Carpet cleaning is an important aspect for many commercial comapnies and has grown in momentum over the years. Associations have developed to represent those professionals in the industry, and to help regulate and promote ongoing learning and career opportunities. Associations allow individual professionals to come together and create a unified voice, offer support and advice to professionals both new and experienced, and the creation, collaboration and sharing of resources. By joining an association, a carpet cleaner can feel supported, encouraged, and engaged in the community of professionals.

In order to become a carpet cleaner, specific licensing is required. Most employers require individuals to have a minimum of a certificate in the field of carpet cleaning. The Institute of Inspection Cleaning and Restoration Certification (IICRC) is a nationally recognised carpet cleaning training and certifications organization. In some states certifications such as the one provided by the IICRC are enough to practice as a carpet cleaner, whilst other states require further licensing permits for the business. Some states require individuals to undertake state licensing exams to become both certified and registered as a cleaner. This may vary for those practicing as a private business to those working within a larger company. It is important to research individual state requirements to further information into these requirements.

Similar to associations, there are several groups available for carpet cleaners that work to provide support to this field. These groups allow professionals to share experiences and insights with like-minded colleagues in what often becomes an all-inclusive community. These groups often meet either online or in real life, and sometimes both, depending on your location and the type of group. There are endless groups available to join for free on social media such as Facebook or through specific groups that you can search and join, sharing resources and friendships. Websites such as Meetup allow you to search for industry-specific meetups in your local area, allowing carpet cleaners and cleaners of all fields to come together in one place. As with associations, cleaning communities provide a less formal method of congregating and supporting one another as professionals.

Check out Facebook Groups for Carpet Cleaners:

Professional Carpet Cleaning

House cleaning services near me

Carpet Cleaners Lounge

Carpet cleaning equipment buy sell trade

CARPET CLEANING

Spot Clean Carpet & Upholstery Cleaning. Western Cape.

Carpet Cleaning World

Carpet Cleaning Professionals Forum

Carpet Cleaning Sales / Marketing / Business Advice / Networking

Carpet Cleaners Union

Carpet Cleaning Networking And Advice

IICRC Certified Carpet Cleaners and Restoration Technicians *non-official*

LMCCA – Low Moisture Carpet Cleaners Association

FOR SALE CARPET CLEANING EQUIPMENT AND ACCESSORIES NEW AND USED AND MORE

commercial carpet cleaners page

Carpet cleaning services

CLEANING EQUIPMENT & SUPPLIES – Buy / Sell / Trade

Cleaning Services & Supplies PH

ELITE CARPET CLEANING

Carpet and upholstery cleaning Somerset and dorset

Sparkle And Shine Cleaning and Maintenance Services

Lindsey’s House Cleaning And Organzing Services

Diamond Shine Carpet And Oven Cleaning

Carpet Re-Fresh Cleaning Services.

Professional Cleaners USA

Ollies Carpet Cleaning

Kellie’s Cleaning Services

Classified: Cleaning Services

ON CALL FEMALE CLEANERS READY VISA URGENT HIRING

CARPET AND RUG CLEANING EQUIPMENT FOR SALE

Cleaning Service Canada ?? & USA ??

Australian Carpet Cleaners

EXTRACTION MASTER CARPET AND UPHOLSTERY CLEANING

birmingham carpet cleaning services

The Carpet Cleaners Page

Bruce’s Oven Cleaning

Carpet & Rug Classifieds

Cleaning your home

Rainbow Vacuum Cleaner Group USA & Others

Carpet Cleaners Page Uk

Professional Mattresses, Carpets & Sofas Cleaning Services @ RM50

PERFECT CLEANING GEORGIA SERVICES L.L.C. ????

TruckMountForums: Carpet Cleaning Professionals

Cleaning Marketing

Cleaners reviews townsville

Carpet Cleaning Machines For Sale UK

House Cleaning Services & Painting Services In Singapore

Cleaning Services

Carpet Cleaners, Restoration Buy & Sell

SOS CARPET CLEANING SERVICES

Let’s Talk Cleaning – LEGENDARY CARPET, TILE AND RUG CLEANERS AND MORE

professional sofa cleaning service

Cleaners & Cleaning Services London

Cleaning Mums

CLEANERS Queensland

Cleaner Cleaning

Xtreme Carpet Cleaning services

Cleaners Connect

Sisters@work Cleaning services

Cleaning Business Owners Australia (CBOA)

Australian Carpet Cleaners Page

The Commercial Cleaners Forum

Eco Steam Cleaning Services

Car Cleaning

The Carpet Queen (Dips Dirty Carpet Cleaners)

