Cleaning marketing

Client acquisition channels for a cleaning company: B2B contracts vs one-off jobs

Channels and unit economics

  • B2B contracts

    Offices, malls, plants: tenders and direct sales. Long cycle (1–3 mo) but client LTV is 10–50× a one-off clean.

  • Local SEO and maps

    Google Business Profile, maps, photo reviews — the main channel for one-off cleans. 30+ fresh reviews separate you from competitors.

  • Platforms and aggregators

    Local booking platforms bring flow but take 15–30% commission with no client loyalty — use to fill idle slots.

  • Partnerships

    Property managers, realtors, insurers (post-flood), renovation crews — steady referral flow for a % or reciprocity.

  • Retention

    Cheaper to retain: SLA schedule, supervisor checks, quarterly quality reports. Contract loss usually comes from quiet quality drift.

  • Unit economics

    CAC by channel, quote conversion, per-site margin, recurring-contract share. A site under 15% gross margin — review it.

One-off jobs give cash flow; contracts give a business. Key metric — share of revenue from recurring contracts: <30% means you sell one-offs, >60% means you have a business.