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Free Landscaping Business Plan Sample PDF Download

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How to Start a Landscaping Business - Landscaping Business Plan Sample PDF

Are you considering starting a Landscaping Business and you’re in need of a landscaping business plan PDF sample? if yes, you'll find this free book to be extremely helpful.

This is a practical guide that will walk you step by step through all the essentials of starting your business. The book is packed with guides, worksheets and checklists. These strategies are absolutely crucial to your business' success yet are simple and easy to apply.


Don’t Start a New Landscaping Business Unless You Watch This Video First!

Checklist for Starting a Business: Essential Ingredients for Success

If you are thinking about going into business, it is imperative that you watch this video first! it will take you by the hand and walk you through each and every phase of starting a business. It features all the essential aspects you must consider BEFORE you start a business. This will allow you to predict problems before they happen and keep you from losing your shirt on dog business ideas. Ignore it at your own peril!


Here’s a Valuable Free Gift for You
This is a high quality, full blown business plan template complete with detailed instructions and all related spreadsheets. You can download it to your PC and easily prepare a professional business plan for your business.
Click Here! To get your free business plan template

The Single Most Important Ingredient for Business Success

The first and most important thing you need to acquire in order to succeed in a small business is... knowledge.

Sounds exaggerated? Listen to this...

According to research conducted by Dun & Bradstreet, 90% of all small business failures can be traced to poor management resulting from lack of knowledge.

This is backed up by my own personal observations. In my 31 years as a business coach and consultant to small businesses, I've seen practically dozens of small business owners go under and lose their businesses -- not because they weren't talented or smart enough -- but because they were trying to re-invent the wheel rather than rely on proven, tested methods that work.

Conclusion: if you are really serious about succeeding in a business... If you want to avoid the common traps and mistakes... it is absolutely imperative that you acquire the right knowledge.

"Why Invent Mediocrity, When You Can Copy Genius?"

That's an excellent quote I picked up from a fellow business owner a few years back. What this means is that you should see what is working and try to duplicate Printing Business. Why go through all the trouble of inventing something new, that you don't even know will ever work, when you can easily learn from and duplicate something that has been a proven success?

[ Note: One of the BIGGEST mistakes almost all new businesses make is that they WASTE tons of valuable time, energy and money on trying to create something "new", that has never been tested or proven... only to find out later that it was a total loss. Don't make the same mistake! ]

Hi! My name is Meir. I'm the founder and president of BizMove.com, a successful internet based information business. I'm also the author of numerous books, mostly in the area of small business management.

I've been involved in small business for the past 31 years of my life, as a business coach, manager of a consulting firm, a seminar leader and as the owner of five successful businesses.

During my career as a business coach and consultant I've helped dozens of business owners start their businesses, market, expand, get out of troubles, sell their businesses and do practically every other small business activity you can think of.
You see, I have been there .... done it ... and bought the Small Business t-shirt! -- This free book contains techniques and strategies I've learned during my 31 year small business career.

Here's what you'll discover in the 'How to Start a Printing Business' book:

How to determine the feasibility of your business idea - a complete fill in the blanks template system that will help you predict problems before they happen and keep you from losing your shirt on dog business ideas.

A detailed manual that will walk you step by step through all the essential phases of starting your business

A complete landscaping business plan PDF sample template. This fill-in-the-blanks template includes every section of your business plan, including Executive Summary, Objectives, SWOT Analysis, Marketing Analysis and Strategy, Operations Plan, Financial Projections and more (a similar template is sold elsewhere for $69.95).

All this and much much more.

Success Tip: Setting Goals

Good management is the key to success and good management starts with setting goals. Set goals for yourself for the accomplishment of the many tasks necessary in starting and managing your business successfully. Be specific. Write down the goals in measurable terms of performance. Break major goals down into sub-goals, showing what you expect to achieve in the next two to three months, the next six months, the next year, and the next five years. Beside each goal and sub-goal place a specific date showing when it is to be achieved.

