Getting into the business

Liking Tee Time Lawn Care more and more....and the homes I would be servicing would be familiar with golf...mid to upper end. Also like Leisure Time Lawn Care too.......

[Steve]

Lawn care business tips

Bounce the name off of some of your family and friends and see what their reaction is. When do you plan on getting started with this?

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I will do that. So far they like Tee Time Lawn Care and Leisure Time Lawn Care......
I plan on starting next mowing season.....Mid March is usually the first mow here in KC.
Plan is to do a post card mailing and maybe do flyers as well. Have seen some discussion about timing....I am guess if first mow is mid March here....might drop post cards march 1ish.....Would you agree??
RJ

[Steve]

Well, let me ask you, are there any services you could offer now to start reaching out to people in your area? Could you offer general winter yard cleanup services as a precursor for your spring advertising?

RIght now I only have my truck and no other equipment...so I am limited in what I can do. I plan on buying the mower and trailer before the end of the year. But willing to listen to any advice you might have. I am willing to work now but just need to buy equipment.

[Steve]

Well, here is my view. I wouldn't wait for spring. I would get started now to get your feet wet. I would get business cards made up now. I would hand them out to everyone you know.

Then go through the free flyer section here at the top of the page and look to see if any of them strike your fancy.

I know Keith is a big proponent of marketing winter yard clean up services and so am I because it gives you a chance to connect with all these potential clients now. Then when spring rolls around you will already have these contacts you can get to become mowing clients.

You don't need a mower or a trailer now to rake up leaves to clean gutters, to help around the house with cleanups.

I always feel you should get started today doing what ever it is you can do at the moment and then improve upon it as you go.

Why put off until tomorrow that which you can do today

Any thoughts on this?

[StartALawnCareBusiness]

Hi RJ:

It's great you are researching this before jumping right in. Winter is perfect for strategic planning and getting your business started on the right foot.

Equipment - One of the biggest mistakes I see with new LCOs is in equipment selection. Since you are starting early, survey your neighborhood to get an idea of the variety of lawns you will service. Are they flat, big, small, lots of turns, narrow back fence gates, hilly, tall fescue, short bent grass, etc. Once you have a feel, you can visit lawn mower dealers to look at mowers. Demo lots of mowers...walk behind, zero turn, tricycle riders, pistol grips, loop grips, hydro, belt drive, etc. Learn what you like and what you need. Only then will you be able to make a better choice for a mower.

If you can afford it, go commercial all the way. In my experience, store bought equipment does not hold up to commercial use...this goes for string trimmers and blowers too.

Let us know how your equipment search goes and if we can be of further help.

Keith

I have decided on Tee Time Lawn Care and next step...need to design Logo and get business cards ASAP. I plan on handing them out to everyone I know...and don't know Would be willing to do winter yard clean up...not sure about the gutter clean up...not too keen on getting on 20' latter's these days
Not sure what most guys do about removal of leaves...do they have a trailer they haul in and then pay to dump...or do they leave with home owner in bags for city pick up??
Thanks again for all the good advice.
Plan on visiting local dealer and test out the Wright 32" Stander....I "think" I can get some discounting pricing in Dec.

what are your ideas for a logo?

[Steve]

Very nice logo design! I like the dimples on the text as well!