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Need advice on strange request for services!

4K views 28 replies 14 participants last post by  Blade Runners 
#1 ·
So a guy down the street from me stopped by and asked if I would mind taking care of him once (1) service a month. I politely relayed to him that im uninterested in doing so as it would cause undo wear and tear on my equipment all so he could save money on getting his yard cut. He said no thats not what he meant. He meant he would cut it once and I would cut it once to satisfy the Bi weekly service regimen. I was kind of stunned but i went ahead and said ....ok. my question is, as long as the grass is getting cut every 2 weeks, should i care if im only doing it once? i really dont see anything wrong with it other than if i were a bigger outfit it might be hard to work his odd request into my schedule. however, im not a big outfit and can keep up with the once a month routine so i dont see it as an issue really. as long as it doesnt exceed 2 weeks before a cut i should have nothing to worry about right? Hes an older gentleman and wants to do his own yard but he walks with a cane and i guess doing it every 2 weeks might be a bit tough for him. The way i see it is he will eventually get so worn out in this florida heat that it will probably lead to a biweekly account anyways. either that or he will realize that he cant uphold his end of the deal and ill have to confront him on it. thoughts please.
 
#3 ·
I'd be worried on how crappy he cuts his laws versus you. I have a case similar to yours. He leaves spots un cut and butchers the rest.
one thing that crossed my mind was that he may start to trail off on the frequency or quality. I think hes thinking he can save a few bucks if i go and spruce it up every month, then he just maintains it. like it wont be too much work for him. I may be asking for an uncomfortable situation but thats why i asked here. thanks for the post. how is business in warner robins? i have a few friends stations at the Air force base there. also all my family is in griffin and locust grove.
 
#8 ·
haha i hear ya joey. everybody and their brother has a mower and a trailer and calls themselves a business. just today a guy at tractor supply told me he was considering starting his own business. I said go ahead, but if you charge $25 a yard before you even see it you will be out of business in about 3 weeks. then i told him go get your license and insurance. charge accordingly and you will wade through the under cutters that seem to pop up like weeds then die just as quick as they sprouted. do it right and ill be your friend. he said "sounds good". i doubt ill see him on a route anytime soon.:cool2:
 
#9 ·
Agreed. Accounts that are dreaded sour a day.
Guessing this guy doesn't trim or sweep either. Hey, if you like him and enjoy doing him a favor by helping him out, then by all means put him on your schedule...otherwise, this has PITA partially written on it already.
.02
 
#10 ·
This is the best solution posted thus far.
i didnt really get a solution out of that post.:laugh: it was more like a "business is doing good here" answer to my question in the previous post. lol. *trucewhiteflag*
 
#11 ·
It's crazy thier like roaches. I have been getting work from no shows. The city is cracking down on all businesses that are flying under the radar, they said they are looking for hair cutting at home and so on. I guess they need the money. He also said it was from legit company's having to fight every day with the non.
 
#12 ·
Agreed. Accounts that are dreaded sour a day.
Guessing this guy doesn't trim or sweep either. Hey, if you like him and enjoy doing him a favor by helping him out, then by all means put him on your schedule...otherwise, this has PITA partially written on it already.
.02
now that you mention it valk, he did say directly that he has no way of edging, trimming or blowing. so i guess he will only be getting that once a month. im kinda in a spot now because i had to answer him right then and it was probably not the best answer. im thinking it will probably go down like this. we will each start it out. in about 6-8 weeks he will either realize how much work it is and ask me to go ahead and just take it every 2 weeks OR, he will attempt to do the very least he can do and ill just have to knock on his door and tell him its just not working out and part ways. if i choose the second, then there are 2 possibilities there as well. either A, he says see ya, or 2 (yeah i said A, then 2, :laugh:) he says take it every 2 weeks.
 
#13 ·
It's crazy thier like roaches. I have been getting work from no shows. The city is cracking down on all businesses that are flying under the radar, they said they are looking for hair cutting at home and so on. I guess they need the money. He also said it was from legit company's having to fight every day with the non.
yeah they are everywhere here too. just look at craigslist. i have to reup my add 3 times a day just to stay visible. just the other day i saw 2 guys in a beat down toyota pickup with a homeowner grade craftsman riding mower from probably 1998, on a 8' trailer made out of wood with a bunch of garbage all over it. what really got me was that i actually passed them again leaving lows. they were servicing the local Hampton Inn or whatever big hotel we have on our exit. I guess it goes to show you it doesnt matter what equipment you have or what you look like. judge the guy by his workmanship. not his outfit! i definitely learned that the other day. i was sure that guy was a fly by night crew. he may very well still could have been but i find it hard to believe that hes getting commercial accounts like that and not being legit. or maybe his baby's momma works the check in desk or something. who knows.:dizzy:
 
#15 ·
i really don't get it. if he can cut it once a month he can cut it 2 times a month. this seems a very odd request.

is he wanting to cut it one time to save some money? again it would make sense for him to just mow it 2 times and save more money.

something doesn't add up in this situation.

i bet if you do it there will be times where he didn't mow it at all and you'll be stuck with high grass to mow.
 
