Some Customers...

So I only have a few customers and thought things were going good.....wrong! One of my customers, who is my boss at my full time job, told me she mowed the lawn this weekend. I was like, ummm why? She said, "well I didn't know if you were going to do it." I mowed her yard on the 6th and she wanted it cut every ten days. So that would make the next cut be on the 16th. So instead of calling me or...oh I don't know.... asking me at work when I was going to cut it she just cuts it. So I lose out on $40.00. Then she says well next time just drive by and if it needs it then cut it. WTF I don't think so. No way am I going to operate my business like that. I told her "how could I do that with over 20 customers?" I have to have a schedule and can't just drive by and cut everyones yard as needed. I sure hope they are not all like that.

[Steve]

Lawn care business tips

I think people will test you at times. Especially those that know you. As the old saying goes, 'familiarity breeds contempt.' If she becomes too much of a pain in the butt to deal with, I would just find other customers to fill her spot. Don't let her get to you though.

__________________
- Subscribe to my Lawn Care Marketing Blog Feed and get daily tips sent to you. Free!
Download your Free trial of Gopher Lawn Care Software.

Do you think I am thinking the right way? I mean for now I could be more laxed since I only have a few clients but when I get more I will not be able to do the mow as needed and cater to every little beck and call each client may have.

[Steve]

Well ultimately it is your call. I have seen a wide range of ways people handle customers on here. I know of at least one lawn care business owner who would tell you that is what employees are for. However, it's my view that this is your company and you need to have fun with it. If a customer is a pain in the ***, find another to fill their spot.

If she is saying this, then I might be tempted to drive by weekly and say yea it needed to be cut.

Then she says well next time just drive by and if it needs it then cut it.

If you want to experiment and see how things go, that's fine too. But as you said, you can't have every customer doing this.

Maybe others will jump in here and offer their opinion.

[justin_time]

I had a few like that last week, they didn't even realise i cut the grass and they called me. And yeah I told them yeah, i cut it, it just grew by the time I got back to their place. haha

[majoe7]

It's nice to see you northerns start getting on a schedule.. LOL When we cut down here and get some rain right after by day 2 or 3 it looks like we never cut the lawn. Wait a week and it grew about 2 inches at least.
Funny how clients react when they aren't doing the job.

The funny thing is it hasn't evened rained and my yard which I fertilized the crap out of and water regularly gets mowed once a week but could go a bit longer. She has not fertilizered or watered her yard at all and still mowed it. I know for a fact it could have waited and the worst part is after the first mow I suggested a weekly service but she declined and said 10 days.

[grassmowers08]

What I do with customers like her is I just schedule them for weekly or a bi weekly and two days before their scheduled I call them.If they say no then I wait till next week and knock them off for that day.

Travis
Greg & Travis' Lawn Service
2 Honda 21 inch HRC216 commercial
Toro 36 inch commercial mower
Echo Blower
Echo String Trimmer
Echo Hedge Trimmer
5x10 Trailer

[justin_time]

Originally Posted by grassmowers08

What I do with customers like her is I just schedule them for weekly or a bi weekly and two days before their scheduled I call them.If they say no then I wait till next week and knock them off for that day.

Travis
Greg & Travis' Lawn Service
2 Honda 21 inch HRC216 commercial
Toro 36 inch commercial mower
Echo Blower
Echo String Trimmer
Echo Hedge Trimmer
5x10 Trailer

I don't beleive in those customers, they don't belong in my lawn care schedule.

It's every week (until a point where it doesn't grow, then i'll drop to 2 weeks) or not at all

[Steve W]

Around here where I live and work the grass dont grow that fast. It has rained here more this year than in the past 4 years tho.I kinda like the 2 week custmers tho. I can do 5 per day 5 days a week and have time every day for other stuff too. I could do more per day if I had them. That means more money to me because I can do 25 this week and 25 next week and do them all by myself without working too hard. We also do computer repairs at night so it works out pretty good for me.