What's In Store for Commercial Cleaning Services After COVID-19?

In addition to unspeakable, devastating loss, the COVID-19 pandemic caused major shifts throughout the economy and impacted almost every industry in one way or another. This was especially true for residential cleaning companies.

It makes sense that the demand for commercial janitorial services dramatically increased with the onset of the pandemic with businesses working desperately to stay open. However, revenues for residential cleaning services fell by 45 percent during 2020, likely due to consumers wanting to implement social distancing practices and avoid contact with others.

What's In Store for Commercial Cleaning Services after COVID-19

But so far, 2021 has brought about new challenges—and new ways of thinking when it comes to residential cleaning. The advent of vaccines meant a bit more peace of mind for consumers looking to invite their favorite cleaning company into their home and sweep away cobwebs, mop floors, and clean showers and bathrooms.

 So what do professional residential cleaners need to do moving forward? What is the best way to emerge from the COVID-19 pandemic as an even stronger company; one that clients love and trust?

The Height of the COVID-19 Pandemic

Back in 2020 during the height of the pandemic, Dr. Fauci famously shared that the only person who entered his home besides his wife and him was his housekeeper. Even so, as most house cleaning companies know, it was hard to convince families to invite someone else into their space.

The scientific community learned quite a bit about the COVID-19 virus during 2020 and into 2021. While stores sold out of cleaning supplies and disinfectants in the first few weeks and months of the pandemic, the need to wipe down every surface (and groceries and mail, for that matter) waned once more was discovered about the airborne nature of the virus. The initial fears about disinfecting so thoroughly subsided.

With this shift and increased awareness about how the COVID-19 virus spreads, cleaning companies must also pivot to better serve the needs of their clients—and alleviate their fears about letting employees into their homes for service. 

Creating a Thriving Future for Your Business

Now is a critical time to act if you want to set your business up for success as we (hopefully) see cases and infection rates continue to drop. Sanitation and hygiene are more important than ever to the average consumer, and house cleaning services and residential cleaning companies have a unique opportunity to build lifelong relationships with their clients in this time of need.

Consumers want to return to some sense of normalcy—and for clients who are accustomed to hiring professional cleaners to care for their home, this means putting down the mop and letting your team come in to handle the dirty work.

Here are some steps you can take to prepare for the changes in the residential cleaning service industry:

Go “Contactless”

Contactless services are for more than just delivery of your favorite takeout order. Contactless service can help keep your team safe and put your customers at ease, so now is the time to create policies and procedures that remove or limit contact. For example:

• Ask clients to vacate their home or occupy other rooms (or at least mask up) during cleanings
• Offer estimates via video calls; use pictures or footage to come up with a virtual estimate
• Set appointment times so that your clients can work around your schedule

Next, communicate this with your customers so they know what you are doing to keep them safe. Send emails or videos, and update your website to reflect your new contactless approach.

Share and Market Your Plan

Your clients' needs and priorities have shifted with the pandemic. You can inspire confidence and earn their trust by stressing the importance of a clean home, and all the steps you take to provide a clean home like using specific disinfectants, wearing PPE, and providing contactless service.

Even pre-pandemic, our lives made home cleaning services a must-have, not a luxury. That's no different now. Many feel anxious or overwhelmed about returning to some semblance of normalcy, and your cleaning services can be an important way to help clients alleviate one major item on their to-do list. This can ease the stress of a sudden uptick in agenda items or appointments on a calendar for many of your clients, and a thoughtful, authentic marketing approach can help you connect with new and existing clients. 

What's more? Mental health is linked to a clean, mess-free home. Clutter and mess can add tension to your clients' lives, and professional house cleaning services can release some of this tension.

Offer Additional Services

Take a look at your customer base and your demographics. Are there ways you can adjust your service offerings to meet their needs even more than you already do? One thing that was true of the COVID-19 pandemic is that people spent more time at home, which may mean that carpets look worn or dirty faster and might need to be cleaned. This could be a good time to add carpet cleaning to your menu of services or partner with a carpet cleaner.

It's also anticipated that the short-term rental market will continue to increase, much like it did during the pandemic. Can you target clients who own vacation rental properties or AirBnB properties to offer cleaning services between guests as more people start to travel again?

Another option would be to offer intensive disinfection services using high-powered tools like disinfectant foggers and ultraviolet lights.

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