How to Grow a Cleaning Business Fast: Tips to Scale Your Janitorial Services Profitably

Commercial cleaning businesses offer a world of possibilities. You can run a lean, mean, cleaning machine as a solopreneur and only work with a handful of clients on a recurring basis.

But if you’re like most entrepreneurs, you want to strive for more. You have bigger aspirations and want to learn how to grow a cleaning business fast. You’ve come to the right place. 

After you’ve laid the foundation and secured those first few crucial contracts, growth will likely happen naturally through word-of-mouth - assuming you’re doing a good job, of course. However, there are plenty of strategies you can consider for growing your cleaning business.

From incentivizing referrals to exploring new service areas, spending more aggressively in marketing, upselling existing clients, and even looking into franchising - we’ll walk you through how to grow your janitorial business below.

One of the best techniques for growing a cleaning business, though, is by upgrading the equipment you use and providing a superior service than ever before. This will help you earn a reputation as the #1 provider in your area, and clients will flock to you. 

From a commercial floor scrubber for sale to an industrial floor sweeper machine, water restoration equipment, carpet extractor, and more - SweepScrub is your partner in grime. Browse our catalog and see how we can help you grow your cleaning business today!

First, Determine if Growing Your Cleaning Business is Something You Really Want to Do

We know you came here to learn how to grow a cleaning business but hear us out - this isn’t a necessity. There is absolutely nothing wrong with choosing to run a lifestyle business where you work 20 hours a week instead. That’s why we encourage you to figure out what you really want.

Growth brings new opportunities, but it also comes with challenges that can stretch your resources, test your team, and change the dynamics of how you operate.

A good first step is to assess your current situation. Are you operating at full capacity? Do you have a loyal client base and strong cash flow? Scaling makes sense if you have the operational efficiency to handle more clients without sacrificing service quality. 

On the other hand, it might be a better idea to take a step back and fine-tune your processes before scaling if you still struggle with inconsistencies or inefficiencies.

Remember, growth means more complexity. You’ll need to hire additional staff, invest in more equipment, and manage larger contracts. Each of these comes with logistical and financial hurdles. 

Ask yourself, why do you want to grow? Is it to increase revenue, diversify services, or dominate your local market? Sometimes, chasing more money without a deeper purpose leaves you less satisfied. It’s an endless hamster wheel.

But if you have loftier lifestyle aspirations, are trying to put a kid through college, or want to make a name for yourself as the go-to janitorial service provider in your area - then learning how to grow your janitorial business does make sense.

Weigh the pros and cons and figure out what matters more to you in terms of work/life balance or business success. If you still decide you want to learn how to grow a commercial cleaning business, great! We’ve put together some actionable tips below to help you scale profitability.

How to Grow a Cleaning Business Fast: Strategies to Scale Your Janitorial Business Quickly While Staying Profitable

There are so many strategies you can use to grow cleaning company operations without sacrificing profitability. You don’t need to use all of these at once. 

Instead, focus on just a few key growth drivers at a time so you can maximize their potential. Then, consider exploring others. The first thing we suggest you do is look for improvement in your current operations.

Optimizing Current Operations

Growth should come only after you’ve perfected your internal processes. Chances are you’re trying to grow so you can make more money - but saving money by optimizing efficiency is so much easier.

Examine every step in your workflow, from scheduling and supply management to service delivery and follow-up. Eliminate any bottlenecks in the customer journey to streamline processes. You’ll get more done in less time while providing a better customer experience.

If you aren’t already, move over to janitorial management software instead of manual tasking. You can automate scheduling, client communications, and invoicing. Again, this saves resources and provides a frictionless experience. Consider tools like Jobber or ServiceTitan.

Dig into the finances of your janitorial business as well. Keep a close eye on costs, look to negotiate better rates with suppliers, and eliminate wasteful spending to improve profit margins before you scale. Profits typically come down to some extent with scaling, so they need to be rock solid before you begin growing.

