How to start a house cleaning business

Cleaning your own house and professional cleaning are two totally different things. Even though you clean your house constantly, learning to clean professionally requires a lot of time and effort - when a customer pays for your services, they expect to return home and find it impeccable, orderly, with a pleasant smell ... they want everything right. However, for some people, it is actually easier and more pleasant to clean other people's houses because there is no personal investment, only the pride of a job well done.

If you are thinking about the possibility of starting your own house cleaning business, you will have to be fit, prepare for a dirty job and willing to market your services through friends, family and other people in order to slowly build your customer base. It can take a while to build a solid group of clients, but with the right attitude, a good reputation and references "word of mouth", you will finally build a solid cleaning business.

Evaluation of your own capacity for cleaning

Before deciding to start your cleaning business, make sure that this type of work is right for you . While this is one of the easiest businesses to start because of its low costs and the requirement of basic skills, you have to be able to keep promises. Cleaning is hard, exhausting work. You need to be in good physical condition and be able to bend, kneel, stretch and do repetitive actions for a prolonged period of time. If you have suffered previous injuries, consult your doctor if it is okay to assume this very physical job to live.

Consider your office skills. You need to have basic office skills and some accounting skills. You will have to be well organized and develop a system in each place you go. The clients will not appreciate lack of assistance, nor that you forget to clean areas of the house just because your cleaning system is bad.

Be a good communicator. You need good customer relationship skills and willingness to participate with people. You can learn these skills, if you do not have them - just be open, honest and friendly, and you will begin to learn to interact with more confidence over time.

Have some money saved . If you are thinking of leaving your position full time to start a cleaning business, make sure you have at least six months of savings. Or, keep your work full time and start your part-time cleaning business.

Planning basics

Plan the business, as you would with any new business idea. Consider these points:

What type of cleaning business will you develop ? Does your business clean houses in general or will you specialize in a certain type of cleaning, such as green cleaning, end-of-contract cleaning (when tenants are leaving), exterior cleaning, post-holiday cleaning, smoke damage removal, etc. . The more specific the type of cleaning you do, the more you will have to research and learn.
Does your business offer different types of cleaning ?. Related to the previous point, maybe your business will grow over time to include more specialized services.
Are you going to use your own products or are you going to use those of the client ? If you make your own products or trust certain commercial products, this could be the core of your business. Or, you can be happy with what the client wants to use (keep in mind that, in some cases, you'll have to be flexible even if you use your own cleaning products - after all, it's not your house).

Market analysis and important aspects

Where are you going to work? . Take a look at the cleaning services that are already in your area and outside it. Is the market able to accept a cleaning service or is it saturated today?

What transport do you have ?. You can not really trust the family car full of buckets, mops and cleaning products, at least not for a long time, as it is very messy and you take the vehicle of everyone else who needs it. If you are using the client's cleaning products, you may be able to drive with public transport, otherwise you will need a means to get to and from the houses, especially if you are in very different areas.

What is your price scale? Check what the existing services charge . Can you overcome it for a while without entering red numbers?

How much to charge for cleaning services

Cash reasonably for your work . Sell your services based on the quality of your work. If the prices are too low, customers think that your work is of inferior quality and that you have no experience. In addition, you want to attract customers who can pay for your services. As the old saying goes, "You get what you pay for." Of course, too high a price will scare away many potential customers - most people who need cleaning services will have a limit on how much they can afford.

Some people charge by the hour, others charge per room, some charge a fixed fee per household, and some charge per square meter. While this variety sounds good, it is better to charge for the house, not per hour (taking into account the size of the house, of course). In this way a client knows that he has to pay a fixed price, it does not matter if you take 2 hours or 5 hours, as long as you do the work. Most customers will appreciate knowing what they are paying in advance and not having to fork out additional expenses. Of course, the exceptions can, and should, be made, as an extra for cleaning the oven, or cleaning a particularly very dirty part of the house.

Make sure you estimate the houses not only because of the size, but also because of the number of occupants, the occupants' cleanliness, the contents, and the pets.

Tips to finish

Punctuality and a smile are the key to obtaining long-term confidence.

Let the client know that he can tell you if he wants something done differently, or that you do something else. Some customers are going to be very demanding, others not so much. The most important thing is to know your client and never make him feel like a nuisance.

Do not take more jobs than you can handle. Start slowly and grow little by little.