Budget Reduction Strategies for Snow & Ice Businesses

Prepare for Business Budget Discussions

The last thing you want to do going into this winter season is to not be prepared for possible budget discussions with your customers. Having a game plan for these talks can help you be ready with alternatives for them if they want to talk about reducing prices.

Here are some things to do before you have these discussions:

• Alternative services - Take a look at what services each customer currently has, and put together an alternative snow removal package that doesn’t involve cutting prices. What offerings can you adjust to keep your budget steady but address the client’s concerns and give them value?
• Decide what adjusted offerings look like – If a price adjustment is unavoidable, decide what your services would look like for each client. Would you require that they expand their services with you in exchange for these price adjustments? Having some rough idea of what you can offer at an adjusted price can help you better negotiate.
• Be prepared to say no – Many customers are looking for ways to save across multiple vendors this year, and if you are already offering them the fairest price that you can for your services, be prepared to stand firm and say no to budget reductions.

As you start your budget discussions with your customers, it’s a good idea to ask them what their budget reduction looks like before you talk about what can be adjusted. Do they need to reduce services slightly or significantly? Knowing this can help you decide what service adjustments actually need to be made. You may find that they are really looking for a slight scale back and it’s something you can easily accommodate.

During your talks, it’s also a good idea to make it clear that these budget adjustments are temporary and that prices will be back to normal next winter. That way clients can know what to expect from you in the long-term.