venting about a customer

[huh]

I picked up a customer from a referral....wants it done every two weeks on Friday.....she will not be at home when it is done

first time I show up do her postage size front lawn then go to the back and right as I walk in one of her solar walkway lights is there broken on the sidewalk...I did not break it and had not even moved my equipment into the back

look at it and it is snapped off at the base......think to myself "this will be a nice way to start out"

place the light back where it was and mow.....check is not in the BBQ pit....no big deal

second time I show up do the postage stamp and go to the back.......a different light is laying there broken.....look at it and it looks like the top light area has just come out of the base still stuck in the ground......I place the light back in the base and it looks just fine......think to myself "this will probably get stupid"

mow the back.....check is not in the BBQ pit.....call her to tell her I have finished up and leave a message......she calls back a short time later and says thanks for letting her know and gets my address to mail payment for the two times I had cut it......then she ask about the TWO lights that were broken

I tell her that the one was broken the first time I showed up and it looked like it was broken at the base but that it was broken when I stepped into the back before I had even done a thing.....I tell her that when I had showed up earlier that day (second cut) that the top of the other light was laying on the sidewalk before I even started and that I had placed the top back in the base and it looked like it was holding (wondered how she would have known it was broken since I had put it back together)

payment arrives (great)

go there for third cut and before I even get my equipment out of the truck there is a light broken in the FRONT yard in an area of the flower bed that does not even have my equipment come close to it.....I think "now I know this will get stupid"

I look at it before I even do a thing and it looks like the top broke out of the base....I leave it right where it is laying and mow

I will admit that on this visit for some stupid reason her lawn was a bit wavy after I was done in the back (she has super short bermuda and it had just rained)......check was not in the BBQ grill (no big deal)......I will admit I thought about going back over the waves, but I blew that off because I was already wondering what the hell was up with a light being broken every time I rolled up.....the neighbor had actually come out to check his mail when I first rolled up and before I had even started any equipment and I thought about asking him to look and see that the light was broken before I even had set foot on the lawn, but blew it off because I thought that sounded stupid

pull up for forth cut today......right as I roll up there is a board of her small two foot high fence that separates her lawn from the neighbors sitting on the ground nails up and then another piece of it that was an end cap sitting on the sidewalk......I think to myself "this will get stupid 100% positive"

I can't even think how someone broke that part of the fence because if they hit it with a car they would have hit the double brick mailboxes.....unless some kid was ridding down the sidewalk on a bike and clipped it......it happens to be right in the area where I have to push my mower through between the shrub and the fence to cut the postage stamp in the front....I lean it up against the fence and cut the front and back (nothing was laying around broken in the back this time thank God).....check was not in the BBQ grill (no big deal)

I do not call her after this time because I just figured I would see what happened between now and the next cut

well she calls later today and ask me if I cut it last time....I say yes.....she ask if I cut it this time....I say yes....she ask for my address again to send the check....I give it......then she says "what is the deal with the fence"......I explain that it was like that when I rolled up and I have no clue

she then says well her lawn in the back was wavy the last time I did it (it was but I did not say anything because at this point I am thinking about blowing her off anyway) and that she was not happy with me and would start to do it herself again (she did not bring up the light broken in the front from the time I was there for the third cut)

so yes I left it wavy......but I am pretty sure the real deal is all the BS that was laying broken around her yard.....also when I showed up for the third cut there was some blue stained areas right around her AC unit out into the yard like some blue liquid had run out of the AC....again I thought "this will get stupid".....she never mentioned that so I assume her AC had a leak check done and she was actually aware of them checking it out

I also cut the lady that referred me usually every two weeks.....time before last at her place as I am weedeating there is a busted sprinkler head on the side of her house and a part of her fence blown down in the back....so before I even get my mower out I call her and ask if she is aware of this......she says the sprinkler head must have happened the week before (she is divorced and I believe when her sons stay with her they cut it) and she thanks me for telling her about the fence and says she will get it fixed....also says that she never uses that side of the sprinklers because the neighbors cover to over there.....we both laugh.....it is a nice house and fence, just the "new builder" crapsmanship showing....check is always in BBQ grill.....last time I went the fence was down again and had killed the yard a bit, but I set it back up.....check is there

so just trying to vent and wondering if any of you have a customer that went like this....three lights broken then the stupid fence.....every one of them right there broken when I pulled up....and the one that she should have not known about because I set the top back in the base and it was in firm

was I being kind of "set up" for being let go when it got less hot or when her BF cut it again or just dealing with a nut....I have NO CLUE how any of the lights would be broken without her knowing unless she has a big dog which I have not seen and never seen and "sign" from.....even less clue about the light in front and the fence.....at this point don't really care and kind of glad to get rid of her

just wondering if any of you can answer WTF.....it is beyond me what is going on around her place or how she is clueless to it....now I wish I had cut the wavy part again just to know what she would have said to get rid of me

well just venting and wondering WTF......the one lady seems to really like me and has referred me two times......this newer lady just seemed to start of wrong and go from there.....between the lights being busted and the checks not being there I feel like maybe she just wanted to have to "talk" to me so she could bring up all the broken crap.....but it ain't me breaking it.....but what the hell is

any of you have a stupid lawn like this and you were pretty glad it was gone when it ended ;)

[johngallaway]

after the conversations over the broken lights i would have always called when i found something before cutting. i might have even called upon finding the first light. i know it would slow me down but it might save a contract that really isnt all that bad and keep it from getting worse.

thats just me im customer service oriented.

as far as how its getting broken i have no idea. kids around?

