How to Get Clients for a Cleaning Business [And Make More Money]

The cleaning industry is competitive. To “keep your lights on,” you need to figure out how to get cleaning business clients fast.

You see, attracting and retaining cleaning customers is a skill. And you have to master it to stay afloat.

With the cut-throat competition, however,  finding commercial clients can be your business’s biggest time suck. But it doesn’t have to be. 

Below, we’ll show you tried-and-true ways to quickly get clients for a cleaning business.

Check them out if you’ve tried tactics in the past that didn’t work. Or you’ve just started a cleaning business and are eager to reach potential clients.

How to Get the First Client for Your Cleaning Business in 5 Steps

Bigger strategies like paid ads and flyers are essential for a healthy marketing mix. But for a new cleaning business, you need that first client, like, YESTERDAY.

There’s no magic bullet to winning your first cleaning customer. But having an elaborate plan will get you booked sooner. And the faster you get clients, the more time you’ll have to earn money.

Here’s a 5-prong marketing plan to get clients for a commercial cleaning business fast.

1. Identify the Cleaning Client You Want to Work With

No customers = no business. But that doesn’t mean onboarding just anyone.

You don’t want to work with a client who isn’t a great fit. Be picky from the get-go. To do this, you must understand who your ideal cleaning customer is.

As a rule of thumb, create a buyer persona to help you zero in on your target client.

The table below summarizes factors to consider when creating a buyer persona.

Factor	Client Description	Example of the Ideal Cleaning Customer
Demographic Information	What’s the client’s age, gender, household income, geographic location?	Age: 25-45, Gender: Any, Household Income: $50,000-$100,000, Geographic Location: Urban areas.
Psychological Traits	What’s the customer’s lifestyle, values, attitudes?	Eco-conscious, busy, seeking a convenient cleaning service.
Needs and Pain Points	What cleaning challenges do your prospects face?	Lack of time, unreliable cleaners, safety concerns regarding cleaning products, or specific requirements (e.g., pet-friendly or allergy-sensitive cleaning).
Buying Behavior	How do your prospects make purchasing decisions for cleaning services?	Word-of-mouth recommendations, online reviews, comparison shopping.
Budget and Spending Habits	How much can your prospect spend on cleaning services?	$100-$300 per cleaning session, willing to pay extra for customized or premium services

A buyer persona allows you to define your specific clientele. That way, you can package your cleaning services and marketing strategies better.

2. Niche Down

You know who your ideal commercial cleaning client is. You now want to niche down.

There are many general cleaning niches. Unfortunately, when you serve anyone and everyone, you serve no one.

But when you niche down, you’ll be chasing a specific type of cleaning customer, not just anyone. As a result, you have a higher chance of attracting the right client. Plus, niching down will make you far more money than being a generalist.

Pro Tip: Once you grow your portfolio, use the 80/20 rule to niche down further. Identify 20% of your existing cleaning customers contributing to 80% of your revenue. Target more of these contracts to grow your bottom line. 

3. Dig Into Your Network to Find Your First Client

One of the best ways to get commercial cleaning clients as a startup is to tap into your network.

People in your circle already know you and can (hopefully) vouch for your business. 

Here are some tips to get you started:

• Tell your community about your company and that you’re taking customers.
• Ask your family, friends, former colleagues, and business associates for referrals.
• Use social media platforms to spread the word about your cleaning business.
• Post and share before-and-after photos of your work.
•  Ask your connections to share your posts with their networks.

Your network is your net worth, so they say — use it to get your first cleaning business client.

4. Make it Easy for Clients to Sign-up for Your Service 

5 in 10 customers will switch to a competitor after a bad experience.  How can you provide a good experience with a potential client at the first touchpoint? … by making the signup process as smooth as possible.

To streamline the process, buy feature-rich cleaning service software. With a good tool, prospects can check prices live, request quotes, book, schedule, and pay online.

Speaking of live pricing, 6 in 10 customers expect you to respond and interact with them in real-time. 

Thus, a tool that offers live pricing or unified communication makes it 6 times easier to get more clients for your cleaning business.

5. Under Promise, Over Deliver 

You want to do good work. That’s always going to help.

So, strive to exceed your customer’s expectations. This can mean dispatching cleaners quickly or providing after-service follow-ups. 

You stay at the top of your clients’ minds when you deliver high-quality cleaning services. The idea is to keep your customers happy. Satisfied clients will spread the word about your new cleaning business.

If you implement the 5 strategies above to a T, you’ll land your first cleaning customer faster. 

We welcome you to watch the video below to discover easy ways to find and onboard clients for your cleaning business.

“Set free listings on Google and Yelp”

Bethany Jean – Founder ‘The Professional Cleaner’
1 Source for professional cleaning advice. 

