The coronavirus pandemic has changed the world as we know it, with work-from-home directives, travel restrictions, and social distancing having the most significant impact. Businesses of all shapes and sizes were affected, with the service industry being the hardest hit by the restrictions.
But despite a significant decline in year-over-year growth in March and April of 2020, when lockdown measures were first implemented, the pandemic has had the unexpected side effect of helping businesses in the Home Services industry enjoy better revenues and significant growth.
In fact, the Green segment, made up of outdoor services like landscaping and lawn care, enjoyed consistent increases in their average monthly revenues compared to previous years. Each of these stats is according to the Home Service Economic Report: 2020 Review by Jobber. And this trend continued throughout the year, peaking with a record 32% year-over-year growth in December.
Leverage Key Management Systems
So what does this growth mean for your landscaping company? Well, whether you’re managing a team of five or 500 employees, there is a lot to remember when you’re running a landscape maintenance business. From overseeing your work crews to navigating the challenges of running a successful business, many tasks need to be completed every single day.
That is why finding ways to manage your operations effectively is absolutely essential. And one of the easiest ways to do this is to leverage key management systems. A one-person operation may need nothing more than good old pen and paper to track their bids and contracts, inventory, expenses, and paychecks.
But when your business starts experiencing the kind of growth that 2020 brought, these traditional systems aren’t enough anymore. So taking advantage of things like a contract management system, routing software, crew tracking apps, and intuitive estimate creation tools is a smart move.
Not only do these types of tools help to streamline your business and reduce paperwork, but they also reduce human error by automatically syncing your data to the right places as soon as you capture it. And with the right software, you’re not just getting powerful tools to make managing your business easier — you’re making it possible to optimize your operations and identify growth opportunities at the same time.
But when it comes to running your landscaping business from the palm of your hand, it is important to invest in the right software. And the Manage360 Landscape Business Management Software by DynaScape is exactly that.
The Benefits of Using DynaScape’s Manage360 Landscape Business Management Software
Create accurate estimates and easily turn them into professional proposals
Whether the service you’re providing is as simple as pruning trees and bushes or you’re completely overhauling and upgrading an outdoor living space, people want to know from the start how much the job is going to cost. This means having great estimating skills is vital to the long-term success of your business.
This is where DynaScape’s LMS comes to the rescue. It allows you to capture your known material, labor, and equipment costs and choose the overhead recovery model of your choice. It then calculates everything for you. That software turning that estimate into a proposal — complete with customized terms and conditions — is as easy as clicking a button. Choose preset contracted services, include optional services where necessary, and make it easy to offer on-demand services as needed.
Effective maintenance contract management from a single location
When it comes to the landscape maintenance business, you’re not trying to attract one-off or short-term customers. You want to build a relationship based on trust and loyalty with each customer, which means delivering the best customer service possible.
Customer service in this industry obviously starts with making sure your landscape maintenance crews are delivering the highest quality services on every single job they complete. But when you’ve been serving the same loyal customer for months or years, things can get a little complicated.
With DynaScape’s Manage360 LMS, you can manage each and every one of your lawn maintenance contracts from start to finish — all from one central location. You’ll be able to keep track of every task you’ve been contracted for, the start and end dates of each contract, and any other pertinent details that you shouldn’t forget about for each contract.
You’ll also be able to review all the estimates and quotes you’ve provided for each recurring customer, as well as any additional services they’ve requested.
Manage your sales pipeline and identify growth opportunities
Another great feature of the Manage360 software is the ability to manage every phase of your sales pipeline. From initial contact through to closing the deal and signing the final contract, you’ll be able to keep track of where each prospect is in your sales pipeline.
This includes keeping track of what the estimated budget for each lead is so you know upfront what services you can and can’t offer, identify where your process is constantly getting held up, bring those stagnant leads back to life, and turn all those opportunities into loyal customers who will help your business grow.
Manage your maintenance crews and optimize your service delivery
A good landscape maintenance business owner knows that effectively managing their maintenance crews is just as important as managing their customers. With the Manage360 Landscape Business Management Software, keeping your crews on track and keeping track of each crew member is easy, thanks to the built-in scheduling and crew routing tools.
Assign crews to different jobs and use the recurring scheduling feature to ensure no contracted tasks slip through the cracks, no matter how hectic your schedule gets. Monitor where your crews should be and what they should be doing with Manage360’s unique calendar feature.
This same calendar also allows you to check your crews’ availability before agreeing to a new contract or an unscheduled request from an existing customer.
With our dynamic routing tool, you can plan your maintenance crew’s daily schedules according to optimized work routes, so your crews are spending less time on the road and more time getting their different assigned tasks done.
You’ll even be able to add unscheduled jobs and unassigned tasks to a crew’s schedule. Their optimized work route will update to limit unnecessary driving time and avoid your crews doubling back to get their scheduled jobs done each day.
Landscaping software is an easy way to help build a business that is more efficient, professional, and sustainable. You may be getting your hands dirty to ensure your clients are getting the best possible service, but that doesn’t mean you should forget about the routine operational tasks of managing your day-to-day business. And vice versa!
With DynaScape’s Manage360 LMS, you’re freeing up your time so that you can focus on delivering top-tier service and growing your business. Our companion mobile app for crews on the road offers even more time-saving benefits, so be sure to check it out as well!