I know that one of the big reasons people start a business is because they are chasing the money that comes with owning a successful enterprise.
On a certain level that line of thought is fine. After all, money is what makes the whole world go round not to mention you just plain need it.
What I want to share today is just a quick thought on the importance of not getting sidetracked and consumed by the idea of “riches”. While money is a huge part of running a business – bidding, payroll, overhead – the first thing you need to be worried about is making the customer wildly satisfied.
This type of topic is not really all that exciting to many people, yet the importance of fully understanding the “big picture” plays a large role in whether or not people have success in their own business. At the end of the day those who make the customer “extremely happy” earn more money than all others combined.
I know I’ve talked a lot about how many different factors play into your success or failure over the last few years, and it can seem like a lot at times I’m sure. This is a whole new adventure for many of you, and getting up to speed takes some time. With that said, none of it is hard. You just need to master the fundamentals in a sense.
This “learning curve” that you are going through may seem like a lot, but if you can just focus on taking the time to really find out what type of service the customer requires (quick and cheap, more detailed and pricy or high end) then do your best to take an accurate guess to how long that cleaning will take.
From there you just need to put an hourly rate to how long you think it will take and before you know it you’ve reached a price to charge. Most people stop here however, forgetting that the most important step is making sure the customer is happy. You’ll do this by clearly outlining what your cleaning entails then following through on that.
I’ll wrap this up by just making mention one more time that your goal is to create happy customers (THINK: “Cheerleaders”), who will spread the word about how great you and your company are for FREE. This is simply the best way to generate business in any business, especially the cleaning business.
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This is a very true goal in the cleaning business to have. Because by doing a great cleaning service at a reasonable price, with trust that you build with your customers will lead to a long business relationship with them!
Hi Ron! Yep… that’s the secret sauce most companies don’t focus on. Thanks for commenting Ron!
Thank you for informtive post, Tom. I completely agree with you. Cleaning is a profitable business, especially nowadays when many people prefer using professional services rather than spending time on house cleaning activities. However, if you don’t have the right approach, your business may easily turn into a failure.
Thanks Melinda!
Great informative post Mr. Watson! I like how you said that it all boils down to making your clients extremely happy at the end of the day. That will always translate into money regardless of what you do. When doing business, If you put the customers needs before your needs/wants, then they’ll always want to spend their money on you..
At which time of the year do you think potential commercial clients would be more receptive towards hiring a new cleaning company?
You make great points Brandon, put them FIRST, the money will follow. Anyway… no time is really better than another in my opinion. With that said… there are some rules I follow…
I used to think doing a heavy marketing campaign in December was good, but I had NO LUCK (I think folks are too preoccupied with the holiday to give my direct mail piece any attention). Also July / August was no good for me as that was a HUGE vacation time for a lot of people near me.
This doesn’t mean you can’t market during the holidays or in vacation time, it’s just that I didn’t have as much success during that period so I avoided that time frame. Just keep track of how well you do, and before long you’ll see which months work best for you.
Thanks for the response and great insight!
Happy to help Brandon!
I have truly enjoy your website!! I have to ask this question because I place a bid for a contract and actually won it with no cleaning experience or having a business established. Reading your website has been so valuable to me and I will be purchasing your courses within the next week or so. Now my question is somewhat simple but complicated at the same time. Should I hire employees or subcontractors? I don’t understand the difference and I’m getting two different answers from people close to me so would love a veteran in the business answer. Thanks
Hi Jeff! Thanks for the kind words, we appreciate them. Anyway… subcontractors in my opinion are NOT the way to go. At the end of the day they are frowned upon in general and certainly your customer would not be pleased to hear the they hired YOU, yet you then “sub out” the work to another firm (recipe for trouble).
I always hired my own crew, as they are much more accountable (on multiple levels) and that’s what the customer EXPECTS. Anyway… good luck with your new account and keep us posted on how it turns out.
Hi Tom,
I wanted to know do you have to be bonded and insured before working with residential and commercial accounts? I am also interested in how to place a bid? I am really interested in a cleaning business because it is something that I enjoy doing.
Hi Tijuan! (sorry for the late reply, your comment got stuck in spam folder somehow). Anyway… Yes on insurance… you do need to be insured. No on bonding… that is something that’s optional.
Great insight and direction!
Thanks Tom!
Hi Terry! Happy to help.