Have you ever had a relationship that was so easy it took no real effort?
We didn't think so.
But it’s possible to have a great landscaper/client relationship. We see it every day here at Level Green Landscaping.
There are some tips to making it work.
“A lot goes into a whole year of landscaping,” says Jonathan Friend, Level Green Landscaping account manager. “You really need to be proactive.”
Friend shares a few key elements of a healthy landscaper/client relationship.
Start Out Face To Face
Face time is important, from the beginning, Friend says.
“Meet in person, walk the property together, talk about the property’s needs, go over any enhancement ideas,” he says. “That’s a great way to start out the relationship.”
Get Personal
Get to know each other as people — not just landscaper and client.
“I might stop by Starbucks on my way over to grab a drink the property manager likes,” Friend says. “I check on how their daughter is doing in college. I ask how the family is doing. I share with them about my boys, too, who are eight months old and 2.
“It’s awesome to be able to share those personal moments with each other,” he says. “You’re landscaper and client, but you’re people, too.”
Staying In Touch
How often you visit a client varies, but Friend says he’s in touch once or twice a week, or as often as needed.
Communication is a top priority, he says.
“We let the client know when we’ll be there to mow, to plant flowers, to spread mulch,” he says.
After crews visit, customers get an emailed service report that outlines exactly what services were done, from mowing to trimming, fertilizing to pruning.
Add snow into the mix, and we’re in touch so much you might get tired of us.
“Five days before a predicted weather event, we send an email about the impending weather,” Friend says. “Then, 48 hours before, we call or email with an update.
Another call goes out 24 hours ahead.
“We tell the customer our plan of attack,” he says. “Then, we keep them updated throughout the storm.”
Having A Meeting? Invite Us
A great landscaper/client relationship might include attending meetings, if it’s helpful, Friend says.
“If a client is having a meeting, maybe with HOA board members, if they let us know a couple days ahead of time, we can attend,” Friend says. “We can share our insight, report on enhancements or just stop in to say hi and ask if there’s anything we can do.”
Great Response Time
“We’re in the customer service business,” Friend says. “If you don’t respond to a client for several days, they’ll think you’ve just brushed them under the rug.”
His cell phone number is on his business card for a reason, he says.
“I tell them to call me, day or night,” he says.
If he receives a client message when he has his hands full out in the field, he stops long enough to reply right away, just so they know he got the message.
“I’ll tell them I'll get back to them as soon as I can, within a couple hours,” he says.
Keep Us Posted
Big inspection coming up? Special event?
Let us know.
“Information is power,” Friend says. “We want to help our clients look their best. We’ll show up to the site with our punch list of things that need to get done.
“If we usually visit on Mondays, but they’re having an inspection or a grand opening Thursday, we can push our visit to Wednesday to make sure everything looks great.”
Tell Us How To Reach You
All that communication runs smoothly if we know the best way to reach clients, Friend says. Office phone? Cell phone? Email? Text?
When HOA board members have to approve services, in addition to a property manager, Friend loops them into the communication, too.
Resolving Differences
Just like in any relationship, when there’s a problem, there’s no substitute for talking it through, Friend says.
“If a client wants to know why something can’t work, we stop in and explain,” he says. “We want to do our best to give them what they need, but maybe we don’t have that plant material available at that time of year. Maybe it’s mulch season and we have a lot of our enhancement crews spreading mulch.
“When a client says, ‘It’s not raining — why aren’t they here?’ we need to explain that the ground is still wet, and if we come over there with a skid loader now, we’ll tear up the turf.”
The client can do their part by having realistic expectations, he says.
“There’s give and take,” Friend says. “But that clarification, that face to face meeting, is so important to a relationship.”
Looking Out For You
Part of the secret to a great client/landscaper relationship is just basic caring, Friend says.
Our crews go beyond mowing, trimming and pruning to really pay attention to your property, looking for potential problems.
“We’re their eyes on the site,” Friend says. “Maybe there’s a pile of trash building up by the dumpster, or a sinkhole near their drain. We can snap a photo and say, ‘Do you want us to take care of this?’
“That shows we’re going above and beyond,” Friend says. “We’re looking out for you.”
We’d Love To Get To Know You
When you sign on with Level Green Landscaping, you’re not just getting a landscaper. You’re gaining a relationship.
That's how we operate here. Plan on getting to know us.
If you’re not already a Level Green Landscaping client, we’d love to add you to our growing list of happy customers. Our focus is on commercial properties like offices, mixed-use sites, HOAs, municipalities and institutions in Maryland, Washington DC and parts of Virginia.
Contact us at 202-544-0968. You can also request a free consultation online to meet with us one-on-one.
We’d love to hear from you.
