witness a guy getting his livelihood destroyed by doing all commercial. huge underbidding company came in and pretty much took all his work. he only had 10% residential. went from 3 crews to solo real quick
I like having 3 HOA's... I don't want more for the same reasons. Keeps the 💰 coming in through the Winter. I don't like to beat myself up through winter.
Weekly Q & A: "How do you structure your yearly work given you do not require contracts?" For example, do you communicate to customers that you will be provide bi-weekly service from March - October and then step back to 1X/Month during winter, or do you simply let folks decide when they are "done" with lawn care for the season. Thanks man! Love your content Nathan Augusta, GA
Hey, Nathan: I ended up doing a video on what we do during the winter, but I wanted to follow up to your question. Most clients are fine with us coming one time a month during the winter. We tell them when they come on board with us that we only come one time a month during the winter and they seem to all be ok with this. I don't do a lot during the winter honestly though.. I do let them know that normal mowing resumes the first week of March weather permitting.
The only difference in residential is you have to deal with alot more people which can be a head ache where as commercial usually you deal with one person on multiple properties
This is my second year in business. I work solo except on weekends my wife helps out sometimes. We mow 9 pretty large residential clients and we picked up our 1st commercial acct late this past july. I make more off the one commercial than i do with all my residential. That being said it is a lot more work and i do have to wait for them to mail my monthly check. So it has its drawbacks. But putting it all in perspective i would take on maybe 2 more smaller commercial accts and thats all until i had some real help and better machines. I will stay mainly residential though for the most part.
Are you using YardBook and do you get a "card on file" up front to guarantee you get paid for your work? Thanks and love the vids. Retired Fire/EMS here.
Weekly Q&A- 1) Wifey wants and deserves a vacation. How do you do this when you’re part time and solo? 2) What options do you have if you get hurt/sick and solo. 3)How would you deal with a longtime customer who has began complaining about little things everytime you show up, both his neighbors are also customers. 4) How many customers would you realistic maintain being solo. 5) Do you have a set schedule when you start/stop work each day, how many days per week do you work. When do you start and finish your season? 6) Do you work in off season? Yeah I asked a few questions 😂 thanks my man
Sounds like you need to get hired on with a full time guy before you go all in. Work with a guy a few days a week while you build and run your own route. You'll learn most of what you asked.
Weekly Q&A: " how do you handle if you become too sick to work for a week , senario: solo with helper who is my son , both very sick , new to lawn care lots of customers to care for. - thanks Jonathan keep up the great work
You dont haft to do large scale commerical... but most areas are over saturated with joe smoe and a mower or cheap mexican labour... Its better to find work that requires GnL, WC and bonding to avoid competing with the people mentioned above... unless your one of those guys... C grade work in larger commercials is also less competitive then A grade... most of the guys doing C grade dont have quality.. as long as your quality is up they usually dont shop too much on you
I agree with you on residential vs commercial work; I don't currently have any commercial accounts but I am also not overly interested in going that direction. If one wanted my service enough to seek me out and work on my terms and price then I'd do it but I am not going out of my way to pick them up
I have a commercial property and a residential property that’s 1 1/2 acres that I do for a guy. I am about to drop him because it’s just to much wear and tear on my machines and very exhausting for one man to do by themself. The small residential lawns I have found to be the most profitable and hardly wear out your equipment or your energy level
Commercial will be much harder to collect on if they stop paying. You can be mowing the property up the street, but the people cutting the check could be 5 states away.
They both have their pros and cons... just starting out I would say trailer... is more versatile for hauling debris, and if a truck does down you can easily get a rental to hook up to... once you have your ideal client and setup dialed in, I do think having a rack system on a truck is worth the extra effort if it's done right.
Weekly Q and A: When going into an interview for a new customer, is there common things you go over with them? Is there a list of questions for the customer to help understand what the customer is expecting?
Marquardt's Lawn Service I have developed a simple one page sheet for my Lawn care business that I use to gather the information I need in order to respond with a written proposal. It helps to remember all the things I need to ask or determine up front. Call me if you want a copy. Larry McGowen, McGowen Lawn Care. 314-495-1847
Hi there, I have been trying to come up with a short, simple and to the point 1 page sheet to go over all the customers needs and what Sevices I offer. I’m getting my lawn care business going here in March and have a huge residential contract. Thanks... if you could let me see what you’ve come up with, that would be great.
