Do any of you have clients who....

[rvincent]

Just want mowing, nothing else. I have someone who I just mow for. I try to sell them up on mulching, tending to their beds and other stuff, but she said they have another landscape co. do it.
Does anyone work with people like this? They are very good clients, have have been for the past 3 years, but I would like to do more for them.

Thanks.

[Woody82986]

You mean just mowing services (mow, trim, edge and blow)? Yes. Quite a few of my clients are just mowing services. For some reason though, a lot of my most tenured clients are starting to realize that I can do a lot more than just mow for them so they are starting to let me take care of more around their property.

[rvincent]

You mean just mowing services (mow, trim, edge and blow)?

Yes, just mowing, trim, edge and cleanup.

[Duekster]

Just want mowing, nothing else. I have someone who I just mow for. I try to sell them up on mulching, tending to their beds and other stuff, but she said they have another landscape co. do it.
Does anyone work with people like this? They are very good clients, have have been for the past 3 years, but I would like to do more for them.

Thanks.

You have to build some trust, she is giving you a shot but not the whole ball of wax.

[RedMax Man]

Oh ya i got some of those. They only want mowing and maintenance and nothing else or think their property looks fine and doesn't need any extra stuff. Doesn't really bother as long as i get paid for what i do. If they want or need extra services then i make sure i'm the guy doing them not have several lco's doing different jobs at one place.

[troy03]

We have a couple of mow only accounts. Some of them have been with me since I started however many years ago. Have tried to upgrade and let them know what else we do, but they either don't want us to do the extra stuff and pay someone else or they just dont like to mow their lawn. Personally, I would rather have all full service contracts to keep my competition off the property.

[daveintoledo]

some of my more profitable accounts are like that, some are not.... but if your making good money, and they are a good customer.... cool

[HOOLIE]

some of my more profitable accounts are like that, some are not.... but if your making good money, and they are a good customer.... cool

I agree...and as much as I'd like each customer to be full-service, it just doesn't seem to work in this area. A lot of customers test-drive an LCO first with the mowing, and if that goes well, they will add-on some services.

Basically there are 2 types of mow-only customers, learning to identify them will make you feel better...

The "Lazy Customer"- this client is just lazy...they hire you because they don't want to mow it themselves. But...they really hate to pay someone to mow it at the same time. For all the new guys, these are the places you pull up to and the beds are overrun with weeds, bushes not trimmed in 10 years, leaves and trash everywhere. Dont' be fooled into thinking "Oh gosh I can make a lot of money off this account" Not gonna happen. They are lazy. Also will comprise the vast majority of your PITA's and chronic late payers.

The "I Value My Time Customer"- this client has come to the conclusion that they have better things to do than mow the lawn each weekend. They are fine with paying $150 a month to free up their weekends. But still, they often actually enjoy working in the yard. They realize that weed-pulling and hedge trimming can be put off to a certain extent, while mowing cannot be. This type of customer will give you little trouble, they typically will pay on time and renew from year to year. They also are relatively open to upsells. Over time they may morph into that elusive "all-inclusive" client. Also responsible for almost all your referrals. Also, either they will be a dual-income, no-kid couple, or a stay at home mom with 2-4 kids type deal.

Personally for a new LCO, it's really hard to just target the better clients...first fill your schedule will profitable accounts, then once you're in the driver's seat you can market yourself as all-inclusive LCO if you wish.

[ncls]

75% of my residentials are mow and go. And that's fine with me. Like the previous poster said, when i pulled up, I saw all the weeds in the beds.
Thought I hit the jackpot, but no, just give me an estimate on cutting.

I have at least 3 or 4 customers, who i have never met, or spoken with, ever, in 10-11 years. They left their address on the answering machine. I gave them an estimate, left it in the mailbox. They got my machine and told me to start cutting it. The check comes every month. I could care less who ferts them. I don't care what the flower beds look like. They obviously don't either.

My invoices, renewal letters, state all the work we do. If they want it, they will call. It doesn't bother me in the least.

One thing. Did I do the best job I could, no matter what the rest of their property looks like? Just because the flower beds are weeds, doesn't mean I blow clippings in them. I treat them just like the full service customers.

[supercuts]

i agree with hoolie and ncls. nothing wrong with mow only customers. it helps open time up for other work on other accounts with much more work. dollar per hour, i would rather simply mow only!. running 2 machines we are usually at or over $100/hr. mulch can work out to about the same, but at times it dips down a bit and its hard work, especially in the heat of the summer. i prefer to sit my butt down and ride around. i do more only to accommodate the customer. with mowing there is no time wasted giving estimates once the account is set up. everytime a customer wants you to do a new job they want to sit and talk and get ideas. you do 3-4 estimates and before you know it a few hours have gone by and your not even making money.