Smaller investment franchise opportunities

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Our ServiceMaster Clean franchise opportunities fit comfortably in to the ‘low investment’ franchise bracket and because of this, it’s natural to have a few questions regarding what you get in return for the smaller fee. Throughout this blog we help to answer those common questions.

Do you get less with a smaller investment?

It’s a common misconception that you have to spend more to get more, in the case of a ServiceMaster Clean franchise that is simply not true.

Our starter pack includes much of what you need to get you started. It includes the training, marketing launch, products, equipment and much, much more. The franchise fee covers all of these items, but you actually receive much more value through our support and expertise – it’s difficult to put a ‘price’ on that.

No brick & mortar

There is no need to have a physical location such as an office facility with a ServiceMaster Clean franchise. This substantially reduces the initial outlay in needing to purchase somewhere, or ongoing overheads for leasing premises.  Our homebased franchise opportunities give you the opportunity to grow the business first, before investing in premises when the business naturally outgrows your home.

You don’t buy customers and we don’t sell you them

Some larger investments come with the promise of customers. Here at ServiceMaster Clean, we show you how to market to get customers, rather than giving you them in hand. It’s much more rewarding this way and you’ll find that you’ll build a stronger relationship with your customers.

Are smaller investment franchise opportunities really worth it?

The best way to find out if it is really worth it, is to ask the existing franchise network. Here at ServiceMaster Clean, we welcome you to speak to any business owners in our existing network to find out more before committing to our franchise.

If you would like to find out more about our low franchise investment opportunity, ServiceMaster Clean franchise, speak to a member of the team today!

The Importance of Technology in a Franchise

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Technology plays a huge part in business and we at ServiceMaster Clean Residential understand the importance of having technology present throughout our business model.

As such we have invested heavily in using technology to:

  1. Help customers to find us quicker
  2. Help customers to buy from us more easily
  3. Help business owners to manage their business seamlessly

Website

We have a state-of-the-art website that provides insightful content to prospective customers when they are looking for a carpet, hard floor or upholstery cleaning service. The research and development involved before updating our website gave us strong recommendations for how we could build our website to better serve our customers, thus servicemasterclean.co.ukwas born.

Our website makes it easy for customers to find out about us and contact us with ease, for further information or to book a service.

E-Commerce

After a period of time piloting our e-commerce platform and making changes based on the pilot results, it is now LIVE and gives business owners the opportunity to capture business out of hours, but to also attract a savvier or more time poor customer who chooses to book and pay for their services online for convenience.

In just a few short steps, a customer can buy and pay for a carpet, hard floor or upholstery cleaning service for their property, all whilst the business owner waits for the order to come in.

BMS

BMS is short for Business Management System and is the product of many consultation meetings with our existing business owners for what they would need or want in a business management system. It has been live for five years now and is constantly evolving to reflect the current demands of a ServiceMaster Clean Residential business.

BMS allows ServiceMaster Clean Residential business owners to not only hold customer and employee information, but to schedule carpet, hard floor and upholstery cleans, review management information and produce invoices, reports and schedules, all for an efficiently run business. It’s our bespoke system and is exclusive to ServiceMaster Clean Residential business owners.

Our investment in to technology is a given and if you like the sound of being a part of an innovative, technology-embracing franchise, we would love to hear from you.

Ranking #6 in Franchise Direct Top 100 Franchises

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#6 ServiceMaster Clean – Franchise Direct Top 100

We are proud to announce that not only have we made the Franchise Direct Top 100, (which in itself is a fantastic achievement), but we have secured a phenomenal position of number #6 in the rankings for our ServiceMaster Clean brand and franchise opportunity.

Getting a place in the Franchise Direct Top 100 Franchises is no mean feat, those who secured a spot stand out from hundreds of franchises that are currently trading in the UK.

All of the Top 100 Franchises share the keys to business success at any level including: a well-defined business identity, a clear business plan, a commitment to training and support, sensitivity to environmental issues, and the ability to innovate to keep pace with ever-changing social and economic conditions.

