The idea of starting a house cleaning business may not appease many people, let alone Generation Z entrepreneurs that seem to be pursuing nothing but online businesses such as e-commerce, drop shipping, print-on-demand, marketing agencies, and so on.
But that’s where 19-year-old Australian Jason Shipway is different. Because he has just innovated the way the residential cleaning industry operates in such a way that even his closest competitors who have been in the game for decades are desperately trying to keep up with him in any way they can.
It’s no secret that businesses have been shutting down left and right in the midst of what has unraveled in 2020. The lockdown restrictions put in place as a response to COVID-19 have been devastating for small businesses in particular. It would seem like few people would want to take a chance and start a business in the current economic climate. Not this guy though. Because in just 6 months, Shipway had turned a $300 investment into a behemoth of a business. So how did Jason manage to build such a gangbusters business during one of the worst times for small business in modern history?
After taking a look at his approach to marketing, it becomes obvious. Jason’s clever implementation of direct response marketing has allowed him to advertise and scale cheaply and predictably, with absolute confidence. Incredibly, as a result of such marketing, the cleaning giant is experiencing conversion rates of over 90%! That’s almost nine times the average for people in his industry.
Not only that, but the processes he has created within his company create the smoothest buying experience for clients, while making it incredibly easy to grow his business with little constraint. Jason claims he spends very little time working on the business now, and even admits that he’s very lazy with it, despite his success continually compounding! Who would have thought a cleaning business would be one of the most ideal lifestyle businesses?
When questioned on the key elements of running a successful company and dominating any industry, Shipway narrowed it down to just 7 things.
1. Simple mathematics
You must know the math involved in your business. How many customers do you need to generate from a single advertisement to break even on said ad? What is the lifetime value of your customer? What is the average cost per sale? How many sales do you need to get to 100k? Understanding your metrics will allow you to out spend your competitors and cut losses.
2. Predictable direct response marketing
The traditional way we advertise is becoming a thing of the past. As more people wake up to the fact that image-based advertising is a flawed way of marketing and scaling a business, direct response advertising is steadily increasing in popularity. By speaking directly to a certain group of people and commanding a response in the form of an offer with scarcity or urgency, you are able to increase sales and measure results, so that you can determine whether or not certain ads are working.
3. A Unique Selling Proposition (USP)
All it takes for your business to stand out from the rest is one simple unique customer buying advantage such as a guarantee. Anything that gives your customer an edge in buying from you as opposed to your competitors will send your business into the stratosphere.
4. Smooth client on-boarding systems
By spending the time to make client-on-boarding as smooth as it can be, you will eliminate a huge growth constraint when it’s time to scale your business. Not only that, but simplifying this process will allow you to spend more time working on your business, rather than in it.
5. Value overload
The law of reciprocity. What you give, you will get back. When you understand your math, have predictable direct response advertising, and know your target audience well, you are able to spend more upfront in order to acquire them as customers. By doing so, you will render all of your competition useless. Things like gift hampers, free bonuses, discounts, fancy info packs, and more, are all things you can use to get the edge over your competitors.
6. Omnipresence
You want to be everywhere. Abundant. But contrary to popular belief, you don’t need to spend millions of dollars to achieve this. In Jason’s business, he utilized free platforms to stay abundant and remain at the top of his target market’s consciousness. Using mediums such as local Facebook groups, you are able to consistently reach your audience without spending a dime.
7. Delegation and time management
Do you think the CEO of McDonald’s is able to manage over 38,000 restaurants himself? Of course not! A company cannot be scaled without delegating the right tasks and managing time sensibly. If you fail to do so, you will encounter critical constraints when the time comes for you to take your business to the next level. Take a page out of Shipway’s book, and start small by outsourcing simple tasks like Facebook and Instagram page management to vendors on Fiverr, or even by hiring a virtual assistant (VA).
It only took Jason six months to flip his small starting capital into a six figure business. Today, Enhanced Home Cleaning has so many clients that people are practically begging to get onto their waiting list, and Jason’s biggest problem is finding the right staff in order to keep up with the demand. Isn’t that a nice problem to have?
Jason’s commitment to providing an extraordinary amount of value to his clients ensured that he had the edge over his competition, and he is now enjoying the fruits of his labor.
Jason believes that running a business like his can be both enjoyable and financially rewarding when the right components are implemented. According to him, nothing in business happens by chance.
If this teenager’s story is anything to go by, it demonstrates that starting a business doesn’t have to be difficult, even during economic depression.
You can take a look at the house cleaning services Enhanced Home Cleaning offers here. You can also follow Jason on his Instagram page @jcshipway to keep up with the latest from this young entrepreneur.