This is where selling yourself, rather then the process comes in. I think any area an arborist can be undercut by a landscraper. My pitch is would you prefer me or an unskilled college kid? More often then not I was given a chance to prove myself, and was rewarded with a revolving account.
I tell people that I don't just come and run over it with a power shear, i manage the growth. Time the pruning so you get there after the first flush has slowed down, do hand pruning on larger stems so it looks better and cuts are under the "green shell", do a meticulous clean-up in and around the plant
How often do we hear people gripe about having to clean up after the landscaping crew?
Some people I was able to sell several visits in a year, simply because they wanted an immaculate front yard. I did it better then they did, and often healthier. (shearing junies every year stresses the roots. I am convinced that the loss of auxins from the buds has a synergistic effect with the leachates form concrete basements.)
