Moving in? Cleaning should be first!

So you’re moving in to a new home … Congratulations! You’ve just inherited all the dirt, all the scum, all the ____ (you fill in the blank) left behind by someone else.

Really, who wants to live with someone else’s dirt? On the other hand, moving can be an exhausting process! Who has the time or energy to clean AND move?

Well, who ever said you had to do it all by yourself?

In earlier times, folks would gather together to help a neighbor raise a barn, harvest the crops, or do any other number of chores that needed to be done. People in today’s society are a bit more disconnected, but perhaps you can rally a good crew of helpers to get the cleaning done so that your new house can become your new home.

But if you’re unable to raise that crew of volunteers, you have options! Perhaps one of the best is to hire professional help.

Mini Mops, Inc. has performed countless “move-in” cleanings for clients. We can help with just the rooms that are the worst (typically the kitchen and bathrooms), or we can clean every single square foot. That’s up to you … your budget, your priorities, the other help that you’ve been able to recruit.

Sometimes, we’ve even been able to help clients save money by cleaning an item that they thought they would have to replace! A client recently wrote this:

“After purchasing our new home, we decided to hire someone to come in and do a thorough cleaning before we moved in. Once Michele [Peterson of Mini Mops, Inc.] did her initial walk-through, she reviewed with me the areas that would need extra handling. The major issue was the glass shower doors in both bathrooms, which had years of built-up soap scum. You could hardly see through the clear glass doors.

“Michele was up-front with me in that there was no guarantee that [the Mini Mops, Inc. crew] would be able to get everything off the doors but they’d give it a good shot. My husband and I had already decided that we’d probably just replace them.

“Lo and behold, Mini Mops’ ladies are wonder workers! The doors look great, and we don’t have to replace them after all.

“Thank you, Mini Mops, for giving us a fresh clean home to move into!”

By hiring a professional housecleaning service, these homeowners actually saved the money they would have spent to replace those dirty shower doors. They also saved themselves the time and energy they would have spent trying to get the house cleaned by themselves.

Best of all, they didn’t have to live with someone else’s dirt! You shouldn’t, either. Clean it up first, however you choose to go about it, before you move in. You’ll be glad you did!

Client recommends Mini Mops

Have you ever been in the position of needing to ask someone to say nice things about you? It’s a little awkward! I know, because it happened to me recently.

A prospective client contacted Mini Mops recently to inquire about our housecleaning services. This person lives in a particular gated neighborhood in the Fresno-Clovis area and had seen our company vehicles there, so she asked for references specifically from our clients who live in her neighborhood.

Now, we have a packet of a dozen or so reference letters that clients have written for us over the past 35 years that we have been in business, but none of them were from the specific clients from whom this person wanted opinions. So I got on the phone, explained the situation to these clients and asked for their help.

Talk about a humbling experience! These clients were so very gracious and helpful! One had me give the prospective client her phone number and said she could call her directly. The other took the time to write me a letter of recommendation, which I will now add to my packet that I offer other prospective clients.

Here’s what the letter said:

I have been a client of Mini Mops for approximately 25 years primarily because it is a business. As a result:

1. I do not have to deal directly with a cleaning lady hoping she shows up or hire and fire.
2. Mini Mops is fully insured.
3. Because there is a team of four women, they are in and out of my home quickly rather than one woman spending the day.
4. In my lengthy experience there have been two occasions in which something was broken. Each time a note was left with an offer to replace it.
5. The group cleaning my home has remained stable with the same supervisor for many years.
6. Mini Mops has been flexible over the years to accommodate my needs and/or my financial constraints.

All in all the cleaning service has been excellent and far superior to any other I have hired. I would fully recommend them to anyone.

We at Mini Mops, Inc. pride ourselves on being very customer-oriented. We take a personal interest in helping our clients, and sometimes that goes beyond just house cleaning. Sometimes that means referring our clients to another service company in our referral network — like window cleaning, carpet cleaning, restoration cleaning, etc.

It’s an honor, and humbling as well, to know that our clients are just as willing to help us as we are to help them.

A Happy Client Asks for Housecleaning “Secrets”

This just in from another happy client:

Hi Michele – just a note to you and Suzette that I am REALLY enjoying my clean house…..especially the bathrooms and the floors!!  Do you give any secrets away as to what products you use to get them so clean? – Carol

I really enjoy getting feedback from our housecleaning clients … especially the happy ones! And if you’ve read other posts on this blog, you know that I don’t mind giving away some “secrets.” So guess where I directed Carol? Yes … right here to this blog!

