The Ultimate Lawn Care Hiring Guide

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Essential Info About Providers, Products & Programs

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There are many reasons why homeowners hire a lawn care company. Although we live in a YouTube-watching, Pinterest-pinning, do-it-yourself world, most people eventually realize pretty quickly that doing it yourself isn’t always cheaper or better. And it certainly isn’t easier!

Oasis crew using forklift to load fertilizer into van

One of the reasons homeowners hire a lawn care company is because they simply don’t have the time. You can probably relate when you start to think about your own busy schedule. You also know that it’s frustrating knowing that sometimes DIY projects don’t turn out so well. Not to mention, there’s also the potential for making errors and damaging your lawn. Those types of mistakes may end up costing a lot more in the long run, and end up costing you more than a little time on the weekend.

Or maybe you identify with one of the other reasons homeowners hire a lawn care company. Maybe you’ve already worked with a lawn care company and are again in the market for another one. Perhaps you had a poor experience with results or communication, or have recently been enticed by an attractive offer you’ve received to make a switch.

Many lawn care companies utilize attractive promotions to entice new customers. While these promotions can save you money upfront, it’s important to consider it from a long-term point of view and find out if making a switch is the best move for you and your lawn.

We believe that choosing a lawn care company is a big decision—and not one to be taken lightly. This guide will help you make the best decision for you and your lawn. By comparing materials, methods, and companies, you’ll be able to feel confident you’ve chosen wisely.

The following article will equip you with a wealth of knowledge to make a great choice for your property. Feel free to read it through from start to finish, or use the links below to jump to specific sections of interest.

Are All Lawn Care Programs & Treatments Created Equal?

While lawn care services and their programs often get lumped together as though they are one and the same, the fact of the matter is that lawn care programs can vary dramatically.

You would never group a fully-loaded Mercedes in the same category as a base model Kia. Similarly, while multiple lawn care companies may be providing similar services, there are likely many differences between the companies and their programs, with many factors influencing the finished product you are paying for.

Visits vs. Treatments—There’s a Big Difference

It’s a common mistake to get caught up on the number of visits a lawn care company has made. But you must remember that the number of visits does not necessarily indicate how many potential issues were addressed each time. A company may visit your property many times, but may still miss important steps in providing healthy, lasting results. So while the number of treatments can be an important factor to consider, it’s what they’re doing while they’re there that makes all the difference.

It’s entirely possible that a 7-visit lawn care program could have much less value than a 6-visit program. Each time a company comes to your home, they could perform anywhere from 1-4 treatments during that visit. Add those included treatments up, and you’ll find a better comparison than just measuring their trips to your lawn.

What truly provides value in lawn care is the quality of the products, the methodology that the company employs, and the caliber of technicians that perform work on your property. That carries a lot more weight than the number of visits and should be the greater consideration when evaluating programs.

Traditional Fertilizer vs. Bionutrition

It’s also important to understand what kinds of products and services a lawn care company is proposing. Are they using traditional fertilizers only or also including bio-nutritional fertilizers?

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Most lawn companies utilize solely traditional fertilizers in their lawn care programs. These materials often contain a high amount of nitrogen to push a lot of grass blade growth and improve the color for a short time. While these products do a good job of keeping the lawn green, they only treat symptoms as opposed to addressing underlying problems. This band-aid approach doesn’t do anything to improve soil health, and keeps your lawn dependent upon constant intervention.

However, a program that uses bionutritional fertilizers is focused on promoting good soil health so that the lawn can function the way nature intends and have fewer problems in the long run. In other words, bionutrition helps keep the lawn naturally lush and green by addressing issues at the core, vs. just treating the symptoms of poor grass health.

A program that offers a lot of value is one that works with the lawn’s natural biology. A bio-nutritional lawn care program is focused on regularly introducing beneficial microbiological organisms into the soil that help the lawn naturally thrive and adapt to its conditions. This is highly beneficial compared to a lawn that becomes solely reliant on traditional products to do the work. This bio-nutritional method not only reduces the need for control products, but helps achieve a lawn that naturally chokes out weeds, and is more resistant to insect and disease problems. This is a huge benefit over time that equates to fewer chemicals and an overall healthier lawn.

Why Should You Care if a Lawn Care Company Focuses on Soil Health?

Good soil health should be the ultimate goal of any effective lawn care program. Why exactly does that matter? Well, there are four key reasons why it’s incredibly beneficial.

Less Mowing
Less Watering
Less Disease
Better Insect Resistance

These four factors alone are incredibly valuable as they equal dollars saved. As soil health improves over the years, you will have to do less mowing (or pay someone less often to do so) but will still have an overall better-looking lawn. Better soil health also equates to as much as a 20 percent reduction in watering, the emergence of fewer diseases, and fewer pests. It’s an all-around win.

