Case Study: Personalizing a Business

The Client

A locally owned Sarasota Manatee county cleaning service wanted to establish an internet presence.

The Objective

Build credibility and trust for a small, locally owned service company with a limited budget.

The Challenge

Very competitive industry with many large franchises. The Sarasota and Manatee market are saturated with both individually owned and franchised cleaning businesses.
No online presence. The business needed a cost effective way to demonstrate skills and share testimonials to reinforce initial sales contacts.

The Opportunities

A positive business reputation to build on.
- trusted by an established customer base willing to share reviews and testimonials
- operating as a licensed, insured and bonded company
The unique selling propositions.
- the business uses only safe, earth friendly cleaning supplies and practices
- the focus is on customized service: in addition to many specialty cleaning packages, they offer à la carte hourly services

The Campaign

Build a website focused on the personality of the owner and her company.

Acquired a domain name that included the company legal name: Pearl Cleaning LLC became PearlCleaningService.com online.
Created a personal content driven, mobile friendly responsive website.
Developed a contact form for follow up marketing.
Featured testimonials from satisfied customers as a credibility builder.
Shared a personal connection with the owner through website content and photos.
Established a social media presence emphasizing tools that allow customers to write reviews: Google plus, Angie’s List, Yelp and other local search sites.

The End Result

Website
Google business page
Yelp listing
Angie’s List – opportunity for review

Brand Name
The brand name / domain name was selected as a memorable reference to the legal business entity: Pearl Cleaning LLC.
Content Strategy
This website was developed so prospective clients could get a flavor of the business owner and her practices. Fully explaining the service options, environmentally-friendly practices and core values was paramount. The intent was to create a website that helps a family feel comfortable with the people who will be entering their home.

Because many of their competitors are not licensed, insured, or bonded and are individual operators – we decided to emphasize the fact that this company is different. The content focuses on why a consumer should take care when hiring a domestic service company. It also explains the liability a homeowner faces when selecting a cleaning service so a homeowner can make an informed decision.
Testimonials
The website is set up to feature testimonials from satisfied customers. It was also developed so new reviews / testimonials can be easily and quickly added.
Local Search & Social Media
This site was developed initially as an online brochure / sales tool for new prospect referral.

We developed a series of services targeted to seasonal residents, rental property managers and real estate agents to help with organic search results. We also established listings in Google +, Yelp and Angie’s List where the owner can request that clients add reviews. These inbound links will be helpful in appearing in local search results.

Personal Content
In the cleaning service industry, putting a face to a company is critical. Homeowners are handing over the keys to their home, so developing a comfort level with the company owner is a priority. On this website, an entire content section replaces the typical “About Us” page. The most important of those pages is the “Meet the Owner” page which is a personal letter to prospective clients.

Incorporating photographs of the owner is another important part of the personal content.
Sales Support
This established small business got many referrals from satisfied clients, but their marketing materials were limited to business cards and small promotional items. The website serves as an online brochure for the company.

In the process of developing website content, a review of practices was the basis for information documenting comapny services. In addition to educating new customers, this content offers an excellent opportunity to up-sell additional services to existing customers.