Face it lawn mower business is just like any other business. For a few cents people will change. Does it matter if it's commercial or not. People are raised to be cheap save every penny. Doesn't matter how much money you got invested in your equipment. You have to correctly bid the job. To make money. Them guys came in to underbid you. Just keep going in. Hitting them up. To see if they're doing a better job than you did at the place that you lost the contract. Make sure you sign a contract with a company for commercial. So you will not lose out on your comp. They will have to change. Companies at the end of the year. You have all winter to renegotiate. But make sure. You whine and dine your customers.. check up on them. While you're out eating lunch. See if you can read negotiate your contract. Remember you're there to make money. You can only go so low.
I don't do fertilization and weed control... I refer that work to another company who doesn't mow... they send me all their mowing and I send them fertilization... it works out great. I will say, I am interested in fertilization and weed control in the future. Regarding flower beds... we will use glyphosate for weed control on some properties, but I don't advertise that we do it. I don't want to be involved with chemicals and licensing just yet.
Weekly Q and A: “Do you charge everything a la carte or do you bundle certain services? I recall you commented on a video that Brian’s Lawn Maintenance did on the topic of contracts vs a la carte. Can you please elaborate on how you approached this in your market and how/if this has changed from the launch of your business until now. This is the biggest hurdle I am facing right now as I start my new lawn business. I can’t decide/figure out how to structure this. Please help. Thanks. -Thomas, Atlanta GA
I charge everything a la carte. Margins gets squeezed too much and there's too much grey area in a flat fee that covers everything... weather changes things, growing habits change... I have chosen to be paid for each service we provide, and I ensure that each service is profitable and can stand on its own. If the service does not meet our per man hr rate, we do not offer it.
Florida Turf Pros thanks for clearing that up. I currently have everything a la carte, I just wasn’t sure if I was missing something with the bundled services.
Yes, I have. Typically I just 1099 them at the end of the year. Client pays me, I pay contractor, and keep the difference. I don't do a lot of that type of work, but I have some friends who are just a middle man for contractors and make a lot of money.
Awesome I really appreciate that man I’m in Florida also by Orlando and my business is picking up every day I’m getting a web design here soon and I like going with people that are referred by other successful businesses like yourself thank you and God bless
@@FloridaTurfPros I use it for all the shrub jobs. I toss the debris in them. They have a cover attached. And they zip closed. I've been running these for probably five years. And then in the fall I use those for leaves. I hope it works for you.
witness a guy getting his livelihood destroyed by doing all commercial. huge underbidding company came in and pretty much took all his work. he only had 10% residential. went from 3 crews to solo real quick
PCGonline Dang man... that was my nightmare scenario.
Probably one of those franchises. They undercut everyone
@@jaysheldon6443 believe it was
PCGonline yeah they come in and do a shit job and then they’re right back to the other guy.
That's the one bad thing about commercial they are great money but they go up for bid every year or 2
I like having 3 HOA's... I don't want more for the same reasons. Keeps the 💰 coming in through the Winter. I don't like to beat myself up through winter.
im going to do both because grass is grass...
The only thing I really like about commercial properties is that you don't have to wait to 7AM to get to work
Weekly Q & A: "How do you structure your yearly work given you do not require contracts?" For example, do you communicate to customers that you will be provide bi-weekly service from March - October and then step back to 1X/Month during winter, or do you simply let folks decide when they are "done" with lawn care for the season. Thanks man! Love your content
Nathan
Augusta, GA
Hey, Nathan: I ended up doing a video on what we do during the winter, but I wanted to follow up to your question. Most clients are fine with us coming one time a month during the winter. We tell them when they come on board with us that we only come one time a month during the winter and they seem to all be ok with this. I don't do a lot during the winter honestly though.. I do let them know that normal mowing resumes the first week of March weather permitting.
@FloridaTurfPros are you now doing biweekly? This was 3 years ago. Any difference?
The only difference in residential is you have to deal with alot more people which can be a head ache where as commercial usually you deal with one person on multiple properties
video starts at 2:17
I do commercial properties Monday through Wednesday .Thursday through Friday is residential. I get a little bit of both.
