Donating services

[guntruck]

One quick question, there is a church right down the road from us, i would LOVE to get this contract. The guy that did it last year stinks. He left big clumps of grass etc. This year i submitted a bid at 65$ for a hair over an acre of field. The other guy was charging 45$, he had a hooptie mower and his son helped him. My soul purpose is not try to beat his price im even a bit higher, but i wanted to donate some services to the church to help persuade them my way. I would eventually like to put this lawn on our web site, its beautiful. What kinds of services could i donate without hurting myself? Maybe like aeration and overseeding with the church paying for material only? Any ideas?

Thanks

[kermit]

Like all forms of charity,you should give what you can, to those causes you feel worthy. I think that giving back to the community is part of being a good citizen, as well as being a good christian. You should give without the expectation of reward.

[Ssouth]

I have two small accounts that I give the labor for fert apps free. This help to make the lawn look better and these two also have given me several refferals. On average they only take 2-3 hours per year extra. Sometimes I have given a free sample of pruning. The good part of this is it's only partial. I can usually get the rest of the pruning work and also charge for the part that I did "free". If you are just wanting to donate you time why not just give them every fouth cut free. Not sure but I believe you can charge this off your taxes as a charitable donation. I'm in the process of trying to get into Habitat for Humanity. I'm willing to donate some of my spare time to charities that can help out in the commmunity.
As you can see there are many ways to donate time, labor, or materials. Just pick the best route for you. It will pay off in the long run either through extra money or good Karma. Lots of luck to you.

[Mark]

Guntruck i think that aeration and overseeding would be a great thing to do.The way i look at it is in my view, Im a Chirstian and everything i do throughout the day is serveing the Lord. I agree with Kermit doing alittle extra is just the right thing to do. Is the Church looking for someone else or are they unhappy with the other cutters work? It sounded like they werent doing a very good job. I always pray about it first ,,then it seems things work out for me. Hope this job is meant for you and you get the work. Marks Mowing Service

[Rex Mann]

Is it your church? If it is. Why not donate the entire service you provide? And, it would be tax deductable in most cases.

If it is not your church then it sounds like you want the property. And, you are justifying it by using the word donation instead of free. If this is the case, do it at your cost. Make sure the Priest, Pastor, Minister or Elders understand this. They in turn will make sure their church community knows it. They will take care of your business as you take care of them. Also, other good things will happen to you - if you understand what I'm saying.

Peace,

Rex

[syzer]

This is not our church just a church down the street. It is a very nice property that many ppl have to pass to go home =). It is a great place to have an awesome lawn and a great place to give some free labor which benefits both ourselves through indirect advertisement and the church by improving the grounds. We could use this account and would love to have it. We will keep you guys posted.


Chris
Precision Landscaping

[Lawn wiz]

You will want to check with your accountant on what is a charitable donation or not. Labor is not a tax deduction if it is donated but material is. You may be able to get a tax deduction for the use of equipment equal to that of the rental value. I have checked into this being I donate time from my company to the Knights of Columbus and also my church. My accountant explained to me that labor is not a tax deduction but if you are paying your guys to work on these sites and not being reimbursed in the way of billing these services then it is a business deduction.

[OBRYANMAINT]

DO WHAT YOU NEED TO ,TO GAIN THE ACCOUNT.....THEN IF YOU WANT TO DONATE THEMsomething go ahead and do it, but my experience is that sometimes being charitable to gain accounts is a bad gamble....if not money thrown away

[65hoss]

If the job is worth $65 don't do things extra to get it. You can do extras for them after you get it if you want. I have a church that I do, when I have left over mulch or a little extra fertilizer I will use it on the church for nothing. They know I will treat them fairly and they do me in return, and I don't even go there.

This is the line I use in contact letters to churches...
"I understand the importance of keeping the church property maintained as a reflection of the congregation in the community."

[geogunn]

sorry--I must differ from the group so far on this one.

in my opinion, if you donate something, it is given freely without the incumberance of hoping to receive anything in return. and this isn't the case you've presented. you simply want the account so that you will better your situation financially.

and there isn't a thing wrong with that. I just wouldn't call it "donating".

GEO

[awm]

Donate service to church is fine.
I think the man its about would be found
doing some needy persons yd,whos not
able to do it thereself.Any time you give
of your self you get the most benefit.

[syzer]

We aren't donating our labor in hopes to gain or get over on the church. The price we actually bid was $60.00. This is a fair price we think given the lawn and obstacles. We were going to offer our additional services free of labor charge to "help" both the church and ourselves in gaining more knowledge of the activities performed. The lawn would also benefit us as the ppl who drive by on the main street will also see it. So it benefits us in indirect but benefits the church much more i would think.


Chris Pasko
Precision Landscaping

[cantoo]

I do the local catholic church cemetery for a fee, we sometimes do the church grounds for free if we have time. The priest usually does it with a 21" mower for exercise.
You should treat this the same as any other high profile property that you want to use for advertising purposes, forget about it being a church. Get paid a reasonable price to do it and do whatever you want to make it look good for your business for free or whatever you want to charge...

[Edited by cantoo on 02-13-2001 at 10:54 PM]

[lsylvain]

When i first got into lawn care I was about 10 years old. I was an alter boy at our church and I started mowing the grounds there on saterdays. Within a few weeks I was mowing 1/4 of the congregation's homes. Being only ten it drove my parents up the wall taking me and picking me up from all of them every week.

I had more jobs then than I do now. It's a shame I went away to college, I'd probibly be a rich man by now. LOL

Anyway, It's just a judgment call. Personally I can't afford to give free services, (don't have the time)

[awm]

Just did this to change number of post from 13.
Silly I RECON