Are associations worth joining?
That's a great question, and we're going to talk about that today.
Hi there, I'm Angela Brown and this is Ask A House Cleaner.
This is a show where you get to ask a house cleaning question
and I get to help you find an answer.
Now today's show is brought to us by MyCleaningConnection.com
There's a list on there of associations that have to do with the cleaning industry
and then also the local chambers of commerce and
things like that that you may want to join.
Check it out: MyCleaningConnection.com
Now back to today's question, which was from a write-in from a customer, or it could be
a homeowner, it could be a house cleaner, who wanted to know if joining associations
was a good way to run your business.
That's an excellent question, and the answer is yes, if, yes if you work it.
Because you're only going to get out of something that you put into it.
If you join, let's say, the chamber of commerce, and you never attend a meeting, and you never
go online and you never access any of their information or their documents, it's a waste
of your money.
It's not going to be good for you at all.
But, if you use it to your advantage, then yes, it's well worth the $100 or $300 or $500
a year that it's going to cost you to join.
Now there are a lot of different associations that are out there, and there are business
meetings like BNI or the networking groups that are in your area that are sponsored by
different business groups.
The chamber of commerce is one of them, BNI (Business Network International) is another one.
There are also cleaning associations and different groups that you can join.
My suggestion would be what do they have that they offer.
Now, for example, the Better Business Bureau offers the information that you can use for
your website.
You can say, "We are proud members of the Better Business Bureau," or "We are accredited
members."
Then you are allowed to use their logo and their seal on your website, which lends instant
credibility.
Also, having a chamber of commerce logo lends instant credibility.
If you're just starting out in the business and you need to instant credibility to show
that you are in fact a real business, that's a great way to do that.
Now my next suggestion would be that you actually attend the meetings.
If there are local meetups and there are meetings, let's say once a month or once a week, I would
recommend that you go.
Now there are a lot of other people that go there that are not necessarily house cleaners.
So you say, "Why would I go?
What does this have to do with me?"
What it has to do with you is you're part of a community.
You're part of something that is bigger than yourself.
When you go to these meetings, you want to network and you want to pass out your business
cards.
You want to interact with people that are there.
There are a lot of small business owners that join the chamber of commerce.
As a result, you might be able to create what we call industry partnerships.
The industry partnerships allow you to connect with, let's say, carpet cleaners or window
washers or people that do pressure washing.
Maybe these are people that service some of the same customers that you have.
Now as a house cleaner it's really easy to get in our head and think that we have all
the answers because we are house cleaners.
But the reality is there are other businesses that because they have the same clients you
do, they might also have some information that you need.
For example, I would ask them while you're networking: Where do you go to find the best
customers?
Then listen, because they may have some places that they go that you haven't even thought
of yet.
You're like, "Oh, that's a whole untapped market that I haven't even considered."
You can pick up clues from the other people that are working in the same markets that
you're in.
"By the way, what is your best tactic for collecting money from people who are slow
to pay?"
Then listen.
Listen what the other vendors that are in the area working with the same clients on
the same budget as you, what they have to tell you.
Then also questions like: Where do you find your best employees?
How do you hire your best employees?
What are your best hiring practices?
How do you fire a customer when you've discovered that they've lied to you or that they've tricked
you into doing more work than you've actually bid?
What are your methods of fixing that kind of a problem?
Find out how other local vendors are doing it in your market.
Because it's realize to go online, for example, and to go in a Facebook group where any kind
of people say things that in fact they don't have the courage themselves to say to a customer.
They'll give you this great advice but the reality is they themselves are not doing it.
You get face to face with your customer and you're kind of a little bit nervous to try
this because my Facebook friend is not paying my bills.
I'm the one that's paying my bills, and if I do what my Facebook food said, I'm the totally
screw up this deal, and then I lose a client.
I'm not so sure if I should do it or not.
But if you're talking to another vendor, let's say a local painter, who has dealt with some
of the same customers or in the same neighborhoods, he might say, "Okay, so, here's the deal with
this neighborhood.
Here's about the going rate.
Here's about how much you can charge.
Here's how you collect."
They might give you some great advice or some great tips.
There's a lot you can learn from other people that are not specifically in your industry.
Then you can always partner up with those industry partners and say, "Listen, you're
a house painter so we won't step on each other's toes because I'm a house cleaner.
If you go to bid a job and the house is too messy and you need everything cleaned so that
you can get to the walls, then would you give them my card, and I will give people your
card," and you swap cards so that you can help promote each other in the same community.
People work with people they know, like, and trust.
In my local community in Charlotte, North Carolina, I have handfuls of people that I've
known for 15-20 years.
We've all been sending business to each other across the years because we deal with a lot
of the same customers in the same markets.
It's not just how much is it going to cost me and is it worth it.
It's only worth it if you put in the time and the effort.
It's like the gym membership.
You buy a gym membership and that doesn't make you skinny.
It doesn't make you toned.
Unless you get in the car and you go down to the gym and you work out on a regular,
consistent basis, your gym membership is just a waste of money.
It's the same with these community groups and networking groups and business groups.
If you join them but you don't participate, it's a waste of money.
But if you go and you get as much out of them as you possibly can and you become a mover
and a shaker and a leader in the community, and you volunteer at the meetings, and you're
the first to show up and the last to leave, you're going to become known as a pillar in
the community.
Then when people say, "Hey, who do you know that's a house cleaner?" they're going to
say, "I know Angela.
Call Angela and her company because they're everywhere.
They're at all the meetings I attend."
You want to become that person.
You want to become the face of your business.
Is it worth it to join associations?
Yes, absolutely.
Absolutely, if you are willing to put in the time.
Alrighty, that's my two cents for today.
Until we meet again
leave the world a cleaner place than when you found it.
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