GoHighLevel for Cleaning Companies: Low-Cost Marketing
Marketing your cleaning business without blowing your budget is completely doable — and GoHighLevel is the tool that makes it happen. With the right automations set up once, you respond to leads faster, request Google reviews automatically, and stay in touch with past clients without manually doing it every single day. In this tutorial, Vida Digital Solutions walks you through exactly how to configure each feature step by step, even if you've never used a CRM before.
Key Takeaways
- GoHighLevel centralizes everything: messages, scheduling, reviews, and follow-ups in one single dashboard — no need for 5 different tools.
- Automations replace expensive ads: missed-call text-back, review requests, and SMS sequences convert better than paid social media posts.
- Set it up once, let it run forever: build your workflows one time and they work for you 24 hours a day.
- Perfect for businesses with 1 to 15 employees: scales with your growth without proportionally increasing your costs.
- First results visible within 7 to 14 days after activating your core automations.
Step 1 — Set Up Missed-Call Text-Back (The Most Important Automation)
Missed-call text-back is an automation that sends an automatic SMS whenever you miss an incoming call. For cleaning businesses, this is gold: while you're on your knees scrubbing a bathroom, GoHighLevel has already responded to the potential client who called asking about pricing.
Industry studies show that 78% of customers hire the first company that responds. If you take hours to call back, that client has already booked your competitor.
How to set it up in GoHighLevel:
- From the main dashboard, go to the left sidebar and click on Automations (the lightning bolt icon).
- Click the blue + Create Workflow button in the top right corner.
- Select Start from Scratch and click Create New Workflow.
- In the workflow editor, click + Add New Trigger.
- From the trigger list, select Missed Call — you'll see a description that reads "Triggered when an incoming call is missed".
- Click + Add New Action just below the trigger.
- Select Send SMS from the action list.
- In the message field, write something like: "Hey! This is [Business Name]. I saw you called and couldn't pick up. Feel free to reply here — are you looking for residential or commercial cleaning? I'll get you a quote right away!"
- Click Save Action and then hit Save in the top right corner.
- Activate the workflow by toggling Published — it will turn green.
💡 Tip: Include your business name in the SMS and keep the tone friendly. Messages that sound too formal come across as robotic and people won't respond.
Step 2 — Build a Lead Pipeline So No Quote Ever Slips Through
A pipeline is the visual board where you track every lead at every stage — from first contact all the way to payment. Without it, quote requests get buried in your inbox and you forget to follow up.
If you want to understand how to build a pipeline from scratch, check out the full tutorial at How to Create a Sales Pipeline in GoHighLevel.
How to build a basic cleaning pipeline:
- In the left sidebar, click CRM and then Pipelines.
- Click + Add Pipeline and name it "Cleaning Quotes".
- Add the following columns (stages) by clicking + Add Stage:
- New Lead — contact came in, not yet responded
- Quote Sent — you've already sent pricing
- Awaiting Confirmation — client is thinking it over
- Scheduled — date and time confirmed
- Service Completed — cleaning is done
- Review Requested — asked for a Google review
- Click Save Pipeline.
Now every time a lead comes in — via form, phone call, or DM — you create a card and drag it forward as it progresses. In 30 seconds you can see exactly where every client stands.
💡 Tip: Set up an automation that automatically moves a card to "New Lead" when a form is submitted from your website. That way you never have to create cards manually.
Step 3 — Activate Automatic Google Review Requests
Google reviews are the most powerful free marketing available for cleaning businesses. A company with 80 five-star reviews closes three times more clients than one with 10 reviews — without spending a dime on ads.
The problem is that most cleaning business owners forget to ask for a review after the job is done. GoHighLevel handles that automatically.
How to set it up:
- Go to Automations → + Create Workflow → Start from Scratch.
- Add the trigger Pipeline Stage Changed.
- Under Filter, select the "Cleaning Quotes" pipeline and the "Service Completed" stage.
- Add a Wait action — set it to wait 2 hours (enough time for the client to get home and settle in).
- Add a Send SMS action with this message: "Hi [First Name]! I hope you're loving the results 😊 If you have a moment, would you mind leaving us a Google review? It means the world to our team: [your Google Business Profile review link]".
- Add another Wait of 3 days, then a Send Email action with a gentle follow-up for clients who haven't left a review yet.
- Save and publish the workflow.
💡 Tip: Find your direct Google review link by going to your Google Business Profile, clicking "Share" → "Copy review link". That's the link you'll paste into the SMS.
Step 4 — Create a Win-Back Sequence for Past Clients
Past clients are the cheapest leads you'll ever get. They already know you, they've already trusted you — they just need a little nudge. A win-back sequence is a series of messages sent automatically to clients who haven't booked in the last 30, 60, or 90 days.
This is one of the strategies Vida Digital Solutions uses with cleaning company clients to fill their calendars without spending on ads.
How to set up the win-back sequence:
- Create a new workflow with the trigger Tag Added.
- Create a tag called "Reactivate 60 Days" — you'll apply this tag manually or via automation to clients who have gone inactive.
