Reinvesting Back Into Your Pressure Washing Business
One of the most common obstacles that holds back pressure washing business owners from growing their revenue and getting more trucks on the road is getting more leads. This problem ties directly into not investing back into your business in the form of equipment and advertising. The entrepreneurial business owners I learn from and speak to always say the same thing with regard to operating a small business. The first couple of years you are running a small business, you need to be reinvesting as much money as possible back into the business.
When I first started my own pressure washing business many years ago, in the first 2 years in business I only paid myself enough to cover my bare minimum living expenses. I didn’t see the inside of a restaurant during these 2 years, nor did I take any vacations. Every cent that I made was reinvested back into my business. This positioned me nicely at the start of the third year. If you want to grow your pressure washing business and get out of the field and into the office or sales car then the only way to move forward is by having the right equipment and an adequate amount of money saved at the start of each year to reinvest into pressure washing advertising strategies.
How to Reinvest in Pressure Washing Equipment
The reality is that your equipment will break at the worst possible time. The first day on a multi-day commercial cleaning project your air diaphragm pump will break. Midway through a roof cleaning your ag hose gets a leak by the clamped end. We have all been there. If you want to be up and running quickly in order to make the customer happy, finish the job quickly, mitigate any potential damage, and collect a check then you need to have backup equipment for everything. I mean EVERYTHING.
My first year of pressure washing, I had a single-axle trailer. I was towing the trailer when suddenly a tire became flat and a leaf spring broke. This resulted in a non-functional axle. I had to order a new axle, tire, and leaf springs which arrived 1 week later. I was out of business for an entire week and I was forced to cancel the remaining jobs I had that day. If I remember correctly, two homeowners rescheduled and 1 homeowner did not.
Guess who bought a backup leaf spring, and tires for the year?
Equipment that you NEED to have backups of:
Pressure Hoses
Pressure Gun / Pressure Wand
Downstream Injector
Hose Reel Swivels
All Couplers & Quick Connects
Bleach
Cleaning Chemicals
Air Diaphragm Pump
Fully Stocked Tool Set
Transfer Pump for SH
Surface Cleaner Rotary Arm
Equipment that you SHOULD have backups of:
Pressure Washing Pump
Pressure Washer
Trailer and Truck Repair Parts
Hose Reels
Plumbing Parts and Valves
The idea is that you should never be non-operational for more than a day. The pressure washing industry deals with corrosive chemicals and high-pressure water systems, often with heated water. You are going to have equipment break down on you.
Saving Money for Advertising Your Pressure Washing Business
You need to have money at the start of the pressure washing season (early spring for most of my east coast guys) dedicated solely to pressure washing advertising campaigns if you want to start the year off strong. When you know your numbers, you can start to forecast the amount of leads and paying customers you will have in your first month of the new season. Unless you are fortunate enough to operate somewhere that:
Has a climate that has year round pressure washing customers
Have commercial customers that need year round cleaning
Hang Christmas lights
You need to hit the ground running.