Develop detailed cleaning checklists and training manuals so that as you bring in new team members and secure new contracts, you can remain consistent in your service delivery. At this point, you’re ready to actually start growing your cleaning business.

Expanding Your Service Offerings

If you followed our advice on how to start a commercial cleaning business there is probably something specific you specialize in. 

Maybe it’s school floor cleaning, or perhaps it’s factory floor cleaning, cleaning warehouse floors. Perhaps you learned how to start a water damage restoration company in our blog. 

Whatever the case, you can start to branch out and offer complementary services as well. This could be anything from disinfection to carpet cleaning, window washing, vent cleaning, etc. 

Or, you could try partnering with contractors and property developers to provide cleaning services for newly built or renovated properties. If you specialize in floor cleaning, enhancements like stripping, waxing, or polishing are also great opportunities.

As more and more companies look to reduce their carbon footprint you can also start offering eco-friendly services and go all in on that angle. Businesses will pay more for this in some cases.

Ask your clients what other services they need and deliver - it’s really that easy. You might find your most lucrative services just based on this conversation! 

Expanding your services can also mean offering the same service to different types of clients. For example, if you know how to clean concrete floors, what’s stopping you from learning how to clean rubber gym floor, or how to clean commercial kitchen floor?

Another possibility is to offer the exact same service in a nearby city that you haven’t broken into yet. The point here is that there are countless markets waiting to be tapped. Find your next goldmine!

Focusing on Client Retention and Upselling

It’s way more difficult to acquire a new customer than to retain an existing one. That’s why you should be just as focused on reducing churn and squeezing as much out of existing clients as possible before looking to secure new contracts.

This isn’t rocket science - consistently exceed expectations by being thorough, reliable, and professional. Follow up with clients to make sure they’re satisfied. If they’re not, go above and beyond to make it right. 

This can be the difference between a negative review and lost business and keeping the client coming back for more - and telling all their contacts about your service, too. 

You (or your team) should make it a habit to look for opportunities to upsell services anytime services are being rendered, too. This goes back to expanding your offerings. 

If a client’s windows are covered in hard water spots, sell your window cleaning service. Do you see stains on their carpet? Let them know you have the tools and experience to restore them.

Loyalty programs are one of the best ways to reduce customer churn. Reward repeat clients with discounts or free add-ons. See if you can get them to sign a contract for multiple months to guarantee long-term business.

Your customer base can be your best advocates, and they can also help you grow your cleaning business. Ask them where you can improve and show them you truly care about the quality of your work. It goes a long way.

Investing in Marketing and Branding

Now for the obvious recommendation in our guide on how to grow a cleaning business fast: spend more money on marketing!The bare minimum is a functional website with clear service descriptions, client testimonials, and an easy booking system. 

But, you can take this a step further and invest in SEO (search engine optimization) to bring in new clients on autopilot. This will help you generate business from companies in your area actively searching for cleaning services. Paid Google ads are a great way to drive traffic to your website as well.

You can also use platforms like Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn to showcase your work, run targeted ads, and engage with local businesses that may need your services. Share before-and-after photos, cleaning tips, and success stories to build credibility.

But in an era where businesses are being hammered with digital advertising at every turn, it’s not a bad idea to get back to basics with personalized flyers or postcards. You can drop these at local businesses or post them up around town. 

Networking and Building Partnerships

Your network is your biggest asset as a local business owner. That’s why it’s so important you’re looking for partnerships in everything you do. 

Growing your cleaning business can be as simple as getting your foot in the door with a massive property management company in your area. They need help cleaning out their buildings as new tenants replace old ones. They also need recurring cleaning for commercial spaces they lease out. 

Even something more obscure, like teaming up with carpet installers or pest control services for mutual referrals, can move the needle as you seek to expand your janitorial business. 

Join local business groups and make sure that the “who’s who” in your town knows your name is synonymous with commercial cleaning. Be a good neighbor, you never know who might be in the market for janitorial services!

