Green Industry Pros April 2020 by GreenIndustryPros.com

HOW TO GET CLIENT’S LAWNS IN TIP-TOP SHAPE FOR SPRING APRIL 2020

CONTRACTOR PROFILE What Is It Like to Volunteer with GreenCare for Troops?

BEYOND THE BLADE The Importance of Telling Your Story Online

COVID-19 LANDSCAPERS ARE FACING

∠HEAD ON

2020

Catalog is here!

over 9,500 utdoor Power outdoor quipment Parts! equipment

800.841.3989 rotarycorp.com Available through servicing dealers & distributors.

GIP0420_01_Cover-rw awesome final.indd 1

4/16/20 9:49 AM

TIME SAVER. MONEY MAKER.

ADD THE NEW TORO ® PROLINE ™ SERIES OF MIDSIZE MOWERS TO YOUR FLEET AND TAKE YOUR PRODUCTIVITY TO THE NEXT LEVEL – FROM START TO FINISH.

toro.com/contractor

GIP0420_2-3_TOC-rw final.indd 2

4/2/20 8:33 AM

TABLE OF CONTENTS THE MANAGEMENT RESOURCE FOR LANDSCAPE CONTRACTORS AND EQUIPMENT DEALERS

COVID-19 LANDSCAPERS ARE FACING

PhonlamaiPhoto / E+ / Getty Images

COVER STORY

Cover: photoschmidt / fotomay / iStock / Getty Images Plus

Volume 32, No. 3 | April 2020

∠HEAD ON

FEATURES

DEPARTMENTS

16 Equipment Focus Choose Skid Steer, CTL and Compact Wheel Loader Options to Reduce Operator Fatigue Skid steers, CTLS, and compact wheel loaders can be equipped to reduce wear on operators.

26 Contractor Profile What Is It Like to Volunteer with GreenCare for Troops? Providing lawn care services for military families in need.

4 Through the Grapevine 22 What’s on My Trailer? Go Small or Go Home Landscape contractors see big benefits from the smallest compact track loaders

38 New Products

28 Special Report How to get client’s lawns in tip-top shape for spring

42 Advertisers Index

Actionable steps to a spring lawn care package for new or existing clients

30 Beyond the Blade The Importance of Telling Your Story Online

How to write compelling stories on your website

34 Dealer Success Guide Expand Your (Crop) Circle

Broadening & strengthening your customer base

iQoncept / E+ / Getty Images

GIP0420_2-3_TOC-rw final.indd 3

30 www.greenindustrypros.com

❙ APRIL 2020 ❙

GREEN INDUSTRY PROS 3

4/2/20 8:35 AM

THROUGH THE GRAPEVINE

Pros

™

KEEP CUTTING

he coronavirus or COVID-19 pandemic is having a profound impact on every facet of life and work across the globe. Citizens are forced to stay in their homes, gatherings are being canceled and medical facilities are plagued with equipment shortages. As I write this from my home office, the latest reports are that the COVID-19 death toll in the United States has surpassed the total from the 9/11 terrorist attacks. There is no question that this pandemic will have lasting impact. Within the green industry, landscape contractors across the country have had a myriad of questions about the state and federal mandates that have been approved in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Steps were taken to shut down businesses that were deemed non-essential or non life-sustaining in hopes of continuing to slow the spread of COVID-19. The policies have led to some confusion within the green industry as to whether their services were designated as “essential” or not. The National Association of Landscape Professionals and the numerous state associations have continued to argue that key role that landscape and lawn care companies play in keeping healthy people employed and supporting the economy. On March 28, the Department of Homeland Security updated its list to indicate which businesses the federal government has determined are critical and essential and should remain in Ryan Whisner (920) 542-1238 rwhisner@acbusinessmedia.com operation. The list now specifically enumerates the landscape industry, which includes all aspects of landscape services including landscape maintenance, lawn care, irrigation and tree care. Individual states still make the ultimate determination. Landscape work, in most cases, is performed outdoors in small teams, or individually, with limited public contact, posing a lower risk of spreading COVID-19. Also, recent studies have found a more direct correlation between human health, particularly related to stress, and the importance of people’s access to nature and managed landscapes. From that perspective, I would agree with Greg Herring, founder and CEO of The Herring Group, who says that landscapers should take an open-minded view on the order language. If the order says “building maintenance,” don’t say that doesn’t include landscape, argue that it does and interpret it that way until someone tells you not to. If you are keeping your employees safe and your customers safe, then it comes down to your business and your employees’ financial livelihoods to interpret the language broadly. Keeping with Herring’s thoughts on the subject, more than anything, the small business owners must show leadership during the crisis. I have little doubt, this is only going to go even longer than we anticipated. Ultimately, your leadership will make a difference in your business and in your community, so lead well, lead strong and keep cutting.

Published by AC Business Media

201 N. Main Street, 5th Floor Fort Atkinson, WI 53538 (800) 538-5544 Volume 32, Number 3

ADVERTISIN G

Publisher ................................................................................... Eric Servais eservais@acbusinessmedia.com Sales Representative ...................................................Megan Perleberg mperleberg@acbusinessmedia.com Sales Representative ..........................................................Sean Dunphy sdunphy@acbusinessmedia.com Sales Representative ..........................................................Nikki Lawson nlawson@acbusinessmedia.com Sales Representative ............................................................Kris Flitcroft kflitcroft@acbusinessmedia.com National Automotive Manager .......................................... Tom Lutzke tlutzke@acbusinessmedia.com

EDITORIAL

Editor ...................................................................................... Ryan Whisner rwhisner@acbusinessmedia.com Creative Director ............................................................... Kirsten Wiskus kwiskus@acbusinessmedia.com

CIRCU LATION

Audience Development Director .................................... Wendy Chady Audience Development Manager .................................. Angela Franks

PRODU CTION

Senior Production Manager ................................................Cindy Rusch crusch@acbusinessmedia.com AC Business Media Chief Executive Officer ..................................................... Barry Lovette Chief Financial Officer .................................................. JoAnn Breuchel Chief Digital Officer ......................................................... Kris Heineman Vice President, Sale & Marketing ................................. Amy Schwandt Vice President, Audience Development ..................... Ronda Hughes Director of Digital Operations & IT .................................. Nick Raether Director of Digital Strategy.................................................. Joel Franke Change of Address & Subscriptions — P.O. Box 3605 Northbrook, IL 60065-3605 • (877) 201-3915 Fax: (847) 291-4816 • circ.greenindustrypros@omeda.com List Rental — Jeff Moriarty, Senior Vice President of Business and Media Solutions • InfoGroup • (518) 339 4511 jeff.moriarty@infogroup.com Reprints & Licensing — Erica Finger (920) 542-1230 • efinger@acbusinessmedia.com Green Industry Pros [USPS 003-763 and ISSN 2168-121X (print), ISSN 2168-1228 (online)] is published seven times a year: January/ February, March, April, May/June, July/August, September/October and November/December by AC Business Media. Periodicals postage paid at Fort Atkinson, WI 53538 and additional mailing offices. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to Green Industry Pros, P.O. Box 3605, Northbrook, IL 60065-3605. Subscriptions: Individual subscriptions are available without charge in the U.S. to qualified subscribers. Publisher reserves the right to reject non-qualified subscriptions. Subscription prices: U.S., $35 per year; Canada/Mexico, $60 per year; and all other countries, $85 per year. All subscriptions payable in U.S. funds, drawn on U.S. bank. Back issues, if available, cost $10 prepaid. Printed in the USA. Copyright 2020 AC Business Media. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopy, recordings or any information storage or retrieval system, without permission from the publisher.

www.facebook.com/GreenIndustryPros www.linkedin.com/company/green-industry-pros @greenindpros www.youtube.com/GreenIndustryPros

4 GREEN INDUSTRY PROS

GIP0420_4-5_Grapevine-rw.indd 4

❙

APRIL 2020

❙

www.greenindustrypros.com

4/2/20 4:23 PM

loor

Servais ia.com leberg ia.com unphy ia.com awson ia.com litcroft ia.com Lutzke ia.com

Whisner ia.com Wiskus ia.com

Chady

Franks

Rusch ia.com

ovette euchel neman wandt aether Franke

ness

ry/ ber

iling stry

out ves the ices: her nds, aid.

duced echanrage

BATTERY POWER. MADE BY STIHL. Æ&#x2019;

ONE BATTERY. MULTIPLE TOOLS. REAL BENEFITS. Experience the legendary power of STIHL combined with the convenience of battery. With long run times, zero exhaust emissions and quiet operation, STIHL Battery products are ready to tackle your toughest jobs.

ros

LEARN MORE AT STIHLUSA.COM

GIP0420_4-5_Grapevine-rw.indd 5

4/2/20 8:43 AM

COVER STORY: FINANCES

by Lindsey Getz, NALP

How to Approach Finances While Dealing with COVID-19

reating a financial plan in times of uncertainty is no simple feat. When it feels like so much is out of your control it can be difficult to even grasp what makes good business sense. Greg Herring, founder and CEO of The Herring Group, a consultant company, recently shared some business and financial advice with National Association of Landscape Professionals members on how to best respond to COVID-19. Herring says that how businesses respond early

on could have a long-term impact. Herring walked members through a five-step action plan which we’re recapping here.

Build Liquidity

First and foremost, Herring says lawn and landscape businesses should be building liquidity — or “cash reserve” — quickly. Business owners should not have more than $250,000 in cash at any one bank and should have available cash on hand. Sources of liquidity include company cash, an already available line of credit, large deposits on construction

projects or enhancement projects, and unpledged assets for collateral new loans, among other options. In addition, the U.S. Small Business Administration is offering designated states and territories low-interest federal disaster loans to businesses suffering substantial economic injury as a result of COVID-19 with an interest rate of 3.75 percent. Terms are determined on a case-by-case basis.

Understand the Customer Mindset

It is also wise to spend some time thinking about your customers’ mindset. How are they going to respond to COVID-19 and the resulting economic situation? The answer to that is largely dependent upon whom you serve. For instance, residential construction or even maintenance customers might be more likely to halt services than HOAs. Think about your specific market segment and try to understand how they will react. If you’ve been through the Recession with them — as many landscape business owners have — you might already have some insight into their predicted response.

Plan for Various Scenarios

Now that you’ve thought through the potential response of your customers, try to formulate a plan based on these expectations. Consider various scenarios and how you might respond. For instance, if you put a division on

To ensure continued prosperity, landscape businesses should be building liquidity during the pandemic. Sources of liquidity include company cash, an existing line of credit, large deposits on construction projects and unpledged assets for collateral new loans, among other options. LilliDay / E+ / Getty Images Aquir / IStock / Getty Images

6 GREEN INDUSTRY PROS

GIP0420_6-7_CoverFinancing-rw final.indd 6

❙

APRIL 2020

❙

www.greenindustrypros.com

4/2/20 9:05 AM

ho div W ab yo to Tr fer

As an to ho bu If y the wh bu for can po

st uf-

hold, what does re-starting that division look like at a later date? What happens if your most profitable division starts to slow down? Do you have alternative revenue streams to which you can shift your focus? Try to plan out at least three to five different scenarios that could happen.

Calculate Cash Needs

As you think through these questions and scenarios, calculate cash needs to keep the business afloat. You know how much cash you have — and you’ve built up as much liquidity as possible. If you need to start making some of the changes that you’ve considered, where should cash be directed in the business? There’s no way of knowing for certain what will happen, but you can still make actionable plans for possible scenarios.