[topsites]

I don't know about all that...

Because I tell you a lesson I learned ...

Nowadays, when a new customer tells me the check is under the mat /
in the bbq pit / or any other such place?

Right.
The very first thing I do after I pull up is go look for the check!
And if I don't find that check, I am good as gone.
Before I even drop the gate :p

Now, a phone call might be in order...?
But it just irks me, someone tells me a check is in the place and then it isn't?
forget that.

[Furness & Sons L&L]

:walking::walking::walking::walking:I don't know about all that...

Because I tell you a lesson I learned ...

Nowadays, when a new customer tells me the check is under the mat /
in the bbq pit / or any other such place?

Right.
The very first thing I do after I pull up is go look for the check!
And if I don't find that check, I am good as gone.
Before I even drop the gate :p

Now, a phone call might be in order...?
But it just irks me, someone tells me a check is in the place and then it isn't?
forget that.

[johngallaway]

I don't know about all that...

Because I tell you a lesson I learned ...

Nowadays, when a new customer tells me the check is under the mat /
in the bbq pit / or any other such place?

Right.
The very first thing I do after I pull up is go look for the check!
And if I don't find that check, I am good as gone.
Before I even drop the gate :p

Now, a phone call might be in order...?
But it just irks me, someone tells me a check is in the place and then it isn't?
forget that.

i definitely agree. second time check wasnt in place i'd have stopped showing until i got a call.

[howierd3866]

what we do is every truck and tractor has a camera in them...just for this reason or if they get invole in a wreck or whatever...we do a quick walkaround if the job might have something there that might be an problem..take pic. before any grass around it get cut it has time and date...also if the agreement there will be a check somewhere first time ok 2nd time look first..price was base on being paid then and not later

[huh]

thanks for the replies guys

it sounds to me like with the check not being there she was just a loon that needed some short term work done......it did bug me a little bit it was not there, but she paid pretty promptly after the first two cuts, but it did give me a bad feeling that there was something goofy about there

like I say I am a bit glad she went ahead and dumped me because it does get old pulling up and it is not there and the feeling EVERY TIME that I was going to have to answer for something being broken

she was in her late 40s or early 50s so there were no kids around especially at the age of running around and breaking things......her lawn was nice, but for as small as it was it was hard to cut she has little decorative crap all around like those solar lights ans tiki torches and she had a hot tub and in the alley behind the hot tub shed there were some exposed (not pipe shielded wires running to it from the utilities).....it was all done nicely and there was some shielding on part of it.......then part that was just halfassed......I just stopped weding around that area after the first time........no chance in hell I am going to wrap those wires around my weedeater head.....I had one of those strange feelings about her from the start......like she was cheap yet wanted it to be exact.......her lawn was also almost too damn short........half the time it was hard to tell where I had cut in some areas yet if I went any lower I would have had to adjust the mower 5 times over the course of the various parts of the lawn......I think it had been cut with a reel mower before

I started out contracting for the city doing the code enforcement properties and have picked up the divorces and some others through that.....I dumped the city mid way this year because it was not paying off with less timely rain and the fact that the city was shorthanded several weed inspectors which put a hit on their number of jobs.....plus I HATED the "rubbish" jobs

I am more set up right now to mow people that just need a cut and are OK with me mowing over dog poop and kicking the dog toys to the side as I make a pass buy and not getting the trampoline right back in the exact same foot print after I move it (all taken into account in the bid).....I picked up my insurance agent and just the night before I cut this last kook I was having some beers with him and his wife came up and they were both saying how happy they were and might have someone else for me

I think you all know what I am saying.......there are people that want a GOOD job done for not the highest price where you respect their property and they respect the fact that you will not obsess over things that THEY have let go a bit and then there are people that want you out there with scissors in the "delicate" areas, but they want to pay a "mow, trim, blow, go" price

thanks again

the camera is a good idea I have a sweet digital, but I don't like to carry it unless I know I need it because of theft.....and honestly her stupid lawn was already so short I am not sure how I could have taken a convincing picture showing it had not been cut before the damage......I guess I could have taken the pic, not cut it, and left.....but then I have to come back.......and I thought about calling her, but she did not answer the first two times I had tried to call her and I was not going to wait around to have a discussion about broken items before I cut it......I went with the idea that I was there, it needed to be cut, I did not break the things and I wanted the work.....I guess if I had looked for the check first that might have convinced me to move on and wait to discuss the broken items........I could tell she was "cheap" when I gave the estimate....should have gone with gut feelings

thanks again

[Charles]

I don't know about all that...

Because I tell you a lesson I learned ...

