Guides
Guides to winning more cleaning contracts
Written for the owner reading between jobs. How leads are priced, how to bid, how to follow up, and how to tell a real lead from a form fill.
Buying leads
Buying leads
- Are janitorial lead companies a scam? How to vet one before you payHow small cleaning companies get burned buying leads, a 15-point vetting checklist, and what to do if it goes wrong.
- How exclusive lead territories work, and how to draw yoursHow lead vendors define a territory, what a lock really covers, and a template for writing down your own area.
- Commercial cleaning client lifetime value, and what it lets you spendWork out what one janitorial account is worth in gross profit, and the most you can pay to win it.
- Where to buy janitorial leads: every option, compared fairlyA fair overview of every place to buy janitorial leads, with what you get, how you pay and who each option suits.
- What is pay per lead?A definition-first explainer of pay per lead pricing, how it compares with other models, and how it works in cleaning.
- Exclusive vs shared cleaning leads: the close-rate mathA worked comparison of exclusive and shared cleaning leads using cost per signed contract, not cost per lead.
- How much do commercial cleaning leads cost?Cited market ranges for every type of cleaning lead, and the math to find what a lead is worth to you.
- Why cleaning leads fail, and what to fix firstThe real reasons cleaning leads don't close, and the practical fix for each one.
Running the business
Running the business
- California janitorial employer registration: the complete guideWho must register with the Labor Commissioner, what it costs, the training rule, the fines and how to check a sub.
- Cleaning business KPIs: the 15 numbers worth tracking every monthFifteen KPIs for a cleaning company, with formulas, data sources, a one-page dashboard and a monthly review.
- Commercial cleaning insurance and bonding: what clients requireThe coverages, endorsements, bonds and certificates commercial cleaning clients ask for, and how to meet them fast.
- Commercial cleaning profit margins, and what owners really take homeGross margin, net margin and owner earnings for cleaning companies, with government data and a sample P&L.
- Your cleaning crew has empty hours: how to fill themFind where your crew sits idle, then win the accounts that fit those exact hours and streets.
- Floor care upsells that add margin to the accounts you already cleanThe floor care menu, an annual plan by floor type, and how to price and present each job to current clients.
- How to raise prices on commercial cleaning clients without losing themWhen and how to raise commercial cleaning prices, with an escalation clause, a letter template and pushback answers.
- How to staff a new cleaning contract before the start dateA 30-day start-up plan for hiring, training and launching crews on a janitorial account you just won.
- Janitorial production rates: how many square feet per hourSquare feet per hour by task, the factors that change it, and how to time your own crew before you bid.
- Lost your biggest cleaning account? A 30-day plan to replace itA day-by-day plan for the month after a big janitorial contract walks: triage, quick fills and a real pipeline.
- Minimum wage increases in 2027: what cleaning companies should do2027 minimum wage changes by state and province, and how to reprice cleaning contracts to keep your margin.
- How to start a commercial cleaning business: the practical stepsRegistration, insurance, bonding, pricing and first contracts for a new commercial cleaning company.
- How to scale a commercial cleaning company without breaking itThe systems, roles and numbers that let a commercial cleaning company grow past the owner doing everything.
- How to price commercial cleaning: per square foot, hourly or per visitBuild a commercial cleaning price from labor hours, loaded wages, supplies, overhead and margin.
Sales & follow-up
Sales & follow-up
- What is a good close rate for commercial cleaning?Sourced close rate benchmarks, a funnel worksheet and the math for how many leads win one cleaning contract.
- Commercial cleaning cold calling script: free scripts you can copyGatekeeper, decision-maker and voicemail scripts for janitorial cold calls, plus a two-week cadence and tracking sheet.
- Commercial cleaning sales objections and how to answer themFifteen janitorial sales objections by stage, what each really means, and a short reply you can copy.
- Door-to-door sales for commercial cleaning: the walk-in methodHow to walk into small buildings, find who decides on cleaning, and turn a drop-in into a walk-through.
- Janitorial appointment setting script, from first hello to hand-offA word-for-word script for booking cleaning walkthroughs, with qualifying questions, templates and a setter plan.
- LinkedIn for commercial cleaning companies: reach facility managersProfile setup, facility manager searches, connection notes, follow-up messages and a 30-minute weekly routine.
- How facility managers choose a cleaning vendor (and what to pitch)The buyer's view of cleaning vendor selection, and how to shape your pitch to match it.