Franchise Direct used methodology that went beyond system size and financial performance, and in addition, considered a host of criteria including; system size, growth, years established, revenue, market expansion, as well as environmental and social responsibilities.

Our application was clearly a firm favourite amongst the judges to be awarded position #6 in their prestigious top franchise rankings and is testimony to the work that we have done to build a resilient brand that continues to deliver money-making franchise opportunities to aspiring entrepreneurs.

If you would like to learn more about our globally recognised brand and franchise opportunity, speak to a member of the team today.

Marketing – How to get customers

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Marketing – How to get customers

One of the most common concerns when going in to business is how to get customers. A benefit of teaming up with a franchise such as ServiceMaster Clean is that worry is quashed! We already have a well-established brand, undertake national marketing activities and support you in undertaking local marketing activities. All to help you to bring new customers on board both at launch, and continually.

The Brand is the Sun

The ServiceMaster Clean brand has been established in the UK for over 60 years. Our logo and brand colours are easily recognisable and are consistently used in all of our activities. Why? Because it helps us to create brand recognition through repeatedly sharing our brand assets. When our brand is recognisable, many consumers associate the services that we offer with ServiceMaster Clean and as such, enquire with us.

Centralised Marketing

This is something that you may not benefit from if you didn’t join a franchise such as ServiceMaster Clean. We undertake marketing activities on a national level to bolster the effectiveness of local advertising. As such we invest heavily in our website, social media, and more recently in to our e-commerce platform, so that consumers can find us and buy from us more easily.

Local Marketing

Local marketing is often the most daunting bit for new franchise owners, but not for new ServiceMaster Clean franchise owners. During your onboarding we meticulously plan your marketing launch to attract customers for when you open. During your training you learn about marketing and how different marketing activities help to create brand awareness to attract new customers, brand recognition to retain new customers and brand advocacy to encourage your customers to review you positively and recommend you to others.

Support

ServiceMaster Clean is a franchise opportunity where previous business experience is not necessary. That being said, we can’t expect you to market your business without a helping hand. Within our team of franchise professionals, you will work closely with the whole marketing team and in particular your ServiceMaster Clean marketing manager to build a local marketing plan, update your website, create any marketing material and to generally support you in marketing your services to your local customers.

ServiceMaster Clean is a sales and marketing franchise opportunity. As such our commitment to marketing is huge as it plays an essential part in helping to grow your business.

Find out more about our marketing efforts by speaking with a member of the team today!

Growing a Team

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Growing a Team  

When building your ServiceMaster Clean Contract Services business, you will need to build a skilful and loyal team to deliver professional cleaning services to your customers.  

It’s important to choose employees carefully to be a part of your team as they represent your whole business and can help you keep customers, but can unfortunately help you to lose them too.  

What to look for 

The qualities to look for in a team member include being trustworthy, hard-working, professional and being able to follow instructions.  

Being able to follow instructions is a must, as you will train your team using the ServiceMaster Clean Contract Services training programme which is supplied to you when you begin your business. This includes step by step videos and a manual to show your new team members the most effective way to clean the home.  

Asking for references is always a great starting place and can help you to choose a great team member, or discount a potentially damaging team member from joining your business. 

Where to look  

As a local business, it is advantageous to recruit in the local area. Not only is it great to offer available positions to the local community, but it can also enable more flexibility to the business as team members live close by. Team members are also familiar with the local area which is helpful when finding a property that has booked a clean.  

Advertising for positions locally can take the form of an advert in a shop window, local paper, social media community group and word of mouth. A combination can really help to fill positions quickly with the best candidates.  

Maintaining a happy team  

It’s much easier to keep existing team members than it is to replace them. Loyal team members tend to give back much more to the business and take responsibility for their role in helping the business to succeed. A high turnover of staff can give you a poor reputation to both customers and employees.  

In order to maintain a happy team, it’s always a good idea to ensure that you are a good employer by keeping your promises. Make sure that you pay on time, reward when a reward is due, provide great working conditions and listen/take action regarding their feedback.  

