Have you ever asked yourself this question; why are some cleaning services outrageously cheaper and others are more expensive? Is there some magic, free material that they use in their work that the others do not have access to, or are they just super good at cutting corners to cut costs?
Well, we can assure you of one thing from our experience; there is always a well-hidden cause why a company chooses to become the crazily cheaper option. All businesses have to make a profit. So if such “Cheap-Er” companies offer outrageously low cleaning rates and products, then that means that somehow, they’re trying to cut corners in the bid to make profits.
So, how do they cut these corners?
Take this scenario, for example, a couple hires a cheap cleaning service to clean their home. They do not take the time to verify the cleaning service and their methods before hiring them. At that point, all they wanted was the immediate cost involved, without knowing that it may cost them more in the long run.
The cleaning service comes in with their unqualified staff and uses substandard and cheap materials to do the job. After cleaning, the couple finds out that some of the chemicals used for the service were harmful and toxic to their children. Now, in a bid to save cost, they ended up risking the lives of their kids.
They also end up spending more on hospital bills and a more efficient cleaning service. These types of scenarios happen around us daily. The worst thing about engaging cheap and substandard cleaning services is you may not notice the effects immediately. So, it is always better to do your research when choosing a cleaning service. Instead of saving cost on cheap ones, pay a good price to hire the professionals.
Here are 5 good reasons to reconsider hiring a cheap cleaning service
Underpaying the cleaners
Workers always tend to give their best only when they are happy. Underpaying them definitely makes them unhappy. So, it is always better to motivate and appreciate them by paying them well enough.
Throw Away the Insurance Coverage
Accidents can happen at any time, even in so-called “simple” occupations such as professional cleaning. If a cleaning company offers you its services at a low price and does not have adequate insurance coverage, you are taking a risk by just working with them.
It is possible to enter into legal trouble when such companies carry out their services without requisite insurance coverage. Do not think that it does not concern you at all. In some cases of accidents, the client is also expected to chip-in to cover the costs of damages. It’s better if you don’t go through any of that at all.
So, ask yourself these questions before hiring or using the next cheap cleaner that comes along;
- What if something goes wrong…Who will pay for it?
- Can this company cover such payments?
Questions as these can save you a lot of money and potential court cases.
Check out this scenario:
A customer can pay a not-so-cheap but capable cleaning company. But they choose to pass the work onto the cheaper company.
They deliver their services for some time, and the customer becomes pleased that he has saved himself some real money. But alas, something happens. One day, one of the company’s staff decides to use an unsafe working strategy and gets himself electrocuted. The customer, in the end, pays ten times the cost of the entire job done altogether.
That scenario is enough to remind us that whatever we sow, we reap. It doesn’t matter how cost-efficient you might be trying to become. The standard remains the standard. You can’t change it. Suppose an employee is not well-trained enough (as most cheap cleaning companies do).
In that case, it’s only a matter of time before an occupational accident occurs and causes the unsuspecting customer a huge loss at the end.
We’re sure that it is probably one of the last things that you will think of when hiring a cleaning service. When making the seemingly unimportant choice of who will do the cleaning job, many people do not even think! They consider the initial financial part of the agreement only, forgetting that any job taken with appropriate insurance cover will probably blowback in the client’s face, especially when there is an accident or damage.
So before you hire any cleaner, try to find out first; if anything goes wrong, who will cover for it?
No or Minimum Customer Feedback Delivery
Having no feedback mechanism to balance the scale of service delivery is always a bad idea. It would help if you always were on the lookout for any cheap, customer-deaf cleaning crew. Such cleaning setups might cut costs by having a minimum or null medium to return suggestions, complaints, and customer advice.
Which shows that the customer means nothing to them and that only the monetary gain is in their interest.
