PDA

View Full Version : Ride-on Tenders



BLUEVBOY
24-08-2008, 08:18 PM
G'day all ,
Been in this caper for about 9 years now and I'm improving the business all the time . Have purchased a ride-on and would like to pick up more work in that area . While I don't expect local guys to give to much away ( I am in Melbourne NEast ) perhaps interstate Lawnies could help . I advertise and search the papers but can't find any larger tenders . If you don't want to broadcast all your secrets perhaps a private email would be more appropriote . Thanks all !

BRAD . READY SET MOW!

lifestyle
24-08-2008, 09:00 PM
It might sound like a logical solution and one that doesn't need mentioning but its often the most overlooked...

Look for businesses (industrial, motels, large country properties etc), and go and see them. Tell them you've been in the industry for 9 years and are looking to expand to larger jobs and ride-on work. If possible, turn up with your work vehicle loaded and trailer hooked up (with signs etc). This will show you are fully equipped and ready to go.

Tell them you'll do a half price service so they can see what your like. This way you getter a better idea how long it will take and can give a more accurate quote.

lawn order
25-08-2008, 10:19 PM
I dropped rather quickly on a bulls back at Mt Isa once.
You want large tenders - I got 'em.
I would appreciate a quote on a quick fix.

lifestyle
26-08-2008, 07:41 AM
I dropped rather quickly on a bulls back at Mt Isa once.
You want large tenders - I got 'em.
I would appreciate a quote on a quick fix.

Hope the swelling went down on them large tenders... :wave-hi:

holdenhead
14-09-2008, 12:03 AM
Hi,

I brought a ride on about 6 months ago as I had a couple of slightly larger jobs that could be ride on jobs but could be push mowed easy enough too.

Since I got the ride on I would have picked up about a dozen good ride on jobs just from having it on the ute. I got 3 in one hit just by stopping at a subway (the food shop not a underground train station) that was in a servo. The manager of the servo saw the sparkling ride on sitting on my old rodeo ute and asked me for a quote on the servo's lawns. I gave him the quote and he was happy so I went ahead and he rings me a couple of days later telling me to go to the other 2 servo's of the same brand that are in ajoining suburbs.

So eat lots of fast food and you might get a few.

Cheers Rick

nick wood
14-11-2008, 09:34 AM
i have just started my own lawn mowing business in brisbane. i have just purchased a ride on mower.
how much should i charge for businesses for me to be on the ride.its 42".
if i want cut parks & main roads stuff how much should i charge/ hr

BLUEVBOY
14-11-2008, 08:17 PM
you should be charging about $120-$150 per hour as a minimum . I have a 42" cut and do acre properties (not all grass , less house tennis court & pool ) for $120

geoff
14-11-2008, 09:04 PM
tenders are very hard as you are competing against the big boys who in our area go for volume so they tend to quote low , then go for the kill when they are in with the company...... around here the going rate for ride on is around 80 to 100 per hour but it depends on what u have ..a fast zero turn or a slower ride on....best to quote the job and what is a good price for your sitiuation ..allow capital outlay of ride on divided by realist work hours , fuel costs and maintenance costs as you know ride ons can be rather expensive....more expensive than a car for a service....
its nice to have ride on jobs but crap when u are no better of than a pushy...

m287j
15-11-2008, 07:31 AM
you should be charging about $120-$150 per hour as a minimum . I have a 42" cut and do acre properties (not all grass , less house tennis court & pool ) for $120

Gees if we charged $120 to $150 per hour for ride-on work in Sydney we would never get any work, prices here are more around the $60 to $70 mark per hour. I consider thiis pricing fair and reasonable particularly compared to other industries.

Bobcat operators only charge around $100 to $130 per hour and their equipment costs 4 times that of a ride-on and the maintenance costs are around 4 times as much as well.

63impala
15-11-2008, 08:41 AM
Thats rite $60-70 here on the gold coast.

geoff
15-11-2008, 01:02 PM
bobcats also charge a min of 4 to 6 hrs down here even if its 10 mins work

Born To Mow
16-11-2008, 08:39 AM
In my area I get $55.00 for my JD Tractor 48'' cut.

Walker mowers get $70.00 an hour and other ZTR's are looking between $60.00 - $70.00 an hour.

I've stopped quoting by the hour and now quote at a set price, can make a bit more especially on jobs that are 1 - 5 acres.

Countrymile
25-01-2009, 04:27 PM
Hi Guys,

Being in an area with a lot of lifestyle properties 1-5 acres, we are often quoting on regular ride on work. We find quoting residential houses fairly straightforward now, but it's a little harder to quote on the acreage properties, and can sometimes take a lot more work than anticipated. We could elect to quote by the hour, but there are too many restrictions with that, like taking a break, talking on the phone etc.

So from now on we have decided to quote a first time price. We are telling the new clients that based on what we see, we can do the job for $X this first time, but we may need to revise the price for an ongoing service after we have been able to fully assess the extent of the job.

We used this method last week, and found the client to be very happy and understanding. It meant a job that was $95 for the first time, was revised to $140 on an ongoing basis.

If we had not done this we would be locked into a low rate for as long as we look after the property. We have another property we look after fortnightly, that we agreed to do for $75 when we were starting. We have now being doing this property for 4 months and it should be at least $120 based on all our other work. I am going to tell the customers next week that we will have to revise the price, and if they have to get another contractor, then we understand, but we cannot continue to do the job at the price. Its 14klm out of town also. Is this the best way to handle this situation?
Cheers
Shannon

tree beard
27-01-2009, 09:50 PM
Hey Country Smile,

Honesty and being up front with the customer is always the best way! even if its a bitter pill!

Most customers will appreciate it, other than the odd scrooge or PITA!

Usually the customer is aware of how long the job takes and the effort you put in, do not be embarressed about doing a good job or underquoting. Its part of the learning curve and makes like kinda fun if your on a winner! :wave-hi: :who-knows :)

A couple of my customers have rounded their prices up without solicitation. But despite the additional money I am still enjoying the work :ebony:

BLUEVBOY
30-01-2009, 07:41 PM
Gees if we charged $120 to $150 per hour for ride-on work in Sydney we would never get any work, prices here are more around the $60 to $70 mark per hour. I consider thiis pricing fair and reasonable particularly compared to other industries.

Bobcat operators only charge around $100 to $130 per hour and their equipment costs 4 times that of a ride-on and the maintenance costs are around 4 times as much as well.

I can cut 2 $35 lawns in an hour with the Honda Buffalo ($70 per hour ) why would I charge the same price for ride-on work. Bob cat operators have 4 hour minimum charge . They can do 2 jobs a day and take $800-$1040 (according to your figures). I can take around $600.
While I'm sure prices would vary widely in different areas ; I believe my prices are comparable with other operators in my area . Don't quote an hourly rate to the customer ! Quote a price for the job and the quicker you do it the more you make per hour .