A year into the pandemic, cleanliness has taken on new meaning. As Forbes reminds us, we are more clean-conscious than ever — and it doesn’t appear that disinfecting surfaces will fall to the wayside anytime soon.
Commercial businesses have to stay vigilant in their cleaning protocols in order to keep potential customers and staff safe. In other words, a clean office is a happy office!
Offices, retail spaces, and service-based businesses can benefit greatly from outsourcing regular cleaning and proper disinfecting – but only if they like their office cleaning service!
Since there are dozens of “professional” cleaning companies in the Winston-Salem area, hiring a decent cleaning service seems like it should be easy. Unfortunately, selecting professional, high-quality office cleaning services isn’t as easy as calling the first phone number in Google.
Here are 3 frustrating things that force businesses to switch their office cleaning services:
1. Unfair Pricing
Pricing for a deep clean of your office building should be clearly delineated with all tasks discussed and agreed upon upfront.
Some cleaning companies purposely create a fog around their pricing. That lack of transparency can result in much higher prices than originally quoted during the bidding process. Unclear pricing can also lead to surprises later if a project requires some component that wasn’t discussed.
Unclear pricing is a red flag, and so is pricing that is notably below the market rate. The cheapest option isn’t automatically the best, and sometimes the reason for the dramatically lower rate involves cut corners, shoddy training, or cheap equipment.
Clear pricing should include:
- Clear descriptions of the attention to detail that will be paid to each item that you want cleaned in your office building
- Itemized list of surfaces that will be cleaned and disinfected
- Dollar amounts by each line item so that you know precisely how much each specific need costs
- Descriptions of how janitorial services are delegated across their team and how team members are trained
2. Poor Communication
After unfair pricing, lack of communication is one of the most frustrating complaints businesses have about their cleaning company. Your cleaning company should be responsive – which means responding to your inquiries and addressing your needs within 24 hours.
Spills or other environmental hazards can mean real safety concerns for everyone at your business. Other issues, like how to handle clean-up after a potential COVID-19 exposure, can feel overwhelming for a business owner. When those things are at play, time is of the essence.
You should be able to easily and intuitively schedule upcoming jobs with your office cleaning service. Real-time notifications and alerts will help you feel in the loop and help the team of cleaning professionals stay on-track.
Poor communication can also manifest when a cleaning company isn’t clear on which spaces you want cleaned – and how you want them cleaned. Office cleaning services that have solid internal communication will have quality control procedures that ensure all work completed thoroughly.
During these turbulent times, you need cleaning services that are committed to transparency and will prioritize your specific needs first.
3. Unprofessional Cleaners
Communication and pricing may feel like they can be overlooked, but having unprofessional cleaners come to your business is a deal-breaker.
Unprofessional cleaning services may:
- Rush through the job, either because they aren’t paying attention or are not committed to making sure the job is done well
- Drop things, which can lead to potential damage to your property
- Clean inefficiently, thereby leaving some surfaces dirty or poorly sanitized
- Use the wrong tools, which means that a job may take too long or may not be completed adequately
Even if cleaners are coming in when the business is closed, you must be able to trust anyone who may interact with them – even by accident. If a cleaning company hasn’t adequately screened or trained their employees, then their clients are the ones who end up suffering.
Many companies learn this lesson the hard way when a cleaner has an unpleasant interaction with a customer or something is stolen. Make sure you aren’t one of those companies! You have every right to ask a professional cleaning service about their screening and training protocols.
Carolina Services of the Triad is dedicated to providing honest and fair pricing, clear communication, and top professional cleaners.
If you’re fed up with the your current office cleaning service, we’d like to make it right.
Give us a call today at 336-996-9883 for a free estimate.