Plan the action you must take to attain the goals. While the effort required to reach each sub-goal should be great enough to challenge you, it should not be so great or unreasonable as to discourage you. Do not plan to reach too many goals all at one time.

Establish priorities. Plan in advance how to measure results so you can know exactly how well you are doing. This is what is meant by "measurable" goals. If you can’t keep score as you go along you are likely to lose motivation. Re-work your plan of action to allow for obstacles which may stand in your way. Try to foresee obstacles and plan ways to avert or minimize them.

Click here! to download your Landscaping Business plan PDF sample book for free

Here're other free books in the "how to start a business" series that may interest you:

Agriculture Assisted living Auto repair Bakery Bar Beauty salon Bed and breakfast Bookkeeping Boutique Bowling alley Carpet cleaning Car wash Catering Cattle farming Charity Cleaning Coffee shop Computer repair Construction Consulting Convenience-store Cupcake Daycare Dental Dog daycare Ecommerce Electrical Embroidery Engineering Farm Fashion Film Financial advisor Fitness center Flower-shop Food Food truck Franchise Frozen yogurt Furniture store Gas station Goat farming Grocery store Gym Hairdressing Hair salon Ice cream Insurance agency Interior design Internet Internet cafe IT Jewelry Landscaping Laundromat Laundry Law firm Magazine Manufacturing Microbrewery Motel-hotel Music Nightclub Nonprofit Nursery Online-retail Photography Pizza Plumbing Poultry farming Preschool Printing Private investigator Pub Real-estate Resort Restaurant Retail School Security company Service Software Spa Sports-bar Startup Supermarket Travel agency Trucking Vegetable-farming Website

Here's a Sample 'Executive Summary' for a Landscaping Business plan:

[Business Name] will sell landscape supply products to both residential and commercial customers. Additionally, the Company will also provide installation, maintenance and warranty services. The owner of [Business Name] is [Owner Name], who has extensive experience in the landscape supply and service industry. 
[Business Name] is to be headquartered in the rural area of Pine River, Minnesota just outside city limits with the nearest town approximately 6 miles away and its closest competition located 40 to 50 miles away. The Company prides itself on the quality of service, knowledge and expertise in this Business.
[Business Name] is seeking $1,500,000 in grant funding for the startup of this Business.  [Business Name] will be a boulder cutting operation and landscape supply Company in which it will manufacture and sell large boulders.  The Company will sell to the entire State of Minnesota with potential customers to include new and existing homeowners, landscapers, commercial and residential excavators, and commercial clients. With the management team already running an excavating business, an overflow of customers for the Company is expected.  Boulder cutting is in very high demand and currently the only other business that supplies these boulders are delayed with their orders at least 4 weeks.  Boulders, which can be described as large rocks sometimes as big as a small car, are cut with a rock saw and used to landscape in a variety of ways.
[Business Name]'s competitive edge is a combination of the unique product, interaction with clients and experience in the field.  The cut boulders are not only a rare or unique but it is a "Green" product that provides options for many potential customers in the community.  By providing clients an education on the services the Company provides, this builds relationships of trust and satisfaction.  Clients will come to depend on the unique product and services. 
Based on the detailed financial projections, [Business Name]'s future sales for 2010, 2011 and 2012 are expected to be $300,000, $800,000 and $1,000,000, respectively.

1.1 Objectives

[Business Name] has four main objectives:
1.  Become the top landscape supply company in the area with regard to Sales, Quality of Service, and Customer Service
2.  Maintain 85% positive feedback on Customer Service
3.  By fiscal year end 2012 employ 15 to 20 Full-time Employees
4.  Create a carried on family business for 50 years or more 

1.2 Mission

[Business Name]'s mission is to provide the Minnesota community with unparalleled customer service, reliable and quality product, and to stimulate the local economy by bringing employment opportunities to a rural area.

1.3 Keys to Success

The keys to success in this business are:
Reliability: of the products and services the Company offers.
Customer Satisfaction:  superior customer service.
Quality of Experience:  knowledge and reputation in this Business.
Location:  the Company is located in a Central area which is not only convenient for customers but also handicap accessible.

