KM Grunder

Don’t Go It Alone

Lawn & Landscape June 2018 By Marty Grunder Like many of you reading this column, I got my start in the landscaping business with a single lawnmower, the belief that I could outperform the competition and the audacity to go for it. A lot has happened in the 34 years since, but when I really drill down on what has.

Is There a Difference between Customer Service and Client Experience?

These days we hear a lot about the “client experience” and how important it is to the success of a business. In fact, according to the Harvard Business Review, focusing on the client experience “has become the single most important way for an organization to achieve success—often becoming its key differentiator and.

Speed Kills but Efficiency Saves

This week I checked in with Jason New, a green-industry executive coach and one of our ACE Peer Group facilitators, to find out what landscape companies need to be paying attention to this time of year and what we can all do to get better. With more than 20 years’ experience at leading companies in our industry, Jason.

Do You Need to Rethink Your Approach to Sales?

Last weekend for Mother’s Day, I invited my extended family over for a cookout. Grilling is about the only culinary skill I’m good for, so when the warm weather hits, I try to take advantage of it. We had a great time, filled with laughter. No matter how overwhelmed you may feel running a landscaping business this.

How to Get Your Team to Give It Their All

One question I hear again and again from the landscaping pros I coach and consult with is how can they get their teams to think like an owner. How can they get them to care as much as they do about the bottom line? How can they get them to give the job their all rather than just punch the clock? My answer is always.

Are You Making This Costly Mistake?

The other day I finished up what I had to get done at the office and made a mad dash for the fitness class I take with my wife. The gym is located in a busy shopping and restaurant complex and it’s always a challenge to get there and get parked in time. So naturally I was a bit frustrated when I pulled into the lot.

Ordinary Acts Can Lead to Extraordinary Results

Lawn & Landscape April 2018 By Marty Grunder Every year I partner with the National Association of Landscape Professionals to deliver sales boot camps for green industry professionals who want to sharpen their skills and improve their closing rates. I just got back from events in Dallas and Philly where we had a great.

When the Going Gets Tough

Ohio Nursery & Landscape Association The Buckeye May/June 2018 By Marty Grunder What a spring—or, more accurately, what spring? The weather in Ohio has not been kind to our industry this year, with snow continuing to fall even in April. It’s safe to say we are all behind on our schedules, leaving us scrambling to make.

The Secret to Accountability

In my work as a consultant to hundreds of landscape pros over the years, I have listened to the issue of accountability come up again and again. How, other business owners ask me, can they hold their teams to the tasks they’re assigned and the results they need to deliver? How should they address underperformance? How.

Looking for a Sure-Fire Way to Save Time? Screen Your Prospects Effectively

We are all in search of ways to save time, myself included, and there’s no shortage of tips and tricks business owners have come up with for freeing up more hours in the week. I am always open to trying new approaches—you can’t grow if you won’t change—but I’ve also found that when it comes to screening prospects, you.