Prefer to listen? Listen to this article instead → This post is based on my YouTube video of the same name.
Are you tired of competing on price? Tired of clients who nickel and dime you, cancel last minute, and try to negotiate your rates after the job is already done? Tired of working harder and harder just to make the same money?
Here’s what I know after 25 years in this industry: there is a way to attract clients who pay double, sometimes triple, what you’re charging right now. And it has nothing to do with being the cheapest option in your market.
Most cleaning business owners are stuck in a race to the bottom because they believe that’s just how the industry works. So they compete with every other cleaning business willing to work for nothing, and it’s exhausting. I hate seeing good owners trapped in that cycle, working their tails off for clients who don’t value what they do — all because they think that’s simply how this industry runs.
Here’s the truth: it isn’t. The clients who pay the most aren’t shopping on price — they’re shopping on value. When you position yourself correctly, those clients pay your rates without negotiating, and they refer their friends and family without you even asking.
Below are the four steps I teach my coaching students to attract premium clients. These aren’t theories — they’re strategies that have helped students go from charging $30 an hour to charging $75, even $100 an hour.
Step 1: Stop Being a Cleaner, and Start Being a Problem Solver
Most cleaning business owners think they’re in the cleaning business. But premium clients aren’t hiring you to clean — they’re hiring you to solve a problem.
That busy family is paying you to give them their weekends back and reduce their stress. The elderly couple is paying you for peace of mind and independence. That business owner is paying you to keep their staff’s working environment healthy.
When you understand this, everything changes — your marketing, your pricing, and most importantly, your confidence. You’re not just offering cleaning services. You’re offering time, peace of mind, and a better quality of life. And that’s worth a lot more than 25 or 30 dollars an hour.
Step 2: Position Yourself as the Premium Choice
Premium clients don’t trust cheap service providers. They know that good work costs good money, so when you position yourself as the budget option, you’re telling them your work isn’t that great or valuable. Position yourself as the premium choice, and everything shifts.
Selling yourself as a premium option comes down to a few things:
- Keep your communication prompt and polished.
- Don’t compete on price, and don’t apologize for your prices.
- Prove your value, your reliability, and your results instead of justifying your rate.
Simply put, you look, act, and communicate like the premium choice — because that’s exactly what you are. One of my coaching students, Gregory, booked a residential clean at $550, about double what most cleaning businesses in his market would charge, simply by positioning himself this way. He didn’t discount his way into that job — he communicated like someone worth $550, and the client agreed.
Step 3: Target Your Marketing at the Right Clients
This is where most cleaning business owners go wrong. Premium clients look for premium providers in specific places, and quite often they’re not even searching — they’re waiting for someone to find them. That means going directly to them is faster and more effective than waiting to be found.
If you want to attract luxury homeowners but you’re only advertising on Craigslist and bargain-hunting Facebook groups, you’re going to struggle to find them. If you want larger commercial buildings or government offices, posting on Instagram will do very little for you. Pick your ideal client and shape your marketing efforts around attracting them, and only them.
That means naming your ideal client specifically — the property type, the neighborhood or business district, the budget — before you spend a single dollar on marketing. Once you know exactly who you’re trying to reach, you can go find where they already are, instead of hoping they stumble across a generic ad.
Building a profitable cleaning business doesn’t require everyone in your market to hire you. You just need the right people in your market to hire you.
Step 4: Clearly Communicate Your Value
Premium clients expect a premium experience, and that starts before your business ever shows up to clean. Make your bidding process smooth and professional. Make your scheduling reliable. Make your communication clear and consistent.
Why does that matter? Because the easiest thing you can give a premium client is time — the most valuable resource they have, more valuable to them than money. This is exactly the kind of consistency a system like CleanRev is built to support: reliable scheduling, clean communication, and an organized client history so nothing falls through the cracks between the bid and the job.
When you arrive to do the work, look the part — clean appearance, professional supplies, an organized approach — and always aim to exceed expectations, not just in the work itself but in how you do it. Afterward, follow up: check in, ask for feedback, thank them for their business, and book the next cleaning. None of these touches cost extra money, but they communicate that you’re worth premium prices.
Remember: premium clients pay more for consistency and reliability. They don’t want to manage you or worry about you — they just want to trust you. That’s why proving your value, over and over, matters more than any single sales pitch. One of my students, Jaci, told me that once she built real rapport with her clients, they became free advertising — referring new, equally great clients without her ever asking.
Higher-Paying Clients Aren’t Harder to Find — They’re Just Looking Differently
Notice what these four steps have in common: none of them require you to be the cheapest business in your area, and none of them require chasing anyone down. Higher-paying clients aren’t harder to find. They’re just looking for different things, and they hang out in different places.
They don’t want the cheapest option — they want the best option. They want reliability, professionalism, and results. When you position yourself correctly, market to the right people, and deliver a premium experience, these clients find you. You won’t have to chase them. You won’t have to convince them. You won’t have to apologize for your prices.
You’re not just cleaning spaces. You’re creating peace of mind, solving real problems, and giving people their time back. That is incredibly valuable — and valuable services deserve premium prices.
Written by Bethany Jean Montlary — CEO of CleanRev Inc. Bethany has built multiple 6- and 7-figure cleaning businesses over 25+ years and coaches cleaning business owners on her YouTube channel, The Professional Cleaner. If you want personal help positioning your business as the premium choice and attracting the high-paying clients you deserve: Work with Bethany →