Pricing Fertilizer Treatment

[element009]

Hey guys. I have a few clients that want me to fertilize their lawns throughout the season. However, I'm not sure how to price this service? Do you price it on a per 1000 sq ft basis? How much do you usually charge? What about for spot treating the lawn with weed killer as needed? I also have a few clients with nice lawns, but they still have some weeds here and there. They are interested in getting their lawns in perfect condition. So how much time would one have to spend to get from a good lawn to a great lawn? I don't have much experience in this. I was just licensed a few weeks ago to apply pesticides so the pricing is confusing me. I'm in NJ, by the way.

[hawthornelawncare]

Lawn care business tips

Originally Posted by element009 Hey guys. I have a few clients that want me to fertilize their lawns throughout the season. However, I'm not sure how to price this service? Do you price it on a per 1000 sq ft basis? How much do you usually charge? What about for spot treating the lawn with weed killer as needed? I also have a few clients with nice lawns, but they still have some weeds here and there. They are interested in getting their lawns in perfect condition. So how much time would one have to spend to get from a good lawn to a great lawn? I don't have much experience in this. I was just licensed a few weeks ago to apply pesticides so the pricing is confusing me. I'm in NJ, by the way. Hey there i havent done much fertilization but i can say just figure the square foot of the property and charge by the square footage. or if you want call a few main companys there and see what they would charge for such service. if you live in a house have them come out and give you a quote. might be able to base it off of that

[Steve]

Have you checked out your competitors websites? You might get an idea of the going price range of your area by doing so.

Keep us posted on what you find.

[element009]

I went to the office of Jonathan Green, which is a pretty big turf grass company in the area. I figured out a basic program, and worked out the prices per square footage. Now I have to figure out what to charge. I was thinking maybe a 10% markup on the product, plus 1 man hour of labor charged per application...which is $30 for me. I can't imagine charging any less than that. There would be no point to provide the service. What do you guys think? Say it costs me 50 bucks to get a fertilizer for 15,000 sq ft. I charge them 85....50 w/ 10% markup plus 30 for the work to put the stuff down. Is this too low, too high? i'm lost.

[LawnMoore]

howe you applying it?

doing a 4 application contract?

give me more info ill get you closer to a formula.

[Steve]

Is this too low, too high? i'm lost.

Have you checked around with your competitors websites to see what they are charging? That would give you an idea of what the going rate is. Then you could adjust your prices accordingly.

[MountainViewGreenskeeper]

Originally Posted by element009

I went to the office of Jonathan Green, which is a pretty big turf grass company in the area. I figured out a basic program, and worked out the prices per square footage. Now I have to figure out what to charge. I was thinking maybe a 10% markup on the product, plus 1 man hour of labor charged per application...which is $30 for me. I can't imagine charging any less than that. There would be no point to provide the service. What do you guys think? Say it costs me 50 bucks to get a fertilizer for 15,000 sq ft. I charge them 85....50 w/ 10% markup plus 30 for the work to put the stuff down. Is this too low, too high? i'm lost.

That is pretty close to what we do. Charge a minimum and that covers up to ... sq ft and charge per K sq ft after that is what we do.

If you dont have a minimum your only screwing yourself.

[dclawnfl]

Originally Posted by element009

Hey guys. I have a few clients that want me to fertilize their lawns throughout the season. However, I'm not sure how to price this service? Do you price it on a per 1000 sq ft basis? How much do you usually charge?

What about for spot treating the lawn with weed killer as needed?

I also have a few clients with nice lawns, but they still have some weeds here and there. They are interested in getting their lawns in perfect condition. So how much time would one have to spend to get from a good lawn to a great lawn?

I don't have much experience in this. I was just licensed a few weeks ago to apply pesticides so the pricing is confusing me.

I'm in NJ, by the way.

easy,do this, have them come to you and bid your yard then tell them thank you.done,done and done.

[mark123]

My first question is always "are you licensed to apply these products to your customer's lawns?". Depending on your state you could be looking at big fines if you are not licensed.

There is only one real good way that I've found to be consistent and fair and that's to charge a certain amount per square foot plus a stop charge. The stop charge sets your minimum and keeps the cost fair regardless of the size.

If you do something like a straight charge per square foot then the bigger the lawn gets the more uncompetitive your prices get. If you do it without a stop charge then the smaller the lawn is the more you're giving away for free.

[jymie]

Originally Posted by mark123

My first question is always "are you licensed to apply these products to your customer's lawns?". Depending on your state you could be looking at big fines if you are not licensed.

There is only one real good way that I've found to be consistent and fair and that's to charge a certain amount per square foot plus a stop charge. The stop charge sets your minimum and keeps the cost fair regardless of the size.

If you do something like a straight charge per square foot then the bigger the lawn gets the more uncompetitive your prices get. If you do it without a stop charge then the smaller the lawn is the more you're giving away for free.

In the first post he mentioned that he just got his license to apply pesticides. I agree that having someone come out and price your property will give you a ball park figure to go by.