#16 ·
i really don't get it. if he can cut it once a month he can cut it 2 times a month. this seems a very odd request.

is he wanting to cut it one time to save some money? again it would make sense for him to just mow it 2 times and save more money.

something doesn't add up in this situation.

i bet if you do it there will be times where he didn't mow it at all and you'll be stuck with high grass to mow.
very good possibility. Ill have to go down and take a look at it tomorrow to be sure he mowed it. i have him the last weds of this month. after i do it ill be looking out to see that he does it 2 weeks from then. if he doesnt take care of it, i wont be either. It seems that its going to be more of a hassle than its really worth to make this relationship work. i guess im going to have to let it play out though so i have some leverage for a renegotiation or termination. without that, ill look like an azz backing out for my current reasons.
 
#18 ·
yeah who knows. just see how it goes. he may end up just telling you to cut it every 2 weeks.
lets hope. Ill keep an update when things start to transpire! thanks for the input. its definitely given me some things to think about. ;)
 
#19 ·
We have a house like this, they're an elderly disabled couple, I'm pretty sure he's a Vet also. I'm sure everyone has these customers here and there, but we like to help them out.

She mows one week, we mow the next, edge and trim it also. So far she hasn't missed a week yet. Their grass grows super fast and we suggested we mow it every week, but she wanted to do it herself. I have a feeling once it gets a little hotter either the grass will slow down or it'll turn into a weekly account.
 
#21 ·
you are right, herler. however, I could use another account and if all went to plan, the money would be good for me. its not a lot to some but every little bit helps when you are a single man operation. i guess i just have to weather the storm as of now and see where it leads me. if things go astray, i dont have any qualms with cutting it off. I think its a mix of he just wants to save some cash, and he still wants to do something around his house even though hes partially disabled.
 
#22 ·
now that you mention it valk, he did say directly that he has no way of edging, trimming or blowing. so i guess he will only be getting that once a month. im kinda in a spot now because i had to answer him right then and it was probably not the best answer. im thinking it will probably go down like this. we will each start it out. in about 6-8 weeks he will either realize how much work it is and ask me to go ahead and just take it every 2 weeks OR, he will attempt to do the very least he can do and ill just have to knock on his door and tell him its just not working out and part ways. if i choose the second, then there are 2 possibilities there as well. either A, he says see ya, or 2 (yeah i said A, then 2, :laugh:) he says take it every 2 weeks.
If he doesnt do the trimming (which he probably doesnt) just charge him extra. Me personally I wouldn't mess With it. To much hassle.like someone said he is probably going to missing spots left and right and then you have to come behind him to get them.
 
#23 ·
if you have people asking for services and they are willing to work around your schedule and it's on your route or area for the day, the way I see it is, it's just an extra dollar.

I know several instances over the years we've had neighbors come out while we were at one property and ask us to cut theirs once, or tell us they would be on vacation next week and would we mind getting theirs. A lot of them have turned into regular clients.
 
#24 ·
The way I see most things is, if you can make someone love you than they are going to tell others and so on. I'm all the time picking up non costomers pine straw and cutting hanging limbs and all sorts of little things. From this They all want me to give them cards to give other non costomers. I get a lot of good paying one time jobs due to my kindness. My company's name is I care lawn care for a reason.
 
#25 ·
You may derive a lot of personal satisfaction from helping him out...can't knock that.
I love working for older folks (most of the time). They have a pretty good feel for honest/hard work and are generally appreciative.
IFF this doesn't work out well, then just move on. In today's economy, he'll find someone else.
 
#26 ·
I've had requests identical to this, only we have to mow on at least a weekly basis up here. 100% of the time they quit mowing when it's their turn. Half the time they won't hire me to do it during their weeks - and I have to drop them. The other half of the time they're glad to have me take over all the mowing. At this point you have absolutely nothing to lose to trying it out.

As for them not trimming, blowing...no problem. Trimming doesn't take any longer if it's not done every time (and is my favorite part of the job).
 
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