Newbie on the Sunny Coast needing a boost in confidence!

[beegreen]

Hi guys,

I could spend the rest of my days trying to go through all the threads on here... the wealth of knowledge is amazing! I've been on this site nearly every night reading the information which has been so helpful.

I've spent the last 4 months or so setting up my little mowing business & today i finally threw in the towel from my office job & ready to jump in the deep end & make this work. I know this time of year i'm taking a huge risk however i've been advertising in the local rags the last 4 weeks & have missing out on calls/quotes/possible jobs simply cause i cant answer my phone during the day. I figure they just move onto the next ad if no one answers straight away cause they're not leaving a message.

I'm here to make this work, make a living out of it, look professional & be professional. I've purchased everything brand new & am ready to rock n roll!

I don't really have any specific questions but could ask a million at the same time. This is more of an outlet for me cause basically the nerves are getting to me so if guys have any feedback that would be greatly appreciated.

I've advertised on every free website i could possibly find, trailer signage goes on tomorrow, letterbox flyers go out next week til my feet are sore, local rags, going to write introduction letters to the Realestate Agents & personally hand them in with marketing material. Find as many local noticeboards around town. Hopefully that should generate some work.

As for pricing... well where do i start. Not sure if this is even the right thread to comment on that. Would really appreciate some feedback specifically on that topic. I've been quoting a standard lawn around the $45 mark.

Do you think life would be easier if i charged gardening work by the hr rather than quoting for the actual job & getting it completely wrong? I've got a huge hedging job on Mon & would love to know what you guys charge per hr for hedging vs general gardening wrk without machinery.

I'm rambling on now. Guess i just wanted to introduce myself & take in any advice you professional guys out there may have!

Cheers.... Pete

[Sandgroper]

I give folks a price for garden jobs,,if your new thats the best way other wise when they ask you how many hours it will take you will have no idea anyway.

You might get it wrong and work a bit longer on some jobs but its all experience and you will get a good idea over time.

[simo]

Best advice you will ever get.. Get out there learn from experience, The work won`t come to you you have to go get it..As per hr charge experement on what is best for your area.. if you don`t get any quotes lower your price , if you get every quote lift your price..Keep it basic to start with then work on that.. Happy mowing :)

[PaulG]

Gday Pete and welcome.

Re pricing - there's a thread on here about quoting (which, Dean, I think now should be moved to the members area ;) ) that is worth reading and I think there is one regarding prices in general but I can't remember exactly.

Ask 10 blokes about pricing though and you'll get 10 different answers. It's a difficult area as there's no standard for our industry. You really have to compete with the guys in your area and decide what standard of service you will provide for what price.

I know one contractor here in Toowoomba who charges a flat rate of $49.50 +GST for all his gardening work regardless of what he does which makes quoting and invoicing a lot simpler.

Personally I have a different approach where $50 per hour is my base rate for gardening and the price goes up from there, with the dearest service being hedging and chainsaw work.

I quote by the hour for ongoing work, week to week jobs etc but for a one off cleanup I quote one figure which is usually a bit higher.

[beegreen]

Thanks guys for the advice.

I've got a big hedging job on Monday... when i say big it's huge (i'll get some before & after photos to post) & i literally had no idea what to charge for a one off so i quoted $40per hr plus tip fees. I figure i'll be there for most of the day which is fine but now wondering if i should be quoting closer to the $50 or $60 mark as he said yes too quickly. I'll do his lawn as well so should walk away with a few hundred which i should be happy with i guess. Oh well... live & learn!!

The other big question i have which i hope someone can help me out is with invoicing/payments. How do you guys operate in this area? What's easier?

It is best to try to get cash on the day & if they're not home organise a place for them to put the money. I was thinking of sending a courtesy text message to my jobs the night before to give them a heads up. Or is it more professional/easier to email an invoice out at the end of the day with a payment due date?

Once again, i know i'm probably in the wrong thread to be asking these questions but these are things that are keeping me up at night at the moment:(

Pete

[Fred's mowing]

I would consider $40/Hr to be on the low side, but thats up to u.
Again, your quoting/pricing depends on your position & if your starting out with little/no work, its hard. At least try & wack the GST on that.
Also, being new & quoting can be daunting & on an hourly rate, at least thats what u'll get.
Post up the pics when your done. I think someone started a hedge pic category, but it dissapeared:rolleyes:.
Cheers Dean.

