Win More Customers with Better Company Culture

Having a hard time building a solid repeat client base? Have an even harder time hiring and retaining employees? The problem might be your company culture—or lack of it!

If your culture consists of lecturing your employees about their behavior or refusing to invest in quality equipment and supplies, your employees won't feel motivated to do an excellent job. They will be more likely to leave your company because they won't feel invested in it. Then you're left dealing with unhappy customers who aren't impressed with the quality of service or the revolving door of housekeepers.

Developing a company culture where achievements both large and small are celebrated and consistently rewarded is key to keeping your customers and employees coming back. Even more importantly, it will help cement your reputation as a five-star cleaning business and help you increase your market share.

So how can you bring this culture to life at your own business? Here are three simple ways to lay the groundwork:

Change Your Language

Let's face it: nobody is perfect. Everyone makes mistakes at some point in their lives, and so will the people you employ. But if you're constantly hosting re-training sessions (aka "Get Your Act Together!" sessions) and telling employees, "Don't do this! Don't do that!" you're more likely to see higher turnover instead of better behavior. Being threatened with consequences all the time is demoralizing.

Instead, reframe policy training as "How to Earn More" sessions. Show employees that if they earn a certain number of good reviews or consistently arrive on time, they'll see an increase in the amount of money they're earning. And when they go above and beyond on the job, call that out publicly. If they mess up, address it in private.

Don't forget to be intentional with your language when delivering private corrections as well. Rather than telling someone, "You didn't do this the right way," tell them, "These results are not up to the housecleaning standards we sell to our customers." Always approach things from the perspective of discussing the results you want instead of focusing on the results you do not want.

Invest in Your Equipment

As a business owner, you are likely looking for ways to reduce costs. At times, this can be a good thing. Other times, this mindset may cause you to trip over dollars while you pick up nickels and dimes. It's all too easy to obsess over the fact that vacuum cleaners cost $50 more than before, but obsessing over an extra $50 is the completely wrong priority when each of your teams produces $3,000-$5,000 revenue per week. Your teams cannot do their jobs well for you with missing or unreliable equipment.

Don't be nervous about spending more to meet your basic equipment and supply needs, like having enough cleaning rags on hand. Not only will this pay for itself quickly, but your employees will notice and appreciate your willingness to provide them with the equipment and supplies they need to do their jobs well.

Reward Your Employees

If you're experiencing success in your business, your employees should benefit from your success too. They're the ones who earned this success for you! At a minimum, you should always pay your employees a competitive wage. When business is going well, you should plan to pay bonuses to your employees. When your employees earn more by doing excellent work, they will be more motivated to care about their work. The more motivated your employees are to produce excellent work, the more great reviews your company will receive and the more satisfied your customers will be.

Want to Learn More?

These tips are a great start to turning your company culture around. But if you'd like even more in-depth assistance, contact us at [email protected].