These are the specific posts that I directed her attention to:

http://minimops.wordpress.com/2010/06/14/to-mop-or-not-to-mop-that-is-the-question/

http://minimops.wordpress.com/2010/03/29/for-a-cleaner-greener-home-mix-your-own-cleaning-products/

It is my belief that the value Mini Mops, Inc. provides our clients is not just about the house cleaning. As great as the cleaning is, I think Mini Mops, Inc. really is about more than just scrubbing floors and cleaning toilets. I hope that our clients see us as a resource to turn to for help, advice, a referral … I hope they see Mini Mops, Inc. as a means to reaching their goal of living a better life (in a cleaner home, of course)!

Thank you for reading our blog. If you haven’t already done it, sign up for e-mail notification of new blog posts! Or get our RSS feed. Whatever your preference, please keep in touch!

Until next time … stay cool, and keep it clean!

THANK YOU from another happy client

This just in …

“Thank you for making my home more beautiful.”

–Roberto U, Fresno CA

 Thank YOU, Roberto, for the trust that you have placed in Mini Mops, Inc. to help you maintain your beautiful home!

Welcome to My House … talk about priorities!

This is hanging on the wall of a client’s home, and I think it says it all …

Welcome to My House

Some houses try to hide the fact that children shelter there.

Ours boasts of it quite openly; the signs are everywhere,

For smears are on the windows, little smudges on the door,

I should apologize, I guess, for toys strewn on the floor.

 

But I sat down with (names), and we played and laughed and read.

And if the windows do not shine, their eyes will shine instead.

And when at times I’m forced to choose the one job or the other,

I’d like to be a housewife, but first I’ll be a mother!

 

This client doesn’t sacrifice having a clean home … we help her with that! She has decided that her children deserve to have her attention more than her house does. We take care of the cleaning, so she has more time to spend with her kids!

This is why we’re still in business after 35 years! This makes it all worth while! Thanks, Ms. Client, for allowing me to share your poem!

A Picture is Worth 1,000 Words

It’s a cliche, but oh so true … A picture IS worth 1,000 words.

Mini Mops, Inc. recently was hired by a Fresno homeowner to clean his house as a surprise gift for his wife. He graciously allowed us to take these before and after photos of their shower.

BEFORE Mini Mops, Inc.

AFTER Mini Mops, Inc.

So, what do you think? Do you think his wife was pleased and delighted with her gift?

Would YOU have been pleased with these results?

This isn’t an isolated incident … Mini Mops, Inc. performs this kind of house cleaning miracle each and every day. It really can be worth it to hire a professional house cleaning service, experts who know what they are doing!

Thank you, Mr. Client, for allowing us to use photos of your shower as an example of what Mini Mops, Inc. is capable of doing!

(By the way, this client WAS pleased with the results from Mini Mops, Inc.’s initial cleaning and has asked us to maintain his home on a monthly basis. Aren’t happy endings wonderful?)

A Happy Client in Clovis CA

This message was on our Mini Mops, Inc. voicemail when we checked it this morning …

I just wanted to tell you what a great job Claudia and her team have been doing.

We had some mold problems in one of the bathrooms, and they got everything just sparkling clean!

And then before Easter, they did something special for us and oiled all of our oak cabinets in the kitchen. And it just made the whole kitchen look like new!

So they’ve been doing a good job, and I just wanted to let you know.

~ Nancy, Clovis CA

Nancy has been a Mini Mops, Inc. client since 2005. We love to get feedback from our clients, and Nancy was kind enough to let us know what a great job her crew has been doing in cleaning her home. (And then she graciously allowed us to post it publicly!) Thank you, Nancy! We think you’re pretty great, too!

Happy Client Gives Feedback

This just in:

“Suzette — Claudia and crew did a great job cleaning up our mess after almost a year! Thanks.”  ~Pam, Fresno CA 93711

This is a client who discontinued service in February 2009. She recently called and started her service back up again, and it looks like she’s glad that she did. We are so pleased when a client is able to restart service with Mini Mops, and we always aim for happy, satisfied customers.

Thanks, Pam, for the feedback. We’re glad you’re back!