In this post, you’ll be able to take a look at 50+ personal service business examples
Covid-19 has changed everything. The secure job is no longer as secure as it once was, which is why millions of people all over the world are looking into starting their own service business.
Below is are 50+ service business examples, but there are infinitely more out there. Use this list to get your imagination ignited. The trick is to find (or invent) a service that you are passionate about.
Once you’ve picked a personal service business, let BookOm fully automate your bookings, which is the most crucial part of growing your business.
Health & Wellness Services
Becoming A Personal Trainer
Overview: Being a personal trainer is highly rewarding emotionally, and reasonably well paid. You’ll need patience, the ability to work well with people, the ability to enjoy working with other people, the motivation to work on your own without someone telling you what to do, knowledge of teaching fitness, the ability to design fitness courses/classes, and physical fitness (you’ll be a role model for your students). To become a personal trainer at a gym you need a recognised qualification, such as a level 2 certificate in fitness Instructing – gym, a level 2 diploma in health, fitness, and exercise Instruction, and a level 2 diploma in instructing exercise and fitness.
Suitable for: Anyone who loves fitness. Anyone who wants to improve their own health.
Average Salary Per Year: £12,000 to £35,000
Typical Hours: 20 to 40 hours a week
Personal Teacher Training Organizations: Futurefit.co.uk, Hfe.co.uk, PtAcademy.com, TheTrainingRoom.com,
Useful Sites: BookOm (online booking system)
Positive: The best part of being a personal trainer is knowing that you are helping improve the mind, body and emotions of your students. Personal trainers in the UK earn good hourly rates, so you only need to work with a few clients to make a good living. Most personal trainers start at their local gyms, build up a clientele and then start working for themselves. Personal trainer fees are typically between £20 to £90 per hour, with the average being £30 to £50. That’s a higher wage than most jobs!
Negative: The pay is not so good if you only do personal training at your local gym/fitness centre. You’ll need to get your own clientele and then start working for yourself to make this a viable business that pays your mortgage.
Top Getting Started Tips:
Appointment Booking System: Let BookOm fully automate your bookings, which is the most crucial part of growing your business.
Children’s Fitness Classes: If there’s one thing that never seems to run out, it’s a kid’s supply of energy. Create a new add-on service by tapping into that vast resource with children’s fitness classes that include activities such as tumbling, dance, gymnastics and karate.
Colleges: Fitness instructor and personal trainer courses are widely available through colleges, so check out your local colleges.
Dealing With Difficult Clients: If you don’t have the patience of a saint, then being a personal trainer is probably not for you. You will have to deal with difficult clients on a weekly basis. You just have to have to realise that people not only come in all physical shapes and sizes, but they come in all mental/emotional sizes. Each client will require a unique approach. Some clients will be over motivated (your type-A personalities), who start off all guns blazing which is unsustainable and likely to cause injury. Other clients won’t even get out of the blocks. They literally won’t do anything that you’ve agreed upon. A normal person would tear their hair out, but you’ll need to stay patient and keep trying new ways that connect with the client. Probably the most annoying is the client that demands a refund if they don’t see immediate results. Just give them the refund, and don’t take it personally. People are weird, and that includes you too.
Goals For Your Clients: Setting short-term and long-term goals for your clients will help them and also help you because the “goals” will provide the motivation to stick to their fitness and sessions with you.
Join Multiple Fitness Classes: If you’re serious about becoming a personal trainer, join more than one local fitness classes. You’ll get fit, and also learn how to teach from observing the trainer. Each trainer will have their own idiosyncrasies. This is good to know, because when it comes time to training students, you’ll be comfortable with your idiosyncrasies, and not try to emulate the person who trained you during your personal trainer course. Your students would rather have an authentic “you”, than a clone of your trainer.
Level 3 Qualification: Consider taking further qualifications such as a level 3 diploma in fitness instructing and personal training and a level 3 diploma in personal training.
Lifestyle Advice: Being a personal trainer is similar to being a Life Coach. You get to help your client’s move towards healthier habits by providing them with lifestyle advice.
Membership: Become a member of a professional organisation, such as the Register of Exercise Professionals (REPs) or National Register of Personal Trainers (NRPT). Being a member will improve your career opportunities, and give peace of mind to your clients.
