Buying a client list

[silverado212]

I have the oppurtunity to purchase a client list from a guy,I do not know the seller, who is getting out of the business. Roughly 80 clients. Some he has serviced for 15 yrs with a high yr income of $120,000/ to a low yr income of 60,000. No Contracts. Some are monthly service and others are as needed. Low end to high end properties. No mowing, just landscape maintenance, mulch and some hardscaping work. I am having trouble putting a price to this. My thoughts: It is just a list of names of current and former clients. There are no guarantee they would use my services. Yes I would like to have the work, but I am not willing to pay high dollar for something that potentially could net me little to no return. Any advice would be helpful.

[mark123]

Lawn care business tips

I never understood how you could sell or purchase a client. If someone I didn't hire showed up to work at my house I'd walk him to the edge of my property and wish him a good day.

__________________
Boughter's Lawn Care Services Mowing and Fertilizing in New Castle, PA

[brian'slawncare]

i Never Understood How You Could Sell Or Purchase A Client. If Someone I Didn't Hire Showed Up To Work At My House I'd Walk Him To The Edge Of My Property And Wish Him A Good Day.

Strongly Agree With That

[silverado212]

These are all clients of his that he does work for regularly or as needed. He would send out letters of introduction to all of them with my info and go over all services per each client.

[bruces]

it sounds like what he is selling really isnt much .The monthly victims have netted him how much $$$ ? the only value in his list might be the monthlies as it sounds like the others are just random people who he has done work for previously ,with no real ties to his services .

[StartALawnCareBusiness]

This seems to be a constant question on this board.

I believe you need to analyze your cost of acquiring similar customers. How much money and time will it take you to bring a similar customer onto your roster? I think, if you really look at your costs, it does not take much money or time to attract new customers.

Just as an example: if a $200 newspaper advertisement nets 10 new customers then the cost per customer is $20 + time to meet with each customer. If a lawn care company can attract a new client for $20, why would he ever pay more than that to buy a customer from a competitor?

Also, as said above, many customers will not agree to keep you as their contracted lawn care provider. You might lose a significant portion of the clients you "purchased."

Customer lists can be valuable but you really need to be careful before paying top dollar for someone else's customer list.


Keith

[jymie]

Anyone can throw together a list of addresses. Be very careful that you do not get scammed. Ask to see his equipment etc to verify that he is indeed in business or was. Have you seen him out servicing properties before? I would ask him to take you to a few larger properties so you can meet the customer to get a feel on it. For the same price, you can probably get yourself a list from a list service to solicit those higher end potentials.

[Steve]

Can you get a detailed break down of how much he makes from these customers over a specific time period? Also, how well do you know this seller? Why is he getting out of the business?

Do you want landscape maintenance clients or weekly lawn care clients?

[brian'slawncare]

ask him to ask all his clients if they would be ok with you. have him give them your website and contact info. if they are not ok, ditch it

[silverado212]

Gave him an offer and I don't believe he liked it. Oh well if not.