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Cleaning

The Benefits of Professional Cleaning Services for Your Retail Company

By | Cleaning

The importance of keeping a retail unit clean can’t be understated, from a presentation and hygienic viewpoint alike. As the property gives off a good impression of your business, clients are going to be a lot less inclined to purchase from you if it’s dirty and unkempt, and your staff members may become demotivated in poor working conditions.

While you might carry out the cleaning on your own, the best way, by far, to keep a retail environment within the best condition includes hiring professional cleaners, making sure the task is performed properly and to a high standard. Therefore, what are the advantages of pro retail cleaning services?

High-Quality

Firstly, the cleaning of a retail premises is a task which must be done correctly. A cleaning business is going to carry out hygienic, attentive, and thorough work which leaves sparkling results.

The appearance of a business is critical to making an excellent first impression on consumers, and it’s particularly a fact with retail, as folks might be put off going inside your store or buying something if it isn’t clean.

Convenience

While you might be tempted to cut out the price of a cleaning service then delegate the project to your team members or even carry it out on your own, at the end of a long work day you might have a group of tired and overworked staff members dragging mops around the floor.

All great cleaning companies ought to have the ability to work around your business hours and make certain that your property is within good working order as you arrive and open in the morning. Therefore, leave it to the pros, go home, put up your feet and relax!

Hygiene

Not just will dirty surfaces and floors put customers off, they additionally pose a health risk to workers. Keeping your team free of illnesses is critical to operating an efficient retail business, and the odds of infection spreading is vastly increased as routine cleaning isn’t being done.

Equipment

Instead of needing to front the initial outlay that is needed to buy cleaning equipment, the majority of expert cleaning services are going to provide their own. That means your retail space or shop may be cleaned utilizing high quality products and machinery without you needing to purchase them upfront.

Anago has years of expertise as it’ll come to cleaning retail units and shops and we carry out contract services all throughout the Winnipeg area.

We’re able to craft a bespoke cleaning service that’s customized to your precise requirements, and clean all staff areas, shop fronts, toilet facilities and much more, working around your hours of business for optimal convenience. Our prices are very affordable; therefore, talk with one of our friendly staff members right away for more details or request a quote.

For more information on the benefits of professional cleaning services for your retail company please feel free to contact the commercial facilities cleaning services of Anago today!

 

 

What’s the Difference Between Buffing and Polishing A Commercial Floor?

By | Cleaning, Business

The floors of your commercial space say a lot about your environment. Not only can a shiny, smooth surface leave a long-lasting good impression on clients, customers, and employees, but it also provides a professional and sleek appearance for your business overall. To restore your commercial floors to their former glory, you’ll need a process you can rely on. 

Floor buffing and polishing are two go-to methods that ensure your commercial flooring receives the gloss and luster these processes can create. Both methods require specialized equipment to get the floors nice and shiny, but they also have their own functions as well. 

You may be thinking to yourself, “What is the difference between buffing and polishing a floor?” While these methods can be used interchangeably, they also share similar features and key differences in their results. 

Floor Buffing

Floor buffing is a process of cleaning in which polishing pads are used to restore the smooth appearance of your commercial floors. A buffing machine has rotating pads attached to its bottom that remove dirt, scratches, and nicks from the floor’s surface. The floor buffing machine strips away the top layer of flooring to create an even and smooth appearance. 

Buffing can be done in one of two ways: Spray or dry. Spray buffing uses a specialized liquid that buffs away dirt, scuffs, and nicks. These buffers can go up to 1000 rpm and are the most common floor buffing option used. Dry buffers work at a higher speed and are fast enough to smooth out the flooring and remove scuffs. Unlike spray buffing, these machines can go over 1000 rpm and are often used by professional cleaning experts.

You can buff hard surfaces, such as tile, stone, and concrete floors. While floor buffing machines can give your commercial floor a nice shine, they won’t get the same level of gloss that polishing provides. 

Floor Polishing 

The difference between buffing and polishing is that when you’re looking to achieve maximum gloss and shine, you’ll need the force of a high-speed floor polishing machine. Floor polishing, also known as burnishing, is a floor-care method that’s typically done after floor buffing.

