Category: Advice

Many cleaning businesses start small — with just a bucket and sponge, ready to get to work. While there’s nothing wrong with this, if you at some point wonder why some clients choose you and others don’t, it may be time to consider a marketing strategy. Don’t worry; developing an effective marketing strategy doesn’t have to be complex or time-consuming. Understand Your Target Audience: Who are Your Clients? Your business’s survival depends on your clients, so it’s crucial to understand your target audience when creating a marketing strategy. Are your clients private individuals or businesses? If both, you’ll need to adjust your approach for each audience. Factors like demographics, age, and location can also influence the tone of voice you should use in your marketing materials. Example Margaret runs a cleaning business in London with a strong focus on environmental sustainability. Her team of ten employees travels to cleaning jobs by bike or electric car, servicing homes and flats within a 10-mile radius of central London. Most of her clients are wealthy families who view professional cleaning as a luxury, allowing them more time to enjoy life without the hassle of household chores such as vacuuming and sweeping floors. These […]

The competitive cleaning industry requires clear, targeted advertising to ensure that clients choose your service over hundreds of others. But where should you advertise, and what will resonate most with potential clients? While traditional methods like newspaper ads once sufficed, today the digital market offers endless opportunities. Keep reading to explore the best online and offline advertising methods for your cleaning business. 6 Digital Ways to Effectively Advertise Your Cleaning Service 1. Create a Website  The first and most essential step to advertise your cleaning business is creating a website. This allows potential clients to find your company online. Your website serves as your platform to showcase everything from prices and contact information to your business story.  Ensure your website text includes keywords that people are likely to use when searching for cleaning services in your area. This practice, known as SEO (Search Engine Optimisation), involves using relevant keywords and producing quality content to make your website easier to find. Another tip is to include videos on your site, as Google’s algorithm favours video content, and clients often find it more engaging. Videos can convey more than text alone, so get creative and highlight the qualities of your cleaning service […]

The cleaning industry is a significant and growing sector in the UK, fuelled by increased health awareness following Covid-19. It’s also highly competitive, with frequent price bidding, which makes it important to stand out. While clients often look for good prices, they also appreciate great service and shared values. Anyone can offer low prices, but true growth and competitiveness lie in identifying and effectively communicating your cleaning business’s unique strengths to clients. Factors and Trends that Make Your Cleaning Business Stand Out Documentation and Credibility Documenting your cleaning service as a safety net for both you and your staff, providing evidence in case of issues or disputes. It also offers added value to clients, allowing you to show progress and results. This goes hand in hand with quality control, where you ensure that your business consistently meets the standards agreed upon with the client. Consistent documentation and quality control enhance your professionalism and demonstrate your commitment to responsible practices — key factors that make you stand out from the competition. ESG and Sustainability ESG stands for Environmental, Social and Governance. It’s a standard measure of a company’s impact on the environment, society, and its credibility. By prioritising these initiatives, your […]

An array of new cleaning technologies and digital tools are available and ready to use. These technological advancements can effectively tackle staff shortage and the increased demand for cleaning quality caused by Covid-19. But fully embracing digitalisation and technology can be challenging as they disrupt the working routines. Both you and employees often have concerns about implementation time and job displacement. But behold! There are effective strategies to solve these issues through step-by-steps and change management. Let’s delve into these issues and explore potential solutions. Addressing Employee Concerns and Misconceptions about Technology and Digitalisation The quickest way to failure when implementing new technology is to sideline your employees. If you’re aiming for failure, simply enforce changes without involving those who will be directly affected, and watch the project go down the drain. But you want the opposite, of course, so you should do the opposite. To successfully counter employee concerns regarding technology and digitalisation, the first crucial first steps are fostering understanding and communication. Listening to employee concerns and misconceptions provides an overview for constructive action. You can benefit from listening to your employees in their day-to-day work and discussing potential improvements. This will give employees co-influence. For example, conduct […]