[Business Name]
Contact:  [Owner Name]
xxxxxxxxxxx
xxxxxx, MN xxxxx
Phone:  xxx-xxx xxx
Fax:  xxx-xxx xxx
xxxxxxxxx@yahoo.com

[Business Name] will sell landscape supply products to both residential and commercial customers. Additionally, the Company will also provide installation, maintenance and warranty services. The owner of [Business Name] is [Owner Name], who has extensive experience in the landscape supply and service industry. 
[Business Name] is to be headquartered in the rural area of Pine River, Minnesota just outside city limits with the nearest town approximately 6 miles away and its closest competition located 40 to 50 miles away. The Company prides itself on the quality of service, knowledge and expertise in this Business.

2.1 Company Ownership

[Business Name] is a Limited Liability Company 100% owned by [Owner Name], the Manager and Operator of the Business.

2.2 Start-up Summary

Start-up costs total $1,457,117, which is primarily building and equipment costs.  The assumptions are shown in the following table and chart. 

Table: Start-up

Start-up

 

 

 

Requirements

 

 

 

Start-up Expenses

 

Legal

$1,200

Stationery etc.

$200

Insurance

$350

Rent

$0

Office Equipment

$1,200

Other

$0

Total Start-up Expenses

$2,950

 

 

Start-up Assets

 

Cash Required

$2,500

Start-up Inventory

$16,667

Other Current Assets

$0

Long-term Assets

$1,435,000

Total Assets

$1,454,167

 

 

Total Requirements

$1,457,117

 

3.0 Products and Services

[Business Name] will be a boulder cutting operation and landscape supply Company in which it will manufacture and sell large boulders.  The Company will sell to the entire State of Minnesota with potential customers to include new and existing homeowners, landscapers, commercial and residential excavators, and commercial clients. With the management team already running an excavating business, an overflow of customers for the Company is expected.  Boulder cutting is in very high demand and currently the only other business that supplies these boulders are delayed with their orders at least 4 weeks.  Boulders, which can be described as large rocks sometimes as big as a small car, are cut with a rock saw and used to landscape in a variety of ways.  

US landscaping product demand is forecast to grow 6.1 percent annually through 2013 based on a recovery in the housing market. Decorative products will benefit from the relatively low market penetration of water features. Hardscapes will see favorable growth as consumers value pavers, stones and boulders for patios, walkways and surrounds.

The Company will sell its products and services by advertising in phone books, news papers, mail out flyers, word of mouth, web site and make on-site visits. [Business Name] plans to supply its customers on the first visit or first call and be open seven days a week. 

International Marketing Plan Tips

1. KNOW YOUR TARGET MARKET

Select your market (country) based on the need you perceive for your product in that market. To find out IF there is a need for your product there are several sources you can tap: That country's embassy or consulate. Embassies are generally in Washington D.C., and depending on the size of the country, consulates are located in major or strategic cities around the USA. The local library. Find o t if they are on-line. If so, they might have access to a National Trade Data Base (NTDB) which is updated monthly. You can also subscribe to their service and receive monthly CD Rom.

2. KNOW YOUR COMPETITION

Find out who your competitors here in the USA are and where they export to. Who are their distributors or sales outlets in your target country. Find out who potential local competitors are in that country and where their products originate from. Find out pricing information if you can. Again, embassies and consulates as well as that country's trade mission (if any) and their chamber of commerce (here and local) may be helpful.

3. SHOULD YOU GO INTO THAT MARKET?

Now that you have this basic information you need to decide if it will be worth your effort to proceed with this country. Usually the decision to market in a new country has far reaching effects on product development, pricing, financial and staffing. Do you need to conform to special laws and standards? (i.e. ISO 9000, metric etc.). Does your product come under export restrictions? (strategic high tech products). Does your product require specially trained technical support? Do you need to translate documentation? (Warning! Translations need to be done into the translator's native language; he/she must be familiar with your industry).

