Setting New Year’s Goals for Your Landscaping Company

Preparing for a Busy New Year in Landscaping

December is already here, and you’re wrapping up your first year in the landscaping business. No two businesses have the same journey; you may have experienced quick success with your landscaping team, or you may have had troubles getting off the ground. Whatever your situation may be, goal setting is one of the most important things you can do for your business and your team. But if you’re a new business owner, you may not know where to start.

Some landscaping business owners make the mistake of comparing themselves to other companies in the community. Think about it: your biggest competitor has a huge following on social media, a long roster of repeat customers, and the revenue they need to beef up their landscaping equipment. However, setting goals based on your competitors’ performance will never take you to the next level. You’ll always be looking over your shoulder to see what that competitor is doing next.

Goal Setting Comes From Within

The best goals are ones that are uniquely suited to your business needs. To set goals like these, you need to take an honest look at your past year (or half year, or quarter) in business and plot a path to where you’d like to go. Here are a few tips to make that process easier.

Start With Long-Term Goals

For many, it’s easier to begin with a big picture before breaking it down into manageable chunks. What intentions do you have for your business in the next year, or 5 years? How about the next 10 years? Of course, these goals are likely to change as your company evolves, but setting these ideals in stone can help you understand the best next steps to take.

However, don’t leave your planning session at the long-term goals. Looking at nothing but a 10-year projection of your business can be overwhelming, and it can make it more difficult to know what things to do in the immediate future. Keep your far-off goals in your mind’s eye as you chart out the things you’ll be doing within the next several months to expand and improve upon your business.

Take Your Team’s Needs Into Account

When most people think about goal setting, they think about increased revenue or an augmented list of repeat customers. However, working on internal processes can help your overall operation in the long run.

Maybe your team members want better communication and scheduling to maximize the number of clients they can reach each day. Maybe you need better software to track potential clients and make everyone’s schedule easily accessible. Before you start setting your goals, take a brief survey with your team members and get their honest feedback about how the year went for them. When your team wins, you win!

Don’t Set Too Many Goals at Once

If you’re anything like us, you may get the New Year bug and try to set a thousand goals before December even ends. Take a deep breath and put down your planner! If you plot out too many goals, there’s a good chance you’ll become burned out and not achieve any of your goals whatsoever.

Instead, set no more than a handful of timely, achievable goals to focus on. We recommend breaking each chunk of goals into quarterly timelines so you’re not stretching out too far into the future. Focus on your revenue, your image and marketing, your company culture, and your efficiency for best results.

Some examples of achievable goals include the following:

• 50 new Google reviews in 3 months

• Increase revenue by $10,000 by March 2023

• Implement landscaping team member management software and hold training sessions before February

Each of these goals are fairly simple, but they have deadlines and specific values so you can track your success or readjust your course.

Every Growing Landscaping Company Needs a Great Team

Even if you started off as a solo landscaper, we’re guessing you had the backing of a quality lawn mower maintenance and supply company, a loyal list of clients, and a financial advisor to help keep you afloat. You don’t have to go it alone! For all your landscaping business needs, get in touch with the team at Gator Mower Parts at 407-260-1292 today.