When considering your price for your cleaning services, you have to first analyze your expenditures in rendering every service. You will find out that one of the significant components of your expenditures is the labor cost.

There are customers that do not require a complete cleaning job. Some may want to have only the windows cleaned, or the floors mopped, or simply collect their garbage. It is easier on your part to have a price list for every little job you will render. To determine the price, the first thing to do is to determine the number of hours needed to finish each job.

If the price of a complete cleaning job is in your records, you have to divide the job into different steps and document the time needed for every step. Of course cleaning time depends on the person doing the job. But you can more or less determine the average cleaning time.

The following can be considered in determining your price:

Area Being Cleaned – If the account you have is simply to mop a 2500 square feet floor and the benchmark for mopping is one hour for every 5000 square feet, then it is assumed that you will finish the requested job within half an hour. However, you will see that cleaning time will also change even if the area is the same. This is because you will never know if that 2500 square foot area is within one area or located in separate rooms. So the time of cleaning is affected.

Frequencies of Task – There are jobs that must be done more than once a day, daily, weekly, or monthly. It does not mean that when you lower the frequency of doing a certain job, you also have to lower your cleaning rate. But you would see that cleaning time is affected. For example, if you empty trash twice a week instead of five times, the rate would still be the same. But the problem is when you lower the frequency of emptying trash, you will experience garbage spills which will affect your cleaning time because you also have to clean the area where the garbage spilled.

Office Occupants – If you are going to clean a little office with few workers, the cleaning time is less. But if the office has many workers and they are doing a lot of transactions with their clients, your cleaning time will be longer even if the floor area is the same.

Equipment Used – The condition of your equipment will also affect your cleaning time. Avoid equipment that always bog down. Also use those that fit the area. For example, when you are cleaning a wide hallway, you need to use a more powerful vacuum with a wider nozzle.

Climate of the Area – Different location in the country have different climates. Climates with snowfall or precipitation would require additional maintenance to the building because of exposure to snow, dirt, sand, salt. For areas with high humidity and precipitation, it needs extra cleaning for floor and carpet and the drying time is slower.

Standards of Customers – There are customers who are price conscious while others are quality conscious. If your customer is particular with the price, you follow your standard cleaning rate. But if he is quality conscious, you can demand a higher rate because you will need more labor and time to clean the area until he is satisfied.

Keep the above situations in your mind when you are dealing or bidding with your customers.

See: How to start a cleaning business

Like many cleaning company owners, you may have started by doing the whole thing yourself. As the company grows and you put in new cleaning accounts you will find yourself needing to hire workers. Before running that ad in the paper or putting someone on the payroll, it is important to have a job account that specifies the job responsibilities.

Think of a job explanation as a “snapshot” of the arrangement. It needs to obviously converse the responsibilities of the job as well as state the needed credentials and skills required of the candidate. Don’t dress up the job description or be too vague or you will not get the right candidates for the position. A good job description will:

* Describe the reason of the position and the workers role in your company.
* Help make it easier for you to arrange job advertisements.
* Give candidates with a basic consideration of the main errands of the position. This will help the being decide if the job is what they are look for.
* Describe what is usual in an employee’s job presentation.
* Reduce needless duplication of responsibilities among diverse positions, which will add to the overall efficiency of your cleaning business.

What should you contain in a job description?

1. Position title. If you have only single or two workers you may have only one work position such as janitorial worker or cleaning technician. As your cleaning corporation grows you may need to add lead labour and administrators.

2. The place to which the individual will report — ie: manager.

3. Lines of endorsement. This lets the candidate know there is possible for advancement within the business.

4. A title that allows for some suppleness. For instance, before listing exact job duties begin with “everyday jobs include, but are not incomplete to . . .

5. Ssynopsis of the duties and tasks of this place.

6. Required or favoured experience, education, skills, and credentials.

7. Any special needs and physical stress of the position, such as requisite to lift 50 pounds on a usual basis, standing for long periods of time, reliable carrying, etc.

8. If appropriate, a description of decision-making errands.

9. The environment the job duties will be performed in.

Remember that a job description is regarded as a legal document. Any references to age, sex, race, color, religion, national origin or disabilities are illegal.

