A good cleaning service enables successful shopping centres to have high levels of footfall, high frequency of footfall and high conversion from footfall to sales.

With shopping centres and retail destinations having a myriad of leisure experiences from shopping and dining to exercise, relaxation and entertainment, there are few single factors that can affect these 3 key measures of success more than cleanliness.

Cleanliness has a major effect on the whole customer experience. When asked what would negatively impact their perception, more people reported unclean restrooms (95 per cent) and unpleasant odours (92 per cent) than poor customer service (90 per cent). These were followed by dirty floors, spills or stains, dusty surfaces and dirty glass and windows. In another study, just over a half (52 per cent) have avoided a business altogether because it looked dirty from the outside.

So a top notch cleaning service really matters. Facilities management companies must think broadly about all issues to compete for the cleaning contracts of these complex organisations not just the core cleaning service.

3 areas that are often forgotten by FMs to excel at providing cleaning service are: -

Innovation

Always be on the lookout for news ways of doing things, innovative companies are coming up with new solutions for common problems all the time. A good example would be dealing with roof leaks. Roof leaks in public areas cause a potential hazard and require quick containment of the unwanted invasive liquid. Arrow County created a bespoke product to deal with this challenge, a maintenance and cleaning product combined.

Service and continuity of supply

Good partnerships are essential for the provision of a high level cleaning service. Whatever service levels that are offered by your cleaning consumables suppliers will be directly passed through and reflected in service level achieved by an FM company. Make partnerships as opposed to contracts for supply and look for partners who deliver a high level of service and are prepared to go the extra mile. Suppliers who will carry out assessment to save money and provide immediate account response to your day to day challenges will underpin excellent overall service levels.

Tracking the end customer’s view

Although the direct customer of FM companies is important i.e. the shopping centre management company, understanding their customers can be just as important to delivering a great cleaning service. Try and access information and feedback on the overall performance of the centre and always react swiftly and efficiently to any end customer feedback on cleanliness. Look for the main signs that the end customer will use to judge performance.

In a large yet highly competitive market it's these often-forgotten factors that can be the difference between a good and an excellent cleaning service.