Episode 153 – Marketing Cleaning in Difficult Markets
Wanna discover best practices when marketing cleaning services (even in no solicitation areas)?
Today Mike coaches Fran Ruff, owner of Maids for Moms and all around swell human being.
The first step for successfully marketing cleaning services (or any other services) is to know EXACTLY who your prospect is. Then you can discover what unique message you can deliver to make them your client. Fran does an amazing job of this with her fun, to the point name- Maids for Moms.
If you are a mom looking for a maid, you immediately know you are in the right place. The name is clever, fun and catchy. That is a great start, but NEVER sacrifice clear for clever! Maids for Moms. Fran explains that part of her companies mission is to employ moms who could use the extra income. THAT is a unique compelling message to her prospective mom clients!
Now that we have established Fran’s genius, let’s get back to marketing cleaning even in no solicitation neighborhoods. First and foremost let’s define what “no solicitation” means. Typically that just means they do not want uninvited salespeople knocking on their door.
FUN FACT: Digital marketing experts estimate that most Americans are exposed to 4,000-10,000 ads EVERY DAY!
Based on the above statistic, even when the “no solicitors” sign or neighborhood keeps you from going door to door, you still have at lest 3,999 ways to communicate with your target prospect.
Some of your read the “no solicitation” signs/ rules and ignore them. That is a great way to offend your prospect and start the relationship the wrong way. If you want to solicit to those EXACT people in the “No soliciting” neighborhoods, there are solicitors that are welcomed into that neighborhood on a daily basis. The UPS guy, the FedEx guy and your friendly local mailman. These channels open up so many opportunities for marketing cleaning
BONUS LOVIN: If you want to dive into marketing cleaning via direct mail- CLICK HERE to check out this FREE podcast
Back to our initial point- the key is not WHERE or HOW to market your cleaning company. People selling products want you to believe that that THEIR marketing opportunity is the key to business growth.
The problem is, they train you to ask “Where can I spend money to get customers to magically come to me?” That isn’t even the right question. Your true focus needs to be
Who exactly are my IDEAL prospects
What message will be appealing to them
Where do they look for solutions to the problem I solve
The answer to those three key questions will answer the question of where to spend your marketing cleaning dollars. Start with really understanding who you are going to serve. For Fran an Maids for Moms that might look like:
“Mom’s withing 25 miles of my office who own their own homes valued at $500,000 or more”
Once you have who you are going to serve, you have to craft what the message should be.
BONUS LOVIN: For a complete FREE blog post and podcast on how to craft your marketing message, CLICK HERE
Hint: Talk about their FAVORITE subject (them), NOT their LEAST favorite subject (YOU, a.k.a.- not them).
Once you have your message down, your job as the owner is to communicate that message as effectively and consistently as possible to the ideal prospects in your area. That is a FAR more valuable use of your time than cleaning toilets for $20/ hour.
Stories are so compelling. Fran’s story of being a single mom and needing help from the community and getting it through cleaning and now hiring other single moms to help married moms or younger moms helping older moms is incredibly compelling to her target demographic
Let your competition talk about themselves. Their insurance, their “green cleaning”, and every other boring thing your client isn’t interested in. You focus on your prospect and their needs.
Of course, before the fun ends, we give our guest Fran the opportunity to share her experience on marketing cleaning services, growing a business and life in the…