Pricing

Hunter333

Hi all

Iv set up my own landscaping business awhile back. Have a diploma in horticulture, fully insured and have a lot of equipment no big machines just mostly hand tools ( chain saws, pole saws, hedge cutlery, rotavaror etc) My question is how do I charge for jobs so that I can get a wage but also the business is making money? At the minute I just work out how long I think job will take and charge per day and it's mainly a wage for myself nothing for the business. Actually have a fairly big job to price at the minute and I really don't know how to do it right. Hope it makes sense. Thanks

Hoof Hearted2

Hunter333 wrote: »

Hi all

Iv set up my own landscaping business awhile back. Have a diploma in horticulture, fully insured and have a lot of equipment no big machines just mostly hand tools ( chain saws, pole saws, hedge cutlery, rotavaror etc) My question is how do I charge for jobs so that I can get a wage but also the business is making money? At the minute I just work out how long I think job will take and charge per day and it's mainly a wage for myself nothing for the business. Actually have a fairly big job to price at the minute and I really don't know how to do it right. Hope it makes sense. Thanks

What kind of diploma doesn't cover the rather important aspect of pricing?.

Seriously though most landscapers acquire the knowledge by experience, i.e working with a number of other landscape companies and gaining the experience by asking the right questions from the right people i.e. the people in charge/owners of those companies, and the conventional way of doing this is to do it before you go out on your own.

Discodog

Hoof Hearted2 wrote: »

What kind of diploma doesn't cover the rather important aspect of pricing?.

Seriously though most landscapers acquire the knowledge by experience, i.e working with a number of other landscape companies and gaining the experience by asking the right questions from the right people i.e. the people in charge/owners of those companies, and the conventional way of doing this is to do it before you go out on your own.

He has been working in the business for years.

OP you need to sign up to the forum here:

http://landscapejuicenetwork.com/

Huge amount of information.

Hunter333

Iv worked with few different landscapers over the last 12 years and also worked with a fairly big landscaping company for 4 years. Would it not be cheeky to ask how much a job costs or how to price a job. There's no problem doing any of the work it's the pricing that is like to figure out

Harry Palmr

Hunter333 wrote: »

Hi all

Iv set up my own landscaping business awhile back. Have a diploma in horticulture, fully insured and have a lot of equipment no big machines just mostly hand tools ( chain saws, pole saws, hedge cutlery, rotavaror etc) My question is how do I charge for jobs so that I can get a wage but also the business is making money? At the minute I just work out how long I think job will take and charge per day and it's mainly a wage for myself nothing for the business. Actually have a fairly big job to price at the minute and I really don't know how to do it right. Hope it makes sense. Thanks

Doing this now for one big job makes no real sense as all capital costs need to be amortized so ALL equipment including your transport has to be valued as of the purchase cost and then for the big stuff like the Rotavator written off over a period of years, so that in say 5 years time you have the replacement cost budgeted for - the cheaper bits and pieces like gloves, clothing, trowels, shears, hoes etc are probably best financed with a weekly sub. Again sit down and price these and come up with an amount that with cover replacement costs over one or two years. Obviously if an item in question is still perfectly good to use then you are "ahead of the game" on that piece of equipment but continue to write it down as a new item for bookkeeping purposes every one or two years.

Pricing your time is the easiest part of running a business.

Discodog

Hunter333 wrote: »

Iv worked with few different landscapers over the last 12 years and also worked with a fairly big landscaping company for 4 years. Would it not be cheeky to ask how much a job costs or how to price a job. There's no problem doing any of the work it's the pricing that is like to figure out

How long is the proverbial piece of string ?

Every single job is different & every customer is different. If it's a big job & you get it wrong, then you could be seriously out of pocket. The essential thing is to draw up, in writing, a detailed specification so that you & the customer know what they are getting.

Oh & get a budget from the customer before you do any quotes. No point in doing a load of work if they don't have or want to spend the money

Hoof Hearted2

Discodog wrote: »

He has been working in the business for years.

OP you need to sign up to the forum here:

http://landscapejuicenetwork.com/

Huge amount of information.

Thanks for that, I'd never have figured that out from the OP's first line, where he said "Iv set up my own landscaping business awhile back".

Hunter333 wrote: »

Iv worked with few different landscapers over the last 12 years and also worked with a fairly big landscaping company for 4 years. Would it not be cheeky to ask how much a job costs or how to price a job. There's no problem doing any of the work it's the pricing that is like to figure out

Seriously though, was pricing not covered in the diploma?.
And no it's not cheeky at all but it is situation dependent and should be asked in the right way, but I'm guessing that maybe you are too timid to ask.

I've worked in landscaping for 25+ years and it's clear to see which guys (that have worked for me) are likely to succeed and go out on their own, they are ones asking the questions.

It's a good trait to have and if you ask the right questions, you'll get the right answers.

Discodog

Hoof Hearted2 wrote: »

Thanks for that, I'd never have figured that out from the OP's first line, where he said "Iv set up my own landscaping business awhile back".