While it’s a harsher process, burnishing/polishing machines work at a much higher speed to achieve a polished and glossy surface that is popular in most commercial spaces. A burnishing machine can spin at a much higher 1500-2000 rpm. The quickness and weight of the machine create more pressure that’s useful in smoothing out uneven surfaces by removing bumps, chips, or dents on your floor. 

Much like buffing, you’ll find the benefits of floor polishing/burnishing work well with stone, tile, and concrete floors. However, most customers will agree that its high-gloss features work even better with marble and laminate surfaces. 

Buffing and Polishing Uses

Longevity

While buffing and polishing services are best known for bringing out the shine on your floors, they can also contribute to their overall longevity. You can extend the lifespan of your floors by removing dirt and grime and smoothing out the wear and tear of your flooring.  

The Overall Differences 

The biggest difference between buffing and polishing is that floor polishing is more effective at getting rid of scratches or dents on your commercial flooring. Both methods use similar machines, but a floor burnishing/polishing machine uses rotating pads that move at a much faster pace. However, either option is reliable for deep cleaning your floor and improving the appearance of your business. 

Knowing how to operate a floor buffing or polishing machine takes a lot of practice. These services require the skill and experience of knowledgeable professionals. That’s why Anago Cleaning Systems’ franchisees specialize in floor care for commercial spaces. If you’re looking for dependable buffing and polishing that make a difference, contact the high-quality janitorial services of Anago today. 

 

 

First Impressions: The Importance of a Clean Business

By | Cleaning, Office Cleaning

You never get a second chance to make a good first impression. There are times when first meeting a potential client that you’ll never get a second chance to make an impression at all; if the first time you meet wasn’t good enough, they simply won’t come back. We make judgements based on just a few moments of interaction; when we shake hands, was eye contact made? Does the person appear nervous or unprepared? The way a person looks, how their voice sounds, even how they smell might affect how we perceive them for a long period of time. For clients entering your offices, your business is a reflection of you; your work ethic, your mannerisms, your personality. That’s why it’s so important to maintain a clean business; you want to make a good first impression.

The importance of first impressions comes from a psychological phenomenon known as thin-slicing, a phenomenon in which we judge an individual based on a “thin slice” of time. There are a few reasons we thin-slice; the first comes from an instinctive need to recognize danger immediately. For any species, it’s important to immediately recognize friend from foe and asset from liability; it’s no wonder, then, that our nervous system and minds seems equipped to judge almost immediately. The second reason stems from stereotypes; if you have known messy people to be disorganized and unreliable, and you step into a messy office, you’ll immediately jump to the conclusion that the business and it’s staff aren’t trustworthy. The third reason is that thin-slicing does away with superfluous information; someone might try to convince you that their office isn’t usually so messy, or that they really are organized, but you’ve already drawn your conclusion from the available data.

The consequence of a bad first impression is compounded by confirmation bias. Let’s say you meet someone, and you decide they’re a bit of a goofball. Having made this decision, perhaps even unconsciously, you’ll take note every time they slack off, make a joke, or take life less-than-seriously. You’ll also ignore the times that they act seriously, work hard and take responsibility, because these instances don’t fit the narrative you have laid out for them. These narratives are formed during the first impression, so if your business is a mess, your clientele will ignore the times you are neat and conscientious and focus instead on when you’re absent-minded and disorganized, even if those times are few and far between.

You don’t want your clients to assume you’re a lazy slob, then fit everything you do in the lazy slob narrative. You probably don’t want to clean your office yourself either; there’s a good chance you don’t have the time, tools or technique to get a perfect clean. Professional office cleaning is the solution to the first impression problem; make sure the impression your office gives is neat, organized, diligent and professional, just like you.

4 Reasons Professional Cleaning Is Better Than Doing It Yourself

By | Cleaning

You might have an office, a retail space, a factory; it doesn’t matter, your space needs to be clean. A clean space means less workplace hazards, better first impressions, happier employees, and more productivity; a messy space means your revenue is going to drop. Knowing you need a clean space, you have two choices: clean it yourself, or hire someone else to do it. Here are a few reasons why it’s best to hire a commercial facilities cleaning service to do it for you.

