Summer break is here. As guests start booking their stays and preparing for a relaxing or adventurous getaway, make sure your hospitality property is in tip-top shape. Germs and unclean facility areas can quickly turn a vacation into a nightmare, making it important to refresh your employees on the best practices to create a clean and welcoming environment.
First Impressions are Key
After a long day of travel, guests want to feel at ease from the moment they step foot on your property. In fact, most guests make up their minds about a hospitality property’s cleanliness even before they book their stay. Studies indicate that over half (53 percent) of young U.S. adults always or almost always read online customer ratings or reviews before making purchasing decisions. To avoid unhappy guests and the damage of negative online reviews, cleanliness should remain a top priority.
Starting from the ground up, your facility’s floors should be cleaned with durable and high-quality products. Consider implementing mats at all entryways to help keep outdoor elements such as dirt and mud out of your facility. Along with clean floors, shared spaces should be routinely maintained. High-traffic areas such as hotel front desks, conference rooms, fitness centers, communal breakfast areas and lounge areas should be disinfected and cleaned daily. Implementing a routine cleaning and disinfecting schedule can help ensure that your facility is prioritizing the health and safety of guests.
Help Give Hotel Rooms a Good Rep
Hotel rooms can harbor many germs and bacteria, and research shows that guests highly value enhanced cleaning measures when booking hotel rooms. Providing a clean and comfortable space for your guests is crucial to help exceed guest satisfaction. Ensure housekeeping carts are equipped with launderable mops, disinfectant mops, and appropriate cleaning chemicals. It’s a bonus if these cleaning tools are manufactured in a sustainable way. Cleaning high-touch items such as sink handles, drawer handles, elevator buttons and tables in common dining areas regularly is crucial.
Embrace Touchless Technology
More and more hospitality properties are implementing touchless technology, which can help limit the transfer of germs. Recent studies show that up to 90 percent of companies are investing in technology such as AI (artificial intelligence) to make workload easier, appeal to customers and prioritize reducing the transmission of germs in a facility.
When it comes to hospitality properties, there are many opportunities for implementing touchless technology to reduce the spread of germs and help keep your property clean. Small surfaces that are high-touch areas such as restaurant menus, remote controls, communal breakfast, and door handles all greatly increase the spread of germs. Instead, opt for touchless alternatives, when possible, such as phone applications (apps) or QR codes and implementing touchless appliances in restrooms such as automatic hand dryers and soap dispensers. It’s also important to make hand hygiene products that help eliminate germs such as hand sanitizer available in common areas like the front desk and near elevators.
Kick Cleaning into High Gear
Using high-quality cleaning products, implementing a regular cleaning and disinfecting routine and being mindful of areas that attract more dirt or transmit more germs are helpful ways of keeping guests safe. Get ahead this busy summer season by providing a clean and comfortable hotel experience for all guests.
Carlos Albir Jr. is Vice President of Operations at ABCO Cleaning Products, a leader in sustainable cleaning tools. ABCO is a family-owned, Certified Minority Business Enterprise with Green Seal and UL Solutions-certified products, headquartered in Miami. For more information, visit www.abcoproducts.com.
