There’s a saying that goes, “There’s no such thing as bad press.” Unfortunately, not all of us can afford bad public relations like P.T. Barnum.
You might be able to handle bad press if you’re running an actual circus, but most people won’t pay for your cleaning services if they think you’re no good to work with. No one wants to support a bad business. Especially businesses that are run by local business owners like cleaning companies. Why get your carpets cleaned by a company that you heard might stiff you, when you know Frank runs a small cleaning service? This is where public relations and press comes in.
Sometimes it can seem like a huge challenge to get press for your cleaning company. After all, who wants to talk about cleaning? People want to support companies that do good work and seem like good people. I’ll show you a few ways to get some of that good press for your business.
- Cleaning For a Reason
Cleaning for a Reason is a great opportunity to stretch your philanthropic wings. If you don’t know, Cleaning For a Reason is an organization that offers free cleaning services for those who are suffering from cancer. Any man, woman, or child is eligible to be a recipient for this service.
This is a prime opportunity for some PR. Not only is this gathering some good karma on your end, but you’re showing the community that you care. You’re more than just a business, you’re part of the neighborhood. Cleaning for a Reason offers all kinds of free training on how to get press for your charity work and they even have their own public relations department which is constantly helping local cleaning businesses to share the Cleaning for a Reason story.
2. Make your own Cleaning Products
This is always a favorite with the press. They love tips on how homeowners can make their own cleaning products out of household products like vinegar, baking soda, dish soap, and rubbing alcohol. There of course more ideas. This is great for television and video as it makes great visuals and if you can get on live, the host can help you mix up the products. This Youtube video is a great example of how well these videos can come out. If you need some ideas there are many sites full of recipes including this one. Just remember to keep your facts straight. For example vinegar may kill many germs, but it is not a disinfectant. You don’t want your press appearance to go bad when you get challenged on the facts.
3. Give away a year of free cleaning
Giving away a year of free cleaning is a great way to get people aware of your business. Everyone loves free stuff. Especially free stuff that makes their life easier. Getting a clean house for a busy mom can nearly be impossible. I know my mom was constantly stressed out at the state of her home with five kids. Giving a mom like mine, a breath of fresh air would do wonders for her lifespan.
But, selfishly, we’re not here to talk about helping mothers. This is about public relations. Moms talk. If the right woman gets a free cleaning for a year, she’ll be talking about it non-stop. That word of mouth marketing gets around. If a popular family gets a quality job done at their home, their friends are sure to notice. Once again, word of mouth prevails. You’re surely going to get some more leads.
4. Support your employees
This is one where it’s not necessarily about the sales, but definitely can impact them. Supporting your employees is just a generally good business practice. When you have happy employees they usually do good work. When you have good work being done, people talk about you. An important lesson in word of mouth marketing is that bad experiences are often spoken about much more than a normal or good experience. It makes sense too. When you have a bad experience you usually tell anyone who will listen until you forget about it. Making sure your employees are taken care of ensures there aren’t negative experiences to be shared around town.
Another benefit in taking care of your employees is that people will seek you out as an employer. When people hear how great it is to work for you, people will line up to try and get a job. That’s usually a win-win. People get hired, and if you have a wide selection of applicants, you’ll most likely have the pick of the best workers.
5. Partner with local organizations
Partnering with local clubs and organizations is a great way to get your name out there, while showing you’re part of the community. One great way to do this is to offer to pay a local non profit organization $1 for every new follower your Facebook page gets in a given month. It’s a small investment and you can add hundreds of followers associated with that non profit to follow your business.
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Brandon is a digital marketing intern working with Blue Skies Services and Cleaning Business Today