It’s Safer

A good, deep clean requires specialized equipment, a variety of chemicals, and various cleaning techniques. Objects have to be lifted and moved, heights have to be reached, and heavy machinery has to be used; these all constitute workplace hazards, especially for untrained staff whose primary role involves something other than cleaning. Do you or your staff have WHMIS training? Chemicals, including those used for cleaning, can be extremely hazardous, especially when combined together by someone ignorant of their reactive qualities. Professional cleaning staff have all the necessary certifications to keep themselves, you, and your staff safe.

It’s Faster

Practice makes perfect, and if you and your staff aren’t practiced in commercial cleaning, you’ll be much slower than the professionals. Good janitorial services will develop a plan for the most efficient way of cleaning your facility, and will bring all the necessary tools to ensure the job is done right. Every time you use your own staff to clean, they’re not doing what you hired them to do; you’re losing time twice over, once because they’re slower at cleaning than the pros, and again because they could be working at what they’re good at.

It’s Better

Not only will your staff be slower at cleaning, they’re also not as thorough as a professional cleaning team. That’s no slight against your staff; everyone hires a team to do what they’re best at, and it’s obvious that someone highly trained in sales won’t be as good at cleaning as someone highly trained in janitorial services. You wouldn’t want your janitors working as accountants; that’s not what they want to do, what they’re trained to do, or what they’re good at doing. The reverse is obviously true as well.

It’s Money

At the end of the day, you run your business to make money. When you have your business cleaned by professionals, there’s less safety problems, which means less chances of employees ending up on Workers Compensation and less money spent on getting appropriate safety training. The speed at which the cleaning is done, usually during hours when your facilities are closed, means less resources are jettisoned away from the more profitable activities of your business. The better clean means better first impressions for clients and customers, as well as happier employees. All of this adds up to higher productivity, higher sales and a better workplace environment. Hiring a janitorial service might seem like more red on your budget, but with so many financial benefits, it’s worth the price!

4 Things to Ask When Selecting a Cleaning Service

By | Cleaning

You’ve decided to get a cleaning service in Winnipeg to take care of your facilities. You’ve read about all the benefits of outsourcing your cleaning; the more thorough work, the efficiency, the better first impressions and the higher employee satisfaction that a professionally cleaned space brings. You’re on the hunt for a team to take care of your space, but you want to know how to distinguish high quality janitorial services from an average service that won’t get you as much bang for your buck. Every business has different needs, so what you’ll ask about will vary, but here a few key things to ask about when trying to find a cleaning service.

When Do You Clean?

A lower quality service provider may give you the hours in which they’re available to do office cleanings; a high quality provider will answer “Whenever you want us to”. Good janitors know that every business has a different schedule, so they’ll work with you to provide service when you want and as frequently as you want. A great service will also be available in case of emergencies; you want a service with 24/7 availability who will be able to respond quickly if an urgent situation comes up, even at 3 AM on a Sunday.

How Do You Clean?

High quality service providers will explain that their methodology changes depending on the space you need cleaned; they’ll advise you that the “how” is a plan formulated based on your needs and their experience. Great service providers have techniques not just for cleaning, but for monitoring how the cleaning is progressing through the day. Managers will have checklists of everything that needs to be cleaned, and will do checks for thoroughness; they’ll immediately address concerns you might have about the cleanliness of a space. A great service will also strive to use the latest green technologies to keep your employees healthy while helping to create a sustainable ecosystem.

Who is Cleaning?

Cleaning staff are often in your building after hours, without you around to monitor; you don’t want to worry about pilfering from your cleaning service. A great facilities cleaner will have staff who have passed criminal record checks and drug tests; they’ll also make sure staff are bonded and insured. You want your service provider to be experienced, too; a good service will have been in business for a long time, because inferior services get bad word of mouth and cease to exist before they’re around too long.