I think having a balance is a good strategy. Year round work and higher ticket items can't be denied with commercial work.
Let us here you play those 🎸
Weekly Q & A: what do you do during the winter months. With yourself and your crew?
I gotcha.
Some companies hang christmas lights
Tree work always a possibility for my crew
This is my second year in business. I work solo except on weekends my wife helps out sometimes. We mow 9 pretty large residential clients and we picked up our 1st commercial acct late this past july. I make more off the one commercial than i do with all my residential. That being said it is a lot more work and i do have to wait for them to mail my monthly check. So it has its drawbacks. But putting it all in perspective i would take on maybe 2 more smaller commercial accts and thats all until i had some real help and better machines. I will stay mainly residential though for the most part.
Are you using YardBook and do you get a "card on file" up front to guarantee you get paid for your work? Thanks and love the vids. Retired Fire/EMS here.
Weekly Q&A- 1) Wifey wants and deserves a vacation. How do you do this when you’re part time and solo? 2) What options do you have if you get hurt/sick and solo.
3)How would you deal with a longtime customer who has began complaining about little things everytime you show up, both his neighbors are also customers. 4) How many customers would you realistic maintain being solo. 5) Do you have a set schedule when you start/stop work each day, how many days per week do you work. When do you start and finish your season? 6) Do you work in off season? Yeah I asked a few questions 😂 thanks my man
There are some good questions in here...
Sounds like you need to get hired on with a full time guy before you go all in. Work with a guy a few days a week while you build and run your own route. You'll learn most of what you asked.
Weekly Q&A: Cost of Workers Comp and related Insurances for employees.
Weekly Q&A: " how do you handle if you become too sick to work for a week , senario: solo with helper who is my son , both very sick , new to lawn care lots of customers to care for.
- thanks Jonathan keep up the great work
Customer communication, let them know. They usually understand. The ones that dont F them
I'm thinking about starting a weeding company. and do that can of work all time. Do you think it would be a good ideal. To made good money.
You dont haft to do large scale commerical... but most areas are over saturated with joe smoe and a mower or cheap mexican labour... Its better to find work that requires GnL, WC and bonding to avoid competing with the people mentioned above... unless your one of those guys... C grade work in larger commercials is also less competitive then A grade... most of the guys doing C grade dont have quality.. as long as your quality is up they usually dont shop too much on you
Can you sale residential accounts when you retire?
I agree with you on residential vs commercial work; I don't currently have any commercial accounts but I am also not overly interested in going that direction. If one wanted my service enough to seek me out and work on my terms and price then I'd do it but I am not going out of my way to pick them up
Residential nice, but the real money is in commercial! In my opinion you have to do both.
I have a commercial property and a residential property that’s 1 1/2 acres that I do for a guy. I am about to drop him because it’s just to much wear and tear on my machines and very exhausting for one man to do by themself. The small residential lawns I have found to be the most profitable and hardly wear out your equipment or your energy level
I totally agree... I let all my big residential go two years ago.. higher margins in small properties.
im solo, but i agree with you....
Commercial will be much harder to collect on if they stop paying. You can be mowing the property up the street, but the people cutting the check could be 5 states away.
Great info again. Thanks for the great videos.
Great content as always Johnathin!!! Thank you and keep up the good work!!!
Weekly Q&A:. Mowing height?
Weekly Q&A: what do you recommend a truck rack system or a trailer for a setup?
They both have their pros and cons... just starting out I would say trailer... is more versatile for hauling debris, and if a truck does down you can easily get a rental to hook up to... once you have your ideal client and setup dialed in, I do think having a rack system on a truck is worth the extra effort if it's done right.
Roll truck only as long as possible. Faster and nimble. Larger mowers require a trailer but you should be making more by then anyway
Yup for Commercial acct. you would need about 3-month cash flow to start. They have 90days acct rec.
Ya... most of them are difficult, based on feedback from other landscape companies, to get to pay in a timely fashion... that's a deal breaker for me.
Billing (Residential) a net 30, has been one of the worst things I've done. This year, we will be using card on file system.
Ya, net30 is tough man... card on file is a game changer.
I been doing commercial for 10 yrs same apt complex n same company
Weekly Q and A: When going into an interview for a new customer, is there common things you go over with them? Is there a list of questions for the customer to help understand what the customer is expecting?