A couple of ways to discover if a cleaning company is trying to cut corners in customer relations is by checking if they have a functional phone response system that is available and affordable to call. Another method is to discover if even they have any customer response number or any other similar system. It might interest you to find out that some of those almost miraculously low-priced cleaning companies have no established contact numbers or emails or any sort. That alone should foretell what could happen if you try to reach them in case of an emergency.
Lack of Proper Staff Training
A saying goes that a worker is only as good as their skills. Everyone must have cleaned something or someplace, either in the present or recent past. But it doesn’t mean that everyone is qualified to run a cleaning company or work as a qualified cleaner.
That brings up the case of a tailor, for instance. Everyone, of course, can thread a needle and pass it through a cloth or shoe. Can everyone do it in order and fashion which results in professional clothes or new shoes…. without even hurting themselves?
The same answer also applies to the world of cleaning services; trying to get anyone at all to do your job will give you anyone’s results (you probably wouldn’t know when they’re going to mess up). However, a professional’s touch will always result in a professionally-looking result.
You can understand that through this perspective;
“If I didn’t choose to do the cleaning myself, why should I choose someone who is also like me (without adequate cleaning skills) to do the job?”
That should help you make the right assessment while choosing your next cleaning service.
That is surely the most practised method of cutting corners by those seemingly innocent “cheap” cleaners. The skills and competence of the workers in any organization are among the most important factors for determining proper customer service delivery.
So if you hire a company that uses cheap and untrained labour, then be prepared for the worst.
Coverage for Additional Tasks
Good cleaning services have some extra perks, even if they charge a penny or two above the “cheaper” competition. You can always rely on good cleaning companies for different services like proper oven cleaning or your entire kitchen!
Such services require exquisite carefulness and skill because food items are involved. Of course, you wouldn’t want your food tasting funny after the cleaning service passes through your home or office.
Which is why you should always go for the more professional offering instead of practising penny-pinching. Another service that is also important is the assurance that the cleaning chemicals are not dangerous to you or the environment.
Therefore, try to always go for cleaning services that rather invest in their equipment and may appear expensive to hire than others who don’t care about your health or the environment.
You might find yourself in a holiday situation, where a small number or no cleaners at all is likely to come over to your place, then you have a proper well-oiled cleaning company that works all year round. Such companies don’t come cheap, of course. So that means that it is always better to hire an efficient but expensive cleaning hand than a cheap but poorly serviced alternative.
Since you read all of our reasons and got to the end of the blog, we’ll give you a bonus reason.
Special Situations
Imagine having to struggle to get your place cleaned during the holidays because, of course, someone with a better offer else has hired the “cheaper” cleaners. To add to that, they often do not also have a replacement to send over at that needed time.
That rarely occurs with professionals. Professional cleaning services always have the necessary retinue of staff needed to cover for any season or time, irrespective of whether there is a customer rush or not.
As against the common misconception, most supposedly cheaper cleaning companies function by greed alone, not customer satisfaction. The purposefully driven organizations that spend time and money to cultivate their staff and company inner workings often come across as expensive.
So, if you would dislike the idea of having your cleaning service discontinued all because of some special happenings, then you should opt for a well-built and efficient cleaning service.
As a professional in cleaning services, sustainability is supposed to be a watchword. You can view sustainability as being able to practice cleaning methods and habits that can be used continuously without having to worry about any negative effects. Corporate responsibility should also be a guiding principle for professional cleaners. The environment and the lives of clients should be protected at all cost and that is why it is always advisable for cleaning services to make use of eco-friendly products to reduce any adverse effects on human lives and the environment as a whole.
I could go on and on, but the truth remains that you cannot rob the proverbial Paul to pay Peter. That interprets in this case that you cannot pay peanuts as service fees and expect an all wonderful and safe service delivery.
Even if it appears to have worked at the time being, given a little time and pressure, the difference between the incompetent cleaning package and the real deal becomes clear.
Recommended eco-friendly cleaning products:
Selly
written on 27 January 2021 -I agree. Cheap usually means low quality and it’s just not worth it.