Why Are You Cleaning?

The answer to this question must be that they’re passionate about the benefits of cleaning, and they want to help your business thrive. A clear, solid mission is key to success in life and in business, so make sure your janitorial service is committed to helping your business. Don’t be afraid to ask for references; a cleaning service with a commitment to success will be proud to provide you with a list of satisfied clientele, and will encourage you to phone them so you can hear first hand how their passion for cleaning helped a business like yours.

The Psychology of Clean

By | Cleaning, Office Cleaning

Walking into a nice, tidy, clean space, or walking into a messy, cluttered, dirty space; the difference is palpable. A place that has not been well maintained might spike your blood pressure, you might feel an urge to clean it, you might wonder at how it’s occupants let the space get so messy; it’s easy to feel uncomfortable in a mess. Conversely, a clean, well-kept space is like a revelation; you might marvel at great organizational techniques, efficient uses of space, or just how nice everything looks. You’ll be more inclined to notice the nice paint colour and new hardwood of a neat space. There’s powerful psychology at work here; why do we prefer clean spaces?

Clutter is problematic because it reminds us there’s work to be done, namely, the work of cleaning the space. It’s more difficult to find things in messy spaces, so it makes us anxious we won’t be able to locate something important when we need it. We may also feel guilty or embarrassed by a messy space, especially when guests or clients are visiting our space, who may see the mess as a reflection of our work ethic.

There are implications for productivity and creativity, as well. When there’s mess or clutter, our minds tend to get distracted from the work at hand; unpleasant sights and smells demand to be cleaned, and the cognitive dissonance created by deciding between cleaning and working can be extremely stressful. A cluttered area can also draw your attention to visual stimuli that have nothing to do with what you’re working on, and once distracted, it may be difficult to get back to work.

A messy area can also have drastic impacts on your mental health. A messy space that goes uncleaned may be out of sight, but it’s rarely out of mind; a study of 60 women found that those with a cluttered home environment became more stressed as the day went on, but those with clean homes saw their stress levels go down as the day went on and their work reached completion. This is likely because those with messy homes saw their work as perpetually unfinished, which adds unnecessary stress.

Our minds react negatively to mess; there are many possible reasons why, though none are considered definitive. One speculation says that we simply love order; from the circadian cycle, to the advantages of having a steady routine. Others speculate that mess and unpleasantness can signal danger to our brain; what’s hiding under that pile or causing that smell may be hazardous to our health.

The implications of cleanliness apply as much in your office as in your home. You certainly don’t want clients and visitors to question your professionalism, and you don’t want your staff to lose productivity to mess. That’s why it’s important to keep your place of work clean; professional office cleaning in Winnipeg is a great way to get all the benefits of cleanliness without having to spend all your time tidying up.

Is Your Shop Really Clean Enough?

By | Cleaning

There’s no doubt that cleanliness has a huge impact on the customer experience. We might look around our shop, say “We’ve done a good enough job cleaning, let’s pack it up”. The question we have to ask ourselves is this: did we really clean well enough? A study done by Zach Blatt at hospitalitynet showed that in the hotel industry, cleanliness had a greater impact than price on how well a customer rated their overall experience. This might indicate that no expense should be spared when it comes to keeping a clean shop. Let’s look at how we can evaluate our shop, outside and in, to make sure it’s clean enough.

Outside our shop, we should look at what the customer will see coming in. The sidewalks we use are heavily traffic, and should be cleaned regularly to keep clear of dirt and other messes. Dumpsters will quickly become messy, and can give off unpleasant odors that make customers walk away; they are often within eyeshot or nose shot of our clients. The windows and doors of our business can become smudged and fingerprinted, cracked and bug-infested. Our parking lots should be well maintained, as not only are they unsightly when messy, but they can also be dangerous if the mess can move and cause problems with traffic. Safety is the most important thing we can consider for our clients, for repeat experience and to avoid liability for injury.

