Lawn Care Franchise Ownership Tips - Spring-Green

New Spring-Green Lawn Care Franchise Owners Off to a Positive Start

What’s it like being a Spring-Green franchise owner? The best way to find out is to ask one. Many of our franchise owners have been in the franchise system for 10, 15 or even more years, but we also have a great crop of newer owners who are experiencing their first or second seasons this year. We recently talked with two of our newest lawn care franchise owners: Alex Abbott in Richmond, Virginia and Tony Schmidt, owner of Spring-Green lawn care business in Madison, Indiana.

A Successful Season for Madison, IN Lawn Care Franchise

Spring is the most important season in the lawn care business. As the weather warms and weeds begin to germinate, people look for a professional lawn care service to care for their lawn and landscape. Tony Schmidt is going through his first lawn care season this spring and staying very busy.

“I’m learning a lot and excited about all the new business that’s coming in.” said Schmidt. “One customer has already told me that her yard looked better after just one application than it had in three years.”

The first season is critical to success for a Spring-Green franchise owner. Our initial franchise support is dedicated to keeping a new franchise owner’s priorities in order and prepared. Our industry leading business and marketing intelligence helps us to create a relevant marketing campaign for the local market to maximize sales opportunities.

Tony went on to say, “I’m learning a lot and working on being more organized, but overall it’s been a very positive first season.”

A Profitable Second Year for a VA Spring-Green Franchise

Alex Abbott is also dealing with a rush of new leads and sales in his second year providing lawn care in Richmond, VA.

“I’m still learning, but I feel much more in control and know what to expect now that I’m in my second year”, said Abbott. “An early spring in Virginia created an early sales rush and weed pressure, which I now have under control. Yards are turning around quicker because of the nice weather and looking awesome.” As a second year franchise owner, Alex has been able to take advantage of Spring-Green’s marketing reinvestment program where up to $10,000 is applied to the 2^nd year marketing programs.

All of our franchise owners are working hard this spring and accommodating the unexpected early spring across most of the country. 2012 is off to a very positive start at Spring-Green Lawn Care and we expect to build on that early momentum with a record breaking sales season.

The Green in Spring-Green - Three Ways We're Making A Difference

With Earth Day and National Arbor Day this week, it seems appropriate to blog about some things that Spring-Green is doing to become a greener company. For 35 years we have been committed to beautifying lawns and landscapes across the country keeping them green and healthy, at the same time working to reduce our carbon footprint.

1. For several years now, we have offered organic-based fertilizer that feeds both the soil and the plant while still delivering results that our customers expect. The fertilizer introduces organic nutrients to the soil and promotes “microbial” activity which will help increase root growth.
2.  Additionally, we are proud to be a leader in our industry with a nationwide initiative to outfit all of our trucks with a dual-hose injection system. Currently over 50 Spring-Green trucks across the country are using the new injection systems and over 250 will be outfitted by the end of 2013. This new dual-hose system will allow us to only apply weed control to the needed areas resulting in a 35% reduction in pesticide usage.
3. Spring-Green is now in our 3^rd year of a relationship with the Arbor Day Foundation. By the end of 2012, we will have planted 30,000 trees throughout the country that have been damaged by wildfire or insect damage through this partnership. We will be planting a tree for every new Spring-Green customer who “likes” us on our Facebook page in 2012.

In addition to our green initiatives to reduce pesticides and plant trees, there are some easy things homeowners can do with their regular lawn care program to help the environment. For example, by mowing your lawn higher it is better able to absorb fertilizer and water, discourages weeds and reduces runoff. You can also visit pages on our consumer website to learn more about cultural practices you’re your lawn and Spring-Green’s green initiatives. What other things are you doing in your everyday life to help the environment and be greener?

March Madness at Spring-Green Lawn Care

March Madness is in full swing here at Spring-Green. No, not THAT March Madness, but our own organized madness and excitement in our lawn care business. It’s spring time, the most important time of the year for Spring-Green as the weather warms and lawns turn green. But are there any parallels between lawn care and basketball? Plenty!

Team – In basketball, it’s very important to put the right team together. Team members must have chemistry, know each other’s strengths and weaknesses and have a coaching staff that can teach and bring out the best in everyone. Spring-Green is a strategic partnership of franchise owners and the support team members working together to achieve a common goal. Our marketing programs drive customer introductions but the franchise owner has to receive the lead or sale and build the relationship locally.

Preparation – Before the basketball season even starts, there are grueling practices and workouts to ensure the team is ready for the season and in top shape for the post-season. Similarly, before the lawn care season starts, time is dedicated to important tasks such as lawn measurement collection, marketing planning, equipment refurbishing and more.