(RELATED READING: Soil Health - The Secret to Amazing Lawn Care Results)

Weed & Insect Control

Any quality lawn care company is going to know their stuff when it comes to weed and insect control. There are so many nuances involved in these kinds of services, from the varying grades of materials to the understanding of when to change product use throughout the year.

Even though the best practices are widely known and backed by research, they require a certain investment on the part of the lawn care company, and so the approach to weed control still varies widely from one company to the next.

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A professional should be doing so much more than just blindly applying chemicals to your entire lawn. A quality pro will:

Identify specific types of weeds and insects in your lawn
Understand the best times to apply specific products
Know how much material to use to be effective without damaging grass
Be able to determine if spot-treatment or the whole lawn needs to be treated
Switch to a different alternative product that could be more effective
Provide a range of weed control products, based on what’s best for the current season

They should also know the best solutions for hard-to-control weeds and understand how to address pest trouble. They’ll make small changes to your lawn care program based upon what is going on in your lawn.

A well-rounded and highly successful program will also include pre-emergent weed control. Without a pre-emergent element to a program, a lawn care professional will need to spend a lot more time applying chemicals down the road. But by using pre-emergent, invaders can be knocked out before they become a real problem.

Your weed and pest issues will simply not benefit as greatly from a one-size-fits-all approach that a less-experienced company might take. A company that uses high-quality products and science-based methodology to treat your lawn is going to have the biggest impact. A more generic program that uses cheap products, little to no pre-emergent, and doesn’t work with the lawn’s natural biology to promote good soil health is simply not going to be as successful.

Seek out the companies that pursue a customized approach to address the unique needs of your lawn. While a lot of lower-tier companies simply repeat the same process on each and every lawn, it’s important to recognize that no two lawns are the same. Everything from specific weeds to various pest problems can require a different approach. An experienced professional is able to adapt their methods to each situation.

Responsible Applications

Along with customized service, you can also expect a more responsible level of lawn care from top-of-the-line lawn care companies. They value safety and eco-friendliness and view themselves as stewards of the land.

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In other words, they believe in protecting waterways and keeping the lawn safe for both children and pets. As a result, you can expect these kinds of companies to avoid overusing products and to implement spot treatments when appropriate in order to avoid putting an unnecessary amount of chemicals down. A good lawn care company knows that your family and your pets are the heart of your home and takes a kid-friendly/pet-friendly approach to lawn care that gives you peace of mind.

Clean-Up Time

While it sounds like a small gesture, cleaning up walkways and driveways after treatment application is an added step that caring lawn care companies know their clients value. In addition, that extra step also helps keep products on the lawn as opposed to washing down the sidewalk or into storm drains.

Cleaning up is a requirement that crews take an extra step on each and every job. A company that takes an extra few minutes on each job to clean up before they leave is a company that cares about your property—but more importantly, about you and others. Crews that take this extra step are those that are paying attention to the details. With this high level of attention, there’s little chance that they’re missing other important details when caring for your lawn.

Guarantees

When seeking out the right lawn care company, you may also want to consider whether they offer guarantees on certain treatments or issues.

A good guarantee would protect you from mistakes that were within the lawn care company’s control. It provides peace of mind that your investment is protected.

Everyone makes mistakes. Given the human element of the service industry combined with the challenges sometimes presented by Mother Nature, a mistake will be made, or an issue may linger for a little longer than you would like. What matters most in those scenarios is how your company responds.

Communication

At the end of the day, a lawn care business is all about providing a service. And in this service-oriented industry, communication is everything. You want to know that you can easily reach your lawn care company when you have a question or concern. Seek out a lawn care company that is responsive and willing to provide help when needed.

In addition, homeowners can expect that when it comes to a respected lawn care company, it’s not just the office staff that communicates effectively, but your lawn care technician as well.

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These companies are staffed with knowledgeable and professional technicians who are willing to knock on the door and talk to you, and happy to answer your questions. These technicians leave relevant printed notes after each visit so that you understand exactly what was done, along with any issues or concerns.

Great lawn care companies know that issues and concerns should be pointed out to you whenever they’re seen, instead of waiting for you to call in with complaints that could have been easily discussed when the technician was at your property.

Unfortunately, many companies struggle in this area. Whether they aren't attracting the right level of talent, or aren't training their staff properly, the end results are poor notes, lack of follow through, etc. that leads you to poor results and other frustrations. This may be one of the most noticeable differences in a quality company vs. a budget company.

The Hidden Costs of Cheap Lawn Care

Like everything else in life, if it seems too good to be true, it probably is. There are a lot of lawn care companies out there that may seem inexpensive at first glance.