Nutrition Advice: Fitness is only one part of the health and wellness equation. Swot up on nutrition, and take courses on it.
Outdoor Classes: The big wide world is fully open to you. You can give fitness classes (or one to one sessions) at your local park.
Public Liability & First Aid: To work as a personal trainer you need public liability insurance and a first aid award. This has to include a cardio-pulmonary resuscitation certificate (CPR). Professional bodies can advise on this.
Sessions At Client’s Home: If you have a well-off client, you can offer home sessions and charge extra.
Train Yourself: You can start by training yourself at home. Have a disciplined home practice.
Word Of Mouth: After completing a personal training session, ask your student to recommend a friend.
Yoga and/or Pilates Teacher Course. A perfect add-on service to provide your clients is yoga and pilates. You can find out about the 17 main types of Yoga teacher training courses here.
101 Business Tips: If you’re already a personal trainer, here are 101 marketing ideas for service businesses for you to enjoy.
Becoming A Yoga Teacher
Overview: I’m a bit biased with this service because I became a Yoga teacher in 2009. The wonderful thing about yoga is that it complements so many other businesses. For example, if you’re a business coach, you could offer yoga as an add-on.
Suitable for: Anyone who is currently doing a yoga practice. Anyone who wants to combine yoga with their current business. Anyone who wants to improve their own health.
Average Salary Per Year: £12,000 to £45,000
Typical Hours: 20 hours a week
Yoga Teacher Training Organizations: 17 types of yoga: which teacher training is best (choose from 100’s of teacher training organizations)
Useful Sites: BookOm (online booking system), GeorgeWatts.org (online yoga lesson planner for yoga teachers), How to make a yoga website in 10 minutes, 501 yoga teacher services to boost your income, free yoga lesson plans (50+ free downloadable yoga lesson plans)
Positive: The pay is good if you host your own classes and retreats. The best part of being a yoga teacher, for me at least, was knowing that I was helping improve the mind, body and emotions of my students.
Negative: The pay is not so good if you do yoga classes at your local gym/fitness centre.
Top Getting Started Tips:
Yoga Lesson Planner: Don’t reinvent the yoga lesson planning wheel. Use an online yoga lesson planner.
501 Yoga Teacher Services: Click here for 501 yoga teacher services to boost your income.
Appointment Booking System: Let BookOm fully automate your bookings, which is the most crucial part of growing your business.
Join Multiple Yoga Classes: If you’re serious about becoming a yoga teacher, join more than one local yoga classes. You’ll learn about yoga, but also from observing the teacher. Each teacher will have their own idiosyncrasies. This is good to know, because when it comes time to teaching yoga, you’ll be comfortable with your idiosyncrasies, and not try to emulate your teacher trainer. The class would rather have an authentic “you”, than a clone of your teacher trainer.
Teach Yourself: You can start by teaching yourself at home. Have a disciplined home practice.
Yoga Retreat Kit: Learn how to set up a yoga retreat with the Yoga Retreat Kit.
Yoga Teacher Business Kit: Save time with your marketing with the Yoga Teacher Business Kit.
Word Of Mouth: After completing a yoga class, ask your students to bring a friend (and give the first class free).
101 Business Tips: If you’re already a yoga teacher, here are 101 marketing ideas for service businesses for you to enjoy.
Personal Services For Animal Lovers
Becoming A Dog Trainer
Overview: Dog trainers and instructors can train dogs for anyone with a dog, but mostly for people that need assistance maintaining their independence. Most dog training courses offer opportunities for people with some experience or none at all. With a solid foundation of knowledge, technical proficiency, and experience, you can seek independent validation of your skills through certifications. Doing so gives you a good excuse to increase your prices, and you can add the certification logo to your website.
Suitable for: Animal lovers
Average Salary Per Year: £13,000 to £30,000
Typical Hours: 35 hours a week
Dog Training Organizations: Academy Of Dog Training & Behaviour, Association Of Pet Dog Trainers, CanineProfessionals.com.
Useful Sites: BookOm (online booking system), DogTrainingPlanner.co.uk, AssistanceDogs.org.uk, Association Of Pet Behaviour Counsellors, Bark Busters Home Dog Training, British Veterinary Behaviour Association, Canine Behaviour & Training Association, Canine & Feline Behaviour Association, Canine Partners, DogAid.org.uk, DogsForGood.org, RSPCA.org.uk, PetCare.org.uk.
