(Article originally written by Jeremy, Red Hen Turf Farm, in Spring 2019 – revised for Spring 2023)
Almost daily, I have business owners confide in me with a wide range of business problems. I really enjoy helping to hash things out and when they act on the solutions that we come up with and things goes well, I get a great feeling of accomplishment. Developing a pricing structures must be one of the toughest things to do. Every business is so unique in the overall costs, market competition, employees / labor issues and equipment.
Let’s shift our perspective on this issue to a customer’s perspective using an example from a few years ago. My family’s fireplace is a gas-feed one that would only work sometimes. So, we make a few calls to get it serviced. The first fireplace service place would not come out because they did not install it. They were within a 10 minute drive to our house and their website said they do service on our type of fireplace, which is why we called them first. Next, we called another service provider that was more than twice as far away than the first one. They scheduled an appointment 4 weeks out, and on the day we were set for service, they arrived on time, replaced a part and cleaned the fireplace — in and out in under an hour.
So, what was the cost? I had an amount in my head that it should cost, but there were a few things that came into discussion. Was the quote high at $125.00? Or was that amount way low … so low that I contacted the company again.
By the way, the amount I had in mind was $300.00. I work with Red Hen’s numbers and many other business models, so based on my own experience, I was considering the company’s drive time, office staff overhead, the time of year, insurance costs, training costs, etc. If someone does not deal with any of these sorts of things, they would not consider them in what they feel we should have paid for the service – and would likely find that quote of $125.00 to be high.
My point of all this is that many of you are afraid to raise prices based on your own, ultimately limited, perspective and beliefs.
It’s your business, but please consider all of the less obvious business costs and expenses you might be overlooking, and charge what you need to.
I’d be happy to talk with you about your company’s pricing, especially if you take a bit of time to give things some though beforehand. To inspire you to make revisiting your pricing in the New Season a priority, here are a few resources to take a look at:
Expert Advice to Establish a Landscape Business Pricing Strategy by Monique Allen (April 2017) – at https://www.thelifescapecoach.com/lifescape-coach-blog/expert-advice-to-establish-a-landscape-business-pricing-strategy
How to Charge for Lawn Mowing: Pricing Tips and Pricing Chart for Lawn Care Pros (April 2023) – at https://www.angi.com/articles/how-much-charge-lawn-mowing.htm
And lastly … SatQuote …
When it comes to lawn care and landscaping estimating software tools, every year there are more and more options, with a wide range of pricing structures, features, reliability, accuracy, and practical usability.
A new one on the market — SatQuote — was launched by Sod Solutions, the same developers who created the web-based sod sales order logistics system that Red Hen has been using for years.
SatQuote was listed as #1 on Mowing Magic’s 8 Best Lawn Care and Landscaping Estimating Software Tools and has been well-reviewed in several similar lists.
In a nutshell, SatQuote is a suite of tools that helps with everything from lead generation and management to creating quotes and impressive proposals.
The system offers property owner information, boundary data, drawing and map manipulation features, high-resolution imagery and AI measuring assistance. It’s web-based with mobile apps that can be used in the field.
Founder and Chief Technology Officer Drew Wagner offers this descriptions:
“Outdoor service providers will be able to save money and deliver bids faster by utilizing SatQuote’s full suite of tools on laptops, tablets and mobile devices. Understanding the details, layout and measurements of potential work before wasting time and money driving to the site will save business owners and salespeople significant time and allow them to focus on the highest profit jobs. Our SatMeasure Technology AI and measurement tools paired with our mobile app for on-site geotagged photos and notes are a game changer and will make businesses run more efficiently.”
There’s a 14 Day Free Trial, so perhaps before the season takes off, you might give it a whirl? SatQuote annual plans range from $150-$600/year with 3 different feature levels to choose from.
Red Hen Turf Farm is now officially an Affiliate for SatQuote so if you’re curious to do a demo with the Sod Solutions team, be sure to use our LINK to get started.
