As I’ve written about before, one of the hardest things about running a short-term rental is standardizing the cleanings.
Of course, it helps to have a good cleaner – and if you’ve found one, make sure you do everything you can to hold onto her! But the nature of this business is that sometimes you’re going to have to use alternate or backup cleaners.
So how do you ensure that you get the same level of cleaning every time, no matter who is doing the work?
Two words: cleaning checklists.
There are many ways to do this.
Paper-and-pen solutions
You can print out a stack of paper checklists and have the cleaner leave it behind when she leaves, so the guest also knows what’s been done. Many guests like this extra touch that reassures them the house has been properly cleaned before their arrival.
Tech-ier solutions
You could share a Trello board or Wunderlist list. These are both free and very simple. However, the old adage you get what you pay for is very true, so they both come with their own limitations. Make sure you test these tools out before you commit to them.
Two of the main paid turnover management systems out there, Properly and TurnoverBnB, also support cleaning lists. Properly’s interface is very slick, allowing you to basically do a full photo walkthrough of everything you want to be done in your space.
However, I personally find Properly a little too flashy. Wanna know my tech-tool-of-choice?
My solution to keep cleaning consistent
I prefer TurnoverBnB. Turnover also allows you to attach a photo to a checklist item if need be, although it’s not quite as slick as Properly.
But what I really like about Turnover is that you can highlight certain items on your checklist. This is great because most properties will be mostly the same, but they’ll also all have their own unique quirks. Turnover allows you to highlight those little differences in your checklists. That way your cleaner can know exactly what’s special about this particular property and not miss it while they’re cleaning.
It’s a marvelous tool that has saved me a lot of headaches over the course of my hosting career!
Whatever tool you choose to go with, just make sure of 2 things:
First, your cleaners are willing to use it.
And second, that you do actually use it! Set up a checklist, update it as needed, and send it to every single cleaner you work with.
It will make you, your cleaners, and your guests all so much happier.