If you want to increase revenue, your commercial cleaning company must do one of three things: raise prices, sell additional services to existing customers, or expand your customer base. Of the three, expanding your customer base is the only option guaranteed to provide you with sustainable income growth.

If you’ve been in business for a while, your company may have fallen into a routine, providing the same services to the same clients.

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If that’s the case, consider that the best way to expand your client base is to branch out to different industries.

Identify an underserved market niche

There are certainly successful cleaning companies that only clean office buildings, but if you are looking to expand the reach of your business, there are many other types of facilities to consider. If you are willing to meet their specific requirements, you may open up a huge potential customer base.

For instance, cleaning medical facilities including doctors’ offices, hospitals, urgent care centers, and dental practices, means following specific established guidelines and best cleaning methods to kill the germs and bacteria found in these spaces.

Government offices that deal with sensitive matters may require your employees to have additional background checks before you are allowed to access their facilities.

A contract to clean area schools can be a lucrative one but will require your staff to work afternoons and evenings when the building is empty. They may also require alternatives to harsh cleaning solutions to prevent possible allergic reactions from the children.

When cleaning manufacturing facilities, you may have the added pressure of working while the machinery is operating nearby.  Additionally, there may be extensive environmental health and safety standards required that you would need to be prepared to handle.

Take the time to look for new customer segments that are underserved or fit well into your sweet spot.

Identify potential clients

The simplest – and often the best – way of finding new customers is asking your current customers for referrals. Consider offering a discount for each successful referral as an incentive. You’ll also want to partner with other local businesses to expand your network. Consider businesses like commercial landscaping companies or painters to trade potential leads with them. Get creative with these partnerships, like working with apartment complexes to clean the units before new tenants move in.

Before identifying these clients, be sure to establish a travel radius, deciding on the farthest you will travel to do a job. It’s often better to have more clients concentrated in a smaller area than wasting time and money traveling to a job – even if that job pays more.

Winning the contracts

Many large companies require commercial cleaners to submit bids before they award a contract, so you need to be ready to pitch your business. When you meet with a potential client, they may criticize their current cleaning service, but it’s important you don’t join in. Instead, ask them how that business fell short, and what they are looking for from you before explaining how you can meet their needs.

Be specific about what you can offer them that addresses their pain points. Simply selling your business is not enough, explaining how you can address their unique concerns will win them over.

For example, if the customer explains that adverse reactions to existing chemicals have resulted in employee absenteeism, explain how your products can help reduce allergic reactions and keep their teams at work.

When it comes time to talk price, be sure to confirm the square footage of the area and how often they want it cleaned so you can provide an accurate and competitive bid for the project.

Making sure your efforts pay off

Of course, winning new clients goes hand in hand with retention when you’re building your customer base. The only way to do this is by offering the best quality service and addressing all their needs every time you clean.

Doug Flaig is the President of Stratus Building Solutions, a janitorial services franchise organization, where he ensures that franchisees and customers receive world-class service. He previously served as Chief Operating Officer with Safe Facility Services, a janitorial services provider, headquartered in Thousand Oaks, CA.