Episode 359 – Most Effective Way to Gain Contracts From National Chains
Today we’re talking with Marcus from MVP Cleaning!
Marcus is wondering, what is the most effective way to gain contracts with national chains like Wal-Mart, Target, etc.?
The first thing that needs to be said is, national chain contracts aren’t as great and shiny as you may think. A major con of having national chain contracts is that they usually take up the majority of your business. If one contract allocates 60% of your business and one day they randomly fire you, this would be terrible news.
Resource Alert:
https://growmycleaning.wpengine.com/finding-your-ideal-customers-employees/
As I teach in Cleaning Nation, each contract shouldn’t take up more than 15% of your business. With that being said, if you have 4-5 national chain contracts than you are in a much safer spot.
Where most cleaning company owners make a mistake is in thinking that national chain contracts are much different from other contracts. You’re going to use the same system that you would with a smaller commercial contract, but what differs will be the approach.
With national chain contracts, you want to focus on their hiring process and who you’ll be talking to along the way. Larger companies will most likely have more employees standing between you and the decision maker.
Once you know how they hire, then you want to understand their pain point. Just because they are a national chain doesn’t necessarily mean they are looking for the lowest price. They may be looking for the lowest qualified price.
How can you make yourself the most qualified?
This is where niching becomes so important. If you create your company based around national chain cleaning and your website supports that, you are showing your expertise in this one niche. If your company does residential and commercial cleaning as well, I highly suggest separating those businesses. Don’t try to market to everybody.
To land the contract, create a shock and awe package that will make you stand out. We talk about shock and awe packages and give an example in the below episode of Grow My Cleaning Company.
Resource Alert:
https://growmycleaning.wpengine.com/creating-shock-awe-package-law-firm-niche/
Lightning Round:
Best advice you’ve received either personally or professionally?
Always preview a property before you bid.
What’s the biggest mistake you’ve made in the cleaning business we can all learn from?
Not going over enough details about a project and finding that it takes much longer than was originally intended.
What is your favorite book?
The Spiritual World and How It Influences Your Every Day Life