Is it our imagination, or has there been a huge influx in commercial grass cutting businesses in the last few years? It seems, and we don’t mean this in a sarcastic way, that anyone with a lawn mower and a pickup truck is opening up shop as a professional commercial lawn service expert?
It’s a bit more complicated than that, and this article looks at those complications in a bit more detail.
We are Keith’s Tractor Mowing, serving the Greater Fort Worth area, and we know a thing or two about lot mowing, acreage mowing, and commercial mowing services in general. Call us with your questions, and if you live in the Fort Worth area, call us for a bid on your job.
Three things to know before starting out
There are many things to know before starting a business, but today let’s concentrate on the three most important, in our opinion. They are:
- The right equipment to use, and the price of that equipment
- Pricing structure
- Liability protection
Let’s look at each of these in a bit more detail.
The right equipment
Our statement earlier, that anyone could start a commercial grass cutting business, is partially true. If you have a residential mower, a way to transport that mower to and from the customer locations, and you are only taking on residential customers who own homes with standard lawns, practically anyone can hire out to do that job. Heck, most of us earned money, when we were kids, by pushing our mowers around the neighborhood and knocking on doors.
But that theory is only partially correct. But what about acreage mowing? Large lawns, and we are talking about a half-acre or larger, require larger mowing equipment, and the reason for that statement is that time equals money in this business. Using a residential push mower, an acre of lawn would take two or three hours to mow. Using a tractor mower, that same job could be done in less than an hour.
Which leads us to this question: can you afford a tractor mower? We are talking several thousand dollars for the smallest tractor mowers on the market. It is not beyond comprehension that you could pay ten-grand for a topnotch tractor mower.
Can you afford that?
Pricing structure
As stated earlier, pricing is based on time. If you are bidding against someone with a tractor mower, and you have a push mower, you will lose that bid time and time again. Of course, you can underbid someone with larger equipment, but it will cost you hours to do so, and those hours could be spent on other customers.
Liability protection
Nothing will shut down a mowing business quicker than causing damage on a job and having to pay for that damage. Mowers are powerful machines. Debris like rocks and sticks can be hurled dozens of feet by a mower, and that debris, more often than not, will hit the property owner’s home or vehicle, causing damage. Can you afford to pay for that damage?
Keith’s Tractor Mowing carries $1,000,000 general liability insurance for protection of our company and the protection of the property owner. We highly recommend picking up similar protection.
The bottom line on all of this: if you have a limited budget, with limited equipment, and limited protection, stay small and don’t go beyond your capabilities and budget.
A word about Keith’s Tractor Mowing
Serving the good people of Fort Worth for decades, Keith’s Tractor Mowing is a trusted name in commercial grass cutting. Call us today and we will answer your questions and arrange for a bid on your mowing job.