Need a new zero turn mower(new or used)

[flyingdutch16]

Custom mowers here walk each yard and figure in how many shrubs and trees and size of the yard that they have to mow around before they will give a quote for mowing. We have 1 acre with about 50 things to mow around and we pay $65. The striping kit is not available for that mower, however, one can be fabricated from some heavy matting or belting material and bolted to the back side of the deck for a cost of zero. Ken Sweet

Okay i was looking for home made striping kit, not to hard to make.

Im guessing that your suggesting that i should base my price on how many obstacles and the size?

 

[sweettractors]

Okay i was looking for home made striping kit, not to hard to make.

Im guessing that your suggesting that i should base my price on how many obstacles and the size?

Yes, Because, time is money, as the old saying goes. The more you things that you have to mow around and the larger the yard the more of your time it burns. The same guy that mows my yard also mows our Church yard and there are only 8 trees and 1/2 acre to mow around and he charges $25 per mowing. That includes blowing off the sidewalks and weed eating where needed. Ken Sweet

 

[flyingdutch16]

Yes, Because, time is money, as the old saying goes. The more you things that you have to mow around and the larger the yard the more of your time it burns. The same guy that mows my yard also mows our Church yard and there are only 8 trees and 1/2 acre to mow around and he charges $25 per mowing. That includes blowing off the sidewalks and weed eating where needed. Ken Sweet

Sounds fair, I will take this in consideration.

I like the fact that you said time is money haha

 

[gerard]

Take this as a compliment, but I find it sad that many on this board are so impressed with a 16 year old willing to work. Why is it sad? Because it's an anomoly! I can't find high school kids to do barn work for $10/hr. Farmers around here are stopping baling small square bales beacuse they can't get kids as help. Sad commentary but I predict you will do well in your endeavors BECAUSE you are an anomoly and a rarity now days.

Just say what you'll do and do what you say and you'll do fine. As a "marketing" tool and because you have little experience, you may want to consider giving a real low ball "introductory" price on the first cut. Watch your time closely, start to finish, then you can base you actual quote on that. Just make sure they understand what you're doing so they don't think that's going to be the regular price. (If you REALLY think they're serious and you'll get them as a customer, you COULD even offer the first cut free. No lose for them as long as you don't get people just grabbing a free cut!)

They get a break on the first cut, even if they decide not to use you, and you get to give an honest quote without having to guesstimate how long it will take. Worst case scenario is you don't make a whole lot if they don't use you but you gain experience. Best case is you get a new customer and priced yourself fairly. Best of luck!

 

[flyingdutch16]

Take this as a compliment, but I find it sad that many on this board are so impressed with a 16 year old willing to work. Why is it sad? Because it's an anomoly! I can't find high school kids to do barn work for $10/hr. Farmers around here are stopping baling small square bales beacuse they can't get kids as help. Sad commentary but I predict you will do well in your endeavors BECAUSE you are an anomoly and a rarity now days.

Just say what you'll do and do what you say and you'll do fine. As a "marketing" tool and because you have little experience, you may want to consider giving a real low ball "introductory" price on the first cut. Watch your time closely, start to finish, then you can base you actual quote on that. Just make sure they understand what you're doing so they don't think that's going to be the regular price. (If you REALLY think they're serious and you'll get them as a customer, you COULD even offer the first cut free. No lose for them as long as you don't get people just grabbing a free cut!)

They get a break on the first cut, even if they decide not to use you, and you get to give an honest quote without having to guesstimate how long it will take. Worst case scenario is you don't make a whole lot if they don't use you but you gain experience. Best case is you get a new customer and priced yourself fairly. Best of luck!

Its post like these that make me even wanna work harder, and harder. So there for thank you for the compliment. And for the marketibg i was thinking of givig them a free first cut, it will help me a lot hopefully! Thabks for the tips!

 

[smstonypoint]

Good luck in your new venture.

Just a cautionary note on pricing your services. It would be a good idea to figure out your costs.

You will have variable costs -- these vary with the number of lawns you mow and would include items such as fuel, allowance for repairs & maintenance, your time, transportation, etc.

You will have fixed costs (once you acquire the lawnmower) -- these will remain relatively constant regardless of the number of lawns you mow in a given period and would include things such as depreciation, interest on your lawnmower investment, insurance, etc.

