Your landscape should look fresh and manicured at all times. It’s a direct reflection of your business. If you’ve noticed the grass is looking a bit shabby, there are weeds popping up, and your landscaper is never around, it may be time to reconsider your choice in a professional landscape company. Loyalty in any profession is admirable, but if your landscape company is not dedicated to giving you the professional services you hired them for, they’re doing a disservice to your company.
Before confronting your landscaper, look at your existing contract and re-evaluate your budget. Examine what services you are paying for and how much you are paying for them. If you’ve been paying the same amount for many years, you should understand that landscaping costs go up each year as product prices and wages rise and equipment needs to be replaced. So if your cost never goes up, your landscaper is probably making cuts where he can to meet your budget, which may mean less time spent on your landscape or fewer applications of weed prevention, fertilizer, insect control, etc.
How many applications of these things are included in your existing contract? How often do they prune, clean up debris, redo edging, and refresh the mulch? Is there something they’re not currently doing that you’d like them to? Come up with a budget you’re willing to pay.
With your expectations and an updated budget, talk to your current landscape company. Discuss your expectations with them and let them know what you feel these services are worth. Understand this may very well be more than you’re currently paying. It’s important to be realistic with what you’re willing to pay for the work you want to be done. Landscapers need to make a living too and your budget should be fair for everyone. The old adage “You get what you pay for” almost always rings true.
If you can’t afford all of the things that you want them to do, consider scaling back on items like annual plantings. With less to care for, more time can be spent on mowing, applying weed control, etc. Even the most basic of landscapes can be beautiful if they’re well cared for.
Give your current landscaper time to fix the problem, but keep in mind the problem may be that what you currently pay may be too low for the work you expect. Or it may simply be the case that there is a lack of communication with your current company and now that they have a clear idea of your expectations, they’ll be able to provide you with work you’re satisfied with.
If they are not able to fix the problems to your satisfaction, it’s time to see what other companies have to offer. Most contracts have a 30-day clause in them which state you can terminate the contract with a 30-day notice your intent to sever ties. As you open your property to other landscape companies to bid, but unless you’re completely dissatisfied with the performance of your previous landscaper, you may want to include them in the process as well and see what they can offer.
So how do you move forward? You can ask for Proposals (RFP or Request for Proposal) in which you provide the bidders with a list of what you want to be done and potential landscape companies give you a price for those services. Allow them to also tell you what they bring to the table. Give them the opportunity to present and add value to their proposal.
Review all proposals closely. You should know how frequent each service is to be done. If you’ve collected bids, beware of those that are too low. You’ll probably pay for those savings with a lack of service.
Once you choose a new landscape company, put all of your expectations in writing so they can provide consistent services even if they have a change in staff. Also, share your complaints about your old company with the new one. This is not to bad mouth your old landscaper, but rather to avoid having the same problems with the new one.
At Bluegrass Landscaping and Maintenance, we want you to love your landscape company. Your individual account manager will always be available to take care of any concerns that may arise and we pride ourselves in our dedication to the satisfaction of each and every customer. Call Bluegrass Landscaping and Maintenance today. We know you’ll love us!