Consider Expense Reductions

ing in operation. But Herring says it’s important for landscape business owners to interpret the “stay at home” language broadly. “I am already seeing many lawn and landscape business owners interpreting those orders too narrowly and shutting down operations at a time when they don’t need to be shut down,” Herring says. “If your state or county’s ‘stay at home’ mandate considers construction as an essential business, then you should consider landscape as part of that language. As Americans, we are rule followers, and that can be a great thing. But we also need to keep our businesses afloat and there are ways to do it safely. You can close the offices but still have crews working in the field — keeping a safe distance and washing hands regularly. There are ways to push business forward.” ❯

Finally, you should also think about areas where you can cut costs and operate lean. The idea is to stay financially healthy until you can resume normal operations. For a lot of businesses, that could mean some tough decisions. For now, many remain positive that they’ll weather the storm just as they did during the Recession in 2008.

Pushing Ahead

Currently, at press time, a lot of states were in “lockdown” with only essential businesses remain-

Progressive Casualty Ins. Co. & Affiliates. Business and Workers’ Compensation coverage provided and serviced by affiliated and third party insurers.

ic d

Small business is no small task. So Progressive offers commercial auto and business insurance that makes protecting yours no big deal. Local Agent | ProgressiveCommercial.com

be de on ns.

ages ages

www.greenindustrypros.com

GIP0420_6-7_CoverFinancing-rw final.indd 7

❙

APRIL 2020

❙

GREEN INDUSTRY PROS 7

4/2/20 9:09 AM

COVER STORY: BUSINESS

by Ryan Whisner

LANDSCAPERS ARE FACING

COVID-19 HEAD ON A

side from just the health aspects, the COVID-19 pandemic is having a substantial impact on the green industry. The first hurdle for many was whether their services would be deemed “essential” through the numerous “shelter-in-place” policies initiated at the state level. From the onset, the National Association of Landscape Professionals and the various state associations were advocates for the contractors to be labeled as “essential.” On March 28, the Department of Homeland Security updated the national memorandum on Identification of Essential Critical Infrastructure Workers During COVID19 Response to indicate which businesses the federal government have determined are critical and essential and should remain in operation. The list specifically enumerates the landscape industry, which includes all aspects of landscape services including landscape maintenance, lawn care, irrigation and tree care. Prior to that designation, many

8 GREEN INDUSTRY PROS

GIP0420_8-11_CoverSTory1-rw final.indd 8

❙

APRIL 2020

landscapers had already begun putting plans in place during the early stages to face potential challenges head-on in an uncertain future. Serving the Syracuse, New York area, J and R Property Services had not yet gotten into the full swing of spring services when the pandemic began. “The only good thing about the timing that this came at, typically we’re used to starting around the first week of April, so we’re only going to be a little bit behind,” said Jeff DeLine, president of J and R Property Services. The shelter-in-place order issued by New York’s governor was vague about landscaping service initially and then clarified to authorize general maintenance, trees and shrub trimming and some placement of plants, trees and flowers. “We know a lot of people are probably going to hold on financial decisions right now,” he said. “I think for recurring work I think we’ll be all right. Most people get in the habit of letting us take that on, because even though their home they don’t want to do it (yard work).” In addition, J and R’s customers have the option to go on the budget billing plan, which spreads out payments for recurring services over 12 months. “I think that’s going to help a lot of customers especially with the financial situation many of them are going to be in,” he said.

❙

Maintenance was not DeLine’s primary concern. His potential losses would likely come in the larger installation jobs that either would not be requested or may not even been allowed under the governor’s order.

Safety First

Happy to just be able to maintain his business and to accommodate the new normal of social distancing practices, J and R’s 31 trucks will be going out with only one person, rather than the standard 3-man crew. “It’s hard, you can’t really stick two people on a truck and try to maintain the six-foot social distancing,” he said. “We’re trying to tackle this to at the same time we’re trying not to go out of business.” DeLine noted that maintenance such as mowing, trimming and edging must go on as lawns start growing. “You can’t just not main-

www.greenindustrypros.com

4/2/20 4:09 PM

 ma flo ma ma

tai H sta ma off tra wi dis off A tom

s -

 J and R Property Services, near Syracuse, New York, is authorized to do general maintenance, trees and shrub trimming and some placement of plants, trees and flowers according to the gubernatorial order issued in the state of New York. To maintain safe practices, start times are staggered and trucks go out with only one man. The lot is often full now when normally it would be nearly empty.

tain them,” he said. His crews are being scheduled on staggered start times to ensure too many people are not around at the office at any one time. Additional training will be held on interaction with customers, meaning maintaining distance and not shaking hands. The office staff is all working remotely. Also, DeLine said any in-person customer meetings have been postponed, which subsequently delayed some of those larger projects he is concerned about. “We’re not going to meet with customers for right now, it’s not

worth it and I don’t think it’s a good look on our business to even try to do that,” he said. “When we talk to these customers and they want to meet with us, we’re just telling them they we will put them in a queue and we will schedule that accordingly you know once we’re able to actually meet. We’re not going to be impacting the spread and interacting with anybody.” If the focus was just on mowing lawns, which makes up a very small portion of his income, DeLine says he would likely have the staff to handle that. “I’d like to do other stuff and make more but it just really depends on how our hiring process goes, and we’re really trying to really ramp that up and see who will apply,” he said.

www.greenindustrypros.com

GIP0420_8-11_CoverSTory1-rw final.indd 9

 Crews from J and R Property Services are scheduled at staggered start times to avoid having too many people on site at one time. Customer interaction is limited to email and phone and the office staff is working remotely.

❙

APRIL 2020

❙

GREEN INDUSTRY PROS 9

4/2/20 4:11 PM

COVER STORY: BUSINESS

Team Building

service them due people taking to lack of employadvantage of it At the start of the season J ees. “I think a lot because they’re and R typically hires between of these people getting paid not 30 and 40 employees due to that don’t have to work,” he said. the increased demand. jobs are going “What’s going “My main concern is just the to stop looking to happen when employees and making sure that for a while these employees we’re going to be able to hire like because they can don’t feel comwe typically are,” DeLine said. sit on this for fortable coming Prior to the $2 trillion CARES four months.” in and decide Act being approved he was less conto just sit on cerned about the hiring process. unemployment?” “There’s a lot of things that At All Costs DeLine knows are unclear on how that’s going Prior to the he is not the to work,” DeLine said. outbreak, DeLine Office staff at J and R Property only one facing As approved by Congress and signed had already purServices is working remotely to ensure a labor issue. into law, from an unemployment benchased more than their ongoing safety and health during “For landefits perspective, eligible workers will $100,000 worth the COVID-19 pandemic. As a result, the office is closed to in-person interaction scapers or any get an extra $600 per week on top of of trucks and with customers. President Jeff DeLine is small busitheir state unemployment benefit. equipment for not certain when the office will reopen. nesses, I think For example, if a worker makes 2020. Whether they’re going $1,100 in New York, they would be or not he will to have to really start thinking and eligible for the state maximum unembe able to utilize the new trucks will thinking quickly about how they’re ployment benefit of $504 per week. depend on his staffing situation. going to draw in new people, how With the revised plan, the worker “We have a lot of those things that we would be eligible for an additional $600 they’re going to try to persuade to get already purchased and got lined up,” these people that should be applyof federal pandemic unemployment he said. “As far as spending for the rest ing for jobs off unemployment,” he compensation, for a total of $1,104, of the season, as of right now, there’s said. “I think the only way to do it replacing their original paycheck. really not a lot because we have our because of the government’s handing “If that’s the case that really doesn’t day-to-day expenses all drawn out.” them out money is to incentivize.” make sense because how do you get Extras, such as mailings or adverOver the last two years it has been a anyone to come back to work, essential tising that has not already been paid bit more difficult for J and R to get the or not,” DeLine said. “Who wants to may be adjusted. J and R does have a right amount come to work promotional campaign under way for of people due for $900/week installation of LawnDroids (Husqvarna to continbecause the autonomous robotic mowers). “I think now is a good ued growth government’s “People are signing your contracts time for landscapes the company going to give up here now and I don’t want to get in has seen. them more or there too late, so yes the LawnDroids to really capitalize on “If we pretty close is something we’re still rolling out,” marketing and pick have to stop to the same? DeLine said. He admits to doing a up new customers by taking on I think a lot social media post about them with new customof people are a hashtag on social distancing. “It’s showing what we do.” ers because going to start a great opportunity to say, hey, we - Jeff DeLine we can’t get using that as can still service your property.” J and R Property Services the people a crutch.” Generally, despite the situahired that He admits tion, he does not think this is a we’re used there are those time to scale back on advertising. to hiring than we’re not going to be who have legitimate concerns in terms “I think now is a good time for able to grow this year,” he said, noting of a pregnant spouse or elderly parents landscapers to really capitalize on marthat they could also lose some existor grandparents they are looking after. keting and pick up new customers by ing customers if they are unable to “I think we’re going to see a lot more showing what we do” DeLine said. ›

10 GREEN INDUSTRY PROS

GIP0420_8-11_CoverSTory1-rw final.indd 10

❙

APRIL 2020

❙

www.greenindustrypros.com

4/2/20 4:12 PM

ue oyot

ne an

WE BUILD THE ENGINE. YOU BUILD THE BUSINESS.

r na

Honda iGX700 and iGXV800 engines are here! Find your distributor at engines.honda.com.

ar-

GIP0420_8-11_CoverSTory1-rw final.indd 11

4/2/20 4:12 PM

COVER STORY: HEALTH

by Ryan Whisner

TOP SAFETY TIPS

TO KEEP OPERATING DURING THE

RomoloTavani / iStock / Getty Images

COVID-19 PANDE T

he landscape industry, including lawn care, landscape maintenance, design/build, tree care, and irrigation and water management, takes employee and client safety and health very seriously, employing regular safety training and enforcing strong safety

12 GREEN INDUSTRY PROS

GIP0420_12-15_CoverSTory2-rw final.indd 12

❙

standards on the job. It is critical for business owners to maintain those safety protocols during the COVID-19 pandemic. “We’re in a time of crisis in our industry,” said Fred Haskett of The Harvest Group Landscape Business Consulting. “I think we all should be thankful that we’re able to work and provide our essential services. We want to continue working during this time, we want to follow the rules set out for us.” Haskett pointed out during a

APRIL 2020

❙

webinar in March that it’s important to remember that there are many people who are working from home now and they’re staying at home, so all eyes will be on the landscapers when they are doing their essential services. “Make sure you’re protecting yourselves your employees and maintain that privilege of being able to work outside,” he said. In the early stages of the pandemic, National Association of Landscape Professionals safety advisor Sam Steel offered some best practices and safety measures. Subsequently, the NALP released some additional suggested guidelines, for those still in business in the midst of the pandemic. “Obviously, this is new uncharted territory that we’re dealing with. Every 10 minutes it’s seems like or at least every hour things are changing,” he said, noting that businesses will have

www.greenindustrypros.com

4/2/20 9:37 AM

to me cas

C pe pro cou T bel pe tam ob ing or S ers sho gen om Ce H

gangliu10 / iStock / Getty Images

DEMIC

to e d ll

l y

to determine whether specific recommendations make sense for them on a case-by-case basis.

