Customer's Top Ten Complaints
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| 1 |
COMPLAINT Rest rooms aren't properly cleaned and restocked.
REMARK Rest rooms are the number one subject for customer complaint. They also take more time per square foot to clean than anywhere else in the building.
If you can control the temperature in the rest rooms you clean, keep them cool. This reduces the amount of time people spend in them which also reduces graffiti problems, smoking and littering.
Even a well cleaned rest room can have a "close" smell to it. That's because they are generaly humid environments, often with too little air-flow in them. Keeping the temperature low helps with this too. Also, if you can increase the air-flow (making sure the fans work, etc) your nice clean rest room will smell as clean as it looks.
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| 2 |
COMPLAINT Waste baskets not emptied.
REMARK This is more serious than it sounds. It's not only inconvenient for the customer. It also implies you haven't vacuumed the carpet around the waste basket. A janitor's most useful tool is his eyes. Look around to make you don't miss things like this.
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| 3 |
COMPLAINT Dusting not thoroughly done.
REMARK Generally, this complaint occurs when you try to "dust around" objects on top of a desk or filing cabinet. Don't "dust around" anything. Move it out of the way, dust, then move it back.
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| 4 |
COMPLAINT Carpets not properly vacuumed.
REMARK This is usually the result of missing the edges of carpet. You can't clean the last inch or so of carpet next to a wall using your upright vacuum-- the easiest way to clean this area is with a broom. You need to do this about once a month to prevent visible build up of dust and dirt along the edges.
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| 5 |
COMPLAINT Floors not properly mopped or dust mopped.
REMARK This is the customer complaint I have the least sympathy for. Usually it means you missed a few square inches of the floor. But, as I said earlier, a janitor's best tool is his eyes. After you finish mopping the floor take a few seconds to make sure you haven't missed a spot.
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| 6 |
COMPLAINT Windows aren't cleaned on schedule.
REMARK Often times window cleaning is scheduled well in advance (one to four months in the future) but a change in the weather can cause a change in your window cleaning schedule. When rain or snow causes you to delay your window cleaning make sure the customer knows why you changed your plans and when you will do them.
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| 7 |
COMPLAINT Hard floors not properly polished or waxed.
REMARK Make sure you have the technical skills to use the tools and supplies (buffer/stripping chemicals) you will need. A gleaming, well-maintained hard floor surface is a janitor's best advertisement. A bad looking hard floor is his most noticeable failure.
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| 8 |
COMPLAINT Spots on carpet not removed.
REMARK I recommend using a little bit of cleaner/degreaser mixed with water as a spot remover. I apply it with a spray bottle and use a small brush to scrub it in. I don't recommend using anything stronger when you are not using a professional carpet cleaning/extraction machine to get it all out.
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| 9 |
COMPLAINT Janitor leaves door unlocked.
REMARK The last thing you should do before you leave an account is make sure all the doors and windows are locked. Customers do not appreciate cleaners who leave their business unprotected!
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| 10 |
COMPLAINT Janitor leaves lights on.
REMARK This is similar to leaving the door unlocked but usually not as serious. Still, there is no reason to do something that is guaranteed to annoy the customer. Make turning all the lights out a habit as well as locking up when you leave.
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