Leaf season is about to bring a wave of odd calls. Someone wants a one-time cut before they list the house. A neighbor wants the leaves cleared once. Another customer already bought the mulch and just needs you to spread it. Each call is small, and it's tempting to toss out a number on the spot. What should those jobs cost, and how do you keep from pricing every one differently?
Every stop costs you something before the mower comes off the trailer: the drive, loading and unloading, and the time that stop takes out of your day. Your minimum covers that. Some owners think of it as a block of labor time, so even the smallest job pays for the trip. If a job won't cover your minimum, it's not a job worth taking at a lower price.
The one-time cut and the bring-my-own-mulch job are coming. Decide what they cost before someone asks.
A weekly lawn is predictable. A one-time job usually isn't. The grass is taller, you've never seen the yard, and it doesn't fit neatly into your route. So one-time work gets a higher price than the same lawn would cost on your weekly schedule. Your weekly customers get the better price because they give you steady work.
When a customer supplies the mulch, seed, or plants, you're still doing all the work, and you're stuck with however much they bought. Decide ahead of time how you'll price it, whether that means pricing the labor like you supplied it or passing on those jobs. Pick your rule once and use it every time.
With your floor set, every odd job gets the same treatment: check it against your minimum, use your one-time price, and apply your materials rule. You stop making up numbers in the driveway, and customers get a fair, consistent price.
Run My Lawn Biz prices each service on a quote with how often you'd do it, so a one-time job and a weekly mow are clearly separate. The price holds through a date you set, and you can see when the customer opens it. Property notes keep track of why a yard costs more, so the next quote starts from what you already know.
Set your floor before leaf season starts, and every odd job pays you what it should.