For a janitorial position (not supervisory) your summary is likely to include:

General office maintenance, including, but not limited to: trash removal; dusting; cleaning and restocking supplies in restrooms, break rooms, coffee centers; sweeping and mopping floors; vacuuming; window washing; replacing light bulbs; other duties as assigned. Specific duties may vary depending on the list of specifications required by the client at each location.

Your experience and qualifications section should indicate any specific requirements you want in a candidate; for example, office maintenance experience, knowledge of floor machines, window washing, etc.

See: How to start a cleaning business

There are a lot to learn in starting a foreclosure cleanup business and even when you are already operating. When you were just about to start your cleaning foreclosures business, you went through many start-up-your-own-business materials to aide you in how you should start your new business. Just like getting an education, learning does not stop there. There are still many things to learn in the process. If you have already started your own foreclosure cleaning business, you will be surprised to know that there is still a lot of learning to be done. This is particularly true in terms of how much to charge your clients, bidding on, and in giving job estimates.

In this article, reasons on why you should not give a job estimate that is detailed will be explained. These reasons will protect you from losing your chance to get job contracts. Knowing what these reasons are will definitely make you a smarter player in the industry.

* Possibilities are you can only be used as a source of estimate. This is done many times. Your foreclosure cleanup jobs will be mostly requested by banks and realtors. These institutions will send out their staff to get your price quotation for a specific job they wanted you to render. The price quotations which you are going to submit will then be presented to their superiors for approval which foreclosure cleaning company should they get. Drafting a price estimate that is too detailed will just be, in most cases, a waste of time and effort in your part. What you can do instead is to just give an official rate for the job requested.

You can explain though that you will provide the break out of the estimate when you are hired. You can point out that you can actually give a detailed price estimate but only when you have signed a contract.

* You can be used for price shop. Your price for one foreclosure service can be subcontracted out to another company. This means that your price will be compared with another company’s services. The realtor, investor, banker or whoever asked for your detailed price quotation can go to another foreclosure cleaning company and ask whether they can beat a price for one of the services they needed. For example, if you charged $2,000 for trash out, they can ask the other company if they can beat your price. If the other company agreed to give the service for a lower price of $1,500, that service may be slashed out from your contract and be given to the other company instead. Your price can be used to bargain for lower prices. That means your supposed income from a full-service will be decreased.

Be careful then in divulging your detailed rate for particular services. Be a smart player and be assured that you will earn only what you deserve! Be very accommodating though and professional when offering your services.

See: How to start a cleaning service

Same with many other cleaning business owners, you may have set up doing everything on your own. As the business grows and you’ve added new cleaning accounts, you will find yourself having the need to hire more employees. But before you post that hiring ad or hiring someone, it is imperative to have a job description that specifies the duties that comes with the job.

Consider a job description as a “snapshot’ of the position. It should clearly state the responsibilities of the job and specify the required qualifications and skills of the candidate. Keep the job description simple and not to vague or you might not get the right applicants for the position. A good job description should:

* Be able to express the purpose of the position as well as the employee’s role in your business.

* Facilitate an easier preparation of your job advertisements.

* Give applicants a basic understanding of the key responsibilities of the position. This will aid the person decide whether the job is what they are looking for or not.

* Express what is required in the employee’s job performance.

* Lessen unnecessary duplication of the duties on different positions, which would increase the overall efficiency of your cleaning operations.

A job description should include:

1. The position title. If your company only has one or two employees, you may have one job position like janitorial worker or a technician. Once your company starts growing, you may need additional lead workers and supervisors.

2. The position to which the applicant with report to.

3. Lines of promotion. This informs the applicant that there is a potential for growth in the company.

4. A heading that allows some flexibility like “Responsibilities include, but are not limited to…”

5. Summary of the responsibilities and duties for the position.

6. Required or preferred education, experience, qualifications and skills.

7. Any special requirements as well as physical demands of the position.

8. If applicable, a short description of supervisory responsibilities.

9. The environment to perform the job duties in.

Keep in mind that job descriptions are considered as legal documents. Any references to age, race, sex, color, national origin, or disabilities are illegal.

