BizVox Talks To Young Entrepreneur Ryan Carver ... & Scott Pines For His Lost Youth

Welcome to BizVox, part of the Electric Secrets variety podcast. We are dedicated to small businesses, entrepreneurs, and nonprofits. You're here to build knowledge, spur productivity, and have a few laughs along the way. My name's Scott Leon Smith, and I'm your host. Let's talk some shop.

Welcome back to BizVox, everybody. I'm Scott, but you knew that? Boy, I am 50 years old, and it always blows my mind when I meet someone who is much, much, much younger than me and much, much more driven than me. My fellow Gen Xers know what I'm talking about. I recently got an opportunity to write some articles for the local news, and I met this young man named Ryan Carver, who just before he graduated in May, he had his own lawn care business, which, you know, when we're kids, we mow other people's lawns and mow the lawns of shut-ins and make a few extra dollars here and there. But he is building it into a full-fledged powerhouse business, and I got to talk to him about his ambitions and his branding, and his growth. And he's just a great example of what one young, driven person can do.

And we met in the local coffee house, so you'll hear a lot of bustling ambiance behind our conversation. But here's what Ryan said when I asked him to tell me about his business. 

Ryan:

I've always wanted to be an entrepreneur and kind of working for myself, you know, doing my own thing. It's just always been engraved in my image from a small age. So I started out mowing like my grandparents, and it just kind of blossomed from there, you know, just pushing my mower around their house and I started doing a little bit more and a little bit more, and it's just kind of been growing a little bit each year. 

Scott:

So what was the highest number of...

Ryan:

Probably last year. I mean, I had over 20 lawns I was doing. I didn't, you know, five to ten landscaping jobs, you know. So it was a pretty good year. So it stayed pretty busy. Just me, you know.

Scott:

So what landscaping work do you do?

Ryan:

So right now I'm in, we do a lot of mulching, you know, cutting a new mulch bed, stuff like that, done a lot of that. I've done some hardscape type stuff, you know, like building walls and stuff, you know, hardscape blocks and all that stuff. We did a couple of those. I'd really like to get them doing patio work and stuff like that, you know, eventually. So stuff like that, you know.

Scott:

Okay. Now, are you a senior right now?

Ryan:

Yeah, I'm a senior right now. Yeah, I'm a senior right now. So you're about three months left and I'll be out. And you'll be out and you can just dedicate yourself to this at times. Yeah, yeah. So I like to, you know, just keep sticking with it.

Scott:

So already Ryan's taken something that we normally think of as an odd job that we can do to make extra money, and he's turning it into something that he can build a future from. Listen to what he says when he talks about how he does his branding and how he created his color schemes and his logo and his website. 

I always bring my podcast back to branding.

Ryan:

Yeah.

Scott:

Now, I checked your website out. Your slogan is “The Gold Standard.”

Ryan:

That's right.

Scott:

So tell me about the process of coming up with how you want, how you wanted to present your business.

Ryan:

Well, you know, I wanted to present it as a business you can trust and a business that people can rely on, you know, as far as in a lot of service industry businesses. There are a lot of kind of shoddy contractors, you know, and a lot of people that may not return your phone calls, may just kind of leave you on the line. So, you know, going back to “The Gold Standard,” I wanted it to be something that people could trust and, you know, it's a gold standard. So, I'm going to advertise them also with our, you know, look of our, look at my business is the gold, you know, kind of outlines and stuff.

Scott:

When I saw that, I was just like, okay, that's an interesting use of something that people are used to now having these tiers of service. So that was that thought that was interesting that you incorporated that into your business.

Ryan:

Yeah. Yeah, for sure. For sure. So, and yeah, you know, I guess people, you know, having options in business definitely helps, you know, you got, you got the three tiers, you know, just for standard, your silver plan and then your gold plan as far as the gold and caron stuff.

Scott:

So, did you work with anybody to come up with logos, anything like that? Did you just come up with all that yourself?

Ryan:

Yeah. I mean, I pretty much kind of, I saw the idea of like the color schemes on like, I think it was, I think it was Vistaprint. Getting business cards and stuff like that. So, I was like, man, that's a cool color scheme, you know, with the green and the gold and kind of the black and the white, you know, all put together. 

Scott:

So, do you put your website together yourself or do you?

Ryan:

So this one I did. The other one, I had another guy do it. This one just did in the last couple of months. So, and then on this website, people have now the option to pay. So they can pay, you know, like if they have lawncare, landscaping, they can pay. Right over here. So, and that was the main reason why. Then you got contact. People can email, you know, send it to me, because directly to us. And I did all this, I made all this myself. So, yeah, and this is services. It just gives a brief description of what we do. Spring cleanups, one thing we do, fall cleanups, of course, lown care. 

