How to build a magnetic brand for your cleaning business

The following article is based on a presentation by Jeannie Henderson at the 2021 Maid Summit, hosted and organized by ZenMaid. Jeannie is the founder and CEO of Jeannie Cleaning. She is also a certified Cleaning Business Fundamentals coach.

The cleaning business was supposed to be easy. When Jeannie Henderson started Jeannie Cleaning in 2015, she already had 30 franchise restaurants under her belt.

Jeannie Cleaning would be her “retirement business” and would surely be easier to run than a restaurant.

“Boy, was I wrong,” Jeannie says. “I found myself in a complete mess.”

Jeannie knew how to grow a business, so Jeannie Cleaning doubled in size in one year.

Despite the fast growth, the business “was a complete, broken mess,” Jeannie says.

Employees and clients were miserable, Jeannie had no free time, and the business wasn’t making money.

The situation shifted when Jeannie enrolled in Debbie Sardone’s Cleaning Business Fundamentals program. In addition to learning systems and strategies for efficiency, she learned the top secret for creating a business that people love to run and attracts great staff and clients.

It’s a secret Jeannie enjoys sharing because it answers one of the top questions other maid service owners ask her: “How do I make my brand stand out?”

Attracting brand-loyal customers is one of the ways Jeannie tamed the chaos of fast growth and built a successful business she loves.

Read on to learn Jeannie’s secret for building your magnetic brand.

A brand isn’t your logo

Before you get started, get clear on what a brand is and isn’t.

The visual elements that define your company, like your logo, colors, and photography, aren’t your brand.

Your brand is how you make people feel when they come in contact with your business. It’s your reputation and how people perceive your services.

Ask yourself: What are the words that come to mind when people think about your business? Are these the words you want them to think?

These questions are important because, according to sales expert Brian Tracy, 94% of sales in America are determined by issues other than price.

What factor sets you apart from your competitors?

Adopt a cause to support

When Jeannie started her maid service, people weren’t thinking about her brand in the way she intended.

How did she shift their perceptions? Here’s the secret: She took on a big cause and built her company around it. Here’s how you can do it, too.

Step 1: Find your cause

Think of your cause like a mission. In his book, “Infinite Jest,” author Simon Sinek defines a just cause as a goal that you can never fully achieve, yet it defines where you are going.

To find your cause, ask yourself the following questions:

What do I care about?
What do I love?
What do I hate?
In what way do I want my business to matter?

Jeannie Cleaning’s cause is to make lives better in all that they do. Everything the business does must support that cause.

Jeannie believes this cause has helped her company continue to grow even during the pandemic.

Step 2: Build values around your cause

Once you’ve decided on a cause, choose the core values that define it. Aim for three to seven words.

This helps clarify the cause for employees and clients and helps keep you on track.

At Jeannie Cleaning, the core values that support its cause are caring, excellence, and community. They don’t call themselves a cleaning company. They say, “We’re a company working to make lives better.”

Step 3: Live and breath your cause and core values

Henry Ford said, “A business that makes nothing but money is a poor kind of business.”

McDonald’s helps families access medical care and resources through the Ronald McDonald House. TOMS believes in “a future where everyone has a chance to thrive.”

One of the ways Jeannie’s Cleaning lives its cause is through its partnership with Cleaning For a Reason, which provides free home cleaning services to people with cancer. Many of its clients and employees have shared that they’re loyal to Jeannie’s Cleaning because of its involvement with the organization.

When you create positive change in your community, it makes your business stand out and draws people to your business. So ask yourself, if I want people to support my business, how can my business support people?

Learn more:

For more resources on how to grow and perfect your cleaning business, check out the replays from the 2021 Maid Summit, hosted by ZenMaid. The summit featured more than 60 presentations from other maid service owners who shared tools and strategies to help you achieve the highest levels of success in your business.

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