Employee Protocol

COVID-19 is spread from person-toperson, through respiratory droplets produced when an infected person coughs or sneezes. The virus is also believed to spread by people touching a contaminated surface or object and then touching one’s mouth, nose, or possibly the eyes. Steel said employers and workers should follow these general practices recommended by the Centers for Disease His first round of

suggestions is recommendations for employees as far as intervention is concerned. Things employees should DO include: • Stay home when you are not feeling well. • Wash your hands more often than normal with warm water and hand soap. “There’s a neat little formula here that I call ‘two-bytwo.’ Wash your hands, two times more often than you normally would and also use the wash twice as long as you normally would. I think that’s a good recommendation for employees if they have access to the hand wash stations,” Steel said. • Implement social distance (staying at least 6-feet apart) • Encourage respiratory etiquette, including covering coughs and sneezes, and avoid touching your eyes, nose, or mouth with unwashed hands. • Use hand sanitizer gels or wipes. “When and where available and hopefully these could also be made available inside vehicles that are used to get employees to and from the job sites,” he added. • Wear cleaned and properly stored per-

gilaxia / E+ / Getty Images

www.greenindustrypros.com

GIP0420_12-15_CoverSTory2-rw final.indd 13

sonal protective equipment (PPE) • Keep respirators clean with warm water and dish detergent after each use. • Discard nuisance masks that are dirty, damaged or contaminated. • Keep the masks and respirators in sealed containers clearly indicating who the user of that PPE is. • Use a respirator that is designed for the work activity you are taking on. • Wash your hands and exposed skin before leaving work before the end of the day before leaving work. “You do not want to be carrying COVID-19 home to the family,” Steel noted. Also, he said sales, office or support staff should establish internal policies and practices including teleworking or staggered shifts to reduce the number of employees at a facility at one time. “All employees who are not required to be on customer sites performing landscape or those employees assigned to the critical and continued operation of the business entity should be considered for working remotely,” he said. These are the things Steel said employees should NOT be doing: • Sharing nuisance masks, respirators or other PPE equipment such as ear muffs, or gloves. • Use a nuisance mask or respirator that is dirty or contaminated or been stored

❙

APRIL 2020

❙

GREEN INDUSTRY PROS 13

4/2/20 9:38 AM

COVER STORY: HEALTH

in a potentially dirty environment. “In other words don’t use a respirator that’s been throw inside the transport vehicle to and from the job and could be picking up the COVID-19 form hard surfaces within the vehicle,” Steel added. • Use a respirator that has not been tested or fitted to the wearer. • Use a respirator that is not intended for the assigned work activity.

For the employers, Steel said they should have communicated a prepared a general procedure and respiratory program related to COVID-19. “Make sure it’s written so that it’s available and shared with all of the employees about what you’re doing in terms of your respiratory program with policies and procedures and it becomes part of your health hazard communications program,” he said. He also suggests designation of a company contact person responsible for the respiratory programs. “Somebody within the organization who you’ve designated as keeping track of PPE that’s available and keeping track of all of the cleaning and disinfecting and things that need to be done,” he said, citing checking with crew managers and make sure that those types of activities are being done. Recognizing the current shortage, Steel said it is still important to provide an adequate inventory of respiratory protection devices. “Hopefully you have a supply or a vendor who gets these things to you on a regular basis so there’s no interruption in that process,” he said. In addition to masks, employers are encouraged to provide single use towels and sanitizers at work stations. “I think the important part about that one is those single use towels,” Steel said. “You don’t want individual employees using the same towelettes or towels to do the cleaning and the disinfecting. They should be using single use

14 GREEN INDUSTRY PROS

GIP0420_12-15_CoverSTory2-rw final.indd 14

❙

Ridofranz / iStock / Getty Images

Planning Ahead

towels when they wash their hands.” Also, he suggested employers conduct and document frequent safety training for staff via teleconferencing. “Be sure the documentation is done so even if the crew manager is out there and reminding the employees about COVID-19 how easily it’s transmitted among different individuals, make sure you document even a briefing that the crew manager does in the morning before everybody starts work, and obviously document with the employees who have been trained the topic of the training, the day of the training and who did the training,” Steel said. Lastly, for contractors he stressed the importance of developing and implementing less risky crew transportation methods. “This is something that you may not be able to do but there are a few things you could do,” Steel said. The general recommendation relating to social distancing has been a six-foot space. Many companies would not be able to limit the occupants in a crew cab situation. However, to accommodate those scenarios, Steel suggested ensuring there was good ventilation within the vehicle. Also, he said crews should keep hard

APRIL 2020

❙

surfaces in the vehicle sanitized frequently. Depending in the source, it has been reported that COVID-19 can survive on hard surfaces from anywhere from two to eight days, therefore sanitizing vehicles and office spaces is vital to stopping the spread of the virus. In general, field teams should include the least number of employees that can safely carry out work at a site, and crew members should drive separately to the site whenever possible. Only the driver should be allowed to touch the controls anywhere in the vehicle.

Customer Contact

Steel suggested that contact with clients should be limited to email, phone calls or video teleconference, when possible. If in-person contact is required, then maintain social distancing of 6 feet at the client’s or customer’s property, or when communicating with the general public. Also, he encouraged contractors to communicate with clients about the current status of allowable work in their state or locality and explain the essential nature of landscape services and detail any operational changes due to COVID-19. ❯

www.greenindustrypros.com

4/2/20 9:41 AM

Ridofranz / iStock / Getty Images

B O B C A T. C O M / T 7 6

re s us. de an ew he er ols

From its outstanding quality to its incredible performance and comfort, the latest generation of Bobcat ® equipment is our best yet. Ask your dealer about new R-Series loaders and R2-Series excavators.

ue Bobcat is a Doosan company. Doosan is a global leader in construction equipment, power and water solutions, engines, and engineering, proudly serving customers and communities for more than a century. Bobcat ®, the Bobcat logo and the colors of the Bobcat machine are registered trademarks of Bobcat Company in the United States and various other countries.. ©2020 Bobcat Company. All rights reserved. | 1410

GIP0420_12-15_CoverSTory2-rw final.indd 15

4/2/20 9:41 AM

EQUIPMENT FOCUS

by Curt Bennink

Choose Skid Steer, CTL and Compact Wheel Loader

OPTIONS TO REDUCE O

OPERATOR F

perator fatigue cuts into productivity and can impact safety. “With running any piece of construction equipment, the amount of time spent in the machine, current weather conditions (extremely hot/ cold) and the task at hand (steep slopes, digging around gas/electric or dangerous utilities, etc.) lead to undue stress on the operator — causing them to get tired, irritable, dehydrated and possibly confused or disoriented,” says Ed Brenton, product marketing manager, Case Construction Equipment. “Eliminating operator fatigue is a constant challenge when designing compact equipment,” says Gregg

16 GREEN INDUSTRY PROS

GIP0420_16-21_EquipFocus-rw final.indd 16

❙

Zupancic, product marketing manager, skid steers and compact track loaders, John Deere Construction and Forestry. “Key contributors to operator fatigue include excessive noise and vibrations, lack of visibility, reduced comfort levels in the operator station, suitable lighting and cab size/dimensions.” Key machine features available on these machines can help you combat fatigue and increase operator productivity. First, consider the machine controls. “Control lever movements are one of the primary causes of operator fatigue,” says Nathan Ryan, product manager, skid-steer and compact track

APRIL 2020

❙

loaders, Wacker Neuson. “Range of motion and lever efforts contribute to fatigue. The further an operator must actuate a control lever and the resistance they feel when moving it can wear on an operator over the course of a full work day. This is part of the reason the industry has seen an overwhelming shift to joystick controls. Joystick controls have lower lever efforts and shorter throw.” Some manufacturers mount the joysticks to the operator seat to provide adjustment independent from the operator position. This allows the operator to set the joystick position that is most comfortable.

www.greenindustrypros.com

4/2/20 9:54 AM

E ma po tro am wh com

Go Re

P pe fat the wi sig cam

doesn’t have to strain to look around the job site,” says Brenton. “When an operator has to lean forward to see the cutting edge or strain to look over their shoulders to see to the side and rear, it stresses their back and neck,” says Ryan. Features like large doors, large side windows and a rear hood that tapers quickly down can aide visibility. Cameras can also help with rear visibility. “Deere spends a considerable amount of time improving cab visibility so the operator can perform with confidence on the job site,” says Zupancic. “Our designs allow operators to see below the boom level to the ground level and above the machine — all from a 360°; perspective. We use virtual reality technology to test visibility and customer experience to evaluate placements when designing our equipment. We also offer a rear view camera feature, which includes an in-cab monitor for operator efficiency. “Operators of skid-steer loaders and compact track loaders spend nearly as much time working in reverse

R FATIGUE Electrohydraulic systems make the use of joystick controls possible. “Implementing an electrohydraulic (EH) system provides a more ergonomic environment, which ultimately reduces user discomfort,” says Zupancic.

Good Visibility Reduces Strain

Poor visibility from the operators’ perspective can also contribute to fatigue. “[At Case], we try to provide the best visibility possible — large windows with well-thought-out sight lines, mirror placement, cameras, etc. — so the operator

as they do moving forward, which can be fatiguing. We believe these features help mitigate those frustrations and increase productivity.”

Big Space in a Small Package

Designing around the space limitations of compact equipment, manufacturers need to balance function and comfort. “The right balance of size and function needs to be taken into consideration when designing a cab,” says Brenton. In some cases, due to the overall footprint of the machine, nothing can be done to make the cab larger or smaller, which leaves little left

www.greenindustrypros.com

GIP0420_16-21_EquipFocus-rw final.indd 17

❙

Case Construction Equipment

 Your average operator isn’t a small person. If you assume they have size 11 feet, are wearing PPE boots, and those boots probably have dirt or mud built up on them, the last thing you want is a small foot well or a raised partition taking up most of the room in the foot well. Wacker Neuson

 The Michelin X Tweel SSL provides outstanding stability and enables a skid steer loader to work rapidly with more comfort for the operator, reducing driver fatigue while improving productivity. The unique energy transfer within the highstrength poly-resin spokes reduces the “bounce” associated with pneumatic tires.

to change other than the design of the seat, controls and other features offered inside such as radio, backup camera and climate control just to name a few. Compact machine design should account for larger operators. “Skid steers and compact track loaders are compact machines and therefore the operator’s cabins tend to be compact,” says Ryan. “Your average operator isn’t a small person. If you assume they have size 11 feet, are wearing PPE boots and those boots probably have dirt or mud built up on them, the last thing you want is a small foot well, or a raised partition taking up most of the room in the foot well. Wacker Neuson actually designed a wide foot well with room that extends out below the door, allowing operators to stretch out their legs with comfort.” Lap bar design can also limit cab comfort. “Something I’ve seen a lot on job sites is operators with a lap bar pressed up against their stomachs or resting partially on top of their stomach,” notes Ryan. “You have a confined area and make it even smaller by having a mechanism

APRIL 2020

❙

GREEN INDUSTRY PROS 17

4/2/20 4:17 PM

EQUIPMENT FOCUS

that wraps around the operator. “At Wacker Neuson we’ve done away with the lap bar for three reasons,” says Ryan. “Lap bars take up room, provide less protection than safety belts (which are recommended by all manufacturers) and are static, so they don’t move with all the different control options. It’s a relatively new concept, but when users climb in our cab, one of their first comments is how much room they have, and part of that comes from foregoing the lap bar.”

