Larison Media is celebrating 11 years in business after growing from five clients in 2015 into a marketing company whose work has helped organizations reach tens of millions of people. The milestone also reflects the company's strategic evolution, including the launch of Five Door Media, a nationally focused marketing agency specializing in residential cleaning businesses.

For most cleaning company owners, referrals feel like the ultimate sign that you're doing things right. It's the kind of growth every cleaning business wants.

But here's a question that many owners never stop to ask: If your customers love your service so much, why aren't they referring more people?

Let's take a closer look at why your best customers may not be referring more business and what cleaning companies can do about it.

Many marketing reports focus on vanity metrics (numbers that look impressive but don't necessarily translate into business growth). While these metrics can provide useful context, they often distract business owners from the numbers that truly matter.

Let's break down the most common marketing metrics cleaning companies track, what they actually mean, and which numbers deserve your attention if you want your marketing to drive real business results.

There’s a very specific kind of blog post that cleaning companies tend to write when they first start thinking about SEO.

It usually sounds something like:

“Top 5 Reasons to Choose Our Cleaning Company.”

Which is… fine.

But also not what people are searching for.

In a recent episode of the Filthy Rich Cleaners podcast, ZenMaid founder and CEO Amar Ghose sat down with host Stephanie of Serene Clean for one of the most candid, forward-looking conversations the cleaning industry has produced this year.

If you’ve run Facebook or Instagram ads for your cleaning company, you’ve probably had this thought at some point: “Are we spending enough… or are we just wasting money?”

And usually that question shows up after you’ve tried it, didn’t get the results you expected, and started second-guessing the whole thing.

That’s where most frustration with Facebook ads comes from.

Not because they don’t work. Because they’re being judged like something they’re not.

There’s a very specific moment most cleaning business owners hit.

You’re sitting at your computer, probably with three tabs open and at least one cup of coffee that’s gone cold, staring at Google Ads like it personally offended you.

And the question comes up: “How much am I actually supposed to spend on this?”

Not what Google suggests. Not what some guy in a YouTube video says while pointing at a blurry chart. What’s normal?

Let’s talk about it.

There’s a moment after a really good cleaning job that feels a little underrated.

Everything looks right. The customer is happy. You’re packing up, maybe doing that quick mental checklist before you leave, and someone says, “This looks amazing.”

That moment matters more than most people realize.

Because that’s the moment your best marketing is sitting right in front of you.

Are separate location pages and service pages really necessary on your website?

The short answer: yes. Let’s break it down.

If you’re running Meta ads (Facebook and Instagram) for your cleaning business, you’ve probably asked yourself this question: “Should I be using in-app lead forms or sending people to a landing page?”

It’s a great question and the honest answer is: it depends on your goals.

At Five Door Media, we talk to cleaning business owners every week who are trying to get more leads from their ads. Some are frustrated with low-quality leads. Others just need more volume. And many aren’t sure which route will actually move the needle.

So let’s break this down clearly, honestly, and without bias.

Let’s start with the question most cleaning business owners don’t ask out loud, but absolutely think: Can’t I just send people to my website and call it a day?

You’ve already got a website. It looks decent. Your services are on there somewhere. There are probably a few photos, maybe even a testimonial if we’re feeling ambitious.

So why would you need a separate landing page?

It feels like extra work. Extra cost. Extra… everything. I get it.

But here’s the honest answer: Most of the time, your website is not enough. And it’s not because your website is bad. It’s because it’s trying to do too much.

In this season of the Five Door Media podcast, we’re diving into the "people puzzle" - that tricky yet crucial combination of hiring, retention, and culture that determines whether a cleaning company survives or thrives. In our latest episode, we sat down with Cheryl Hajjar, founder of Sisters Who Scale and a total powerhouse in the world of cleaning business coaching. Cheryl brings the rare perspective of someone who’s been in the trenches, burned out and overwhelmed, and found her way to a scalable, profitable, and freedom-filled business.