Inside our shop, everything has to look as good or better as outside. The floors should be immaculate, because no one likes to step in sticky mess, or worse yet, slip and hurt themselves. The area where our customers buy the products should be clean and clear, as the point of purchase experience tends to be memorable. Our walls and ceilings, of course, should be kept spick and span, so the customers aren’t distracted by mess. Any display areas, or areas for sitting, should be kept free of sticky messes which are incredibly unsettling to feel with our hands. Finally, our restrooms must be kept in top shape; restocked with all the essentials, smelling nice, and clean to a fault. A bad restroom is just as liable to have a customer leave as anything else, so don’t keep a dingy one and hope that no one asks where it is; improve the customer experience!

This may seem daunting, as after going through the checklist we might still feel unsure that things are clean enough. Remember, cleanliness has a huge impact on customer satisfaction! This is why it’s important to consider high quality janitorial services whose expertise is making things as clean as they can be. This way, we can focus on giving our clients the best products, the best customer service; all the positive things that make us stand out. Remember, a bad client experience means a lot of lost business, so let’s ease our clients and our own minds by keeping a clean, well-ordered and happy shop.

Poor Cleanliness in Retail Affects the Customer Experience

By | Cleaning

Customers are the lifeblood of any business; without them, our business cannot succeed. This is true of any business, from law firms to commercial chemical companies, but it seems truest of all in retail. Retailers don’t have long-term contracts to rely on; when we’re in retail, each customer who walks through our door is a new opportunity, and each negative experience is a potential lost client. This is why cleanliness is key in a retail market; poor cleanliness hurts the customer experience, which can lead to lost sales, lost clients, and potential loss in market share.

We might sell clothes, furniture, or any number of things as retailers; but no matter what we sell, our clients are looking for a good shopping experience. A well laid out store, with thought given to where the customer comes in, where they check out, and the order in which they’d like to buy items is key to a great experience. Cleanliness is essential to good maintenance, because when clients see clutter, dirt, scuff marks, or any other kind of unsightliness, their eyes are drawn towards the mess instead of the product. This means they may well miss out on something they’d have loved to purchase, which means we lose out on a sale.

Clients are also quick to decide not to walk into a place that’s unclean. Imagine walking past a shop that has nice looking items, but a terrible smell! No matter how much we’d normally want to shop there, we avoid places that are clearly unclean. This is because bad smells and sights can mean that we’re unsafe; that’s why our senses tell us to avoid those areas. Bad smells can happen to any retailer, even Apple has had negative feedback from smelly stores. They tried to handle it with in-store staff, using air fresheners to see where it smelled the worst, but it got worse. They should have hired a professional cleaning service!

Clients who sense something messy in a retail space are likely to have a bad shopping experience. The smells, the sights; when things are messy, they are unpleasant. In the retail world, we know that customers love to talk, and we don’t want our customers telling their friends about what an unclean shop we have. Their friends will tell their friends, and suddenly we see a drop in how many people even set foot in the shop, whether we’ve cleaned it since or not! This is why we can’t risk ever presenting an unclean shop; it leaves a lasting disfavourable impression that can reach far beyond the clients who set foot in the door that day.

Having a clean shop is necessary to have a successful retail business. Clean shops increase sales for clients in the store, they increase the likeliness that clients will set foot in the store, and they make the customer experience better, meaning more and repeat clients. The importance of cleanliness can’t be understated, and we must make sure our shops stay beautiful to make sure our business stays beautiful.

Cleanliness at Work Means Higher Productivity

By | Cleaning

A happy worker is a good worker; when we’re happy, we work better and harder. There are many great steps employers can take to make their employees happy, but one of the easiest and most efficient is to ensure a clean and tidy workspace. A clean work space has >positive, powerful psychological effects that help us think more clearly, more efficiently, more safely and more happily.

What we perceive around us has a great impact on how we think. When we see something scary, we might jump or scream, and the adrenaline pumping through our bodies might make us think more quickly. On the flipside, if we’re relaxing at the cottage, enjoying the good life, our thoughts will be more calm, and we’ll feel at ease. The same is true for clutter; when the area around us is full of distractions, our thinking picks up these distractions and focuses on them. For clearer thinking, a clean space is best.