NVH Drives Design

Noise, vibration and harshness (NVH) have long been a major design criterion in automotive designs. Recently, NVH has been gaining traction in off-road equipment design. “Noise reduction is one of the most often requested areas of improvement when we survey the industry and remains an unmet need in the marketplace,” says Zupancic. “At John Deere, we try to isolate the cab with isolators to reduce vibrations from the wheels and tracks. We measure and monitor static and full-dynamic operation noise levels to ensure the cab is sealed for noise reduction during use. We do this by designing our equipment with noise absorption materials placed in the hydraulic compartments. This technique significantly reduces noise levels for the operator.” “NVH is almost certainly the No. 1 contributor to operator fatigue, and the smaller the machine the more difficult the challenge of protecting the operator from it,” adds Oliver Lythgoe, Perkins product concept manager. “There is a practical limit to how much sound-deadening insula-

18 GREEN INDUSTRY PROS

GIP0420_16-21_EquipFocus-rw final.indd 18

❙

“Some of the recent improvements include operator cabins that are now mounted to the chassis using rubber isolation mounts and lift or tilt cylinders that are cushioned at the end of their stroke to eliminate the hard stop when cylinders bottom out.” There have also been hydraulic system improvements. “Today’s electric hydraulic systems isolate the controls from the hydraulic system much better than past pilot control systems, which allowed vibration to resonate through the pilot lines.” There are also machine options, such as ride control, that reduce shock loads to the operator. “Ride control is an optional feature that reduces vibration induced by the load the machine is carrying,” says Ryan. “Usually utilizing a hydraulic accumulator, these systems provide a cushion in the lift circuit when transporting loads. This provides a smoother ride for the operator and reduces spillage of the bucket’s cargo.” There are many ways to  Case upgraded its F Series compact wheel loader lineup isolate vibration. with adjustable electro-hydraulic controls. This added “Manufacturers functionality allows operators to adjust the responsiveness of the lift and tilt bucket functions for improved control and often add sounddampening mats efficiency on the jobsite Case Construction Equipment or insulation to engine compartments or to the floor of the cab to stiffening the structure of the engine reduce excess noise,” says Brenton. block itself. We use sound-deadening “Rubber bushings and gaskets are composite materials for the oil sump also used to reduce vibration.” and top cover, along with a stiffened Not all machines have enclosed block and gear train that is relocated cabs, so it is important to also properly from the front of the engine to the back equip the operators with safety equipto achieve significant noise reduction.” ment to help combat noise. “When Vibration is a major component operating any piece of construction of NVH. “Vibration is a signifiequipment, it’s always good practice cant cause of operator fatigue that to wear the proper personal protecmanufacturers are trying to address tive equipment (PPE) such as earplugs/ with today’s designs,” says Ryan. tion an OEM can incorporate into a small machine before it starts to negatively impact both function and cost.” This issue is not going away. “In fact, a growing number of government agencies are implementing NVH regulations,” says Lythgoe. “Meeting the challenge will require innovation from all system and component suppliers. “As an engine builder, Perkins responded with a commitment to reduce the noise of our newest engines by a full 3 dB, which is a 50% reduction,” he points out. “The Perkins Synchro 2.8- and 3.6-liter engines incorporate features including quieter gears, materials with intrinsic sound-deadening characteristics and

APRIL 2020

❙

www.greenindustrypros.com

4/2/20 9:57 AM

Today’s forecast: perfect conditions for growing your business.

ch ds

n d -

a s

g es r

Commercial Mowers

.”

ly -

Fleet discounts

Free loaners

Thick, wet grass. Uneven terrain. No problem with our full commercial lineup and comprehensive fleet program with special discounts and free loaner units to keep you productive. The Z700, SZ Stand-On and W Series. Built to mow it all. And build your business. Together we do more.

KubotaUSA.com © Kubota Tractor Corporation, 2020. This material is for descriptive purposes only. Kubota disclaims all representations and warranties, express or implied, or any liability from the use of this material. For complete warranty, safety and product information, consult your local Kubota dealer. For the complete disclaimer, go to KubotaUSA.com/disclaimers and see the posted disclaimer.

GIP0420_16-21_EquipFocus-rw final.indd 19

4/2/20 9:57 AM

EQUIPMENT FOCUS

muffs, especially when decibel levels are outside a safe range,” says Brenton.

Comfort Features Help Operator Retention

There are certain features you should compare when shopping for a compact machine. These include an enclosed cab with HVAC and high-quality air ride seat. “A fully enclosed cab will greatly reduce fatigue and offer a much more enjoyable operating experience, allowing operators to adjust the climate, listen to music, answer phone calls hands-free and look behind them easily with a camera,” says Brenton. “Business owners and fleet managers should also consider other easy to adjust features such as the control pattern changer and hydraulic functions, especially if there are multiple

operators using the same machine. “The ability to customize control patterns and hydraulic response ensures that operators are getting the most out of a machine,” he continues. “I would also consider purchasing a 1D or 2D grading system to eliminate the need to get out of the machine to keep checking grade while digging footings or other repetitive trenching tasks.” Modern lighting options can also lessen fatigue. “Enhanced lighting is a key element that can reduce operator fatigue during use,” says Zupancic. “We offer an LED light package that amplifies lighting output to increase light projected both in front of and behind the machine.” Brenton explains that the temperature inside the cab of a compact machine can be a concern because the operator is often sitting right

USE THIS

FOR ANYONE WHO NEEDS A HOLE UNDER SOMETHING HARD!

on top or in front of the hydraulic system and engine components. “Air conditioning is a comfort feature that definitely varies from manufacturer to manufacturer,” says Ryan. “Many factors impact the A/C performance.” These include the cooling capacity of the A/C system, overall area of the windows, color of the cab and overall cab sealing to name a few. “If you have the opportunity to try the machines ahead of purchasing in warm weather, I would highly recommend putting the A/C system to the test.” Operators have come to expect effective HVAC systems, even on very small machines. “From an engine builders’ perspective, that means we have to add A/C compressors and the associated plumbing to an already confined engine compartment,” says Lythgoe. “Engine coolant also supplies the heat

Over 40 New Blades for 2020

® ®

World‘s sharpest Blades

Scan to view Blade Video.

TO DO THIS AND SAVE A LOT OF TIME • AAordable price • Saves money • Compact • Two year warranty • Most drills powered by a 4 cycle Honda engine • Goes from horizontal to vertical in two minutes • Removes soil under concrete, no water needed • Drills holes up to 8” • Don’t have to close a sidewalk or driveway to bore under it • Built in the USA • Fast, Reliable, AAordable.

330.844.0042 www.SiBoreDrill.com 20 GREEN INDUSTRY PROS

GIP0420_16-21_EquipFocus-rw final.indd 20

❙

APRIL 2020

❙

Built for Powerful Performance! Visit rotarycorp.com or call 1.800.841.3989 Servicing dealers and distributors only.

www.greenindustrypros.com

4/2/20 9:58 AM

for tha do im the age the “ com len mi an gre ou wo the pa T am op its he

nn.

. e m

call

for HVAC and that has to be done without impacting thermal management of the engine. “It’s a more complex challenge than it might appear to be at first glance, and the smaller the machine the greater the challenge,” he notes. “For our part of the solution, Perkins works closely with OEMs to integrate the HVAC circuits into the engine package as seamlessly as possible.” The comfort of the seat also makes a major difference in the fatigue the operator experiences. In addition to its HVAC system, John Deere offers heated seat options for cooler cli-

John Deere concentrates a lot of R&D to maximize visibility, including the use of virtual reality technology to test visibility and customer experience to evaluate placements during design. The company also offers a rearview camera feature which includes an in-cab monitor for operator efficiency. John Deere

and can’t get 100% comfortable, make sure to ask the sales representative about any adjustments you might have missed as they vary widely throughout the industry.” Finally, don’t forget the impact tires or tracks have on operator comfort. “For skid-steer loaders, air-filled tires can provide a smoother ride, while the more durable solid tires can provide a rougher ride,” says Zupancic. “For compact track loaders, purchasing a track with a zig-zag or bar-style pattern can help reduce vibrations vs. the traditional block lug style.” ›

mates to improve operator comfort. Additionally, air ride seats deserve close consideration when the operator will spend a lot of time in the cab. “Most manufacturers offer seat upgrades to both mechanical and air suspension seats, which provide another layer of protection from vibration of the machine and the rough terrain,” says Ryan. Also consider seat/armrest travel. “Not all machines have equal seat and armrest adjustments. If you are comparing models

Cutting Edge Performance & Productivity from Billy Goat

aeration

18" Hydro-Drive Sod Cutter X3000 & Z3000 Stand On Blower

• 6500 or 8500 CFM • Tri-directional blowing • Patented Dual Deflector Air Flow

• Laser clad blade for 3x blade life • Simplest cut & drive set up in its class • Variable speed fingertip drive plus reverse for unmatched cut control & productivity

25" & 30" Hydro-Drive Aerators • Self-propelled & in-ground turning • 2 to 10x more holes than drum models • Ideal for high volume residential work

Self-Propelled Overseeder

• Blade design improves slicing, reduces thatch pick-up & extends blade life • Floating cutting head • Auto Drop™ saves seed

For more information call

1-800-776-7690 or visit www.billygoat.com

Take the chore out of the chore with Billy Goat! www.greenindustrypros.com

GIP0420_16-21_EquipFocus-rw final.indd 21

www.billygoat.com

❙

APRIL 2020

❙

GREEN INDUSTRY PROS 21

4/2/20 4:19 PM

ASV Holdings Inc.

WHAT’S ON MY TRAILER

by Buck Storlie

LANDSCAPERS SEE BIG BENEFITS FROM

THE SMALLEST CTLS

use small sit-in compact track loaders here’s no question that compact as a similarly priced alternative. track loaders are one of a job The smallest sit-in compact track site’s most versatile tools. The loaders are only about 4 feet wide, right selection of attachments is one giving them the flexibility to get into aspect that makes the possible applitight areas that would be difficult cations nearly endless. But the size of to access with larger models. Their the machine can be another gateway small sizes to new busiand low ness for weights of contractors. about 3,600 Many pounds or contractors less make use primarthem genily mid-size erally easy compact to transtrack loaders, port with but there are a 1/2-ton big benefits pickup to roundtruck and ing out a ASV Holdings Inc. standard fleet with the trailer. industry’s A small sit-in compact track loader moves a loaded The sit-in smallest sit-in pallet across a lawn. Small residential or backyard loaders can track loaders. projects don’t necessarily need a huge machine. also feature The equipspeeds ment opens almost two times faster than walknew job opportunities and provides a behind or stand-on versions and rated solution for the trend away from walkoperating capacities as much as 931 behind and stand-on loaders toward pounds. This means getting around safer equipment that can still deliver the job site or from site to site more high productivity. This type of equipquickly while hauling more material. ment allows contractors to better train Small residential or backyard their operators and improve safety. projects don’t necessarily need a huge machine. Landscape contracNew Market Opportunities The size of these small sit-in compact tors can use a small compact track loader as an economical choice track loaders helps make them a fit for that is faster than doing the work a wide variety of applications, includmanually and safer than using a ing those with size restrictions where walk-behind or stand-on loader. This larger equipment is too bulky. Walkcould include stump removal and behind and stand-on loaders are backyard landscaping projects such popular for similar reasons, but are as installing a new garden, reshapflawed with safety, comfort and proing, or installing a retaining wall. ductivity limitations. Contractors can

22 GREEN INDUSTRY PROS

GIP0420_22-25_WhatOnTrailer-rw final.indd 22

❙

APRIL 2020

❙

As contractors know, new housing developments are often built with structures very close together, providing little leeway for moving equipment between houses and into backyards. Smaller equipment can often fit through those tight spaces and can mean the difference between driving through the fence gate and removing a portion of the fence to accommodate the machine. These small machines are also useful for finishing work, such as trenching for wiring and piping. Contractors can take advantage of equipment heights as low as 6 feet to work below jacked up houses for adding additions. For the winter months, small sit-in compact track loaders excel at clearing snow in tight areas such as alleyways, small parking lots, driveways or sidewalks. The loaders not only fit in these areas, they provide more maneuverability, speeding up the job and posing less risk of property damage. In addition, some manufacturers offer compact track loaders with excellent flotation on snow, ice and slush, providing much better performance

www.greenindustrypros.com

4/2/20 10:18 AM

tha Op if t L loo loa mi fac tha thi ha an 25% sta fro com Th of be

ASV Holdings Inc.

The smallest sit-in compact track loaders’ small size and low weight of about 3,600 pounds or less make them generally easy to transport with a 1/2ton pickup truck and standard trailer, such as the one pictured here

ul n

ng ,

than most other tracks on the market. Operators will be thankful, as well, if the equipment has a heated cab. Landscape contractors should look for small sit-in compact track loaders with low ground pressures for minimized turf damage. Some manufacturers offer unique undercarriages that allow lower pressures than anything else on the market. Because they have a shorter track base, walk-behind and stand-on loaders generally have 25% higher ground pressure, usually starting at 4 psi compared to 3.1 from some small sit-in compact track loaders. That means less risk of a torn up lawn and better flotation on soft

and stand-on loaders is operator safety. Such equipment, when used improperly, may be prone to tipping, meaning a higher risk of an operator being thrown off or injured by the machinery during a rollover. The operator is also exposed with no protection on any side from debris, branches or other obstacles. Some of the smallest sit-in compact track loaders have ROPS and FOPS rated cabs, allowing for excellent protection from rollovers or falling objects. Another benefit of small sit-in compact track loaders is their usability. The size of the machines can make them less intimidating to new opera-

surfaces and mud when operating a small sit-in compact track loader.

