Communicating with your customer before the residential cleaning job

Great! Now you have the job booked! So what should you communicate with the customer prior to the visit? There are different names for it, and many different ways to communicate it (a printed sheet when you book the job, direct mail, email, in social media, on your website); but essentially you are asking them to take some steps prior to your visit to make things on the job site go easier and faster. Now easier and faster is certainly a benefit for you. But you need to think about what is in it for your customer. Before you give them a long “to-do” list, part of this communication needs to be about explaining why taking these steps is a benefit to them.

The most important benefit to having them prepare the home for your visit needs to recognize that reducing the amount of time the total job – from set-up to cleaning to tear down to drying- is a big advantage to them. They want their home back to normal as fast as possible. Reducing the time the job takes reduces the inconvenience of not being able to use their home in a normal manner.

So what can you include in your precleaning communication? Feel free to copy paste and use any or all of these into your own communication. Comments to each listing are in italics.

We are so pleased that you have chosen our company to provide your carpet and/or hard surface floor cleaning services. Prior to our arrival, there are a few steps we would ask you to take so that the cleaning process goes as smoothly as possible. These steps will allow us to provide you with a faster and more efficient cleaning and reduce the amount of time it will take before you can return to fully enjoying the comfort of your home:

• Any carpet that we will be cleaning should be thoroughly vacuumed prior to our arrival. Removing the dry soils before we apply any cleaning solution greatly improves the cleaning results. If you’re unable to vacuum before we arrive for whatever reason please let us know so that we can set aside time to vacuum the carpet. (This should be edited to match how your company operates. Even if you pre-vacuum on 100% of the area you are cleaning, it is still a good idea to suggest this to your customer)
• Another helpful consideration is that we would ask you remove any knick-knacks, breakables, collectibles, vases, lamps, pictures, small end tables, and plants out of the areas we’ll be cleaning before we arrive, and secure other breakables as well.
• Our truck mounted carpet cleaning machine produces a cleaning solution that reaches temperatures of 200-230 degrees. Please ensure that you, your children and/or pets are out of the area we are cleaning or clear of our hoses while we are working. We want everyone to be safe in your home while we are working. (If using a portable or a low moisture system, adjust this wording)
• Remove any small furniture items or fragile items that you are able to move, such as dining room chairs, magazine racks, ottomans, etc. Please pin up (or use a clothes hanger to hang away from the floor) any full-length draperies or skirts on upholstered furniture that may be touching the carpet.
• Please make sure that children’s toys are picked up and stored in an area off the carpet or floor we will be cleaning.
• Please note that your electronics, pianos, china cabinets, sectional sofas, beds, entertainment centers, aquariums, and antique and fragile furniture cannot be moved by our technicians. If you would like the carpet or floors under these areas to be cleaned, you should make arrangements to move these items prior to our arrival. Alternatively, we can clean carpet underneath such items when sufficient room is available, or we can clean right up to the edge of these items. (This is another item you will want to adjust to your specific policies. It is also a good idea to check with your insurance agent on what you are and are not covered for)
• During our pre-inspection or pre-cleaning walk-through, please advise us if you have any areas that require special attention, and spots or stains or pet “accidents” that you are especially concerned about. (If you use a Seal-a-door or other door covering device during cleaning, this would be a good place to add that you do that and why – security and keeping warm in or out)
• Be aware of and plan for your outside door being ajar during the cleaning process. Put your pets in a safe, quiet place where our cleaning crew won’t disturb them. (If you use a Seal-a-door or other door covering device during cleaning, this would be a good place to add that you do that and why – security and keeping warm in or out)
• If it is convenient for you, we would appreciate being able to park our van close to the door in your driveway or parking lot where our hoses will be entering. Please note: For safety reasons – we will NEVER park inside a garage or carport. Our cleaning equipment is powered by a gasoline motor and outside parking will ensure proper ventilation. (If you are not using a truckmount, then you would eliminate this item)
• As a general rule, so long as it is safe for out technicians to operate, we will continue to clean during rain or snow. In the case of severe inclimate weather, we may ask you to reschedule for safety reasons. (Adjust this to the climate you work in)
• We prefer to hook up our truckmounted equipment to your outside water faucet. Please clear the area so we can access your faucet safely and easily. In special circumstances, if required we can access a faucet in your home. (Again, use this one only if you are operating a truckmount)

After completing your checklist, you want to reassure your customer what a smart investment they are making in having booked your company to clean their carpet or hard surface floors. You also want to reiterate that if they have questions or concerns before, during, or after the job, how to communicate with you and to encourage them to communicate with you.

Consider something along the lines of:

We are looking forward to the privilege of working with you as a valued client in providing you with a cleaner, safer, and healthier home. Our state of the art equipment and processes, operated by our trained and certified cleaning technicians, will provide you with the cleanest clean. Our reputation as a superior company is not just built on how well we clean your carpets and floors, but also in how we provide a superior hassle-free customer service experience. Please feel free to contact us at any time with any questions or concerns.