Shake ‘n’ Scent (carpet/mattress cleaner and Freshner)

UK Used Cleaning Equipment. Buy, Sell Or Swap

VLM Carpet Cleaners Lounge

Bendigo Cleaners and Gardeners

Mattress Cleaning and Sanitizing

UK Carpet Cleaners Advice

New Zealand Carpet Cleaners

VIP CARPET CLEANING, SETTEE,VEHICLE VALETING

Carpet Cleaning Page

Canadian Detailers & Carpet Cleaners

Tile and Grout Cleaning Tips

Domestic Cleaner/Housekeeper/Manicure/make-up(London)

Best Earwax Removal, Ear Wax Bug

A Quest for Cleaner Living

Carpet Cleaners, Water, Fire, and Mold Damage network

Pad Life – For All Things VLM (Low Moisture Carpet Cleaning)

Waldo’s Wonderful Carpet Cleaning World

Carpet and Tile Cleaning Questions and Answers

Melbourne Cleaning Community

Flooring Installers “USA”

Clean Living with Tarah

Airbnb Professional Cleaners

Carpet Pythons

Cleaner Get Leaner

Perth Carpet Cleaners Network

Jungle Carpet Pythons, U.S.

Parapet cleaning company ltd Nairobi.

Rainbow Vacuum Group USA/Worldwide

Kirby Vacuum Cleaner Group USA/Worldwide

Speak English Clearly and Naturally.

Kirby Vacuum Cleaner Fan Club for all!

Robotic Pool Cleaners

In an ever changing and fast paced world, there is often not enough time to strike a balance between work, family, and a social life, let alone time to clean the house. As such, all fields of home cleaning are rapidly expanding as time for cleaning is shrinking. Carpet cleaning is no different.

The main job requirements of a carpet cleaner are to:

• Analyze the proper cleaning method of a range of carpeting materials
• Administration duties
• Cleaning of a range of different carpets
• Be familiar with the proper use of industry machinery
• Spot treatments
• Reduce allergens in the air of a home

There are specific government mandated regulations to becoming a carpet cleaner. This may vary based on the type of business being conducted and for whom. As such, it is important to conduct research into each to find the best option for your career.

Resources to help in starting or expanding your Carpet Cleaner career:

• Carpet Cleaner Associations
• Carpet Cleaner School and Certification
• Carpet Cleaner Social Groups

Home cleaning has grown in momentum for private homeowners over the years as people struggle to find a life-work balance are are wiling to pay others for home cleaning services. Associations have developed to represent professionals in the industry, and to help regulate and promote ongoing learning and career opportunities. Associations allow individual professionals to come together and create a unified voice, offer support and advice to professionals both new and experienced. By joining an association, a home cleaner can feel supported, encouraged, and engaged in the community of professionals.

See associations for home cleaners:

• https://pocketsuite.io/association-of-residential-cleaning-services-international/
• https://pocketsuite.io/american-house-cleaners-association/

In order to become a home cleaner, specific licensing is not required. However, many employers prefer individuals to have a minimum of a certificate in the field of home cleaning. What may be required is a licensing permit for your business. This can be obtained through your local council or state government institution, and the requirements will vary from state to state so it is important to conduct specific research into your state’s requirements. For those looking to complete training to make them more desirable to potential clients or a larger business, there may be online courses or short courses that you can attend at local educational institutions.

In an ever changing and fast paced world, there is often not enough time to maintain a balance between work, family, and a social life, let alone time to clean the house. As such, all fields of home cleaning are rapidly expanding as time for cleaning is shrinking. Home cleaning in particular is on the rise.

The main job requirements of a home cleaner are to:

• Analyze the proper cleaning method of a range of materials
• Administrative duties
• Cleaning the home
• Be familiar with the proper use of industry machinery
• Spot treatments
• Reduce allergens in the home
• General household duties

There are specific government mandated regulations to becoming a home cleaner. This may vary based on the type of business being conducted and for whom. As such, it is important to conduct research into each to find the best option for your career.

How Much do Home Cleaners Earn?

The pay scale for a home cleaner will vary depending on the qualifications of the professional, the location, hours worked, type of business and state regulations. On average, home cleaners typically earn between $20,000 – $50,000 per year.

Resources to help in starting or expanding your Home Cleaner career:

• Home Cleaner Associations
• Home Cleaner School and Certification
• Home Cleaner Social Groups

Home cleaning is different from housekeeping or maid services, which are intended for general cleaning and upkeep, often on a weekly basis. Home cleaners go further. Their services may be required when a homeowner wants to sell the house, complete a good spring cleaning or perhaps prepare a vacation home in advance for the summer.

