Last Updated on August 11, 2023 by The ZenMaid Team
From pen and paper to ZenMaid’s first-rate software
After using pen and paper for years, Agata started using ZenMaid software and never looked back! Her evenings used to be filled with paperwork, scheduling, and complicated payroll operations. Even though her cleaning business had great reviews and was profitable, Agata felt overwhelmed and overworked. Once she switched over to ZenMaid, her quality of life improved, new systems and automation made her business more efficient, and she could finally step back and take a deep breath. If this sounds like something you want too, keep reading.
The Story of Agata
Agata runs Urban Maids, a maid service based in Chicago with consistently high reviews — we’re talking a 5-star average on Facebook. Plus, it’s the kind of company that’s a pleasure to run. She has sweet, hard-working employees. (They recently threw her a surprise birthday party!) Agata has clients who love her business and refer their friends and neighbors to it. Her business runs seamlessly, rarely causing Agata stress. But things weren’t always so picture-perfect…
Agata’s cleaning business was a nightmare
Agata used to track clients in a messy paper calendar. Each day she would go out and provide cleanings, but it was the post-work time that truly made her depressed. She was stuck in a scheduling nightmare that meant she spent every evening arranging the schedule for the following day. When she was done finalizing the appointments she then spent hours emailing and texting her upcoming customers… and that was after finishing a full day of cleanings!
To top it all off, her calendar was a mess. Appointments were crossed out and new ones were scribbled in the margins. Sometimes to fit everything in, she wrote so small that she could barely read her own handwriting. Her system worked fine when she had one client. It was even manageable when she had 10 clients. But as her business grew, her calendar system started taking too much time.
Does any of this sound familiar to you?
“I kept writing and writing and writing the same information over and over in my little calendar… the calendar wasn’t working. [Looking back], I don’t even know how I did it.”
At this point, Agata realized that she needed to make some changes — and fast! So, she created a Yahoo calendar. The Yahoo calendar allowed Agata to set some repeat appointments, which saved her the trouble of inputting the same information week after week. But she still ran into problems. Agata continuously found herself struggling to manage her business because the calendar was just that: a calendar. She had to have a separate address book where she kept her client’s addresses and key details like the code for their building, or how to deal with their pets.
As you can tell, Agata felt disorganized. Sometimes she would miss important details because the information was so scattered. She also kept some client information on her phone, like their phone numbers. And she was still manually sending out appointment reminders to her customers the night before their appointments. It was frustrating to have key information for each appointment spread throughout several locations. Agata was constantly referring to her calendar (was the appointment at 4 or 4.15?), address book (what do we do with his pet chinchilla?), and phone (did he text me in reply to my appointment reminder? Was it something important?)
With an overflow of clients to clean during the day and scheduling to manage in the evenings, Agata needed help. She was ready to bring on her first employee. But instead of making her life easier, things got worse. Her Yahoo calendar and other systems felt organized (ish) when she was the only one who used it, but later she became aware that her unique methods weren’t intuitive to other people.
Plus, she still had a lot of information stored in a physical address book, and she couldn’t just give it to her new employee because Agata needed to reference that information herself. She did the only thing she could think of — she wrote hand-written schedules for her employee with special info about the clients.
“So there I was writing on a piece of paper for my employee, by hand — addresses, number of bedrooms and bathrooms, codes [to enter an apartment building or home], special instructions…the dog’s name… you name it! It took me forever. My evenings were filled with scheduling. It was a nightmare.”
Why Agata Chose ZenMaid
Agata began her search for a maid service software because she felt increasingly overwhelmed. She downloaded dozens of software trials, only to be disappointed with each one. Some of them barely gave her better systems than Yahoo Calendar. All in all, many of these software systems tried to appeal to too many industries which made the setup process too labor-intensive. She would have to customize most aspects of the software in order to make it work for her business. Many systems were glorified spreadsheets of information, but did not do enough to actually help her automate her maid service.
Then Agata found ZenMaid.
Not only did ZenMaid make scheduling easy, it sent out automated texts and emails to both customers and staff. For example, the automated emails to her staff included all the client’s info — from their building code to the dog’s name. Agata realized that ZenMaid’s software could literally save her HOURS every day. Never again would she have to spend her evenings painstakingly writing out the schedule, reminding her customers of their appointments, and sending her staff all the information they needed.
Agata loves ZenMaid because it saves her time and money
ZenMaid took care of everyday tasks so that Agata didn’t have to. Her evenings were finally free again. She could spend her evenings with her friends again — hosting dinners and enjoying the Chicago nightlife! She also loved that she could grant her employees access to the calendar so that they could see their schedules weeks ahead of time.
Agata’s only regret is that she didn’t sign up for ZenMaid sooner!
“If you’ve just gotten your first client, invest in good software that’s going to save you money in the long run… [If you don’t] your time is going to be wasted. Because instead of you providing your clients with customer service, or spending time looking for new clients, you’ll be doing schedules at night…and that’s gonna leave you with zero time to concentrate on running your business”
ZenMaid exists to serve maid service owners like Agata
We love to hear comments like this one from Agata:
“Download ZenMaid’s free trial, and see if it works for you. Actually…I can guarantee you: if you’re a maid service business, it will work for you. It’s simple but very, very effective. If you do have questions you can always email Customer Service Support because they’re very responsive… I don’t think there is anything better than ZenMaid.”
Nothing makes us happier than knowing we provide a service that helps everyday people like you. Agata’s story leaves little doubt in our minds that our work is important. Our software helps business owners provide better services which impacts the lives of their community. It’s a trickle-down effect that touches the lives of people around the country and around the world.
Your maid service success story is just around the corner
Does Agata’s story sound familiar? If your cleaning business needs better automation and systems to organize your daily tasks — look no further! ZenMaid is what you need. Detox from your hectic scheduling errors, inefficient messaging systems, and complex payroll with ZenMaid.
You and your maid service deserve a little peace and quiet. Try ZenMaid for free today!
