When you plan to hire a professional cleaning service for your home, commercial, or workspace, it’s important to give yourself enough time to select the right one.
In the current scenario, with the pandemic still posing a major risk to health, you need to find a cleaning service in Chicago that will address all your concerns about safety and hygiene along with their regular services.
Cleaning services differ widely in quality of service, type of work undertaken, price, customer satisfaction, reliability, trustworthiness, experience, etc. For many home-owners, this could be a first-time experience of what seems to be an invasion of their privacy. Others may have very high standards, while some customers are wary of allowing strangers to handle valuable possessions and artifacts.
Whatever your concerns, you need to address them squarely and tailor your search around these aspects. Keep these nine tips in mind while hiring a cleaning service:
- Do a Needs Analysis:Why are you hiring the cleaning service? What are the jobs you need to be done? When and how would you like them done? Would you prefer to hire an individual maid/house-cleaner or a company? Once you have answers to these questions, ensure that this forms the basis of your search.
- Referrals:Today, the Internet is our best partner in searching, but this comes with its own risks. Most cleaning services have an online presence and feature on social media. However, it’s wise not to trust everything you find on the Net just because it’s out there. Instead, get recommendations from trustworthy sources such as family, friends, co-workers, etc. who have used a service and can give you valuable insights.
- Staff Screening:Given that cleaning personnel have access to your most private living and working spaces, check whether the agency conducts thorough screening/background checks on all employees.
- Insurance and Bonding: If something gets broken/damaged or is lost/stolen or someone gets injured during the cleaning process, it’s important to know whether the company has insurance coverage, Worker’s Compensation, and bonding so that you are not held liable.
- Supplies: Professional cleaners generally bring their own supplies, tools, and equipment. If you want environmentally-friendly products and processes, make sure you talk to the company ahead before they arrive. Select a company that uses modern, well-maintained equipment. The cleaners should be familiar with the technology and troubleshoot in case of minor problems with the equipment. Ask about their back-up plan in case of equipment failure.
Do They Provide Supplies?
- Price:Most cleaning services offer different packages and deals at various price points, based on your needs, preferences, and budget. You may customize a package for your own unique requirements if your company is flexible on pricing. Remember, cheap isn’t always the best. A local service would sometimes offer better deals than a large international franchise.
- Know the Boundaries:Just because you’ve hired a service, don’t expect them to be superhuman. Be realistic in terms of effort and time. Stay within the boundaries of your job contract. Never ask them to babysit, take your dog for a walk, or answer the telephone – these things are not part of their job.
- Safety:If you plan to stay at home while the service is underway, ensure that you maintain normal safety precautions. With the pandemic protocols in place, ensure that proper hygiene and social distancing are maintained. In case you plan to be out, develop a safe way for cleaners to enter/exit your home. Never leave confidential papers/documents lying around. Keep valuables locked up.
- Read the Contract Carefully:There may be clauses encased in fine print that you could miss in a long and complicated contract. Take the time to read it carefully and talk to the company about the concerns you have.
