Customer Estimates and Bids!!

[whacked_46]

As I am still just getting in to the business of lawn care. I still have a few questions.


1.When I get called to do an estimate, how do I charge the customer. Do I charge per square foot or just charge a flat rate per each lawn.

2. There is a major complex opening up in my neighbor hood this fall. How do I go about putting a bid in. Since I am only 14 year old, I don’t care about making lots and lots of money at the time. So should I bid low just to try and get the contract. And how to I put in a bid.

I hope you can help.

Thanxs
:cool:

[65hoss]

At 14 you have no legal ability to submit bids for comm'l jobs. Sorry.
Wait until you get old enough to sign contracts, carry insurance and understand business. Being low to get business not only hurts you now, but later on. How in 5 yrs when you need to be making an honest amount, do you plan to raise prices that you help to drive down?

Without historical data you will not be very accurate with SF pricing. Do it based on time you estimate it will take.

[AK Lawn]

ya hoss is right i am only 19 and had to wait until last year to be able to do commercial and condo lawns, somethings come with age, yes iam still young but carry full insurance and can legally sign contracts, plus at your age it is much easier to do residential trust me i was there 5 years ago i remember
AK Lawn

[gogetter]

Originally posted by whacked_46
As I am still just getting in to the business of lawn care. I still have a few questions.

1.When I get called to do an estimate, how do I charge the customer. Do I charge per square foot or just charge a flat rate per each lawn.


Whacked(?), how did you do it for the 35 customers you claim to already have in your profile?
Anyway, use that search feature. Tons of threads on that subject.

[AK Lawn]

i am not thinking thaT the 35 customers is true but prove me wrong whacker, and 35 on the way. if youj can get this many at fourteen then tell me your secret so i can get a few more, i want about 200 this season and am about 75 away
AK Lawn :blob2:

[whacked_46]

Well it is true everybody; I do have 35 customers and am working on about 20-30 new ones. My secret to success is I met this guy a few years ago that was just getting in to the business of landscaping in Calgary.

All of a sudden when he started he made it big. I stayed in contact with him for a while now. And he gave me a call and some addresses to go check out, and see if I am willing to take them off his hands. So I did and now have 35 customers.

The 20-30 on the way comes from flyers that I had delivered a week ago.

For people that said I need to be legal age!!

I have talked with lawyers and such with my parents and have worked out all the contract and technical stuff with them. The company is in my parents name until I turn legal age. But I own the company legally, and am able to make all the decisions.

Thanks for the input all.

[AK Lawn]

Coming from a person who has been in your situation i did most of the sam things and i did have around thirty clients when i was 14 but the business and everything along with it was in my dads name and that was the only way it was llegal, but things could be different in Canada not inthe US or Alaska for that matter. Anyways sorry to put you down best of luck in the up coming summers AK Lawn

[whacked_46]

No worry you did not put me down at all. As a teen i have been put down many times with my hair-Brain ideas. I tend not to get bothered by what other people say. For example, me going to get my bussiness bank account.

I am sure some have gone thru the same thing as me. Post your story if you have ....Thanxs:) :cool: :angry:

[Mykster]

20-30 new accts. from fliers that went out last week.
That was quick. Yes, tell us your secret.

[Commander]

If you are 14 and in school, how do you plan on doing 35 going on 50 - 60 accounts plus do a new development? Not sure about how big these places are, but even still. What about employees?

[PAPS]

in a post a few weeks back... I guess school and is not a priority to kids and parents these days...???? Where the hell are kids parents these days to let a 14 yr. old have a "business" ??? What the hell is wrong with some people now a days...Don't take this the wrong way kid... but dude.. ur 14... why not just hang-out and have fun??? Cut a few lawns on saturday for sh*ts and giggles...

By the way gang...I'd have 1000 accounts if I was charging 10-15$ a cut too....

[mountain air]

i droped 25000 flyers and only have 15 contracts he must of dropped a ton ofcourse my min. charge is 29.95

[Ajays]

I can't believe you dropped 25000 flyers and only got 15 accounts. That is an extremely poor %. Normally you should get at least 5 accounts per 1000 flyers. I guess it depends on the area huh?

[KenH]

Can you drive in Canada at 14????

I can see it being pretty difficult pulling a trailer:D

[longjohn]

I'd like to know how many flyers he put out. I've put out 1000 with no results. This week I placed ads in a local paper and the thrifty nickle. I need customers.
This is my first post. Thanks to those in charge and for those who share I've learnd alot, well except how to get customers.

[Ajays]

Definately put flyers out only in areas that you know people want and need lawn care. The best time is after about 2 or 3 straight days of rain. I have gottern 20 new clients after passing out 1000 flyers during a very rainy time.

[longjohn]

Thanks Ajays. It rained this afternoon in N Texas.

[Ajays]

It shouldn't take more than 5-6 hrs to pass out 1000 flyers by yourself. Matter of fact I'm going to pass out flyers all day tommorow. This drought is kicking my a$$ so I finished all my cuts by 3:00 this afternoon.

[mountain air]

lucky enough i do landscaping aswell but i could use 20 t0 30 contracts i did get a lot of calls from my flyers but im really expensive , i do a quote, they get a second quote and ask if ill beat it .i dont drop a dollor if someone needs the work so bad that they beat my 28 dollor cut down to 18 and 20 go ahead and have it........you get what you pay for

[grassyfras]

how do mangae your time. I had 20 accounts at the most at one time and i didnt have anytime when i school was going on........ please expain

[Ajays]

For me, I have plenty of time. I have a partner and it only takes us 3 days to mow our 60-70 yards per week. I'm constantly trying to pick up new business. On a good day we can mow 30 residentials in 10 hrs. This drought is the kicker.

[GrassMaster84]

humm...... lets get the facts 14yr old, own's company has 35 accounts established...?, doesn't have a drivers licence, and I have passed out thousands of flyers over the years and havn't come close to picking up 30 new customers in one week

So lets round off the # of yards to 60 total

thats and average of cutting 8 yards a day..... and goin to school early fall, and late spring, he might be able to keep up a little bit during the summer,

I can only believe it if he's got a crew and someone in that crew can drive!:eek:

[mountain air]

MAYBE HIS DAD DRIVES HIM WELL GOOD FOR HIM 14YEARS OLD 35 ACCOUNTS AT WHAT I CHARGE SHOULD BE $1000.00 + A
WEEK BY THE TIME HE IS 20 HE WILL BE RITCH

[coonman]

Did I read that right.....25,000 flyers......wow.....and I thought I was doing alot of walking passing out a few hundred in different neighborhoods....60-70 accounts a week at 14 years old......3 lawns an hour for 10 hours straight at age 14....
I feel like a slacker with my 20-25 lawns.....