Advice Needed

[hiranger]

I currently operate a tree service/lawncare company. I probably do about 50-55% of my business from the tree work. The lawncare aspect is really frustrating because dollar wise there is no comparison to the tree work. I am thinking about getting rid of most of the lawncare work and concentrating our efforts on the tree business due to the substantial investment in equipment that I have for tree work. We lose out on a lot of tree work because mowing and the like eats up lots of time every week.Wondering what anyones thoughts are.

 

[treeclimber165]

It depends on what your goals are. I know many lawn care companies with a full time tree crew, some are capable of doing very good tree work. If you prefer to focus on tree work, then a dedicated crew to handle the lawnwork is just about mandatory.

A couple benifits of keeping the lawnwork are constant contact with client's properties, and they see your crew there every week. Excellent advertising. Another is that the dollars from those annual lawn contracts keep rolling in every month without need for constant new sales. If you have one crew that can handle the lawns only, and you have minimal problems that need your constant attantion, then keep it by all means. It doesn't cost you anything for all that free advertising.

If you have constant issues needing your attention in lawncare that are taking you away from pursuing tree sales, and you don't have the manpower to handle both, then you have bigger issues at work. If you can't hire qualified guys to mow grass, finding decent tree help will be next to impossible. I could elaborate, but I'm already assuming too much.

 

[John Paul Sanborn]

We go over this a few times a year. The consensus seems to be that the lawn work is very labor and capitol intensive, compounded by being very competative.

What a number of people I know, or have spoken with, do is sell the bottom 2/3 of their lawn accounts and only maintain tose that provide a high cahs flow, and or bring in a significant amount of tree work on an annual basis.

Find a person you know and trust who wants to expand thier mowing operations, and sell the client list, maybe get an agreement to be able to sell tree work to thier clients.

 

[hiranger]

The biggest problem that I have is that the profit margins are smaller in the lawncare business. In other words I cannot pay good help $13/hr to mow grass. With the tree work I have higher profits and that in turn allows me to give better benefits to the employees. I have not been lucky enough to find good cheap help. That's a big hurdle for all of us.

 

[treeclimber165]

Perhaps then just start bumping your prices on lawn care. This way you can weed out the low end accounts, reduce the lawncare workload and operate that portion of the business at a better profit. Most of us are not in business simply to provide employment to others without getting something out of it ourselves.

My opinion is that evolving the business works better in the long run than wholesale changes like eliminating a division, unless efforts to make it profitable have proven fruitless. (My old man taught me a lot about business, and I can spout it back, I just don't always follow my own advice.)

 

[DDM]

Hmmmmmmm Brian? you mean your supposed to make a profit? Maybe thats what im doing wrong.

 

[sonny]

My thoughts are ditch the tree work & keep the lawn buiss. & do the trees on the side.

 

[Toddppm]

Im kinda in the same boat. We do lawns 3 days a wk and Landscape /Trees 2 days, don't have enough of either to have seperate FT crews, so I have 1 extra guy that I don't need mowing, I take one with me to do small jobs or odds and ends when I can. Hopefully by next spring I will have enough lawn/land maint. accts. to have a FT mow crew and a sep. crew for the rest. Mow money sucks but it brings in monthly $$ and the landscaping maint. that goes with it is better$$

 

[hiranger]

I have enough lawncare work for a crew 5 days a week, but can't seem to find workers who take enough pride in their work to avoid complaints. I usually have tree work for 3-4 days a week. My main problem keeps coming back to employees. It has gotten to the point where I asked one of my guys if I was that bad to work for. He said no, it is just that none of these guys want to work. I can't afford to have my tree trucks sittin too long.

Next year I will probably weed out the least profitable lawncare accounts and just keep the accounts that continue to generate tree work. When it comes to money there is no comparison between mowing and the tree business

 

[sonny]

When it comes to money. There is no comparison between lawn & tree care overhead.

 

[John Paul Sanborn]

Only if you have a bucket truck. Running several hydraulic mowers can run up a maint. budget. Compared to that a chipper and a dump is nothing

I'd send letteres to the lawn companies that you dont wznt raising the price drasticly. let them quit you. Unless you can find someone to buy the list

Tell them you are charging more to be able to afford better crew.

 

[hiranger]

I've got a bucket truck! It seems to me that mowing equipment ca nickle and dime you to death because employees continually beat up the epuipment. With the tree equipment, I am always there so less problems occur.

 

[budroe69moni]

question???????

just curious.......
how long have you been doing lawn compared to trees?????
what is your background in tree care???? have you had any
training or are you certified???? are you into trees or just the
$$$$$$ that they generate?????
budroe

 

[Toddppm]

Sounds like that's the problem, you're not there to manage them and they know it. I bet they can tell you like the trees better. I haven't mowed in about 3 or 4 yrs. that part of the biz almost runs on auto pilot for me. I'd fire those guys and get ones that want to do it.