Positive: Quick to get started, and very rewarding if you’re an animal lover. Anyone can set up as a dog trainer or behaviourist with no experience or qualifications. However, it’s a good idea to belong to a representative group.
Negative: Once you’ve trained the dog, you’ll need to find another dog to train. This makes the business model much more labour intensive for marketing purposes than a pet groomer (where the pet comes for grooming several times per year). So, you will need to put your marketing hat’ on to make sure you get enough business coming in. One way to solve this problem is to provide aftercare and support for owners and their dogs by putting them onto some kind of ongoing membership.
Top Getting Started Tips:
Appointment Booking System: Let BookOm fully automate your bookings, which is the most crucial part of growing your business.
Apprenticeship: You can get into dog training through an intermediate apprenticeship as an animal care and welfare assistant.
Assistant: You can start off as an assistant with a qualified dog trainer and learn on the job.
College: You can take a course in dog handling.
Kennel Worker: You can get into dog training by starting as a kennel worker, then moving on to training dogs and working with their owners.
Private Training Course: Choose one of the dog training courses listed above.
Teach Yourself: You can start by teaching yourself dog training by getting the DogTrainingPlanner.
Volunteering At An Animal Welfare Organization: You could get experience by doing voluntary work at animal welfare organizations.
Volunteering At Dog Rescue Centres: You could get experience by doing voluntary work at dog rescue centres.
Volunteering At Puppy Fostering Organization: You could get experience by doing voluntary work at puppy fostering organizations.
Volunteering In Your Neighbourhood: You could get experience by doing voluntary work with dogs in your neighbourhood.
Word Of Mouth: After completing a dog training session, ask your customer if their dog needs dog grooming. Give recommendations to a local dog groomer, and soon that dog groomer will be giving you recommendations. You both have the same clientele (people with dogs) but aren’t competitors, so you might as well help each other get business.
101 Business Tips: If you’re already a dog trainer, here are 101 marketing ideas for service businesses for you to enjoy.
Becoming A Mobile Pet Groomer
Overview: Pet groomers keep coats in good condition, and give their owners advice on coat care, grooming and diet. Most pet grooming courses offer opportunities for people with some experience or none at all.
Suitable for: Animal lovers
Average Salary Per Year: £13,000 to £20,000
Typical Hours: 35 hours a week
Pet Grooming Training Organizations: Abbfabb.co.uk, AyrshireGroomingSalon.com, CanineClips.biz, CanisGrooming.co.uk, CityAndGuilds.com, DiversiPets.com, DogGroomingCentre.com, DogGroomingStudioCourses.net, KdGroomingStudio.co.uk, PetsAtHomeJobs.com, PetGroomingSchool.co.uk, ThePoshPaw.co.uk, WelshGroomingAcademy.co.uk.
Useful Sites: BookOm (online booking system), DogTrainingPlanner.co.uk, RSPCA.org.uk, PetCare.org.uk.
Positive: Quick to get started, and very rewarding if you’re an animal lover. The working environment is very flexible. You could work in a salon, at a client’s home, at a pet store, or at a veterinary practice.
Negative: The pay is quite low.
Top Getting Started Tips:
Appointment Booking System: Let BookOm fully automate your bookings, which is the most crucial part of growing your business.
Apprenticeship: You can get into pet grooming through an intermediate apprenticeship as an animal care and welfare assistant.
Assistant: You can start off as an assistant with a qualified dog groomer and learn on the job.
College: You can take a course in dog grooming:
- Level 2 Certificate for Dog Grooming Assistants
- Level 3 Certificate in Introductory Dog Grooming
- Level 3 Diploma for Dog Grooming
Dog Training: You could Supplement your income by doing some dog training on the side. If you do, you might like the Dog Training Planner I created to help train my collie.
Private Training Course: Choose one of the pet grooming training courses listed above.
Volunteering: You could get experience by doing voluntary work with dogs in kennels, which can help when applying for courses or jobs.
Word Of Mouth: After completing a dog grooming session, ask your customer if they could recommend your service to their friends who have dogs.
101 Business Tips: If you’re already a pet groomer, here are 101 marketing ideas for service businesses for you to enjoy.
