My goal for this blog post is to show that side-hustle projects aren’t just about extra income. In addition to money, you get the satisfaction of making your clients happy by solving their problems.
The problem
As the Victoria Day long weekend approached my clients wanted their backyard nicely pimped out before their visitors arrived. Aside from freshly cut lawns, they wanted to install new mulch to give their beds a nice fresh look. Also, they wanted me to refresh the tired-looking back gate area.
Client vs customer
And here’s the crucial difference between clients and customers. While customers only care about prices, clients allow you to guide them, even if the cost is slightly higher.
For example, they left it up to me to pick the mulch. So, I went with the slightly pricier aged mulch which is darker. If I had a backyard like theirs, that’s what I would install.
Crucially, good clients aren’t likely to drop you for a competitor who might charge a bit less. If you’re lucky, you get to develop a relationship with your clients. Arguing over price with customers is very tiring.
Material volumes
As for purchasing the correct amount of materials, this is sometimes a bit stressful but on this project everything worked out well. There was enough leftover in the 2.5 yards of aged mulch to top-up the front entrance bed as well.
As for the back gate area, the half a yard of 1 1/4″ river rock was the perfect amount. A Red Seal professional should be able to properly estimate material volumes.
Happy wife
Finally, it always gives me great satisfaction to leave a residence looking better than it did before I arrived. With a fresh new lawn cut, new mulch and river rock installed, the backyard patio was ready to receive visitors. And that made the wife extremely happy; and the husband didn’t have to get a new loan to pay for my services. Everybody wins!
Conclusion
Always try to find good clients who will stick with you as you help and educate them. You can derive lots of satisfaction from solving your clients problems.
