Important Things To Consider Before Starting A Lawn Company

Owning a lawn or landscape business is something that many people often think and dream about. In fact, I have found that people from all walks of life and in many different industries have the feeling that starting a lawn care company is within their reach.

If you are one of those people who want to own your own lawn service and live your life in the sun, here are some important facts to consider.

Health Insurance Plans For Yourself and Employees

This one has to be at the top because of its prominence in the political landscape (pun) these days. Not only are good insurance benefits a necessity for you and your employees, but offering solid benefits will help you recruit and retain the best and brightest workers as well. It is important to compare health insurance plans before deciding on what to offer and how much to charge your employees through payroll deduction.

In addition, you should consider that when you are first starting out, if you are to become injured with no health insurance, your business could end before it even really gets started.
You can get straight forward Kentucky health insurance and other health insurance quotes online.

Equipment Maintenance and Repair

Let’s assume you are a good business person. Let’s also assume that you are a top notch marketer and can acquire customers with ease. But can you fix small engines and sharpen lawn mower blades? If you are starting a lawn spraying business, can you perform some basic plumbing tasks?

Just like any trade, being in business for yourself means you need to be a “Jack of All Trades” and have the ability to fix and repair your equipment on the fly. This is especially important because lawn equipment takes a heavy beating in all kinds of weather, thus making even the best quality machines susceptible to a breakdown.

Customer Collections

This one may pose the single biggest drawback to starting your own lawn company. It’s all fun and games when you are out smelling the fresh cut grass and mowing stripes up and down the back yard. But what if your customers just don’t pay you? You will quickly find that oftentimes the lawn service is the last bill that gets paid.

Getting paid late can put you behind in your own payroll, and in turn, you will need to hire staff or an outside agency to collect your outstanding receivables. This extra cash outlay for collections will take a huge bite out of your margins.

Go ahead and start that lawn service next spring, but be aware of some of the biggest headaches and pitfalls that await you in your quest to takeover the lawn care world.