When deciding to go into the cleaning business one of the first decisions that entrepreneurs will have to make will be what market niche or niches they want to target. In this article we take a glance at some of the market segments within the industry to give you an idea about some of the possibilities.

While small businesses can focus on more than one area they should at least define themselves as being either in the residential or commercial market.

House cleaning or maid service is by far the largest portion of the overall market and many new entrants to the cleaning business focus solely on this sector.

Commercial cleaning also makes up a large chunk of the market. Janitorial companies service all kinds of offices and public buildings from schools to bus stations. This area is usually more difficult for new players to enter as it involves more professionalism to bid on jobs and more formal agreements. Commercial work is also often too large in scale for a sole operator and requires the coordinated effort of a small team.

Carpet cleaning is another huge and potentially lucrative niche. As this area requires specialized equipment, regular cleaners usually leave this area to specific companies who specialize in this area. With a carpet franchises, carpet cleaning franchise or carpet fitting franchise you will find you are in a very niche market and as such if you are in a high population density area with only a few competitors then with the right marketing the phone will be ringing off the hook on a daily basis and you will expand very fast.

Other sectors can include washing windows, upholstery cleaning, post construction cleaning and roof cleaning to name a few. The variety of micro-niches in cleaning is endless and some may be under-served in your area so if you do your research you may be able to tap into a lucrative area that others have overlooked.

One of the success factors in cleaning is choosing a good market. Once you have chosen a market you then have to differentiate your company from the other cleaning services that are targeting the same market in order to make yourself unique and superior in the eyes of your customers

An advantage on carpet franchises and cleaning franchises is that they are van based. With a van based franchise comes the opportunity to put your logo and contact details all over the front back and sides in big graphics, this kind of advertising is worth tens of thousands of pounds per year, far more than the van lease itself and will get your notices rapidly in your local area. Your franchise company should provide you with the vinyl for the graphics or point you in the way of a local car graphic service to have it done for you. As you drive about to clients and on your general day to day business you will be seen by thousands of people. You cannot get better advertising than this and again, this is all free free free!

Except perhaps in large cities, success in the cleaning business requires taking on a big niche such as offices, houses, windows or carpets and then possibly also specializing in one or two smaller niches and becoming well known by customers in those markets. With some hard work you can soon gain a great reputation and a name in the local community bringing you work in on a daily basis.