PW- Starting Out- Tips Please??

[kmcliffo 14]

Hello

A partner and I are starting up a small power washing company in Chicagoland. "Best Under Pressure". I am looking for ANY general advice on starting a power washing company... More specifically, tips on getting customers! Where do you advertise? I am currently looking at flyering, yellow pages (print), yellow pages (online), word of mouth, "money mailers" (coupon mailers), newspapers, etc... Help please! :)

[dk34 14]

Use the search function under the word "marketing", and you'll find many, many answers to your question.

[RyanH 14]

When I started, I did something rather dumb and bought some equipment before I really knew what was involved in the business. It wasn't until after two or three jobs that I stumbled across http://wj.net/actionis/wwwboard/ , a posting board for pressure washing. I read the entire backlog of posts (very many!!) and found some decent information. The best piece of information, however, was the link to the fantastic site which you are now visiting. My suggestion would be to first read many of the older posts as they contain almost every question you could hope to have answered as a beginner. Make use of the search function. Beth and Rod have done an amazing job putting this forum together, and the members here are outstanding in the information they provide and the willingness they have to promote good business and standards among all pressure washing contractors (i.e., they'll actually help you, not say things like "get a part time job with a professional and learn from them"). Once you have read the posts and get a pretty good feeling of what's going on in the business, then any other questions you have can be answered by the many talents here.

The forums are broken down by category, so you don't necessarily have to spend time sorting through irrelevant stuff (like how to clean vent hoods when your true passion is driveways or windows).

So, that being said, here's what I learned from my experience with the business. Keep in mind that pressure washing was my fourth-in-line effort, meaning that my priorities were school first, my janitorial contracting job second, time with my wife third (she understood the importance of studying and finishing school above going to the movies on the weekend), and pressure washing fourth.

From what I have found, before you start trying to get customers is to get experience. You can do this by washing your own house, your partners, your neighbors, co-workers, etc. This will allow you to correct any problems that you may have before you actually go to a real customers house and appear to be unprepared for something (like not having the right tips, or enough hose, or run out of fuel and have to leave mid-way, etc.). It will also allow you to find the right amount of chemicals you may need to complete a particular job (so you aren't wasting money on using too much chemical, or wasthing time by not using enough).

Once you get experience and some necessary equipment, then you can work on customers. Drive around your area and find a neighborhood in which many of the houses look like they need to be pressure washed (vinyl houses are the best at first because they are generally very nasty and easy to clean). I don't know about the areas around Chicago, but I imagine that outside the busy city there are some suburban areas to be found. Drive around on a saturday and try to find neighborhoods where people are washing their cars or cutting their grass. This will tell you that people have some interest in how their property looks. Once you have found the customer source, then start your advertising. Pass out flyers. Perhaps have some gimmick to entice them to call you (special discounts for the week of blah-blah-blah in your area). Walk up to a few houses (maybe the people washing their cars) and offer them a discount if they will allow you to wash their house and put up a sign. Put up another sign at the entrance to the neighborhood if covenance allows. The purpose is to inundate them with your name and service. With customers comes the word of mouth.

If you like fast food, strike up a conversation with the drive-through folks and ask them how often (if ever) they have their property cleaned. Look questioningly at the gum on the sidewalk as you ask this. It helps to be a little bit of a flirt and get a smile out of them (though for me, flirting with the guys wouldn't get me anywhere). Alot of selling is in the psychology and ability to mirror your customers' personality. There is a huge BS factor here, too. Just be confident.

Once your experience and word of mouth and customer base and equipment inventory has grown, then throw some money into a yellow pages ad. it doesn't have to take long before you take this step, it just depends upon how hard you work up front to get the essentials. I say to wait because you don't want to get too many calls and be unprepared for the flux of customers. A customer turned away will likely never call on you again, and if you are taking a full day (or longer) to complete a job, you may have to turn away business, which isn't good. You could also try to put ads in newsletters of neighborhoods that have newsletters. Cheaper than yellow pages with directed target base.

Sorry if this seems like a lot, I was just playing Annie Oakley (shooting from the hip).

Good luck in your search and business venture!

Ryan H.

[RyanH 14]

Ahem....just please don't mess with the Tetris score....I don't think I have the patience to go through that again!!!

(just kidding.......play on Skywalker) :nerd:

[kmcliffo 14]

Thanks so much, your replies were extremely helpful! I guess I should have looked around the site a little bit more before asking questions.. It is hard to do at work though! Thanks again.

[CLASSICPW 14]

I also did research before I started. I wanted to start my own business, I did a deck with my friend and I was hooked(mainly on the low start up cost). So I spent a full year reading books and internet research like old forums and then forked up the money. As far as advertising, the Yellow book paid off after the first job, I spent about $300 for a 1 inch ad and have probably gotten so far this year $5,000 in business from it. I also use the Pennysaver, which has been invaluable. Money mailers and coupon books are very expensive, but I've heard they do great. I am too busy now to use these types of ads, but one guy quoted me around $5,000 for a 2 month run, full color, 200,000 households.

[Henry B. 4]

If you have any questions feel free to give me a call on my cell phone, I would be happy to chat with you and give you some free advice. I also offer to let guys like yourself go out and work with my crews for a day and see how we do things to pick up tips and ideas...

Henry 240 274 0300

[Beth n Rod 1,279]

Classic,

You can work with us if you like, call anytime, we're glad to help. All our contact info is below.

Beth :groovy3:

[Chappy 138]

Ryan,

Where you get all the time and energy to do all this and still write your soliloquies, I just cant figure. However, you have some of the best, well thought out advice and it is appreciated that you take the time to put it into words for us. Thanks to others also. this board is amazing!

(Cant believe I spelled soliloquies right the first time.)

[CCPC 26]

I agree with Jon, Ryan reminds me of my brother. He can bang out a story or report or just plan out express his thoughts effortlessly on paper. I, on the other hand, am not so lucky. I have never been that good at writing and problably never will be. Just so you all know, I would leave more posts, but its such a pain for me to convey my ideas in writing. I bet Ryan reads alot.

[RyanH 14]

Unfortunately, I haven't had enough time lately to read anything for enjoyment. I've spent the past 6 months trying to get past the third chapter of "Atlas Shrugged." I average about 2 pages per night (the time it takes for my wife to get ready for bed after me....the joys of sharing a single bathroom :) ). Most of the stuff I put here just comes as I think of it, so that would explain some of the "randomness" in some of the posts. I appreciate ya'lls thoughts. Everyone here has helped me so much, I feel a certain obligation to offer whatever I know (which isn't much, just a regurgitation of other stuff I have read).