Marketing my pressure washing service

[DrWumbo]

There are tons of million dollar pressure washing companies in every single major city.

Pressure wash somebody's property that has been seriously neglected. The driveway, house, and back patio and you are increasing their properties value. That is 100% solving the problem of a nasty, ugly house and adding value to the property owner.

Sure the barrier to entry is low on pressure washing everyday things like driveways, but what about pressure washing/cleaning concrete tiles on 2-3 story mansion roofs? Your everyday pressure washer can't do that. That's a high barrier niche where your clientele would pay well for you to keep their million dollar homes in good condition.

So true about adding value to the property, just like doing an exterior paint job or basic landscaping. I did a business center for a guy who sells made-to-order homes and also has rental properties. He was so impressed with the service, he told me that I will be the company he exclusively uses for the properties, which he does about twice a year. I'm trying to get into servicing real estate companies for when they sell/rent out properties

 

[John D.]

Maybe you create a nice freebie as an incentive. It would work nicely with the other advice given here.

For example, a free report/flyer/brochure titled '55 Things You Didn't Know You Can Powerwash To Look Awesome Again' or something (wack title 'cause I know nothing about powerwashing).

You can also create it as a .pdf and promote it on Facebook and on other online local communities.

As some members mentioned there are tons of powerwashing companies around.

But if you do this (along with projecting a professional look overall - uniform, tools, the works) it will give you an aura of an 'expert'. Then if you actually do an expert job when they hire you, competitive pricing and word-of-mouth should take care of the rest.

 

[Mike S]

If you have a local BNI chapter in your area, I'd definitely look into that. BNI teaches and works through word of mouth and referral marketing but in addition to the exposure your business gains you'll get some great training on networking, selling, dealing with other business owners and the value of a great "elevator pitch" These things will all be useful as you gain experience and head towards a fastlane business.

 

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[ChrisV]

Any ideas on how to market this? I've tried printing little ads and putting them around neighborhood doors but I presume most people just throw them away.

maybe they feel too.. pressured?

 

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[ChrisGav]

Here is a very simple way to start this type of business.

Go print up some door hangers. These are VERY cheap and a great way to supplement your D2D sales effort.

Next you want to get a simple yard sign printed up. Keep it simple! You can go for 'funny' with something like "We put the POWER in power washing!" then list your number below. Make sure its big enough to be visible.

Anytime you are out power washing a drive way be sure to stick that sign in the yard right where all traffic can see it. When you go simply remove the sign and take it with you.

When you knock on doors have a good but simple offer, This is power washing, not selling them a house! "Hey! I happen to be in the neighborhood today doing some honest work and making peoples drive ways sparkle! Since I'm already here i'll give you x% off today."

Don't be afraid to inject a little personality into it.

If they don't answer or aren't at home that it where you leave a door hanger.

Now if you want to really get serious you can add in the next two things...

Referral letters and upselling.

After you do a great job, and right before you get paid, tell him that if hes willing to help you out that you would return the favor by knocking some money off for him. Have some referral letters already typed up and just have a blank space at the bottom for the home owner to write his name.

Keep the letters simple.

"Hey neighbor,

Just wanted to let you know about a nice young man, [NAME], who recently did a GREAT job making my drive way look new again. I asked him if he would be awesome and give my neighbors a discount and he gave me an enthusiastic "Yes!"

Don't let me be the only one with a fresh, brand new looking driveway. He said you can reach him at [NUMBER]

Your Friend,
[His Signature]

P.S. I'm pretty impressed with his job cleaning my windows too!"

You will be amazed at how many people are willing to do this provided you keep the letters under 15 or so. Most people respect the hustle.

Then after you do a good job simply up sell them by offering to do anything else around the yard you would be willing to do.

Then if his patience is still there, and he seems to not be annoyed with you, ask if he wants to go ahead and schedule his next cleaning for a later date at X% off.

If they look like they just want you to leave then hand them a business card, thank them, and be on your way.

Don't just think residential either! Contact the owner of strip malls and real estate companies. Offer to do the power washing, window cleaning, yard work, whatever!

Finally, call up some company who's mowing the lawns and offer to do a deal. You'll give them some flyers to give to their customers and in return you'll give some flyers advertising their lawn service to your customers! Make it seem like a coupon so the homeowners are more likely to actually appreciate it.

This is the exact strategy I gave my nephew when he was 17 and within two months he had hired several of his friends to help with all the work he was being hired out to do.

