One of my more popular, "Wait, what?" reactions from fellow entrepreneurs is when I talk about spending equally on both customer and hiring funnels. But I really believe this. Let me explain.
There's So Much to Lose
$4000. That's what we've calculated we lose at MaidThis Franchise when a cleaner leaves us. That's because this cleaner has been producing stable income, which we might lose when they leave. We'll also take a minimum of two weeks to replace them (if we don't have people on the bench, something I'll get to in a sec). We will lose some customers who are very attached to that cleaner and may not stay with us as a result. Even when we do hire a replacement we will have an onboarding window that needs to be completed before that new cleaner is up to speed.
An even bigger number? $40,000. That's the low end of the range of annual revenue that an A-team cleaner delivers for us. So, you can see why losing members of your service business shouldn't be just another day in the office. You have to believe that in service businesses you should ABC (Always be 'Cruiting...hey, it's close, give me some credit).
There's So Much to Gain
If a customer calls you and needs a service today and you don't have the bandwidth to offer that, it's not just an opportunity for the day that is lost, it's a potential recurring revenue opportunity lost. Whatever "risk" you incur by having "too many" team members as you grow and scale, it will be worth it to create an atmosphere of abundance for potential customers: you're able to say Yes more.
By pushing your hiring funnel, you're also at least giving yourself the chance of stacking the deck with A-players. Even if you don't love basketball as much as I do you'll get the impact of this idea: imagine LeBron or Kobe as one of your bench players. You'd never lose! You don't want B-players on your bench.
B-Player Probs
Baditude. You know what I'm talking about. These B-players affect your office staff, they affect other employees, and worst of all, they affect your customers. While it's a big ask (but not impossible) to have everyone on your team be A-players, it's a big risk to rely on B-players.
Imagine you do have that customer call you who needs a service today and you send a B-player out there. It's 50/50 or less that you capture a recurring customer or even a decent online review from the experience. Why take that risk? Stack your team with A-players and then go out there and find some more.
Have an Ad That Stands Out
There are literally hundreds of thousands of job ads that you're competing against. Trust me when I say "cleaner wanted" is not a winning strategy in my industry. But you know what fills our funnel? Headlines like "Rock Star Cleaners" and "Not Another Crappy Job."
But great headlines only get people to click. Once they do that, I need to get them to apply. Here's where you can sell your company culture, not just the financial opportunity. Lean into that (fun pictures from company parties help).
Don't tell them that they can call or text or apply here or there. Narrow all options down to one. If that's texting, great. If that's a form, fine. The point is that these people are not likely at a desk, resumes out, ready to "apply for a job." They are just as likely to be on a toilet and can swipe over to Instagram if you don't TELL THEM WHAT TO DO NEXT.
So, to review:
- realize that it's just as important to invest in your hiring funnel as your customer acquisition funnel; all the leads in the world don't matter if you don't have the staff to deliver
- focus on A-players and spend the time and effort and money necessary to hire them and retain them
- hire those A-players through a funnel that includes a fun and atypical job ad that highlights your company culture and has a simple CTA.
In the next article in this series I'll share where we've had great success posting our job ads.
Photo by Eric Prouzet on Unsplash
This article was written by Neel from MaidThis Franchise, a remote-local franchise opportunity for people looking to escape the rate race and reach financial freedom. Learn more here.
