INSTALLATION: Shed Some Light

Looking to grow his design/build company, Rick Brauneis expanded into landscape lighting in late 2005 after another contractor invited him to ride along on a few installations. Brauneis jumped at the training opportunity, “practiced” on his own home and his neighbor’s, and from there he felt confident he could offer his clients the chance to enjoy their landscape at night.
 
Landscape lighting has developed into a great add-on service for Brauneis’ firm Vision Designs Landscape in Orlando. When looking to diversify, he knew he wanted to stay away from the low-margin maintenance business, and lighting – with approximately 42 percent gross profit margin per job – was an attractive proposition. “If it’s sold properly there’s a good profit to be made,” Brauneis says. He currently does about $50,000 a year in lighting, or about two or three jobs per month. “I’d like to see that grow to where it’s about 40 percent of my business,” he adds. “Because it’s a great upsell.”

UPSELL OPPORTUNITY. Brauneis’ sales strategy – adding a landscape lighting design to every proposal whether the client has requested one or not – appears to be a good one. He closes about eight of 10 lighting designs.
 
For landscape design he uses a software program with a digital imaging tool that allows him to mock up a photograph of the client’s home with plants and hardscape elements. This program allows him to do the same with lighting, and it only takes several minutes per design. Even if clients don’t opt for outdoor lighting right away, it gets them thinking about it for the future, Brauneis says.
 
He estimates about 40 percent of lighting clients are sold with the digital image alone. The rest opt to set up an at-home visit for a lighting demonstration. “That’s when I get the oohs and ahhs,” he says. The evening lighting demonstration does wonders for showing clients the value of being able to enjoy their landscapes at night. 
 
To execute the demo, which typically takes about 20 minutes to set up, Brauneis uses a “demo kit,” consisting of a 300 watt transformer, three path lights, two spot lights and a spool of wire. He put together his own kit, though many lighting manufacturers offer ready-to-go packages that cost about $400 to $600.

TOOLS/TRAINING NEEDED. Another reason lighting was an attractive add-on, Brauneis says, is it didn’t require any capital equipment purchases. Most green industry businesses could be up and running with a few minor additions to their tool inventory, like a drill, crimpers, wire strippers and screw drivers. In the North, where soils are rocky or clayey, lighting contractors may need to own or rent a trencher, Brauneis notes. But in Florida or areas with soft soil, a good shovel or spade will do. Many areas do not have codes for how deep low-voltage lighting wires need to be buried, but Brauneis recommends burying wire about 8 inches deep.
 
While some contractors may be intimidated by lighting, believing it’s too technical, Brauneis says it’s fairly easy to pick up. Some minor math and electrical skills are needed, but many manufacturers and suppliers offer introductory courses and training tools that cover the basics. Brauneis learned on the job while working alongside another lighting contractor; now he’s teaching his son-in-law.
 
But just like any new service, there are some tricks of the trade. After about two years doing lighting, Brauneis recently decided to offer an annual maintenance package after receiving many client requests for such an offering. The service package, which costs $30 to $50 for a monthly visit depending on the number of lighting fixtures, includes inspection of the voltage, wiring, fixtures and transformer, lens cleaning and bulb replacing as necessary. About 80 percent of clients go with the service package, Brauneis says.
 
Another thing he stresses is the importance of locating the outdoor power source before agreeing to contract terms. An outdoor power source is a necessity because it powers the transformer, but some homes don’t have outdoor power sources or they’re in poor locations. “I got bit in the butt on that one – it changed the way I wrote up my contracts,” Brauneis says, explaining he once had to pay out of pocket for electrical work because he neglected to locate a source before agreeing to terms. Now, the outdoor power source is one of Brauneis’ first considerations and his contract states those costs are the client’s responsibility,
 
Such contract details are as essential to profitability as pricing strategies. While some contractors offer “by the fixture” pricing, Brauneis prefers a package format that he bases on marked-up material costs and labor. His standard package, which costs approximately $2,300 installed, includes six pathway, four spotlights, two wash lamps and a 600 watt transformer. The backyard deck package, including four step lights, four post lights and three spotlights, runs about $2,500.
 
“Eighty percent of the yards I work in are small, so these choices are very popular,” Brauneis says, adding that a “typical” backyard he works on would be a nicely landscaped area with a 12-by-15-foot deck. As such, keeping his packages simple makes it easier for the customer to decide what they’d like and it saves them time – they don’t have to hunt through the catalog and select the fixtures one by one. “Of course they can add on,” Brauneis says. “Someone might say ‘I like this package, but how about more lights?’ Then I’d upgrade the transformer if need be and add the lights at 30 percent over my cost for the fixture.”