- How to follow up on a cleaning bid: cadence and templatesA day-by-day follow-up cadence for cleaning quotes, with templates for email, calls, voicemail and text.
- How to qualify a cleaning lead before you drive to the walk-throughBANT adapted for commercial cleaning, with qualifying questions, a scoring sheet and a first-call script.
- Cold email for cleaning companies: setup, the law and 3 examplesHow to set up, send and stay compliant with cold email for commercial cleaning, with three example emails.
- 27 cleaning business marketing ideas, and which ones fit your companyPractical marketing ideas for cleaning companies, marked for commercial, residential or both.
- The commercial cleaning sales process, from prospect to first nightSix stages that turn a prospect into a signed, well-started cleaning contract.
Winning contracts
Winning contracts
- Day porter services: what they are and how to sell themWhat a day porter does, which buildings pay for one, how to set the hourly rate and how to pitch it.
- Green cleaning certifications: do Green Seal and CIMS-GB win work?What GS-42, CIMS-GB and product ecolabels cover, what they cost, which buyers ask for them and when they pay off.
- How to get healthcare cleaning contracts, one rung at a timeThe step-by-step path from urgent care and clinics to surgery centers and hospital work, with the proof each one wants.
- How to get school cleaning contracts, step by stepWho buys school custodial work, how district bids run, when they open, and how to win private and charter schools.
- How to get your first commercial cleaning client with no track recordWinning account one: trust signals, buildings that hire new companies, 10 ways to find them and a first bid.
- How to respond to a janitorial RFP and score points on every pageReading the scoring table, writing the technical approach, filling pricing forms and staying compliant on a formal RFP.
- How to win a property management company's cleaning portfolioTurn one managed building into several: vendor onboarding, reporting, a quarterly review and pricing across buildings.
- Janitorial service agreement template, clause by clauseEvery clause a cleaning contract needs, with sample wording, what to watch for and a printable checklist.
- Janitorial subcontracting: how it works and how to get subcontractsWho hires cleaning subcontractors, how to join their vendor lists, how to price it, and what to watch in the paperwork.
- When do businesses switch cleaning companies? A monthly calendarA 12-month calendar of when cleaning buyers decide, who decides, and what to pitch in each month.
- Why buildings fire their cleaning company, and 12 signs of a switchThe real reasons clients cancel cleaning contracts, and 12 warning signs to watch for as incumbent or challenger.
- The commercial cleaning walkthrough checklist (printable)A full, printable checklist for commercial cleaning walk-throughs, from first questions to measurements by area.
- How to get office cleaning contracts in 2026Target the right offices, reach the person who signs, and pitch for how offices are used now.
- How to win medical office cleaning contractsWhat practice managers check before hiring a cleaner, from OSHA training to disinfectant use, and how to win.
- Commercial cleaning proposal template, section by sectionA complete, copyable commercial cleaning proposal with guidance on what goes in each section.
- 12 janitorial bidding mistakes that cost you the contract or marginThe common errors in janitorial bids, why they happen, and how to catch them before you submit.
- How to get janitorial contracts: direct, subcontract or franchiseThree routes to recurring janitorial work, direct sales, subcontracting and franchising, with the tradeoffs of each.
- How to bid a janitorial job: the math from walk-through to priceProduction rates, labor, supplies, overhead and margin, turned into a monthly janitorial bid with a worked example.
- How to get cleaning clients, residential and commercialWhere residential and commercial cleaning clients come from, and how to reach each one.
- How to get commercial cleaning contracts, step by stepA step-by-step playbook for finding, bidding and keeping commercial cleaning contracts in the US and Canada.
- How to find property managers for cleaning contractsWhere to find the property managers who buy cleaning, and how to earn a place on their vendor list.
- Government cleaning contracts: how to find, bid and win themFederal, state, municipal and Canadian public janitorial contracts, and how to bid on them properly.
Check your area
Find out if your area is still open.
Every area goes to one cleaning company. Once yours is taken, it's taken. Book a free call and find out where you stand.
- Exclusive. One company per area
- Credited. Miss a check, you don't pay
- No contract. Stop whenever you like
Calendar not opening? Book on Cal.com or write to hello@leadwharf.com.
You'll talk to Aarav Sharma
Founder, LeadWharf
What happens on the 30-minute call
You tell us your area, the buildings you want, and the smallest job worth sending a crew to.
We tell you if your area is still open, and what each lead will cost you.
If there isn't enough work near you to make it worth it, we tell you that too.
No hard sell. Nothing to sign on the call.