Efficient thinking also comes from a clean space. A 2011 study by researchers at Princeton showed that our visual cortex gets confused when there’s too much information that’s not relevant to the task at hand, so we get distracted, thinking there is something else to do. Clutter makes us focus on the wrong problem, so don’t dismiss the urge to tidy; do it right away!

Messes too big to clean yourself can come up, though. It’s important to remember the impact cleanliness can have on safety; when valuable health and safety equipment, like defibrillators, can’t be found because of clutter, someone’s life could well be in danger. Other messes that come with safety risks include slippery flooring and leaks. Commercial facilities cleaning services can help with the overwhelming number of messes that can occur in a workspace, and leave you feeling safe.

The most important thing that comes from all of this tidying is your happiness. By having a clear mind, efficient task completion, and a safe work environment, many stresses are taken off your back. When we can work without distraction, we accomplish more in a day, and the more we accomplish, the better we often feel. It’s equally important to bring these techniques into your home; quickly tidying your space every day, like making your bed every morning, will make you feel invigorated. Ease of mind will come when you live and work in an area with no clutter.

We’ve now seen that a clean space really does make for clear-headed, efficient, safe and happy people. There’s no doubt that when we feel like this we’re more productive, because we have so much less stress than in a cluttered area. That’s why it’s essential to spend the energy to have a clean space; in the end, it’s worth much more than what you have to put in.

Top Benefits of Daycare Cleaning

By | Cleaning


Daycare cleaning requirements are different than the majority of other kinds of businesses. The health of parents, your staff, and kids are optimized by consistent and scheduled sanitizing and cleaning. Green cleaning materials will protect your business and those inside it from exposure to dangerous chemicals. Specialized flooring care is critical, particularly for kids and employees who spend time with tasks at floor level. Infection control via unique sanitizing and disease fighting green chemicals, as well as emergency clean-up kits provide parents the confidence that they’re leaving their youngster in a safe environment. Lastly, daycare cleaning providers are well versed in rules that government agencies expect such facilities to run within. Having a cleaning service assisting you in managing the cleanliness of your daycare will take one less concern off of your shoulders.

Protecting the Health of your Clients

The daycare environment may be a playground for germs due to the nature of exposing a group of adults and children to one another. Infectious diseases might easily spread, particularly if cleanliness standards aren’t up to the requirements that are placed on daycare facilities. Hiring a company that’s informed about fulfilling the requirements of keeping a childcare facility clean, will promote the health of everyone who comes into contact with your company and those who utilize it.

Green Cleaning Materials

The cleaning service company should have the ability to clean your center with green practices and chemicals. Even specific kinds of hospital grade materials effectively clean and are healthier for the environment and people. Anago, one of Canada’s top cleaning providers, uses those chemicals and additional cleaning practices to keep their cleaning services green; our providers use HEPA filtered vacuum cleaners, microfiber cloths, as well as paper products categorized as eco-friendly.

Special Surface and Floor Care

Childcare cleaning providers ought to be uniquely trained to sanitize and recognize all hot spots for germs inside a daycare environment. The flooring is the main offender, particularly for small kids and childcare workers who play and conduct activities at floor level. Play areas, desktops, door handles, and toys are areas which must be cleaned to prevent the spreading of illnesses.

Following Regulations and Green Cleaning

Utilizing green cleaning methods are possible inside a daycare situation. Microfiber cloths include an example of preventing the usage of dangerous chemicals to clean and throwing out a lot of paper waste. Such cloths are more efficient at picking dust up, and they may be re-washed to keep out waste in a landfill. Strong smell chemicals aren’t used in green cleaning, but the ones which are utilized are just as effective, yet better for the environment, your clients, and you. As you select childcare cleaning services, be certain that the provider you’ve chosen to clean does so in compliance with the stringent standards that are required of a childcare facility.

Having a partner managing the cleaning of your center will assist you in ensuring that you’re meeting cleanliness requirements for your company.

For more information on the benefits of daycare cleaning contact the high quality janitorial services of Anago today!