Free Ways to Get Clients for Your Cleaning Business

You don’t have to break the bank to get cleaning clients. Here are 6 ways to get more clients and grow your business without spending a penny.

Get Active on Social Media

A staggering 5.04 billion of the global population is on social media.

The sheer number of users underscores the need to hop on social media. There’s a kicker, though — to sell on social media, you must hang out where your customers are. For a cleaning business, this means Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn.

Other platforms worth joining include NextDoor, Yelp, or subreddits dedicated to home improvement.

Send Emails

Sending the good old emails can be an effective way to get cleaning clients fast. They’re quick to create and dispatch. 

And when used as part of your multi-channel marketing campaign, they can be key to growing your business.

Pro Tip: If you don’t have a curated list, including a signature in your email can help. Just link the email signature to your website, referral program, or client testimonials.

Collect Reviews 

9 in 10 customers read reviews before signing up for a service. Of these, 6 won’t trust a high rating without many reviews. 

Numbers don’t lie. Collecting reviews can help attract clients to your cleaning business. On the flip side, getting customer reviews can be time-consuming.

Luckily, we’ve created an online reviews management tool to let you request customer reviews with a click. The best part? Our tool works for multiple platforms, including Facebook, Google, and Yelp.

Create and Optimize Your Google Business Profile 

Google Business Profile (GBP) is free, easy to set up, and can generate serious traffic to your cleaning business.

You will, however, need to optimize your profile with accurate information. So be sure to state your business hours, services offered, and customer reviews.

Below are extra tips to optimize your cleaning service Google Business Profile.

• Include primary service keywords related to cleaning. Examples include “house cleaning” or “maid service.”
• Include location-based keywords to ensure your listing appears in local search results. For example, “New York City Office Cleaners” or “Residential Cleaning Services in Chicago.”

• Include secondary service keywords that describe your specific cleaning. Examples include “carpet cleaning,” “deep cleaning,” “move-in/move-out cleaning,” or “green cleaning.”
• State if your cleaning business specializes in certain types of cleaning. Examples include eco-friendly or post-construction cleaning to attract niche customers.
• Keep your Google My Business listing up-to-date. To that end, we have an online listings tool that helps you manage your business info. This tool ensures your information is current and consistent across all online platforms where you’ve listed your business, including GBP. 

Besides GPB, you can also list your services on online marketplaces like HomeAdvisor, Angie’s List, and ProReferral. 

Online marketplaces have a large user base. You put your business in front of a wider audience by listing on these platforms. That way, prospects can find you faster.

Other free ways to market your cleaning services include:

• Partnering with local businesses, like real estate agencies, for referrals
• Attending community events and fairs to grow your network. 

How to Get Cleaning Clients on a Low Budget

If you have some cash sitting around, by all means, invest it in your cleaning business to accelerate growth. This, however, doesn’t mean splashing wads of cash. 

Here are some affordable ways of getting commercial cleaning clients if you’re on a tight budget.

Build a Website

2.64 billion people bought a product or service online in 2023. That’s more than 33% of the world’s population. If you don’t have a cleaning service website, you’re missing out on an opportunity to attract new customers and, by extension, make money.

A website makes you and your business “legit.” And it doesn’t have to be a masterpiece. Just get a professional theme and articulate what you do.

While at it, optimize your website search engines. Also, create valuable, relevant content with targeted keywords to boost traffic.

Start a Customer Referral Program

Referrals are one of the most effective and cheap ways to get clients for a new cleaning business.

5 in 10 businesses with a referral program report more lifetime value clients. 69% record faster closing rates.

In addition, 8 in 10 B2B decision-makers start their buying process with a referral. 

Referral programs are a win-win no matter which stage you’re in your business. They come from a previous customer, friend, or family member. There’s trust already, which is the foundation of any business transaction.

The trust can result in truncated sales cycles and longer customer retention rates. As a result, referrals reduce the time, effort, and money you’d otherwise spend to acquire clients.

Despite the statistics, asking for referrals can be awkward. However, the strategies below can help you sidestep the awkwardness.

• Include a referrals section in your service agreements.
• Ask for a referral over the phone or in person. This works well when a happy customer compliments your services.
• Share your referral program on social media and your website.

How to Get Clients for a Cleaning Business With a Big Budget

It takes money to make money, and if you have the cash, why not use it to get commercial cleaning clients faster?

You want to be strategic with how you spend your money, though. If well implemented, the following strategies can help complement your marketing efforts. 

Run a Paid Advertising Campaign

There are several reasons you’ll want to use paid ads to get clients for a cleaning business, including:

• Traffic starts to roll in as soon as your ads go live.
• You can benefit from advanced targeting.
• You can access advanced analytics to help optimize your ad strategy.
• You can reach your targeted audiences faster, even if your business is new.