4. DISTRIBUTOR vs [OWN] SALES REPS

Should you market your product yourself, or through a distribution network. Using your own sales reps means they are your employees and therefore you have "control" over their sales efforts. It also gives you "presence" in that country. The downside is, that it is expensive, you pay them whether you sell anything or not. Unless you are there physically you don't really have "control" over their activities and there is a ramp up time since most likely they don't hit the ground running. Distributors, in contrast, are established companies with their own presence, infra structure and [hopefully] success. They are already staffed and have a market established and they may have already a pipeline (prospects) for your product. The downside is, that they usually represent many other products as well.

5. HOW TO CHOOSE A DISTRIBUTOR

The U.S. embassy in that country can help locate distributor candidates for you. There is a fee associated with that; check with the Department of Commerce (DOC). You can also check trade directories for the Region (where available) and local trade publications for ads from distributors. You may want to ask another company which has similar products to yours (not competitive) and find out who they are using in that country. That country's embassy/consulate often has such directories as well. After you contact potential distributors find out who they are representing, how many products, how many sales reps they have, what their annual volume is, what they feel the market for your product might be, if they have technical support people (if that's what's needed for your product). When you have interviewed several potential distributors (on the phone, fax or e-mail), spend the money and visit the country and meet them personally. You will also get a first hand feel for the market. That is very important. You may want the same distributor represent you in several countries. (i.e. all that use the same language such as Austria, Germany and parts of Switzerland). Be cognizant of cultural and language differences! It, might however, be better to have one distributor for each country (not all eggs in one basket). In South East Asia it is different. Often one distributor has several countries because the markets may be small (Hong Kong, Singapore, Thailand, Malaysia etc.).

6. AGREEMENTS

It is of utmost importance that you execute a distributorship agreement (or sales rep agreement) which has been reviewed by an attorney with international contract experience. It should contain, aside from the boiler plate clauses, length of term, information to what degree the distributor has the right to disclose information, pricing policies, discount policies, technical support policy, training, customer training, who pays for documentation, translations (if applicable), commissions and/or royalties, and sales quotas. If a distributor wants and gets exclusive geographic rights, then quota requirements are a must. If distributor does not make quota for a specified number of times, h can lose the distributorship or the exclusive status. Establish policy on multi-national accounts, "house" accounts, third party sell, etc. Will you provide sample product and/or demonstration products?

7. SUPPORT

You have to consider what kind of support your distributor or sales rep will get. If it is an "easy" product may be very little technical support is required. High tech products like hardware and software require skilled technical support not only from you to the distributor but also from the distributor to the customer. You need to maintain a state-of- the-art level of support at the distributor level. For that he either needs to attend training at your location here in the USA or you need to provide that training at his location. Who pays for it? (needs to be in the agreement). US Manufacturers often provide frequent visits to their distributors. Some technical support visits, some marketing/sales political visits.

8. POTENTIAL FOR YOUR PRODUCT(S)

Establish what the potential market for your product is. Although a variety of market research may be available from the country's embassy/consulate or DOC, trade publications etc. you may have to do some search yourself through local channels. What is the "life" for your product? Is it something consumers will purchase on a long term continual basis or is it a seasonal product or fad. Is it a capital purchase which requires regular maintenance long term. Is there residual income from maintenance, support, value added services?

9. COST OF MARKETING OVERSEAS

When putting together the marketing plan, cost of marketing overseas is a major consideration. If you decide to market in one country, how much more expensive would it be to market to a number of countries in the same region. Cost factors are travel and related expenses, regional and local trade shows, local training, documentation, translations, added technical and other support, communication cost (tel/fax), licensing (export and local), adaptation to local standards and laws (i.e. 220V/50Hz), conversion of CCIR and not the U.S. format).

10. LONG TERM COMMITMENT

When a decision is made to sell a product in foreign markets, it is a long term commitment. The first 12-18 months are difficult at best and most likely will not show our company and product must build a customer confidence. Only a long term commitment will provide this. When making a marketing plan, it should contain sales and cost figures for at least 5 years, which are updated annually and reviewed quarterly. If approached properly, a comprehensive business plan is essential.


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