Planning – NCAA tournament teams take time to plan for their game through their own version of practice, planning and goal setting. Spring-Green has a thorough two-day business planning process that many franchise owners take advantage of. It involves marketing, business planning, strategic planning, goal setting and much more.

Execution – During March Madness, teams have to execute the plan from practice in front of millions of people in order to win and continue playing. At Spring-Green, the spring creates a sense of urgency to follow up on thousands of leads and sales. The Spring-Green call center answers phones for franchise owners, follows up on web leads and calls existing customers to maximize revenue as much as humanly possible.

Whoever wins March Madness will have done the best job of team, preparation, planning and execution. This allows smaller schools to take out a #1 seed by being on their game. Similarly, our local franchise owners have the ability to take out a #1 seed (larger company) and win our “bracket” by following the same philosophy.

Spring-Green Lawn Care Celebrates St. Patrick's Day with Green Initiatives

Many people across the country will celebrate St. Patrick’s Day by wearing green. Spring-Green will be displaying its green colors all year through its commitment to environmental stewardship.  

Spring-Green has always offered customers the highest quality service performed in an environmentally responsible manner by trained and licensed technicians. We’re utilizing organic-based fertilizer to improve soil structure, turf health and sustainability. We also continually test alternative products to meet the expectations of our customers and reduce our impact on the environment.

Healthy, green lawns do so many wonderful things like absorb carbon dioxide, ozone, and other atmospheric pollutants. A turf area of just 50 feet by 50 feet releases enough oxygen to meet the needs of a family of four. Turf grass also helps purify water as its root mass and soil microbes act as a filter to capture and breakdown many types of pollutants.

A big part of Spring-Green’s mission reflects the needs to always to do right, to strive for better and to move forward, always innovating to improve.  One example of that commitment has led us to making pesticide reduction a continuous priority.  We have improved our liquid application equipment to help us in this initiative by introducing a dual line house and a multi trigger spray gun implemented which allows us to apply fertilizer to the entire lawn but only spot treat the needed area for weeds.  Similar technology had been adopted on all of our push and ride on equipment many years ago but recently we made the substantial investment to upgrade our liquid application equipment and for pesticides so they are only used as needed. By the end of 2013, 250 Spring-Green trucks will have the new system, and it will be mandatory for all lawn care franchise owners that use liquid applications to have at least one vehicle with the updated system by the end of this year.

Spring-Green Lawn Care Franchisees Give Back to Local Communities

Our franchise owners make it a priority to get involved in their local communities and provide the best lawn and tree care service possible to the residents. Being locally owned and operated gives our franchisees a chance to really get to know the neighborhoods in their territory.

Our Award-Winning Lawn Care Franchise Owners

Todd Harcourt, who provides lawn care in Columbia, Irmo and Lexington, S.C., recently won the Best of Landscapers award in Lake Murray Life Magazine. Todd has been servicing the area since 2005 and strives to treat his customers’ lawns like they would if they had the time.

Rick Locke in Indianapolis won the Angie’s List Super Service Award in 2010 and 2011. The award recognizes excellence in overall performance by service providers. To be eligible, businesses must achieve and maintain a superior service record on Angie’s List. Rick opened in 2010 and his franchise provides lawn care in Indianapolis proper and the northern third of Marion County.

Charlie Marshall, who owns a lawn care franchise in Alexandria, Fairfax and North Stafford, Va., also won the Angie’s List Super Service Award in 2010 and 2011. Charlie has been in business since 1997 and previously worked for a major supplier that sold lawn care products to professional landscapers.

Franchises Giving Back to Local Communities

As part of the Spring-Green National Conference in August 2011, a silent auction was held to benefit the Aflac Children’s Center in Atlanta, Georgia and raised $20,000. Franchise owner Lenny Giebel’s (in Lawrenceville, Georgia) son Jack was diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) in 2010. He has been treated at Aflac and is doing very well and has a great prognosis for the future. In 2011, The Aflac Children’s Center cared for over 6,500 children and young adults with cancer and offered 250 clinical trials to patients. It is ranked among the leading pediatric cancer centers by US News.

Spring-Green has also teamed up with the Arbor Day Foundation, and for every new Spring-Green customer in 2012, the company will make a donation to plant a tree in a forest that has been damaged by wildfire, insects or disease with a goal of planting a minimum of 10,000 trees this year. Spring-Green also participates in the Legislative Day on the Hill sponsored by the Professional Landcare Network (PLANET) every year.

Many other Spring-Green franchise owners have also gotten involved in their community and won awards. We encourage all of our franchisees to continue to engage their local community and give back whenever possible.

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