One hit wonder or try try try?

Team Gopher · #1 (**permalink**) 07-27-2005, 10:11 AM

Some business owners feel you need to hit on something right away and if you dont, you are a failure. Others feel you have to try many things, you may fail at many, but some you will succeed with.

Which is your view?

What are some things you have tried and failed at?

Team Gopher · #2 (**permalink**) 08-03-2005, 12:14 PM

Here is a quote from our friend Windmill

Quote:

As far as new customers are concerned I get 90% through word of mouth. Those are by far the best customers as they generally stay with me.

If you are reffering to business expansion, for me it is try. Although I am pretty much as busy as I want to be with my one employee (sometimes four), I am always looking for a new aspect of business that might work.
My business is primarily back yard tree spraying and weed control. I have been thinking that next year I might venture into vacation mowing. Grasshopper (my son) mows lawns and gets the odd call for vacation mows, because his schedule is generally full he can't always do them. I'm thinking this will be the same for most of the companies in town, so I will be adding a vacation mow bullet to my "yellow page" ads.
Now I can hear you already, what if you get one mow and it is way out of the way. My thoughts are:

1. a mow that might regularly be charged at $25.00 will be a min of $35.00
2. If the mow is out of any of the routes we normally do it will be higher.
3. I will probably want cash in advance.
4. The lawn must have been cut the week previous or the cost will be higher.
5. Perhaps splitting the profit 60/40 with my employee and paying this money out as a bonus at the end of our spraying season.

As this is only a developing thought I will probably think of more things as time goes by.
If people want to go on vacation they will have to pay that extra $$$ for that select service.

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