscaping company for experience. Take notes on how the professional landscaping processes are done, and get involved in every aspect of the job, from the prep work to cleanup.
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Inventory
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Starting a landscaping company requires more than a lawnmower and a shovel. You need to create a detailed inventory of all of the equipment you will need to own before you can get started. Some of that equipment includes a reliable vehicle to transport all of your equipment, a lawn edger, a weed-whacker, a gardening shovel to remove weeds and crabgrass, and the lawn mower. You can save money by buying used equipment, and learning how to do maintenance and repairs on your own.
Customers
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Start marketing your business in your own neighborhood. Watch to see which landscaping companies primarily work in your neighborhood, hen call them to get prices. Establish prices that are lower than the competition, but not so low that you sound unprofessional. Beating the competition by 10 percent will usually be enough. Create informational fliers with your company contact information, list of services and pricing on it. Go door to door giving out your fliers in your community, as well as giving fliers to all of your family and friends. Before going door to door, check with the town or city hall to see if a solicitor's permit is required.
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References
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- Photo Credit landscaping tools image by Horticulture from Fotolia.com