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However, in more cases than not, you may end up paying more money in the long run with a cheap program that wasn’t proactive in nature. Be careful that saving a few bucks on the front end doesn’t cost you results and aggravation later.

Understand Factors That Influence Their Pricing

As you evaluate the lawn care companies in your market, it’s important to understand how they price their work. Most companies price equally per visit as part of an overall package. However, some companies may price visits dependent upon what materials are applied, since some products are more expensive than others.

As you compare the cost of one lawn care company to another, understanding their pricing will not only help you make a side-by-side comparison but will help you understand exactly what you’re paying for by hiring them. A company that costs more may bring more value to the table—and it’s important to know that up front.

Understand that a number of factors go into the price that a company charges. These factors include:

Caliber of Technicians: A company that finds good help and aims to keep them servicing their customers for many years will pay their people more. Why save a few bucks just to end up with a new technician on your property each time?
Product Quality: The higher the quality of the lawn care products, the more a program costs.
Technology Utilized: Getting it done right may mean using the best sprayers, spreaders, and ride-on equipment. This can make a big difference for your lawn, but may also cost slightly more.
Training: A company that pays its team to attend seminars and go through additional certifications will be one that gives you excellent service vs. just scraping by with the bare-minimum requirements. Don’t you want capable people on your property?
Level of Service: The best companies invest in staffing their organization with many people to be available to you vs. waiting and waiting for a response. Why save a little if it’s going to aggravate you whenever you have an issue to attend to?

With all of these factors, you absolutely get what you pay for. A company that might cost a little more on the front end is worth the value on the back end with a job that is done right and doesn’t require follow-up visits for mistakes.

Know What’s Included – and What Isn’t!

Part of understanding a company’s pricing means knowing what’s included in their program. Oftentimes, what isn’t included is as important as what is. Some lawn care companies make their pricing appear more attractive by keeping certain services out of their base price. But if that service ends up being essential and is added on later, it could actually cost you more in the long run.

An honest lawn care company will talk openly about what services are essential for your lawn as well as what add-ons may be a possibility in the future.

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More often than not, it goes back to the point that if something seems too good to be true, it probably is. The risk of saving 10-15% extra is not worth it if you end up with horrible results that cost you more in the long run. Again, you must consider the fact that the number of visits is not the same as what treatments are being done. When evaluating lawn care companies, you must look at what lawn concerns are included in the pricing and the overall annual cost—not just the number of visits and the cost of each.

Expect that a well-rounded program should always include the following essentials:

Pre-emergent crabgrass control
Balanced fertilizers throughout the year (preferably with a focus on soil health)
Broadleaf weed controls throughout the year (multiple types for hard-to-control weeds)
Post-emergent crabgrass control
Nutsedge control

Potential Costs of Extras

If there are services that you may likely add to your package, it’s helpful to find out the pricing for those services so that you can include that cost in your evaluation. A lawn care company might make their pricing appear more attractive by leaving out services, even if they know you’ll need them. When comparing companies’ pricing, make sure you are aware of everything that is included. Sometimes what you think is the more attractive option winds up costing more once everything is added in.

When comparing companies, it’s also important to consider whether their approach to the services they offer meets a high standard. Sometimes it’s worth paying a little more if you’re getting better quality.

Enticing Discounts

Another way that lawn care companies attract new business is by offering generous promotions and discounts. While this is fairly common for most lawn care companies, it’s important to find out whether these promotions go away after the first visit or the first year so that you can honestly evaluate your overall savings.

In addition, many companies do offer pre-pay discounts, bundle discounts for other services, referral bonuses, or other promotions, so be sure to ask about those as well.

Just remember to weigh any initial offers with what value you may get in the long run. Saving a little money on the front end could cost you a lot more later if you choose the wrong company.

Payment Methods

In comparing companies, you may also want to evaluate the payment options available. Does the company only offer manual payment methods, or do they offer an automatic payment feature? Do they offer savings if you pay in advance? Can you pay by credit card?

These are all questions to ask a lawn care company that you are evaluating. After all, a service is only as beneficial as it is convenient.

How to Compare Lawn Care Companies: Values & Reputation

While all lawn care companies are going to claim that they will treat you properly in the best way possible, it’s important that you take the time to verify their claims. Ask a lawn care company that you are considering to provide you with some references—and take the time to actually check with them.

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References

If you really want to do a thorough check-up on a company, look into several different references. Three is always a good number as it gives you a nice variety. But don’t hesitate to look into even more.

Online reviews posted on third-party sites like Google Reviews, Better Business Bureau, or even social media sites like Facebook are helpful tools. But it’s also worth asking the potential lawn care company for several properties you can see in person.

