How to Minimize Churn in your Maid Service with a Customer Loyalty Program

July 2, 2021 in Business

Last Updated on February 2, 2023 by The ZenMaid Team

Churn is a common problem for even the most successful cleaning business.ย 

Having a consistent stream of new clients is exciting and a great sign that you’re doing something right to attract new customers.ย 

But as your business continues to grow, one of the next steps you should take as a maid service owner is to find a way to stop the churn of clients who use your services one or two times and move on to another company.ย 

In this post, we’ll go over 3 ways you close the backdoor of your business so that you have less churn, fewer cancellations, and build better long-term relationships with VIP clients.ย 

Have you ever found yourself staring at the phone, client on the line, sweating over what number to say? You’re not alone. One of the most common questions among residential cleaning business owners is how much should I charge for my services?

Charge too high, and you might scare clients away. Too low, and you’re undercutting your value. It’s enough to make anyone second-guess their math skills. In this article, weโ€™re breaking down industry standards and how to calculate the best price to charge for your maid service. 

Now, letโ€™s get to it. 

Hourly vs. flat rate pricing:

The debate between hourly vs. flat rate is as old as the industry itself. Many seasoned experts advocate for flat-rate pricing as the golden ticket to scaling your business. It offers predictability for your clients and ensures you’re compensated for the value you provide, not just the time you spend.

However, don’t toss the idea of knowing your hourly rate out the window just yet. Understanding your approximate hourly rate is crucial for accurately setting your flat rates. It serves as the foundation upon which you build your pricing structure, ensuring that you’re not only competitive but also profitable.

The trick is to calculate your hourly rate based on your operating costs, desired profit margins, and the market rates, and then transition to a flat-rate model that reflects the value and efficiency of your services. In this article, weโ€™re giving you step-by-step instructions on how to determine this rate. But first, letโ€™s cover some industry averages:

Industry average prices for cleaning services

The standard flat rate for cleaning services can vary widely depending on the location, the size and condition of the space, the type of cleaning required, and the cleaning company itself. Here’s a quick breakdown of standard cleaning rates based on averages from HomeAdvisor and Angi.

1. Hourly Rates:

  • Standard cleaning prices also range from $35 to $60 per hour for each cleaner. 
  • The national average cost of house cleaning is noted to be $40-$50 per hour, per cleaner.

2. Per Room Rates:

  • The rate is about $30 to $50 per room.

3. Square Footage Rates:

  • Cleaning a 2,000-square-foot home can cost about $0.06 to $0.16 per square foot, which would total $110 to $320.

4. Flat Fee Rates:

  • For a typical three-bedroom, 2,000-square-foot home, the cleaning cost usually ranges from $160 to $200. 
  • A one-bedroom apartment is priced at around $80 to $110.
Cleaning typeHourly rateFlat rateSq Ft Rate
Residential Cleaning
Standard Cleaning$25 – $50 per cleaner$100 – $200$0.05 – $0.16
Deep Cleaning$40 – $100 per cleaner$200 – $400$0.13 – $0.17
Move-In/Out Cleaning$40 – $100 per cleaner$300 – $400$0.13 – $0.20
Commercial Cleaning
Standard Cleaning$25 to $90 per cleanerVaries by size$0.10 to $0.25
Deep Cleaning$40 to $150 per cleaner$200 to $500N/A
Special ServicesVaries by serviceVaries by serviceVaries by service

Additional Services You Can Charge: For residential cleaning, add-on services such as changing bed sheets, laundry, interior and exterior window cleaning, fridge cleaning, oven cleaning, etc., come with additional costs ranging from $4 to $50 per serviceโ€‹. In ZenMaid, you can easily add these extra charges to your cleaning job. 

The pricing strategy formula

Now that weโ€™ve covered some average industry rates, letโ€™s break down a bit more. Everyone likes a good roadmap, right? Here are the four steps for how to find your cleaning service rate: 

  • Step One: Find your target hourly rate
  • Step Two: Calculate how much square footage you can clean in an hour
  • Step Three: Develop a pricing strategy
  • Step Four: Use the pricing formula

How to find the hourly rate for your business

The first step to finding an hourly rate for your business starts with doing local market research. When conducting your market research, consider these targeted questions: 

  • What are other businesses charging? More specifically, what are businesses the same size as yours charging? 
  • How often do they offer services?

