Janitorial for Your New or Small Business.

For small and new businesses alike, maintaining high standards of cleanliness in the post Covid-19 pandemic can be a challenge.   Customers and employees have come to expect a clean and safe workplace, no matter the industry.  As a result, more companies are seeking business cleaning solutions that are tailor-made to fit their unique needs. In the past small companies might have performed the cleaning themselves.  For new businesses there are so many options it can be overwhelming.  Here are ways in which you can get quality, consistent cleaning for your new or small business. 

The small business and a tight budget

For many small businesses, keeping costs down can be a priority, especially after the Covid-19 pandemic and it’s economic impact.  But janitorial on a budget doesn’t have to mean ‘budget janitorial’. In fact, there are numerous ways in which your business can receive great cleaning services at a terrific value.  If you’re a new business, looking to hire a cleaning service without breaking the bank, this insight is for you.   The process of figuring out your commercial cleaning needs begins with evaluating how often your facility needs cleaning.   

How often does your facility need cleaning?

How often your business needs professional cleaning greatly depends upon two things: the business type and the amount of traffic it gets. 

7 x week, or daily cleaning: manufacturing facilities, medical, restaurants (reputable ones!), grocery, and large sized retail.

5 x week: law firms, call centers, & busy office environments that host a regular flow of customers/people.

 2-3 x week: small insurance agencies, auto-shops, warehouse offices, and small boutique retail.

1 x week: small offices that don’t receive many customers.  

Get off to a great start with a month-to-month contract.

New or small businesses that have never had a cleaning service before should avoid signing a multi-year contract.  Month-to-month contracts offer numerous benefits for smaller operations. First, it allows you to ‘test the waters’ so to speak.  It doesn’t hurt to give a new cleaning vendor a shot.  In a worst case scenario, should situations or circumstances go awry you can end the relationship with a 30-day notice.  This kind of flexibility is vital.  

Second, a month-to-month contract keeps your cleaning vendor motivated. They need to prove themselves and deliver a quality, consistent service month in and month out.  They’re less likely to take you and your business for granted.

On the flip side of the coin, larger cleaning companies will often sell you on long term services, and lock you in with multi-year contracts.  As such, their service, management, and cleaners can become complacent and deliver a poor quality cleaning service.

It doesn’t hurt to start small. 

When it comes to cleaning companies, the best ones will consult with you to find solutions that work.  No two businesses are the same, therefore neither are the cleaning solutions. Smaller cleaning companies will often be more attentive to your needs.  This kind of customer service and responsiveness can be invaluable and ultimately make your life easier.  

You can also start small and begin with limited service.  For example, at the beginning you may find that 1 x per week cleaning will suffice.  Then, as your company grows and business picks up, perhaps you’ll need to increase service to 3 or 5 days per week.   

How to get quality cleaning at a good value.

Another method to reduce costs would be to determine which areas of your business would benefit from professional cleaning, and which areas could/should be left out.  While it is recommended to have all areas serviced by your cleaning company, in some cases you can limit the cleaning scope to office areas and common areas utilized by customers such as lobbies, restrooms, hallways and kitchenettes.

For example, if you’re a manufacturing operation you could lower costs by cutting out the cleaning of employee work stations or clean rooms.  High-tech firms will have server rooms that are off-limits.  They may have sensitive property and machinery that require specialized cleaning, performed by licensed techs.  Logistics companies will sometimes have their offices cleaned by the pros, and leave warehouse area floors to the Joes. 

Lowest price janitorial for your new or small business can equal low value.

Be wary of the lowest bidder.  Janitorial is a competitive industry.  As such, some companies will purposefully underbid a job just to get your business.  They’ll then perform a cut-rate, minimal service.  They’ll be in and out of your business, emptying trash and doing little else.  The cleaners will rush through the cleaning service and as a result they won’t be paying much attention to detail.  This type of trash ‘n dash service will not be successful in the long-run. Poor quality cleaning will be exposed eventually.  

Limited service is made possible with a team effort.

Some businesses do just fine with one time per week cleaning.  However, this works best as a joint effort between you and your cleaning company.  This works well if you or your staff is willing and able to pitch in and perform some of the vital cleaning tasks during the workweek.  For example, trash with foodstuffs needs to be emptied daily.  If your staff can empty lobby, restroom, and kitchen trash, this can keep your business tolerable and presentable.  On the weekend your cleaning company would come in and deep clean the entire office.  

In this arrangement you would also have to do daily restroom checks as well to ensure that things such as the toilet, sinks, and floors are in decent condition. 

Final Thoughts

For a small to medium sized business, self-performing the cleaning can be a challenge to manage.  It can be a struggle to simply find the time or the staff to do it.  Maintaining consistent, quality cleaning is yet another ball to juggle for the busy business owner.  With such a heightened awareness of sanitization in a post Covid-19 world you may find that working with a professional cleaning company was a choice you should have made sooner! For more help in finding janitorial for your new or small business, contact one of our cleaning consultants today.