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For mowing only I wouldn't pay unless the area was huge. Mowing is the easy part. Edging and maintaining non-lawn areas is what I'd happily pay for if I could find someone who did a good job.
I can mow, and I want to break into the landscaping market. My selling point for now is "cheap and fast". Everybody already has somebody that mows their lawn plus all these other services I don't know how to do. I couldn't compete with them when it comes to versatility or experience, but I can mow your yard quick and cheap with my push-mower and not leave those bald spots I see in some people's yards. I can also use a leaf blower and rake leaves. My only work experience so far is being a snowball salesman (under my mom) THEN being a pharmacy technician for 3 years (working for CVS). I'm getting bored with pharmacy tech, though, and I'm looking for an extra cash flow, preferably where I am my own boss and where I don't have to report it...so definately cash-only and small transactions. Lawn-mowing is one of my many ideas.
After telling me if this is a viable side business or if I should keep brainstorming.
I'm going to be honest, I like the idea of running a business, but my mom is the one with all the business brains and I usually make bad decisions if I don't consult a lot of people first, like I'm doing now.
Just go out and try it! Do not waste time agonizing! Remember the NIKE slogan; "just do it!"
I can mow, and I want to break into the landscaping market. My selling point for now is "cheap and fast". Everybody already has somebody that mows their lawn plus all these other services I don't know how to do. I couldn't compete with them when it comes to versatility or experience, but I can mow your yard quick and cheap with my push-mower and not leave those bald spots I see in some people's yards. I can also use a leaf blower and rake leaves. My only work experience so far is being a snowball salesman (under my mom) THEN being a pharmacy technician for 3 years (working for CVS). I'm getting bored with pharmacy tech, though, and I'm looking for an extra cash flow, preferably where I am my own boss and where I don't have to report it...so definately cash-only and small transactions. Lawn-mowing is one of my many ideas.
After telling me if this is a viable side business or if I should keep brainstorming.
I'm going to be honest, I like the idea of running a business, but my mom is the one with all the business brains and I usually make bad decisions if I don't consult a lot of people first, like I'm doing now.
Many many moons ago, I used to take care of at least 13 properties {70s/early 80s}.
Almost everyone has a lawn mower, so to keep it cheap, I used THEIR lawn mower, and THEIR trimmers. I made THEM pay for gas, oil and maintenance< though I would offer to get it for them. I'd refill as necessary.
At the time, minimum wage was about $3.00/hr and I calculated how long it would take me to mow their lawn and trim it at $8./hour. That was what I charged them, a set fee there after, each time I mowed.
If their yard required some updating maintenance {trimming under fences so I wouldn't have to each time} or bushes trimmed, I charged them what I thought I could do in an hour, spending no more than an hour extra each time I mowed until I got it "into shape". This meant less total work for me in the long run.
If they wanted extra work, lioke planting things, I charged them $5/h extra to so so while I was there.
For just lawn mowing and basic maintenance: Calculate: 1}what you want per hour, 2} how long it will take you. 3}prorated equipment costs if you provide, including gas and oil and maintenance {or until "throw away value} and come up with the charge. 4} determine the extra costs for "other things they may want done"
For example, If they had a push mower and it was a city lot, I'd calculate It might take me an hour and a half, I charged them $12/per mowing. If I spent just 15 minutes or a half hour extra of my own time getting it "in shape" initially, then I could get it down to mowing in 45 min, and the fee was still $12. The faster I mowed, the higher my effective wage per hour was. The more I could do in less time, meant either more time to myself, or more clients i could take on. Usually they were older empty nesters who had let their yards go. Same if the they had a ride-on.
Often I got got extra monies or referrals for the excellent job I did, that was priority NUMBER ONE: excellent, reliable service and results.
I required them to get the mower serviced/sharpened every other year.
Eventually I carried things like my own weed eater
One lady owned her house, and 7 rental properties,both as large as a 5 unit building and as small as "hardly" {Hardly a yard}. I became her go-to man for that, and snow removal in winter {which in LA you should not have}. In winter I charged by the inches. i got her as she noted how well I was taking care of her neighbor's yard, another referral from one of my clients.
Priority NUMBER ONE: give excellent service, prove yourself reliable and you will win over clients. DON"T take on more than you can reasonably do in a week. Be available for other services, such as what I called "beautification elements". If they own NO equipment, add a surcharge for using your own equipment.
Also: find out what charges others charge to do your yard {whether you own it or not} and then discount your rate by the estimation you take to mow the yard in question. For multiple or large properties, offer a further discount. If they want to charge $35 to mow your yard, plan to charge $25 for a similar property, if that gives you the hourly wage you desire.
best of luck to you, Up here there are SO MANY COMPETITORS, all of whom come with their own equipment on trailers. Some of it is expensive equipment, making their fees expensive for an average city urban plot. If I were to reenter the field today, I'd still be cheaper!
I can mow, and I want to break into the landscaping market. My selling point for now is "cheap and fast". Everybody already has somebody that mows their lawn plus all these other services I don't know how to do. I couldn't compete with them when it comes to versatility or experience, but I can mow your yard quick and cheap with my push-mower and not leave those bald spots I see in some people's yards. I can also use a leaf blower and rake leaves. My only work experience so far is being a snowball salesman (under my mom) THEN being a pharmacy technician for 3 years (working for CVS). I'm getting bored with pharmacy tech, though, and I'm looking for an extra cash flow, preferably where I am my own boss and where I don't have to report it...so definately cash-only and small transactions. Lawn-mowing is one of my many ideas.
After telling me if this is a viable side business or if I should keep brainstorming.
I'm going to be honest, I like the idea of running a business, but my mom is the one with all the business brains and I usually make bad decisions if I don't consult a lot of people first, like I'm doing now.
Depends a LOT on geographical area, size of city, size of yard.
I paid $30 a pop, twice a month (so $60/mo.)....large economical city (included some edging - not much to speak of, and he bagged leaves, although I told him I didn't care about that, but he did it anyway). I had been paying $35 or $40 before I switched.
I was going to have to pay $60-$100 a pop for a half acre lot in a different geographical area, but didn't move there.
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