Meet Glenn Jacobsen, president, Jacobsen Landscape Design & Construction, Midland Park, N.J. How’d you get your start? I get asked that all the time. I got in this business just like many others did, cutting lawns in the neighborhood. That evolved into going to college and into the design part of the business. I started my business in 1978 in... read more
I am all about eliminating the guesswork we face in our businesses. Yes, I am a budget freak. Some of this stems from what my mentor, Emol Fails, Ph.D., instilled in me a long time ago. One such morsel was the construction industry is the second most risky business behind restaurants in the U.S. That doesn’t say much for us... read more
Whatever your economic outlook, ending your business year positively is important. Avoid slipping from a good year into a so-so year by never letting your guard down. It’s imperative, when things are looking up, not to ease up on the sales efforts and watch your profits slip away. To that end, if your year has been disappointing, don’t give up.... read more
Welcome to the Business Planner 2014 edition of Landscape Management. I sat down to write an editor’s note about the importance of the three areas we focus on in this issue: leading, running and growing your business. But I can’t get the last one, grow—which focuses on sales and marketing—off my mind because I’m fresh out of attending the Content... read more
How can we get prospects to chase us instead of us chasing them? For most landscaping companies, marketing is difficult. You need to get noticed, but you can’t afford to break the bank on big-name celebrity endorsements and Super Bowl ads. It is possible, however, to promote your company without a big-time budget and generate powerful marketing buzz. No matter... read more
In describing the process companies go through to generate new customers, I refer to a big old sales funnel. You pour leads in the top and sales come out the bottom. All sales funnels leak leads, though, letting them escape before you can turn them into sales. By patching your funnel, you can improve marketing effectiveness and boost sales. And... read more