Your qualification and experience section should show any specific requirements you need from an applicant like office maintenance experience, window washing etc.

The job description should also include a paragraph expressing that your company will train newly employees on cleaning processes, use of chemicals as well as safety guidelines and procedures.

You have to think of your job description as a guide for you as well as your potential employees. It should clearly specify the responsibilities of each party. An accurate and brief job description will help ease out the applicants that are less likely to be come good employees fro your cleaning business. You need to put some time into preparing a well intended job description before you hire your first employees to save you time, money and headaches.

See: How to start a cleaning service

Most people are unable to maximize their potential for earning huge sums of money simply because they work for someone else. Some people are contented with a routinely type of job. People rarely make their own fortune because they work for someone. If you want to be rich, you have to work for yourself! You may not be entrepreneur material, and most probably you have no slight idea on how to start your own business even without a big capital to start with.

If you want to start a business of your own, you have to think first which business can provide you with a high and stable source of income and you could start it even with small capital. It may sound ridiculous but come to think of it, cleaning service is perfect.

If you are serious in starting this type of business, you have to make list on what of equipment or tools you will need. If you have heavy duty vacuum, floor polisher, these are some of the primary equipment you will use for cleaning. You need sponge, brush, and other cleaning materials like soap.

A cleaning service business is the most practical business to start with. Of course you have to be physically set for the challenge that this type of business entails. Use your car primarily as a transporting vehicle for your equipments. You have to advertise you cleaning service, you can tell your friends, relatives and make some flyers promoting your cleaning service. You can also place an ad in your local news paper. Always remember in starting your own business, you must have patience and determined to succeed.

Starting this cleaning service is not that easy. If you have employees brief them properly about the type of job they will be doing. You have to check your competitor’s prices on the cleaning services. Make promotional discount or any freebies that will attract more customers. Schedule your job order very well and make sure there is always enough type of breathe and stretch.

You could also ask for referrals from your recent customers. Keep in mind that the customer is always right therefore you always have to satisfy and meet their demands. Giving quality service means doing your job well. The customer must be fully satisfied with the cleaning service you render. The more clients you satisfy, the more job orders you will receive, which means the bigger profit you will earn. Don’t ever take your cleaning service for granted. You can ask your customer for any suggestion about the job you render or how to make your cleaning service be more productive.

Check out books or websites that can be helpful to your business and that can teach you on how to be successful in it. There are different websites that can give you necessary resources or even ideas on how make your cleaning service be productive. Have your cleaning service posted on the internet. Most working women don’t have time to attended domestic chores and they usually look for cleaning service on the internet.

See: Cleaning service

Cleaning may seem to be a simple task to an ordinary individual. However, to one who is engaged in this line of business, cleaning is a serious business. The quality of service provided is the deal maker of deal breaker for a going concern. In addition, in this highly competitive field of business, one dissatisfied client may spell disaster to a small business. So how can one maintain the quality of service? One must have the tools for the job. Here are the basic tools for the job of cleaning.

1) A keen eye for detail
Having a keen eye for detail is one of the basic tools in the business. Being able to spot an unclean spot or seeing how dust settles on a table is key to quality service. Making the difference in making clean room out of an untidy one is one of the hallmarks for a business to improve. If one fails in even one aspect, such as finding cobwebs in supposed clean room would be disappointing to one supposedly obsessed with cleaning. So to be able to succeed in this line of work, one must not just say this is enough but what more can be done to make the room cleaner and better.

2) The patience for the job
The business of cleaning is not one sweep and all is done. The cleaning would be done in gradual steps in order to achieve a quality service. In addition, removing a blemish or making floors shine cannot be done with a few light dabs of cleaning fluid. There must be patience in removing the stain and the will to make the sore spot disappear. So for one to succeed, one needs the perseverance and the patience to make the client have a cleaner and more environmentally sound workplace. A clean area would make a satisfied client.

3) The resiliency to do the job again and again
This is probably the most important virtue of the job. Since one does the job only to be soiled by others, one needs the resiliency to be able to return to the jobsite and do the cleaning all over again. Above this work is the requirement of quality service to be provided. So in essence, one repeats the job repeatedly. Thus, the need to be resilient against these odds is paramount. If one were unable to find the will to be able to perform well under these circumstances, one would have a bigger problem in the end.