Becoming A Mobile Pet Sitter
Overview: Pet sitters can live a life of luxury when rich people with pets go on holiday and want someone to look after them at their homes (in-home pet sitting). You get a free holiday in a lovely home, free food, and money for doing something you love. What’s not to love. You’ll be amazed at how many well-off people would rather a trusted human move into their house and look after their pet, then take them to a kennel or cattery. That’s for the common folk. The pet sitting business, however, isn’t just for the dogs and cat. You’ll probably be asked to sit for hamsters, rabbits, gerbils, snakes, lizards, and tarantulas.
If a well-off person has a pet, and they’re going on holiday, they’re likely to call on the services of a reliable pet sitter.
Suitable for: Animal lovers.
Average Salary Per Year: £8,000 to £20,000
Typical Hours: 30 hours a week
Pet Sitting Training Organizations: n/a
Useful Sites: BookOm (online booking system), Bark.com, DogTrainingPlanner.co.uk, PetBacker.com, PetCare.org.uk, TrustedHouseSitters.com,
Positive: Quick to get started, and very rewarding if you’re an animal lover. You don’t need any training. You just need to be reliable, honest, and good with animals. If you get a few well-off clients, the pay can be surprisingly good.
Negative: The pay can be very low, and you may need to stay at the owner’s property (unless they are okay with their pets staying at your home). The average price of a pet sitter is only £25 per day (but bear in mind you get to stay in the pet owner’s house, which is great if you’re the adventurous type, so you’re getting a free holiday).
Top Getting Started Tips:
Appointment Booking System: Let BookOm fully automate your bookings, which is the most crucial part of growing your business.
Dog Training: You could Supplement your income by doing some dog training on the side. If you do, you might like the Dog Training Planner I created to help train my collie. Also, having ‘dog training’ skills will increase your chance of getting the job. It instantly tells your prospect that you are a serious individual who has spent hundreds of hours learning a skill that can help their dog. You can teach the dog new tricks while they’re gone (if they give you permission to do so), and teach the owners the tricks when they get back from holiday. They may be so impressed that they purchase a bundle of dog training lessons from you.
Elevator Pitch: An elevator pitch is how you would sell yourself to a prospect if you were in an elevator within them and only had 60 seconds. Here’s a good template you can use: “I have a great number of repeat clients who use my services regularly and (hopefully) that speaks for itself. I offer a diverse level of flexibility in what I can provide. Whether you need someone to look after a puppy for a few hours or care for your cat for a two-week period, I can do it. It’s also incredibly helpful to have a sitter looking after your pet during times such as moving house – one less thing to worry about! I am experienced in looking after more specialised pets such as snakes and turtles which can require bespoke care. My workspace is set up with the care of different animals in mind, so you can rest assured of the quality of their care, particularly if your pets are staying with me.”
Leaflet Drops Expensive Properties: Create a nice looking leaflet and put them through the letterboxes of expensive properties.
Word Of Mouth: After a pet sitting, ask the pet owner to recommend you to his/her friends. Word of mouth is going to be your main marketing method because it’s such a “trusted position” to look after someone’s beloved pet in their beloved home.
101 Business Tips: If you’re already a mobile pet sitter, here are 101 marketing ideas for service businesses for you to enjoy.
Becoming A Police Dog Handler
Overview: Police dog handlers work with specially trained dogs to help detect and prevent crime, find lost or missing people and protect property. You and your dog will patrol premises and protect property, search for lost or missing people, detect drugs, firearms or explosives, and control crowds.
Suitable for: Animal lovers. People who like watching CSI (joke!). Adventure lovers.
Average Salary Per Year: £15,000 to £25,000
Typical Hours: 40 hours a week
Dog Training Organizations: Academy Of Dog Training & Behaviour, Association Of Pet Dog Trainers, CanineProfessionals.com.
Useful Sites: BookOm (online booking system), DogTrainingPlanner.co.uk, AssistanceDogs.org.uk, Association Of Pet Behaviour Counsellors, Bark Busters Home Dog Training, British Veterinary Behaviour Association, Canine Behaviour & Training Association, Canine & Feline Behaviour Association, Canine Partners, DogAid.org.uk, DogsForGood.org, RSPCA.org.uk, PetCare.org.uk.
Positive: If you love training dogs and like fighting crime, this is going to be your dream job!
