The Original Gravely Ambassador

David Ovando, Gravely Ambassador

Five years ago, I moved to McKinney, Texas after reading an article in Money magazine describing it as the number one city to run a small business and raise a family. My focus has always been my family and I came here with the drive to create the best future for them. I rebranded my company, Mower Man Lawn Service, with a new logo — a cartoon of me sitting on a Gravely zero-turn mower — and started building a client base from the moment I unloaded my equipment.

I’ve been an unofficial Gravely ambassador ever since — the idea of a formalized ambassador program came about because of me. I worked hard to amplify the equipment I used on social media and it created opportunities that were unreal. Not just with Gravely, other manufacturers wanted to partner with me too.
 
My social media skyrocketed — last time I checked I had 40,000 followers across different platforms — and customers were hiring me because they’d seen me on social media. When you see someone who partners with a major brand, you think to yourself, they must be a big deal.

Quality and quantity

Moving to McKinney was the best decision I ever made. I have my choice of jobs — the challenge is keeping up with all the demand. There is so much construction happening in Texas — lots of new company headquarters and new homes.
 
In order to maintain beautiful yards, good lawncare software is a must. Having your customers in a list and creating a GPS map helps us reach as many lawns as we can. You only have a certain amount of daylight and you need to work fast, while keeping up the quality.
 
An honest Google review will get you ahead over putting out flyers. We’ve worked hard to maintain our 5-star rating on Google and it all starts with honesty, being professional each time you show up, making sure the customer has all their questions properly answered, and — if you make a mistake — saying how you will fix it.
 

Part of the family

I’d like to grow the company but it’s hard transitioning from a family business to having employees and keeping control of the quality on a larger scale. Right now, it’s just me doing the rounds and my wife, who handles the finances and admin. My 11-year old son also likes to help on occasion. He is always wearing a Gravely hat same as I am — like a mini me!
 
I love the family feel associated with Gravely. When you buy a mower, you don’t think about making friends with the owners — and the family is involved with everything that happens in the company. They care about me, my kids and my future and show it through little gestures that mean the world.
 
When my daughter was born, for example, they congratulated me personally and sent her some Gravely gear. That amplifies who I am right now and continue to be — a man sitting on a Gravely mower taking care of his family. And they take care of me by producing some amazing mowers to help me get ahead.