How To Establish Authority For Your Cleaning Service

(And Never Compete On Price Again.)

Why This Matters

Have you ever had a lead contact you, ask for a price, only to be followed by something along the lines of “Wow, I know ___ who can do it for cheaper… Okay thank you.” 

*Hangs up*

Then you wonder to yourself, 

Are my prices too high?”

“Should I lower my prices to get more clients?”

Chances are your prices are not too high, and let me explain…

This is a common phenomenon in home-servicing businesses like cleaning, and can be disheartening. But what the customer is really thinking when they expect a cheaper price is not “your prices are too high”…

It’s more like, “I would be willing to pay your price IF you conveyed to me that your service is worth this value. Since you have yet to do so, I will prefer to save a bit of cash.”


And in all honesty, can you blame them?!

As far as these (potential) customers are concerned, the only thing separating you from the dozens of other cleaning services in your county is the phone number and logo.

…Unless, you start building authority with them.

So let’s uncover what you can do starting now to build this with practical tips.

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1. Leverage Reviews

This is a must-have for cleaning services. Organic or paid, often a prospect’s decision will be influenced heavily by the amount of great reviews you have.

In fact, it's been said that 88% of consumers trust online reviews as much as personal reccomendations!

You may be active on many advertising channels, but prioritizing reviews on Google will bring you the best returns down the line.

So, how to leverage reviews from your clients?

...Ask! (Crazy, I know..)

I guarantee you have at least 5-15+ client reviews at your disposal; you just have to ask for them, and ask correctly.

The thing is, most clients - even the ones who are very appreciative of your service - will not feel inclined to leave you a review on their own. They are human just like us and get busy too; don't take it personally.

A great way to incentivize reviews is to offer your clients a small gift card for taking the time to leave you an honest review - They’ll be happy to do so!

Another tip is to include the link to your Google My Business listing in the footer of your company’s email. That way, people have the option to leave you a review, effortlessly!

maid service Google My Business

Another review type would be leveraging video testimonials.

All the top companies market their business with video testimonials, and for a good reason: We as consumers can connect with faces!

Seeing a "real life" person saying amazing things about your cleaning service adds an added element of trust and connection to your prospect.

Finding clients who are comfortable with leaving you a video testimonial (as opposed to a written review) will be a bit more challenging. However, please be proactive about this - It's a fantastic way of taking the reputability of your company up a notch.

2. Capture Lots of Photos (Quality & Quantity)

If you aren’t used to documenting your work, now is the time to reconsider.

Majority of clients will come to you digitally, and one of the primary drivers of digital marketing and advertising is images! So take lots of ‘em.

Let’s start with “quality.”

When I say ‘quality,’ I’m not only referring to swapping out old images you took with your flip phone in 2006 for more current photos - I mean photos that convey value, too!

For example, Before & After photos do this nicely.

Anyone can look at a photo of a nicely cleaned kitchen and think it looks nice, but what about complimenting it with the “before” picture with the mildew behind the sink, oil stains on the stove and crumbs on the floor?

This not only solidifies the effectiveness of your service to a prospect, but allows them to reflect on their own home!

“Man, my kitchen isn’t in much better condition.. I can use a cleaning like this,” they say to themselves.

Photos with your staff is another excellent source for images. 

Group photos, photos of your team cleaning, even photos of your staff eating lunch together or at an event are all great ways of establishing transparency!

For bonus points, I would also try to get a photo with one of your happy clients!

(An example of a cleaning company that conveys transparency by having frequent photos of him and his staff. His local market knows about him, as they should.)

Now that we discussed examples of ‘quality’ photos, let’s talk ‘quantity.’

There’s no specific number I can give you as to how many you should aim for. However, it should reflect your schedule.

For example, if you have multiple accounts everyday, try to capture at least a dozen (give or take) photos from each job and let your followers know that you are indeed active and busy in the field!

This will automatically make them perceive your business more desirable than previously.