Safer, Easy-to-Use Equipment

Contractors know there’s always a risk when new employees operate equipment, so there are significant benefits to machinery that is safer and easy to use. One trade-off for that open-air, no-cab feel found in walk-behind

Another benefit of small sit-in compact track loaders is their usability. The size of the machines can make them less intimidating to new operators, and they are easier to operate and learn for the same reason. In this photo, a small sit-in compact track loader hauls a bucket of material.

ng -

www.greenindustrypros.com

GIP0420_22-25_WhatOnTrailer-rw final.indd 23

❙

APRIL 2020

❙

GREEN INDUSTRY PROS 23

4/2/20 10:39 AM

WHAT’S ON MY TRAILER

ASV Holdings Inc.

Many contractors use primarily mid-size compact track loaders, but there are big benefits to rounding out a fleet with the industry’s smallest sit-in track loaders. Here, a small sitin compact track loader easily sits within a residential garage door.

every bump is transferred to the tors, and they are easier to operate operator and the machine. Certain and learn for the same reason. This small compact track loaders feature is especially true for equipment with independent torsion axles and a standard joystick controls rather than flexible track that contribute to dual-lever foot or H-Pattern controls. more comfort and less wear on the For an experienced operator, these machine, as well as less material loss features offer greater productivity. In from the bucket caused by bumps. addition, some of these compact track loaders feature 360 degree visibility so it’s easy to see in all directions, Save on Maintenance improving safety and ease of use. Ease of service can mean a faster Many of the same features that ROI and lower total cost of ownermake a compact track loader safer ship. Many small sit-in compact than a walk-behind or track loaders are stand-on loader also easier to service than “Many of the mean more comfort. their larger counSitting on a padded terparts thanks to same features seat means less fatigue ground-level access. that make on a long work day, Experienced opera compact and a pressurized cab ators know how outfitted with HVAC common it is for track loader and a radio improves compact track loaders safer than a the overall experience. to derail. Derailment walk-behind There’s also the comfort can mean spending of familiarity. Walkhalf the day putting or stand-on behind and stand-on the track back on, loader also loaders often have difeating up time that mean more ferent control systems could be used getting from manufacturer to work done. Some comfort.” manufacturer, while small sit-in compact - Buck Storlie, ASV a small sit-in compact track loaders are track loader has convirtually derailmenttrols familiar to anyone proof. These machines who’s operated a larger unit. include an undercarriage with extra The undercarriage can also contribtrack guiding and a flexible highute to operator comfort. Walk-behind strength Polycord-embedded track for and stand-on loaders generally have more ground contact, almost elimilittle to no suspension, meaning nating the possibility of derailment.

24 GREEN INDUSTRY PROS

GIP0420_22-25_WhatOnTrailer-rw final.indd 24

❙

APRIL 2020

❙

When track change-out is necessary, the small size of the loader can make it simple to change a track with just one person. This is especially true if the equipment features an allrubber track, which is lighter than steel-embedded versions. General service items are close to ground level, speeding up the process, and can be serviced with normal-size tools. Some models require no exhaust aftertreatment, saving the time that would need to be spent maintaining a larger model with the requirement. For even easier maintenance, contractors should look for models with a large rear-tilting hood providing easy access to all maintenance points, including filters, oil and fuel tanks, reservoirs, hydraulic and water separator drains, and the battery. Easy loader valve access is another plus. Another feature to watch for is standard metal-face seals on the front and back to ensure the drive hubs don’t require maintenance for the life of the machine.

Round Out Your Fleet

Many jobs call for a mid-sized compact track loader or skid steer, but having smaller sit-in models on hand can mean big benefits for a landscape contractor. From new markets and high versatility to excellent uptime and safety, the industry’s smallest compact track loaders may bring in business contractors didn’t know they were missing. › Buck Storlie is the product line manager at ASV Holdings Inc. Storlie, a 23-year veteran of ASV, focuses on being a customer advocate, providing product and market intelligence, and monitoring the creation and development of new products.

www.greenindustrypros.com

4/2/20 10:40 AM

A 5 T O

AUTOMOWER 535 AWD THE NEW KING OF THE HILL ®

WORLD LEADER IN ROBOTIC MOWING SINCE 1995

ge ss

Designed to improve work safety on steep slopes and demanding terrain

Shifts personnel to more profitable tasks

Introducing the most capable Automower® robotic mower to date. An AWD mower with upgraded terrain performance and the ability to tackle 35 degree inclines, the new 535 AWD is ready to take its spot as the newest addition to your landscaping team. Maintain your more complicated properties around the clock with ease, help ensure the safety of your team by keeping them off the slopes, and keep track of your fleet with integrated Fleet Services and Automower® Connect functionality. HUSQVARNA.COM Connect with HusqvarnaUSA

GIP0420_22-25_WhatOnTrailer-rw final.indd 25

4/2/20 10:40 AM

CONTRACTOR PROFILE

by Sheena Ingle

What Is It Like to Volunteer with GreenCare for Troops?

Providing lawn care services for military families in need

mercial clients,” he says. ilitary families face an array of As of 2019, Cutting Edge Landscape challenges and hardManagement has 4 full-time ships when a employees. loved one is deployed. Van Oostenbrugge says While some of these they use a variety of equipissues may spring to ment depending on the job, mind immediately, including Ford Super Duty such as childcare, pickups for transportation, loneliness and concern Toro lawn mowers and Echo for the deployed service handheld equipment to complete member’s safety, there weekly lawn care. BOSS are many everyday needs that It truly has been a Snowplows and Buyers often go overblessing knowing that we can Products SnowDogg plows are also used on looked. This is help provide relief to families the trucks for fulfillwhere endeavors whose significant other ing snow removal needs such as Project has been deployed. during the winter. EverGreen’s His company has been GreenCare volunteering with Project for Troops EverGreen for the past five to six years. come into play. Van Oostenbrugge says he iniGreenCare for Troops provides tially learned about the program from complimentary lawn and landscape a flyer at a local parts and equipservices for deployed service members’ ment dealer in the Michigan area. families. We got a chance to speak with “Having employees that were a professional landscaper who volunpart of various [military] branches teers for GreenCare as well as a family over the years sparked the interwho received his services. Read on to est in giving back to those families learn more about his experience with of deployed [service members] – and the program and what GreenCare at the start of Project EverGreen – for Troops means to those it serves. giving back to those who were no longer capable of doing it themselves Volunteering with after returning from the frontlines GreenCare for Troops of conflicts post-9/11,” he says. Andrew Van Oostenbrugge owns In addition to GreenCare for and operates Cutting Edge Landscape Troops, Project EverGreen also Management, LLC. He started the offers basic snow removal during company in 2005 when he first started the winter months through its sister mowing yards in high school. program, SnowCare for Troops. “We are now a full landscape “Over the years we have promaintenance company providing vided weekly lawn mowing during services to homeowners and com-

26 GREEN INDUSTRY PROS

GIP0420_26-27_ContractorProfile-rw final.indd 26

❙

APRIL 2020

❙

the growing season and snowplowing for families during the winter months,” says Van Oostenbrugge.

Relieving the Burden

When describing what it’s like to serve families in this capacity, Van Oostenbrugge says, “It truly has been a blessing knowing that we can help provide relief to families whose significant other has been deployed.” He goes on to explain that families often become single-parent homes for the duration of deployments and face extensive chores that used to be shared between two or more people. “That is where we shine and can save a family a couple of hours a week from having to mow their own yard or clear the snow from their driveway in the winter,” Van Oostenbrugge adds. “Our equipment lets us finish jobs in a fraction of the time most homeowners spend.”

A Family’s Gratitude

Van Oostenbrugge says the responses from families he has served through GreenCare for Troops have been overwhelmingly positive. “The response has been wonderful,” he explains. “Every family we have assisted has been a delight to [serve] and [they] have shown their gratitude in a variety of ways.”

www.greenindustrypros.com

4/2/20 10:53 AM



T ing fam wo T tha Ma Gr say Ev po A he me pre alo “

 Lawn and landscape services are among those everyday needs that don’t come to mind when a family member is deployed for military duty.

How to Get Involved

 Cutting Edge Landscape Management’s fleet of snow plows that are deployed in winter to assist numerous families as part of SnowCare for Troops.

The most common reaction, according to Van Oostenbrugge, is relief from families because they no longer have to worry about the lawn or snow removal. The Parmelees are one such family that received Cutting Edge Landscape Management’s services through GreenCare for Troops. Mrs. Parmelee says, “I first heard about Project EverGreen through a friend that had posted it on her Instagram account.” At the time, her family was heading into its third deployment and she was 20+ weeks pregnant, moving cross-country alone with a two-year-old child. “Project EverGreen was the

greatest blessing,” she says. Mrs. Parmelee explains how GreenCare for Troops removed some of the stress about moving to a new city. She moved into a new house just four weeks before she was due to give birth and owned no lawn equipment. “Working with Andrew and his team was so wonderful,” she adds. “I didn’t have to ever worry about my lawn. They did a wonderful job each week. I could not be more grateful for their support and help this deployment, especially with all the leaves this fall. It was a huge weight lifted off my shoulders. I would definitely recommend Andrew’s team and Project EverGreen.”

www.greenindustrypros.com

GIP0420_26-27_ContractorProfile-rw final.indd 27

❙

GreenCare for Troops is a needsbased program for active duty deployed service members of the rank of E-6 or below from all military branches. The service is available for the service member’s residence. If you are a family of a deployed service member and need lawn, landscaping or snow removal assistance – learn more about eligibility details on the Project EverGreen GreenCare for Troops website. The program marked its 13th year in 2019 and has seen more than 11,000 military families register to receive an estimated $8 million in donated lawn care and landscape services from more than 6,000 green industry professionals. Nufarm is the title partner for GreenCare for Troops. Platinum partners include The Toro Company, Boss Snowplow and SiteOne Landscape Supply. Gold and silver partners are Arborjet/ Ecologel Solutions and the Propane Education and Research Council. Project EverGreen also offers a SnowCare for Troops program that provides complimentary snow and ice removal services for families of deployed military personnel. For more information on how to register to become a GreenCare for Troops or SnowCare for Troops volunteer, call 888.611.2955 or visit Project EverGreen. ❯

APRIL 2020

❙

GREEN INDUSTRY PROS 27

4/2/20 10:53 AM

SPECIAL REPORT

by Bryan Ostlund

How to Get Customers’ Lawns in Tip-Top Shape For Spring

s winter fades away, property owners are eager to get their natural turf lawns revitalized and in top form for warmer months ahead. Whether surrounding a home or a business, a well-maintained and lush lawn sets the tone and makes a critical first impression. If winter weather GEORGE has taken its toll WASHINGTON on natural turf, IS CREDITED some extra care WITH GROWING may be required to help it recover THE FIRST quickly. Consider LAWN IN THE UNITED STATES, adding some nearAT HIS ESTATE term actionable steps to a spring IN MOUNT lawn care package VERNON. for new clients, or upsell existing clients beyond a month-tomonth maintenance plan.

