6 Ways Landscapers Can Work in the Winter
Depending on where you’re located, the winter months may bring a slowdown for your landscaping business. However, your work (and income) doesn’t have to stop altogether. Check out these 6 ideas for services you can offer over the winter to your regular customers.
Snow Removal
If you’re located in a region that gets snow and ice over the winter, offering salt spreading and snow removal services is the most typical off-season job for landscapers. You could purchase a detachable snow plow for the front of your truck and offer parking lot plowing services to businesses. To clear homeowners’ sidewalks, you just need a snowblower. Depending on the number of employees you have, as well as clients, you may want to invest in a fleet of snow plows and blowers. The same thing goes for salt spreaders, which could be a stand-alone piece of equipment or an attachment to your truck.
Before adding snow removal services, review your business insurance policy to make sure you have enough coverage. It’s also a good idea to have customers sign up in advance so you know how much volume you’ll be dealing with. You can reach out to your regular clients toward the end of the mowing season to see if they’re interested in winter services.
Holiday Decorating
Over the years, decorating for Christmas has become a serious pursuit. From inflatables to lights, many people want their homes to look festive for the season. But not everyone has the energy or ability to put up and take down decorations themselves. You can offer holiday light installation and removal as an off-season service that will make the season brighter for everyone.
As with snow removal, you can offer holiday decorating services to both businesses and homeowners. It’s typical to charge a fee for installation, removal, and storage of the lights until next year. Customers can sign up for one, two, or all three of these services. On average, holiday light installations cost between $220 and $650, according to Angi’s List.
Offer Consulting Services
The off-season frees up your time to get a head start on next year’s plans. Ask your customers what they need help with and then offer consulting services to address those concerns. For example, homeowners may want a plan for improving their landscaping, adding a new garden or re-doing a current one, boosting the health of their lawn, and more.
Tree and Plant Removal
Help your clients get their lawns and trees prepared for the spring season with tree pruning and removal. You could even have someone on your team get certified as an arborist. That gives you an added specialty to the list of services you offer, and gives customers confidence that their trees are in good hands. Removing old plants and trees can also free up space for new plants in the spring, and let you add to or redesign a landscape.
Firewood Delivery Service
If you already offer tree removals, you have a ready-source of wood to offer for firewood delivery services. This is convenient for your customers and gives your business a steady income stream from weekly, bi-weekly, or monthly deliveries. With the growing popularity of outdoor firepits, you may be able to continue this service year-round for some of your customers.
Attend Home and Garden Shows
Do you have untapped capacity? Build your client base during the off months by attending home and garden shows in your area. Hand out business cards, pens, magnets, or other swag. Have a sign-up sheet ready to collect contact information for the upcoming season. You will then have a good email list for sending out seasonal announcements and promotional offers.
You can also offer trade show discounts to anyone who books services while at the show as a way to lock in their business.
About Blue Bridge Financial
Blue Bridge Financial is your experienced, nationwide equipment lender for landscaping businesses. We can help you finance your next landscaping equipment purchase, whether that’s a snowblower, salt spreader, plow, or something else. We also offer Working Capital loans to help you through the off-season or any season. When you apply for funding from Blue Bridge Financial, you can expect individual, personalized consideration of every application and flexible monthly payments tailored to your budget. Contact us to learn more about our equipment financing options and start the application process.
