Ask a House Cleaner, Auditions, Savvy Cleaner

Auditions for House Cleaning

Auditions for House Cleaning young woman house cleaner in kitchenAuditions for house cleaning are not a new thing. Turns out that all cleanings are auditions. 

A customer wants to know “When you come clean my space should I mention I’m holding auditions?” 

Angela Brown, The House Cleaning Guru in today’s Ask a House Cleaner says even your job estimate is a showcase. Always put forth your best effort and do your best work. 

Don’t audition for the job and once get it, slack off or get lazy. You should try harder to win and keep every job.

Today’s sponsors are Savvy Cleaner (Training and certification for house cleaners and maids.) My Cleaning Connection (a hub for cool cleaning stuff.) HouseCleaning360 (connecting homeowners with house cleaners.) And Savvy Perks (Your new employee benefits program for small business owners.

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Hey there, I’m Angela Brown, and this is Ask a House Cleaner. This is a show where you get to ask a house cleaning question, and I get to help you find an answer.

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Question: Auditions for House Cleaning

 Auditions for House Cleaning young couple at computer talkingAll right, onto today’s show, which is from a homeowner. She says, “Angie, I’ve had some bad experiences with house cleaners. And I need a house cleaner so I’m going to keep interviewing them until I find the perfect one. But should I tell them that when they come to my house, that it’s an audition for the job?” 

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Answer: All Cleaning Jobs are Auditions

All right, that’s an excellent question. Yes, you can tell them it’s an audition, but they should know that anyway. 

Here’s How Auditions Work

Standard Satisfaction Guarantee, Rules of Satisfaction GuaranteeSo, you’ve hired me for today. At the end of today, if you don’t like what it is I have to offer, you don’t like the way I clean, you get a satisfaction guarantee. This means you give me a do-over – and let me re-clean, or you get your money back. 

If you love the way I clean, when I’m done, we’ll pull out our calendars and book the next job for recurring service. 

Should You Mention You’re Holding Auditions?

Auditions for House Cleaning House Cleaner gives a gloved thumbs upNow, I would not tell them that it’s an audition for this reason. If the house cleaner thinks this is an audition, which it is, they may try harder. 

“Oh, I’m going to get the job. I got to hurry and do a little something extra here and a little something there.” And you don’t want to base your future cleanings on the one job they do that is amazing.

In a perfect world, every time they clean for you they bring their best efforts. You want the amazing job to be the norm, not the exception.

Audition Process Can Go Wrong

Auditions for House Cleaning refusing - woman holds hand upSo, if they know they’re auditioning for the job and you make it clear that “Hey, I’m auditioning you,” one of two things is going to happen. 

  1. Either, they’re going to refuse to do the job because they’re going to think that you’re too high maintenance. 
  2. Or, they’ll try super hard for your business.

And after they’re hired, the work slacks off and they become lazier and like, “Oh, I already have the job. It’s no big deal.” 

But if every single cleaning is an audition, which it is, they should be trying that hard at every single job. 

Every time they come to your house they should give you that same exact audition-type performance.

The Behavior You Reward Will Be Repeated

Auditions for House Cleaning Young Woman acting like a sour eggNow, in the beginning, there are a couple of things that you need to know. When the house cleaner comes to your house to do an initial walkthrough, they are looking for clues. 

If you complain about all the house cleaners that you had up to this point, you’re giving them clues that, “Hey, I’m a complainer. I am high maintenance. Nothing is ever good enough for me and I’m going to make your life miserable.” 

Chances are they’re not even going to give you a price. Or they’re going to quote you so high that you don’t hire them because they don’t want to work with you.

They’re Auditioning You Too

So, if you’re looking for the perfect house cleaner, here’s a tip. When the person comes to do the initial walkthrough, be pleasant. Say “I had a house cleaner I really liked. And here’s what he did when he came to my house…” and then you share with them that experience. 

Auditions for House Cleaning vacuumingA light bulb goes off and they say, “Well, I do that, too. I could do that at her house as well.” And then they jump through hoops to try to do what you liked about other house cleaners. 

So, you want to reward the behavior that you want to be repeated.

So instead of complaining, “I didn’t like this, this, this and this,” you say, “I did like this, this, this and this.

My last cleaner always picked up the throw rugs and vacuumed underneath them. And then when they put them back, they combed the tassels so everything looked neat and tidy.”

The house cleaner is like, and then they do. They jump through these amazing hoops. “Well, I could do that, too.”

The Auditions Are Never Over

Auditions for House Cleaning Hand holding note says Thank YouNow, when the new house cleaner, the person auditioning for the job, jumps through those hoops, you want to reward that behavior. Say, “Oh my goodness, look at this. You did what my old house cleaner did that I liked so much. Thank you so much.” 

If you leave them a tip, that’s great. But if you don’t leave them a tip and you just say, “Thank you, I really appreciated it.” that goes a long way too.

Housekeeping is a Thankless Job

Auditions for House Cleaning House Cleaner Crying - Thankless WorkHouse cleaning is a tough job physically on your body. It’s a pretty thankless job as well. We get lots of customers that just complain at us acting like the customer is always right.

And if you’re not the owner of the company and you’re an employee, when you go back to the headquarters, your boss will complain at you as well. 

So, it’s important to know that you can motivate customer service with gratitude and appreciation. 

She’s One of My Best Customers

Auditions for House Cleaning new team member - house cleanersIt’s weird how house cleaners pick “their best customers”. Sometimes they’re not people that tip. Sometimes they’re people that are never at home. They’re people that appreciate the job the house cleaner does. 

So just by paying attention to the behavior that you want to be repeated will go so far. And it turns you into one of the best customers that house cleaner has.

And when the company expands, cleaners will be fighting for your account. 

They’re going to say, “No, no, no. I get this particular house,” because you’re one of the best customers. If they do bring somebody along to help out with that team, they’re going to say, “Oh, you’re going to love Mary. She’s one of our best customers.” So, it goes both ways. When they’re auditioning for the job, so are you. 

Auditions are About Everybody Being Their Best Self

So, you want to make sure that you’re on your best behavior. And when you put your best foot forward you show them that, “Hey, I can be the customer that appreciates you.” And they can show you they can be the house cleaner that you need. Then lo and behold, you can stop that audition process and you found the perfect match.

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Phrases That Sell: The Ultimate Phrase Finder to Help You Promote Your Products, Services, and Ideas – https://amzn.to/2HLF7Do

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How to Get the Part…Without Falling Apart! Featuring the Haber Phrase Technique for Actors – https://amzn.to/2JLLAyM

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