Seriously though, was pricing not covered in the diploma?.
And no it's not cheeky at all but it is situation dependent and should be asked in the right way, but I'm guessing that maybe you are too timid to ask.

I've worked in landscaping for 25+ years and it's clear to see which guys (that have worked for me) are likely to succeed and go out on their own, they are ones asking the questions.

It's a good trait to have and if you ask the right questions, you'll get the right answers.

Horticulture & landscaping are two totally different subjects. I have had guys who could tell you the name of every weed but couldn't weed a border. Even if they could it would take them hours.

It's very risky to start with a big project. Much better to build up some routine maintenance - to pay the bills & get a good reputation.

Hoof Hearted2

Discodog wrote: »

Horticulture & landscaping are two totally different subjects. I have had guys who could tell you the name of every weed but couldn't weed a border. Even if they could it would take them hours.

It's very risky to start with a big project. Much better to build up some routine maintenance - to pay the bills & get a good reputation.

Horticulture is the basis of landscaping, unless you're talking about the meaning of the word in the agricultural sense, which it sounds like you are and that's a different beast altogether.

It's true to say that there are students or graduates of Horticulture who wouldn't know a days work if it hit them in the face, but that doesn't apply in the OPs case.

The OP did a diploma in Horticulture and worked in landscaping for 12 or so years and spent at least 4 years with a large landscape firm, so I think after that length of time it's fair to assume he/she knows or at least has a good idea of what's involved in all aspects of landscaping and that should cover pricing. It's bizarre to me to think after all that time that the OP hasn't a good working knowledge of pricing.
Horses for courses I guess.

Discodog

Hoof Hearted2 wrote: »

Horticulture is the basis of landscaping, unless you're talking about the meaning of the word in the agricultural sense, which it sounds like you are and that's a different beast altogether.

It's true to say that there are students or graduates of Horticulture who wouldn't know a days work if it hit them in the face, but that doesn't apply in the OPs case.

The OP did a diploma in Horticulture and worked in landscaping for 12 or so years and spent at least 4 years with a large landscape firm, so I think after that length of time it's fair to assume he/she knows or at least has a good idea of what's involved in all aspects of landscaping and that should cover pricing. It's bizarre to me to think after all that time that the OP hasn't a good working knowledge of pricing.
Horses for courses I guess.

As one of my clients put it recently. There are a lot of Landscapers but few gardeners

A lot of Irish clients want a lawn, a patio & a few borders covered in the obligatory bark. I can usually tell which designer/landscaper it was by just looking at the design & planting. I started here 16 years ago & I don't Landscape, in the sense of using machinery etc but I have always been busy.

I would never recommend anyone to start big or invest in machinery etc. Start small, hire what you need until you can afford to buy & most important of all don't allow credit :pac:

lazybones32

Hunter333 wrote: »

Hi all

Iv set up my own landscaping business awhile back. Have a diploma in horticulture, fully insured and have a lot of equipment no big machines just mostly hand tools ( chain saws, pole saws, hedge cutlery, rotavaror etc) My question is how do I charge for jobs so that I can get a wage but also the business is making money? At the minute I just work out how long I think job will take and charge per day and it's mainly a wage for myself nothing for the business. Actually have a fairly big job to price at the minute and I really don't know how to do it right. Hope it makes sense. Thanks

Do you want to move from being a sole-trader to being a small business? (the business and person are considered separate entities) Your accountant would be better suited to help you make that move. Your local Enterprise Board will have lots of information and help available, so I'd recommend you calling to them some rainy afternoon.

If you're offering a specialised type of landscaping that can distinguish you from every other outfit around, you could add on a % to your final bill that can act as the business fund; so when you have to buy/replace/repair tools the business pays for it and not you. But talk to your acc. You are moving from ST to SB and Revenue looks at them differently.

Pricing the big job: Do you know and trust the person you are doing it for? What price range are you talking about and how much will be spent on materials and how much on labour? How long will it take?

If you have to buy lots of plants and materials, either ask them to open an account where the materials are to be bought or ask for an up-front payment. This is common practice across all trades.
Do the job in phases: after X has been completed, you will need to be paid Y amount. When step X2 is complete, seek to be paid another amount. But you need to say this to the customer first. If they refuse, politely walk away from the job (unless you know and trust them or the final bill won't be too large)

Hoof Hearted2

Discodog wrote: »

As one of my clients put it recently. There are a lot of Landscapers but few gardeners

A lot of Irish clients want a lawn, a patio & a few borders covered in the obligatory bark. I can usually tell which designer/landscaper it was by just looking at the design & planting. I started here 16 years ago & I don't Landscape, in the sense of using machinery etc but I have always been busy.

I would never recommend anyone to start big or invest in machinery etc. Start small, hire what you need until you can afford to buy & most important of all don't allow credit :pac:

You're not wrong;)
I'm not sure how all that helps the OP though!:pac:

Discodog

You still have to be really careful with staged payments. Many contractors have been left with a few thousand outstanding & the customer knows that it is too small amount to sue for.