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!

Enjoy Your "Happy" Summer

We'd like to invite you to “Enjoy every day this summer and leave the cleaning to us”.  As the weather turns warmer and we come into “vacation season”, I automatically feel happier.  People are out and about and enjoying our beautiful area.  It is a time when kids are out of school, family often comes to visit or you take that much anticipated vacation.  

Here at our company, we encourage our friends and community to enjoy their season and let the professionals take some of the tasks that they normally do, off their list and lift a weight off their shoulders.  We encourage our employees to be happy and we strive to make our clients happy as well.

I recently came across this list whose author I am not aware of, but is worth passing along:

TEN THINGS HAPPY PEOPLE DON’T DO

1. They don’t worry a lot about what other people think.
2. The don’t waste time doing things they dislike
3. They don’t try to manipulate or change other people
4. They don’t get stuck in the past
5. They don’t obsess over what MIGHT happen in the future
6. They don’t strive to achieve absolute perfection
7. They don’t forget to be thankful
8. They don’t value material possessions over experiences
9. They don’t seek fulfillment in the wrong places
10. They don’t stay in a negative situation long

Why would I include this list in an article about cleaning?  Because many people I run into feel “guilty” if they do something for themselves or accept help.  They may worry about what other people think if they seek help.  They get “stuck” (like in number 4 on the list) not knowing where to start on a project or a move.  It sometimes seems overwhelming when there is a life change like a move or a house sale.  A recent client called when her Aunt had passed and it was now her responsibility to get the house ready to sell.  This was almost more that she was able to comprehend completing because of the condition that the house was in.  After an initial day of cleaning and professional carpet cleaning, she tearfully thanked us for taking some of this huge task off her plate.  What a great feeling to provide a service that contributed to someone's happiness today!