New to Allen

Hi Kristi. welcome.

Yes, I had the same problem when I wanted to find some clients for tutoring. I asked at libraries, grocery stores, etc. but no one had the "community bulletin boards" and did not allow any for-profit postings.

I ended up doing Craigslist. Yes, it's creepy and I got a bunch of spam. BUT I did get one or two clients. I have since taken down my ad.

You could try the newspaper. Or, word of mouth. It's tricky around here! Good luck!

So put up a couple notices in the grocery stores, perhaps no one around there has thought about that. You might try the library or community centers too.

You can have business cards printed for practically nothing at vista.com or even postcards.

Be creative.
D.

You can advertise here on Mammasource there is a free listing area and then for 10.00 per month you can advertise in the digest here... I do...

A. J
www.celebritypartyfavors.com

Welcome to Texas! I lived in Maine for a summer (visiting my dad) around the Machias area. I have lived in Texas for a little over 9 years and love it!

Anyway, word of mouth is still the best, I do before and after school care for kids in my neighborhood and I got the kids by just asking around. You can also get postcards done at Office Depot and put up flyers here and there. Some grocery stores have bulletin boards as well as like community centers. This site would also be a great place to start, good luck!

Kristi. In the Dallas metropolitian area, the majority of the house cleaners are going to be immigrants; therefore, that is why you do not see "advertisements". You might want to post your cleaning services to church bulletins, vet's offices... Good luck.

Hi Kristi,

Welcome to Texas. I have been working from home for 6 years and and earn great income from the comfort of my home and you can do it too. This is something you can do from any where in US and 13 other Countries. If you like helping other, you love this.

Let me know if you would like details.

A.

Hi Kristi,
Often, a community's local community center or recreation center will have bulletin boards that you can post on. Also, our community's local public library (Valley Ranch) has a flyer stand at the front entrance that contains info on local activities.

You might be able to see if your public library has one and if they allow local advertisers to place flyers in there.

I don't know anything about Allen, but I'm sure they have some places like these to check out.

Oh, and I agree about the care.com site. It's a great spot for finding (and listing) all types of domestic help, such as babysitters, nannies, housekeepers...

I hope this helps!
D.

I would love to have someone clean my house. I am not very happy with my current (and past) cleaning service. It always seems they try really hard in the beginning and then tend to slip as time goes on. My neighbor is also looking. So maybe that would help kick-start your business. Please email me at ____@____.com if interested. Thanks so much.

Hi Kristi
I clean houses with a friend of mine, part time. We created postcards on Vista Print's website. They have VERY good pricing. I think we usually pay about $30.00 for $150 postcards. The postcards get cheaper as you buy in more quanity. You can also buy addresses off vista print's website, which we have done. We have walked most of our postcards door to door. It's good excerise and sometimes you catch the customer outside and can introduce yourself.
Also, allot of HOA's have sites where residents can list services for free so check that out too.
Good luck and welcome to Texas!

We Craigs list things often & meet in a public place (Home Depot parking lot) - never had a problem to sell things. People stick business cards on my door for cleaning services. You could try that to advertise your cleaning service. Start in your own neighborhood!

Welcome to Texas! Try putting fliers in beauty salons. I also liked the idea of Curves. Many put their business cards there. I found my cleaning ladies by word-of-mouth, so you'll eventually get some like that, too. Good help is HARD to find! Good luck.

We live in Ponder, but this is how I found my housekeeper. She told me that she went to the local PostNet or post office (sorry I can't remember which), and was able to buy address listings. She sent postcards to everyone in her immediate area. I responded to one of her postcards.

Hi Kristi,

Welcome to Texas!!! My mom is from Maine, but now lives in Dallas. My Grandmother lives in Hampden, just outside Bangor, and my Aunt & Uncle live in the Brooks/Monroe area!

You've received some great advice already. You may also want to do a search for women's fitness centers in your area (like Curves). Just a thought of another a great place to leave your flyers:)

Merry Christmas!!!
God Bless,
N.

Kristi,

Try Mamasource and other social sites for moms. There are always people on these types of sites looking for quality, housekeeping.

Also see if your children's school will allow such postings. If you're part of the PTA or something, you could get the word out that way as well.

Hope this helps.

M.

This is a pretty useful website for stuff like that, I have checked out babysitters and my neighbor has used a housekeeper from this site. http://www.care.com/ The other thing to do is just advertise on the site. A lot of people ask for different things and sometimes it's for a housekeeper. Good luck...

WOW moved here from Maine! Talk about a Change!! My husband and I were looking at Caribou Maine a few years back. Such a different life style there than it is here.

Anyway, where to advertise. 1)If you have joined a church that is a great place to get the word out. Typically they will have a bulletin board for members. 2)Daycare or MDO programs 3)MAMASOURCE

Welcome to Texas!

D.
SAHM of three:19,18,and 5
Home Baker and Candy Maker(see Member Perks). Married to the same wonderful man for almost 12 years.

Welcome to Texas Kristi!

I have my own business from home and the absolute best way I have found to advertise my business (and get a lot of referrals) is through an all womens networking group called Joy of Connecting. There are quite a few locations in the DFW metroplex... and it has been great for my business as well as finding women-owned businesses when I need a product or service. The website to check out the different locations is www.TheJoyofConnecting.com - any questions about it, feel free to call me at ###-###-#### so I can share with you how they work. Good luck! T.

You might try to find a local neighborhood newsletter that you could put a note in. Our neighborhood in Keller has those kinds of notices all the time and that way word of mouth would help you get more people, close together.

Repeat on several ideas already mentioned: church, walk your neighborhood and meet your neighbors and hand out fliers.

Also: my chiropractor has a bulletin board that he lets his customers put business cards and fliers up on - maybe you need to visit your local chiro and see if they have a similar approach!

A.

Welcome to Texas! A Whole "Nother Country!

Try asking local daycares if you can put flyers up in their locations. Most kids in daycare have Moms who don't have a lot of extra time. Good luck.