Smart Cleaning School

In this episode, Beth Lane of Lavender Fields Cleaning Service joined Solo Cleaning School. She has been working in this amazing profession for 21 years and has a world of experience that she graciously shares with us today. She uncovers several key points for new solo cleaning moms to use as they grow their business.

1. How Not to Run a Business - Beth shadowed a friend for 3 days and with her banking experience, knew one thing... how not to run a cleaning business. Beth took these lessons and began her own solo cleaning company.
2. Solo Cleaners are Introverts - Beth believes that the overwhelming number of solo cleaners are empaths and introverts, which means they are deep feelers, creative, detailed, and quiet. These traits lead solo cleaners to rely on other avenues to do the marketing for them verses talking to people directly. Beth also believes that these personality traits also cause solo cleaning moms to take things so personally.
3. Angie's List & HomeAdvisor - Both Beth and Ken share experiences using these online lead generator services and how their effectiveness has bottomed out over the last 3-5 years. 
4. Questioning Your Prices - Facebook groups are a wonderful resource, but there are many "opinions" on there, especially on price. Ken describes his observations on prices. You really need specific counsel on price for your business verses general opinions. This is a fundamental reason why the Solo Cleaning School Premium Membership exists.
5. Trust Factor - Solo cleaning is not all mechanical. It's an emotional business that has it's foundation built on trust & integrity. Beth believes that the trust factor is the #1 reason why she has been able to add & retain great clients for many years. "If they like you and trust you, they'll overlook a cobweb. If they don't like (and trust) you, they're gonna be nit-picking every thing you do."

Beth is a trustworthy and experienced cleaning service owner, servicing the Melbourne, Florida Area. Feel free to reach out to her and let her know you heard about her on the Solo Cleaning School Podcast.

I recently connected with Whitney Bonds of "Tried & True Mom Jobs" who helps moms venture out into the workforce to help their families. It's an awesome mission. Whitney or Max as she goes by, asked me to write up a concise blog for her on "How to Start Your Own Cleaning Business". She wanted to bring this content and example to her large blog audience of moms to show them the potential of cleaning as a mom job. Let's cover my answers to her questions in this podcast episode as I believe it's a great piece of content to cover early on. Make sure to go back to the Pros & Cons of Solo Cleaning as I covered some of these points already.

What are the steps to setting up your own cleaning business? It’s important to first understand the various models available to you. There are many “Aunt Sallie” cleaners out there. They take great risk as do the homeowners hiring them as they are uninsured and not paying taxes. Do not do this! The risk is too great and the income is low. A solo cleaning company is insured, registered in their state, and pays all necessary taxes. They work as owner-operators. I did this for the majority of my New York business. The final model are the team cleaning independant and franchise businesses. In all cases, the simplest way to set up your cleaning business is to do the following:

1. Register your sole proprietorship with your local county or state agency as a DBA “Doing Business As”. This costs between $20-$50.
2. Register your DBA for a Federal EIN. This is free. Some may choose to set up as an S-Corp, LLC, or C-Corp for tax and liability protection. Unless you are building a big business model from the beginning, you don’t need to start here.
3. Register your DBA your state sales tax office (if your state requires cleaning companies to remit. This is free.
4. Purchase General Liability insurance for $2M per year aggregate from a reputable local broker. Your annual policy should run between $400-$800/year.
5. Open a business account at your bank or credit union with you DBA.
6. Get your basic supplies together. You can either bootstrap it with the cleaners and vacuum you already have or you purchase a cleaning system for between $500-$1,000.
7. If you CANNOT do the cleaning yourself because of work commitments, you’ll need to hire employees or subcontractors. Start the process of identifying the ones you’d like to hire and get the proper insurances (Worker’s Comp, state disability, payroll & bookkeeping). I don’t recommend starting this way, unless you have to. I like the new cleaner to get their hands dirty, learn the business solo, get proficient & profitable, and then grow.
8. Go Clean!!! It’s an awesome business! Start. Stop re-reading this over and over. Take action for your family!!!

You can read the rest of this BLOG at Tried & True Mom Jobs. Check out our Solo Cleaning School Premium Membership if you'd like training, mentorship, and accountability as you begin your new solo cleaning business.

In Sept 2019, I started phase II of my new marketing mindset that I learned from Steve Hanson of the Janitorial Store. In this episode, I share how one new client turned into a friend and gateway to local business networking meetings and building the momentum needed to grow my new solo cleaning company to our next goal. There is power in connecting in-person at meetings and then online with LinkedIn, Facebook, and email. You'll see that play out in this episode.

In part I of this podcast series, I shared my door-to-door office marketing strategy from the past year. Although it worked by adding 3 new office cleaning clients, something was missing. I found the answer quickly from my new friend Eva Finlan of State Farm in Skippack, PA. I met her once COLD after knocking on her door and introducing myself. The second time we met was in person at a local business networking event. Once she got to know me, she referred me to other local business owners. This allowed me to go back to the same offices I had visited prior and add a simple phrase. "Hi, I'm Ken Carfagno and my friend Eva Finlan at State Farm told me to stop by and introduce myself." Trust was the missing ingredient and my good friend Vincent Pugliese of Total Life Freedom teaches this.

"87% of jobs come from referrals and people only refer people they know, like & trust."

I found this to be SO true.

Make sure to check out the "Go-Giver" book that I recommended as well. This is a game-changer!

