In most parts of the country the less than desirable winter weather, whether it be snow or rain, tends to have a dampening effect (no pun intended) on business volume in a business like this one. Unless you also have a full-time job that consumes all of your available time and energy, you should try to utilize some of this slow season to make things happen faster as the weather warms and dries. How many real estate brokers in you service area know you exist? Offer to clean their office carpet at a steep discount (free even!) so they can get to know who you are. Find out who runs the office, and offer him/her an annual free carpet cleaning at their home. Take a similar approach with other potential customer groups in your vicinity: funeral homes; property management companies; doctors' offices; insurance agencies (maybe they'll steer you some business); furniture stores; and the like. You can't just sit around assuming that everyone will see your ad in the village weekly, and call you up immediately. Haven't read any of the GUERILLA MARKETING books? Go read some. They are loaded with ideas.