For your peace of mind, all ServiceMaster Clean franchisees benefit from support in HR and recruitment.  

Speak to a member of our team today!

Getting the most from the Franchise

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Getting the most from the Franchise 

Being part of a franchise is a choice and every individual has their reasons for joining. There are costs to joining a franchise, but the benefits far outweigh these. Therefore, we recommend getting as much out of your franchise journey as possible.  

Support  

The support you can receive as a franchisee in all stages of your journey is truly invaluable. At the beginning you may require hand holding time whilst you find your feet in a very new world to you. In the middle you could feel a little lost and need guidance to get back on track to move the needle forward. Towards the end of your journey, you’ll seek to realise your investment and need assistance in preparing your business for sale. We’re here for all parts of your journey in whatever line of support that you need. Our marketing professionals are on hand to help you to sell the sizzle of your services, operations team to get or keep your business in tip top shape and our IT, HR and admin teams are there to support the whole business function.  

Training  

All new franchisees secure a place on our training academy. But as a franchisee, you also benefit from ongoing training opportunities in marketing, sales, business and much, much more. It’s not compulsory, but much of our training is complimentary and there to be used. 

Buy small and save big  

As a small business you may encounter poor economies of scale. Not as a franchisee! We buy big so that you don’t have to and we encourage our networks to tell us what they’d like to see in the warehouse so that we can buy it in bulk and pass the savings of doing so back to you.   

Network Meetings  

You are never alone in a franchise. Not only do you receive the support that you need from a world-renowned franchisor, but you also receive support from fellow like-minded business owners who have likely ‘been there and done that’. You’ll have plenty of opportunities to meet with them regularly, and upon onboarding, you will be encouraged to contact your fellow peers to establish relationships right away.  

Ideas Review Council  

We are passionate about ensuring our franchisees have a voice. As such, we have a panel of franchisees who have been voted a seat by the franchise network, to share feedback, issues, guidance, recommendations and praise back to us for action or notation.  

There’s so much to get from a world-renowned franchise such as ServiceMaster Clean and everything that we offer is to help you on your way to business success. 

To find out more speak to a member of our team today!

The Advantages of Franchising

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Advantages of Franchising 

Franchising offers a great opportunity to go in to business for yourself, but not by yourself.  

Plus, many other reasons that you may not have thought of.  

Established Brand  

For us, the brand is the sun. It’s at the centre of everything we do and everything we do radiates from it. For ServiceMaster Clean in particular, it’s been established over 60 years and is a familiar name within the industry. Having an established brand opens doors for you and can help you to secure customers who are looking for a name that they can trust, that has been around a while.  

Proven Business Model

The phrase ‘been there, done that, got the t-shirt’ perfectly describes why it’s great to have a business that’s already made mistakes so that you don’t have to. Equally, the wins are noted and form part of the successful business model today. Going it alone runs the risk of making costly mistakes that can not only set you back, but make you bust!  

Economies of Scale  

Being part of a franchise enables you to harness the buying power of a much larger organisation. We are able to purchase products, equipment and supplies on your behalf at a cheaper rate as we can buy in bulk and pass the savings on to you.   

Support  

We’re in it together, every step of the way. You’ll not only receive unlimited support from our team of franchise professionals, but also from an existing franchise network of business owners who are on hand to give support and advice. We encourage communication in the network and regularly hold gatherings where you can meet face to face.  

Marketing  

Utilising our expert knowledge and guidance you will undertake local marketing activities, which in turn will generate interest in your services for you to convert in to paying customers. We are stronger together and as such, much of our marketing is done on a national scale with a local feel so that you get more bang for your buck. The best example for this is our state-of-the-art website. Have a look for yourself at www.servicemasterclean.co.uk  

These are just a few of the many reasons why being a part of a franchise can help you to realise your dreams of becoming your own boss with the comfort of an established brand, proven model and unlimited support of a world-leading franchisor such as ServiceMaster Clean.  

Speak to a member of the team today!