get it under ivstiv / E+ / Getty Images control. First, consider whether enough sunlight is reaching the turf and suggest where trees can be thinned or pruned to allow more light through. Then, determine whether moss has found a foothold in thatch, and if so, dethatch to give turf a better chance to thrive. Next, test soil samples to learn of any pH imbalances or nutrient deficiencies. Some amendments may be needed in the soil to create more favorable conditions for turfgrass — and a more hostile environment for moss in the process. Finally, once the Assess and Address Moss soil is prepped, reseed bare patches As the growing season for turfgrass to achieve even cover. Conduct winds down, the growing season for spring revitalization services moss takes off. From fall until early Consider providing spring, conditions that clients with a spring walkmay weaken grass and THE FRONT LAWNS through of their lawn’s create bare patches — OF 8 AVERAGEconditions, offering to such as less sunlight, SIZE HOMES remedy any issues from more shade, poor irriHAVE THE SAME a suite of spring revigation, fewer nutrients, talization services. For high acidity and increasCOOLING EFFECT ing thatch — set the AS 20 HOMES WITH instance, during winter months, thatch can build right foundation for CENTRAL AIRup beyond the recommoss to take hold. CONDITIONING. mended thickness of A dense and healthy about half an inch. As lawn is the best defense organic matter builds and becomes against moss, but if moss is present, compacted, it can lead to problems some steps in early spring can help

28 GREEN INDUSTRY PROS

GIP0420_28-29_SpecRept-rw final.indd 28

❙

APRIL 2020

❙

beyond moss, such as pests, fungal growth and root rot. Depending on the size of the lawn and the area impacted, dethatching may be handled most efficiently with a lawn dethatcher or power rake. If the problem is minimal, then some

www.greenindustrypros.com

4/2/20 11:05 AM

ha W sid old tra is f Su an roo tia soi dir — for en air it i to res N pa thi the

MORE THAN 25 MILLION ACRES OF LAWN ARE TENDED IN THE UNITED STATES.

remind property owners that cutting too short in one session can stress the grass and deplete its energy reserves. As a result, turfgrass’s resistance to weeds and pests may be weakened. Instead, recommend cutting no more than one-third the height of the grass blade at once. In some instances, more frequent mowing may be recommended, such as twice a week in spring. Spring is also a good time to inspect irrigation systems to ensure they are in proper working order. Property owners will want their system to deposit large drops close to the ground for the most efficient and effective watering, as systems that release a fine mist may lose more to evaporation and movement from air currents. Maintaining a regular watering schedule is best for grass, and deep watering once or twice a week is generally sufficient. If possible, get clients to commit to a schedule, such as by setting their system on a timer.

24d8bd43_811 / iStock / Getty Images

overall appearhand raking may be enough. ance of the lawn, While checking for thatch, coninterseeding sider the level of soil compaction. The will help keep turf dense, which is a older that turf becomes and the more natural defense to keeping weeds out. traffic it entertains, the more likely it is for topsoil to become compacted. Such a condition can prevent water, air Revisit Mowing and and nutrients from reaching turfgrass Irrigation Practices roots, depriving them of the essenUse an early spring walk-through tials for healthy growth. Aerating the as an opportunity not only to educate soil — removing plugs of clients about developdirt at regular intervals ing issues, but to revisit A LAWN OF JUST — helps prepare lawns their mowing and irri50×50 FEET (2,500 for spring, as the loosgation practices so SQUARE FEET) ened soil allows water, they understand their RELEASES ENOUGH part in nurturing a air and fertilizer in, and OXYGEN TO MEET it is in better condition healthy lawn between THE NEEDS OF A to receive seed should maintenance visits. FAMILY OF 4. reseeding be necessary. In some areas, spring Note any bare or worn rains and sunshine can patches in a lawn, or areas that look send natural turf on a rapid growth thin, and suggest interseeding to fill spurt. While it may be tempting to them in. In addition to enhancing the cut grass short if it has grown too tall,

❯

Serve as a Valuable Resource Year-round

Natural turf can be a stunning choice for landscaping needs, but it’s important to know and understand how changing seasons impact its health and appearance. By providing clients with actionable steps at key points of the year, landscape professionals serve as valuable partners in maintaining a property’s aesthetics year-round. ❯

Grass Seed USA is a national coalition of grass seed farmers and academic turf specialists with a wealth of experience in studying, growing and harvesting grass and grass seed. The coalition seeks to inform and educate residential and commercial customers about the benefits of grass and best practices for responsibly growing and maintaining healthy turf. For more information, visit www.weseedamerica.com or follow @ WeSeedAmerica on Facebook and Twitter.

www.greenindustrypros.com

GIP0420_28-29_SpecRept-rw final.indd 29

❙

APRIL 2020

❙

GREEN INDUSTRY PROS 29

4/2/20 11:05 AM

BEYOND THE BLADE

by Pam Haskell

THE IMPORTANCE OF

our website is the online gateway to your company and an introduction to your identity as a business for new customers. By telling your story through the pages of your website you can influence how your audience sees your company’s brand and how they react to it. It’s so much more important to tell a story with your website rather than simply listing your company’s services. The question of “What’s your story?” can often be a one to answer, especially

30 GREEN INDUSTRY PROS

GIP0420_30-33_BeyondTheBlade-rw final.indd 30

❙

if you never thought about your business in that way. This is the type of question that visitors to your website will think of when they land on your home page. They want to know how you can help them and why you want to. There are a lot of companies out there that might be able to solve a customer’s problems but when a visitor decides they want to work with somebody or get in touch it’s not a sales pitch they’re interested in. They want to know about your story and what adventure you can bring them on. When you read a good story, you remember the one who told it to you. Pitching an idea to a potential client works, but if you put together a compelling story then, even if they don’t partner with you straight away,

APRIL 2020

❙

they’ll remember your words. Stories create feelings and help build relationships that will attract people who are genuinely interested in your business. People remember how you make them feel. If you want to create content for your website you should start thinking of putting yourself in the role of storyteller. You want to be able to craft a compelling story for your audience and present it to them so they’ll continue to want to know more. You need to figure out what unique factors about your business are important to your customer. Always keep your audience’s needs and interests at heart so you can grab their attention before they click away. Here are three ways that will help you create compelling stories that will keep your audience on your website:

1. Draw Your Readers In

The best kind of marketing is one that tells a story. Whether you are writing a post for your social media

www.greenindustrypros.com

4/2/20 11:26 AM

pa pa or If y for sim au mo T tis loo the W au pa •S p b •S in •P b I cou com to W

r a2studio / iStock / Getty Images patpitchaya / iStock / Getty Images

e r-

pages or creating a landing page for a new product or service, stories work. If you try and tell a story for your posts instead of simply trying to sell, your audience will become a lot more interested, a lot quicker. The public is used to advertising, it’s everywhere they look and more often than not, they tune it out and ignore it. When you tell a story to your audience, they’re more likely to pay attention – and here’s why: • Storytelling has the ability to simplify complicated subjects and make a topic that could be boring become quite interesting for the reader. • Stories appeal to the emotions and get your readers invested in what you’re telling them. • People buy from an emotional response, before looking to back it up with logic. If your site is dreary, boring and only has a couple of stock photos, some bland facts about your company and your phone number – then it’s not going to have much of an effect on your visitors is it? What’s even more important is that our industry is con-

www.greenindustrypros.com

GIP0420_30-33_BeyondTheBlade-rw final.indd 31

❙

APRIL 2020

❙

GREEN INDUSTRY PROS 31

4/2/20 11:26 AM

TH W

BEYOND THE BLADE

stantly changing online. People go online to have a good time, so be aware of short attention spans and their overwhelming need for instant entertainment. Every day that goes by your audience is going to be expecting something new and exciting. Facts and statements won’t intrigue them, but a good story will. As well as this, you’re up against competitors. They probably sell similar services and products to you so you really need to stand out and your story will help you. It’s the perfect way to show your audience how you’re unique and they should partner up with you for all their mowing and lawn care needs.

2. Make A

Human Connection

Telling stories is the perfect way to build relationships and when it comes to getting more loyal customers, building a solid relationship is a great place to start. You don’t need an award-winning website design when you’ve got the perfect story to tell. Your audience isn’t looking for stunning features and design gimmicks on your site, they want to be able to make a connection with you. If you communicate the story behind your brand, why you’re here and why you want to help them then you’ll create an important human connection with your clients. Here are some tips on how you can make a human connection with your audience: • Tell Them Your Origin Story — The

32 GREEN INDUSTRY PROS

GIP0420_30-33_BeyondTheBlade-rw final.indd 32

❙

iQoncept / E+ / Getty Images

best way to make a human connection with your audience is to let them know your origins. Did you have the humble beginning of a family-run company or was your company set up as a lifelong dream? Maybe you invented a brilliant new product or perfected the ideal irrigation system. Every business out there has a story to tell about how they began, and each story is unique. Be sure to use this on your website and to even include it in your e-mail marketing, brochures, and advertisements. • Give Your Company A Face — People hunger for personal connection so let your customers put a face to your company. You can do this by simply adding staff photos and biographies to your website. This will allow you and your staff to tell your own personal stories. Let your customers know what drives your staff to get out of bed in the morning and about what their passions and dreams are. This will make your potential customers feel more comfortable about your company and make them feel like they could trust you and your work.

APRIL 2020

• Start Conversations — When telling your brand story, you don’t want to use too much jargon or you’ll confuse your customers. They might not be familiar with the words you’d usually use with your colleagues and competitors so don’t add them into the content for your audience. You want to sound authentic when creating your brand’s story so be sure to show your audience that you truly believe that your services are the perfect solution for their problem. People can spot false promises a mile away so don’t promise anything you can’t follow through with. If you do, it can hurt your brand, so be honest and transparent when engaging with your clients. • Customers Have Stories Too — Everybody wants to be part of a story and this includes your customers. You can include your customers in your story by making them stand out in testimonials and case studies. This sort of engagement with your audience will not only make you seem a lot more trustworthy as a company but it will also help make more connections with potential clients in the future.

3. Put Stories

into Your Design

Our brains are hardwired to understand visual information a lot quicker than text – and we also have an easier time learning from interactive environments. So, if you can craft your website to appeal to the brain’s visual and interactive cravings, you’ll be able to tell your stories with a unified voice. You can use your website to tell your story through pictures, sound, video and of course copy. It can all be delivered together in an attractive interactive package. ›

This article was written by Pam Haskell, owner of the website design & development company Chili Pepper Design (cpdesignco.com). She helps businesses in the landscaping and outdoor living space create and maintain a modern web presence along with online marketing and reputation management services.

❙

www.greenindustrypros.com

*Lim

4/2/20 11:26 AM

THE HARDEST WORKING WARRANTY ON THE JOBSITE.

ng to use be lly tient nd d’s nce ces obsa ng ou est ith

— ory ou our in his nce ore will ith

r r

Get low monthly payments now with

Hyundai’s EDGE Lease. Contact your local dealer to find out more. www.hceamericas.com

e e.

5 YR 3 YR

With 3-year/3,000-hour standard coverage and 5-year/10,000-hour structural coverage, our machines are backed by the hardest working warranty around, and guaranteed to keep you up and running longer.

STRUCTURAL

STANDARD

TOMORROWSEDGETODAY.COM *Limited lifetime warranty on the center pin.

GIP0420_30-33_BeyondTheBlade-rw final.indd 33

4/2/20 11:27 AM

DEALER SUCCESS GUIDE

by Michael Paladino

EXPANDING YOUR (CROP) CIRCLE How to Broaden & Strengthen Your Customer Base

n my article from the Green Industry Pros March 2020 issue, entitled, “The Grass Gets Greener When You Know Its Size,” I likened a retailer’s customer base to a field of crops: In order to reap sustained harvest in the form of revenue, retailers must cultivate that field to be as healthy as possible. Given this, we are posed with a natural next question: What exactly does a healthy field look like? To begin answering that question, I’ll move from the farm to the hen house for the classic adage: Don’t put all your eggs in one basket. Any judicious mother or investment strategist might impart these wise words. The message is simple: Concentrating all your resources or efforts into a single plan or strategy can be dangerous due to increased exposure to risk. With one bad jolt, a seemingly-robust plan suddenly appears quite lopsided and fragile. Business strategy is no different – and particularly so in the world of retail. While focusing on sustaining a core customer base is certainly advantageous in the near term, prudent managers must ask themselves how long the gravy train will last. If that core base is subject to sudden shock, like outside economic forces (say, a recession, or a large local unemployment event), increased supply from your competitors, or simply the natural timing-out of the customer life cycle (say, your core base already bought your full offering, or ages out of products based on use case), you

34 GREEN INDUSTRY PROS

GIP0420_34-37_DealerSuccess-rw final.indd 34

❙

might find yourself in a scramble. To avoid those chickens coming home to roost, it therefore seems imperative that, before focusing on each individual customer’s health, retailers first assess the health of their customer reach. How wide is this field? What variety of crops grow in it? And, given the answers to these questions, how can we go about expanding the size and composition of that reach? This line of thought brings us to customer breadth, an important prerequisite to a healthy customer base. Having a broad base of customers – both in terms of volume as well as type – helps your business grow in sales while also protecting against risk and ensuring long-term success. In this article, we’ll explore some important metrics to look at in order to assess customer breadth, and tactics one might take in order to enhance it.

