🌟 Ask-an-Expert: Low Revenue? High Costs? Let’s Improve Your Margins with Actionable Feedback 🌟

Question

Are you charging enough? Paying too much in labor? Missing out on profit?&nbsp;
Hey, I’m Kelly Guerrero, owner of HomePro Coaching. After over two decades in the service business, I sold my 7-figure lawn care business, and I now help business owners like you streamline operations and achieve sustainable growth.&nbsp;
From June 26 to July 2, let me help you price with confidence, make smarter, faster business decisions, and make sure you actually pay yourself!&nbsp;
Fill out this free downloadable cheat sheet 📥 👇https://www.homeprocoaching.com/freedownload to calculate your numbers and track everything going forward.
🛠️ Drop your numbers below:

Revenue per job
Net profit margin
Gross profit margin
Labor % of revenue
Close rate (estimate conversion rate)

🛠️And I’ll help you:

Identify weak spots
Ask the right questions
Suggest easy wins to improve your margins

Not sure of your numbers? I’ll guide you on where to find them in Jobber or how to estimate.
Let’s work on your business this week—not just in it. 💪
If you've not yet registered for my session at Jobber Blueprint Live, "The 5 Numbers That Will Make (or Break) Your Business," check out upcoming events here:&nbsp;jobber.com/events.

kellyuguerrero · Answer

Hey Julie!&nbsp; This is a great question!&nbsp;If a business owner wants to start focusing on selling their business within the next 3-5 years there are two numbers I would start prioritizing - Net Profit and Close Rate.&nbsp; &nbsp;Net Profit: Because this is the single most critical number buyers care about. A high, stable, and&nbsp;clean net profit increases your multiple and makes the business more attractive. They’re not buying revenue – they’re buying earnings.&nbsp; How do you get there?Start cleaning up the books now.Eliminate personal expenses from business accounts.Show consistent profit trends.Close Rate:&nbsp; Often overlooked but this is critical because it gives you a birds-eye few to the&nbsp;systems&nbsp;in place by the business.&nbsp; Because high close rates show that your sales system works, your marketing is dialed in, and your service has demand – all attractive to a buyer.&nbsp; If the number of estimate requests is high enough that you need one or two sales people NOT the business oiwner to run quotes, then this shows your&nbsp;marketing system&nbsp;has also been perfected.Build a repeatable sales process.Track how many leads convert and why.Document what's working to pass it on.At the end of the day, buyers aren’t just purchasing a business – they’re buying predictable profit and a proven sales engine. Nail your net profit and close rate now, and you’ll be in a powerful position when it’s time to sell.

julie · Answer

Hey Kelly, awesome webinar this morning! I've got a question for youWhat numbers should business owners start focusing on if they are building a business and want to sell in 3-5 years?

kellyuguerrero · Answer

LOVE LOVE LOVE THIS.I know exactly what it’s like to be buried in debt while trying to keep the business running. We went through the same thing when we had our big loss and took on debt to stay afloat.Here’s what I’d do:1. Calculate your debt load. Figure out what percentage of your monthly revenue is going to debt payments. That’s your baseline reality.2. Cut deeper if you can. I’m going to challenge you: tighten the belt even further. Live scrappy in your personal life so you can free up cash to get ahead of your debts.3. Treat debt like a cost of doing business. Think of your debt payments as part of your cost of goods sold when you look at your gross profit. That money’s gone before you ever really “have” it.4. Know what kind of debt you’re dealing with.If it’s 0% mower loans or similar, that’s less stressful—but don’t let it pile up unnecessarily.If it’s higher-interest or straining your cash flow, you need to attack it hard and fast.&nbsp;&nbsp;5. Prioritize your freedom. If your goal is to get out of debt and avoid new loans, buckle down this season and maybe next. Make extra payments where you can.&nbsp; We had a freedom date on the calendar when our loan would be paid.&nbsp;&nbsp;A good rule of thumb: split any extra cash 50/50—half toward debt, half into savings. That way, your next equipment purchase doesn’t have to go on credit.That’s how you shift from working just to pay bills, to actually keeping more of what you earn.You’re not alone in this. Let’s get you moving forward. I'm here to help any way I can!

whitehollow_llc · Answer

Thank you Kelly for working with us all!

Revenue per job: ranges from $50 (mowing visit) to $20k (landscape install or lawn renovation)

Net profit margin: 27% (not including owner's salaries)

Gross profit margin: 53% (not including owner's salaries)

Labor % of revenue: 23% (not including owner's salaries)

Close rate: ~60%, we were close to 100% over the last few years, however we increased our rates this year and are seeing a lower close rate now. We are fully booked though, so I'm not worried about the decrease in close rate.

kellyuguerrero · Answer

Thanks for sharing these numbers — you're clearly running a sharp, intentional operation. That 27% net profit and 23% labor ratio (excluding owner salaries) is impressive, especially as you're scaling prices. Love seeing that you’re still fully booked even with a lower close rate — that’s exactly how healthy pricing power should work.

Quick question: do you track gross profit by service type? I find that’s often where the real “aha” moments come from — especially when deciding which services to double down on or drop.

Job Type	Gross Profit Margin	Note
Brush removal	95%
Plowing	81%
Overseeding	74%	only did 1 this year so far (this is more of a fall job, so we expect more then)
Lawn install	71%
Skid Steer work	70%
Pruning & Landscaping	61%
Landscaping	60%	small plantings, etc.
Spring clean-ups	58%
Mulch installation	55%
Lawn repair	55%
Mini excavator	50%
Stump clean-ups	48%
Mowing	47%
Landscape design & install	45%	Usually higher, we have only done one so far and have 4 more to do
Tree work	31%	Low profit margin, but generally high profit $ compared to other work. Profit margin low because we sub out tree lift & operator

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🌟 Ask-an-Expert: Low Revenue? High Costs? Let’s Improve Your Margins with Actionable Feedback 🌟

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