The window cleaning business might sound weird and unambitious compared to the popularly known lucrative businesses of modern times. However, it is the perfect business for ambitious entrepreneurs who wants to start a business on their own.
In our contemporary society, there is an increasing rate of demand for window cleaners among commercial and local markets.
The window cleaning business has been estimated to be worth around $40 billion annually in just the U.S. not to talk of other areas.
There are equally several benefits that are attached to this business including, becoming your boss, free to repeat clients, involves low capital, reduced overhead cost, and scaling amongst others.
But the question is, ‘how to start a window cleaning business.’ Read on to follow the easiest and most detailed steps;
How to Start a Window Cleaning Business
Starting up a business is not as easy as it might first appear, as there are certain situations where you might want to start a business with a particular amount of capital, but you’re confused as to what type of business you want to start up.
In some other cases, you have an idea of what business to start up, but you don’t have the right amount of capital.
Whichever scenario you face, we recommend a window cleaning business, as it involves a low capital budget, time outdoors, and very lucrative as others (but, it depends on your market), as well as becoming your boss.
However, just like every other business, starting a window cleaning business involves financial risk. But, with the guide below, you are sure of running a smooth-sailing and low-risk business.
First 1: Locate a Mentor
Ask any successful businessman the secret to his success, and the first thing you’ll hear is there was someone he looked up to.
That person that you can look up to is called a mentor. There are several successful businessmen out there including window cleaners who you can learn from and be motivated.
The first step towards becoming a successful window cleaner is to locate someone that has gained success from the same business and meet them.
We also recommend several online window cleaning influencers that you can gain ideas from on how to make great strides towards a successful window cleaning business.
Step 2: Brush up on your customer service
Another way to make a successful start to your window cleaning business is your customer service activities.
Don’t forget window cleaning is purely a service business, therefore, your professionalism, customer service skills, and dedication to your clients will greatly determine how successful you’ll become.
Additional, good customer service skills will make customers continue employing your services. Among others, there are three basic customer service skills you must acquire and brush up on, to enhance your business, namely, decent appearance, good communication skills, and work efficiency.
These three principles are very important in a window cleaning business.
Step 3: Establish your business and Legalize
The next step towards becoming a potentially successful businessman in window cleaning is by establishing your business with the right plan, and legally secured. In other words, it’s either you register your business as a lone owner or incorporate it as an LLC.
However, going for incorporation is quite expensive, even though it provides a more solid legal backup for your company and yourself. This is the safest option, especially from a liability point of view and if you plan on employing more workers.
Then, open a business bank account and register for accounting software to maintain a clean bookkeeping record and others.
Step 4: Acquire your window cleaning tools
Another crucial step is getting the right materials and supplies to help with job efficiency. As such, we recommend more traditional window cleaning kits, as they are less expensive and always available whenever you need them.
The recommended window cleaning material includes a squeegee, microfiber cloths and towels, an extension pole, T-bar and sleeve, a scraper, cleaning solution and buckets (regular dish soap will be perfect), a ladder, and a bidding & invoicing system.
These kits will not cost over a few hundred dollars. Once you’ve grown to a certain stage, you can get more advanced kits including a water purification system and water-fed pole.
Step 5: Decide on your working charges
This step may look quite straightforward, but for a starter in the window cleaning business, you need some training on pricing and the bidding system.
Many window cleaners charge by the number of window panes and the cleaning type (construction, inside and outside, or inside alone), while others prefer charging by the hour.
The approximate charges for a windowpane range from $3 to $5 and $2 per screen. You are free to charge higher for construction cleans and lower for high patronage clients (don’t worry, you’ll gain later). You are also free to charge for window tracks and sills cleaning.
As you keep bidding, you’ll keep learning. As you continue to bid, you’ll continue to learn. Once you win 100% of your bids, you’ll probably start charging very little.
If you discover that you’re losing out, be bold enough to inquire what other cleaners are offering to enable you to start understanding the market.
Step 6: Keep finding and attracting new customers
Getting new clients requires two key steps;
- Canvassing and Cold-calling: This is the most common and fastest way to attract new customers. It involves moving from one doorpost to the other, one store to another, and one home to another. It may take some nerves to do that, yet it works magically.
- Marketing: try good marketing techniques and customers will come running at your services. This doesn’t require an expensive agency or much money to startup.
Other more affordable ways for marketing could include building a professional home service website, listing yourself in local business directives, creating a ‘Google My Business’ listing, rendering window cleaning services to family and loved ones and urging them to review online, and networking with local service businesses like landscapers, realtors, etc.
Step 7: Get yourself ready for daily operations
If you are starting all alone, you should be wearing different hats, as there are several job functions you will be carrying out during a typical work week.
These include executing client jobs, marketing your business, keeping an inventory, providing customers with an invoice, rendering quotes, scheduling appointments.
As your business grows and earns you more pay, you can employ workers to assist you with some of these functions. But, as a starter, you must be prepared at all times to cope with these numerous responsibilities
Step 8: Hiring a Team
Though this step may not be as important for starters as the others, it will be crucial in the subsequent growth and scaling of your window cleaning business.
You can employ more washing crews (there are affordable ones out there) and pay them, and even employ a production manager that can help to run the team.
However, if you’re a beginner, you can maintain a close watch on your team to enable you to train them properly and make sure you get them to be consistent and keep providing quality services.
We recommend a team of four properly-trained employees to enable you to earn a very good living.
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