Housecleaning 101

When I visit a home to find out how we can help someone with their cleaning needs, I will usually ask “how can we help you?”.  I may need to change my approach because often the response is “Well….I want my house cleaned”.  As simple and obvious as it may sound, there are actually a lot of variations of types of cleanings, types of houses, types of people and their specific needs.  For example, a single gentleman living alone, no pets, may want the very basics and with little frequency.  “Just do my floors and clean the bathrooms”.  My next visit may be someone who wants a very detailed cleaning, more often and with lots of instructions. Some may not even know what they are looking for, but just know they need HELP.  

We have to take into consideration that some people may LIKE or WANT to do certain things, like dusting their prize collection of knick knacks, figurines, glass vases or statues.  It’s important that a cleaning crew knows the specific needs and wants of each individual person we serve.  Specific instruction as to how they want a surface or room cleaned is valuable. The customer should feel confident that there will not be damage and that the surface, such as a high quality wood floor or a special type of kitchen counter is being properly cleaned and treated with care. This is their home, it’s personal.  Very few services out there are as personal as someone coming into your home, on a regular basis, being around your children, pets and touching your stuff.

Giving up a job such as house cleaning is sometimes difficult to someone who has taken pride for many years in the work they have done themselves to make their house a home.  It’s uncomfortable to admit to someone or themselves that they need a little help, unlike all the years before. With that in mind, a cleaning crew needs to be aware and place importance on the requests and desires of the customer.
So, what are the basics?  A good cleaning of the bathrooms including toilets, counters, sinks, showers, tubs, glass doors, mirrors, light fixtures and floors. In the kitchen, all the outside surfaces, counters, sinks, outside of appliances, stove top, and inside the microwave. In the living areas and bedrooms of the house, dusting of the furniture and cleaning the floors.

How about the deeper stuff? Along with all of the above, someone may want all the fans cleaned, the baseboards scrubbed, the light fixtures cleaned and shined, the cabinets oiled, the blinds cleaned, the inside of the oven and the refrigerator cleaned, the pot shelves dusted.  How about the tops of those kitchen cabinets!

Regardless of the depth and instruction of the particular job, the company that does that job needs to understand the customer, understand the instructions, genuinely care about the home they are going in to and take pride in the work they do. 

 
Wishing everyone a wonderful Summer!

Being the Best, Finding the Best, Reputation in Business

 Can enough importance be placed on reputation? It is paramount in almost any aspect of life.  Your personal reputation and integrity affects just about anything you do from your social circle to your professional life.  It is the same with business.  As business professionals, your companies reputation should be at the very top of your list of goals and aspirations. Of course every business owner wants others to regard them highly, however, your reputation goes further than that.  Your business reputation is affected by almost everything you do.  Here is a list of some of the most important components that affect an organization's reputation:
    1. Employees: The company has talented employees
    2. Ethics:  The company behaves ethically and is worthy of respect and trust
    3. Leadership:  The company is a leader in the industry and is innovative
    4. Financial:  The company is financially strong, profitable and growing
    5. Social responsibility:  The company is involved  in the community and supports good causes.
    6. Management: The company is well organized, well managed and has a vision for the future.
    7. Customer Service:  The company cares about and is committed to its customers
    8. Reliability:  The company provides consistent service and stands behind its products and services.
    9. Quality:  The company provides high quality of services and products to its customers
    10.  Value:  The company provides its products and services at a good value
    11. Communication:  The company provides good communication between the customer and the company representatives.
    12. Emotional appeal:  It’s a company to feel good about using
Online and social media reviews, publication awards and recognition along with overall word of mouth reputation is what drives consumers more today than ever.  Advertising is of course still viable and is how you get your businesses name in front of the public, but your reputation is what will seal the deal.
As a consumer, are you looking for a particular service or product? When searching for your next service provider or product, do your homework and research the company you are considering.  Take a look at it’s reputation online and in the community.  Try to avoid “the cheapest” deal and look for the qualities listed above. In the long run, it will save you time, money and headache.  The organizations with good reputations got there with hard work and commitment to be the best in their field.
Here at Prescott Maid to Order, we are committed to excellence and are grateful to our community and customers for our reputation.

Keeping Home and Pets Safe During Monsoon Season

                                                     

We anxiously await the rain that our area so desperately needs, but as thankful as we may be for the
moisture, we quickly realize that there are concerns during this time of the year. Mold and
mildew can create health issues and the additional dirt, debris and germs that enter our homes
can cause us trouble down the line. Here are a few tips to help us a stay safe and healthy this
summer monsoon season.

Wash your hands regularly - Additional germs and allergens are growing during this time of the
year. We bring them in on our hands and feet and on our clothing. Don’t allow wet or damp
clothing to set in a hamper, wash and dry it immediately to avoid mildew and germs. Shoes are
bound to get wet. Clean footwear regularly and make sure shoes are completely dry before
wearing again. Use antibacterial foot powder.

Keep kitchens and bathrooms clean. Check in areas that sometimes don’t get cleaned every
time, like high corners above the shower, behind and under things, window tracks and sills.
These are all areas that can collect mildew, dirt and germs.