Negative: There will be lots of stressful situations, though if you’re an adventurous type, this will be a positive for you.
Top Getting Started Tips:
Appointment Booking System: Let BookOm fully automate your bookings, which is the most crucial part of growing your business.
Apprenticeship: You can get into dog training through an intermediate apprenticeship as an animal care and welfare assistant.
Assistant: You can start off as an assistant with a qualified dog trainer and learn on the job.
College: You can take a course in dog handling.
Kennel Worker: You can get into dog training by starting as a kennel worker, then moving on to training dogs and working with their owners.
Private Training Course: Choose one of the dog training courses listed above.
Search & Rescue: If the stress of fighting crime becomes a little too much, you could progress to becoming a dog trainer, working with organisations like search and rescue, to help train dogs and their handlers.
Teach Yourself: You can start by teaching yourself dog training by getting the DogTrainingPlanner.
Volunteering At An Animal Welfare Organization: You could get experience by doing voluntary work at animal welfare organizations.
Volunteering At Dog Rescue Centres: You could get experience by doing voluntary work at dog rescue centres.
Volunteering At Puppy Fostering Organization: You could get experience by doing voluntary work at puppy fostering organizations.
Volunteering In Your Neighbourhood: You could get experience by doing voluntary work with dogs in your neighbourhood.
101 Business Tips: If you’re already a police dog handler, here are 101 marketing ideas for service businesses for you to enjoy.
Home Services
Becoming A Handyman
Overview: If you’re handy around the house and have a passion for building, maintaining or fixing minor repairs, there is an inner handyman (or women) eager to make its presence known. Some of the tasks you’ll be asked to do include: painting and decorating, moving heavy items, changing light-bulbs, clearing rooms, maintaining gardens, repairing tools and equipment, installing windows/doors, fixing taps and unclogging drains.
Suitable for: People who are handy with tools. People who have worked as a builder.
Average Salary Per Year: £15,000 to £25,000
Typical Hours: 40 hours a week
Dog Training Organizations: n/a
Useful Sites: BookOm (online booking system), AbleSkills.co.uk, FindCourses.co.uk, The Builder Training Centre, TheDIYSchool.co.uk, VirginExperiencedays.co.uk,
Positive: Being a handyman can turn your passion into a lucrative profession. Over 50% of homeowners will not attempt to make small repairs and will instead choose to call in a handyman. Within no time, if you’re good, you’ll be booked up for months.
Negative: It’s hard work, especially during the winter when you’re outside dangling on a roof in the freezing cold. It can be expensive to purchase your own tools. You’ll also need to store them somewhere secure. Theives love stealing tools!
Top Getting Started Tips:
Appointment Booking System: Let BookOm fully automate your bookings, which is the most crucial part of growing your business.
Apprenticeship: You can get into ‘handyman’ work through an intermediate apprenticeship as a builder.
Assistant: You can start off as an assistant with a builder.
College: You can take a DIY course at a college, or even online. You should also consider taking the following courses: bricklaying, carpentry, DIY electronics, fibreglass GRP flat roofing, home maintenance, inspection & testing, kitchen fitting, plastering, floor screening, plumbing, roof construction, roof tiling, and tiling.
Teach Yourself: Most handymen (and women) start by teaching themselves (or having a family member teach them).
Tools & Equipment: You’ll need the following: painting supplies, step ladder, stud finder, circular saw, electric drill, spirit level, tape measure
Van: Get rid of your car and get a reliable van.
Volunteering: If you know a builder who needs an extra pair of hands, work for free and gain experience.
Word Of Mouth: The only marketing you’ll ever need to do as a handyman is Word Of Mouth marketing. Simply ask your customer to recommend you to their friends.
101 Business Tips: If you’re already a handyman, here are 101 marketing ideas for service businesses for you to enjoy.
Becoming A Home Decorator/Interior Designer
Overview: Home in on the home decorating business (forgive the pun) if you have a knack for making a home look fab. You’ll work with local furniture and accessory stores, paint shops, carpet and drapery outlets, and garden centres to turn dull interiors into dream interiors for your clients. The key to getting in the door of this business is decorating your own home, first. Then you’ll probably want to decorate your families homes, and then your friends’ homes. After you’ve gained experience and got recommendations from your family and friends, you can make a very nice living.
