Passion is what drives every endeavour and if you are groping in the dark in search of ideas to make a living, establishing a home cleaning business can be a considerable venture. While some may think that it is degrading but no work is dishonourable, particularly if your motives are honest and your means are righteous. So, don’t pay attention to what others say and get ready for the new venture-cum-adventure in your life.
House Cleaning business is broadly divided into two broad groups: commercial and residential and both have some difference in their mode of operation. And it is quite sensible to broaden your range of service in order to reach the maximum number of clients. Before you are determined to jump into the work, it is important to know that though technology has a good history of evolution, it is not able to ease the amount of physical strain required to execute the job. So it is not a job that can neither be optimized by incorporating new technologies nor can be made showy and extravagant and it’s all about the amounts of efforts you put in to serve your customers.
But the business is right for you if you are looking to generate a high profit within a short time. You can either take assignments from home or any other commercial location in your chosen time of work would give ample flexibility to execute your job as per your suitability and preferable time. Another positivity about this cleaning business is that it offers a wide range of operative techniques that can be applied to suit the demands of different types of clients. If you want you can keep your business as a “one man army” or if you are good in handling administrative tasks, then you may hire some young men who would join you as your team member and help you walk through the path of success.
Such a wide range of choices are offered by few other industries and therefore, demands for the house cleaning business is supposed to increase in near future. Before stepping into house cleaning business, prepare a business plan with the help of below given points. A profitable business plan is key to success for any business in this world.
Are you capable of handling the cleaning business?
The type of cleaning you choose would largely determine the qualification you need. But the standard rule is that you should be determined to please your clients and dedicated to provide a comprehensive cleaning as per your clients’ requirements and devoted towards your business. Another thing you should be offering your clients is a sense of trust and reliability so that your clients feel at ease while you are working at their places. Before you actually start the business, make sure you are equipped with some preliminary skills of running a business, managing time efficiently and amiability to build up relationships with your co-workers and clients. All you can do is sit back and contemplate on what you may expect from a residential cleaning setup if you hire them and try to involve those ideas in your service; nothing can be more effective than this method of making your services better.
Would you take up a franchise or work independently?
Your next consideration is to determine whether you will operate independently or take up franchise from a reputable house cleaning firm. Initially, working under an already established business would be advantageous as they would guide you in the ways you should operate, whether you need any special training and aid you in all possible means to work without facing any challenges. But after some time you may realize that working under some professional firm largely contributes to your drawbacks.
But if you are looking to follow the means that have already been proven successful, then taking up a franchise can help you to a great extent. You can get everything from thorough guidance to promotional and marketing aids from these agencies but the downside is that you are required to invest a greater sum of money compared to running it independently; also you will have to follow a few pre-conceived notions, time frame of works and set rules which can be both beneficial and harmful.
If you choose to work on your own, you can choose your own working hours and apply your own techniques but you wouldn’t have any regulations to fall back upon and you will have to take every single decision concerning your services which signifies that if you are not a good administrator, then this can affect the reputation of your business.
Who would be your target users?
This is a critical part of any business and while you are into a business that involves direct customer service, it becomes all the more significant to decide who are going to be your regular users. Many eminent house cleaning service choose to serve a handful of a clients who find it suitable to hire them. Such businesses run on the strategies based on the needs and requirements of those clients and are aimed at improving their customer service. But as a newcomer, you may not be able to grab a potential customer base at the start and therefore it is reasonable to follow a basic outline of methods and techniques in your house cleaning services offered at an affordable price range so that people from all sectors can get their house cleaned by you.
You may start approaching your friends and relatives to advance your house cleaning business’ efforts to get you referrals and hire your services. It is advised to present yourself professionally and not bring in any personal sentiments while dealing about business matters. Remember you have approached them owing to the bond of trust and faithfulness you share with them and not for allowing them to exploit your capabilities and dexterity. Also make sure that you provide them with a written agreement duly signed by both parties so that you are not deemed responsible lest anything unworthy happens.
If they are contented with your services, they would definitely refer you to others they know and it will cause in the growth of your client reach and success. People from far and wide would come to know about your reliability and reputation and would seek for your services whenever they need their houses to be cleaned.