I really like this thank you for the advice

 

[ChrisGav]

HUGE flyer guy here, I built a few very successful businesses with flyers and flyers only..... but sadly..... this is 2019 and not 2004. Flyers are a thing of the past. Or is it sad? The GREAT news is that you can easily get customers nowadays on this new age thing called..... are you sitting down? ..... ssshhhhhh..... it's called the INTERNET! Yeah.... who woulda thunk it! To think of all the doors I personally walked up to and left a flyer on and now all a person has to do is use the internet while sitting naked at their desk (hopefully it's not just me)

I presume you are suggesting facebook/google ads sort of thing?

 

[Mr4213]

Fastlaners, I hope all is well.

I'm 20 years old. Currently have a job selling construction and industrial supplies but wanted to make money on my weekends and time off. I have been doing odd jobs here and there for people. My next venture I want to pressure wash peoples drive ways, walkways, etc. Any ideas on how to market this? I've tried printing little ads and putting them around neighborhood doors but I presume most people just throw them away. Thinking about just going door to door and asking everyone. Thoughts??

Are you doing this just to make a little extra money on the side, or are you actually trying to create a successful business from it?

Its fine as a way to make a little money on the side or get some experience. But IMO, its not a viable plan if you're trying to create a fastlane business.

The main reason is that it doesn't provide any real value or solve any real problem for people.

But from your post it looks like you just want a little side gig.

Yeah, door hangers, flyers ect are good and they do work if you do it right.

But I for this I think the best thing would just be grinding it out and door knocking. Try to be active, not passive. Do a job in a neighborhood and then visit their neighbors and tell them you're doing work in the area and just wanted to see if they need anything done while you are there.

If you need your first sale then I would go door to door in neighborhoods until you get a yes. I think that would be a better use of your time then putting door hangers up or leaving flyers around.

 

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[Duane]

As @minivanman said, advertising online will get the most bang for your buck.

I would run a combination of google advertising and door knocking until you can tweak your ads to give you some consistent business.

For me, I find advertising and selling to people that are actively searching for my service is the easiest closes with the highest conversions for my time spent. Build a website, optimize it, post frequently before and after pictures of jobs on google my business, and fill your google business with 5 star reviews and watch the phone calls pour in.

My local service business did the above and we have dozens of 5 star reviews now and are ranked very high in our area on google. Our organic growth is so high we don't even need to advertise and are still growing like crazy.

 

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[ChrisGav]

As @minivanman said, advertising online will get the most bang for your buck.

I would run a combination of google advertising and door knocking until you can tweak your ads to give you some consistent business.

For me, I find advertising and selling to people that are actively searching for my service is the easiest closes with the highest conversions for my time spent. Build a website, optimize it, post frequently before and after pictures of jobs on google my business, and fill your google business with 5 star reviews and watch the phone calls pour in.

My local service business did the above and we have dozens of 5 star reviews now and are ranked very high in our area on google. Our organic growth is so high we don't even need to advertise and are still growing like crazy.

How did you get your first couple of clients though? Did you build the website and do all of that jazz before even landing the first few clients?

 

[ChrisGav]

Powerwashing case study using flyers to get tons of local business. I send this to all my friends looking for a hustle. Hope it helps @ChrisGav

https://kopywritingkourse.com/powerwashing-flyers-copywriting-case-study/

Thank you sir. Much love

 

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[Dan_Cardone]

Okay I see what you’re saying. But one thing I don’t quite understand is this. It’s like web development. Is there really a need for it? Not really. You can go on fiverr and find a kid in a Pakistan to build the best website you’ve ever seen for $5. Yet why are people able to thrive on this forum doing web design companies?

I think something like pressure washing or the labor intensive jobs are what’s in big demand. No millennial wants to grow up to be a pressure washer or contractor. They all want to be the next twitch and YouTube star or do something online to make money.

Thoughts?

Doesn't matter what they WANT to be because reality is, most will end up in low level, labor intensive jobs.

 

[ChrisGav]

Doesn't matter what they WANT to be because reality is, most will end up in low level, labor intensive jobs.

I agree. I say that to point out how I think the service industries are actually in the highest demand. Things like web design aren’t so much in demand yet people on this forum can get in that industry and still win.