Suitable for: People with a knack for making a home look fab.
Average Salary Per Year: £15,000 to £50,000+
Typical Hours: 40 hours a week
Interior Design Training Organizations: Interior decorating course with FindCourses.co.uk, Interior decorating course with Oxfordhomestudy.com.
Useful Sites: BookOm (online booking system), ChoiceHomeWarranty.com 101 interior design resources, Elledecor.com home decor sourcebook, Pinterest interior design resources,
Positive: Being a home decorator is potentially much more lucrative than being a handyman. Over 50% of homeowners will not attempt to make home decor improvements and will instead choose to call in a home decorator. If you’re good and have wealthy clients, you can make a very good living. Most interior design courses won’t need previous work or education requirements for entry.
Negative: Every client will have a different vision for what they want doing, and if they are wealthy, they’ll potentially be a hard taskmaster. Though, if you love change and dealing with challenging people, this is more positive than negative.
Top Getting Started Tips:
Appointment Booking System: Let BookOm fully automate your bookings, which is the most crucial part of growing your business.
Apprenticeship: You can get into ‘home decorating’ work through an intermediate apprenticeship as a painter and decorator.
Assistant: You can start off as an assistant with a painter and decorator.
College: You can take a painter and decorator course at a college, or even online. You should also consider taking an interior decorating course. A typical interior design course covers the following topics: who is an Interior Designer, Interior Design as a profession, the development of Interior Design as a profession, divisions of the profession, residential design, designer-client relationships, function, mood, style, interior design decorating principles, human dimensions, scale and proportion, balance/harmony, contrast, rhythm, focal point, unity and variety.
Teach Yourself: Most interior decorators start by decorating their own homes, then family, then friends, and finally for clients.
Tools & Equipment: You’ll need the following: painting supplies, step ladder, spirit level, and tape measure.
Van: Get rid of your car and get a reliable van.
Volunteering: If you know a family member or friend who needs their home decorated, work for free and gain experience.
101 Business Tips: If you’re already a home decorator, here are 101 marketing ideas for service businesses for you to enjoy.
Becoming A House Sitter
Overview: The best way to become a house sitter is become a pet sitter. Pet sitters can live a life of luxury when rich people with pets go on holiday and want someone to look after them at their homes (in-home pet sitting). You get a free holiday in a lovely home, free food, and money for doing something you love. What’s not to love. You’ll be amazed at how many well-off people would rather a trusted human move into their house and look after their pet, then take them to a kennel or cattery. That’s for the common folk. The pet sitting business, however, isn’t just for the dogs and cat. You’ll probably be asked to sit for hamsters, rabbits, gerbils, snakes, lizards, and tarantulas.
If a well-off person has a pet, and they’re going on holiday, they’re likely to call on the services of a reliable pet sitter.
Suitable for: Animal lovers. People who like visiting new places.
Average Salary Per Year: £8,000 to £20,000
Typical Hours: 30 hours a week
House Sitting Training Organizations: n/a
Useful Sites: BookOm (online booking system), Bark.com, DogTrainingPlanner.co.uk, PetBacker.com, PetCare.org.uk, TrustedHouseSitters.com.
Positive: Quick to get started, and very rewarding if you’re an animal lover. You don’t need any training. You just need to be reliable, honest, and good with animals. If you get a few well-off clients, the pay can be surprisingly good.
Negative: The pay can be very low, and you may need to stay at the owner’s property (unless they are okay with their pets staying at your home). The average price of a pet sitter is only £25 per day (but bear in mind you get to stay in the pet owner’s house, which is great if you’re the adventurous type, so you’re getting a free holiday).
Top Getting Started Tips:
Appointment Booking System: Let BookOm fully automate your bookings, which is the most crucial part of growing your business.
Dog Training: You could Supplement your income by doing some dog training on the side. If you do, you might like the Dog Training Planner I created to help train my collie. Also, having ‘dog training’ skills will increase your chance of getting the job. It instantly tells your prospect that you are a serious individual who has spent hundreds of hours learning a skill that can help their dog. You can teach the dog new tricks while they’re gone (if they give you permission to do so), and teach the owners the tricks when they get back from holiday. They may be so impressed that they purchase a bundle of dog training lessons from you.
