How to Schedule Holiday Light Installs and Takedowns by Area
A holiday lighting season has two halves. Installs fill November and early December, when everyone wants their lights up before a certain date. Takedowns fill January, when nobody is in a hurry but you still have to get round every house. Planning both well is the difference between a profitable season and a stressful one.
Step 1: Split your service area into zones
Look at where last year’s customers were and group them into four to six zones, usually by ZIP code or postcode. Each zone should hold roughly a day or two of work for one crew. Areas a long way out can be their own zone with fewer days.
Step 2: Give each zone its own days
Decide which days each crew spends in each zone. For example, zone A on Mondays and Thursdays, zone B on Tuesdays and Fridays. When customers book, they only see their zone’s days. You give up a little choice for the customer, and in return your crews spend the day on ladders instead of in traffic.
Step 3: Set a daily cap you can keep
Work out how many average installs a crew really finishes in a day, including the drive and the odd difficult roof, and set that as the limit for each zone. When a day is full, it simply stops showing. It is much better for a customer to pick a later date than for you to cancel on them.
Step 4: Open bookings in waves
- Early October: email last year’s customers, zone by zone, and let them book first.
- Mid October: open the booking page to everyone.
- Late November: when the calendar is nearly full, keep a small waiting list for cancellations.
Step 5: Book the takedown at the same time
The easiest takedown to schedule is one the customer agreed to in November. Offer it as part of the install, or add a booking question asking for a preferred takedown week, then plan January the same way: zone days and a daily cap. Takedowns are usually faster than installs, so the cap can be higher.
Step 6: Ask for what you need up front
Every return trip for a missing clip or a longer extension cord is a lost hour. Ask on the booking form about storeys, roof type, rough roofline length, outlet locations and whether you supply the lights. A photo of the house saves even more back and forth.
Step 7: Keep this year’s list for next year
Every customer who books online is a customer you can invite back next October. Keep notes on each house, such as the clip type, where the outlet is and anything awkward about the roof, so next year’s install is quicker.
Doing this in ZipScheduler
In ZipScheduler each zone is a service area. You add its ZIP codes or postcodes, choose its working days, hours and daily limit, and customers only see dates that fit. Installs and takedowns can be separate services with their own lengths and prices, your booking form asks your own questions, and you can email past customers in chosen ZIP codes when you’re ready to open the season. There’s a free plan to start with. See how it works for holiday lighting.