Scott:

Did you take all the images yourself or did you find them?

Ryan:

Some are, some are not. Someone just found to give it more clean and good. You know, taking stuff on iPhones that can be hit or miss. But it's about half. But yeah.

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Scott:

Welcome back, everybody. As you can hear from our conversation so far, my conversation with Ryan Carver, I'm talking about his small business. He's got a great handle on his branding. I was curious to know how he markets himself and how he sees the growth of his business happening over time. So, where do you normally do your marketing?

Ryan:

So right now, I wanted to get into doing Google ads, but it wasn't quite in the budget yet this year. So in the past, I've done stuff like Richland County, like the Richland Source. So they've done a couple of stores for me and stuff, which really has got me a lot of business. Just me and my buddy, I think it was last week when I out and did door hangers. So we did like 350 of those in one day, about killed each other, but doing it. You got to do it. I think I walked nine miles.

But we just went around to the areas that I'm now right now and just went around those areas and tried to get a couple customers.

Scott:

So how big how big your reach right now?

Ryan:

So I mean, right now we're doing the Bucyrus and Crestline. I'm from Crestline. Then we're also doing Mansfield. I have a lot of lawns in Mansfield, Shelby, Ontario, most of the areas. And then as far as that's what the mowing as far as the landscaping, about an hour radius, you know, is what we do, you know, more money in landscaping. So, you know, it's worth a drive.

Scott:

So you say, you say we who's.

Ryan:

So yeah, I mean, I have a couple of friends that help me out with landscaping projects and stuff. Mowing is generally just me right now, but it depends on if I get over 30 lawns. And I'm going to need one or something help with that too.

But for landscaping, usually I mean, you know, another guy helping. So in the past, you know, it's usually just been good guys that I go to school with that are her workers, you know, I've helped me out a lot. So I know a lot of people from school, guys who are looking for work. So that's usually going to have help now.

Scott:

So how big do you want this to grow? What's your, what's your dream?

Ryan:

What's my dream business? I got, well, I got big dreams. But so the way I look at it as, you know, my dad does construction stuff and I like to eventually start with the lawn care company landscaping. My goal is to have it be a multi-million dollar company before I'm 30. So I got about a 12-year span to make that happen. So, you know, trying to get that built. But then from there, what I really like to do is incorporate construction, new construction alongside the landscaping, real estate development, stuff of that nature, and make it into a multi-billion dollar company. So that's the ultimate goal. So this is kind of the first step into that. But you know, like I said, making an incorporation. Doing like new construction. I really want to get into new construction, eventually commercial buildings, stuff like that. So as far as we're doing commercial landscaping in lawn care, which we also do that too. So yeah, it's just a slow grind into that, you know, as far as you got out of the equipment, you got out of the people, you know, and that costs a lot of money.

Scott:

If you're from my generation, you probably recognize a lot of the big dreams that you probably had when you were Ryan's age. And what's really cool to me about Ryan is that when you're listening to him talk, you think to yourself, this kid could pull this off. He's got plans. He's got vision. And he's doing a lot of this stuff himself. In fact, I asked him about how he designs his landscaping. And I asked him what advice he had for peers his age. And here's what he said.

How do you tackle design with your landscape to you? Like, your process of, like, if you got a client and you're looking at their yard, what's your process like?

Ryan:

Yeah, usually, I mean, I'm big, I'm like, drawing out in the layout. So I use like Google Earth a lot and try to get a, you know, kind of a bird's eye view of the layout. And I usually just kind of draw it on a piece of paper. I draw it to the house, you know, and all that stuff. And then I'd usually like, I go out to jobs, like if it's an elching job or something, anything really. I go out to the job once I get a sketch, draw up, drew up. And I'll go and measure it out and get all the measurements and kind of take it from there. So that's kind of how I do it. Some people do it on like a computer with, you know, certain processes I don't even know. But I don't really, I've gotten into that yet, I guess. So I just draw it out. Yeah, it works for me. It works for me.

Scott:

So somebody that's your age that is thinking about starting a business. What advice would you give them? Peer to peer?