The easiest way to find out what your competitors are charging is when prices are listed on their website. Unfortunately, that’s not very common. So, pick up the phone and call up your competitors to ask. 

Once you know what your competition is charging, try to understand how much you can get for what you offer. 

  • Will the demographic in your area pay for a premium service? 
  • Do you want to charge the same as a franchise’s cleaning business?

Facebook groups, client surveys, and competitors are great places to find these answers. 

After you’ve done your market research, you’ll need to figure out how to position your company in the marketplace. Are you just another residential cleaning service? Or, do you offer a premium, specialized product? 

When you know the direction you’re headed, the road to your pricing strategy is easier to find. Some cleaning services like to specialize in large homes or luxury homes. Others just want the โ€˜meat and potatoes’ of a basic cleaning service. The good news is that there’s plenty of business for everybody. 

Employee pay

The next factor that influences your hourly rate is how much you pay your employees. If you want to pay the bare minimum needed to hire people, that’s going to put you on the lower end of the hourly rate. 

If you aim to offer a livable wage with benefits, you’re going to need to charge more. There are no correct answers here, but you need to understand these factors when developing your hourly rate.

The average employee pay range for cleaners is $15.30/hour. You can use this for calculating your hourly cleaning rate. 

Consider your marketing strategy

The final factor for your hourly rate is your marketing strategy. 

Are you trying to grow your business? 

Your rate will need to be competitive if you’re hoping to grow at a fast pace. 

If you need to grow rapidly but don’t want to lower prices, read this article three ways to get more cleaning customers without lowering your prices.ย 

If your business has grown to a place you’re comfortable with, or if you’re well-known in the area, you can probably charge a higher hourly rate. And you can definitely charge a higher rate if you have a waiting list of clients! 

How many square feet can you clean per hour?

After you’ve found your hourly rate, understand how many square feet you can clean per hour. Now, at first, this can seem hard to find, but you likely already have the information you need โ€“ it’s just a matter of finding it! 

It’s important to know your square footage per hour because you will use it as a baseline for all your prices.

Use data from past cleaning jobs to learn how fast you can clean 500 square feet. You’ll want to calculate an average from your recent jobs. 

  • How long did the last ten *typical jobs take you? 
  • How many employees were on the cleaning job? 
  • How many square feet were the homes?

Don’t have any recent data? 

No worries! Start recording this data for the next week and then use it to find your average.

*Several variables can affect your average cleaning rate, so use only typical homes when calculating your average cleaning pace. Your typical homes are the predictable ones that are simple to clean, requiring only your basic cleaning services. (We’ll touch on how to avoid pricing disasters in these kinds of homes at the end of this article!)

How to find your pricing strategy

The next step to nail down your pricing system is to identify your pricing strategy. 

In other words, how frequently do you hope to charge for services? We’re going to use your pricing strategy to calculate our prices based on frequency. 

Do you want your main revenue to come from weekly cleans, bi-weekly, or monthly with extra fees?

Many residential cleaning companies push for bi-weekly cleans. Offering a small discount of around 5% is a great option to incentivize clients to choose these more frequent cleans. 

On the other hand, charging more for monthly cleans is a good way to help clients choose more frequent cleans. It’s often reasonable to charge an additional 50% for a monthly clean. 

We see too many cleaning business owners charge the same rate for bi-weekly and monthly cleans. When this happens, your client has no reason to choose bi-weekly over monthly. 

Determining an effective pricing strategy is crucial and should align with your current business standing and long-term goals. Assessing your booking rates and understanding your clientele’s price sensitivity are pivotal steps.