A Breadth of Metrics

Customer breadth, defined broadly, is how many customers you have across area and segment. In order to measure the extent of that reach, as well as understand its changes day-to-day, retailers must establish some definitions, key groups and breakdowns, and metrics to track. To begin, let’s define “customer.” This might seem obvious at first: A “customer” is someone who’s bought something from you. Sounds great – but what about a customer who bought something 10 years ago, and hasn’t

APRIL 2020

bought since? This brings to bear the notion of active customers, who are still making purchases and showing engagement with you, versus dormant customers, who made their last purchase long enough ago such that they should have come back by now. While the exact time window will vary based on anticipated product life cycle (for instance, about 5-7 years for consumer handheld power equipment), once that dormancy period has elapsed, we can assume they’ve either exited the market (perhaps they moved away, or aged out), or they’ve gone to your competitor. Either way, those dormant customers are effectively lost, so retailers should establish a dormancy window that makes sense for their business, draw a line in the sand – turf – and only incorporate active customers into their assessment of customer reach. Next, in order to make customer insights actionable, we’ll

YOUR MARKET PENETRATION

❙

www.greenindustrypros.com

4/2/20 11:33 AM

wa lyz us spl rec MS cit –s ho att ers ind op do ava ch mo sim pu inf (Po Re F

e d

want to consider breakdowns for analyzing customer breadth. This brings us to customer segmentation, where we splice and dice those active customer records by area – such as state, county, MSA (Metropolitan Statistical Area), city, or ZIP code – and demographic – such as age, gender, occupation, homeowner status, and other social attributes. For commercial customers, breakdowns might also include industry, size of company, and time in operation. The nature of your breakdowns really comes down to what’s available in your customer and purchase data, but as a rule of thumb, the more, the better, since customers with similar traits often exhibit similar purchasing patterns. Good sources of information might include your POS (Point-of-Sale) or CRM (Customer Relationship Management) systems. Finally, we arrive at the metrics

to calculate. For the purposes of assessing Customer Breath, we’re mainly concerned with counting the customers themselves – regardless of purchase volume or value. A few important metrics are as follows, all of which should apply towards active customers across each of the segments and breakdowns you’ve been able to muster: • Unique Active Customer Count: A seemingly simple metric, obtaining a unique customer count can be tricky depending on the nature and quality of your data, since customer names and addresses must be de-duplicated while accounting for syntax and spelling variations. “Bob Smith” at “123 Country Lane” and “Robert Smith” at “123 Country Ln.” may very well be the same customer, but your software won’t know that unless you tell it so. For manually-entered data, typos present a challenge as well. Nonetheless, once determined, this important metric can be tracked over time and segment to under-

stand, point blank, how big your active customer base is, and whether it’s been growing or shrinking. • Market Penetration: Also seemingly simple, market penetration aims to tell you the percentage of a given market that you have as active customers. This is comparative, to help understand how much room you have to grow. Your unique active customer count might be growing 10% in the county over, for instance, but only account for 1.5% penetration in that county. The trick here is determining market size. This will depend on the nature of your business and products, though the large distinction will likely come down to consumer vs. commercial markets. For the former, you might consider looking to the Census for a count of homeowners living in Single-Unit Dwellings (SDU’s) by area. For the latter, reports from industry member organizations – such as the National Association of Landscape Professionals (NALP) in the OPE world – might shed some light, as well as market research studies. • % New/Repeat Customers: The netnew vs.. repeat customer ratio checks whether a given customer has ever made a prior purchase – back to the beginning of time, regardless of dormancy

UNIQUE CUSTO

TOTAL MARKET SIZE

UNTAPPED MARKET

(UNIQUE POTENTIAL CUSTOMERS)

COMPETITOR MARKET PENETRATION

In this graphic, each blade of grass represents a unique potential customer in the market – including your active customers, your dormant customers, and prospects. Your unique active customer count, divided over total market size, represents market penetration. You can expand market penetration by re-activating dormant customers or acquiring net-new customers from either your competitors’ active customer base or the untapped portion of the market.

www.greenindustrypros.com

GIP0420_34-37_DealerSuccess-rw final.indd 35

❙

APRIL 2020

❙

GREEN INDUSTRY PROS 35

4/2/20 11:34 AM

DEALER SUCCESS GUIDE

window. This matters immensely, since, even though the marketing team should treat a dormant customer similarly to prospects, reclaiming a dormant customer is more like playing catch-up, and does not broaden your brand. To use our field analogy, a reclaimed dormant customer is like a withered crop that you started watering again; a net-new customer, on the other hand, is a new sapling in the ground. Understanding the net-new customer ratio per area or segment helps you understand where you’re gaining traction. For multilocation retailers as well as distributors, calculating net-new customers by retail location can be fruitful as well. In this case, you’d check if a “new” customer has ever bought from your organization before, in addition to making a first purchase at a given rooftop. This illuminates the true broadening of your base – as opposed to “cannibalization,” where existing customers simply start shopping at a new location. • Unique Customers: Finally, retailers can greatly benefit by tracking if a given unique customer has purchased at least one of a given product or product type – as opposed to simply making a transaction in general. This metric can be used to further derive product penetration – market penetration for a specific item or item group – but for the purposes of expanding unique customer breadth in total. Its greatest use is finding correlations to identify driving forces and areas of opportunity to aid marketing in new customer acquisition.

Planting Season

Once customer breadth is defined and calculated, it’s time to go out and test that green thumb to bring new customers into the fold. Avenues for doing so abound, from email marketing and promotional events (dog-friendly cornhole Saturdays to court millennials, perhaps?) to social media and traditional channels like print or radio. Many other blogs and arti-

36 GREEN INDUSTRY PROS

GIP0420_34-37_DealerSuccess-rw final.indd 36

❙

cles are devoted to marketing channels and how to go about them, so I’ll defer to those for now in terms of tactics. In terms of strategy, though, two major postures are worth noting: Going with the flow and filling the gaps. If something’s already working, even on a small scale, why not lean into it? Going with the flow, or following demand, allows marketers to capitalize on preexisting trends – if they only know where to look. Finding stand-out customer groups with spikes in product adoption can be key here to provide insight for targeted marketing campaigns towards new prospects. Questions to ask include: • Among net-new customers over the last 12 months, which product has the highest adoption (that is, the highest unique customer count)? • Among a segment of interest (say, millennial homeowners), which product has the highest adoption? • Which customer segment has the largest spike in product adoption (for any product or type), and in what ZIP is the penetration for that segment lowest? The answers to these questions could lead to focused marketing campaigns, leveraging the knowledge that a given product is correlated with bringing new customers into the fold, or with a customer type you may want to court. From there, armed with this highly-adopted product of interest, one might look at where penetration for the target segment is lowest, and target an email or flyer campaign. The second strategic posture is filling in gaps – that is, addressing those customer holes large enough where sales and adoption data might be lacking. Rather than methodically marketing specific products to specific customer segments, gap-filling falls more under generic marketing to increase awareness of your brand or product use case. A question to ask here might be: Which customer segment has the lowest penetration overall? Or perhaps, which county

APRIL 2020

❙

has had a declining net-new acquisition rate over the last two years? These areas in need of love might need some blanket-marketing tactics, like print, radio, social media posts, or blog content angled towards those groups to drive awareness. Opening a new location, or perhaps even a seasonal pop-up location, can be a worthwhile investment as well. Beyond any actual net-new customers you may pick up from dropping an outpost in the middle of a customer desert, you’ll likely gain in marketing and awareness from folks driving by and word of mouth. At the very least, for those tough customer groups who just aren’t within your reach yet, understanding any market size information, as gleaned from the census and other public information, is certainly helpful to make sure you’re aiming at the largest prospect pools possible.

Fertile Pastures

In all, sustained revenue requires a healthy customer base, and the health of that customer base depends on its size and variety – that is, having a broad base of demand across people and places to insulate against the wear and tear of customer churn. Though it may necessitate some number-crunching at the outset, setting clear definitions and measurements can help retailers understand their current customer spread, and enhance it either by leaning into customer adoption trends, or filling in the gaps through informed brand marketing. Once a healthy reach is achieved, retailers can move on to nurturing and cultivating each customer in terms of customer depth: increasing engagement and loyalty where, hopefully, they bear fruit again and again. We’ll discuss this cultivation step in subsequent “Grass Gets Greener” segments. For now, by distributing those eggs across more and more baskets and focusing on customer breadth, you’ll be feeling sunny-side up. ›

www.greenindustrypros.com

4/2/20 11:34 AM

MAKE A

STATEMENT. Vanguard® takes a visionary approach to power. Whether it’s designing, applying or validating new technology — Vanguard is here to partner with you. We developed the new Vanguard commercial battery to meet the demands of a wide range of turf applications. We’re your best choice for integrating battery into your fleet — and we can prove it.

VANGUARDPOWER.COM

Visit www.greenindustrypros.com/XXXXXXXX

GIP0420_34-37_DealerSuccess-rw final.indd 37

4/2/20 11:34 AM

NEW PRODUCTS

2019 Exmark Staris Stand-On Riding Mower The 2019 Exmark Staris stand-on mower was developed to deliver increased commercial performance, durability, ergonomics and ease of service. Features include: • Available in E-Series models, with 32-, 36- or 44-inch cutting decks, and large-frame S-Series models, with 48-, 52- or 60-inch cutting decks. • Side-discharge cutting decks also offer the ability to mulch or bag clippings with appropriate Exmark accessories. • E-Series features Kawasaki V-twin commercial engines, while Staris S-Series offers a choice of carbureted Kawasaki or Kohler EFI V-twin engines. • Adjustable suspension system for increased comfort. • Intuitive controls for easy operation.

