Tuesday Schedule

with Paul Winski, Texas A&M University AgriLife Extension Service (more…)Read less...

Suzanne Wainwright-Evans, Buglady Consulting

TDA And TNLA CEUs available

Challenges of Managing Pests in Texas

Texas’ size and varied climates create unique pest management challenges, with long growing seasons allowing many insect pests to thrive. This session will cover some of the most common pests in the state, focusing on identification, biology, and effective control strategies. Attendees will learn practical scouting techniques for detecting hard-to-spot pests and explore a range of management options.    Both conventional chemical control recommendations and biological control strategies—including biopesticides and beneficial insects—will be discussed, highlighting advancements that have made beneficials a mainstream component of modern pest management programs."

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Holly McIIwain, Skilled Pro Academy

Course Title: Profitable Pricing & Customer Communication that Grow Your Irrigation Business

Course Introduction
Running a successful irrigation business isn’t just about fixing sprinklers—it’s about pricing your services strategically and communicating effectively with customers to maximize profitability. Too many businesses undercharge or overcharge, struggle with customer negotiations, or waste time on the wrong clients. This class gives landscaping and irrigation business owners and managers a clear, proven, actionable strategy to set profitable prices, eliminate low-value customers, and position their company as the premium choice in the market.

Attendees will learn how to price with confidence, handle objections like a pro, and implement customer screening techniques that save time and increase revenue. From psychological pricing strategies to real-world communication plans, this course is designed for business owners who want to take control of their pricing, streamline customer interactions, and build a more profitable, stress-free operation.
If you’re tired of customers questioning your prices, struggling to stand out from competitors, or feeling like you always come up short on turn-key priced projects, could it be that the problem isn’t the pricing method—but something else? This game-changing class will give you the tools and mindset shift you need.

Key Topics Covered:

Strategic Pricing for Profitability – How to set prices that sustain your business and position you as a premium service provider.

Customer Perception & Pricing Psychology – What happens when you charge more and when you charge less.

Avoiding Pricing Pitfalls – The risks of undercharging, free work, and unnecessary negotiations.

Handling Pricing Objections with Confidence – Strategies to hold firm on pricing while keeping customers engaged.

Flat-Rate vs. Hourly Pricing – What is the customer really paying for?

Screening & Managing Customers – Identifying high-value clients, setting expectations, and dealing with difficult customers.

Optimizing Customer Communication – Using follow-ups, templates, and scheduling strategies to increase efficiency and referrals.

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Explore how to optimize landscape irrigation using tools and technology designed for evapotranspiration (ET)-based scheduling. This session provides practical guidance on using data-driven systems to improve water efficiency, reduce waste, and support sustainable landscape management. Takeaways: -Learn how ET data improves irrigation scheduling for healthier landscapes with less water.\ -Discover the latest ET tools and how to integrate them into existing irrigation systems. with Charles Swanson, Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service Must attend full day to receive 8 hours TCEQ CEUsRead less...

ISA and TNLA CEUs available With expert speaker: Mike Sills, Texas Forest Service Mike Sills has been a Regional Urban Forester for the Texas A and M Forest Service’s Dallas Region for eight years. He graduated from Stephen F. Austin State University in 1995 with a B.S. in Forestry and has been an International Society of Arboriculture Certified Arborist since 1997. He has received accreditation as a Certified Forester and Board-Certified Master Arborist from the Society of American Foresters and International Society of Arboriculture, respectively. He is a Private Pilot and volunteers with the Civil Air Patrol. He and his wife of 24 years, Ginny, enjoy traveling and being at home with their dog, Keelagh, and their rabbit, Captain Hastings.Read less...

with expert Paul Winski, Texas A&M AgriLife Extension

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Laura Miller, Texas AgriLife Extension

Texas Natives: Key Plants and Key Pests
Native plants are often marketed as pest free options, but our native pests have been surviving on the for years. We will look at some popular Texas Native landscape plants and discuss the pests you are most likely to find on each one. We will also look at the Integrated Pest Management concept of the treatment threshold to help you decide if and when a pest requires management action.

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with Holly McIIwain, Skilled Pro Academy

Proven Secrets to Create a More Profitable Irrigation Service Business
This live course is designed for owners and managers of landscaping and irrigation companies who want to streamline operations, improve customer communication, and empower their staff with efficient processes. By implementing the strategies taught in this course, business leaders can create a standardized approach that enhances professionalism, minimizes confusion, and ensures customer service consistency—without requiring constant managerial oversight.

Class Title: Proven Secrets to Create a More Profitable Irrigation Service Business

Key Topics Covered:

1. Call Flow Process & Best Practices – How to structure initial customer interactions, set service expectations, and clearly define the technician’s role and the customer’s responsibilities.
2. Service Scheduling for Profitability – Strategies to optimize technicians’ schedules, reduce downtime, and maximize revenue.
3. Managing Customer Expectations & FAQs – Ensuring customers fully understand the service process, pricing, and next steps to minimize misunderstandings and callbacks.
4. Standardizing Communication with Templates – A comprehensive list of essential templates to standardize customer communication, including phone scripts, email scripts, voicemail scripts, and FAQs, to synchronize messaging between the office and the field.
5. Project Order & Documentation – Writing clear, standardized project orders to ensure efficiency and customer clarity.

By the end of this course, owners and managers will have the tools to structure and support their customer service representatives, call schedulers, and field technicians more effectively. With a standardized approach, staff will be able to handle common customer interactions and decisions independently, reducing the need for constant managerial oversight.
This interactive course provides the framework to improve operational efficiency, enhance customer satisfaction, and build a more profitable, professional service operation that drives referrals.

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