Over the years the enterprise value specialists at Ceibass have noticed that the attitude in lawn and landscape businesses change as the weather turns colder and the leaves begin to fall.
“Summer is more relaxed and full of possibilities. It is lighter and sunny. Moods are more tolerant and less serious,” said Tom Fochtman, Ceibass CEO. “But as we move into fall it is time to buckle down, review the numbers, become more disciplined and get serious about making the business a success. With the pandemic, it is even more of a requirement to get your game face on and compete more rigorously for market share, customer satisfaction and the best employees.”
More specifically, when the team at Ceibass declares “Get Your Game Face On” they mean:
Review your numbers and get on track.
Keep developing a solid sales system.
Begin your 2021 planning. Get your team together, review 2020, plan for next years. Set goals.
Are you enabling and engaging your key employees? Develop a strategy.
Get rid of all unnecessary expenses.
Know your cash position.
Get on top of accounts receivables.
Review all contracts. Look for ways to get paid faster.
All invoices go out on time. No excuses.
Monitor all budgets and forecasts. Ask questions. Hold people accountable.
Run your business as if you were going to sell. it Get up to industry standards in areas you may be behind in such as technology and the quality of your management team.
Develop your succession planning. Work your management team to make sure they are ready. Encourage decision making beyond you, the owner.
Get on top of client relations and client satisfaction. Are you surveying your customers? Are your renewal rates 90+? Get on it.
Are you creating a strong ‘team” with good chemistry and communication?
Do you have weak players in key positions? Do what you need to do to improve your team and competitive position in the marketplace.
Be honest with yourself and your position and offers in the marketplace. Where do you stand? Sure revenues are up, but where are you relative to the competition? Gaining share, losing share?
Further develop your thinking about what is your value proposition. What makes you unique and different? Keep developing your competitive advantages so you don’t have to compete on price.
