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How to Start A House Cleaning Business In 7 Simple Steps
By Fayola Peters
One of the main reasons people start businesses is to make money. For some it's a blessing to make money doing something they love. I'm not saying that you have to love house cleaning in order to have a successful house cleaning business; however it would be a good idea if you didn't hate it.
How much money you make depends on how big you want your business to be. It could be a one person operation where you set up at home and service areas close to home, or you could set up a commercial office and hire people to work for you.
Here are 7 simple steps to get you started on your own house cleaning business.
1) Decide exactly what kind of house cleaning services you will offer.
Here you decided what cleaning you will do, like making beds, vacuuming, mopping and waxing floors, dusting and so on. Also note what you won't do, e.g. laundry. You can also decide to specialize, e.g. by cleaning carpets only, or cleaning suspended ceilings only.
2) Pricing your housecleaning service.
To have an idea of how to charge for your housecleaning service, use your competition. Check your telephone directory and the classified ads section in your local newspapers for cleaning businesses, call them up (pretend to be a prospective client) and find out exactly what cleaning services they offer and how much they charge. With this information gathered decide the best price to charge for your cleaning service.
3) Workout startup costs.
For this you need to consider, tools, material, transport, advertising, insurance etc. Write down a list all the tools and material you need, like cleaners, sponges, mops, carpet cleaning equipment etc. Next find out the cost of each item on the list and write it down next to the item.
Transport: you will have to estimate your costs here. You see it depends on where your client is located and your means of transportation to get to your client. (Having your own vehicle would be to your advantage).
Advertising: You can use free advertising (word of mouth) and paid advertising (classifieds, telephone directory ads etc). Phone calls to your local newspaper and the telephone company who publish your telephone directory will tell you the cost of placing ads.
Once you've gathered all this information, calculate your total startup costs.
4) Name your business.
Choosing an appropriate name for your house cleaning business is important. Here are a few examples I got of the internet, "Maid Brigade", "All Shine Cleaning", "White Glove Cleaning Service". Please avoid using "Your Name Cleaning Services". Using your own name as part of your business name is over done by many house cleaning businesses. Brainstorm and come up with a name that helps you stand out of the crowd.
5) Learn the zoning regulations of your community.
Check the city clerk's Office or your local library for a copy for a copy of the zoning laws governing your community. Your reason for doing this is that some zoning regulations prohibit home businesses in a community.
6) Do a few free cleaning jobs.
Well you're not actually doing them for free. You're doing them in exchange for references (these add to your credibility for future paying clients and are invaluable). You can offer these free cleaning jobs to friends, non profit organizations in your communities etc.
7) Get your first paying client then get another and another and another and so on.
Tell everyone you know that you've started a cleaning business and place ads in the local newspapers. In the beginning you need to spend most of your time and money getting paying clients. However, the more clients you get the less time and money you spend on marketing and more time you spend on cleaning and making your clients happy.
This is just the beginning. Once you start making money take a house cleaning business course to help you better manage your business in terms of growth, accounting, taxes, insurance better marketing strategies and more.
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You have permission to publish this article electronically or in print, free of charge, as long as the bylines are included. A courtesy copy of your publication would be appreciated. fayolap@yahoo.com
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About The Author: Fayola Peters is the webmaster of housecleaning-tips.com. To find more information about a house business cleaning course check out her website at housecleaning-tips.com. fayolap@yahoo.com
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Fayola_Peters
| If you are just starting out with your cleaning business it would be helpful to have a web site where prospective customers can find your contact information, see your rates, hours of business, and references, all when convenient for both them and you. Cuts back on phone calls and helps customers find you and make their choice. Customers will feel more confidence in hiring someone who has an online presence, so owning your own website can greatly help your business. A web address stated on business cards and brochures can help sell a customer on your business. Let me know if you would like me to build a website for you. To see the sample cleaning business website go → HERE - spongebon www.sitewryte.com |
Grow Your Cleaning Business By Creating a Referral Machine
By Steve Hanson
One of the fastest ways to grow your cleaning business is to get referrals from your current customers. There may be times when a customer will pass your company's name along without any prompting from you. However, to really get your clients to work for you, it's important to encourage referrals. You do this by developing and implementing a business generating strategy.
