What Are You Worth?

What is your expertise worth? Your time? Your knowledge? I think it's fair to say that each of us as a professional has a different value to different people. To someone who wants some bushes and a couple flats of annuals, I'm overpriced. But for someone who is looking for a complete landscape makeover, I'm the guy. Maybe you're in between.

When you price yourself, do you put a price on your time (per hour, day, etc.)? Or do you put a price on what you are worth to someone who wants or needs you?

I've long been puzzled by the fact that a plumber gets a better hourly rate than most landscape designers. As a profession, they have done a good job of putting a value on their services. One might even argue there is an entitlement mentality among them, but the point is, they have created a market where what they do is valued, rather than how long it takes to get it done.

It's a totally different animal, but somewhat related. It's baseball season and I'm a very enthusiastic Cubs fan. Yes, I'm on the "big blue bus." Anyway, consider Cubs ace Carlos Zambrano. His contract pays him $16 million dollars for 2008. That's a lotta lettuce!

Is it worth it to the Cubs? Sure it is. But let's do the math. He will probably start 30-35 games this year. Call it 33. He averages 210 innings per year and, say he throws 100 pitches per game, so 3300 pitches. The math in round numbers: $485,000 per start; $76,000 per inning pitched; and $4850 per pitch. And not all the pitches are good ones.

Is that a bit ridiculous? Yep.

The lesson is to price the job based on your value to the client, rather than the time you spend. The challenge, of course, is how to create that value and communicate it's worth to the client.

this begs a host of other questions too. More on this later.

No One Asked Me (Again)

I keep forgetting to blog this. It's no longer new or news, but it's still disturbing. Well, the logic, or lack thereof, is disturbing. The City of Chicago this year instituted a tax on bottled water. Hmmm...if it weren't punishment enough to pay for something that comes out of the faucet. 

Of course, it's a greenwashing strategy. It is not described as a tax on water, but a tax on plastic. They claim that the disposable bottles are a big problem and that taxing them will help the environment. Sure. Lots of plastic out there, but only water being taxed? So far.

If the goal is truly a strategy to keep these bottles out of the landfills, make it a deposit. Many states use deposits on cans and bottles to encourage recycling. If you think about it, a tax is paid every time you buy a bottle of water. If you are careful, you pay a deposit only once. 

Design and Voice Mail

In my last post I criticized some bad system design. One was a poorly-designed voice mail system, and the other a poorly designed phone support system. Both result in a company's being perceived as user-unfriendly. 

On the other hand, you have different fingers. Also, there are a few who "get it." Take, for example, American Taxi. I use them all the time for travel to/from O'Hare airport. Their automated phone system is really well-designed, efficient and user-friendly. There is virtually no wait when you call. All you have to know is the phone number(s) of your pickup  location and destination. The system is very clear and easy to understand. Also, you can order a taxi from their web site if you choose. Good design.

I Don't Do Book Reviews II

One of my favorite topics is design. In fact "design thinking" is a topic I've blogged about in the past. That's why Tom Peters' book Design appealed to me. Tom Peters is not in the landscape business and he's not a designer. But he knows design. 

Not I'm not saying he knows a good landscape design from a bad one. I have no idea whether he does or not. He uses the term "design" to describe a much broader concept. 

In the book he encourages the application of "design thinking" to all aspects of business, product design, marketing, systems and more. 

Here are a couple of examples. 

I recently switched my cellular service to AT&T. That is the same company that handles my land line and internet. I called to inquire about combining the billing. I get one bill with my internet and land line on it. Seems to me they ought to be able to add the cell phone to the same bill. After 10 minutes of  discussion with the rep on the phone, I was told that I need a different plan (with a cost of course), to get that feature. Also, I would have to call the wireless division. Huh? The woman laughed at me for assuming that she would be able to handle it. Nice.  Bad design. 

When someone calls your company after hours, how is he or she greeted? One company I know has the voice mail say something like "You have reached _____.  Our office is now closed. If you are prospective customer, press 1 for the sales department. If you are a current design customer, press 2 for the design department..." and so on through a half dozen departments. Then, at the very end, "For a company directory, press 0." Are you kidding me? That should be the first option. Bad design. 

There are other problems with the message as well ("sales department"? How about "to reach a design consultant"?), but that's another topic. 

Anyway, consider this an intro. There will be other posts on "design thinking." This book struck a chord. 

Book Review: Perennial Reference Guide

I don't do book reviews. I guess the main reason is I've been around awhile and I no longer get too excited about the "next new thing," and I don't refer to books as much as I used to. I know enough plants to do what I do. I'll add a few to my palette every year or two, but I tend to stick with what works for me.

Having said all that, Karleen Shafer asked me to review her book which is aptly called "Perennial Reference Guide." It is definitely not a bedside table book, nor does it belong on your coffee table, and I must say that on first inspection I was underwhelmed. There are no pictures and there is no index to look up a specific plant. But then I started really looking at it. I also ran it past a couple of colleagues, one with similar experience to my own, and the other a younger designer. They had very different impressions and I was convinced to look a little further.

I think this book definitely has value, especially for some of its uncommon lists. Examples include lists of plants for Aromatherapy, Biblical Gardens, Crevices and Evening Gardens. Of course there are the more common lists based on color, size and growing environment.

If I were to offer any criticism it would be the following: The color coded sections are fine, but tabs to help find them would help. An index would help a ton as there is no way to cross reference a plant. For example, you may be browsing the Environmental Low Pollen/Allergen list and find, say Brunnera macrophylla. The listing shows sun/shade requirements and the hardiness zone, but an additional column that lists other pages where you can cross reference it would be a huge help (Thanks, Tara).

So, in general, it is interesting to browse the various lists. It is a good way to learn. Although it is difficult to look up a specific plant, there are a lot of books where you can do that. Same with pictures. This is an unusual format, but there is valuable information inside. All things considered, if you are a plant person and you typically spend a lot of time choosing just the right plant for a given condition, this book may be a valuable addition to your library.

Please remember, I don't do book reviews.