What Do I Need to Start a Cleaning Service?
Starting a cleaning service is a popular choice for people wanting to run a business from home. There are minimal start-up costs and a reasonable chance to find plenty of available work to tap into. Some people choose to specialize in a specific category, such as carpet cleaning, window cleaning or exterior cleaning with pressure washers. Others may work only in office buildings or small businesses, working nights.
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Considerations
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To start a cleaning service, make sure you complete all of the legal paperwork required in the state where you will do business.
The U.S. Small Business Administration suggests you check with your local chamber of commerce about license and registration requirements for your area. The SBA also recommends hiring a lawyer to make sure everything that is legally required is in place to start the business, and to help you make such decisions as whether to incorporate, or to form a partnership or sole proprietorship.
Consider buying business insurance to protect you and your business in case of an accident in a client's home.
Features
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When you start a cleaning business, decide what types of jobs to take on and how much to charge. Research the current rates of similar companies in the area. Compose an information sheet on your company's policies. Spell out what your company will and won't clean, what supplies you want clients to provide, and the prices for the work.
Use some of the information sheet's contents to create advertising fliers. Display them wherever you are legally permitted to do so in your community. You can also advertise in local media, but will have to consider the cost.
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Supplies
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A cleaning service requires supplies and equipment. Different cleaning services have different ways of handling these items. Some travel to job sites with everything necessary, from paper towels to vacuum cleaners. Others ask clients to provide the necessary items and leave them out for the cleaners to use. To start a cleaning service, however, you will need to trim costs, and should consider asking customers to provide basic cleaning supplies and equipment until you are more established. As an incentive to customers, charge less for the work if they provide these items.
Time Frame
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To set a price for cleaning a home or business, make a realistic estimate of how long it will take to complete the job. Clearly spell out beforehand what work you will do. Consider also the number of workers needed for each job. If it takes two workers two hours to clean a space, charge the customer for four hours of cleaning.
Pricing
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Establish a price schedule, what is included, what is not included, and what supplies or equipment the clients must supply. To assure clients that your prices are fair, make sure the prices are proportionate to the type of job and the amount of work involved.
Going Forward
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Once you work out a client agreement and price plan, the paperwork is in place, and the supplies are together, develop a plan to operate your cleaning service. Set realistic goals on how many jobs to start with and how much time you can devote to the work each week. Factor in travel time, gas costs and mileage. Overextending your new business and taking on more jobs than you can handle can spell disaster. At the start, focus on building a reputation for doing good work and keeping to a schedule.
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References
- Photo Credit floor cleaning #3 image by stassad from Fotolia.com
