Hotel room cleaning is one of the success factors of a hotel. In fact, the higher the level of the hotel, the higher the standards of cleanliness your hotel will be held to. A clean hotel room goes way beyond just changing bed linens and used towels; the secret is in the little details. This is why understanding the steps that are necessary in order to optimize your hotel room cleaning service is fundamental.
In this article, we’ll look more at the little details that make the difference and lay out the five steps to a perfect housekeeping service, and why this service is so important. So keep reading to find out how optimizing your housekeeping service can propel you ahead of the competition.
Why is room cleaning service so important in hotels?
There are many elements of service that will set you apart from the competition, and an excellent cleaning service is one of those. A housekeeping service that goes above and beyond not only maintains order and cleanliness, but also takes care of the little details that help your hotel stand out from the competition and encourage loyalty.
The little extras like having a turndown service at the end of the day or folding the end of the toilet paper until a neat triangle makes a difference. Without trained staff or having processes in place, you run the risk of not meeting minimum standards, which can in turn lead to negative reviews or unsatisfied clients, and in extreme cases, may even lead to an inspection from a public health body. So this matter is not to be taken lightly.
5 steps to provide a perfect cleaning service
In order to keep your hotel immaculate, it’s crucial to set up processes that will ensure minimal standards in both hygiene and order are maintained. What follows is a list of five steps that will guide you towards offering the perfect service.
1. Set up processes
As with any operational activities at your hotel, setting up processes is essential to operational efficiency. In order for your staff to do their job effectively, they must have a clear list of priorities and procedures to follow. Create a checklist for the tasks that need to be carried out when guests check out, in order to get ready for a new client or for cleaning rooms for guests who are staying more than one night.
Having clear “to-dos” will make the difference in ensuring that those tasks are carried out effectively. Furthermore, you should make sure there is also a system in place to notify the front desk that maintenance needs to be carried out. The need for effective communication brings us to our next step...
2. Communicate effectively
Communication is essential in order to provide the best service possible across all departments, not just in the housekeeping department. Set up a way to encourage easy interdepartmental communication so that your housekeeping staff can be notified when there’s an early check-in, your maintenance staff can be notified when maintenance is needed on a room, and your front desk can be informed when a room is ready.
All of this communication among your staff ensures an effective operational flow so that your hotel runs like a fine-tuned machine. The easiest way to encourage communication is with software, which, again, brings us to the next step...
3. Leverage software
Hotel housekeeping software can help make your housekeeping department run impeccably. Mews’ software, for example, has an app that facilitates communication and task management (helping with the two prior steps), thus driving efficiency. Within the app, you can also manage internal comms in one place, creating threads between staff or contacting entire departments, helping to ensure that no task or service request goes unattended.
Allowing your staff to have an overview of their workload, while prioritizing tasks based on when guests arrive, ensures that your staff can better manage their time, and therefore can work more efficiently. Plus, real-time status updates can help make sure your housekeeping staff are up to speed when changes occur or when new tasks are created. Plus, you can also better manage shifts so that staff know which spaces they are assigned to, and they can mark them off as they finish.
Software that has real-time reporting can also help optimize your service because you can get an immediate overview of your rooms, tracking live room status so that your housekeeping staff know in which order to clean rooms. Real-time reporting also helps you prepare for early-check-ins as well, which is a great tool for upselling.
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4. Keep in mind that order matters
While “order” can refer to many things when it comes to cleaning, in this case we are referring to the order in which your housekeeping staff clean. And it really does matter, because this way you can avoid cross-contamination. For example, the ideal process would start with separating dry work (dusting, sweeping and vacuuming) from wet work (mopping and wiping down surfaces).
You also want to make sure your housekeeping staff clean the surfaces first to avoid particles and dirt, and then disinfect at the end, paying special attention to faucets, light switches and handles, which may have become contaminated during the cleaning process. This is especially important to ensure that your guests have peace of mind in a post-pandemic world. Read more about how the pandemic has affected hospitality.
5. Pay attention to detail
As we’ve mentioned previously, the real secret lies in the attention to detail. So, inspire your staff to pay extra attention to the little details. You can do this by having tasks divided into daily, weekly and monthly tasks, which will make sure all the nooks and crannies are attended to with due diligence.
You may even consider investing in UV lights, which will help spot hidden stains or hairs in places they shouldn’t be. Going above and beyond when it comes to cleanliness will ultimately set you apart from the competition and ensure guests keep coming back, so why not go the extra mile?
Conclusion
Housekeeping is a serious matter that deserves serious attention. In this article we’ve looked at the five steps to optimize your hotel room cleaning service, which starts with setting up processes, and then entails encouraging communication, leveraging software, being sure to respect the order of which things are cleaned, and paying attention to detail.
With these steps in place, you’ll be on the right track to increased customer satisfaction and loyalty, which ultimately contributes to higher retention rates.
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