Words Brad Horan

If you are a cleaning industry veteran, you’ve likely felt the squeeze of the “race to the bottom” – clients comparing quotes on price alone, undercutting competitors just to win jobs and watching profits shrink.

It’s exhausting, unsustainable, and frankly, unnecessary. What if you could stop competing on price and start standing out by solving specific problems for your customers? That’s the power of a hero product.

What is a hero product?

A hero product takes the long list of services you offer and transforms it into a specific solution to a key customer problem. It is an answer to customer frustrations and avoids overwhelming your customers with everything you can do.

This doesn’t mean you stop offering other services – it means you create a flagship product that makes your business easier to understand while communicating your value.

For example, a hero product could solve the problem of staying compliant with occupational health and safety standards by bundling essential hygiene tasks into one service.

Why should you focus on a hero product?

Traditional quotes often leave customers feeling confused or overwhelmed by inconsistent inclusions or jargon-heavy explanations. Hero products eliminate confusion by offering a

clear and focused solution to a real problem.

Key benefits of a hero product include:

1. Clarity – customers immediately understand the service and why it matters.
2. Trust – you become the go-to provider for specific and valuable solutions, making it easier to retain clients.
3. Adaptability – the hero product is your flagship offering and it opens doors to additional bespoke services based on the customer’s unique needs.

Customers will revel in the fact that they are not just hiring a cleaning service, but solving a problem, whether it’s compliance, cleanliness or staff morale. A hero product frames your services in terms of solutions and makes your value undeniable.

How to get started with hero product packages

Building a hero product doesn’t require an overhaul of your business. It starts with understanding what you do best and how to align that with customer needs.

Here’s a simple high-level process:

1. Identify what you do best. Focus on the services your business excels in and is most “famous” for.
2. Know customer frustrations. What are the common fears or problems your customers face? Examples might include staying compliant, avoiding health risks, or creating a welcoming workplace.
3. Bundle for impact. Combine complementary services into a single and easy-to-explain product that addresses a specific problem. For example, “OHS Compliance Guarantee” or “Sparkling Workplace Solution”. Create different package levels ensuring both value to the customer and profitability increase at each level.

Proof is in the doing

There are numerous proven examples of the positive effects of hero product packages in both commercial cleaning and waste management.

• After implementing hero product packages, Cleaning Star founder and former owner Igor Katelenets increased sales conversion rates from 60 percent to 85 percent and doubled profits on new clients.
• Need a Skip Now founder and managing director Anthony Tesler identified poor service and confusion at a competitor’s business and created a hero product for on-site tipping with easy-to-understand pricing. He reached profit margins five times higher than the industry standard.

Hero products are more than a tool – they are a strategy for transforming how your business operates and connects with its market. By solving specific problems with clarity and confidence, you position your business as a leader and not just another competitor in the price wars.