Keep windows closed when you leave the house. As you know, it may be sunny one minute
and a cloud burst the next. Water entering through an open window can damage sills, walls,
curtains, furniture and floors. Open windows again when you are home and it is not raining.
Your home needs as much fresh air ventilation as possible.

Make sure to use area rugs on the interior and exterior side of each door to the outside. Leave
soiled shoes in a shoe rack instead of walking around the house and spreading the dirt and
germs.

Remove any containers or buckets outside that may collect rainwater. Once the rain stops and
the sun comes out, that standing water is a place for mosquitos and other pests to gather and
breed. Keep pets clean and teach them to wipe their paws on the rug outside (yes, they can
learn that), or you can wipe their feet.

Keep furniture clean and dry and disinfect all hard surfaces often. Outside of appliances, walls,
fixtures, door handles, ceiling fans can all collect dirt and germs.

Make sure your pets are safe during the thunderstorms. Many normally well behaved pets
totally “lose it” during the storms and will dart out of the door, or over a fence. Some people
have had success with the “Thunder shirts” that can be purchased at most pet stores. If you
don’t have one of those, and your dog or cat is sensitive to the sounds of thunder, place a crate
with a comfortable blanket, one of your t-shirts and a toy inside, in an interior bathroom or closet
with a little radio or music playing. You can cover the crate with a sheet. The crate serves as a
“den” which is a natural comfort for most dogs and cats and is a safe place for them until the
storm subsides. Micro chip your pets so that if they do get separated from you, they will have a
better chance of returning home safely.

After the monsoon season, it is a perfect time to get windows, tracks and sills professionally
cleaned and carpeting and draperies professionally cleaned to prepare for the winter and to
avoid the continued growth of mold and mildew.

Have a great summer and be safe and healthy.

Cleaning During and After this Pandemic

Covid-19 has changed our lives, our livelihoods and our businesses.  It is essential that our community does everything in it's power to minimize the spread.  Steps need to be taken on an individual, company wide, and community wide basis to protect ourselves, our families and the public.

We have heard over and over that keeping our hands and our environment clean is a top priority AND to keep our distance from other people.  We here at Prescott Maid to Order are proactively and strategically, planning and training so that we can be here to assist our clients both residential and commercial in cleaning and disinfecting their environment.

We are in prevention mode, working with our businesses, schools, offices and residential clients to clean and kill the virus on surfaces and keeping those surfaces sanitized.  This takes careful planning and training of all of our management and employees.  Steps are in place to make sure we practice social distancing and minimize any contact with our clients.  Training is in place to make sure that every area that needs to be addressed is carefully and thoroughly cleaned and executed while also protecting the health of our employees.

Soon, hopefully, the virus will subside and we will be in clean up mode.  During this phase, we will be working with businesses, industry, schools and our residential clients to get things cleaned up and ready to bring employees back in and get homes cleaned up after the quarantine period.

We are here and available to do what it takes to keep your home an business clean and sanitized during and after this pandemic.

Business Serving the Community

We are a small community of dedicated citizens, employees, business owners and consumers.  It is important to everyone concerned that our community businesses grow and flourish.  While trying to grow a business, many companies locally and nationwide are seeing the value in serving their community and the world at large.  Whether it be on a large or small scale, the value of volunteerism, contribution and service is of unlimited worth.  The pioneers who colonized the west established honored traditions of unselfish cooperation for the common good. Here are some quotes by prominent figures:

“Without community service, we would not have a strong quality of life. It's important to the person who serves as well as the recipient. It's the way in which we ourselves grow and develop.”
Dorothy Height

“The best way to find yourself is to lose yourself in the service of others.”  - ​ Mahatma Gandhi 
“Life’s most persistent and urgent question is “What are you doing for others?”- ​
Martin Luther King

 “Look for ways to bless the lives of others through seemingly simple acts of service." - ​ Steven E. Snow ​ .

For businesses, being active in community service renders the opportunity to connect with fellow business owners, clients, friends and neighbors.  It enhances the businesses presence and increases a sense of fellowship and connection to the people within that community. In an article by Forbes/Entrepreneurs it states “​Multiple studies and surveys​ have found that both employee morale and retention increased when a company was more engaged with the community. Many employees reported being happier at their jobs when they felt like they could make a positive difference.”  “By involving employees in the process, businesses can increase worker retention, which can save thousands of dollars each year.”

There are so many ways to serve such as: event sponsorship's like marathons and walk-a-thons to raise money for charitable organizations, volunteering at the hospital or for organizations such as People Who Care, Helping Hands, Habitat for Humanity, donations in the name of the business or food donations for local food banks,  serving on committees and boards in the community, and creating campaigns for a cause such as The Forever Home Program that we are doing here at Maid to Order (pictured above).

Each business needs to find the cause or organization that fits best with it’s type of business and will work toward the goal of the company.  For instance, a health related company may want to sponsor a 5k run to promote health and well being.

Whatever the cause and however the business gets involved, it is a “win win” situation for all involved. We have a community filled with available opportunities and caring companies to help fill the need.  We at Prescott Maid to Order and MTO Janitorial appreciate our community and all of its great businesses and citizens.