More factors to consider:

  • If you find that your services are in high demand, with a fully booked schedule being the norm, it might be an indication that your clientele values your services highly. In such a scenario, adopting a premium pricing strategy could be beneficial. This approach reflects the high quality and demand for your services and provides additional revenue that can be reinvested into growing and enhancing your business further.
  • On the flip side, a different approach is warranted if your booking rate is lower than desired and you’re struggling to cover your operational costs. Penetration pricing, where you initially set a lower price to gain market share and cover your fixed expenses, might be a viable strategy. This can help attract a customer base and establish a foothold in the market. Once a loyal clientele is built and market recognition is achieved, prices can be gradually adjusted to a higher point.
  • Alternatively, crafting custom packages could be a smart move. By offering tailored cleaning packages, you encourage customers to engage with your services over a longer term. This not only helps cover your fixed costs but also enhances each customer’s lifetime value, thereby boosting your overall profitability. Structuring packages that provide value while ensuring profitability will create a win-win scenario for your business and clientele.

To learn more about building a pricing strategy for your cleaning business, check out this article!

How to calculate your pricing

We’ve made it to the pricing formula. After you’ve gone through all the steps above, this next step is pretty simple.

First, take the square footage of your client’s home and divide it by your rate of square feet cleaned per hour. Then, multiply it by your hourly rate. The total number is how much you’ll charge for a single job in that client’s home. 

So let’s use an easy number as an example: If a client with a 2,000 square-foot home calls you looking for a quote, divide 2,000 by 500 (rate of square feet cleaned per hour) multiplied by $50 (an hourly rate.) The total one-time clean for that client is $200.

Bi-weekly rate

Offering a 5% discount for bi-weekly cleans is a great incentive for clients. Using the $200 example above, this would mean a client can have a 2,000-square-foot home cleaned twice a month for $380 (after the 5% is applied.) This is an example of a baseline bi-weekly rate. 

Monthly rate

Your monthly cleans can have an additional 50% charge to encourage more frequent cleans and account for the extra dust and dirt the home will accumulate between cleans. Using the $200 example, a monthly clean would cost a 2,000-square-foot client $300 (after an extra 50% is added.) This is an example of a baseline monthly rate. 

You can use this formula to calculate any specialty service in your business. Just play around with different percentages and values until you come to a reasonable and profitable baseline. 

Minimum rate

No matter what kind of service you’re offering, it’s important to set a minimum rate to avoid losing money on out-of-scope services. This will save you the headache of negotiating with a client who might only want a certain room in their home clean. Or perhaps, if they have a smaller home that would only require an hour of cleaning based on your square footage cleaning rate. Set this minimum rate using the pricing calculator and the base amount required to make a profit per clean. 

Factors affecting cleaning service pricing

Sometimes, you will find people reaching out to you for a quote, but once you get to the location, you find out there are a lot of factors at play that affect pricing.

Other than the factors mentioned earlier, here are some factors to be aware of:

  • Size of the Area to be Cleaned: The total square footage or the number of rooms and bathrooms can greatly affect the time, effort, and resources required to complete the cleaning task.
  • Level of Clutter: A cluttered space can take longer to clean as it might require decluttering before the actual cleaning can commence.
  • Type of Cleaning Required: Whether it’s a standard cleaning, deep cleaning, or a specialized service like carpet cleaning or window washing, different types of cleaning have different pricing structures.
  • Frequency of Cleaning: Regularly scheduled cleanings may be priced differently than one-time or less frequent cleanings.
  • Accessibility: If certain areas are hard to reach or the location is in a high-traffic urban area, it may add to the cleaning time and cost.
  • Special Requests or Preferences: Clients may have special requests such as using eco-friendly cleaning products or working outside standard hours, which can also affect costs.
  • Pet Situation: Homes with pets may require additional cleaning efforts like fur removal, which could influence the price.
  • Parking Facilities: In urban areas, the availability of parking near the location can be a factor as it may affect the ease with which cleaning crews can access the site.
  • Additional Services: Services like laundry, dishwashing, or organizing could be additional and would affect the overall pricing.
  • Supplies Provided: Whether the cleaning company needs to provide all cleaning supplies or some are provided by the client can also impact the cost.
  • Lifestyle Factors: Does the client smoke indoors? Does the client keep surfaces clean during the week? Do they host a lot of guests?
  • Urgency: Urgent or last-minute cleaning requests may carry premium pricing.

Protecting yourself from pricing disasters

With flat-rate pricing, you need to protect yourself from pricing disasters. We’ve all been there: after quoting a home, we walk into a cleaning job that takes way longer than estimated. There are mountains of clutter, piles of dust, and floors in need of a little too much love. So what do you do?

