big or small jobs

[treeman82]

I was just wondering over the weekend, if you had to choose between having lots of customers and doing lots and lots of little work, or having fewer customers and doing only big work, which would you choose? Both businesses would have the same amount of equipment and employees, as well as the same amount of work load.

 

[Nickrosis]

I've talked to you about this before, and I still think the same way. I like having one customer for $60,000 in a year instead of 200 jobs for $300. Making one estimate or 200? One bill or 200? Giving directions to the job once or 200 times? The little things, too, like giving a fruitbasket to a customer is only feasible with a smaller number of clients.

Potential problems:
1. Losing a huge chunk of your revenue if one customer moves away.
2. Finding jobs like that again.
3. Pressure to please a particular client.
4. Elevated stress levels.
5. You get sick of the same place.
6. Your business begins to tailor itself to circumstances that may not exist on other jobsites (i.e. purchasing specialized equipment that you only use there).

It's an issue of what your business plan is. Not everyone can have large clients, obviously, so it depends on the market. Your personality may not work with this business model either - it's a matter of taste, and I like the flavor of a few large customers over many smaller clients.

Nickrosis

 

[John Paul Sanborn]

I've been in companies thaty lost large revenue sources out of the blue. Not fun.

You always need a contingency plan if a big part of your pie goes somewhere else.

 

[DDM]

I seem to make more $ on smaller jobs
but i like jobs that can be finished in 1-2 days. Or better 20 min 150.00 jobs i'd take 10 of those a day.

 

[Nickrosis]

Wouldn't a $1500 job be easier to handle, though? Less travel and hassle it seems to me.

Nickrosis

 

[John Paul Sanborn]

I've always liked a good mix. You can take those little jobs and squeek them in at the end of a day to boost your revenue, even if the man power is a bit of an overkill, or turn them into weekend work when making up for weather days in the budget. Also if you plan on a big job and a key player pulls up lame then you can fall backe on the little jobs to keep the day from being wasted.

When I ran pruning at the local TG-CL branch I had a lot of revenue coming from small shrub jobs and annual ornimental tree work.

As Kooistra and Ball rant in their seminars, you can make money on every single job, but still loose it at the end of the day, week, month and year.

I enjoyed stopping on my way back to the shop and doing a quick $75 'Phitzer' pickprune in 20 min w/drive time.

 

[Stumper]

I actually prefer the small jobs. My reasons are as follows: Multiple small jobs provide variety(keeps things interesting). I tend to earn more for my work time on small jobs(this gets offset by more travel time/bidding time though). If I miscalculate the bid on a small job it tends to hurt less than doing a big job for 1/2 price .I made a decision to be a one man show-no employees. I can handle some surprisingly large jobs solo but small ones tend to be easier. The customer's attitude tends to be a little different about small jobs- they are usually thrilled to get it done and proud of you for getting it done fast!(There are exceptions-I worked for one last week after a hiatus of several years-didn't like paying that much for an hour's work to "just a laborer")
Different strokes, but MY niche is quality work for residential clients-usually a small job every year or two for that same individual.

 

[treeman82]

Speaking of this, and stumps... I was just talking with a customer the other day. I have 2 big maple stumps at his house as well as an 18" diameter arborvitae stump to grind. He wanted to know when I would be doing them. I told him that I would get them ground when all the other trees are down. He sounded a bit confused... Last year I priced out a job for doing like 30 stumps (All BIG and cut high) I told the guys that it would be $1800? they keep on asking me to do it for less. That job right there is a couple days worth of grinding for the little Vermeer machines. I never wound up doing the work.

 

[DDM]

Maybe its just to late this evening For me but Matt that confused me to

 

[treeman82]

Sorry Dave, I got about 20 trees to remove at this guy's house still. (6 BIG arbs / 4 big sugar maples / 2 or 3 good size cedars / 5 or so white pines / 20 or so medium size hemlocks / 2 small sugar maples)