Where would you operate from?
The latest trend of running any business is to function from one’s own place and a house cleaning business is an ideal example of such a set up. If you are willing to save on costs, it is better to stay back at home and invest the money in developing a webpage and dedicated mobile app whereby customers can get in touch with you. You can converse with them via the chat services of the app, telecommunications and email and there is no need for a face to face meeting and in case you feel the need, you may transform a single room of your home into your office from where you would consult with those clients who are willing to meet you in person.
But there are some regions where the local authorities don’t allow to manage a business from the residential areas and this is particularly true in case you are residing in apartments where the developers restrict commercial ventures from residential properties. In such cases you will have to look for some other means and you may either purchase an establishment or rent out a place from where you can direct your business.
Many reputable business owners are of the opinion that if you are desiring to achieve a growth and development of your business, you should come out of the comfortable environment of your home and operate from a place that induces the professionalism in you. So while choosing an area to set up your business, make sure that you have a well-decorated reception, a working area for your employees, a large store for keeping all the cleaning tools and machineries and a laundry facility for washing carpets and upholstery. The chances of your clients coming up and meeting you in person are quite scant and therefore there is no point to dig a hole in your pocket in setting up the office in a posh zone.
What equipments and vehicles would you need?
Some of the basic equipments which are required for executing your house cleaning business include trash bins, spray liners, mops and buckets, dusters, brushes, rags and other dedicated tools for cleaning. You may also need to buy vacuum cleaner, blowers and carpet cleaners along with some cleaners that are purposely required for cleaning special areas. When you are armed with all these tools and machineries, it is now time to have a vehicle that is large enough to carry all these essential items to your clients’ places. If you don’t have such a huge fund right at the beginning, you may consider hiring the vehicle till your business reaches a point where you receive daily consignments and secure enough profits to invest for a specialized vehicle.
How would you market and advertise for your house cleaning firm?
Securing the initial group of clients is definitely the toughest part of any business and therefore you should try to promote your business in all possible means to obtain those first clients who would be converted to your loyal customers in near future.
Flyers and banners are cheap options for grabbing the notice of a large mass of people who are passing by the advertisements. It is recommended to refrain from dropping leaflets to mailboxes as they are not quite effective and time-consuming. So, place an advertisement everywhere that receives high footfalls all through the day right from a cake shop to a school to the post office and other popular places.
Websites are also a great way of accumulating customers as they have become the modern version of old yellow pages. Your presence in social media is definitely worth it and you may even invest some of your resources in online advertising in Craigslist, Yahoo Local, Google Maps, Backpage, MerchantCircle and several other places.
But remember that no matter how much you invest in advertising and marketing the business, nothing would be as effective as word of mouth in gaining and finally retaining your consumers. So, if you get some customers who are satisfied with your service, it is advised to handover them with enough business cards which they can distribute among their friends and acquaintances. To make this even more effective, you may also launch a referral bonus offer where would offer a discount to those who can get you fresh customers.
What would be your profit margin?
By now you have already understood that house cleaning is really a strenuous job that requires lot of hard work and physical activity to get the job done. So it is recommended that you don’t underestimate your efforts and set up a low price in hope that people would hire you all for your cheap quote. This strategy is largely ineffective in this type of businesses involving direct services as it mirrors a sense that you have kept your prices low simply because your services are not up to the mark!
After all, you cannot expect someone to respect your efforts when you are doing just the opposite. While some house cleaning business operators charge per square foot while others have a flat price for all homes and you may charge as per your suitability. But remember to set a rate that is worth it by taking into account the costs of equipments, their maintenance, price of cleaning agents, labour costs, operational expenses and a decent profit margin so that you can run a sustainable business.
Loyalty of your customers is the main driving point of your business and you would definitely wish to boost it by all possible means. Strong management skills, innovations in technology and improved formula of cleaning products would contribute in making your efforts easier but the high price of such items would increase your operation cost to a great degree. Overall, it is a profitable business if you are cautious in all your moves and weigh them before making any decisions.