Recognition & Association

As you compare lawn care companies in your market, look for “differentiators” such as awards, credentials, and association experience. Find companies in your area that stand out from the crowd because of these factors.

These are the companies that put in the extra time to become involved in associations, to further their education and earn credentials, and of course to enter—and ultimately win—awards, not only from the community, but also within their industry.

An Established History

Company experience is also invaluable when it comes to something as important as the care of your lawn. All companies have to start somewhere, but you may be further ahead to let them work out the kinks elsewhere for a while. The lawn care industry has gotten a bad reputation from the fly-by-night businesses that are here one day, gone the next. But they certainly don’t represent the industry as a whole. Look for a company with an established history in your area.

Try to find out the heart and mission of your prospective lawn care company. Unfortunately, there are companies out there whose sole goal is to grow a list of customers to sell off to a big national brand, then move outside of their non-compete agreement, and return years later to do it again. A great lawn care company is there for the long haul and builds its business and treats its customers accordingly. Make sure you are finding someone whose goal is to have long-term relationships with their clients for many years to come.

Education for All

Seek out a company that values education. Companies that are actively involved in educating prospective and active customers, as well as their staff, are those that have made a true commitment to the people and the land they serve.

They’re the companies that attend trade shows and seminars and send their people to ongoing training because they’re committed to keeping up with the latest in the industry.

They’re also committed to conveying what they learn to you by offering the newest technologies and services, as well as passing that knowledge along through regular blogging on various topics.

Lawn Care Companies = Their Team Members

At the end of the day, it’s the people behind a company that make all the difference. The people who work for your lawn care company are of the utmost importance.

These are the people you are going to be dealing with day in and day out. Homeowners can see the difference between a company that has a strong and positive culture—a place where people want to come to work—and a company where employees are just showing up for a paycheck.

A company with great team members has lawn technicians that treat your property as if it were their own, and office staff that promptly takes your call about a potential concern and dispatches someone to handle it. That kind of service is what you should expect from your lawn care company.

Lawn Care Technicians

Technicians are the individuals who are going to be coming out to your property and actually performing the work. It’s important to take a look at how they are trained both initially and on an ongoing basis. Top-of-the-line lawn care companies continually train their people—it’s not a one-and-done job. They go beyond the state’s minimum training requirements, as the training effort isn’t just about meeting that requirement. It’s so much more than that.

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Instead, they know that there are always ways to improve, and they’re capitalizing on those opportunities with continuing education. This ongoing training is not only technical but also focused on people skills and communication, constantly improving upon ways to treat you better with superior service.

It’s also helpful to note whether lawn care techs communicate with you or offer tips. When the job is done, do they take a moment to fill you in on a trouble spot, or are they rushed off to the next job? The lawn care technicians that work for the best companies are those that value the quality of their work—not just the quantity.

Support Staff

In addition to technicians, also take a look at what the office support staff is like. Are they courteous when they answer the phone? Are they responsive when you call with an issue? Do they also train their office staff on technical issues about your lawn, or are they just there to forward a call?

These may seem like small points, but in this service-oriented industry, prompt, polite, and accurate information is important.

It’s All About Finding Value

Whether your reason for hiring a lawn care company is to save time, receive a better service or end result, or potentially to save money, at the end of the day, everyone is looking for the same thing—value.

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There’s no doubt you want the best possible lawn at a price point that includes everything you need to achieve it. And savvy buyers, like you, know that value doesn’t always mean the lowest price. It means a good company doesn’t cut corners or deceive the customer, whether it be via hidden costs or withholding information.

An experienced company that has your best interests at heart is going to educate you on what the lawn truly needs—without worrying that it may price you out of a job. They know you value this kind of honesty and integrity in a world where you rarely receive it.

Oasis Turf & Tree is one such company that has your best interests at heart. We want you to make a well-informed and educated decision about what lawn care company is best for your needs—regardless of whom you choose.

At Oasis Turf & Tree, our focus is on high-quality service and products that deliver upon the value we know customers like you expect. We have highly trained lawn care technicians, top-of-the-line equipment, and high-end products—because we know this combination is what allows us to provide our customers the very best. We don’t cut corners because we know that it only leads to you paying for it in the long run.

We communicate effectively and regularly with our clients so that there are no surprises. And, perhaps most importantly, we truly do care about the people we serve. As a family-owned business with more than two decades of experience, our reputation in the communities we serve speaks for itself. Our customers know they can trust us, and in this day and age, that means everything.

Put us to the test! Learn more about Oasis Turf & Tree. Check out what's included in our customized lawn care programs for your property in the Cincinnati, Dayton, OH, or Northern Kentucky area!