When taking any new job, set the precedent that you may need to overcharge if any visit takes longer than planned. An example line you can add to your contracts is, โ€œquoted prices assume average-sized rooms in average condition. Extra hours needed to clean will be priced with an additional $50 per hour.โ€ When a client agrees to this ahead of time, you’ve protected yourself from being underpaid. 

Then, when you find yourself in a job taking longer than expected (which is bound to happen at some point), take a break from cleaning to notify the client that an extra fee will be added to keep cleaning. If they give you the go-ahead, you can proceed and charge extra as needed. 

If the client declines moving forward, then you can wrap up the job without any penalty. Don’t wait until you’re at the end of a job to notify the client of an extra charge. 

Wrapping up

Your cleaning business’ success starts with finding the right rates to charge. 

Luckily, finding the perfect pricing strategy for your cleaning business doesn’t have to feel like solving a complex puzzle. With ZenMaid, you can take the guesswork out of quoting and make the process as clean and simple as the services you offer. Our software comes equipped with an instant booking form feature, making it effortless for your clients to get accurate quotes online directly from your website.

Say goodbye to pricing woes and hello to a smoother, more professional booking experience with ZenMaid.

Maximize new client conversionsย 

Make sure that the end of your sales process is as tight as possible.ย 

This means that everyone who books an appointment with your company should get a quote for weekly, biweekly, and monthly service even if they never asked for it.

If you give someone a quote for a one-time cleaning, they will assume that the amount you charge for that cleaning is your standard rate for every cleaning.ย 

But, a lot of times, when a customer books a single cleaning, it’s a deep cleaning, move-out cleaning, or cleaning specific to an occasion.ย 

Most cleaning businesses charge more for those individual cleanings than they would for ongoing cleaning appointments.

Your clients might assume that the amount you charge for the one-time service is the amount they would pay every week.ย 

But if you present them with options for pricing for more frequent service, they’ll see that it’s actually cheaper for them to book ongoing cleanings or purchase a package.ย 

So by showing them your prices for weekly, bi-weekly, or monthly cleanings, they’ll see how they can actually save money by booking ongoing sessions.

Just by showing them these packages, you can increase conversions and therefore the likelihood of booking repeat customers.ย 

Develop an exceptional new client onboarding process

You should have a tested and systematized process for onboarding every new customer you sign up.

When someone books their first visit, especially if they book recurring cleanings, make sure to do a field check before their first visit. This will give you a better idea of what to expect and how to set proper expectations.ย 

Once you have an idea of their space, leave them with a new client welcome guide.ย 

Send them this guide digitally when they initially book, but then bring a copy to them in person, in a branded folder. This will ensure that they have it in their hands and look at it if they haven’t looked at the digital copy.ย 

In this guide, include any information that you think they will find helpful and information that you want them to see. It can have things like how they can leave you reviews, your referral program, and perks you’ll offer them for referring you.ย 

You should also include any company information such as contact information and information about your company values, what types of products you use, or anything else you want them to know about you.ย 

Logan also recommends investing in some type of company swag item that you can leave with them.ย 

A branded gift like a coffee cup, magnet keychain, or pen is an inexpensive way to stand out a bit more, help solidify your brand and get you more visibility. Think of these items as a business card that people will use to market your brand for you.ย 

The day after the cleaning, send a follow-up email that includes a link for them to leave you a review. If they aren’t a recurring customer, have information about your recurring service and pricing for them to see to incentivize them to book regular cleanings.ย 

If they don’t book recurring cleanings, follow up with them at the 3-month mark to see if they want to book another cleaning.ย 

Bonus Tip:ย 

Create some more feel-good touchpoints in between cleanings or between emails.ย 

Even if they are only booking single cleanings, you want people to have good feelings associated with your brand.ย 

You don’t want every email to be a reminder or a pitch, so send them an occasional email offering them something that will make them feel special.ย 

This can be a discount code, a birthday email, or a holiday celebration to stay top of mind.ย 

Develop and implement a loyalty programย 

Loyalty programs can help retain clients longer and increase the amount of money they spend with your company.ย 

