Automating your business

JOHN CORBAN BUSINESS COACH FOR LANDSCAPERS, HORTICULTLTISTS AND NURSERY OWNERS 0433 27 1980 www.landscaperscoach.com.au

Business automation is creating greater efficiency, saving time and money, and allowing the transferral and reporting of information to be more accurate.

Let’s have a look at some of the areas where you could be utilising business automation via simple software/app technologies.

Scheduling

Most of us are probably utilising our computer calendars (Apple or Windows) every day to book business meetings. It was not that long ago when we were using a paper diary. I remember when I made the transferral from a paper diary to my Windows diary. It took me about 3 months before I could throw away my paper diary. Then I had my IT guy link my Outlook diary to my phone and scheduling appointments could be done while I was waiting for a coffee. Scheduling projects can also be done via an Apple or Windows calendar. Creating a separate Calendar for projects is an easy process but there are many apps for quoting and project management that have a scheduling function for projects.

Quoting (Landscape Construction and Maintenance)

There are endless quoting software systems for the landscape and nursery industries. It is important to be aware of what you want your software to achieve. When quoting a landscape construction job, some of the functions you may need are: uploading material lists easily, entering employees hourly rates, entering client details, entering labour and material costs for each component in the scope of works (not just the charge out sums), scheduling, tracking a job, a project management function, calculating take-offs, an impressive presentation document to send to clients. When quoting a landscape maintenance job, some of the functions needed will be simpler, but still the basics are important like: material lists, employees’ hourly rates, client details, scheduling, and a simple project management function. Some quoting systems also allow detailed Job Sheets to be created per client with costs per ml pre-programmed and notes and pictures taken on site uploaded. Some compatibility with your Accounting software is an advantage. My research has discovered that many good quoting systems exist for the Landscape industry. Some examples are: Aroflo, Buildxact, and LMN. My suggestion is to trial any system first. Another system that will be released later this year is called Gauge. This would be one to look out for.

Accounting Software

Managing business finances via Xero, MYOB or QuickBooks (just to name a few) is essential. We all need to be able to view the accounts payable and receivables, P&L (expenses, sales and profit) each month with the click of a button. A few years ago, I started using Receipt-bank and Xero to upload all my bookkeeping data each month. It was quick, easy and allowed my bookkeeper to work remotely on my account. It also saved my company money because all the information was digitally ready for the bookkeeper to create quarterly BAS documents and reconcile everything from her office.

Sharing Information

Google Drive is free to use and can be used to share spreadsheets or documents with other people and view them at the same time. Zoom and Skype are free platforms that offer video conferencing calls and share information. Dropbox and WeTransfer are great for transferring large files like designs, multiple pics and videos.

Social Media

Facebook own Instagram, so they can be linked and when you post on Instagram, the post will also appear on Facebook. Software like Hootsuite can manage multiple social networks like Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest, LinkedIn etc., from just one dashboard.

Email Marketing

Mailchimp is a free email newsletter platform. You can upload your client database and send an appealing newsletter to offer tips, products, specials or content that could interest your client, future clients and alliances. There are many email marketing software systems that have more functions, or you can have your website developer add an email marketing function to your website.

Project Management

There are many Project Management apps available. Some are simple, some offer more functions, and some are easier to use. A good Project Management app allows you to schedule work, assign future work to a crew, dissect the scope of works, track the results, upload pictures and add a GPS locator. Monday and Asana are two examples.

When you are interested in finding software for your business, asking a friend or peer what they use and like can be very helpful. Most software apps offer a trial period, which you should take up in order to explore what’s on offer.

As the months and years progress, more software with better functionality will continue to appear. Automation is making our business life much easier and allowing us to share information faster and more accurately, track results and run a more efficient and profitable business.