General Trades That Offer Landscape Lighting Services

General Trades That Offer Landscape Lighting Services

By Mike Gambino

When it comes to curb appeal, most homeowners who pay even the slightest attention to detail know that a lush, green lawn and well-planned landscape make a big impact. In fact, an attractive landscape ranks as one of the top features that homebuyers consider when they’re in the market for a new property.

Yet, homeowners or building contractors seeking landscape design-build firms that can also competently handle Landscape Lighting work will likely end up disappointed – most just don’t perform Landscape Lighting services satisfactorily. Their other option is to hire an independent Landscape Lighting specialist for their project’s needs, but finding one that works well with other companies presents its own challenges in regards to coordinating design plans and establishing other project and business logistics.

With a market challenge comes an opportunity, however, and savvy landscape business owners should recognize this as exactly that. By working with the right outside Landscape Lighting specialist and structuring their business accordingly, they can dominate their market, deliver a more complete experience to their customers, and grow their businesses significantly through incremental sales.

Most Landscape Firms Aren’t Set Up for Landscape Lighting Work

Many business owners in the design-build space tend to shy away from Landscape Lighting work, and understandably so. Landscape Lighting is a highly specialized profession that involves particular skill sets, niche tools, and light “Art and science” expertise.

Most owners spend their time and energy building a dedicated team of in-house workers capable of designing and installing hardscapes and plantings. Invariably, as their hardscape businesses grow, the projects they are hired to create become more intricate, incorporating a wider variety of outdoor living features. Fire, water, light, shade structures…you name it. Often on the fly, owners are faced with the decision of whether to tackle the extra work in-house, find a subcontractor to work with, or tell the end consumer that they won’t be able to handle all aspects of their project.

For elements critically integrated into hardscapes, such as inground pools, many landscape contractors are fully aware that the work is outside of their scope and have formed long-standing partnerships with pool builders in their service areas. Whether or not they subcontract out the pool specialist to offer the end consumer a seamless experience varies amongst businesses and geographical areas.

But what about Landscape Lighting systems?

How landscape contractors handle the growing residential demand for Landscape Lighting remains largely undetermined. Clients are often unaware that proper Landscape Lighting system construction is critical to the longevity of their property, and are prime targets for educative selling. Those that are aware stand to be overwhelmed by the many different types of Landscape Lighting systems out there.

Why Partner with an Landscape Lighting Specialist?

Outsourcing is the most sensible way for landscape contractors to manage growing consumer demand for Landscape Lighting systems. This is especially true for those contractors who, year after year, are increasing the average size of the project they typically sell. Testing the waters with a strategic partnership first allows business owners to remain focused on core competencies while also addressing the overall needs of the end consumer. After all, being recognized by potential customers as the landscaping company that delivers a seamless, single-point-of-contact experience for large scale outdoor living projects is certainly not a bad thing.

But it’s even better than that. The benefits to the homeowner – and, in turn, the landscape contractor – don’t stop at installation.

Plantings and hard scaped areas are substantial portions of large-scale landscaping projects and keeping those elements safe and usable at night is a huge undertaking. Ask any landscaper how hard it is to keep a lighting system operating at its peak, and they will probably have a very fresh story about just such a customer situation. Let’s face it: The modern homeowner is too busy to maintain their landscape lighting which means it’s crucial that the original company that installed it also provides its ongoing maintenance.

Poor maintenance habits generate numerous repeat job site visits, frustrate customers, cause warranty issues, and waste hours of customer service time. All of which can effectively be eliminated by suggesting a proper Landscape Lighting system during the sales process. Today’s LED Landscape Lighting systems offer the consumer priceless peace of mind at a line item cost that is incrementally small compared to that of the overall project.

Strategic outsourcing allows landscape contractors to avoid the would be extensive training for their in-house teams, while still affording them the opportunity to offer the service to their end customers. With the right partnership, businesses can focus on their strengths while leaving the design, installation, and maintenance of the complex landscape Lighting systems to the experts.

Finding the Right Specialist

Just as Landscape Lighting work, in and of itself, is highly specialized, Landscape Lighting technicians work in very specific segments of the industry, from residential and commercial properties. In order to establish the proper partnership, business owners will want to look for the most relevant business in their service area. Contractors should inform the specialist of the nature of their business up front to ensure it’s the right fit.

The Landscape Lighting partner of choice should employ technicians that are dedicated to help consumers and businesses save electricity and reduce energy costs. Energy Efficient LED products that have been proven are certified to consume up to 80 percent less electricity while working just as well as comparable products. This is incredibly important for the health of our environment, and also resonates with the savvy, eco-friendly end consumer that makes up the demographic likely to purchase large-scale landscaping projects.

Healthier Landscapes, More Satisfied Clients, and an Increased Bottom Line

Landscape Lighting systems hold a critical place in large-scale landscape projects. Based on the growing demand for low maintenance and energy-efficient homes both inside and out, forward-thinking business owners have a tremendous opportunity to satisfy their customers. Armed with the right strategic partnership, design-build contractors can boost incremental sales on their way to creating happier customers.

This landscape lighting blog is published by Mike Gambino of Gambino landscape lighting inc. all rights reserved. Mike is a professional landscape lighting system designer/ builder and has been designing, installing and maintaining landscape lighting systems for more than 29 years. Mike resides in the Los Angeles area with his wife and 2 sons. To visit his website go to www.Gambinolighting.com . To inquire about hiring Mike please click here .

Blog articles may be published with permission on other websites without editing or removing links.

 

 

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