Are all cleaning companies of the same quality?
Many go to great lengths through marketing and advertising to look great to attract customers. In any service, how good they are is determined by the price and quality of work done.
I will offer an inside view of some commercial cleaning secrets about the professional cleaning industry that you didn’t know. I hope other cleaning companies don’t attack me for letting the cat out of the bag. Oh well, I want to work for you, not them.
Before we get started, let me gross you out with a few facts:
- Water cooler buttons are huge germ spreaders.
- Viruses (like the flu) can survive in the workplace for up to 3 days.
- 98% of your workers are affected by minor or significant sickness due to dirty surroundings.
- Each telephone in the office has about 25,000 germs per square inch.
- Only about 25% of staff think your office is effectively clean.
- Washroom faucet handles are a big germs spreader.
- Bacteria grows 31% every day they are allowed to live.
- Men’s desks have 20% more bacteria on them.
- Desks are more than 400 times dirtier than a toilet seat.
- 64% of people clean their desks once a month or less.
- Your desk contains 100 times more bacteria than a kitchen table.
- Cleaning your desk with a disinfectant wipe can eliminate 99% of germs.
- Keyboards can contain nasty things like urine and feces.
This office smells excellent; it must be super clean.
Many cleaning companies add scent to their mop bucket to give the impression of being clean. Not a bad tactic, but it should not replace cleaning.Underbidding to get the contract
The cleaning company that underbids can’t afford to take the necessary time to clean your facility correctly. These practices tend to lead to corners being cut and unresolved issues between the customer and the cleaning company. Beware of any company that is eager to underbid all of the competition. Ask yourself what they are willing to sacrifice in quality control to get the job?Bathrooms are not always clean; they are just polished.
Light-colored tiles can hide many of the disgusting debris in the bathroom. Many cleaning companies will polish up the noticeable fixtures like the faucet, mirror or add blue liquid to the toilet water to make it clean. Bathrooms are gross; urine splatters will blanket the walls and floor and is corrosive. Just flushing the toilet can cause feces to travel 6 feet. Think about that next time you are in the bathroom.Cleaning Contractors
When you hire a cleaning company, you expect them to stand behind their name and perform the work. There is an unfortunate but common practice in larger cleaning companies that is a dirty little secret of the cleaning industry. Here is how it works.- The prominent building owner contracts a cleaning company to clean the facility regularly.
- The cleaning contractor agrees to pay cleaners to say $25 per hour.
- The cleaning contractor hires a subcontractor to actually do the work (a front company).
- The sub-contracting company makes $20 per hour.
- The sub-contracting cleaning company hires a low-wage cleaner to do the cleaning in your facility for $15 an hour and pockets the balance.
