Today we’d like to introduce you to Haywood Thompson.
Haywood, please share your story with us. How did you get to where you are today?
I was tired of working for someone else for too little money. I wanted to create my own business. I have a passion for landscaping and a talent for it as well. I began by purchasing $2000 of lawn equipment on credit and faith. My first few customers were my neighbors.
My customer base grew through referrals, and I continued to reinvest profits into more and better equipment. I watched videos to learn skills that I didn’t have yet. I talked to other landscapers to learn how they were operating their businesses and pricing their services. I worked long, hard twelve-hour days, six or seven days a week. In the beginning, I did most of the labor myself to save on labor costs. If I had a large project, then I would hire a couple day laborers to help. At night, I wrote up invoices, quotes, and kept up with the bookkeeping.
It is a lot of work to run your own business, but it is also very rewarding. You get to reap the benefits of your own hard work which has always been very motivating. My business continues to grow. My wife now handles the accounting because there is no successful man without a woman behind him. I couldn’t do all the things I do without her.
Great, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
Growing the business has been the biggest challenge, and I would have to say that I think my biggest obstacle would be not being able to afford all the advertising cost to get new customers blowing my phone up looking for lawn maintenance services. My regular customer base has grown steadily even with attrition. My goal is to have more work than I can properly service myself, then hire one or two full time employees and get to the next level. Now I’m using a new online marketing campaign and it is looking promising. I have tried a number of advertising strategies that were pretty disappointing such as direct mail, door hangers, lawn signs, lead services and online marketing. Most new business has come through referrals from existing customers or from prospects that see me working in the neighborhood, and either call the phone number on my truck or just approach me when they see me for the umpteenth time in the neighborhood.
Alright – so let’s talk business. Tell us about Thompson’s Lawn Care – what should we know?
Most landscaping companies in the Dallas area focus on servicing as many houses per day as quickly as possible. At Thompson’s Lawn Care our mission is to provide an outstanding service customized to meet the needs and budget of each client. While many competitors offer a limited service menu, we offer services for most of your landscaping needs.
Our competition doesn’t take the time to communicate with their customers, but we spend the extra time to communicate with our customers so that we understand their needs. We develop a personal relationship with our customers. They call, text, and email us on a regular basis. We bring the personal service style of a small town to the big city.
We offer a Yearly Maintenance Plan that keeps your yard in good shape throughout the year. We divide the annual cost into equal monthly payments. Our customers love this option because it is easier for them to budget.
Is there a characteristic or quality that you feel is essential to success?
My positive attitude is most important to my success. I wake up each day grateful to be alive. I am joyful as I work hard, because things could be a lot worse. I get satisfaction from a job well done and pushing my body to its limit. I feel that if I put a positive vibe out into the world then good luck and fortune is bound to come back to me some way somehow. I’ll give you an example. I’ve got this customer that has a neighbor who cuts her own lawn, but never edges. And it always bothers me to see the lawn in such an unkempt state. Every few months, I would edge her lawn just as a good gesture because it only takes me five minutes. That neighbor never did hire me, but she spoke highly of me to some of her neighbors down the street. And they ended up hiring me, and I ended up with three new customers from one good deed.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.thompsonslawncare.us
- Phone: 214-707-9156
- Email: thompsonslawncare74@yahoo.com
- Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/thompsons-lawn-care-dallas
- Other: https://office.angieslist.com/store/15824043/about
Image Credit:
Haywood Thompson
Jayden Thompson
Getting in touch: VoyageDallas is built on recommendations from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you know someone who deserves recognition please let us know here.