One might think that at the outset of this article, the broom and the mop would be discussed. These are but implements that would change as the business matures. But the basic tools of having a keen eye for detail, having the patience for the job and ingraining the resiliency do repeatedly do the job are the best implements one needs to have to accomplish the job of cleaning with quality. These are the building blocks, everything else are details.

See: How to start a cleaning service

When you are in the business of providing service, there is nothing in the world that can stop your customers from reporting complaints. They will find every excuse to give you a negative feedback as soon as the cleaning job is over; sometimes, up to even after a few days. The way you handle customer complaints will measure how good your people skills are.

Complaints will be about everything that is involved in the cleaning process; from your cleaning staff’s appearance, to the equipment and cleaning solutions your cleaning service uses. Typically, you will be giving out feedback forms for the customer to fill out but your clients also have the option to call you up and raise their concerns to you personally.

1. Always handle complaints as soon as you receive them. If it is in written form, then you should contact the complainant immediately and state that you have received their input. If the comment does not require immediate attention such as advice on the cleaning solution you should use next time, then just say that you will look into the possibility and get back to them as soon as possible.

2. Always keep the proper decorum when talking to clients even if you think that the complaints are unfounded. There is nothing wrong with hearing your customers out, especially if their sole purpose is just to vent out their feelings. Some customers are more difficult to handle as they may have a different style in cleaning their spaces. All you have to do is to tailor your cleaning service to their requirements.

3. Never lose your temper when talking to a difficult client. You are in the service industry and your aim is to please your client so that they stay in contract with you. There may be times that your customer may be hearing you but is not actually listening to what you say. Their objective at this point is to put across their concern. It would be best to wait until the customer is done talking and then follow up with a query on how he thinks the situation could be rectified. Afterwards, consider his suggestion and then give your own. Make sure that the solution you give incorporates all or a part of the customer’s recommendation.

4. If the complaint is about the cleaning you have done, including damages to property, you need to talk to your staff immediately and clear up what had happened before setting up a meeting with the client. Make sure that your insurance and bond are in order so that you can quickly settle the issue.

5. When a client criticizes one of your staff, maybe on their uniform or not wearing one, or general attitude toward work, talk to the client immediately and ask what exactly happened. If the complain is valid, then you should talk to your employee regarding the matter. To make sure that you do not suffer from any liabilities in case you decide to fire out the employee later on, then you should issue him a memorandum. However, if you find that the client just has some misgivings about your cleaning crew member and you cannot pinpoint the real reason, what you can do is to find a replacement for that crew member and send the other to a different cleaning gig.

See: Start Cleaning Service

Have you thought of wishing that you could just be able to print your cash and produce tons of those? Are you aiming for a job or work where you own your time that would not cost you so much with minimal risk? Or are you simply dreaming to be the boss of your own establishment or business? As you start an office cleaning business, you had these things under your feet.

For only a business that uses your spare time, you could already earn more than $54,000 a year that could even reach up to $400,000. It is a business that does not require you to be a graduate of any course, would not care if your have the experience or skills, nor would ask a large amount of money for the amount on your beginning balance. It was even reported by the US Department of Labor that the industry that includes the service of cleaning will open job opportunities to all entrepreneurs in the future or even at present. It is because of the fact that the demand in such field is huge but workers or service providers are declining in number. Are you still asking the question how would it create such great profits through it is only a service of office cleaning? The answer is simple? When you decide to start an office cleaning business you are paid by your costumers not depending on how long you have been working but based on the satisfaction that you gave to them after rendering your services.

See: How to start an office cleaning business

Upholstery cleaning can be a tricky job. It can be scary and quite difficult at the same time. For most part, a few businessmen managed to keep their upholstery business manageable – but with care and patience. It mainly involves manual labor and concentration, especially when the upholstery object is very hard to clean.