Cub Cadet Pro X Series of Stand-On Mowers

• Optimized weight balance and a lower center of gravity for increased stability, traction and maneuverability

Cub Cadet’s Pro X series are the first stand-on mowers in Cub Cadet’s professional lineup, adding to the company’s growing line of commercial lawn equipment and provide a durable and innovative option for landscapers looking for the flexibility and productivity a stand-on mower provides. Features include: • Fully fabricated 10-gauge deck shell with 7-gauge top and bottom reinforcements

• S-Series models feature Exmark’s innovative Smart Controller, which reduces downtime with maintenance reminders, on-screen machine health diagnostics, and engine and PTO hours. • Use of hydraulic lines in the drive system to reduce potential leak points while increasing durability and hydro oil cooling. www.greenindustrypros.com/21031968

• Maintenance-free design • Standard 24-inch tires • A large, fully adjustable suspension platform • A fully adjustable hip pad with side supports that offers comfort and stability when mowing slopes • Marbain blades, which offer a blade tip speed of up to 18,500 fpm and 1.5-inch blade overlap • 25.5 hp Kawasaki engine with up to 25.5 hp • Easy step-on/step-off design allows for quick debris pick-up • Deck size equal to or greater than the tire width maxes out traction, reduces turfing and will never run over uncut grass www.greenindustrypros.com/21085026

Hustler Turf Super 88 The Hustler Turf Super 88, a zero-turn mower designed to increase productivity for commercial operators, meets the growing need of commercial contractors who require the efficiency of a stand-on mower. It features the cut quality of a 54-inch deck and productivity of an 88-inch cut, allowing operators to mow faster and with a smaller crew. The Super 88 features: • Vanguard 36-hp carbureted engine • Vanguard 37-hp EFI engine with oil guard system • 14-gallon total fuel capacity • Multiple accessory kits www.greenindustrypros.com/21092587

38 GREEN INDUSTRY PROS

GIP0420_38-44_Products-rw final.indd 38

❙

APRIL 2020

❙ www.greenindustrypros.com

4/2/20 1:55 PM

Rotary’s Copperhead Commercial-Strength Mower and Edger Blades Rotary says the industry’s most extensive line of commercial-strength mower and edger blades is featured in its 2020 parts catalog, which includes: • A variety of Copperhead high-lift, low-lift and mulching blades. Over 40 new blades are available. • Engineered to exceed OEM standards for operation and ISO-certified for quality, durability and craftsmanship • A special 150-page section full of blade photos, illustrations and descriptions, plus a specifications chart with OEM numbers, lengths, center-hole diameters, widths and steel thicknesses • Over 9,500 different outdoor power equipment parts are listed in the 2020 Rotary catalog which is available in a downloadable PDF format at rotarycorp.com www.greenindustrypros.com/21047040

Honda GX50 Mini-Four Stroke Engine With a maximum output of 1.97 hp and a weight of just 10.4 lbs., the GX50 general-purpose mini-four stroke engine offers high output and a lightweight, compact design, plus is quieter and features reduced vibration. • Easy-to-start recoil reduces the pulling force required to start the engine • Can be inclined 360° during operation and storage • Valvetrain parts installed inside the oil chamber • Complies with the most stringent environmental regulations including EPA Phase III/CARB tier III/EU Stage 5 • Bridge Guard Design provides stability and helps protect the engine cowling in upside down positions during maintenance intervals www.greenindustrypros.com/21102884

Altoz 2020 XP HD Mower Built for heavyduty professional mowing, the 2020 XP HD delivers all the horsepower and durability you’ll need to tackle the toughest mowing jobs day after day. There are five models available: XP 540, XP 610, XP 610 HDi, XD 660 and XP 720. Features include:

G IN NG M GI M I D E TRD EUID AN G

• Four cutting widths - 54-, 61, 66- and 72-inches • Rotational deck height adjustments changes in quarter-inch increments from 1.5-5-inches. • Kawawsaki FX 27-, 31- or 35-hp engines or Kohler Command Pro 33-hp EFI • ZT-4400 Hydro-Gear hydrostatic transmission • Maximum speed of 11 mph • 12-way adjustable high suspension seat • SmartTrac Pro control with keyless push to start, solid-state PTO switch and patented SoftStart clutch control. • Low impact 24-inch tires • Twin 7-gallon fuel tanks www.greenindustrypros.com/21118958

R T

CPR E RE

859-384-3276 | www.edgit.com www.greenindustrypros.com

GIP0420_38-44_Products-rw final.indd 39

IOC

E IPN ON

D E

OSS I SE

❙ APRIL 2020 ❙ GREEN INDUSTRY PROS 39

4/2/20 1:55 PM

NEW PRODUCTS

Gravely Pro-Stance Stand-On Commercial Mowers

Lastec WZ1000

Gravely has unveiled its newest generation of Pro-Stance stand-on commercial lawn mowers. The redesign builds on the reliability and durability of previous models, but changes the machine’s geometry, improves existing features. Features include:

Lastec’s WZ1000 flex deck commercial zero turn mower is advertised as the “world’s biggest zero turn mower” with its 120’’ cutting width. The WZ1000 provides up to 8.73 acres/hour coverage or making it 15 percent more productive than a 104’’ mower according to the company. It fits the wide area production needs of commercial landscapers, lawn care professionals, sports fields, and golf courses. Features include:

• Redesigned tower and ergonomic control panel place engine and steering controls in comfortable positions for improved handling • Adjustable cruise bar limits and extends the drive speed range • Kawasaki FT EFI engine option for 52 and 60-inch mower decks

• 120” cutting width • Five 25” flex decks with up to 24° of total up/down motion

• New powertrain configuration increases top speed.

• 49HP Kubota Turbo diesel engine

• Hydro-Gear ZT-3100 (for smaller deck sizes) and ZT-3400 transaxles (for larger deck sizes)

• 17-gallon capacity • Electric quick-lift deck with 94” transport width

• Foot-operated deck lift lever and a thumb release and vertical pin system make it easy to adjust cutting height.

• Patented belt-driven decks

• 32-, 36-, 48-, 52- and 60-inch deck widths

• Lifetime frame warranty

www.greenindustrypros.com/21097840

• Up to 10 mph speed and up to 8.73 acres per hour www.greenindustrypros.com/21120311

Are You Ready To Begin or Enhance Your Business?

Professional Grade for POWERFUL PERFORMANCE!

The average annual gross revenue produced * by our franchise , , owners is

$1 880 398

We’re Looking For You.

Safer Lawn Care Since 1987

Plus Mosquito & Tick Control Opportunities 1st Year Revenue Potential: up to $150,000

Vortex, diamond, quad tex & premium quad trimmer line

Serving 100,000+ Customers • 6 Year Avg. Customer Life $74M+ in Gross Revenues • Serving 24 States + D.C.

Key Markets Available in Your Area!

(800) 989-5444 | NaturaLawnFranchise.com

1.800.841.3989 for more info!

Servicing dealers and distributors only. rotarycorp.com

*Based on 36 owners and the 2019 gross revenue report. ©2020. NaturaLawn of America, Inc. A division of NATURLAWN® Services and Products. All rights reserved. Each office independently owned and operated.

40 GREEN INDUSTRY PROS

GIP0420_38-44_Products-rw final.indd 40

❙

APRIL 2020

❙ www.greenindustrypros.com

4/2/20 1:56 PM

Wright Manufacturing Stander B 32’’ and 36’’ Mowers

Husqvarna Z400 Zero-Turn Mowers

Wright Manufacturing Stander B mowers are designed for entrylevel or part-time landscapers, as well as consumers who prefer a well-built commercial mower. The Stander B comes equipped with: • A floating 32-, 36-, 48- or 52-inch deck. • Close turning radius allows for mowing up close to trees and mulched beds. • Step-off stopping in an emergency or to pick up debris. • Kawasaki FS600 engine with cylinder clean-out ports and an opening for debris to fall out of the air box. • Suspension platform provides comfortable ride and make it easy to get on and off quickly. • Pneumatic caster tires are mounted on low maintenance ball bearings, and the aluminum spindles have fewer seals. • 20-inch rear tires to provide superb traction, even on hills, but reduce torque fatigue on the transmission. www.greenindustrypros.com/21083130

Husqvarna’s Z400 Series of professional zero-turn mowers is designed for maximum performance and easy serviceability. Features include: • Parker HTE 10 or Parke HTE 12 Series transmission. • Integrated parking brake that is easy to engage. • Digital fuel gauge with an easy-to-read indicator • Open engine bay streamlines access for easy routine service. • Folding ROPS for added versatility to use and store in tight locations • 48-, 54- and 60-inch cutting decks (Z448, Z454, Z454x, Z460 and Z460x) • Kawasaki FS 22-hp engine, 23-hp Kawasaki FX engine (Z460x), 22-hp Kawasaki FX engine (Z454x) • Z400x models include 23-in. by 10.5-in. rear tires www.greenindustrypros.com/21092607

www.greenindustrypros.com

GIP0420_38-44_Products-rw final.indd 41

❙ APRIL 2020 ❙ GREEN INDUSTRY PROS 41

4/2/20 1:56 PM

NEW PRODUCTS

Mean Green Stalker Stand-On, Walk-Behind Electric Mower The Mean Green Stalker stand-on/walk-behind mowers is a compact full-day electric mower. With zero emissions, the Stalker is a powerful and quiet option for contractors that saves approximately $7/hour in fuel and maintenance costs and will run up to 7 hours on its lithium energy modules. Features include: • 48V system equivalent to a 24 HP engine

• Weight 730-845 lbs.

• Speed up to 8 mph

• 3 blade side or rear discharge deck

• No flat front tires

• 7 gauge welded deck

• Easy pin height adjustment

• Noise level: 76 dba

• Standard 25A (110V) or 35A (220V) 8 hr charger. Additional options includes a LED floodlight kit, aluminium grass catcher, rear mulching deck, QTXN debris blower or a 3KW inverter. www.greenindustrypros.com/21123820

Bush Hog Heavy Duty ZTR Bush Hog’s Heavy Duty series of zero turn mowers includes the HDE (residential), HDC (commercial) and HDZ (professional). Each family of mowers comes standard with 7 gauge welded decks, Hydro-Gear transaxles, keyless start, multi-functional control panels and large 8 gallon under-the-seat gas tank. Additional features of the HDZ include: • Kohler or Kawasaki engines • Deck widths of 55”, 61” and 73” • Engine sizes of 31HP, 33HP and 38 HP

• Large 3” diameter foldable round ROPs • Full suspension seat with weight adjustment and slide feature • Patent-pending front suspension forks • Rotary controlled deck height adjustment • Large 24x12-12” Radial or Bar Tires • Spark arrestors approved by USDA for use in US Forestry locations • LED front mounted light and a dual USB charging port www.greenindustrypros.com/21123387

ADVERTISERS INDEX

StoneHook CORDLESS VACUUM LIFTER  Runs all day on a charge  Standard pad 1400 pound capacity; pads available from 88 to 2200 pounds. Windy Ridge Corporation Tamworth, NH 603-323-2323 www.stonehook.com

42 GREEN INDUSTRY PROS

GIP0420_38-44_Products-rw final.indd 42

❙

APRIL 2020

Billy Goat Industries, Inc. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21 Bobcat . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15 Briggs & Stratton . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37 Edgit Corporation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39 E-Z Trench . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41 Honda - Engines . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11 Husqvarna Turf Care . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25 Hyundai Construction Equipment Americas Inc. . . . . . . . . . . . . 33 John Deere Construction Equip.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44 Kubota Tractor Corporation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19 Naturalawn . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40 Progressive Insurance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7 Rotary Corp. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .20, 40, 43 SiBore Drill. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20 Stihl Inc. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5 The Toro Company. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 Windy Ridge Corporation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42

❙ www.greenindustrypros.com

4/2/20 1:56 PM

Over 9,500 guaranteed quality parts and world class service!

Outstanding Dealer Support.

Next Day Delivery to 85% of the USA.

Open 24/7 at rotarycorp.com

Successful servicing dealers depend on Rotary for outstanding customer service, a 95% fill rate, same day parts shipments and higher profit margins – thanks to lower prices and flexible payment options. We offer a vast selection of parts plus dealer incentives, early booking promotions and hands-on assistance from a sales team that builds strong relationships.

Your Partner for Success.

t O j O i n r O t a r Y ’ S d e a l e r n e t w O r k , c a l l 1 . 8 0 0 . 8 4 1 . 3 9 8 9 O r v i S i t r O t a r Y c O r P. c O m ©2020 Rotary Corporation. Rotary is a registered trademark of Rotary Corporation. Available through servicing dealers & distributors. *Available in most areas. Delivery time may vary and is subject to change.

GIP0420_38-44_Products-rw final.indd 43

4/2/20 1:57 PM

JohnDeere.ca/Compact

SERIOUSLY UPGRADED. INTRODUCING OUR UPGRADED G-SERIES SMALL-FRAME SKID STEERS AND CTLs. With more than a dozen new features and options that deliver more operating capacity, visibility, and convenience. On top of it all, a host of creature comforts in the cab. Visit your dealer and see why everyone loves a good upgrade.

GIP0420_38-44_Products-rw final.indd 44

4/2/20 1:57 PM