If there’s one thing everyone needs to do, it’s cleaning. However, not everyone has the time to clean their homes as often as they want or should. And that’s where your professional cleaning services come in.
There are many opportunities for starting a cleaning business. However, before you start, there are a few things you should know. In this article, we’ll cover what you’ll need to start your own cleaning business including a list of the basic tools you will use day by day, some step-by-step instructions for getting started, and some tips to grow your business into a true success.
So let’s jump right into it!
Before you run over to start this lucrative business, you need to make sure that you’ve got all of the necessary supplies. So let’s talk about that first.
Basic tools of the trade
Start off with researching the supplies and equipment you’ll need to start your business.
This includes things like the vacuum, bucket, and mop we talked about earlier, as well as any other tools or supplies you think you’ll need. You can find most of the items you’ll need at a local hardware store or online, whatever way you prefer here would be just fine.
For starters, you’re going to need a vacuum cleaner.
There are no two ways about this one. If you’re really getting in there to clean properly, you need to make sure that you’re not just sweeping the dust and dirt in the same area over and over again. Those that just do that are often surprised why the client’s home gets dirt right after they leave, it’s because the dust comes back down and settles in place! With a powerful vacuum cleaner, you can get rid of the dirt from the home entirely, even if you can’t reach or see it yourself. This is an essential item for every cleaning job you could ever be hired for.
A good broom and dustpan
These are essential in any cleaning business. you will need several different brooms to handle the various floor surfaces you will come across. Some brooms will be better for more coarse concrete surfaces while others, like a Swiffer can handle wood flooring. Either way, you will need a couple of these guys to get started.
The next item of importance is a mop.
Once you’ve removed all of the pesky dust, it’s also important to give the entire place a good mopping. This can be a simple mop or a super fancy steam mop if you’ve got the budget for it. It’ll get the job done a lot better than an average mop!
While you’re at it, get a bucket too.
This would be great not only to hold the water you’ll use as you clean, but if you don’t use water, you can use it to carry the cleaning supplies around in an organized way.
After that, you still need to get your basic duster. Like the brooms, you will need to carry several dusters and rags with you to handle different textures and surfaces you come across.
You should have sponges to wipe down surfaces, emergency spill cleanup, and finally, protective gear like gloves and goggles to keep you safe throughout the job.
This list is just a basic one to help you get started. It may seem a little daunting at first but through experience, you will begin to see what tools you will need more often and which ones you can leave in the car or van for the most part.
Another option to help with starting your cleaning business would be to get step-by-step instructions.
Lilian, who makes more than $2,000 a week from her successful cleaning business has taken everything she has learned and boiled it down into a great course that explains in detail, all the best practices to start and run your own residential cleaning business.
Among many other things, Lilian explains how to quickly get your first 10 customers, how to properly estimate and charge for jobs, and how to make more money with simple add-on services she has also included video tutorials on the best cleaning practices to get the job done quickly and correctly to name just a few.
If you want a faster way to get started in the home cleaning business, Lilian’s House Cleaning University is a great place to start.
In the list of things, you need to get, make sure you list down the paperwork too.
Depending on where you are, it’s likely that you’ll have to apply for licenses and for insurance before you can even get an office. So make sure you check the requirements for your area and then get started on the business side of things!
Now that we’ve talked about all of the things you will need to get to start your cleaning business, let’s go over a step-by-step plan of how you can go from ground zero to owning a functional cleaning business all by yourself!
Then, choose a location.
There are two ways you can operate your cleaning business. You can do it from your own home or you can do it from a rented space. If you choose to work from your home, make sure to have a specific area for your business. This will help you stay organized and keep your work area separate from your living space. So you can grab all the supplies and get out the door without having to spend time trying to find stuff all the time!
Before doing anything else make sure to get the licenses and insurance required to operate in your area.
This is an extremely important step! Make sure you’re fully compliant with all local laws and regulations before you start taking on clients. You can do this by contacting your local Chamber of Commerce or city hall. Contact the authorities and they can guide you in the right direction according to your own area.
Now you’re ready to start promoting your business!
You can do this by creating a website or social media page for your business, handing out flyers in your local area, or even just telling people you know that you’re starting a cleaning business!
Then, figure out the pricing situation.
Make sure to price your services competitively. You could offer discounts for first-time customers or for those who book multiple appointments. Repeat business is important for a successful cleaning business. If you’re charging too high, people may not even be able to hire you even if they want to. On the other hand, if you charge too low, you won’t even be able to cover your costs! So make sure that you give this one adequate time and energy before moving forward.
At this point, you can start scheduling your appointments.
Start scheduling appointments with clients once you have your supplies and marketing materials ready. Allow enough time for each appointment so that you can do a good job, and turn the first-time customers into long-lasting ones that just want you to keep coming back for more! When customers feel like the person they’ve hired is rushing, they don’t really want to continue on with them. As long as you make them believe that they have your full attention, you’ll be able to do a great job and grow your business fairly quickly!
Through it all try to add those “extra touches”.
One problem with doing a business that other people have done in the past is that you really have to strive to be different. If there are 100 cleaning services in your city, what can you do to make sure that you don’t get lost in that crowd? Well, it’s all of those extra little touches that business owners forget about. When you arrive at your appointment, be sure to introduce yourself professionally and explain what you’ll be doing. If the client seems open to that much conversation. Read the room, talk about your stuff accordingly and then get to work cleaning.
Sure, you won’t really be getting paid for all those extra touches, but these are the little things that set you apart from everyone else. Even if you clean just as well as any other service, if the way you connect with the client is better than the rest, you’ll be the one they remember. Those that can make a spot in people’s hearts are the ones that customers keep coming back to!
Follow up with your customers
After you have completed the job, follow up with your client to make sure they are happy with the results. This is a good time to ask for feedback (and testimonials if you’re looking to build up your marketing materials). Plus, it’ll be a great way to hear from the client directly if there was anything they’d change or if there’s anything you could improve upon. There’s no better way to improve than gathering feedback and actually working on it!
On top of it all, remember to stay organized.
This is an often “brushed under the rug” type of deal. Once your business takes off, you’re going to be getting several orders a day. While some of them may be easy to remember, there will come a point where you have so much work that you totally forget an appointment altogether! That’s the opposite of what we’d want to happen!
So, be sure to keep your business organized by keeping track of your appointments, clients, and supplies. This will help you to run your business smoothly and efficiently. You can do this by using an old-fashioned notepad, or take things to the 2022 level and use a notes app and alarms to keep track of each client!
Clients are the lifeblood of any business – without them, you simply cannot survive. So it’s important that you take care of your clients and always give them your best.
Remember that success isn’t a linear path.
In theory, a cleaning business is one of the simplest businesses to start. So much so that anyone can do it. However, that doesn’t mean that every single person will have the same trajectory! Some people might strike gold and get instantly successful, but that’s not how things are for most of us. You might get success, but along with it failure too. No matter what happens, do not forget that it’s totally okay to have your ups and downs, just make sure you’re always aiming for success, just remember that sometimes, there may be more downs than ups. With that mantra in mind, you’ll be able to run a successful cleaning service!
If a residential cleaning business seems like it could be a rewarding business to start but you feel like maybe some more information could be helpful, maybe Lilian’s House Cleaning University course is right for you . In there, you can find out all the information you need to start a successful cleaning business including video tutorials.