Hello Everybody

[AG Lawn Cutting]

I am new in the forum and I would like to introduce myself: My name is Andrew from Toronto, ON Canada. I am a new business owner-operating since Dec 2009. I currently have about 40 customers and hopefully by the end of the year I will have some more. I read some of the posts here and found them really useful so I decided to join the community. It's grat to see people helping each other like this. I love this forum. Look forward to learn new things and help others as well. Andrew

[Simpkins]

Lawn care business tips

Welcome to the forum AG. It really is an odd place. You usually don't find people as helpful as they seem on here. There is a lot to learn and it seems everyone is willing to share.

[Steve]

Hi Andrew,

Welcome to our forum!

You sound like you are doing great!

So often, we see new lawn care business owners really have troubles breaking through having just a handful of customers. What advice do you have for those new start ups to get to the point of having 40 customers?

What do you feel has worked the best and what do you feel you experimented with that just didn't work out?

[AG Lawn Cutting]

Originally Posted by Steve

Hi Andrew,

Welcome to our forum!

You sound like you are doing great!

So often, we see new lawn care business owners really have troubles breaking through having just a handful of customers. What advice do you have for those new start ups to get to the point of having 40 customers?

What do you feel has worked the best and what do you feel you experimented with that just didn't work out?

Well I would honestly say that some knowledge in computer and software programming and a little bit of website design was really helpful to advertise my company online. References from current customers also played a big roll. Another factor that really helped me was networking; I have a lot of friends who have been in business for over 20 years. So they helped me out. lol

However not everything was so smooth as it seems to be. Last year was more like a learning experience. I had about 7 years of experience as landscape frontman and yet I never new all the new challenges that by running a business I would have to face.

I guess everybody has an interesting story to tell. So, again, I am here to learn and help others as well.

Thanks

[Steve]

yet I never new all the new challenges that by running a business I would have to face.

For those who have yet to take those steps but are planning on it, what challenges do you feel they need to be aware of and look out for?

[AG Lawn Cutting]

Originally Posted by Steve

For those who have yet to take those steps but are planning on it, what challenges do you feel they need to be aware of and look out for?

When it comes to business, you not only have to just do the job right, but also you need to give a little bit more than that. Specially with a small business. You need to be prepared to be the guy who hires the workers, meets the clients, does the billing, does the taxes, takes care of the truck and the equipment, purchases the equipment, answers the telephone, gives quotes, etc. It can get exhausting sometimes. It is not like when you work for somebody else. Eventually, it becomes pretty much part of your life and a daily routine. In the end there is nothing better than this sense of accomplishment you get as you see your business growing and doing ok.

[Steve]

I had about 7 years of experience as landscape frontman

What is your view on how this experience helped you? Do you recommend others work for a lawn care company first before they go out and start their own? Are there advantages or disadvantages to this?

[AG Lawn Cutting]

Originally Posted by Steve

What is your view on how this experience helped you? Do you recommend others work for a lawn care company first before they go out and start their own? Are there advantages or disadvantages to this?

Experience helps quite a bit since it gives you an overall idea of the business. For those who want to start a landscaping business without experience I would recommend hiring the right people who know how to do the work.

[Steve]

Do you think there is a top 5 list of things you learned through working with other companies that you apply today, that you wouldn't have known just starting on your own with no experience?