SweepSouth

Advice, Cleaning Tips, Opinion, SweepSouth1 Comment

5 Quick Cleaning Saves Until Your Next Cleaning Appointment

Alen

Get your home ready for company in just 25 minutes… You’ve been clever and have booked a SweepSouth cleaning for the morning after your dinner party, but if you’re cooking you won’t have much time to worry about tidying up before your guests arrive. Here’s our top five cleaning quick fixes that will get your house in shape for company in just 25 minutes… 1. Leave the bedrooms Unless your bathroom is off your bedroom (or you’re having a housewarming and will be expected to give a tour of the house) guests usually don’t spend time in the bedrooms, so … Continue reading 5 Quick Cleaning Saves Until Your Next Cleaning Appointment

News, Startup, SweepSouth

Newest addition to the SweepSouth Team

Alen

We are excited to introduce our newest SweepSouth team member. Luke Kannemeyer will play a vital role in optimising operations; something that is critical to high growth. Together with the team, Luke will help ensure that SweepSouth continues to deliver an excellent service to our customers and that we find ways to further improve on customer experience as we expand. Luke is a phenomenal problem-solver and is passionate about data-driven decision making. He holds an Honours Degree in Molecular Genetics, was selected as the Most Outstanding Postgraduate Leader at the University of Cape Town in 2012, and is a Mandela Rhodes Scholar. We are extremely proud to have him on board. Aisha R. Pandor … Continue reading Newest addition to the SweepSouth Team

SweepSouth1 Comment

SweepSouth at Web Summit 2014

Alen

It’s been almost a month since Alen and I returned from Dublin, where we attended the Web Summit 2014. The conference is primarily technology focused, with startups attending and exhibiting and getting the chance to pitch, meet with investors and network. Apart from that, it has several offshoot “Summits”, like the Food Summit, Builder’s Summit, Marketing Summit and Sports Summit. It lasts over three days and there really aren’t enough days to fully enjoy all that it has to offer. The conference itself also has impressive stats, having had it’s inaugural event in 2010 with 400 people, and since growing … Continue reading SweepSouth at Web Summit 2014

Startup, SweepSouth, Updates

SweepSouth takes first prize at SiMODiSA Start-up SA

Alen

  We’re proud to announce that SweepSouth has won first prize at SiMODiSA’s Start-up SA event which took place in Cape Town at the CTICC on 10th October 2014. We have been awarded the opportunity to go on a two-month long trip to Silicon Valley where we will get the chance to be immersed in the startup culture of Silicon Valley, meet other inspiring startups, potential partners and investors, and explore our international prospects. Events like Startup SA are really important in giving startups like SweepSouth a platform to showcase their work, their potential, and their team. SiMODiSA has taken up this great initiative … Continue reading SweepSouth takes first prize at SiMODiSA Start-up SA

Advice, Cleaning Tips, Opinion, SweepSouth

10 Ordinary Household Items, 10 Extraordinary Household Uses

Alen

At SweepSouth, we’re all for recycling, upcycling, or even downcycling (just don’t try to get us bicycling!). It’s therefore our pleasure to give you a list of some extraordinary things you can do with ordinary household items. Check it out below! 1. Packing Peanuts 2. Pantyhose 3. Plastic Milk Jugs 4. Ice-cube Trays 5. Shower Caps 6. Toothpaste 7. Baby Wipes 8. White Wine or Apple Cider Vinegar 9. Coffee Filters 10. Coke 1. Packing Peanuts Spritz (my favourite word) perfume on to packing peanuts and hide amongst clothes or bedding for some cheap but effective deodorisers. Another great use … Continue reading 10 Ordinary Household Items, 10 Extraordinary Household Uses

Advice, Cleaning Tips, Opinion, SweepSouth

Startup Lessons: Event-driven Customer Acquisition

Alen

We all know how important it is to track your site’s page views. But page-view information by itself is as useful as having a web site that tells people what you do without providing the means for them to take immediate action. Enter event-driven analytics. Event-driven analytics is a means of analysing user behaviour through events in real-time. This serves as an immediate feedback loop that you can harness to align your service or product to customer needs and ultimately increase the conversion rate. In this post, I will share a story that highlights the importance of good event-driven analytics. Analysing … Continue reading Startup Lessons: Event-driven Customer Acquisition

Cleaning Tips, Opinion, SweepSouth1 Comment

A Clean Home and A Happy Mind

Alen

Many people think of home cleaning as something done reluctantly, that is ticked off near-last on a to-do list full of “I don’t want to but I probably should” chores. However, data from a recent UK study commissioned by home cleaning service Homejoy suggests that keeping your home clean is more important than we may think. After conducting an in-depth survey on both women and men on their home cleaning habits, the study concluded the following: 42% of women cited mess and dirt at home as the top cause of their stress 18% of men said that cleaning was a … Continue reading A Clean Home and A Happy Mind

Startup, SweepSouth

Startup Lessons: Get Out Of The Building

Alen

One of the hardest things about building a startup is that you have absolutely no guarantee that people will like your idea. Added to that are other factors like having to convince a market to adopt something completely new and having to have (sometimes uncomfortable) conversations with strangers and potential customers. Overall, I’d say this business is not for the faint-hearted or risk-averse. Alen and I were reminded of this once again when we ventured out onto the streets of north Johannesburg in peak traffic to hand out SweepSouth flyers. This uncomfortable experience had us walking among cars with smiles … Continue reading Startup Lessons: Get Out Of The Building

SweepSouth

One Month Since Our Launch

Alen

It’s been a month since we launched our SweepSouth platform and it has certainly been an eventful one! The month included a few iterations to the design of the site, the introduction of a (pretty generous!) R100 discount on cleans, our Eco-Friendly products being launched, some awesome and inspiring meetings, and an upcoming change in our slogan (by popular vote from “We Clean Your Place.” to “You Click, We Clean.”). Considering that our platform is the first marketplace in South Africa dedicated to matching clients with professional cleaners, this was also a monumental achievement for us in that sense. Our first online booking … Continue reading One Month Since Our Launch

News, Opinion, Startup, SweepSouth, SweepStars

The SweepSouth Vision

Alen

  The idea for SweepSouth came to us while Alen and I searched fruitlessly for someone to assist with domestic cleaning over the December holidays. Like many South Africans, we are fortunate enough to have assistance at home with domestic cleaning. However, with our regular hero sis Ntombi away for the holidays, we seemed fated to spend the vacation divvying up chores. We had previous dealings with some of the popular “agencies” in the country, and the experience had left us with a sour taste in our mouths. The ladies the agencies presented had no enthusiasm for the job, and … Continue reading The SweepSouth Vision