It may take several visits to clean the house to the client’s expectations. Vacuuming and mopping can instantly make a house smell fresher and look cleaner, but it takes a good scrubbing to remove the film of grease that can settle on kitchen surfaces (peek on top of your refrigerator some time or run a finger across the range hood). It may also take two or more treatments and scrubbing to remove stubborn stains or get the mildew out of bathroom tile grout. The good news is you get paid for every visit.

While at one point house cleaning might have been seen as a luxury, today it is becoming a necessity as busy professionals struggle to maintain a work/life balance and would prefer either to work more on their careers or pursue hobbies and personal interests rather than spend time giving their house a deep cleaning. As a result, home cleaner services are in demand.

In this article you’ll learn:

• How much money you can make as a home cleaner
• The required training and certifications
• Professional groups to join
• Employment opportunities for home cleaners
• Finding clients
• Plus helpful tips

How much money can you make?

Home cleaners make $24,850 per year according to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics. That works out to $11.95 per hour. The top 10 percent of home cleaners make $37,900 per year.

One way to ramp up your income is to start a home cleaning business with employees who work under your supervision. With cleaning teams in place, you can bid and work on more jobs. Plus, when you own the company you spend less time scrubbing and more time supervising.

Training and Certification

There is no specific license required to be a home cleaner. It’s not like working in a regulated trade, such as a licensed electrician or cosmetologist. You may need a business license, though. Check with your local government to determine the requirements for operating as a home cleaner.

If you intend to work for a housecleaning company, you may want to become certified in the field. Many training programs are available to learn efficient house cleaning practices, how to manage and grow a cleaning business, find customers and more. Here is a list of training programs to review that can help you get started.

This list covers the basic services house cleaners provide:

• Clean and disinfect bathroom tiles
• Remove all mildew and scales from bathroom and kitchen tiles, shower heads and fixtures
• Dust common areas, bookcases, cabinets and furniture, as well as picture frames
• Wipe baseboards
• Vacuum or mop all floors
• Wipe down the surfaces of all kitchen appliances
• Clean tables and chairs
• Clean and remove spots from mirrors
• Wipe down window sills and clean interior windows
• Remove grime behind appliances
• Clean lamp shades
• Vacuum upholstery and furniture
• Wash blinds and curtains, unless dry cleaning is necessary
• Clean cabinets
• Shampoo and vacuum carpets and rugs

Training programs focus on the most efficient techniques to complete a cleaning task thoroughly yet quickly, as well as safety precautions, including the use of chemical cleaning products. You’ll also learn basic business skills and customer service etiquette.

Professional Groups to Join

Joining a professional home cleaning organization shows you are serious about your career. These affiliations look good on a resume and can help make the difference in securing that new job because employers see that you are so dedicated to your work that you are involved in professionals groups. Here are two professional organizations for home cleaners to consider:

The Association of Residential Cleaning Services, International (ARCSI) helps residential cleaning service owners and professionals in starting, promoting, building and expanding their businesses. ARCSI provides information to ensure the growth and development of member businesses.

The American House Cleaners Association is a community of cleaning professionals helping each other become better cleaners and better business owners. They discuss strategies, share cleaning tips and tricks, and even help each other bid on jobs. Membership levels vary from $10 to $50 per month and come with different tiers of benefits.

Employment

If you’re not ready to start your own home cleaning business, print out your resume and take it to area companies that offer these services. Think of it as on-the-job training for your own business while you’re getting paid. Be sure to include professional references (not family members) and their contact information. If you can show an established track record of customer satisfaction combined with good experience, you’re in.

Finding Clients

If you live near a resort area or close to beaches where people maintain vacation homes, make appointments with all the realtors and property managers in the area. Introduce yourself and your services. Vacation home owners routinely pay house cleaners to freshen up their properties before they arrive for a long holiday. In a beach area, this could provide steady work from spring till fall.

When you’re self-employed as a home cleaner, it’s up to you to find the work. This means marketing your business. You’ve got to get your name out there.

You’ll need a website. Something basic but attractive, a page or two outlining your services and contact information, and a few pages of photos showing off your work. Some “before” and “after” photos make a nice contrast to illustrate the benefits customers can expect when hiring you for the job.

Work with a printing company to produce a large magnet sign you can attach to the side of your vehicle. The sign should include your business name, the fact that you offer home cleaning services, and a phone number. You can include your website address at the bottom. As your business grows and you become wildly successful, you can have your business information professionally painted on the side of your work van – or your entire fleet of vehicles. But in the beginning, a magnetized sign is enough.