 

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[Andreas Thrane]

HUGE flyer guy here, I built a few very successful businesses with flyers and flyers only..... but sadly..... this is 2019 and not 2004. Flyers are a thing of the past. Or is it sad? The GREAT news is that you can easily get customers nowadays on this new age thing called..... are you sitting down? ..... ssshhhhhh..... it's called the INTERNET! Yeah.... who woulda thunk it! To think of all the doors I personally walked up to and left a flyer on and now all a person has to do is use the internet while sitting naked at their desk (hopefully it's not just me)

Maybe a combination of internet and flyers? You're right everyone uses the internet nowadays. You will be different from the competitors if you reach out to your market with flyers aswell. People still want a 'personal relationship' with the businesses they interact with.

 

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[Mr4213]

I will politely disagree with the obligatory "blah blah blah, McDonald's didn't solve a sexy high entry barrier problem, blah, blah, blah," along with this thread:

GOLD! - HOT! - Starting (and Fastlaning) a lawn care service business

21 and currently selling cars at the moment. I’ve got some money to throw at something. I just bought a used trailer and have some lawn equipment. Got a pro website, branding, and I have decent copywriting skills for posting ads. Started with craigslist, Google AdWords and I’m on yelp and...

www.thefastlaneforum.com

You disagree with the barrier entry? I can see that.

What about the more important point I made, it doesn't provide any real value.

 

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[Mr4213]

I actually started my own Power Washing business this summer. To say it doesn't provide real value or solve any problems is false.

Businesses need their storefronts to look clean and presentable to clients, removing dirt/oil/gum. Real estate owners need the green mold cleaned from their side of the house to make it look presentable, to prevent HOA/city from getting on their back and issuing a fine, and to make it look good for potential renters. People needs their decks cleaned of tree sap and old stain in order to put down new stain or just have a disgusting exterior that needs to be cleaned

I'm in the process of hiring my first part-time employee. It's not a "Sexy" business and has its own problems, but it does provide value in many different ways. All of the examples above are jobs I have actually done as well. I don't market myself as a cheap service, I target commercial/high end residential where I get paid $100+ an hour. It's a great way to make money, get experience, and even expand into a real business like I'm trying to do

You

I like this, and it's so true, but you've got to crawl before you can walk; moreover, it's easier to identify a problem to solve when you've been at eye level with the person you're selling it too. May as well get paid, and potentially scale, a simple business while you're concocting a solution to revolutionize the industry, and if the epiphany never comes... well, you've built a national powerwash franchise while you were looking for the carbon filament.

It sounds like we are in agreement. I'm not suggesting to the OP not to pursue the pressure washing. It's good experience and it can generate money. It's a great idea if he doesn't know what else to do and wants to take action.

Who knows, OP could do this and then discover some problem within the industry and create a million dollar business from that. Or maybe he'll just outperform other competition and make millions. Anything is possible.

I just want to reiterate to the OP what my point is. Pressure washing is not fastlane unless he's able to skew the value attributes within his pressure washing business. Having exactly the same service as everyone isn't solving anything or creating some value that wasn't already there.

Here's what I mean when I say it doesn't create value (to be fastlane) Does washing someone's house create value for a customer? 100% yes it does. But that value already existed before the OPs business. I can already find hundreds of people who are solving that problem for me. Why is OPs pressure washing business any different from the hundreds of other pressure washers I can find? What values are the OP skewing here? OP won't be creating value or adding value. He'll just be copying a solution that's already been solved for me.

Look at restaurants. Are there million dollar restaurants in every city? Yes. Is it possible to create a million dollar restaurant business? Yes. Is it likely? No. Not unless you're skewing values in the industry (which is hard). Does it have good food? Okay, so do hundreds of other restaurants. Is it fast? So are hundreds of other restaurants. Is it cheap? So are hundreds of other restaurants. Does it have good customer service? So do hundreds of other restaurants. Having a restaurant that does everything the same as every other restaurant creates no value for me because the problems are already solved. I can get fast, cheap and good food already.

 

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[ChrisGav]

I'm 21 and in the same boat as you! With university starting up, I'm hiring a part-time employee to do some work. I am getting enough traction where I will be making a decent amount of money every week, which will help me become independent. I am also working on creating a product that if enough people value, will be able to generate some money and I will push hard with it, while the power washing is on going. In the next 2 years I will buy my first property, likely a duplex, and rent half of it out while living in the other half.

Power washing itself can scale into a large service business generating a good amount of money. I think continuing to work and scale your own power washing business could provide a good income stream (giving you some freedom) and experience, but I wouldn't stop there. Continue to pursue other ideas and avenues while also growing your current business!

Thank you man. Glad I’m not the only young ambitious one!

