Free Information about Starting a Lawn Care Business
Select any of the following topics to learn more:Business Plan for a Lawn Care Business
General Advice for Lawn Maintenance
Methods of Pricing a Lawn Job
Business Plan for a Lawn Care Business
Most entrepreneurs will say that having a clearly written and cohesive business plan in place before starting a new venture is absolutely critical to the success of your efforts. In fact, most outside lenders will not even consider loaning start-up money to a business owner, who does not have a strong business plan. Even if your intention is not to seek outside funding for your lawn care business, which is the case for many lawn businesses, it is still good practice to write a business plan, so that the overall vision, goals, and operating procedures for your company will be clearly established.
A business plan does not need to be exceptionally formal, especially if its sole purpose is keep you, the business owner, on track. In this case, an informal business plan will be sufficient. A good place to start formulating your business plan will be to honestly and realistically answer the following questions.
- Expected Earnings & Goal Earnings: Expected earnings is the amount of money you believe should be easily possible, and Goal earnings is the amount of money you believe is possible with significant more effort. Obviously, this will be region-specific, but try to state numbers that are realistic. State both gross income and net income. Try to estimate the figures on a weekly, monthly, and yearly basis.
- Distribution of Income Among Services Offered: Based on the numbers you state above, estimate how much of that money will come from each of the services you offer, such as lawn mowing, fertilizing, etc.
- Equipment to Purchase: Calculate the cost(s) for the initial equipment you will need to start your business. If you already have a lawn mower for your own yard and intend to use that on your first few lawn jobs to save money, state that as well. Make sure you have a clear picture of how much (if at all) it will cost you to gather all the neccessary tools and equipment. (The Start-up Expense Worksheet included in the "Lawns of Wealth" package will be really helpful in determining an overall cost of start-up equipment).
- Clientele Details: Try to estimate how many clients you will need to serve each week, month and year in order to break even and in order to be profitable and achieve the earnings goals you established above. Take into account how many employees will be working for you and how many clients each of them need to serve so that the company is meeting its financial goals. Also state here details about your expected clients, such as the following:
- What part of town do they live?
- How big is their yard?
- Advertising and Marketing Approach: Determine how you will advertise and market your business. State the various avenues that you will pursue to get your business name out in the public. Identify the costs associated with each of the avenues, and estimate the relative importance of each of these advertising avenues in bringing you lucrative clients.
General Advice for Lawn Maintenance
Maintaining a lawn in peak condition is not difficult but it does require some specialized knowledge a little bit of effort. The following tips are generally good rules of thumb:
- Check the Soil: If your lawn does not look healthy and you cannot figure out what could be the culprit, it is a good idea to get a sample of the soil tested. This will be the fastest way to pinpoint the exact cause of the problem and begin a remediation process.
- Don't Over-Mow: Sometimes homeowners are tempted to cut the blades of grass extra short, since lawn mowing is a very time-consuming activity. However, when the grass is too short, the environment becomes too conducive to weed growth and that can mean a lot of additional problems for your lawn.
- Use Mulch As Recommended: Mulch is a great way to further protect your lawn from the elements. It provides various nutrients and shields the soil from harsh external factors.
- Water Appropriately: Many people make the mistake of over-watering their lawns, and the excessively wet environment then becomes the perfect breeding ground for fungus. Avoid this headache by watering only as necessary. In many cases, Mother Nature will provide enough rain for healthy lawns to last a long time without additional watering.
- Watch Those Thatches: Thatches tends to form at the surface of the soil and consist of stems, roots, and other debris. This acts to shield the roots from receiving helpful nutrients and so every lawn should be de-thatched at least once per year in order to maintain the health of the lawn.
Methods of Pricing a Lawn Job
Determining an accurate method of pricing lawn jobs is absolutely crucial to the success of your lawn care business. One of the most common ways to calculate the price of a lawn job is on a time basis. This means that you will charge for the lawn job based on how much time it takes you to complete the job.
First, start by surveying the size, shape and features of the lawn. Pay attention to the existence of shrubs, trees, fountains, pools, etc. that will affect the amount of time required to service the lawn. For example, if a lawn has an intricate pattern of permanent fixtures, such as fountains and a pool, that lawn will require a lawn mower operators to navigate through the space in a more time-consuming manner than a lawn that is flat, level, and has no remarkable features.
After you determine the amount of time in minutes necessary for one worker to complete the job, quote the price of the job at a rate that is specific to your local market. A general rule of thumb is to charge $1 per minute. For example, if the job takes 45 minutes, you could quote a price of $45. However, keep in mind that the amount charged per minute will vary widely across the country. In some regions, you could charge $1.50 per minute, whereas in other areas $0.60 is the norm. It is best to become familiar with your local market, so that you charge an amount that is compatible with your local market. In the "Lawns of Wealth" guide, there is an extremely useful tip that outlines the most accurate way to determine the hourly rate that your local market will sustain.
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