- Add the following sequence of actions:
- Immediately: Send SMS — "Hey [First Name], it's been a while! We've got some openings this week — want to get a cleaning on the books?"
- Wait 3 days: Send Email — subject line "Your home deserves a deep clean 🏠" with a special offer for returning clients.
- Wait 4 days: Send SMS — "Last call! We still have a few spots available this week. Let me know if you're interested and I'll hold one for you."
- Save and publish.
This 3-message sequence over 7 days reactivates an average of 20 to 30% of inactive clients, at no additional cost beyond your GoHighLevel subscription.
For more advanced sales automation strategies, also check out GoHighLevel Sales Automation: Complete Guide.
Step 5 — Set Up a Quote Request Form on Your Website
If you don't have a form on your website connected directly to GoHighLevel, you're losing leads every week. When someone fills it out, they automatically enter your CRM, a card is created in your pipeline, and a welcome message is sent — all without you lifting a finger.
How to create and install the form:
- In the left sidebar, click Sites → Forms → + Create Form.
- Select Blank Form and name it "Cleaning Quote Request".
- Add fields by dragging them from the sidebar:
- Full Name
- Phone
- Dropdown: "Type of service" (Residential / Commercial / Move-In/Out / Airbnb)
- Text area: "Address and additional notes"
- Under On Submit, configure the Go To URL action to point to a thank-you page.
- Click Save, then go to Integrate → Copy Embed Code.
- Paste the code into your website (WordPress, Wix, Squarespace — all support HTML embeds).
💡 Tip: Create a workflow with the trigger Form Submitted for this form. The first action should be an immediate SMS: "Hi [First Name]! We received your quote request and will get back to you within the hour. Thanks for reaching out!" This instantly positions you as a fast, professional business.
If you want to take it further and build a complete funnel with a landing page, check out How to Create Sales Funnels in GoHighLevel.
Step 6 — Track Your Results in the Dashboard
There's no point setting up all these automations if you're not monitoring your numbers. GoHighLevel has a dashboard that shows you in real time: how many leads came in, how many converted to clients, which automations are performing, and how many reviews you've received.
How to access and read it:
- On the main home screen, you'll see the key cards: Leads This Month, Revenue, Appointments, Calls.
- Click Reporting in the left sidebar for detailed reports.
- Under Source Report, see where your leads are coming from: website form, phone call, SMS, social media.
- Under Conversion Report, see how many leads became clients and at which pipeline stage most of them drop off.
With this data, you know exactly where to focus your energy — and where to stop wasting time.
💡 Tip: Block 15 minutes every Monday morning to review your dashboard. Within a month, you'll clearly identify which channel brings your best clients and where you're losing sales.
If you want this entire system built and running without having to do it yourself, explore the complete packages for cleaning companies from Vida Digital Solutions — optimized website, Google Business Profile, and automations fully configured, with flexible payment options.
Frequently Asked Questions
Q: Does GoHighLevel work for a small cleaning business with just 2 employees? A: Yes — and that's exactly the size where it makes the biggest difference. With a small team, every lead you lose because you didn't respond fast enough really hurts. GoHighLevel's automations fill the gap left by not having a dedicated admin team — the system responds, organizes, and follows up on your behalf.
Q: How much does GoHighLevel cost for a cleaning company? A: The plan most commonly used by small cleaning businesses costs $97 per month (Starter plan). This includes the CRM, automations, forms, pipeline, and SMS and email sending. For agencies or businesses needing advanced AI features and multiple sub-accounts, the Pro plan is $297 per month. Most businesses see their return on investment from just one or two reactivated clients.
Q: Do I need to know how to code to use GoHighLevel? A: Not at all. GoHighLevel was built for business owners, not developers. All automations are configured with clicks and drag-and-drop blocks — like building a visual flowchart. Every step in this tutorial can be followed without any technical background.
Q: How soon will I start seeing results from these automations? A: The first automations — missed-call text-back and review requests — deliver results immediately. On day one, you stop losing leads who called and didn't get an answer. Reviews start coming in within the first week. The win-back sequence typically brings returns within 7 to 14 days of sending.
Q: Can I use GoHighLevel in Spanish or another language to serve my clients? A: Absolutely. The SMS, email, and WhatsApp messages you set up will be in whatever language you write them — English, Spanish, Portuguese, or any other. The admin dashboard is in English, but all client-facing communications are defined entirely by you.
Conclusion
Marketing your cleaning business on a tight budget doesn't mean doing less — it means working smarter. With GoHighLevel, you set up the missed-call text-back, automatic review requests, win-back sequence, and quote request form one time, and those tools work every day to bring in and retain clients — even while you're out on the job. The secret is automating everything that currently depends on your memory or your time.
Ready to implement this in your business? Talk to Vida Digital Solutions on WhatsApp
Do you own a cleaning company in the US? We build your brand, a Google and AI-optimized website, and your Google Business Profile — complete package with flexible installment options. Explore cleaning company packages →