There are many steps that go into professionally cleaning an office workplace. Hiring a reliable commercial cleaning company can oftentimes be a difficult and stressful task. Before you begin your research for finding a trust-worthy cleaning company within your area, we have compiled a list of five tips on what to look for when your looking to hire a commercial cleaning company.
Great & Reliable Customer Testimonials/Reviews
Before you go Googling professional commercial cleaning companies online, ask your neighbors, friends, family, and co-workers that are also business owners if they’ve ever used a commercial cleaning service in the past and how their experience was. Ask them if they would use the same cleaning company again. If you’re new to the area or having trouble coming up with a list of around three to five recommendations, check online reviews and customer testimonials. Google is a great tool to navigate the local landscape. Pick three or five companies to focus in on, and do your due diligence by reviewing their websites and online reputations.
Company Has Insurance
Anyone can purchase cleaning equipment and call themselves a commercial cleaning company, this being said… NEVER use a cleaner that does not hold the proper insurance to ensure the safety and security of your property and business. If you’ve never used or have no reference of a commercial cleaning company you are interested in hiring, you can also run a background check. Make sure any company you hire is compliant with OSHA laws, provides uniforms and/or employee badges to make their staff easily recognizable, has established processes and procedures for protecting confidential records and keeping doors locked.
Cares and Pays Attention to Detail
Choose a commercial cleaning company that is well-established, has a history of serving businesses, a proven track record, and the ability to demonstrate they’ve achieved successful results for other clients. If a company has an established cleaning process or business model, then they’re more likely to also have a reliable reputation to ensure the quality of their work. A good commercial cleaning company that cares about paying attention to detail may also have a checklist for each of their staff members to ensure there is less room for miscommunication between the client and cleaner.
Schedule & Task Flexibility
Ask your the cleaning company you’re considering hiring to clean your business if they have blackout times in their schedule. Other questions to ask regarding scheduling is what their policy on emergency requests or issues that arise outside of regular business hours are? Ask if they are flexible on tasks and if pricing changes depending on what the client is looking for. During your phone call to set up your first appointment, the more specific you can be, the better. This leaves less room for miscommunication between you and the cleaner.
Beware of Franchises
We're not just providing this tip because we are locally owned and operated. The vast majority of our clients have utilized franchises in the past because they have great marketing campaigns, aggressive salespeople, and recognizable brands. However, it's a case of buyer beware. Most franchises are notorious for over-promising and under-delivering. While the sales pitch and proposal seem perfect, the rubber meets the road a month or two into the contract when the quality starts to dip and you notice a rotating cast of cleaners. The main reason for this inconsistency is that franchisees are typically up against agreed-upon prices which require them to either pay their workers less or rush to finish jobs. Additionally, most franchises like to employee full-time cleaners who handle 3 or 4 accounts per day. This schedule not only may result in fatigued cleaners, but also puts tight time limits on the accounts. There are certainly excellent franchises out there, but from our experience, it's much better to seek out a locally owned and operating cleaning company who brings its cleaners on as employees.