If your price covers your average variable & average fixed costs (e.g., $/hour), you will make a profit. I hope you do.

Steve

 

[flyingdutch16]

Now i was looking at the john deere website, and saw that the john deere EZtrak Z425 with a 54 inch deck. Cost around $4000. And the TimeCutterｮ SS5000 with 50inch deck is around $3200. And the dixon mag 50inch is around $4000.

If im gonna spend around i might as well buy a good mower, most likely if i go to my locale dealer i can get the john deere with a small discount. Now which of those will be the most durable for mowing around 5 around lawns in a weekend? The dixon and the deere look the strongest out of the three, but also the most expensive. I hope you guys can give me some feedback on this.


Btw thanks for all the responses so far they have really helped me!

Thanks!

 

[kjung17]

I hate to poo poo on a JD, but the EZtrack machines are NOT commercial grade. Not sure about the Dixon.

 

[MikeInMaine]

Thank you, i hope the people that i mow for think the same way

Now do you guys have any tips on when to advertise, should i start right now or should i wait a little?

Hi 'Dutch,

I think you started an excellent post, and I'm impressed with all the help everyone has been volunteering. I don't know much about zero-turn mowers, but I've got some advice about advertising.

I live in a small community where "word of mouth" is king. Wouldn't you want to hire someone you know instead of some stranger who advertises in the paper? Also, people you know will appreciate your personal service, and will pay you promptly.

Here's what I did when I started my own company years ago: I did not advertise in the local newspaper. Instead, I created an inexpensive direct-marketing campaign. I printed up a very short announcement saying that I was starting my own business. I had business cards printed up and paper-clipped one card to each announcement. Then, I created a list of everyone I could think of (I thumbed through the local phone book to help jog my memory), and I mailed my announcement to everyone on my list. 220 announcements with a business card plus postage came to $60. It was incredibly effective and affordable. Some people even held on to my business card and called me a year or two later.

I think you could adapt the above template to your own situation. Perhaps you don't need or want a business card (about $20 for 500). Perhaps you want to only advertise to people in particular neighborhoods, to minimize travel time. Direct marketing to people you know will give you way more bang for your advertising dollar, and your customers will be happy to hire someone they know and can trust.

Best of luck!

 

[gerard]

Gerard, I was wondering how much experience you have starting and running a business. If he follows this advice he will need the "Best of luck" to survive.

No one needs to start a business giving low ball introductory price. That is the easiest way to go in the hole. Give a fair price. You might be inexperienced and it may take you more time to do it because of that but that doesn't mean the customer gets a better price. You are just getting a little less an hour for your time because of the lack of experience, but as experience is gained and time doing the job is less, you will make more an hour, without the customer having to pay more. The customer should always pay what the job is worth if it is well done, regardless of how long it takes you.

Till you gain experience it is sometime difficult to give a fair price (even with experience there are times when blunders are made). If uncertain, agree with the customer on what you both feel is a fair price for the first cut, and after the first cut you will know better what you will have to charge on a regular basis. Make sure the customer is aware of this and doesn't try to hold you to a cheap price if you find out is will cost more than the agreed upon first cut price (Don't change the first cut price unless you feel you overcharged. If that is the case tell them you will take less and they will appreciate your honesty.)

There are those who say start low and then raise your price but I think people with experience will tell you it is hard to increase price once you start out too low.

Finally, to give a low ball price is poor advice, but doing it for free is ridiculous.

I started my own business and have been running it for over 25 years so I do have a little bit of experience before I start giving advice.

I concede I don't have experience starting a business but still disagree with your logic. Many brand new business's offer free goods, services, or substatial discounts when they first open to generate customer awareness and get the word out so people know you're around. Pretty basic marketing tool. Works for many multi million dollar enterprises. Maybe lawn care is an exception??:confused2: Cost of doing a start up business. He's starting a pretty simple business at this point (minimal equipment, no employees). He's not buying $250K in equipment, hiring 10 people etc. What he lacks is pricing experience. He can gain that rather rapidly on the first few lawns if he keeps careful records.

I still don't see the downside of doing the first cut free. From a customer perspective it would be well received by me and I would probably pay him anyway afterward if I signed him up. Some won't. What's he lost? A little time, gas and wear and tear on the equipment. After getting a few different kinds of properties, he can then price accurately and fairly and can do away with the promotional offer.