A business generating strategy may sound complicated, but it's really quite simple. All you need to do is set up a system to track where referrals come from, and then reward the individuals (including your own employees) or companies that have sent new business your way.
Before you begin actively seeking referrals, take a look at your clients and make sure that they are happy with your services. If you're not sure how they feel about your cleaning services, send out a customer survey to see what areas they are happy with and where you might need improvement. There are also a few simple, but often neglected rules of courtesy that you should adhere to:
* Make sure that you show up on time to clean buildings. If you are delayed for some reason, explain why you were late to your customer.
* Take care of any complaints quickly.
* Do what you say you are going to do - whether it is dropping off supplies or showing up for a meeting with a customer. And remember, whenever you are meeting with a customer, turn off your cell phone!
* Always remember to say please and thank you.
You may provide the best cleaning service in your part of the country, but what your customer will remember is that one time you had a meeting and your cell phone went off or the time a complaint went unanswered.
Once you are happy with the level of service you are providing your customers, it's time to set up your "referral machine". Begin by deciding what type of rewards you will give your customers (and employees) for sending referrals your way. Are you just going to send thank you notes, or will you send gifts? Gift certificates are an excellent way to reward customers who send referrals; and cash is a good incentive for employees.
How do you get referrals from your cleaning customers? Ask! Think of the different ways you communicate with your customers.
1. When sending out monthly invoices include a referral form that they can pass along to anyone looking for cleaning services. Make sure you have a tracking number on the form or a place where they can write their name so they get the credit for the referral.
2. Do you send out a newsletter? That's the perfect place to let your customers know you appreciate your business and that you are accepting new cleaning customers.
3. Call or schedule an appointment with your current customers to discuss how things are going. Ask if you can send them a referral form that they can keep on hand.
4. Ask for testimonials from your current customers. Then print part of their testimonial on a referral form that they can give to people who are looking for a cleaning service.
5. Put together a list of the individuals and business that could send referrals to you. This includes not only current customers, but employees, networking groups, suppliers and professional service providers (your accountant, lawyer, tax preparer, etc.) Send information to all the individuals on your list letting them know you are building your business and are looking for referrals.
6. People are busy with their own lives and their own businesses. So it is important that you thank them when they take the time to send a new customer your way. Taking the time to send a thank you shows that you appreciate the referral.
As any successful business owner will tell you, referrals from current customers are the best way to grow your business. Indeed, it is more cost-effective to give cash and gifts to individuals that send referrals your way than to it is to run an ads in your local media. Provide good service to your cleaning customers and remind them you are growing your business and the referrals you get will pay off much better than any money you spend on an advertising campaign.
Steve Hanson is co-founding member of The Janitorial Store (TM), an online community that offers weekly tips, articles, downloads, discussion forums, and more for anyone who would like to learn how to start a cleaning business. Visit The Janitorial Store's blog and get inspired by reading cleaning success stories from owners of cleaning companies.
Copyright (c) 2007 The Janitorial Store
Article Source: Steve Hanson
Grow-Your-Cleaning-Busines
Useful marketing tool for your cleaning business.
Twitter is the hottest thing to hit the internet in a very long time. It is the most used social media website in the world right now. Twitter now has over 13 million users and the numbers are growing every day. Are you there? To get a better grasp on Twitter, sign up for this step-by-step webinar, where you'll learn how to master the art of using Twitter to build relationships and market your cleaning business!
Jean Hanson, co-founder of TheJanitorialStore.com and MyHouseCleaningBiz.com is a pro at using Twitter and has all the inside scoop you need to make Twitter a useful marketing tool for your cleaning business.
For more information and to sign up for the webinar, visit this page: HERE