Use social media platforms to expand your reach and spike the returns on your janitorial marketing efforts.
Some janitorial companies love to stick with ads in their local print magazine. Others find cold calling works well, and some even like broadcast advertising. The truth is, all those methods work, but it’s likely that there’s no better way to boost your janitorial marketing campaigns than to use social media to connect with your audiences.
That’s not to say you should give up on other forms of marketing. But if social media doesn’t make up a large portion of your janitorial marketing plan, you may be missing out. Of course, it’s not as easy as just signing up for Facebook (although that’s a good start if you haven’t done it yet!). Here you’ll find some tips and tricks to make your social media marketing more effective, which in the end will not only make you money, but it will save you some, too.
Change the way you work with Janitorial Manager. Check out a free demo today to see all the great features we have to offer!
Everything you need to get started with janitorial marketing campaigns on social media
1. Know your platforms
Janitorial marketing is a niche market, like any other. The good news is that even in such a niche, you can use almost any platform to reach your audience. What’s important is to pick the social media platforms that will work best for you.
Instagram, for example, is a great place to showcase your work because it mostly communicates ideas to people through pictures. YouTube works well as a platform for videos of your teams in action. With Facebook, you can engage your audiences in conversations, demonstrate your values and culture as a business. And Twitter is the perfect place to connect with other companies that may need your services.
No platform is beyond your reach, but develop a strategy for each one that exploits its benefits.
2. #Usehashtags
Hashtags are a critical part of social media marketing. They work by drawing attention to your posts through a word or series of words preceded by a hashtag. So if I’m looking for janitorial marketing advice, for example, I might look up #janitorialmarketing on Twitter and see who has posted with that hashtag. Instagram and Twitter, especially, rely on hashtags to get content to the intended audiences.
So when you’re posting, don’t just leave a little blurb for people to read, but also use hashtags: #cleaners, #commercialcleaners, #carpetcleaning, or #ecofriendly, for instance. Of course, only use a hashtag if it describes a service you offer!
3. Include images
Using images on Instagram is a given, but include them in your other posts as well. Pictures are usually the first thing to capture your audience’s attention. For a janitorial marketing campaign, show off the before-and-after of a job well done, or highlight new equipment to promote your business. Whatever you decide, make sure the pictures are crisp, clean, and professional-looking. Grainy, distorted photos won’t get the attention you’re looking for.
4. Post regularly, not excessively
Posting regularly differs from platform to platform. For a janitorial marketing campaign, posting once or twice a week on Instagram is probably enough, but if you’re on Facebook, you’ll want to engage your public in conversation, which may mean posting comments a couple of times a day. The same goes for Twitter, though you can use Twitter, like Facebook, to demonstrate your values and culture through comments that may not even be related to commercial cleaning. There is, of course, a fine line between running a business account and a personal account, but with a little practice, you’ll learn how to walk it well.
5. Avoid hot button topics, unprofessional content
Some brands let their politics define them. Ultimately, that’s up to the business owner, but there’s a lot of business to be lost if you focus your social media accounts on hot buttons topics, like politics and religion. Leave anything negative out of your janitorial marketing campaigns. Focus on the work you do and connecting with the audiences you want to do it for. You can still be selective about your customers if you want, but we don’t suggest doing it through social media.
That also means, don’t get into comment wars with anyone. Always keep your content polite and professional, no matter what you believe. This shows everyone that your primary focus is on your work and how it can serve the public.
Speaking of professional content, use professional-looking pictures, proofread for spelling and grammar errors, and keep your content family-friendly. If you can, invest in professional help, at least as you get started. Social media is known for keeping costs down, but the internet is polished enough that the mere appearance of your content lets people know what type of business you may be. Don’t let them make wrong assumptions about you because you only had a flip-phone camera to take a picture with!
In the end, running your janitorial marketing campaign through social media is more a necessity than an option these days. Take the time to do it right, learn what works and what doesn’t, and also, don’t forget to have some fun with it!
With features like job bidding, time tracking, project management, and more, Janitorial Manager is your one-stop solution for keeping your cleaning business running smoothly. Sign up for a free demo to find out more!