Making money with "work-ins"...

[allstar]

Even though I've only been in this business for about a year I've had a situation occur over and over again that could be potentially lucrative if I can figure out how to handle it.Many times neighbors will drop by while we're servicing other properties and ask us how much we will charge to do their's.Alot of these people want it done NOW and will pay good money if we can do it immediately but if we have to schedule them later, many of them will say,"Well,I'll call you" and they never do.I would think as the weather gets warmer,and especially if we start getting alot of rain,we'll get more and more of these requests.As we get busier,though,it will become increasingly difficult to accommodate them.
What I'm thinking about doing,when it gets really busy,is taking 2 trailer set-ups to the jobs:my partner and I can each pull one.I would be nice to also have a list of workers who might be interested in coming to work on short notice in case we land a big clean-up job or something.I don't have any problem charging these people a little extra because we're going through alot of hassle to accommodate them.
Just an observation I've made during my brief career in this business.

 

[LawnScapers of Dayton]

I make alot of income this way. The difference is that I am part-time and my schedule allows for this kind of activity. I usually charge about 30% more for "drop-ins" and vacation type services. Over the years many of these customers have become regulars, or have given me other maintenance work down the road.

Derek

 

[charlies]

with gas prices the way they are, i would take as few trucks out as possible.

 

[Team Gopher]

Hi allstar,

Would it be helpful to turn the business over to another local company that you work out an arrangement with and collect a referral bonus if you are too busy that day? Maybe they could do this with you as well? Just a thought.

 

[twins_lawn_care]

I have gotten a ton of work-ins the past 3 weekends. I have a tight schedule, and only so many hours per day to finish them. What I do, is weigh out how long I have, and if I can squeeze it in, I'll do it right there, and save on the drive time of coming back. If there's no way I can do it, I give them a card, and set up the very next available time I can come, usually the next day, and knock it out for them.
Usually I charge at about 25% more than the scheduled customers, but try and take this opportunity as a chance to obtain another customer, and try to accomodate as many as possible, without sacrificing quality to my scheduled customers.

 

[Collegiate]

I just had this happen to me last week. I had two people come up to me while working in different neighborhoods. I went ahead and did those jobs that day. It set me back all of about an hour or so. Plus that is two new contact for which i could get other business from and i will continue to call them and ck up on them for other things.
Enough said on that part, I would Never Sacrifice Quality to earn an extra buck. That is not me and that is not the way i Run my business. Quality is the key.....