While you can use paid search to achieve impressive results, much more is at stake. When you pay for clicks, you want to get the best value for your money. The idea is to lower your cost-per-click in due course.

Pro Tip: You want the right people with expertise to develop and manage your Google Ads strategy. That’s where a Google Ads management service comes in. With our paid ad experts in your corner, you can run a well-orchestrated paid ad campaign for maximum ROI.

Create Vehicle Wraps or Signage 

Vehicle wraps and signage are timeless advertising strategies. A good marketing strategy involves creating eye-catching graphics. That way, you can leave a lasting impact on your prospects.

If we talk numbers, stats show branded vehicles can reach 85,000+ people in big cities during peak traffic. The chances of potential clients seeing your wraps are even higher in smaller areas.

Bonus Tips 

Employ the Right People

Hiring the right employees is crucial to growing your cleaning service.

Trustworthy and reliable employees put clients at ease, knowing their belongings and privacy are secure. This positive experience can lead to referrals and positive online reviews, which are gold for attracting new customers.

In addition, skilled and well-trained cleaners deliver a thorough and consistent service. This keeps existing customers happy and allows them to confidently promote your service’s quality to potential clients.

Furthermore, competent cleaners can work efficiently, allowing you to take on more clients and expand your business.

Watch the video below to learn how to hire great cleaners. 

Be Strategic About Your Brand

You stand out from the crowd when you strategically position your cleaning company.

You can achieve this by crafting a clear, direct message highlighting your unique value proposition. For instance, talk about the quality of your cleaning or your commitment to green cleaning products.

A strong value proposition positions your brand as the go-to choice for customers seeking that specific benefit.

Strategic branding also involves building long-term client relationships. So, provide excellent customer service and exceed your customer’s expectations to turn them into brand advocates.

Implement the 3 Pillars of Marketing

You must hone your marketing skills to build a successful cleaning company from the ground up.

The three pillars of marketing — hyper-targeting, personalization, and multi-touch — working together can create a strong foundation for growing your company. 

Here’s how each pillar contributes to your business’s growth:

• Hyper-Targeting: Allows you to define your ideal customer with a laser focus. Who are they? What are their needs? What are their pain points? Hyper-targeting enables you to tailor your marketing messages so prospects see you as the perfect solution to their cleaning woes.
• Personalization: Allows you to use a language your prospects understand. Instead of using technical terms, you speak to your client’s concerns. For instance, “spend more playtime with the kids” for busy families instead of just “clean floors.”
• Multi-Touch: Allows you to reach out to your ideal client multiple times through different channels, including website, social media, email, and local marketing. The key is to be present where your ideal client spends their time to increase the chances of closing the deal.

Stay On Top of Industry Trends 

The cleaning industry is evolving fast. What worked several years ago may not necessarily work today. You, therefore, need to keep up with the latest developments to thrive.

The best places to start include:

• Signing up for training sessions or online courses that cover new technologies and best practices.
•  Subscribing to industry magazines or online publications.
• Joining professional cleaning associations.
• Attending industry trade shows, conferences, or online webinars.
• Keeping an eye on your competitors’ websites and social media presence.

Follow Successful Cleaning Business Owners 

Learning from successful cleaning business owners can be a goldmine of insights to move your service forward.

For instance, you can gain valuable knowledge of their marketing strategies, operational processes, and customer service approaches to help you succeed.

Speaking of which, here’s an interview with Justine Lee, a $2M commercial cleaning business owner, for inspiration.  

5 Contracts Closed In Less Than 30 Days

Interview With $2M Per Year Commercial Cleaning Business Owner pic.twitter.com/yk7dTnCmMO

— Jeremy Dixon | Cold Outreach Architect (@systemswithjay) March 26, 2024

Following successful cleaning business owners like Jason can also be a great opportunity to network. 

Other ways you can use to get more cleaning clients include:

• Supporting multiple payment options for increased convenience.
• Sending direct mail to diversify your strategies for reaching potential customers.
• Offering discounts for new clients to draw them to your business. 
• Sending detailed estimates ensures customers know what they’re paying for and avoid unpleasant surprises later. 

FAQ

Book More Cleaning Clients With MioCommerce 

Getting clients for a commercial cleaning business accelerates your company’s money cycle. And at MioCommerce, we understand how important this is to you.

That’s why we created an all-in-one ecommerce platform for cleaning business owners to do the heavy lifting for you. 

Whether you’re looking for social proof through customer reviews or want to engage with prospects through chat or SMS, we’ve got you. And when you finally onboard new customers, we provide engagement tools to help you build loyalty. 

Once you get into the rhythm and pick up momentum, you’ll spend less time finding clients you actually want.

The good news?

You can test-drive our platform for 14 days without upfront financial commitment.