A reader asks: "Being the lowest bid means that we all have to make sacrifices and cut corners where we can. I realize the ideal is to sanitize/disinfect everything every day but it simply is not practical. Any suggestions on when enough is enough?"

There is a book title Good to Great which makes the observation that the enemy of greatness is good enough (I am paraphrasing the thought). If we can imagine a Clean Scale of 1-10 with 1 being barely serviced with potential for germ growth and 10 being the equivalent of a hospital operating room that really must be as sterile as possible, we all must accept the reality that not only does cleanliness costs but it also pays.

If, as you indicate, your competition is simply quoting low ball pricing and sacrificing healthy outcomes in the process, you may be in the wrong market. We need to recognize that customers want the lowest price for the most promises. Note I did not say results since many prospects recognize that lower prices can have an indirect impact on quality and health. Many expect you to clean for appearance so that rest rooms are stocked and smell good, lobby glass is clean and that other key areas look good. They word in "thou shalt disinfect......everything" so that they have an out if and when there is an outbreak. They can always blame the janitors.

Unfortunately when there is an outbreak of any contagion, the same customer who did not want to pay very much for cleaning suddenly brings in experts to deal with the issues and do not seem to care about the costs.

Clean, like beauty, is in the eyes of the beholder.

Your comments and questions are important. I hope to hear from you soon. Until then, keep it clean...

Mickey Crowe has been involved in the industry for over 35 years. He is a trainer, speaker and consultant. You can reach Mickey at 678-314-2171 or CTCG50@comcast.net.


posted on 1/6/2015