One major challenge facing cleaning companies today is attracting and retaining the young generation. To stay relevant in modern times, the industry should embrace environmental- and social sustainability. They also need to address the less favourable aspects of cleaning jobs, while also promoting the positive impacts cleaning has that people tend to forget. Why the Cleaning Industry has to Change The cleaning industry is in a labour shortage, particularly with younger workers. Data from the British Cleaning Council reveals that the percentage of cleaning staff under 25 is significantly lower than in other sectors across the UK. Additionally, there is a much higher percentage of people over 55 in the cleaning industry. The difference may stem from the negative perception of cleaning work as low-skilled, low paid, with little career opportunity and workplace well-being.  To attract younger employees, the industry must shift its narrative. This requires reflection and action. Cleaning companies need to reflect and determine the most important issues and act on it. Otherwise, companies will increase the labour shortage when their employees start to retire and no young workers want to replace them. This requires knowledge of what younger generations seek in a job. They value sustainability, opportunity […]

The cleaning industry has a huge shortage of qualified workers and needs new ways to attract staff. This is one of the reasons why cleaning companies need to consider social sustainability. Both employees and clients are demanding a stronger focus on social responsibility, because the future regards the wellbeing of everyone. But how can your cleaning business implement social sustainability, and what are the benefits? Understanding Social Sustainability: The S in ESG ESG stands for Environmental, Social and Governance. These three parts serve as benchmarks for assessing a company’s environmental impact, social contributions, and governance practices. ESG reports are published annually to report results and to motivate the company to improve the numbers during the next year. It also demonstrates achievement to key stakeholders such as clients, employees, and investors. Now, let’s go back to the topic of social sustainability, which prioritises principles and policies of people. Companies are encouraged to contribute positively and focus on the wellbeing of individuals. Social sustainability covers several areas, including health and safety, diversity, wages, equality, and education.  Every company in the world affects society through its approach to diversity and equality in the workforce. Positive impacts are seen when companies e.g. hire minorities […]

This blog takes you further into environmental sustainability and GHG account, by giving you ideas for goals and sustainable initiatives your cleaning company could take to meet your sustainable goals. Furthermore, we give you an overview of important factors of the GHG account and how to formulate a report on GHG. What to Know Before Creating the GHG Account: Scopes and KPI The global, standardised measurement is called the Greenhouse Gas Protocol (GHG), where every company reports their collected climate footprint. The creation of an annual GHG account is time-consuming, but the first time is the most difficult because the CO₂ data needs to be sought from scratch. Next year, you have a starting point. There might be changes in method, results, and goals, but then you have your template from last year. Here is a guide on what to report and which goals could be realistic and useful for a cleaning company: What to Report: Scopes The three scopes are a categorisation of a company’s different types of emissions and wider value-chain. They are used in the GHG protocol and account for the total CO₂ emissions of a given company. The 3 scopes according to the Office for National […]

Environmental sustainability benefits your cleaning company and helps you stay competitive. Many companies report a GHG account annually, explaining their environmental impact and sustainable measures. It is not only becoming a requirement, but it also gives a significant advantage when attracting clients and investors. But what are the rules for reporting your company’s emissions, and what is an ESG report?  Understanding the Importance of GHG Account and Environmental Sustainability Embracing environmental sustainability positions your business favourably in the eyes of investors, clients, and other stakeholders who increasingly value eco-conscious operations. It is not only valued, but is becoming a requirement with the so-called ESG reports. Environmental sustainability is the practice of using sustainable and renewable sources to counter climate changes. The point is to sustain and protect the environment, and not overheat the planet with fossil fuels. Focusing on environmental sustainability means having a GHG account, to show how your company minimises the CO₂ emissions.  All companies directly or indirectly emit CO₂, because they buy or sell products, or provide services. Companies need to account for this, which is done as a GHG account. GHG stands for greenhouse gas, and is a system and protocol for recalculating everything into CO₂ […]

Setting the right cleaning price for a client can be a daunting task. What if they choose a cheaper competitor, or I underbid myself? The reality is that inflation, a rise in wage, and unforeseen expenses may force you, at some point, to raise your service price. In this article, we guide you on how to have a successful conversation about price increases with your client, and how improvements in your cleaning business can be arguments for said price raise. Why Raising Rates are Critical for Your Business’ Survival: A Deep Dive into the UK Economic Landscape Many events have affected the UK economy during the past few years, with increases in various expenses. As a consequence, every cleaning business needs to reevaluate and set the right cleaning price to continue earning a sustainable profit. The Political Influence on the Cleaning Industry’s Economy An immediate reason for raising and setting the right cleaning service price now is the increase in the National Living Wage, effective April 2024. The UK Government has increased the national living wage by almost 10%, in pounds, from £10.42 to £11.44. Even if you paid your staff more than this, the general rise creates pressure to […]