Hello everyone again,
Does anyone here do both lawn care and window cleaning? I would think they compliment one another very well? Can anyone give me some advice on this dual offering? Does this help with bidding a job? Thanks everyone!
Hi there,
I cannot comment on the window washing side as I am adding that to my business service list. We currently provide alot of services including lawncare. We do lawn clean up in the spring and fall and of course weekly lawn maint. Lawncare can be a pretty cut throat business. You find alot of guys who get in and keep undercutting until you are mowing, trimming, blowing a lawn for $15.
I can see there being alot more profit in windows as there are alot of costs with lawncare. And if you dont have equipment it is costly.
Used 60" Exmark with ultra vac $5000, backpack blower $400, stick edger $250, trailer $2000. Then you have the added fuel expense in pulling a trailer, oil for mixed gas ect. Mower maint (even done by yourself) takes time and can get very costly. Spindles, blades, belts, pulleys, ect.
I would say you would need to make a minimum of $30 a cut and have a pretty dense coverage area. Its the fuel that eats your profit!
Stick to one thing and be the best at it.
Plus, landscaping is too much of an investment.
Mike,
I don’t think lawn care compliments window cleanings as much as pressure washing or scratch repair does. Have you looked at these two services at all?
Yes I have and right now I do offer pressure washing. And actually my next step is scratch removal and hard water stain removal. I just thought that doing lawn care can be a good way for continuous income ontop of the income from window cleaning. How many times do you usually do the same house in one year?
I was talking to my sister, who lives in a smaller town (8,000 people) where her friends use maid services, but don’t have a window cleaner. When I said I’ve been considering adding “unique value features” and she said she would be more excited to have someone who can “clean her windows and then maybe weed or fertilize her garden.” Basically, do the little things that she doesn’t have time for.
Granted, she would never pay for my service 
and is a single mother of two who said she could use help “with the little things.” So it might not be full lawn care.
It varies. We always try to get new customers to sign our quarterly contract. That includes three outside only cleans and one inside/out in a calender year. We show them the price breaks and explain the value in quarterly maintenance. I think we have about 20% of our residential customers on quarterlies…maybe a bit less.
O ok that makes sense then. I was just thinking about creating this exterior home “spa” where everything gets rolled into one package throughout the year. But then again I should start off with one thing at a time 
If you guys have any more advice I would love to hear them!!
Thanks everyone!
Mike
WINDOW CLEANING - HOME
I did quite a bit of Landscaping as well as Greens keeping in my teens and 20’s, starting around 1990 or so. Pricing in the area I was living in (NJ) was much higher minimum of at least $35 for a normal sized yard. The guy I worked for also did snow removal in the winter (so had that income to somewhat count on). The equipment $4000-$5000 for a 48" deck mower plus the maintenance and fuel costs of it as well as all the other smaller machines. For fertilizer and chemical treatments you will need a license to apply.
I would stick with one thing and be the best it. In my area we have a lot of hard water from sprinklers so I do a fair amount of hard water stain removal. The landscapers I know are so busy in the summer they would not have time to do windows as well. Just my thoughts though good luck to you.
Dont forget about gutter cleaning too
Why?..Why?..Did I ask why?
Honestly, I have a background in lawn maintenance, my brother owns his own company and I do work for him as well. But I figure this would be a nice add on to the homes that I cut their grass for. And vise versa with the homes I cut I can offer window cleaning.
Why don’t you and your brother work with each other in marketing but you keep your respective businesses separate. This way you don’t look like a company that is trying to be a ‘jack of all trades’.
Split the cost in your marketing for postcards, flyers, door hangers, and etc. Make the ads look like you are teaming up to give the customer a better deal. Cross market each others companies. This way it keeps your overhead lower and works out for your brother too.
Window Cleaning.
