If you enjoy working in different locations and outdoors, then starting a swimming pool business is the right idea for you. If you are organised and have strong customer service skills, it would become easier for you to start this business. The startup cost is also comparatively low.
You can choose to offer cleaning services to residential or commercial pool owners. Commercial pool cleaning includes hotels, apartments, resorts, fitness centers, etc.
Pool cleaning includes a multi-step process such as removing ant debris from the pool, checking and adjusting the chemical level and cleaning the pool. These are essential services required by the swimming pool owners to preserve the pool’s life and keep the water bacteria-free for the swimmers.
Commercial pools require regular services as they see a high degree of use, and commercial pools are larger than the residential pool. Starting commercial pool cleaning requires more time and fetches you more profits.
In addition to this, you can also offer pool equipment repair service, replacing parts of the pool filter pumps, and more.
According to research, the swimming pool cleaning business experienced annual growth of around 6 percent in the past few years. The industrial revenue of this business was more than $6 billion in 2020. The growth in disposable income has led to an increase in the swimming pool cleaning business.
As homeowners have more disposable income, they can afford swimming pool cleaning services to their pool. As the number of newly constructed houses with pools is increasing, it has created a demand for this businesses. It is leading to an increasing customer base and increasing income for the people in the industry.
Costs to Start a Pool Cleaning Business
Starting a swimming pool cleaning business requires a comparatively lower initial investment. You will incur a cost to purchase necessary equipment, and supplies include cleaning essential tools like skimmers, vacuum and brushes, and water test kit, and pool chemicals. You can make use of your truck or van to run this business.
Skills, education, and experience required in running Pool Cleaning Business
It is not required to have a certified degree to start a swimming pool cleaning business, but certain skills and experience will help you to run and grow the business successfully.
Familiarity with different types of cleaning machines and types of equipment will help you in the smooth running.
When you will be cleaning the pool and working with chemicals, you need to give attention to detail. Clients will easily understand if you can do a thorough cleaning and maintaining business or not. And if they see that there is a lack of professionalism, they might not want to depend on you for their pool cleaning and maintaining requirements.
Pool cleaners are not only responsible for cleaning but maintaining pumps, filters, and all other components, it will require you to have mechanical experience. You should be able to install new parts quickly.
If you plan to expand your business, you will have to hire employees. In this case, your management skill will come into play while interviewing, training, and overseeing employees.
Customer service is a very essential part of the any business. As a business owner, you need to have good communication skills to manage schedules. That will help you to establish a good relationship with potential customers and retain them.
11 Steps to Start a Swimming Pool Cleaning Business
#1. Prepare a Business Plan
When you decide to start your own business, the step is to note down your business plan. It is necessary to understand the odds of business. Do some research to know, who is your audience? Competition, pricing strategy, etc. One must come up with a foolproof plan to run a successful business. If you are planning to source your finance from banks, then it is even more essential to get a business plan written down, otherwise, banks will not provide you with the loan.
Finding the perfect name for your business can be challenging. Avoid choosing the words which are difficult to pronounce and make sure it is easy to spell and to remember.
#3. Form a Legal Business Entity
The next step is to form a legal business entity to operate your business lawfully. There are various kinds of business entities to choose from, such as sole proprietorship, partnership, Limited Liability Company, and corporation. Each business entity has its pros and cons, including costs, liability exposure, administrative requirement, and more. You need to research well about the different business entities and figure out what you want to work on.
You need to have a business license and other permits to operate your business lawfully. Some of the business registration include sales tax permits and Employer Identification Number. You may require certification to operate your business professionally through the Health Department.
#5. Financing the Business
Coming up with a good business idea is not sufficient to start a business. Finding finances for your swimming pool cleaning business is the most important part. While the start-up cost required to start a pool cleaning business is comparatively low, it can be difficult to get a loan if you don’t have a good credit score. You will also need to invest personally to run the business.
To keep records of all income and expenses, you will require to open a business bank account and get a business credit card. That also enables you to separate your personal and business finances.
#8. Create an Excellent Marketing plan
Every business needs to create a marketing plan to build up a customer base. There are various marketing techniques for the swimming pool cleaning business such as handing business cards, social media marketing, and word-of-mouth. Social media marketing includes creating business pages on Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest, targeted direct mail, etc. Develop a website with complete and detailed information about your business. And do not forget to add your business on Google map.
#9. Get Business Insurance
A swimming pool cleaning business needs multiple types of insurance:
General liability insurance
Commercial property insurance
Commercial auto liability insurance
Worker’s compensation insurance
Insurance cost will depend on various factors such as the value of the equipment you want to insure, location of the business, value of the vehicles used for the business.
#10. Hire Employees
As your business starts growing and demand for your services increases, you will need more employees to keep up with the work. Remember hiring employees will increase your expenses too. You will need to include workers’ insurance, payroll tax contribution to your budget. Develop a training system for them to be effective in the cleaning business.
#11. Set up an Accounting System
Setting up accounting is very essential for the long-term success of the business. This will not only help you to keep your business out of trouble from the government and also helps to monitor cash flow and maximize the profits.
Pros of Starting Swimming Pool Cleaning Business
There are various advantages of starting a pool cleaning business. Some of them that must be considered before starting are:
Working outdoors: If you love being outdoors, you will enjoy working in the pools, especially in the summers.
Setting your working hours: when you start your own business and you are self-employed, you can choose your working hours.
Exercise: As swimming pool cleaning includes physical work that includes good exercise, it will help you to be in good shape.
Cons of Starting Swimming Pool Cleaning Business
With several advantages, there is also some drawback in starting a pool cleaning business. Some of them are:
Seasonal work: As the pool cleaningbusiness flourishes only during the summers, you may need to look for other work during the offseason.
Chemical: Cleaning the pool will require you to work with some chemical which can be harmful to your health.
Training: The swimming pool cleaning business requires you to have some training and understanding of cleaning and maintaining the pool.
Exposure to the sun: Working with a pool will require you to get exposed to the sun for a longer period that may not be suitable for you.
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