Ryan:

Um, probably what I would tell them is number one, if you're going to start your own business, it's going to be tough. So I mean, I've been doing this for a couple of years, really trying to go at it, especially in the last probably two years. I've doubled profits the last couple of years, which is good, but, you know, to really, you know, you've got to set a goal and you've got to figure out what it takes to get their is one thing.. You know, figure out the numbers, figure out what you need to make, figure out what that goal is, you know, figure out your goal, and then figure out the steps to get in here. You know, it's one thing to have a dream, but the dream doesn't matter because what it takes to get to that dream is what really matters, you know. Um, and just don't give up, and you've got to keep going, you know, and it's going to take time.

That's one thing a lot of people I see my age, um, I see is that they think they're going to start a business and they're going to be multi-millionaires in the first year. That is not the case at all. You know, maybe for some people, but that is very few, and they're going to have a lot of money to back that up, whatever that may be, especially if you're talking service industry.

So that's one thing. I think that's because of the internet, you got all these influencers, you got all these people saying, oh, God, just do this. I could be a millionaire. That is not necessarily going to be the case. Now, I'm not saying that's always not going to be the case, but for the most part, it's going to take time. It's going to take money. It's going to take a lot of sweat and some tears, you know, and you've got to be willing to take a risk. You're not willing to take a risk. You're not going to want to be an entrepreneur because you might go broke. You might have to go broke to get to the next step. That's the honest truth. It's not as easy as it may look on the internet.

Scott:

Or they make it look easy.

Ryan:

They do.

Scott:

And it's one of those things where anybody can be, it seems like anybody can be a success like that, especially with social media and things like what I mean.  You're absolutely right. It's just like, those are the lucky ones. 

Ryan:

Either that or they're just putting on a persona. Don't trust who you watch on the internet. Really, really the main thing is just get out there and just do like, yeah, just get it done. Do the work. Do the work. Put the work in.

I mean, I've had jobs where I was a little on edge about, you know, like OK, this is kind of risky because I may not know all the steps to it. But when you get in there, you figure it out and take it piece by piece. Especially when I was really starting to have a landscape and stuff. I had to, you know, just get out there. I was like, I'm just like, I'm just like, I'm just like, I'm just like, I'm just like I had, you know, just like, just learn as I, like, pretty much. 

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Scott:

Hey, welcome back to BizVox, everybody. I hope you are enjoying my conversation with Ryan Carver, a young entrepreneur, just about he has just graduated at the point of this recording. Oh, man, it is so refreshing to hear a young person recognize and I'm much more young people realize this and know this than we give them credit for. 

I mean, okay, I just use the terms young person and young people. So I am about to sound really old. Enjoy.

They know they're watching the videos online, and they see and they can recognize the difference between what is legitimately designed to help a person out and what is designed to just get them as a follower to influence them and get money from them.

So as our conversation moves on, we talk a little bit more about how Ryan is self-taught, and then I was really interested to know how he looks at graduation and moving forwar,d since he's got this business already established and here's what he said. 

So you kind of self-taught?

Ryan:

Pretty much. Yeah, I mean, my dad's pretty good with, you know, like I said, he does construction stuff. He's pretty knowledgeable with all the different types of things that have to do with housing, you know, landscaping, watercourse. So he does know some things that have, you know, but for the most part, I just had to get out there and just do it. So yeah.

Scott:

So, post-graduation. You've got a summer ahead of you. Very few people your age are going into high school graduation already with a business set up.

Ryan:

Yeah. I went to Pioneer for industrial electricity. I learned a decent amount of that, you know, that kind of applies to the home improvement stuff. But really, I mean, graduations, two things, you can look at it as, you can look at it as, oh my gosh, my days of high school are gone, what you have they are, you know, it kind of sucks if you're that type of person at enjoyed high school, which I am, you know, I enjoy talking to people and I've got a lot of friends, you know, and all that stuff. But you can also look at it as this is the beginning of actual life, you know. For me, it's different than some people because I've been doing this since my, really trying to make this a business since my sophomore year. So that's when I really decided that year, the beginning of my sophomore year, I decided, like, I want to be an entrepreneur, this is what I'm going to do. That's where that happened.

So for me, that mindset's been kind of instilled in me since then. So I feel for me, as far as after high school, you know, I feel pretty prepared, you know, life always throws things at you, but I feel pretty confident in myself that I'll figure it out and have success.

Scott:

As I was wrapping up my conversation with Ryan, I was really interested in hearing a story about his business. I like hearing strange stories about people's businesses and people they have to deal with, and weird jobs if they have to do what I got from Ryan. I didn't expect he went into a whole other facet of what he does and what he sees himself doing in his future, an additional dimension to where he sees himself going.

Okay. This question is for me. We're just a thing that happened to you on a job.