Here are some of the biggest takeaways from our conversation with Cheryl, and why every cleaning business owner should tune in.

There’s a certain kind of guilt that comes with social media when you own a cleaning business.

You know you’re supposed to be posting. You’ve heard it. You’ve probably even said it out loud at some point. “We should really be more active on Facebook.”

And then… life happens. Jobs to run. People to manage. Supplies to order. Suddenly it’s been two months and your last post is a holiday graphic from a season that no longer feels relevant.

So the question becomes a little more honest.

Does this actually matter, or is this just another thing marketing people say you should be doing?

Welcome back to the Five Door Media Podcast blog, where we break down real-world strategies from real service business owners. In our latest episode, we sat down with Derek Hazelwood, entrepreneur and the driving force behind Raleigh Cleaning Company, Ricochet Business Solutions, and Hazelwood Insurance Group.

Derek knows how to lead under pressure, and he’s bringing that same intentionality to the hiring and retention game - a major challenge for most cleaning companies right now.

There’s a moment that happens to just about every cleaning business owner.

You decide it’s time to “get serious” about marketing. You open your laptop, maybe Google a few things, and within 10 minutes you’re being told to post more, blog more, optimize more, and somehow do all of it yesterday. It’s a lot.

So the real question becomes a practical one. If you can only focus on one right now, where should you start?

Welcome back to the Five Door Media podcast blog! We’re deep into Season 6, and if you’ve ever felt like hiring is the bottleneck in your cleaning company’s growth, you’re going to love this episode. This week, Drew sat down with Jon Karmazyn, founder of Revive, to talk about how his team hires fast without sacrificing quality.

From power washing to holiday lighting, Jon has built a two-division business that operates across two markets in Pennsylvania. But what sets him apart isn’t just the service; it’s the systems behind the scenes that allow Revive to grow without chaos.

If you run a cleaning company, you’ve probably been told (more than once) that you “should be doing email marketing.”

But here’s the real question no one answers:

What does a good email campaign actually look like for a cleaning business?

Not the fluffy, corporate version. Not the spammy “20% off this week only!” blasts.

We’re talking about email campaigns that:

• Build trust

• Keep your company top of mind

• Generate repeat business

• And actually get opened and read

In this article, we’re going to break it all down, honestly and practically, so you can see what works, what doesn’t, and how to do it right.

Because the truth is, email marketing for cleaning companies isn’t about being clever.
It’s about being helpful, consistent, and human.

Hiring isn't just a struggle in the cleaning industry, it's the struggle. High turnover, no-shows, underperformance... sound familiar? On this episode of the Five Door Media Podcast, we sat down with Cristóbal Mondragón, founder of Bumble Bee Cleaning and 7Figure Cleaning. His hiring systems have helped dozens of cleaning companies build reliable, motivated teams that actually stay. Here's how.

If you’ve run ads for your cleaning business, you’ve probably asked yourself this: “Which platform actually works?” And if you’re being honest, the answer hasn’t always been clear.

Maybe you’ve tried Facebook ads and got a bunch of messages that didn’t go anywhere. Maybe you’ve tested Google Ads but felt like the cost was too high. Maybe you’ve turned on LSAs and hoped for consistency… but didn’t always get it.

So what’s the truth? It’s not that one platform works and the others don’t. It’s that each platform works differently, and if you don’t understand when to use each one, it’s easy to feel like none of them work.

Hiring Isn’t an HR Problem. It’s a Marketing One.

If you’re still hiring out of desperation, spinning up a Facebook post when someone quits, you’re not alone. But you’re also stuck in what we call "hiring hell."

In this episode of the Five Door Media Podcast, Brandon Vaughn, the CEO of HireBus, joins us to talk about one of the most overlooked truths in home service: hiring isn’t just an operational challenge. It’s a marketing one. And the businesses that figure that out are the ones building stable, scalable teams, even in a tough labor market.