Marquardt's Lawn Service I have developed a simple one page sheet for my Lawn care business that I use to gather the information I need in order to respond with a written proposal. It helps to remember all the things I need to ask or determine up front. Call me if you want a copy. Larry McGowen, McGowen Lawn Care. 314-495-1847
Hi there, I have been trying to come up with a short, simple and to the point 1 page sheet to go over all the customers needs and what Sevices I offer. I’m getting my lawn care business going here in March and have a huge residential contract. Thanks... if you could let me see what you’ve come up with, that would be great.
How many lawns did you have before you quit your job
Video on getting over the hump from solo to employees. Seems like if i get a few more i will need help but those few more dont cover his pay
One the most informative videos I’ve seen! I can tell I’m gonna like the Q&A
Face it lawn mower business is just like any other business. For a few cents people will change. Does it matter if it's commercial or not. People are raised to be cheap save every penny. Doesn't matter how much money you got invested in your equipment. You have to correctly bid the job. To make money. Them guys came in to underbid you. Just keep going in. Hitting them up. To see if they're doing a better job than you did at the place that you lost the contract. Make sure you sign a contract with a company for commercial. So you will not lose out on your comp. They will have to change. Companies at the end of the year. You have all winter to renegotiate. But make sure. You whine and dine your customers.. check up on them. While you're out eating lunch. See if you can read negotiate your contract. Remember you're there to make money. You can only go so low.
Weekly Q & A: What other services do you provide other than cutting and hedge trimming?
Flower bed mulching, pine straw, small installation and small landscape work, and sod. I really like sod...
Weekly Q and A: how did you determine what your per man hour rate should be?
At least a dollar per minute. Thats a solid starting point.
👍
weekly q and a-do you spray/fertilize?explain why you chose to or not to.(particularly flower beds)thank you Jonathan
I don't do fertilization and weed control... I refer that work to another company who doesn't mow... they send me all their mowing and I send them fertilization... it works out great. I will say, I am interested in fertilization and weed control in the future. Regarding flower beds... we will use glyphosate for weed control on some properties, but I don't advertise that we do it. I don't want to be involved with chemicals and licensing just yet.
thank you for reply
Weekly Q and A: “Do you charge everything a la carte or do you bundle certain services? I recall you commented on a video that Brian’s Lawn Maintenance did on the topic of contracts vs a la carte. Can you please elaborate on how you approached this in your market and how/if this has changed from the launch of your business until now. This is the biggest hurdle I am facing right now as I start my new lawn business. I can’t decide/figure out how to structure this. Please help. Thanks. -Thomas, Atlanta GA
I'm in Greenville SC. I do a la cate. I have some friends that bundle and end up making less in the end.
I charge everything a la carte. Margins gets squeezed too much and there's too much grey area in a flat fee that covers everything... weather changes things, growing habits change... I have chosen to be paid for each service we provide, and I ensure that each service is profitable and can stand on its own. If the service does not meet our per man hr rate, we do not offer it.
Florida Turf Pros thanks for clearing that up. I currently have everything a la carte, I just wasn’t sure if I was missing something with the bundled services.
Have u done buisness with contractors, and how would u deal with it if u had to do it.
Yes, I have. Typically I just 1099 them at the end of the year. Client pays me, I pay contractor, and keep the difference. I don't do a lot of that type of work, but I have some friends who are just a middle man for contractors and make a lot of money.
What was the website guy you used ?
I used Jay Yorty with Yorty Web Designs.. tell Jay I sent you.
Awesome I really appreciate that man I’m in Florida also by Orlando and my business is picking up every day I’m getting a web design here soon and I like going with people that are referred by other successful businesses like yourself thank you and God bless
Hi Johnathan, say did you check into the company that I told you about?
Brian Larsen I sure did. I’m really interested in the cube bags.
@@FloridaTurfPros I use it for all the shrub jobs. I toss the debris in them. They have a cover attached. And they zip closed. I've been running these for probably five years. And then in the fall I use those for leaves. I hope it works for you.
@@FloridaTurfPros if you want to see a picture of these I'd be happy to send you one if I could picture text youto your company phone number.
Do you have a link to the cube bags, im curious?
@@CA34562 no. I'm not a computer guy so I'm not sure. Lol