Want to Expand Your Work? Offer This Service NOW!

Most lawn care or landscape

businesses see their work slow down or stop in the late fall and

winter.

Holiday lighting can be very profitable solution that needs no extra equipment and keeps your crews busy and paid!

Even a simple residential job could start at

$400 and go up into the

thousands.

Commercial properties, municipalities, office buildings, housing developments, and

shopping malls all contract out their lighting.

A very high-end residential client could pay as much as $15,000 to

$20,000 per job.

Holiday lighting services can be simply putting up and taking down lights, or can be

full service and include design, providing and hanging the lights, fixing anything in the

display, storage of lights, and taking them down following the holiday.

Benefits of Holiday Lighting:

• Can become a very profitable part of your business,

• Offers continued income in the slow period (October/November-early January)

• Keeps your employees working longer• Builds relationships with existing customers

Start with your existing clients.

For some companies, 70% of their lighting jobs come from existing clients.

Once you provide their lighting service and start storing their

lights off season, they will come back to you year after year.

As part of your lighting service you will have to decide whether you are willing to use a customer's existing lights, lease them lights, or only use

lights that you provide.

If use clients' existing lights:Pros: You'll likely get more customers quicker

because their costs are lower as they don't have to buy lights

Cons: May have to integrate different light systemsMay not have been stored wellHave to find acceptable replacements as the old lights go out

If you lease your customers lights:Pros: They can change up their display year after year

Customer's costs are lower as they don't have to buy the lights, generally pay only for laborCustomers aren't responsible for storageYou control the quality level of the lights being used

Cons: You are responsible for storageYou are responsible for cost of replacing any lights that go out

If you only use lights you sell to customers:

Pros: You are assured that the lights are commercial grade and will last a long time

You will ensure lights are stored properly each year so they are easier to install each year After the first year, customer's costs drop to just labor and replacement costs

Cons: Cost to client will be more expensive first year to cover the cost of the lights as well as labor

Client will not be able to change up their display each year without buying new lights

If you lease or sell lights to your customers, you need to be well versed on the differences between LED lights

and incandescent lights.

Many older customers want incandescent because the C7 or C9 lights are what they grew up with and are used to.

However LEDs offer more options for design, last longer, and although they are more expensive to buy, they use less energy.

Before you start offering holiday light services,

make sure to check your insurance.

Your crew will now be up on ladders and on roofs, and you want to make sure that you have enough insurance and worker's comp to cover

any possible accidents.

Also don't overextend your crews. There is a

limited window in which to get lights installed to have

them ready for the start of the holiday

season.

Do not undercut your labor estimates. If weather is your area is very cold, lights will take longer for your crews to install.

Don't underestimate the weather.

• If you are subject to rain, sleet, snow, or other regular precipitation, you will have to make sure that you silicon all connections, especially with incandescent lights.

• Also make sure all power strips, connectors, and connection boxes are off the ground and above snow levels.

If you do it right, adding holiday lighting to your

services list can be a very beneficial to your company.

1) It shortens the time that your workers aren't busy. Some companies even

include Halloween displays in their

services and have extended their service periods from October

through January.

2) It provides another income stream. Some companies make $50,000 to

$100,000 per season.

3) It helps your customers with a job

they may not be able to do or may not want to do. Generally they are

very appreciative of the beauty that you create

and the hassle you saved them.

For more Lawn Care Millionaire tips to grow your business, check out this website.