Ryan:

Um, I came in really. They don't come once in. Um, a lot of times, like, so when  I mow, I wear headphones, I play music, also cuts down sound. So sometimes like people can sneak up on you, you know, and scares a crap out of you, but um. 

Scott:

What kind of music you listen to?

Ryan:

Um, all different types. I'm a rock guy. That's, I mean, all this is a rap and R&B and stuff. I am a musician. So I have my own band, Cruz Campo, and it's all original stuff. We play it all. That's all right. Um, we got about 10 shows lined up for the summer already. And they're all over Ohio. Like Cleveland, Columbus, um, here in Mansfield. Mothership is a place with one of them, which is a mansola. That's another business I own.

Scott:

What's your instrument?

Ryan:

So I play guitar and sing, but I play drums, bass, and stuff. You know, so if you listen to music, I did all of it. So when you're listening to it, I did all of hers. But yeah, that's another dream too of mine. Yeah. So I do something in music. 

Scott:

Dude, I'm telling you that having you got your own business, your own band, you record your own stuff. You write your own stuff. It's hard to find. Well I mean, I should, it's hard to find somebody from my generation. I don't know about stuff to get. I mean, it's just, it's such a rare thing that, I mean, you want to enjoy those years. But sometimes people enjoy them so much that when it's over, it's just like stagnating.

Ryan:

I've never wanted to peek in high school. That's not what I want to do. I got a lot more stuff to accomplish before. But yeah, I mean, it keeps my toes. The one thing nice is, you know, I got, I got the landscape in that dream, and I also got the music stuff. So, you know, it keeps me, I'm big into working out too. So I got a lot of different things that I'm into, you know. So like a lot of people think they got to do one thing, got to stick to it. And if you really are trying to make something successful, you do it. But you can also have plenty of other things that you enjoy as well. So it doesn't have to be just one thing. You know, I mean, like college, I don't have plans of going to college. Somehow, I got enough credits from behind here in school that I could go to college for at least two years for free. Which for me is like, it doesn't matter. That's not in the plan. There's nothing wrong with college, but you know, there's so much money in the trades now, especially that you don't really need to. If you want to, you know, I'd say if you're going into trades, you can go to college, but I'd say it's best to go get a job and learn on the job. And you're going to make money while you're learning. Even in my schooling career, you know, when I was in middle school, it was college. People come and talk like eighth grade, I remember a college come and talk to us. Freshman year, eighth grade, freshman year, it started changing. Like, okay. You don't have to necessarily go to college. You can do other things too. There's like, you know, there's other things you can do besides college. Let's face it, at the end of the day, you're gonna need somebody to do your windows, fixing up your house, plumbing, electrical, heating, landscaping, any of those things, you're going to need somebody that's skilled in the trades to do that because a lot of people know how to do that. They might have a clue, but they're not good enough to where they can, you know, go to their bathroom and put it back in. 

Scott:

Skills are the key.

Ryan: 

Yeah. So, and it's always going to be needed no matter how much AI advances or how much technology advances, they have not made a robot that can go into your house and completely remodel it. Because guess what? Every house is a little bit different. You know, sometimes the walls are bowed. You know, sometimes, you know, your kitchen is a little out of level. You know, just stuff like that. So, it's going to be a long time before that's the case. I mean, probably not. Oh yeah, probably not in my life. 

Scott:

I mean, having a Roomba is about the...

Ryan: 

Now they do a piece of the wall and stuff. Damn, they have that stuff from mowing too. Yeah, and they can't do stripes. So it just looks… It's just random, like, circular patterns.

So, you know, but technology advances a lot. So, I'm sure eventually that'll be like… 

Scott:

You're absolutely right with your trade skills. I mean, that's the only thing that really is truly future proof. As long as you got grass.

Ryan:

You're going to be living places. As long as there's housing and buildings. Somebody's going to get fixed enough.

Scott:

After talking to Ryan, I just wish I could go back to that… To my 18-year-old self and be much less confused and pressured and… Lost in terms of where I wanted my future to go because it was a really weird time growing up, graduating in the 90s and being pressured to go to college and… Wanting to maybe do something else, but you weren't… Really sure what you wanted that thing to be and then you meet someone like Ryan when you're 50 years old like me and you go, Oh God, I wish I had that when I was 18.

But anyway, I hope you enjoyed my interview with Ryan Carver. If you're in Ohio, keep on the lookout for his band. He's probably playing somewhere. And maybe give him a call and get some landscaping done. Have him mow your yard for you. He is a cool young man to talk to. And I thank him very much for letting me use his interview recording for this podcast.

That is it for this episode. I will see you next time. Let's get to work.

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