Elevator Pitch: An elevator pitch is how you would sell yourself to a prospect if you were in an elevator within them and only had 60 seconds. Here’s a good template you can use: “I have a great number of repeat clients who use my services regularly and (hopefully) that speaks for itself. I offer a diverse level of flexibility in what I can provide. Whether you need someone to look after a puppy for a few hours or care for your cat for a two-week period, I can do it. It’s also incredibly helpful to have a sitter looking after your pet during times such as moving house – one less thing to worry about! I am experienced in looking after more specialised pets such as snakes and turtles which can require bespoke care. My workspace is set up with the care of different animals in mind, so you can rest assured of the quality of their care, particularly if your pets are staying with me.”
Leaflet Drops Expensive Properties: Create a nice looking leaflet and put them through the letterboxes of expensive properties.
Word Of Mouth: After a pet sitting, ask the pet owner to recommend you to his/her friends. Word of mouth is going to be your main marketing method because it’s such a “trusted position” to look after someone’s beloved pet in their beloved home.
101 Business Tips: If you’re already a mobile pet sitter, here are 101 marketing ideas for service businesses for you to enjoy.
Becoming A Residential Cleaner
Overview: This business model is about as simple as it gets. It requires lots of mopping, sweeping and dusting. It’s hard work but will keep you fit and active. Most of your customers will become repeat customers, which makes the business model even better.
Suitable for: Handyman/women (as an extra service), Homesitters (as an extra service), Anyone who needs to make money quickly and easily. Anyone who is looking for part-time work, or a second income stream.
Average Salary Per Year: £6,000 to £20,000
Typical Hours: 30 to 40 hours a week
Residential Cleaning Training Organizations: n/a
Useful Sites: BookOm (online booking system), WindowCleanCentre.co.uk, WindowCleaningStuff.co.uk, WindowCleaningWarehouse.co.uk.
Positive: Quick to get started. Very little outlay of money needed. You don’t need any training. You can add-on other services such as “window cleaning” to earn extra money.
Negative: Because it’s so easy to get started in this business, you might find there’s a lot of competition in your area. The pay is low and the work is labour intensive. They’ll be lots of bending over which means you’ll have back problems unless you do some yoga (especially backbends) in the evenings to counter all the bending.
Top Getting Started Tips:
Appointment Booking System: Let BookOm fully automate your bookings, which is the most crucial part of growing your business.
Elevator Pitch: An elevator pitch is how you would sell yourself to a prospect if you were in an elevator within them and only had 60 seconds. This would also make good sales copy if you have a website. Here’s a good template you can use: “I have a great number of repeat clients who use my services regularly and (hopefully) that speaks for itself. The benefits of having your house cleaned include: saves you time, deeper clean you’d have time to do, removing dust cleans the air which reduces pollen allergies, clean things you wouldn’t have time for (shades, drapes, and blinds), and clean carpets last longer. Over the years, I have developed very effective cleaning methods for the home, including carpet and area rug cleaning, wood floor cleaning and restoration, upholstery cleaning, drapery cleaning, blind cleaning, natural stone care, concrete floor care, grout and tile cleaning. If you have outdoor spaces that need to be restored, we do that too – indoor and outdoor stone and concrete can be cleaned and restored to beautiful condition. My full-service approach can make your life easier. It’s what I do.”
Leaflet Drops Expensive Properties: Create a nice looking leaflet and put them through the letterboxes of expensive properties.
Liability Insurance: Window cleaning is a dangerous job because you need to climb ladders! Most professional window washers will have their own ladder and have liability insurance (so the client isn’t sued if you fall).
Lint-free cloth: Use a lint-free cloth to wipe down your windows. Sponges and regular cloths may leave scratches or streaks.
Streak-free and chemical-free recipes: There are lots of recipes out there for a streak-free finish that is also chemical-free (which is important to do your bit to tackle climate change). An acidic white vinegar will cut through oils and dirt. Mix a ¼ cup of the vinegar with a ½ teaspoon of dish soap. Shake it up with two cups of warm water. Add essential oils to hide the smell of vinegar. If you prefer commercial-grade products, many hardware stores carry commercial-grade cleaning supplies for messes left on construction sites or from renovations. They’re sure to have just what you’re looking for. If you want to stick to the basics, a simple bottle of Windex is the best cleaner on the market today.