While you’re at the printing company, order some business cards with your company name, phone number and website address. If there’s room for a slogan or catchy motto, add that, too.

Create Google Business and Facebook pages for your company. Include all services you offer as well as contact information, plus photos. Both of these platforms are free and can be promoting your business 24/7.

Customer retention is also important. Keep your customers happy and you’ll enjoy repeat business for years to come. People almost always stick with companies they trust, but a reliable house cleaner is precious.

As an incentive, offer regular customers a discount for referring new customers to your business, then give those new customers a discount.

Ask all happy customers to review your services online. Make it easy for them to do this by handing out cards printed with the websites you want to feature your reviews.

Good to know

If you’re just starting out in home cleaning, call the homeowners association (HOA) for every subdivision and neighborhood in your service area. If you can secure an appointment with a representative of the HOA, you’ll be able to introduce yourself (always dress professionally) and leave a stack of business flyers promoting your home cleaning services. Homeowners in a subdivision who learn about you through their neighborhood association are much more likely to view you favorably because you’ve already established a measure of credibility – they’ve found you through their HOA.

The benefit of signing up multiple homeowners for cleaning services in the same subdivision is the substantial time and cost savings. You probably won’t spend so much time driving around your city or county getting from one job to another. Instead, the next job might be a block away or even next door. Even better, you’ll gradually become established as the go-to home cleaner in that neighborhood if you keep customers happy.

If you enjoyed this article, check out some more great PocketSuite.io content that can help you grow your career as a home cleaner. Here’s a great place to start.PocketSuite has thousands of business owners who all started where you are right now. Our community is always happy to help you ramp up, grow your client base, and achieve your income goals, both within the PocketSuite app and as part of our exclusive Facebook Community Group. PocketSuite’s vision is for any professional to be able to work for themselves and make a great living. It starts here. It starts with you. It starts today. Let’s get started, download PocketSuite now! Feel free to reach out with any questions (we’d love to hear from you)! Text us @ (415) 841-2300.

WHO IS CRAIG, AND WHY IS HIS LIST SO POPULAR?

If you’ve been living in the western world and using the internet for any amount of time, you’ve heard of Craigslist.

If you’ve ever tried to buy a used car, find a job, buy or rent a home, you must have stumbled upon this massive online directory.

The same goes for any efforts to advertise your services or connect with another human being – Craigslist is an eternal go-to for anyone in the know.

This is for good reason – the simple, clean design hasn’t changed for over a decade. And why should it?

The website has been reported to receive over 9 Billion unique visits per month.

That makes it a rival for marketplace giants such as Zillow and Yelp.

And to think, this beast of a site was launched by a guy in San Francisco with a single mission: to tell his friends what events to go to.

THE HISTORY OF CRAIGSLIST

The popular website was founded in 1995 by Craig Newmark.

Craig’s original purpose was to tell his fellow San Francisco natives about events happening in the area.

Since then, the site has steadily expanded into over 450 cities and 50 countries.

Nowadays, Craigslist is ranked as the #19 most popular site in the US as of 2019, according to an Alexa ranking.

The company even started the Craigslist Foundation, a nonprofit which helps other nonprofits grow and establish themselves.

Rather than contributing money directly, the charity throws local events to help charities at the grass-roots level.

CRAIGSLIST CRITICISM

Craigslist has come under criticism before, such as when it was pressured to ban ads relating to the sale of dogs and cats.

The platform was accused of promoting reckless breeding, but the claims ended up being unjustified.

In another less public scandal, Craig and his leadership team were accused of diluting eBay’s stock by injecting a ‘poison pill’ into the company.

They were accused of lowering eBay’s stock in the company and also eliminating eBay’s right to appoint a member to the board of directors.

The controversial listing site has even been accused of such heinous things as enabling child pornography.

According to Atlanta mayor Shirley Franklin, 85% of these types of atrocities were due to listing sites like Craigslist.

A Craigslist spokesperson declined to comment on the incident.

Despite the criticism against Craigslist, the company is still a major source of traffic for small businesses and freelancers around the world.

If you are a small cleaning business owner, you should be using Craigslist.

WHY CRAIGSLIST WORKS SO WELL FOR CLEANING BUSINESSES

Articles have been written about why you shouldn’t hire a cleaning service on Craigslist.

And yet, it is still a great way to generate new business as a house cleaner.

Recently, Craigslist added a $5 fee for posting cleaning services.

