business smarts Archives - Page 7 of 14 - The Edge from the National Association of Landscape Professionals

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business smarts

Business Smarts: Choosing the Right Exit Strategy for Your Landscape Business

Just like how no landscape company is exactly the same as another, there is no one right exit strategy. If you are trying to determine which is the best fit for your organization, check out some of the common paths and the monetary implications of each. Types of Exit Strategies Mergers and acquisitions are one […]

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Don’t Wait for Tax Season to Maximize Your Deductions

Even though your business’s taxes aren’t due until the spring, it’s always a good idea to be proactive in your tax planning to maximize deductions and prepare for next year. ā€œA lot of people think about, ā€˜Hey, what can I do to reduce my taxes this year?’ and a lot of that tax reduction sometimes […]

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Boosting Your Business: Forecasting for Growth – Why Every Landscape Company Needs a Budget

Your client always has a budget, and you should, too. While you can operate without one, the sooner you start creating an annual budget, the better. Brian Mark, partner and president of Chris Mark and Sons, Inc., based in Pocasset, Massachusetts, says they’ve been budgeting for the last 10 years and over the past five […]

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The Blueprint for Building an Effective Advisory Board

If you have reached the point in your company’s journey where it becomes clear you need the expertise of an advisory board, there are a number of considerations to build your board successfully. Not only do you have to find engaged, knowledgeable individuals but you also have to determine how they will be compensated and […]

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Budgeting Isn’t Optional: Practices to Ensure Success

Ideally, your company has been budgeting from day one, but many landscape companies have been guilty of not truly budgeting in earnest for years. The good news is your business can benefit from adding a budgeting process no matter how long you’ve been operating or how big you’ve become. When to Budget If you’ve decided […]

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Does Your Landscape Company Need an Advisory Board?

As your landscape company grows, the need for a higher level of strategic guidance may be necessary. One of the ways to gain powerful insights is to create an advisory board so you have additional expertise you can tap into. ā€œWhen you grow outside of your skill set as a leader, that’s when I think […]

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Is It Time to Diversify or Streamline Your Business?

The question of whether it’s the right time to add a new offering to your landscape business or eliminate a service line calls for evaluation of several different factors, including your financial metrics, your staff’s capacity and customer demand. When to Diversify Fred Haskett, founder ofĀ TrueWinds Consulting, says it’s a good time to consider diversifying […]

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Business Smarts: Create Steady Cash Flow by Converting Customers to Long-Term Clients

When you review your sources of revenue, it’s important to take stock of how much is coming from one-off projects versus long-term contracts. Long-term maintenance contracts with clients are beneficial for several reasons. They help provide steady cash flow, allowing your company to continue to grow and forecast your staffing needs properly. ā€œWe are generally […]

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Growth and Scaling: The Metrics to Watch Out For

If you’re growing fast, you might be wondering how to scale your systems, including your metrics, your reporting and your transparency to support that. This is particularly critical as you spread beyond one geographic location. ā€œDon’t get bogged down in the outputs, the EBITDA, the retention,ā€ says Joe Socolof, COO of Landscape Workshop. ā€œThose are […]

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Reflecting on My Small Business Struggles and the Gift They Provided

This article is written in an ā€œAs Told Toā€ format. John Munie is the founder and president of Focal Pointe, a $50 million firm specializing in commercial landscape maintenance, based in Caseyville, Illinois. During the early years, I would look at the Top 100/150 lists and wonder what those guys knew that I didn’t. How […]

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