Window Fitter Friendship: It’s useful to be on friendly terms with a local window fitter. You can recommend them to your clients who need new windows, and the window fitter can recommend you to all their clients. Send them an email saying that you recommend them to your clients, and ask if they can do the same for your window cleaning business.
Word Of Mouth: After you’ve finished cleaning the windows, ask the owner to recommend you to his/her friends.
101 Business Tips: If you’re already a window cleaner, here are 101 marketing ideas for service businesses to inspire you.
Becoming A Window Cleaner
Overview: This business model is about as simple as it gets. Grab your bucket, squeegee, and glass-cleaning solution, and knock on the doors of houses and businesses with dirty windows. Most of them will become repeat customers, which makes the business model even better.
Suitable for: Handyman/women (as an extra service), Homesitters (as an extra service), Anyone who needs to make money quickly and easily. Anyone who is looking for part-time work, or a second income stream.
Average Salary Per Year: £6,000 to £20,000
Typical Hours: 30 hours a week
Window Cleaning Training Organizations: n/a
Useful Sites: BookOm (online booking system), Mister-klean.co.uk (an example of a very good window cleaner website), WindowCleanCentre.co.uk, WindowCleaningStuff.co.uk, WindowCleaningWarehouse.co.uk.
Positive: Quick to get started. Very little outlay of money needed. You don’t need any training. The pay is surprisingly good. Residential window cleaning costs range from £6 to £12 per window or about £3 to £6 per pane on average. A professional window washer charges about £200 for a 1,500 square foot house cleaning, which is between £30 and £60 per hour. You can also include a “call-out” charge of £35 to £65 (that will include your petrol and time getting to the location). For hard to reach windows on the 3rd or 4th floor, add £1.00 to £2.00 per pane. Most window cleaners price their services per pane instead of a flat rate because it’s fairer for the customer. Any dusting that needs to be done before wiping a window down should incur an extra £1 to £2 per pane.
Negative: Because it’s so easy to get started in this business, you might find there’s a lot of competition in your area.
Top Getting Started Tips:
Appointment Booking System: Let BookOm fully automate your bookings, which is the most crucial part of growing your business.
Elevator Pitch: An elevator pitch is how you would sell yourself to a prospect if you were in an elevator within them and only had 60 seconds. This would also make good sales copy if you have a website. Here’s a good template you can use: “I have a great number of repeat clients who use my services regularly and (hopefully) that speaks for itself. There are plenty of advantages to hiring a professional to clean your windows than doing it yourself. Your home will look better, tidier, and like you care about it. It will make a house look better to prospective buyers. Over time dirt and debris will add scratches and extra wear and tear to your windows. By tackling the issue ahead of time, you can prevent damage. Catch wood rot, mildew, termites, or inadequate insulation problems in the window frames early. You won’t fall off a ladder.“
Leaflet Drops Expensive Properties: Create a nice looking leaflet and put them through the letterboxes of expensive properties.
Liability Insurance: Window cleaning is a dangerous job because you need to climb ladders! Most professional window washers will have their own ladder and have liability insurance (so the client isn’t sued if you fall).
Lint-free cloth: Use a lint-free cloth to wipe down your windows. Sponges and regular cloths may leave scratches or streaks.
Streak-free and chemical-free recipes: There are lots of recipes out there for a streak-free finish that is also chemical-free (which is important to do your bit to tackle climate change). An acidic white vinegar will cut through oils and dirt. Mix a ¼ cup of the vinegar with a ½ teaspoon of dish soap. Shake it up with two cups of warm water. Add essential oils to hide the smell of vinegar. If you prefer commercial-grade products, many hardware stores carry commercial-grade cleaning supplies for messes left on construction sites or from renovations. They’re sure to have just what you’re looking for. If you want to stick to the basics, a simple bottle of Windex is the best cleaner on the market today.
Window Fitter Friendship: It’s useful to be on friendly terms with a local window fitter. You can recommend them to your clients who need new windows, and the window fitter can recommend you to all their clients. Send them an email saying that you recommend them to your clients, and ask if they can do the same for your window cleaning business.
Word Of Mouth: After you’ve finished cleaning the windows, ask the owner to recommend you to his/her friends.
101 Business Tips: If you’re already a window cleaner, here are 101 marketing ideas for service businesses to inspire you.
