what are your opinions on...

[tiedeman]

what are you opinions on only one time customers? For example, spring clean ups, fall clean ups. I picked up a spring clean up customer last week that only wants me to do spring clean up and thats all. No need for landscaping & lawn maintenance. Of course they get put on the back of the list compared to my regular customers..but what are your thoughts on it?

I have thought about stop doing this, but I am worried that I will shoot myself in the foot for these extra income one timers. I know that once in a while these one timers can bring in more income down the road with other add ons...but not that much. I can bear it when they want like fertilization or landscaping maintenance done, but one a regular schedule, not just once.

Should I tell them, sorry..you have to be signed up on one of our regular lawn & landscaping maintenance packages or should I just grin and bear it and do it?

[kels]

Why would you not want to earn extra money?

[darryl gesner]

I often take "one time" clean-up customers, except it's every clean-up now for many of them . I take them if I have room in the schedule, but charge more than for my regular customers, and like you said, put them at the bottom of the list.

Since clean-ups can be fairly large $$, you may want to consider collecting half of the fee up front before you will even schedule
them.

The way I look at it, any new customer is an opportunity, and since I'm trying to grow my business, I'll take every opportunity I can get.

One word of caution...you may not want to do this if you're collecting the fall leaves with your mower. Running your mower around on an unfamiliar lawn that's under 3 inches of leaves is a great way to ruin your mower...you never know what's under those leaves!

[tiedeman]

Originally posted by kels
Why would you not want to earn extra money?

its a hassle more than anything to fit these one timers in my schedule..like I said they get put into schedule, but behind the regulars. The other thing that I don't like, is that we finished up all of our spring clean ups with our regulars anywhere from 3 weeks to 5 weeks ago. I guess that its just a hassle. I can understand if its a new customer and they just signed up for our packages..but a one timer....I don't know it just stresses me out to fit them in.

[darryl gesner]

Well, I just took my leaf box off, so if there's much to haul, I'll be turning them down.

[Creative Lawn Care]

I agree the extra income from one timers is nice. Since I am a one man operation it puts alot of stress on my schedule. I have five nine hour days of mowing planned. It usually thunderstorms at least a couple of afternoons which slows me down and makes me work saturdays too. So while I enjoy all the work I can get, I have been turning down these people this year just for my schedules sake.

[rodfather]

Originally posted by tiedeman
its a hassle more than anything to fit these one timers in my schedule..like I said they get put into schedule, but behind the regulars.


Simple. Charge accordingly.

[Gr grass n Hi tides]

I'll take the one-timers. I just finished another big spring clean up. Fantastic money for a days work, plus they ask for a few business cards & say they have friends. You never know where that will go. I also had a guy ask me to mow his property just once "because his John Deere was in the shop." As it turns out he's only about 5 min. away from another client & I was happy to go over & mow his (1 acre) lot. on the way home. Good money.

[airborne1]

Originally posted by Creative Lawn Care
I agree the extra income from one timers is nice. Since I am a one man operation it puts alot of stress on my schedule. I have five nine hour days of mowing planned. It usually thunderstorms at least a couple of afternoons which slows me down and makes me work saturdays too. So while I enjoy all the work I can get, I have been turning down these people this year just for my schedules sake.



I AGREE. ITS A CASE BY CASE BASIS IF YOU HAVE ENOUGH TIME I DO THEM, BUT IT IS STRESSFUL. HEY EXTRA MONEY, NOTHING WRONG WITH THAT IF YOU HAVE THE TIME.