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Landscape Design
"A picture is worth a thousand words" - Fred R. Barnard
If you're like most design/build contractors, you may think of a landscape plan as an unnecessary expense that is only required to make the sale. Well, nothing could be farther from the truth! More than just a pretty picture, a landscape plan is the only document that travels throughout the entire DB process from the initial concept, through estimating and sales, to the final installation. As a member of FromDesign2Build.com, you will learn:
- What to include, and not include, in your landscape plans to be effective
- How to handle design fees and design fee rebates
- Which design and graphic techniques sell--the first time and every time
- Why you should only create one concept, one plan, and one proposal
- Why you should always design the "Dream" master plan for your clients
- How to turn your drawings around faster with higher quality
- Why less is more and why a layout plan is all you ever need
The landscape design is the core of the entire Design/Build process. It should be a requirement for every project that you install--not just for your customer, but also for the success of your company. If you don't have a plan, how do you know where you are going?
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The Landscape Facility Tour
Jody Shilan, Editor
We are trying something new at our next NJLCA membership meeting. We're doing a facility tour. For those of you that have never been on one, it's exactly what it sounds like, a guided tour of one of our contractor's facilities. . . . keep reading
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So, How Does This Work?
Jody Shilan, Editor
As a freelance landscape designer and salesman who works for a variety of landscape design/build contractors, one of the first questions I am typically asked is, "so how does this work?" In my typical wise guy style, I usually respond, "it works great." . . . keep reading
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Knock His Block Off and You Win
Jody Shilan, Editor
Most landscape contractors have a mix of residential maintenance and design/build work, as well as commercial maintenance and bid work. Now before you go any further, look at what I just wrote: "A mix of residential maintenance and design/build work, . . . keep reading
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Free Plans Cost You Plenty
Jody Shilan, Editor
Q: Many companies in my area, both large and small, do "free drawings" to try to get installation work. We have always charged for our landscape plans but oftentimes lose work because of this. What can we do? - Rob Whenton -- Landscapes Unlimited . . . keep reading
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Whose Line Is It Anyway?
Jody Shilan, Editor
One of the upsides of providing design services for a variety of landscape contractors is that oftentimes I get to watch them in action during the installation. Besides providing me with an endless supply of ideas for Trade Secrets, I also gain valuable . . . keep reading
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Hey Buddy, Can You Spare Some Change?
Jody Shilan, Editor
I like to refer to my designs as "buildable concept plans". They are drawn to scale (typically 1" =10') and provide all of the information necessary to layout, estimate and build the project. However, they are flexible enough to allow for budgetary changes or . . . keep reading
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August 2011 Project of the Month - Agro Landscaping
The owners of this beautiful brick country chateaux, needed to bring color and scale to their rear yard after the recent construction of a swimming pool and retaining walls. Located on a severly sloped 2 acre property (over 60' of grade change from front . . . keep reading
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Forget About Design Fees -- Try Retainer Agreements
Jody Shilan, Editor
One of the biggest struggles we all have is whether or not to charge design fees. The problem is that we don't want to lose the installation because of a design fee, but we also don't want to waste our time working for free. A retainer agreement is the greatest concept of all times . . . keep reading
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The Site Analysis- Part 4
Jody Shilan, Editor
Well, it is time for your third and final lap around the property. This time around, you are going to shoot spot elevations to get a better understanding of the topography and then develop some good solid design concepts before you leave. As you know from . . . keep reading
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The Site Analysis- Part 3
Jody Shilan, Editor
With the first lap of your site analysis completed, it's now time to do your photo shoot. Like everything else that I discuss, there is a process and logic for taking "site photos" too. The most important being, that you should always take a lot of pictures. . . . keep reading
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The Site Analysis--Part 2
Jody Shilan, Editor
Now that we've discussed some of the pre-site analysis do's and don'ts in part 1, it is time to look at how to perform a typical site analysis quickly and effectively. This will allow you speed up your turn around time to get a plan and proposal back to your client as quickly as possible . . . keep reading
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The Site Analysis -- Part 1
Jody Shilan, Editor
Anything that you can do to streamline your design/sales process is a good thing. As we all know, the quicker that you can turn around a design and proposal to a client, the better the chances that you will get a signed contract . . . keep reading
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Online Portfolios -- Show Off Your Best Work - Professionally
Mike Swift
Many landscape professionals and firms have web sites. It is very common for these sites to include portfolios of sample work. The portfolios range from a series of photographs of various project sites to organized collections of photographs organized by project or type of work . . . keep reading
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