How to clean like a professional cleaner and succeed in your residential cleaning business

Cleaning for yourself and cleaning for clients may sound similar, but quite the opposite! If you’re thinking to start a home cleaning services business, you need to level up your skills.

For instance, time becomes money. The longer it takes you to clean a client’s home, the fewer homes you can clean that day, and the less time you can re-invest in other aspects of building your cleaning business. No more gently cruising through your cleaning routine while rocking out to your favorite tunes!

But that’s not all – when you charge people money for house cleaning services, they’ll expect top-of-the-line, professional results. Going through the motions doesn’t cut it anymore.

If you’re aiming to start a profitable home cleaning business, here’s how to start cleaning like a pro – so you can charge like one.

This post is an offshoot from How To Run A Home Cleaning Services Business. Read the main post to learn everything you need to know!

Pick the right products

It can be tempting to start off cheap and grab any old products from your cupboard to clean your clients’ homes.

However, you want to ensure you are using top-of-the-line products and tools to fully disinfect and clean all homes.

For instance, don’t use just any old cloth. Microfiber cloth, as the name suggests, is made up of super-fine fibers that will grab onto anything, which makes it perfect for cleaning even the tiniest of debris.

Also, ensure you’re using products that are only as strong as you need them to be. There is no need to use commercial-strength products to clean homes. Not only is that wasteful and expensive, but it can be harmful to clients who have plants, pets, young children, or allergies.

If possible, you can even go green!

Here’s an additional tip – apply products on surfaces first, then let the product sit while you take care of another task. Some products simply won’t work without this step, while others may not be as effective.

Develop a system 

When time isn’t an issue, there’s no shame in ad hoc cleaning.

But when time is money, you want to develop a system to help you save time and provide the same level of professional cleaning every single time.

As an example, you can opt to:

1. Declutter first
2. Dust all surfaces
3. Go from left to right and top to bottom
4. Finish with vacuuming

With a system like this in place (be sure to make it your own), you won’t have the psychological overhead of thinking about what to do next. Since you’ve already established your system, there’s no need to think about it!

It also ensures you don’t miss any spots and get the job done right every single time. When clients are paying you for your cleaning services, that’s a must.

Remember the pesky corners

Even if you put in your maximum effort, forgetting small corners will make the job seem unprofessional and rushed. 

Take baseboards, for example – forgetting to clean those can make an entire home look unclean. The same goes for light switches, overhead lights, and the surfaces underneath large furniture.

Remember to clean smaller appliances, too, like toasters and microwaves. For an additional touch that will make your clients’ lives easier, you can also add extra garbage bags at the bottom of their wastebaskets.

It’s all about the details

Homeowners hire you to clean their homes not just become they want to save time. They also do it because you’re a professional and can do it better than they can.

By consistently going above and beyond and cleaning like a pro, you’ll show them they made the right decision when they picked you to clean their homes.

And that’s how you retain clients – and get them to spread the word about your amazing home cleaning services.