Nowadays, when a new customer tells me the check is under the mat /
in the bbq pit / or any other such place?

Right.
The very first thing I do after I pull up is go look for the check!
And if I don't find that check, I am good as gone.
Before I even drop the gate :p

Now, a phone call might be in order...?
But it just irks me, someone tells me a check is in the place and then it isn't?
forget that.

Thats the first thing I do too. No check, no mow and maybe no come back. Kinda hurts their credibility with me and it shows with this customer. Fishy, all that stuff being broke

[johngallaway]

I have a digital camera someone gave me to help even a trade. I've found digi cameras with decent quality and features under 50 bucks used. The one i have even does crappy video. I would recommend every lawn care professional carry one. Not a nice one, one that wouldn't break you if it were stolen.

That way if anything happens, you're free and clear and not having to come up with a deductible (or cash if you're unlucky enough to not have insurance yet).

On that note - I pay 50/mo for insurance that covers my mowing plus my landscaping business. More than worth it!

[ffemt1271]

you need a good digital camera, or at least a cell phone that takes good pictures. mine has saved me more than once.

[howierd3866]

a camera should be right in there with all your other safty equipment no matter how small the company is.It what you grap after the cell for an type of acciedent..We have them in everything that we own..Just before Christmas Target had some good one on sale $19.95 digital pic and viero..Have well paid for them self. Other day tractor mowing the rightaway hit a mailbox took a pic. call it in to the office then fix it just a plastic box door came off then took another after the fix. It could have been bad if left owners could have done more damage in the area where he was mowing.
Johngallaway: wish my was only $50.00 pm

[Langford2000]

I don't know about all that...

Because I tell you a lesson I learned ...

Nowadays, when a new customer tells me the check is under the mat /
in the bbq pit / or any other such place?

Right.
The very first thing I do after I pull up is go look for the check!
And if I don't find that check, I am good as gone.
Before I even drop the gate :p

Now, a phone call might be in order...?
But it just irks me, someone tells me a check is in the place and then it isn't?
forget that.

Couldn't agree more - All new customers pay the first two cuts in CASH before the gate is dropped. After that I go with the topsites (I think) rule. A customers credit is only extended to 10% of what I have already done. For example - the first 10 cut have to be paid before or at time of svc then they are allowed to float one cut. After 20 cuts they can float two and so on. I have only been burned a couple times that way and never more than one cuts worth.

[Dean of Green]

Huh, consider how you have dealt with these two customers. Part of your answer is in that. Communication is key with customers, especially new ones. Your first customer your communication was upfront and clear. Good results with that situation. The second customer(referral), your communication was not upfront and more responsive to her. This puts you on the defensive with her, not a position of power. It did not help that you did less than your best work on the back yard that one time. I am not saying that you are the reason you lost this account. You asked what we think happened with this customer. You will never know for sure. But one thing is for sure, if you make sure you hold up your end of the bargain then you will find it very easy to right off these type of customers as a lost cause and a waste of your time. I am speaking from experience.

[bigw]

Im sorry but what kind of business do you guys run that collects checks or cash under BBQ pits,i mean that just seems so unprofessional to me and you wonder why this business gets a bad reputation.

I am just dumb founded at some of the practices i read about on here sometimes,i know im not the expert "lawn guy" yet but i sure wouldnt be collecting my money for my business from under anything other then the lid on my mail box. It just seems so desperate and non professional to me...maybe im different i dont know!

[johngallaway]

I agree. Send them a bill.

[howierd3866]

sorry but disagree if you can get the money like that GET IT now days you lucky to get pay at least this way you know if you going to get paid before you do the job not having to wait and see after you done the job.

[LandworksUnited]

Im sorry but what kind of business do you guys run that collects checks or cash under BBQ pits,i mean that just seems so unprofessional to me and you wonder why this business gets a bad reputation.

I am just dumb founded at some of the practices i read about on here sometimes,i know im not the expert "lawn guy" yet but i sure wouldnt be collecting my money for my business from under anything other then the lid on my mail box. It just seems so desperate and non professional to me...maybe im different i dont know!

Actually, it must not be that unprofessional and unlikely. I live in NY, and Webber and Charbroil are the standard envelopes.

I blew apart a guys entire vinyl siding perimeter with a whacker once. Second cut too..
"Theresss holesss in my housse."

replaced it no problems, but from there on he always had something to say after every cut. Asking if the front seemed a little high, or the back a little high. Shoulda started asking him if he was a little high.

[Sammy]

I picked up a customer from a referral....wants it done every two weeks on Friday.....she will not be at home when it is done



Every two weeks mow ? Not on Friday. :nono: That day is for my "A" list customers.

[Scagguy]

I've said it before and it's worth repeating. Bi weekly customers are a PITA. We don't accept them....period. Some will say that "hey it's money" sure enough.....maybe if you don't have a collection problem. As far as picking up new clients, they put a credit card on file with me or call somebody else. I run a lawn and landscape business, not a collection agency.

[M RASCOE&SONS]

i like the camera in the truck idea,just get one of those digital cameras and put it in the glove box.