Ho ho ho, landscapers! Winter might be a frosty nuisance for some, but for those of you in the landscaping business, it doesn’t have to be all doom and gloom. Let’s say “snow way” to seasonal lows and keep the cash flow steady as winter sets in like the well-intentioned relative who just won’t leave the party.
Here we have 10 wintry landscaping services that’ll keep your icy fingers on the green all season long and convert your most frostbitten skeptics into year-round, loyal patrons!
1. Saving summer lawns like a winter superhero
Swoop in and provide a full-scale winter lawn prep for those customers who’ve poured some serious green into their yards all summer. Provide the essentials: drain sprinklers and hoses, dethatch the lawn, prune those trees and shrubs, and protect flower beds from the elements by removing old growth. And once winter begins to bid adieu, offer a post-winter debris clean-up service to make their lives easier come the warmer days.
2. Say snow more with snow removal services
Transition your summertime biz into the ice-cold months by offering snow removal services for both residential and commercial customers. Even though professional snow plowing may require an investment in some heavy-duty equipment, you can start small by focusing on driveways and sidewalks. There’s no offseason in the landscaping world!
3. Light up their lives with holiday light installation
Wanna deck their halls, but don’t know where to begin? Offer holiday light installation and give their homes a touch of festive cheer! This short, sweet, and profitable venture can provide solid income for a couple of months. Just be mindful of the holiday timeline: most clients want their lights up by December 1st and taken down no later than January 31st – don’t bite off more than you can chew when it comes to those twinkling lights!
And so, friends, with these 10 icy ideas (but only three listed here so as not to give away all the comedic gold), remember that when it comes to the landscaping business, winter isn’t just for hibernating. It’s for thriving! Now, bundle up and get out there to show those frosty lawns who’s boss!
4. Hibernating? More like planning-ating! Lawn care season prep!
While you might be tempted to cozy up by the fire and forget about lawn care during the chilly winter months, this is the perfect time to reflect on the epic saga of your last lawn care season and strategize for the upcoming one. It’s like binge-watching your favorite show, but for lawns!
- Get a leg up on your bidding game, start wrangling new crew members (kind of like assembling the Avengers of lawn care), and market those fantastic services with the gusto of a late-night infomercial!
- Hire and train the crème de la crème of lawn care pros, so you’ll be set to stand out from the competition come springtime. Pro Tip: Snag the best talent in town with our snazzy recruitment and retention tips. It’s like speed dating for employees!
- Build that client list like you’re drafting the world’s best fantasy football team. A solid growth strategy will help you tackle the competition and score more lawns to mow. Try designing snazzy door hangers or infiltrate homeowners’ Facebook groups like a lawn care ninja! Robbie Ackley, Lawn Care Entrepreneur (and possibly grass whisperer), uses downtime to schmooze potential clients: “We send letters to commercial accounts to get on their list of bidders. It’s like sending a love letter to a lawn.”
- Don’t forget about those amazing resources just waiting to help your lawn care biz flourish – there’s power at your fingertips, like Bizvalet’s features to book new leads without breaking a sweat!
5. Don’t freeze out winter mulching – bring it in from the cold!
Winter mulching should be on your landscaping bucket list every year. It’s like a cozy blanket keeping the ground frosty and plants snoozing through any surprise warm-weather siestas. For optimum results, unleash your mulching magic once the ground has stiffened up like leftover gravy– it’ll protect plants from turning into frozen lawn-ssicles!
6. Declare war on sneaky winter weeds!
Sure, you’re used to battling weeds in the summer, but did you know some sly culprits thrive in the cold and even start their sneaky growth in the winter? Wage a preventative attack on winter weeds, and your spring comeback will be in full force.
Since you’ve already got your lawn care superhero toolkit, adding weed removal to your services is a no-brainer – protecting your clients’ lawns from villainous vegetation year-round!
7. Wipe away winter blues with leaf removal!
Who says raking leaves is just for fall? Pillowy piles of foliage demand attention even in the chilly wonders of winter to keep our green friends happy and mold-free! Staying on top of those tannin-toting troublemakers means multiple visits, especially since some trees are fashionably late to the leaf-dropping party.
Keep an eye out for customers sporting a copious canopy or an epic amount of arboreal abodes, as these leaf-loving landlords are usually giddy to pay a pretty penny for a regularly scheduled foliage-maintenance fiesta!
8. Get up-close and personal with gutters
Gutter cleaning – it may lack the glitz and glamour, but it’s an overlooked treasure when it comes to your lawn care superpowers. Waiting eons to evict leaves from your rain-chutes can lead to catastrophic roof leaks or – dare I say – structural damage!
No fuss, muss, or monetary fandangos needed; just snag yourself a trusty ladder and you’re the instant, gutter-cleaning genie! “I do gutter cleaning. Not the most glamorous job, but it gets me through January. We only do it for around 4-6 weeks a year.” – Robbie Lynn.
9. Perform a wintertime tree and shrub hootenanny!
Chilly weather? More like perfect timing to tango with trees and shrubs as you plant them with glee! Embrace the cooler climes to tackle those labor-intensive jobs because, as long as the ground isn’t a frozen wasteland, it’s the most wonderful time to plant for your clients.
The going rate for these green-thumb soirees ranges from a modest tip-toe to a grand gala, topping anywhere between $300 and $10,800. Land a few swanky celebrations, and you might just find yourself winter waltzing into a busy season!
10. Become the king (or queen) of pressure washing
Spring may have sprung and fall will have… fallen; either season is prime for some high-powered, pressure washing shenanigans! Offer your water-wielding wizardry to cleanse pergolas, fences, patios, decks, planters, or driveways of any unsightly summer or winter grime.
Expect to rake in anywhere from $56 to $827, depending on the size and scope of your watery wonderland. And with pressure washers costing only a smidgen more than a sprinkler (around $139), you’ll soon find that adding this talent to your repertoire is a small price to pay for some seriously splashy profits!