Offer Incentives for Referrals and Testimonials

We touched on this already, but word-of-mouth marketing is still one of the strongest pieces of advice we have to offer on how to grow a cleaning business fast. If you perform a world-class service this will happen organically - but it doesn’t help to encourage it!

Offer discounts or free services to clients who refer new customers to you. Or, ask satisfied clients for testimonials or reviews on Google and Yelp in exchange for some incentive. You can even incentivize your team to bring in new business with bonuses!

Hiring and Training the Right Team

Speaking of your team, scaling is going to require some help along the way. Hire strategically - while you may assume training more cleaners will support growth, it might make more sense to bring in a director of operations who can assist with the actual scaling side of things. 

Whatever you do, make sure you’re hiring employees with experience and strong work ethics. Use job boards and referrals to find candidates. 

Remember that you get what you pay for in terms of talent. If you want to attract and retain good employees, you’ll have to reward them accordingly. That goes beyond wages and extends to health benefits or bonuses.

You should invest in your employees as aggressively as you do in marketing. Otherwise, your ad spend will be a waste as companies won’t be thrilled with the work you provide the first time around and will churn fast.

Train your team to improve efficiency, consistency, and customer satisfaction. We have tips on how to use a commercial floor scrubber, how to clean a commercial freezer floor, how to clean commercial tile floors, and more in our blog.

Exploring Franchising Opportunities

Once you’ve built up a brand name that rings strong throughout your industry, you can explore franchising opportunities as a way to expand in other cities. 

Learning how to grow your janitorial business through franchising can be complicated, though, so you might want to look into getting legal and financial help to comply with franchising regulations.

This method of growing your cleaning business also requires standardized, easy-to-replicate processes, branding, and training materials for the franchisees. You’ll also need to provide ongoing support for franchisees through training, marketing materials, and more.

Upgrading Your Cleaning Equipment

There’s one more tip we want to share in this guide on how to grow your janitorial business: invest in better cleaning equipment. Chances are you had to cut corners somewhere to get your business off the ground, and it’s affecting the efficiency and effectiveness of your service. 

Newer, more efficient machines allow you to clean faster and more thoroughly - getting through more jobs in less time without sacrificing quality. Simply put, better equipment translates to better service and more opportunities for scaling your operations.

Here at SweepScrub we can help you take advantage of this growth tactic with an unbeatable selection of cleaning equipment from the most trusted manufacturers in the industry. Our deep industry relationships mean you get the latest and greatest at competitive prices. That includes:

• Heavy duty commercial vacuum cleaner
• Floor burnisher
• Industrial ride on floor scrubber
• Commercial walk behind floor scrubber
• Industrial ride on floor sweeper
• Commercial walk behind floor sweeper
• Floor sweeper scrubber machine
• Gym floor scrubber
• And more!

Our commitment to exceptional customer service means you have friendly, experienced guidance on hand to help you choose the right solutions and make the most of them in your business. So, don’t hesitate to reach out today - let’s elevate your cleaning game together!

Parting Thoughts on How to Grow Your Janitorial Business

That does it for our guide on how to grow a cleaning business fast. If you decide scaling is right for you, these tips on growing a cleaning business present a world of possibilities on how you can go about it.

Explore additional resources in our blog like how to choose a floor scrubber, the water damage restoration cost, sweeper vs vacuum, floor sweeper repair, floor scrubber vs buffer, and more. But as we wrap up our guide on how to grow your janitorial business, it’s time to upgrade your arsenal.

Whether you want the best commercial floor scrubber or the best walk behind floor sweepers, we’ve got the equipment you need from trusted manufacturers at the lowest possible prices. With world-class service along the way, what more could you ask for?

Set yourself up for success in growing your cleaning business today. Shop SweepScrub for all the essentials to scale your operation and provide a service that keeps customers coming back for more - and bringing new business with them!