# Tree Service owner looking for advice on adding lawn care to biz



## Bobby P (Dec 29, 2017)

Hey guys, I am looking for a little advice, hoping there is someone out there who has already done this, and would have words of wisdom for me. I live in Arizona, where there really isn'y many slow months, besides maybe two during the winter-- November and December. I run a tree service. It's https://peoriatreeservices.com if you wanna check out our website and also let me know if you think that needs any tweaking. My question is-- I am considering adding a lawn care side onto my business, but I want to avoid any major pitfalls and I don't want to take away from what my tree service side is able to do. We do pretty well as is, but it just seems logical to add on the lawn care side since we already operate in that field, and have a lot of customers that ask if we do lawn care also. Please let me know if any advice you have, and thanks in advance!


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## Ware (Jan 28, 2017)

Welcome to TLF! You probably won't find many answers to lawn care business questions here, as most of us are DIY homeowners. You're certainly welcome here, but I think LawnSite is geared more toward the folks who do this stuff for a living. :thumbup:


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## osuturfman (Aug 12, 2017)

Hey Bobby!

How's the market out there for lawn care services? In most areas of the country, it's absolutely cut throat. Whereas tree services do as well on reputation as they do price, my experience with lawn care services is it comes down strictly to price. Customers, residential or commercial, that will go with another company for $5 less per visit or $10 less per acre. We all know that low bid isn't always the best.

If you want to wade into the lawn care waters, my advice would be to identify a few reputable lawn care services in your area and approach them about a strategic partnership. Some of the benefits to sell them on:

*Cross promotion of services and marketing* 
You can throw work each other's way from existing customers without fear that either of you is selling out. Lawn care service notices a hazard tree during a bid or with an existing customer, you get the first crack at that business. Also, if you combine some or all of your marketing budget you'll reach more prospects.

*Equipment*
With the equipment each company already has, there's an opportunity to share some ancillary equipment (think skid steers, Dingo, etc.) when it's not being used for production by the owner. Maybe you're not using a skid steer and the lawn care company is doing a large mulch job. You float them the skid steer for a day and they lend you a Dingo at some point to do a job with tight access. The other benefit could be combining equipment packages on capital purchases. The buying power of two companies, even though they retain individual ownership, will motivate a lot of dealers to be aggressive in their pricing.

*Scale of Jobs*
Depending on the time of year, either company could "share" employees to take on larger scale jobs that the individual company couldn't handle on its own. You essentially get sub-contractors you trust and know or vice versa while maintaining your current book of business.

If such companies exist in your area, perhaps there are some reputable ones with older owners that might be looking to sell in the next 3-5 years. The strategic partnership into a possible acquisition of an existing lawn care service might be the best way to dip your toe in the water and then penetrate a market that is pretty competitive on the supply side and locked down on the demand side.

Just some things I thought of sitting here while it's 4 degrees F outside in Ohio. Best of luck to you.


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## g-man (Jun 15, 2017)

^ +1 excellent advise.


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## ericgautier (Apr 22, 2017)

g-man said:


> ^ +1 excellent advise.


Agree. :thumbup:


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