I’m betting you didn’t start your business to become a financial expert. You’re not alone. The overlap between financial accounting geeks and green-industry pros is pretty slim. But it pays — literally — to understand the basic finances of your business. Not only should you be able to read your profit and loss statement (otherwise known as a P&L), but you should also understand how to use the data on the statement to run your business smarter and more efficiently. To help you develop that basic understanding, let’s take a […]
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Give Yourself a Break! 5 Tips to Increase Work-Life Balance
According to a 2015 Gallup study, the average full-time employee in the United States works 47 hours a week — now multiply that by the “small business owner factor.” It might be easier to calculate how many hours you spend NOT working. Are you constantly putting out fires? Is your smartphone buzzing nonstop with texts and emails from employees? How much time do you spend working in your business, rather than working on it? When’s the last time you took a vacation? Work-life balance isn’t just a buzzword; it’s the […]
Spring-Green’s National Training Conference Help Those in Need
Spring-Green Lawn Care Corp. just completed celebrating their 40th Anniversary in business with our National Training Conference, Optimize for Success, on August 2nd through the 4th in Oak Brook, IL. Spring-Green Franchise Owners from across the US gathered to network with fellow Franchise Owners, listen to inspiring presentations from Marty Grunder, well known landscape owner and Green Industry speaker and Jay Baer, a respected consultant on building customer relations. It was an incredible 2 and a half days of learning, laughing and reflection on business building. National Training Conference Silent […]
Growing Your Green Industry Business: 5 Tips for Hiring Support Staff
As your green industry business grows, it becomes less and less reasonable to assume you can handle all the day-to-day management of the operation. Don’t try be a hero by putting all the pressure on yourself to keep the ship upright. Hiring the right support staff can remove some of that pressure and help you focus on the bigger picture, like future growth or even your exit strategy. We asked some of Spring-Green’s seasoned operations staff for their tips on hiring support staff as you scale your business. Here’s what […]
Succession Planning: What Is Your Exit Strategy?
There are plenty of ways to leave your business when it’s time to retire (or you’ve just had enough), from simply closing your shop to selling your business model to another business. You can sell to one of your employees, or keep the business in your family for generations to come. Matt Holker, and his son, Greg, began as Spring-Green Lawn Care Franchise Owners in 2006. Over the past 10 years, the business has grown, taking in neighboring territories, as well as bringing Matt’s other sons, Luke and Kevin, on […]
How to Start a Blog For Your Green Industry Business
How are you getting the word out about your green industry business? If you’re only using traditional methods like direct mail, print ads, yellow-pages listings, you could be missing an amazing opportunity to attract new customers through your website. If you haven’t thought about blogging, what are you waiting for? Here are just a few of the many benefits of blogging for your green industry business. Your content could… • Drive traffic to your website • Position you as an industry expert • Help your sales staff nurture new and […]
Spring-Green Lawn Care Named One of Largest Landscape Companies
Spring-Green Lawn Care has been named one of the largest landscape companies in North America by Lawn & Landscape magazine. Spring-Green Lawn Care was ranked 29th on the 2017 Top 100 list, and has been on the Top 100 list since 2005. “The companies on the Top 100 list represent an elite group in the landscape industry, and they represent what a landscaper is to thousands of homeowners and property managers across North America,” says Lawn & Landscape Editor and Associate Publisher Chuck Bowen. “The 100 companies on this year’s […]
Economic Growth Means the Time Is Right for Diversification
In the first quarter of 2017, the Federal Reserve raised its benchmark interest rate twice, a sign in the Reserve’s faith that the United States economy is finally beginning to perform again after a long downturn. The base interest rate is now between .75 and 1 percent (as of March 2017), which has inspired further confidence in the economy. What does this mean for you? Well, among other things, it means that now could be a perfect time to make an investment in the future of your business by diversifying. […]
12 Social Media Tools To Use For Your Green Industry Business
There was a time when social media was an optional tactic for marketing your green industry business — but that time is not now. If you’re not using social media to spread the word about your business in addition to traditional marketing tactics, you’re missing out. A huge population of prospective customers is spending time online, using social media to make purchasing decisions…and if they aren’t getting information from you, they’re getting it from your competitors. If you’ve taken our advice (okay, it’s not just our advice) to go digital, congratulations! […]
The Power of Peer Groups: 7 Benefits Of Belonging To A Peer Group
Do you sometimes think you’re all alone as a business owner? Would you like to be able to bounce ideas off on another business owner who understands what it’s like to own a lawn care, landscape or pest control company? Then you should consider a peer group. Everyone needs to be able to bounce ideas off of like-minded people. The power of peer groups allows you to work through ideas and problems as well as to grow profits and succeed in business. Peer to Peer Groups Peer to peer groups, […]