Get the Most You Can Out of the Holiday Cleaning Season
By Hitman | October 10, 2009
This is an excerpt from our most recent Ad of the Month Coaching Club webinar. If you’d like to see the entire video and get all the ads and training to stay busy during the holidays, go to www.Hitmanadvertising.com/coaching
We’re coming up on one of the best opportunities for making money in the cleaning business. But it will only happen if you market yourself well.
Start with these Four Items Below and Plan NOW!
- Send a newsletter or postcard to your current clients for Thanksgiving.
- Use newspaper advertising. This is the BEST time of year.
- Use Google Adwords. Turn off your campaign when you get too busy.
- Contact those who refer you and ask for referrals this holiday.
Thanksgiving Newsletter/Postcard
Create a Thanksgiving Newsletter or Postcard to mail your current clients. If you’re in the Ad of the Month Coaching Club, you’ll get a nice oversized postcard/newsletter you can use in your own company.
Mail them either on Monday, November 2 or Monday, November 9. Mondays are the best day to send a mailing for our industry.
In the postcard, thank your clients for their business. And give them some type of gift if you choose. Or, just wait until right at Christmas to give the gift.
IMPORTANT: Tell them to book their cleaning appointment early because you normally stay booked up.
If you’re new in business, do the same thing with your “neighborhood”. Simply thank them for their business for the year and tell them you LOVE being their neighborhood cleaning company.
At the beginning of December, you’ll want to mail another newsletter/postcard.
Newspaper Advertising
Now’s the best time of the year to test newspaper. Use one of the ads in the member section that put a bit of a spin on holiday cleaning. Remember that newspaper is timely, so make your ad holiday driven.
Above is an example of a good holiday newspaper ad.
Google Adwords
Use Adwords to get more website traffic. And the great part about Adwords is you can turn it off when you get too busy. Consider trying the “Appointments Available Today” or “Same Day Appointments” headline.
Then when you get busy, turn your Adwords campaign off until you need it again.
For more Adwords training see the Internet Marketing Training Series For Cleaners.
Contact Your Referral Sources
Contact them and thank them for the referrals they’ve given you. You may want to bring a box of donuts or candy along with you if you go in person. Or, send them a restaurant gift certificate in the mail. You don’t need to give them something huge, just give them a little thanks to get their attention.
ASK FOR THE REFERRALS! This is very obvious, but it can be easily forgotten. Make sure you ask. Tell them that their clients are going to be looking for someone to maintain their floors before the holidays. And then tell them you’d love to be the person they recommend. Then ask, “Will you please refer us?”
There is a psychological trigger in asking this question. Make sure you ask!
The holidays are already upon us.
DO NOT WAIT! START PLANNING RIGHT NOW!
For more proven advertising plans go to www.Hitmanadvertising.com/coaching
Topics: carpet cleaning business | 6 Comments »
6 Responses to “Get the Most You Can Out of the Holiday Cleaning Season”
Questions and Comments
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October 10th, 2009 at 7:05 pm
Great info as always John, can you talk a little about what types of newspapers work the best?. Should we target smaller neighbor newspapers or the large metro papers?
October 11th, 2009 at 12:41 pm
Does newspaper really work? I’ve been tempted to try it, but afraid of the cost. It would cost me $500 just to give it a shot.
October 11th, 2009 at 12:47 pm
From what I’ve tested and seen from my clients, small to medium sized cities work best. The other factor is how well the newspaper is cherished by the community.
If you’re in a big city, I wouldn’t bother spending huge dollars on newspaper. But like Steve said, his $500 isn’t really a bad deal if it’s at least a 6 inch (dollar bill) size ad.
Ideally, use a newspaper that has paid subscribers. But test free newspapers too.
Sure, newspaper readership has declined since the internet got popular. But educated people are still reading and ads for carpet cleaners are still getting response.
October 11th, 2009 at 10:29 pm
When trying a newspaper for the first time what section do you suggest starting in and how many times should the ad be run?. Should the ad be changed each time it is ran or ?.
October 13th, 2009 at 2:56 am
Would you send a postcard to all your past clients or just the most recent ones?
October 13th, 2009 at 2:59 am
The main section is best. That’s what more people read. Second best is the local section. You’ll have to test it though for your own newspaper.
Mark, yes, I usually send postcard to people who have used us in the past 2-3 years. After three years we phase them out of the mailing list.
Hope that helps.