Free cleaning leads: 6 ways to grow your contact list

Key takeaways

• Ask for referrals from your happy customers to quickly gain the trust of potential cleaning clients
• Network with local business owners and potential customers in your community to maximize the number of quality leads you receive
• Increase your cleaning company’s visibility with social media videos and consistent branding so you can turn engaged users into leads

The process of winning over new cleaning clients is rarely finished in a day. Between the time that a client learns about your business to actually signing on the dotted line, there are a number of steps involved: They’re getting to know their options, comparing cleaning services, and determining which brand is the right fit. 

If you want your cleaning business to be in the running, it’s important to engage with your potential customers during their entire journey. More precisely, you’ll need leads—sales prospects that give you their contact information so you can reach out to them.

Fortunately, lead generation doesn’t have to be costly. In fact, it doesn’t have to cost you anything at all. If you’re on the fence about running paid ads, consider using these six tactics to gain free cleaning leads.

1. Ask clients for referrals

When it comes to brand recommendations, 93% of consumers trust friends and family members, compared to only 70% that trust information on company websites. If you want to get free leads who already believe in your cleaning business, let your current clients do the talking and refer their network to you.

While your happiest clients may immediately connect you to new contacts, the best way to generate leads is by setting up a referral program that incentivizes customers to actively reach out to their friends and family members. 

Be sure to explain how it works. For example, you can offer a free or discounted cleaning service in exchange for successful referrals. You’ll have leads sent your way, and your brand name will spread via word of mouth—but you’ll only need to provide a reward if you lock in a new client and, therefore, already have extra cash.

2. Partner with local businesses

In addition to customers, referrals can come from other businesses in your community. When owners of relevant local businesses chat with customers about their needs, they may recognize their client is looking for cleaning services like yours. 

For instance, if you own a residential cleaning business, a real estate agent could recommend your move-out cleaning services to both homebuyers and house sellers. Similarly, a commercial cleaning business could send you house cleaning leads when they receive inquiries from homeowners, rather than other businesses.

Building a referral network can be a win-win for you and your local business partners. You can send each other exclusive leads and offer existing clients more value by pointing them in the right direction when they have needs outside your expertise.

Reaching out to local business owners on social media can be an effective way to start growing your referral network. Send personalized messages that include the person’s name, company name, and why they can benefit from partnering with your cleaning business.

3. Connect with potential customers at community events

Networking directly with potential customers can also be an effective way to generate free cleaning leads. Find community events that members of your target market are likely to attend, then sign up to set up a booth (if free) or simply attend to chat with other attendees. For example, if you offer commercial cleaning services, you can connect with large-scale commercial cleaning leads at corporate events or meet medical office cleaning leads at healthcare trade shows.

As you approach potential clients, ask questions and practice active listening. This will help you figure out if the person is a right fit for your company—and if they are, you can request their business card or contact information when your conversation naturally comes to a close. Within a day or two after your event, follow up with your new lead to further discuss how your cleaning business can support their needs.

4. Generate interest on social media

Cleaning videos on social media platforms like YouTube and TikTok often generate millions of views, and many are simple to create. For instance, your content can engage subscribers and garner more viewers by:

• Showing the before and after of a move-out cleaning service
• Filming the carpet cleaning process step by step
• Sharing a window cleaning hack that only the pros know

To convert views into high-quality leads, use your caption to direct users to a lead capture form that collects their name and contact information. You can create your lead capture form on sites like Jotform and Typeform or with your email marketing software, then add the link to your caption or bio.

5. Create a recognizable brand

How many TV or radio jingles do you remember from your childhood? Odds are, you remember one or two phone numbers just because of a catchy song you heard over and over again. That’s the power of branding. When you’re consistently exposed to the same logo design, tagline, jingle, or message, it can be easier to remember over time.

While brand consistency doesn’t instantly generate free cleaning leads, it can help you gain the recognition your business needs to boost interest—which can ultimately translate to new leads, new customers, and more profits. In fact, a consistent brand can boost revenue by 10-20%.

Start marketing your cleaning company more consistently by crafting brand guidelines that outline your core brand elements—like your brand colors and typography—and define your brand personality, company values, and the messages you want to send.

6. Improve your presence on local directories

When people are actively searching for cleaning businesses like yours, they often use local directories before reaching out to a company. For instance, 51% of users make a purchase within a day of visiting Yelp, and 90% make a purchase within a week. Many of these users may be calling your team, messaging your company, or otherwise becoming leads straight from your business profile.

To inspire your ideal customers to reach out to your cleaning company instead of your competitors, add or claim your Yelp Business Page. This will help you optimize your online presence by enabling you to showcase high-quality photos of your work, respond to reviews and messages in real time, and keep your business information 100% accurate for potential customers.

Turn free cleaning leads into customers

Your cleaning business doesn’t need to spend thousands of dollars on a lead generation service to grow. The right strategies can help you get free cleaning leads without a burdensome time investment. Start building a referral program to turn your current clients into your biggest advocates, and partner with local businesses to win even more referrals. Then, start engaging potential leads in person and online to get more opportunities to collect contact information and turn casual shoppers into leads.

As you grow your contact list, start winning residential or commercial cleaning contracts by perfecting your marketing tactics. Read about effective ways to market your cleaning business to distinguish yourself from the competition and gain even more new leads and cleaning jobs for your business.