How did you get your first few customers for power washing? Online? Flyers? Door to door? Would love to know man!

 

[DrWumbo]

Thank you man. Glad I’m not the only young ambitious one!

How did you get your first few customers for power washing? Online? Flyers? Door to door? Would love to know man!

It started with friends and family, but as I started to post on Google My Business, Facebook, and running Google Ads, I started to get real customers! If you have't, I highly suggest reading material from Andy Black.

Here is a great thread for you to read Local Lead Gen - Simplified

 

[ChrisGav]

It started with friends and family, but as I started to post on Google My Business, Facebook, and running Google Ads, I started to get real customers! If you have't, I highly suggest reading material from Andy Black.

Here is a great thread for you to read Local Lead Gen - Simplified

Thank you I will check that out

 

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[advantagecp]

Please start out with professional quality equipment so you can do professional quality work. For example have adequate pressure/volume and use a surface cleaner for flat work. Immediately separate yourself from the small-timers using a $300 Home Depot washer and a wand to clean driveways.

 

[HustleHard]

As @minivanman said, advertising online will get the most bang for your buck.

I would run a combination of google advertising and door knocking until you can tweak your ads to give you some consistent business.

For me, I find advertising and selling to people that are actively searching for my service is the easiest closes with the highest conversions for my time spent. Build a website, optimize it, post frequently before and after pictures of jobs on google my business, and fill your google business with 5 star reviews and watch the phone calls pour in.

My local service business did the above and we have dozens of 5 star reviews now and are ranked very high in our area on google. Our organic growth is so high we don't even need to advertise and are still growing like crazy.

Is your business a pressure washing business?

 

[Duane]

Is your business a pressure washing business?

No, but a few of our services require pressure washing as a part of the job.

 

[payingkarma]

As @minivanman said, advertising online will get the most bang for your buck.

I would run a combination of google advertising and door knocking until you can tweak your ads to give you some consistent business.

For me, I find advertising and selling to people that are actively searching for my service is the easiest closes with the highest conversions for my time spent. Build a website, optimize it, post frequently before and after pictures of jobs on google my business, and fill your google business with 5 star reviews and watch the phone calls pour in.

My local service business did the above and we have dozens of 5 star reviews now and are ranked very high in our area on google. Our organic growth is so high we don't even need to advertise and are still growing like crazy.

Can you care to explain a bit in detail? I'm starting (buying) a business and need to hit the ground running... It's a specialty construction niche and need to get the residential clients...

 

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[minivanman]

Fastlaners, I hope all is well.

I'm 20 years old. Currently have a job selling construction and industrial supplies but wanted to make money on my weekends and time off. I have been doing odd jobs here and there for people. My next venture I want to pressure wash peoples drive ways, walkways, etc. Any ideas on how to market this? I've tried printing little ads and putting them around neighborhood doors but I presume most people just throw them away. Thinking about just going door to door and asking everyone. Thoughts??

Just so people wanting to pass out flyers understands..... printing up a few flyers and passing them out in a neighborhood 1 time..... that's just the waste of your day, money the paper they were printed on and ink. If you are serious about flyers.... personally I'd have to say, the internet is MUCH faster than flyers..... but if you choose to pass out flyers, have 10,000 printed up. The day after you have them printed up start passing them out and pass them out every day until you are down to your last 1000 flyers.... now reorder 10,000 more and repeat. This is how serious flyer passer-outers (<<< is that even a word? ) do it. If you are only going to print up 200 or 500 flyers, don't even waste your time.

And do NOT put a rubber band on them . You have 20 seconds from the door to the trash can.... don't make them waste 18 of those seconds trying to get a rubber band off your flyer.

Speaking of 20 seconds.... if you choose to pass out flyers, make a CLEAR, easy to read, large type, evenly spaced flyer than can be read within 20 seconds..... and I'm not talking about speed reading.

I don't mind telling these things now because flyers are so 2002ish.

 

[GoodluckChuck]

Here's an idea. Go to a neighborhood you want to work in and go to the houses with the most visible driveways and offer to clean it for free. Have a yard sign you put out by the road while you're working.

Maybe choose a busy day of the week like Saturday when everyone is in and out of their home and driving by.

If enough people are you washing the driveway as they drive by, I'm sure you'll pick up some clients.

Give great service with a smile and don't be shy about handing out business cards and asking for reviews.

You might have to wash a few driveways for free but If you choose the right ones you should get some paying customers in no time.