This may discourage you from posting, but it’s actually a good thing.

It has cut down on spammers and folks not willing to invest in their business.

For this reason, the amount of posts has drastically decreased, which means you have a better shot at getting quality leads.

HOW TO DOMINATE CRAIGSLIST WITH YOUR CLEANING BIZ

How can you best target your ads to get the most bang for your 5 bucks?

CATER TO PRICE SHOPPERS

One of the reasons folks search Craigslist vs. Google or Yelp is because of price sensitivity.

Consumers know that smaller businesses are advertising on Craigslist, which usually comes with a lower price tag.

If you have lower prices, you can use this to your advantage by pointing this out in your ads.

PUT ‘LICENSED/INSURED’ OR ‘FREE ESTIMATES’ IN YOUR TITLE

This tip should be applied differently, depending on your pricing structure.

If your prices are on the lower end, put ‘FREE ESTIMATES’ to communicate this right away to clients.

If your prices are on the higher end, communicate the value of working with your business by saying ‘LICENSED/INSURED.’

Take care not to use capital letters in your entire title, as that will come across as spammy.

One or two words capitalized is more than enough to capture browser’s attention.

KEEP THE AD SIMPLE

Remember, you’re trying to mimic the simplistic style of Craigslist.

You’re also attempting to separate yourself from the corporate-sounding ads of large businesses.

Here’s a great example of a simple ad:

Hi, my name is Flores and I pride myself on providing affordable, dependable cleaning services for my clients.

My specialties are:

• Deep Cleaning
• Apartment Cleaning
• Move in/ Move out Cleaning
• Recurring Cleaning

Call me today for a free estimate!

[PHONE NUMBER]

You might also want to consider adding some benefits of using your business over the competition:

• You’re licensed and insured
• You’ve been in business for X years
• You have large corporate clients (if applicable)
• Your Satisfaction Guarantee
• You provide Free Quotes
• You provide a discount for first time customers

USE KEYWORDS

Make sure you use keywords at the bottom that reflect what folks would be searching for to find your listing.

Just don’t over-do it, or you will come across as spammy.

For example, don’t follow the example below:

Create a ‘flyer’ for your Craigslist ad using this guide, or just use a free image editor to throw one together.

Remember, the most important thing is that your flyer is clean and attention-grabbing.

You don’t have to worry about having the perfect ad or professional photoshop skills.

You might also want to check out Adobe Spark, which you can use for a low monthly fee to create professional-looking graphics.

INCLUDE A CALL TO ACTION

Unfortunately, Craigslist won’t let you put clickable links in your services posting.

So make sure you put a phone number that folks can call if they want to hire you.

Better yet, let folks know they can text you at the phone number you’ve provided.

Pro-Tip: Utilize PocketSuite’s Smart Campaigns to create an auto-reply to any text messages that come in to your number.

Simply use your PocketSuite Premium Business number in your Craigslist ad.

Then create your Smart Campaign in PocketSuite and set the timer to 0 (instant).

Put your PocketSuite Online Booking Link in the auto-reply, which will help folks book your services online.

As soon as folks text your number on Craigslist, they’ll get an automated reply with a link to book your services online, right from their phone or computer.

Using this fully automated system, you can start getting bookings for your cleaning business on autopilot.

So how are you going to utilize Craigslist to get more cleaning clients?

Use every tip from this article, and you’ll be raking in dozens of new clients in no time.

Just don’t forget to stock up on microfiber towels and business cards, because you’ll need them for all of the new clients you’ll be servicing.

Like this article? You’ll love these articles:

• PocketSuite Smart Campaigns
• PocketSuite Online Booking Widget
• Our guide on how to generate leads for service businesses in 2022
• Our Frustrations with Square article

The Sharing Economy has made it possible for everyone, not just the super wealthy, to have services on-demand, and this includes house cleaning services. With a higher demand for cleaning services, how has the cleaning industry grown and changed? We discuss:

• How technology has helped cleaning professionals make more money
• Why trust is key for a cleaning professional’s relationship with a client
• Why cleaning service professionals have the potential to retain a particularly high percentage of clients
• How companies like Handy and TaskRabbit have impacted the cleaning industry
• How associations like ISSA help cleaning professionals be successful
• The outlook for implementing certifications and standards in the cleaning industry
• The biggest reasons cleaning businesses fail

Our guest is Alonzo Adams, the owner of Busy Bee Cleaning Company. He is also currently the chair of ISSA’s Residential Cleaning Council, the residential cleaning arm of the worldwide cleaning organization.