Start & Run a Home Cleaning Business. Susan Bewsey

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СКАЧАТЬ mission statement and goals:

      Mission statement: The Cleaning Company Inc. will offer the best home-care cleaning service in the area.

      The Cleaning Company Inc. will offer quality cleaning services performed by well-trained, bonded workers to the residents of Anytown, Anywhere, at competitive prices, and will generate sales of $100,000 per annum, with a 40 percent net profit return.

      Our customers are the estimated 5,000 homeowners in the area who have the disposable income and the need for a cleaning service.

      We provide top-notch general cleaning services for our clients. Our goal is to make a profit and provide employment in the Anytown community. The Cleaning Company Inc. will employ ten cleaners on both a full-time and a part-time basis.

      The Cleaning Company Inc. team is made up of both professionals and skilled employees. President and founder Pat Jones is a cleaning professional with 15 years of experience as both an independent cleaner and a contract worker. On the advisory board are Jane Legal, a practicing lawyer with ten years of experience in business and corporate law, and June Counter, a qualified accountant with ten years of experience as a consultant to small business.

      Once you know the potential for your market, set goals for your company. Write down your goals for your company and your mission statement.

      Figuring out how to reach those goals is the next step. You’ll need to know the following:

      (a) Prices to be charged

      (b) Range of services offered (i.e., from light housekeeping to heavy housecleaning)

      (c) Location

      (d) Style and “look” of company

      (e) Type of clientele and how to attract them

      (f) Training required

      (g) Wages

      (h) Expected sales level

      (i) Anticipated growth and its effects

      (j) Future planning to ensure that goals and objectives are met

      Write down your goals and expectations.

      2. Forecasting Your Needs

      2.1 Analyzing your costs

      An essential part of getting your business successfully launched is forecasting your sales and expenses. This is difficult in the beginning when you have no financial history to help you out but you must do it.

      You have two goals for your forecasting: you want to know what your costs are and you want to know what you can expect to earn. Once you know the risks involved versus the potential for earnings, you can estimate what your profits should be. Estimating your costs and income tells you the following things:

      (a) How much you need to start up your business

      (b) Whether you can make a profit

      (c) What equipment is necessary

      (d) Whether your business has growth potential for the future

      (e) Whether potential lenders should invest in your business

      (f) What your risks will be

      (g) How long your start-up funds will last

      An accurate forecast must be based on what you already know. Analyze your existing resources and include the money on hand to put into your business, any loans or outside funds, your business capacity, how much you will charge, and how much it will cost you to provide your service.

      You must also be able to predict how many clients you will have, how much business they will generate, and all the expenses for your business (including advertising, telephone, office supplies, and equipment).

      Costs are subject to change and they will increase based on the growth of your business. Costs are also recoverable expenses. Your accountant can advise you about which ones are tax deductible.

      2.2 Your cash flow projection

      Your cash flow projection is basically an educated guess about future scenarios. It shows how the cash in your account will go up and down over the months that you are in business. It has nothing to do with how profitable you are. If you see a negative number in the cash flow, you are out of cash. By looking ahead, you can foresee this possibility and make plans to cover the situation in plenty of time.

      For now, concentrate on forecasting your cash needs for your first year in business. The cash flow into your business depends on how many people want your cleaning service at the price you charge. Understanding the cash needed to maintain your business and ensuring that more cash comes in than goes out is the major goal of your financial planning.

      All the costs you incur during operations are listed under “Expenses.” The first month shows initial start-up expenses such as equipment and supplies, and other one-time expenses. Salaries will be low for Month 1; usually you are not open for the first month because you are setting up your office and training staff. Operating expenses for the first month will also be low. Some of your start-up bills will actually be paid in the second or even third month, when the invoices arrive. These invoices may include legal and accounting fees, or may be for your purchase of extra equipment. Your first few months in business will have many of these one-time costs as you add to your business.

      The figures for sales will be guesses but they are still useful in terms of seeing how sales affect your business. It is not unusual to find that your expense predictions are within 10 percent of what you will actually spend. That said, you should reward yourself for each month your actual figures are close to your projected figures.

      Review your cash flow projection on a quarterly basis at the very least. You will have to update this form to reflect any changes. For example, the rent for your office may increase, you may want to plan for a major purchase, or you may want to hire employees.

      2.3 Calculating your break-even point

      Your break-even point is the amount of income you must generate each month in order to cover your expenses. Your initial budget should cover your income and expenses only. In the beginning, there is no work, so no salaries have to be paid. Once you need staff, remember to budget for training sessions.

      Work backwards from what you know to arrive at a useful figure. Take the total expenses from each month in the chart that you have worked out and multiply it by ten. This is a quick rule of thumb that is surprisingly accurate. You can also elect to pay staff monthly, holding the first month back to ensure that income is received prior to expenses incurred by staffing.

      You need to know if your plans are reasonable. By adjusting your costs and the other things you need to run your business, you will get an idea of what works and what does not. Ask yourself the following questions:

      (a) Are there enough homes in my area to support my plan?

      (b) What do other business owners think about what I propose to do?

      (c) СКАЧАТЬ