[beegreen]

Cheers Dean,

That's exactly what i figured for quoting by the hr... at least i know what i'll be getting rather than under quoting & losing money or over quoting & losing the job... at least for now anyway. I'll definitely bump up the price to that closer $1 per min which many people seem to talk about on this site:)

[Stripes]

Welcome to the forum Pete.

$40 per hour is ok when you are starting out, but as you start to get more experience and more work you can gradually bump it up until you start to get a lot of "No's" from the quotes you are doing. You will then find out if you are at the maximum going rate for your area.

The next job like this you quote you will have a better idea of how long it will take and also don't forget to charge for rubbish removal for the clippings. Look at how long you think the job will take, add on another 15% to allow for misjudgement, add on your tip fees (including any travel time/ fuel to get there) and see how you go. I found it much easier to quote for the job rather than an hourly rate. If you still quote with the hourly rate, still try to do these things and see how close you were to the price at the end of the job.

Most people like to know exactly what it will cost them rather than the unknown of an hourly rate. It can lead to disputes if you quote a job on an hourly rate and they ask how long you think it will take, and if you have underestimated it they can start to carry on, even over small amounts. This can lead to them telling everyone they know you ripped them off, even though you didn't, but in their eyes you deliberately deceived them. One thing I have always remembered from a TAFE teacher

Do a good job and the client might tell people how good you were. Do something wrong and they will tell everyone how bad you are!

[Stump]

Hi Begreen
I also took the plunge and worked up the courage to ditch my dayjob a few months ago. I got alot of inspiration from following an American guy on youtube called "lawncaremillionaire" He gives great advice on the kind of things that you should be setting in place.
One of his biggest bugbears is companys simply not answering calls straight away. So many guys dont.
Getting you foot in the door is the most important thing at this stage. Whatever you do, dont sit around waiting for the phone to ring. Get out there and into it from the get-go.

[happymowin]

hi mate welcome,

firstly you gotta make your best guess as to how long a job will take, and how much the waste transfer will cost/hassle you.

then these are the rates i use , keeping in mind i'm a hard worker, experienced, my gear doesnt break down etc - eg i had a lady tell me, a job i did in 20 minutes, the old guy would work for 15 mins, have a lunch break and coffee, then finish in another 15 minutes. i work my ass off when i am on a job.

anyway,

pushmowing, grass collected $90 an hour incl removal - minimum fee $45

hedges $90 to $120 an hour depending on how high incl waste removal

rideon mowing, NO REMOVAL $ 90 to 120 an hour. (side discharge walker)

Brushcutting $ 90 an hour NO WASTE REMOVAL

Chainsaw work $ 90 an hour PLUS WASTE REMOVAL at $150 to 220 per BIG UTE LOAD, depending if its easy to handle, or bougainvillea

bougainvillea cleanups, i wont do unless they pay for a 4 inch mulcher hire, and my time at $90 an hour (my wife usually works on these free lol), then i bring the mulcher home and mulch up all the stuff i've accumulated from jobs lol.

"gardening" - wont touch it with a long stick - i brushcut gardens.

i know starting out you want to do every 10 and 20 dollar job you get offered, but if youre cutting lawns at 20 bucks a go, you have no time or energy to chase the good jobs that come in, or promote yourself properly.

cheers mate, good luck

[happymowin]

oh, and i NEVER EVER quote the customer an hourly rate.

i work out how long its gonna take me, then i give them a SET PRICE QUOTATION for the job.

if it takes me longer, they win a bit, if i finish quicker, i win a bit.

but we both know what we are getting.

quote an hourly rate, then they ring the next guy, see if he will work 5 bucks an hour cheaper.

sheesh, everone works at a different pace, depending on their skill level and how hard they want to get home to the fridge.

:)

[beegreen]

Hi Begreen
I also took the plunge and worked up the courage to ditch my dayjob a few months ago. I got alot of inspiration from following an American guy on youtube called "lawncaremillionaire" He gives great advice on the kind of things that you should be setting in place.
One of his biggest bugbears is companys simply not answering calls straight away. So many guys dont.

