Keeping your home clean is literally an endless chore that consumes a lot of what could be free time. It’s no wonder that many of us turn gratefully to a cleaning service, and there’s certainly nothing like that feeling of coming home to sparkling surroundings.
There are many choices when it comes to cleaning services. Choosing the wrong one can be frustrating at the very least. Choosing the right one means you get back hours of your life to do things you actually enjoy.
Rather than going into the horrors of bad house cleaners, we’re going to fill you in on what to look for when hiring a cleaning service, and the right questions to ask so you make the right choice.
How to Find a Reputable Cleaning Service
There are lots of national chains, and they’re easy to find. But do they live up to the image they’re projecting? And are you willing to be just one of thousands of customers? The best tip we can offer is to hire local. Not only are you supporting your community, a local company will be more responsive and their client list is much smaller.
No matter what you decide, here are some tips to help you find the very best in home cleaning.
- Ask family and friends for referrals
The opinions of friends and family are more reliable than references and reviews from people you’ve never met. Be sure the people you ask have the same standards for cleanliness as you do. - Be leary of online reviews
People who are happy with a service rarely leave reviews. Unhappy people air their experience on every available review site. Read these reviews with a skeptical eye. All bad reviews or all good reviews are red flags. Most businesses will have a mix of both. - Do they have employees or contractors? Are they bonded and insured?
It may surprise you that not every cleaning company is insured. And many use contractors rather than employees. Can the company cover the costs of any damage done to your home, any theft, or any injury that occurs on your property? If they aren’t insured, you could be out-of-pocket for money, items stolen, property damaged, or an injured worker. - Are they experienced?
Ask how long they’ve been in business. And has the company won any awards, have any accreditations, or affiliations with professional organizations? This can tell you a lot. - What are their service offerings?
Look for a company that fits your needs and lifestyle. If a company only offers recurring service and you only want occasional cleaning, look elsewhere. - Do they guarantee their work?
Ask about breakage, damage, and satisfaction guarantees – a company should stand behind both its work and its workers. If you’re not happy, what will they do to make it right? Unfortunately, breakage is a fact of life, and sometimes cleaners miss things. Be sure to ask what the company will do to make things right. - How does the company vet their employees?
Ask how the company checks references. Do they do background and criminal checks? Are their employees insured, bonded, and trained? Ask them to schedule you in with the same cleaner as often as possible. - What are their terms of service?
What is the policy for canceling or changing your service? This policy should be in place so that you don’t get any surprise fees. - Do you bring equipment and cleaning supplies?
Some companies bring their own equipment and supplies, while others may only bring the equipment, and you provide cleaning supplies. If they bring cleaning supplies, ask what they use, and if they aren’t what you like, be prepared to supply your own. And, if you only use green cleaning supplies, be sure to make that known. - How will you get access to my house?
Your options include leaving a key under the mat and asking the cleaner to leave it inside when they’re done, you can buy and use a lockbox with the keypad, or you can be home during the cleaning. Just make sure both you and your cleaner are comfortable with the chosen option. - Ask what you should do with your pet.
Ask if the cleaner can come by so you can introduce your pets before the first cleaning. Depending on how it goes, you may want to crate your dog or make some other type of arrangement. Also ask if there’s an additional fee for cleaning a house with pets. - What services are included?
Ask what cleaning services are included in a routine visit. If you’d prefer to take care of the basic day-to-day chores and you really want a cleaner to do a deep cleaning, make sure you let the service know. - Can I get all this in writing?
This is an important step. Ask the service to put all details in writing and review them to make sure they include everything you want.
Lots of questions, but putting in the time to ask them before you hire a cleaning service can ensure that everyone is happy and you get exactly what you want and expect.
Why Local is Best
A cleaning service that serves residences and businesses on a national scale will certainly take your business. But you won’t be a priority. And while they may be able to outbid the local service, it will cost you more in aggravation and issues, since they’re focused on large clients.
And they want to protect their profits, so this is what drives their methods, systems and procedures. Basically, if you don’t like the way they do things, that’s too bad, but they aren’t going to change things. For a real eye-opening look at one national cleaning service and their cleaning methods, read “Nickel and Dimed,” by Barbara Ehrenreich.
Local firms offer quality service customized to your needs, care about their reputation, and bring that personal touch that makes all the difference.
Bliss Maid: Local, Dependable, Ready to Clean
Love a clean home but have too much to do? Or maybe deep cleaning isn’t your thing. Spend more time doing the things you love and less time with a broom!
Contact Bliss Maids, TulsaPeople’s 2019 Reader’s Choice winner!
- We offer one-time cleaning, just in time for those special occasions
- Or schedule our dependable cleaners to come weekly, monthly, bi-monthly or on your schedule.
- We clean based on your needs, matching every home with the right cleaners.
- Every person on our team undergoes a background check and is insured, bonded, trained and certified so you can have complete confidence and peace of mind.
It can be stressful when you have to juggle family, work and cleaning. At Bliss Maid Services, we have helped thousands of families spend more time together while enjoying a clean home.
Call or text us at (918) 779-9171, or fill out this easy form and get a quote today.