The Solo Cleaning School draws on the lessons I learned in my first solo cleaning company, which I shared in my "Introduction to the Solo Cleaning School" episode. I hope you had a chance to listen and understand my heart for starting this podcast. If you want the short version, here it is. We started Carfagno Cleaning in 2005 in Upstate New York and sold it in 2018 to move back to Philly. During this 14-year run, I gained national recognition as the solo cleaning expert, having optimized a company to $55,000 annual profit on 2 days per week of cleaning by myself. I invite you to join me as I rebuild a new solo cleaning company in the Philly Area. Over the next two episodes, I will share my new business from the June 2018 sale to Sept 2019. I hope to inspire you by proving that what worked for me in one area, works in another. Therefore, I will be updating you on a regular basis with the my progress & lessons learned from the trenches as I build my new cleaning network and solo cleaning company.

Part 1 of "Building My New Cleaning Network" covers our first full year in the Philly Area. I was tired of cleaning and did not pursue much. However, I did enough to build a $2,000/month part-time solo cleaning income. You'll hear how I used the Kevin LaCombe strategy for small offices and how this discipline gained 3 small office clients. I'll also share how my entire marketing mindset was challenged and changed after befriending my 3rd new client, Dennis Gehman of Gehman Design Remodeling. This marketing shift took shape, thanks to a mentor and friend in my industry, Steve Hanson of the Janitorial Store. Lastly, I would like to recognize the contribution of my mastermind buddy, Gustavo Fernandez, who taught me how to separate my business in a busy world.

Kevin LaCombe shared a simple marketing strategy, "Hi, My Name Is...". It worked big time for Kevin & Cherie in their first month in business. They added two small commercial clients on the same day to add $35,000 in annual revenue and earning close to $90/hour doing it! All they did was share their business with the people they already knew. I call this the A & B lists in our Solo Cleaning School premium membership. As Kevin says. "It's not an easy business, but it's simple."

We explore the cons of solo cleaning in this episode so you know it's not all rainbows and unicorns. If you truly evaluate this business with the pros and cons in proper perspective, you can make an informed decision whether this is the right business for you and your family.

Cons of Solo Cleaning

• Physically Demanding & Exhausting - In the beginning, it's hard to clean a house. 3-4 hours of cleaning straight if you're not used to it is hard at first. Cleaning does become routine and you get used to it. 
• Can Lead to Injury - You MUST have proper body mechanics or you WILL tear tendons, ligaments, meniscus, etc.
• Frustrating - Things break, things go wrong, you lose clients, can get bad reviews, can take WAY longer than you thought!
• Lonely - It's an isolated job and imperative to keep your mind off the negative. Grow your mind while you clean to turn a con into a pro.
• Selfless - Don't do it for the money. You need to have the right heart to serve others unconditionally, build trust, give more value than you get paid in dollars, and create positive ripples. You must have a heart of service and be selfless. Go the Extra Mile (GEMS). The selfish in this business don't last. 

Solo Cleaning has amazing potential for any mom looking for a business. In this episode, we examine the pros that make solo cleaning stand out. 

1. Money - A new solo cleaner can set up a part business earning $400-$500/week part time. As they progress through my ISO Model Signature Solution, they can increase their part time income to $1,000/week, increase to full time and earn double that, or transition to hiring employees. The part time money potential is amazing if you do it right. 
2. Flexibility - You can schedule jobs when it works for you. You're the boss. If you want days, clean houses. Nights or weekends, clean small offices.
3. Low Startup - For under $1,000, you can get your DBA, make your business liability deposit, and invest in your basic equipment & supplies. 
4. Tax Advantages - Your cleaning expenses are tax deductible. You can even write off your mileage and home office. If this is a side business to the family or you're only source of income, the tax advantages alone can make it worth
5. Learning - Once you get the hang of cleaning and your system, you can listen while you clean. It's up to you what you put in. I recommend audiobooks on business, finance, and personal growth and podcasts on the same.
6. Service to Others - You get all of these advantages as you serve moms that NEED your help. It feels great to help people.
7. Easy to Learn - You can do something you already do (cleaning your house) for money.
8. Burns Calories -  did you know that a 3-hour house or office cleaning burn 600 calories? Think about it if you clean three houses a day that's 1,800 calories you are burning per day. I used to eat 4000 calories a day, pigged out and never gained weight. As a optimized and had more time in my office I started gaining weight.
9. It's Therapy - Many find the act of cleaning something dirty very calming and therapuetic.
10. You are Needed - There are tons of Alicia & Emily's wanting to hire you! - It's always needed, listen to Moms Helping Moms Helping Moms and listen to Alicia & Emily's story.

Check out my Free Resources Page to see if solo cleaning is right for you.

In this episode, I spotlight my first solo cleaner. Andrea McCoy runs Peachy Clean in St. George, UT. She is a mom of 6! She explains why she started her solo cleaning business and the various mind shifts she has made over her 3 years in business with my help to increase her hourly rate from $25 to $65! We also talk about the power of keeping your hand on the marketing water pump and setting a goal for peace.

We dive deep into Ken's vision for the Solo Cleaning School of moms helping moms helping moms. Ken starts with his first Funny Papers edition called "Seran Wrap", followed by an explanation of each mom group.

The first group are the moms that are looking for something and solo cleaning could be their vehicle. The second are the current solo cleaning moms that need a strategy and each other to win for their family, yet also desiring to mentor new mom solo cleaners. The final group are the Alicia and Emily moms out there needing a solo cleaning mom to save them time and give them piece of mind.

Ken introduces himself and Solo Cleaning School. He shares his personal journey through solo cleaning and dives into the vision of moms helping moms helping moms through this amazing business vehicle.