So I’m thinking of doing some newspaper advertisement, and I’m using Home Advisor and I was using Google Adwords. But before I move to newspapers and fliers I really wanted to see what you guys think is the best way to advertise? Or maybe how to advertise with newspaper advertising and fliers? Hope the question makes sense!
Thanks!
For best return on investment, vehicle signs and work polo shirts with “Window Cleaner” and your phone number printed really big on the back worked best for me.
For speed of gaining clients - pounding the street, knocking on doors and talking to people is ALWAYS the fastest. It is hard work & personally I found it very draining, so I only did it when I first started out & needed to fill my books fast.
Newspapers never worked for me - the only print ad that I actually got a decent return on was in a local community free magazine that was distributed to al the towns in my area,… but newspaper ads were a bust every time.
Flyers work - but the return is low. If you get 2 calls from every 100 flyers you should be ecstatic (Thats the best I managed personally) - most people get 1 call every 200. With flyers you have to play the numbers game, go in for the long haul, and hit the same areas every couple of months with a different offer. I found that the 5th & 6th times I flyered an area was when I got best results.
When I first started, I think I added about 100 residential customers by knocking on door my first year. That proved to be a quick way to make money.
The next thing that has enabled me to not have to do any soliciting is a seo optimized website. I just started paying for a company to handle it all for me and I get 2-3 new calls a day sometimes.
Another form which you can read a lot about here on the forum is doing EDDM. This can be a little more expensive but it is a good option for bringing in customers when you don’t have time anymore to knock on doors.
I also have found that’s it easier to get a price that you want for your service when they are looking for you and not you going to them( soliciting) .
But you have to start somewhere
So for your SEO, what keywords are you optimized more. Is it just “window cleaning”, “window washing” or is it “window cleaning + city name”?
Get a sheet of paper and make three or four columns.
Label those columns; Door Hangers, Cold Calls, Newspaper ads, Door-To-Door.
Under those labels jot down how much work you landed from each.
The ones that get the most work for you, go out and hammer like crazy.
I would pay to have a phone number in the phone book again before advertising in the newspaper. You want to talk about a waste of money. Think about the demographic of who still reads newspapers. It is going to be older people. And if they want their windows washed they probably already have a guy who has done it for years.
That is just my own theory on why newspapers are a dead end.
Newspaper isn’t dead, but does get beat up pretty good by the internet. Most of don’t think of this, but over the next month try to make it a point to notice how many of your customers have a newspaper laying around. Just curious. 
“Window cleaner” (not cleaning) + city name is often the best.
Signup for Google adwords, and use the Keyword planner tool to research what keywords are most valuable in your area.
Fliers and door hangers have always been my best source for gaining new clients.
I also leave business cards, postcards with some sort of coupon/call to action, and a 8x11 flier looking ad in a plastic holder (also holds my business cards) at several of my route work customers.
New customers from word of mouth and referrals almost always turn into the best customers.
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You never know where your next customer will come from when you experiment with expanding your exposure.
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My concerns with newspaper ads is that they are not interactive. I can’t see how many views they get and how many “likes.” They are also black and white (unless part of an expensive insert) and I think that having color ad pics of Windows with reflections is important.
Forget newspaper & home advisor-if you want to put in the work flyers and door hangers are good to make inroads in residential. Business phone and website a must and if you can afford seo another mandatory way to get inquiries
It seems the general consensus here is that flyers and door hangers are the best way to go. So you guys all do this work yourself or you hire someone to hand out the fliers for you?
When I was big on residential I would go door to door while crew finished the job-also order LAWN SIGNS from Vistaprint and either ask to leave them onsite for a week of just put them up while you work…….we also used to put flyers in mailboxes until postmaster of each town would call with cease and desist or put them in the newspaper box which is legal. If your workers are motivated or you know people out of work (students?) it doesn’t hurt to pay for distribution.Also do you know anyone who delivers newspapers or food? Another quick way to distribute.
My business runs off of storefronts. I have less than 100, but they are restaurants, and places where ownership and management can afford nice homes. Treat your storefronts like a residential, and you’ll have more residential than you know what to do with!
Business cards are a must. Magnets are ok, but a professional appearance and trustworthy/personable appeal are what work for me.
The worst thing you can do is act like a drunk UFC fighter after a loss…
The best thing you can do is make everyone comfortable without getting walked over.
Do you know what the ROI is for EDDM, is it about the same as door hangers?
hmm, i never thought of getting high end commercial, that’s a very interesting concept, and something to most certainly think about. Yeah, I guess that would be a GREAT form of advertising. If you do commercial in a really nice area, then you would of course get some of those customers of the buildings or the owners themselves as customers. Hmm, Brilliant!!
i think flyers work the best-but only if you dole out far more,and then some,more than what you first envisage. theres also a follow on effect from flyers becos some careful folk keep them to one side,calling up months later. you go out flyering week after week and guaranteed you will have a solid core of work. the internet works well too,but it doesnt hit the type of customer that a colossal amount of flyers get to.
