Getting Started
If you have a talent or affinity for organizing and cleaning houses, you have the potential to earn a casual, part-time income assisting others getting organized. In fact, you can actually turn this into a business and hire employees if you want to go that route. But for now, let’s just have a conversation about how to set yourself up to clean houses part time, and earn extra money to meet your bills each month.
But first…
But before getting started, you need to know how much you are going to charge, and if it is what your particular local market can bear. This is determined by the type of houses you are targeting, as well as the income level of the home owners. Generally, this is not going to be less than minimum wage. Many people, if they are buying house cleaning services, will be able to pay at least $10 per hour. You can determine your exact rate from there—either up or down depending on your market.
To obtain clients for your service, you simply need to spread the word. This may be through word of mouth by telling your friends and neighbors, or sending an announcement to a local email list. You can also put up an ad on Craigslist in the services section for your services. For this, you want to also set up a free web based email address for your reply-back information, so that if you get a lot of spam emails, you can delete your email account.
Of course, you can always pay for marketing. If you are short on cash, you can take out a short term loan online. The benefits of paid marketing may well be worth the extra cash you may earn from extra clients!
Clients are Contacting You!
When you are contacted by actual clients who are requesting your services, make sure that you provide thorough answers to any questions they may have. This may include how much you charge, if you have references, and your prior experience. Be sure to be professional and courteous in all interactions with the potential client. If they are ready to hire you, schedule the appointment.
The Actual Event
On the day of the appointment, do everything in your power to get there on time. No one likes to wait for services, and your reputation is on the line here. If you are even late one time, the potential harm this could cause from word of mouth could be disastrous! But, if you know you are going to be late, always call your client and explain what is happening, and make a new promise about when you will be there. Then keep that promise. When you take the time to be in communication, clients will appreciate you more, and will then tell their friends.
When doing the actual cleaning, always be professional and courteous. Take the time to listen to instructions, and if anything is unclear, ask questions. Then do the job according to instructions. After the job is completed, let your client know and collect payment. If payment is to be billed, be sure to hand them an invoice.
Follow-up
To continue gaining new clients, don’t be afraid to ask for testimonials. If you are doing a great job, have people praise you in writing, so that you can show others what your past clients have thought about your service. And chances are, if they like your service, they will ask you back again and again.
Cleaning houses for others can be a great way to either make a living, or supplement your current income. Short term loans can be helpful, but in the long run, it makes more sense to have ongoing streams of income set up so that you always have extra pocket cash.
It is so true that building relations in your business is the first thing you need to establish to see success. Some people do that by sharing things for free, some do that by creating highly unique content and some do that by getting personal. I am trying to combine all three and in the long term I’m sure this will work.