This is especially true with multi-tier loyalty programs.ย ย 

You might think that people won’t care about loyalty or rewards programs, but these initiatives help shape and inform people’s buying patterns and shopping habits.ย ย 

It’s never been easier to hire a cleaning company, and you can probably find someone in your area who is charging less than you are.ย 

So the game becomes all about giving your customers the best experience, fun perks, and leaving them with good feelings. This will leave them less tempted or inclined to shop around for another service.ย 

It’s important to put in the extra work to make sure that your clients feel valued, special, and appreciated. Making them a VIP shows them you care and you value them.ย 

It’s also something you can systemize so that as your company grows, you can easily scale this program with more customers and no extra work for yourself.ย 

It systemizes those good feelings when you have too many customers to give individualized attention to.ย 

Here’s an example of what a loyalty program could like for your cleaning business:ย 

Customers who have been weekly, biweekly, or monthly clients for at least 6 months are automatically enrolled in the VIP program.

Once they’re enrolled, send them an email with the different tiers of the program. Also, let them know which tier they are a part of and what benefits come with their tier.ย 

Here is a peek at how Logan structures the VIP program for the Dazzle Cleaning Company:ย 

Silver Tierย 

  • Monthly recurring clients are enrolled in the silver tier
  • They receive 10% gift card purchases and seasonal deep cleans

Gold Tierย 

  • Clients who book recurring bi-weekly cleanings are enrolled in the gold tierย 
  • They receive 15% off gift cards and deep cleans, and a free oven cleaningย 

Platinum Tierย 

  • Clients with weekly recurring cleanings are enrolled in the platinum tierย 
  • They receive 20% off gift cards and deep cleans, and one free over cleaning, and one free refrigerator cleaningย 

Customers might not even consider purchasing things like a fridge cleaning or oven cleaning, but when you share the program’s perks, you’re planting the seed that they are getting extra value.ย 

And even if they don’t want to become a recurring customer, you’re still showing them things they should be doing, like a seasonal deep clean or oven cleaning.ย 

You’re also laying down the idea of gift cards, which can be a great way to manage cash flow and helps your customers market your business for you through word of mouth.ย 

When they become members of the loyalty program, you send them a welcome packet with coupons for the perks that come with their level. Then they can redeem those perks at their leisure during the year.ย 

It helps to present this welcome packet a little bit differently than you do your typical branding. Make it feel more elite by adding a special logo or using expensive-looking paper.ย 

These extra touches can truly make your client feel like a VIP and that they are getting special treatment.ย ย 

Final Thoughtsย 

You’re always going to have churn and cancellations in your cleaning business. But the goal is to create ways to minimize churn so that you can turn more of your customers into repeat business.ย 

Having recurring customers will give you more freedom and predictability with your finances and help with any cash flow issues.ย 

By maximizing conversions, implementing a solid onboarding system, and instituting a VIP program, you can cover your bases and know that you’re doing everything you can to minimize churn and encourage repeat bookings.ย 

For more details on how Logan used a VIP program to grow his cleaning company to $100,000 in monthly recurring revenue, check out his full talk from the 2020 Maid Summit.ย 

About the presenter

Logan Taylor is the President and Founder of Cleaning Business Marketing, The Dazzle Cleaning Company. The Dazzle Cleaning Company, which Logan started 5 years ago, now does over $100,000 in monthly revenue. In this post, we’ll highlight Logan’s secrets to minimizing churn and creating a loyal base of VIP clients.ย 

This talk first aired at the 2020 Maid Service Success Summit.

The Maid Summit is an annual online event that brings together the most successful leaders in the cleaning industry, like Debbie Sardone, Angela Brown, Courtney Wisely, Amy Caris, Chris Schwab and more. Get free access to masterclasses and workshops that will help you to grow, scale and automate your cleaning business so you can get more leads and create more profit. Make sure youโ€™re on our email list to find out how to get free tickets to the next event.

Check out the replays now.ย 

ZenMaid

Amar is the founder and CEO of ZenMaid Software, Inc. He started and ran Fast Friendly Spotless, a maid service in Orange County, CA. With the help of customized software to automate work he successfully operated the service in under 30 minutes per day. He created ZenMaid scheduling software to help other maid service owners do the same.

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