Frequent posting and updating of photos not only does wonders for social media and your website, but can also compliment your Google listing, for example. 

Google has been transparent that companies who post more on their platform will be rewarded in the search rankings. 

What better way to increase your SEO for free than to start posting all those photos on daily basis?!

The last point I want to make about photos, and something you need to understand as an owner of a cleaning company, is that trust is everything.

When a prospect can put a face to the name (AKA, see what you look like from images), I can guarantee they are significantly more likely to give you call.

Documenting yourself goes hand-in-hand with developing a personal brand, which is what I believe will be the #1 growth factor for cleaning services for the foreseeable future.

3. Educate First, Sell Second

Every next marketing campaign you launch, lead you speak to on the phone, or appointment you schedule in person should follow this principle - "Educate First, Sell Second."

If you do this with conviction, you will never go broke.

Why This Works

This strategy is very powerful because it conveys to the prospect that you know what you’re talking about, you’re confident in your approach, and that you’ve done this before.

It also works because you are not directly trying to sell them anything! (Not right away, at least…)

While everybody else is screaming “Call now” and “Schedule a Free Quote!”, you take a different approach; you are presenting something informational and waiting for the prospect to come to you when they are ready to buy.

It takes a lot of courage to market and not expect any type of monetary value in return, especially if you are putting advertising dollars behind it, but you should look at this a short-term investment for a long-term reward.

Instructional Videos are one powerful example of doing this. 


If you notice the top franchises, they all have video content centered around “How to remove pet urine stains from your carpets” or “How to clean your home with only 3 products” etc...

These companies are telling their audience how to clean their homes/spaces themselves, yet these companies receive a daily influx of leads and business!

…Strange how that works, eh?

That’s the power of SMART marketing: You educate, build trust, and slowly but surely, your phone starts ringing twice was much.

(One of the better videos I've seen for carpet cleaning, this business owner couples an instructional video with his narration for a compelling Facebook Video Ad.)

Another great way to educate your audience is through Lead Magnets, which Involve providing a prospect a valuable piece of information in return for their contact details.

This is a fairly advanced marketing strategy that all the top dogs in the cleaning space are utilizing.

Having downloadable pieces, such as e-books, .pdf guides, charts, and even video courses are all popular ways of honing in on this method.

Most cleaning companies don't understand the value in having a large email list, but it is one of the greatest assets you can have as a business owner! These are WARM leads, so work them!

It doesn't mean you should call them everyday for the next month after they opt-in to your newsletter, it just means you want to ensure your company stays top of mind for a bit. This will enable them to call your company next time they need their home or office cleaned.

Of course, a friendly call or text here and there is great, but is a bit more invasive than some other forms of communication.

Email sequences are an effective way of nurturing leads that came through a lead magnet, and can be used more aggressively than a phone call, for example.

Which brings me to my next point...

Written Content is what I believe to be a "no-excuse" method for marketing your business.

Don't feel comfortable getting on video?

Don't know how to create a lead magnet?

Then write and educate your audience through your words!

Emails, newsletters, articles, Facebook posts - Whatever it take to get your messaging across to your audience. As long as you can convey value, it doesn't really matter which platform you choose to share on (and what makes this method so viable!)

social post example

(Example of GMB post - Difficulty: Entry)

(Example of Website Article post - Difficulty: Intermediate)

Conclusion

These steps are not designed to make you an "average" cleaning company that survives off referrals.

These steps consist of what the top 3% of cleaning companies are doing to keep their business thriving year-round, and something that can only be possible for you if you put in the work.

And there's a good chance you've "tried" some of these, But doing something sporadically vs incorporating it into a weekly routine is much different, and will yield much different results.

If you nail this system, you can start saying "Hello" to more inbound phone calls, email inquiries, website submissions, referrals and networking opportunities of homeowners and business owners in your city who now understand what a reputable cleaning company looks like.

Best part of all - The value of your service will surely be recognized :)

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