Most carpet cleaning services do not take the risk or only choose which upholstery products to clean. If it is a man-made fiber with a 0% risk of color bleed or pile damage that is much safer to clean. However, take note that there are many types of upholstery and they are not simply cleaned with only one solution. If you still want to endeavor in this kind of business, learn the key factors on upholstery cleaning.

Research on different methods about upholstery cleaning. Like mentioned before, there are different varieties of upholstery and learn the procedures on how to clean each type. Buy a few fabrics and do some experimentation. Put those researches into good use and try which cleaning technique is better.

Don’t rely on the care label for advice. Most of the time, they are wrong. Some upholstery are mislabeled with incorrect cleaning advice, so make smart judgments before proceeding on cleaning the product. Bear in mind that manufacturers and retailers are not cleaning professionals.

Assess all the different fabrics of upholstery, especially if you come across such fabrics like cotton, velvet, and silk. These kinds of fabrics can be cleanable with a wet solution.

There are other fabrics that can be mistaken as wet-cleanable, especially acrylic piles. Do a test and look for pile damage or color bleed. After a series of tests, check if the pile does not crush nor have the “wet rat” looks, that’s the time you can use a wet cleaning technique. Other wet-clean fabrics are flat wave cotton; however, do a test color bleed again just to be certain that the dyes are stable – when they bleed, they can be cleansed with an acid rinse through an extraction.

Once testing is done for wet cleaning, thoroughly vacuum the fabric to remove loose soils. Spray the upholstery with a dry solvent and wipe it gently to dry off excess water from the extraction. Next, treat it with a mild alkaline fabric cleaner – rub it after spraying. Let it dry for a few minutes and remove any excess dirty with water. Finally, spray it with the same dry solvent to further evaporate any water left on the fabric.

For a speedy dry, use air movers. The wetting and drying technique is the most difficult task to do, so do a good job at it. Take precautions when cleaning the sofa and dry it as briefly fast as possible.

See: Start cleaning service

Whether you are cleaning houses, or cleaning small office spaces, the start of a beautiful and profitable business relationship with a client is the quality of job you turn in.  So before you start cleaning away, it is best that you have a plan of action on what tools you need, which areas to clean first, and how much time you need to finish up everything.   This system will ensure that you have paid enough attention to your task and can help you avoid missing spots that can cost you one less client.

To keep your clients impressed, it is important that you do the cleaning tasks ably and correctly.  Most first time clients would check on the smallest things and it would be best to arm yourself with more care than you have ever had before.

1.    On cleaning glass and mirrors.
Although a glass cleaner may seem like the obvious option, a better cleaning agent is actually soap and warm water.   A bit of dish washing liquid in a bucket of warm water would do the job better than any glass cleaner could.  Dry up the glass or mirror with a lint-free rag to avoid threads on the surface.  A glass cleaning agent that can help protect the surface from attracting dust is vinegar and water, just make sure not to put too much vinegar in the water as that would smell.  Although, vinegar also has the capability to actively eliminate other smells in the vicinity.

2.     On polishing furniture surfaces.
A commercial furniture polish is not actually manufactured to clean, it was made to polish.  So before you start wiping off dust, read the label and see if the furniture polish you have can be used for cleaning purposes too.  Otherwise, use a clean piece of rag to wipe off dust before applying the polish.  Also, check the material of the furniture.  Some can handle water and you can use a damp rag to clean the surface before polishing it.

3.     On all-purpose cleaners.
Believe it or not, all purpose cleaners are not suitable for “all” things.  All purpose cleaners can have an abrasive texture which may leave scratches on the surface of some materials.  You should always check labels before using this for your cleaning tasks.

4.    On cleaning floors.
The vacuum cleaner is probably one of the best inventions intended for cleaning this century has ever seen.  To make floors cleaner, use a microfiber dry dust mop for tiled or wooden floors, and a carpet sweeper for carpets.  These two will make vacuuming an easier task since they have already lessened the dust to be pulled out.  You will come up with a winning floor!

5.    On finishing up.
Before you leave the premises, do a last inspection on all the areas you have cleaned.  Bring along a garbage bag or your janitorial cart just in case you find something else to pick up or some equipment and tools you had inadvertently left earlier.

See: How to start a cleaning service