This is what i found to be a problem while i was working my office job & missing the calls. They wouldn't leave a message & i think they just move on to the next guy.

I hope things have taken off nicely for yourself Stump & business is on the up. I'll definitely check out "lawncaremillionare"... you can never have enough info:)

[beegreen]

hi mate welcome,

pushmowing, grass collected $90 an hour incl removal - minimum fee $45

hedges $90 to $120 an hour depending on how high incl waste removal

rideon mowing, NO REMOVAL $ 90 to 120 an hour. (side discharge walker)

Brushcutting $ 90 an hour NO WASTE REMOVAL

Chainsaw work $ 90 an hour PLUS WASTE REMOVAL at $150 to 220 per BIG UTE LOAD, depending if its easy to handle, or bougainvillea

cheers mate, good luck

Thanks Happymowin for the info,

I'd be a happy man if i could charge those kind of rates & win the quotes. Business must be good in your neck of the woods:)

Mondays hedging will be a perfect test for me to see how long it'll take vs what i think it will take. I've already quoted by the hr on this one & the customer knows tip fees will be included on top so hopefully he stays a happy man & is pleased with the result.

Looks like next quote will be a one off price... let's see how close i get!

[happymowin]

beegreen, remember that i am quoting a set price, and i work my ass of to get the set price to equal my "hourly rate"

sometimes business isnt good, but id almost rather sit at home than work for $25.

then i'll be fresh when someone rings in with a good job.

dont get me wrong, most guys couldnt live off what i make in winter, but in summer i could employ 2 guys and still have spare leads, people climbing over one another to get me to mow for them at $90 an hour.

be careful, dont do what i did in my first year, collected every cheap arse regular i could find, but then i was too busy working foir $25 to respond to new calls for $60 to $90 mows.

you gotta have a balance.

but its hard in the beginning, we have all worked for $25 in the start.

cheers mate

[beegreen]

be careful, dont do what i did in my first year, collected every cheap arse regular i could find, but then i was too busy working foir $25 to respond to new calls for $60 to $90 mows.

but its hard in the beginning, we have all worked for $25 in the start.

cheers mate

That's some great advice. I did a quote for a little old lady the other day who wanted her lawn done for peanuts. She was asking for pensioner rates & wanted the patches of clover to take over all her lawn cause it was a nicer green. I didn't get the job & walked away thinking thank god for that. To me she'd be nothing but trouble.

I'm trying not to budge on prices & start reasonably around the $45 for now & see what happens come spring/summer. I want good clients who pay on time.... i hope i'm not asking too much.

[geoff]

beegreen mate you are doing fine , that 45 you will find out really quickly whether its too pricey at this time of the year in your area ....for a regular thats pretty good if you can get it and depends on the size of the block of course....

[beegreen]

Thanks Geoff, so far my quotes have seemed to be on the money besides the little old lady who wanted a $5 cut:)

This might be a silly question but can i claim the tip fees or do i just wear the expense & obviously add it on to any quotes that require dumping?

[Fred's mowing]

Thanks Geoff, so far my quotes have seemed to be on the money besides the little old lady who wanted a $5 cut:)

This might be a silly question but can i claim the tip fees or do i just wear the expense & obviously add it on to any quotes that require dumping?

Of course, its a legit business expence.
Cheers Fred.

[Lawnart]

That's some great advice. I did a quote for a little old lady the other day who wanted her lawn done for peanuts. She was asking for pensioner rates & wanted the patches of clover to take over all her lawn cause it was a nicer green. I didn't get the job & walked away thinking thank god for that. To me she'd be nothing but trouble.

I'm trying not to budge on prices & start reasonably around the $45 for now & see what happens come spring/summer. I want good clients who pay on time.... i hope i'm not asking too much.

Hi Beegreen
Good to see another indy bloke up here on the coast, hopefully will meet you while travelling around up here.
The quote you did for the little old lady sounds like she may have rang me for a quote also, when i told her the price she replied "some other guy said he would do it for half that price can you match it?" to which i said no. She then tried the "but I'm a pensioner" to which I replied politely "lucky you! if I was to do jobs at that price I might as well stay at home on the dole cause I'd make more. Thanks for the call but you had best ring the bloke who can do it for half the price i can before he changes his mind".
Anyway good luck with your business see you round the traps.
Ric