A quality product can make or break guest expectations, and nowhere is this more crucial than in the hotel industry. Small details matter, so everything from the amenities to the housekeeping carts have to fulfill those expectations.

If something looks out of place or doesn’t fit the image of the hotel, it will stand out. More importantly, it may not be high enough quality, and could even pose a safety hazard. Getting stuck with a sub-par product is the last thing a hotel owner wants. Reputation is everything.

A large part of the hotel industry is housekeeping, and that means investing in products that not only get the job done, but also meet the expectations of the guests. Proper cleanliness is a huge make or break factor for most hotel guests, and is something that should be constantly improved upon.

With all of these factors to consider, however, what is the best way of going about finding the right housekeeping carts for your hotel? Let’s take a more in depth look at how to gauge your specific needs and invest in a product that you and your business can rely on.

Analyze Your Needs
The first step in finding a housekeeping cart that meets your needs is to ask yourself what your needs actually are. What problems are you trying to solve by investing in a better product? More space to fit certain sanitation supplies or towels? Better organizational compartments that ease staff frustration? A higher quality material that’s more durable or lasts longer? You have to take all of these factors into account in order to pinpoint the brand and model that most perfectly fits your requirements.

One mistake you want to avoid in seeking out a product for your business is settling too soon on a product that “almost” fits what you want. You could be missing out on both quality and utility by improperly analyzing what you need.

So take the time to really think about what you are looking for and make an informed decision for your business based on specific problems you are trying to solve. This will greatly increase the chance that you will be satisfied with the product and that it will match the requirements you are looking for.

Class and Ambience
There is a lot that goes into client satisfaction, and for hotels, a big part of this is in the presentation. Guests are not only paying for a service in this case, they are often paying for an experience.

For a hotel, it’s vital that nothing appears “out of place” or is an inconvenience to the guests. Everything, from the furnishings to the customer service, has to cater to the guest and make them feel at ease, comfortable, and well taken care of. This includes housekeeping, which is integral to the presentation of the hotel as well as the satisfaction levels of the guests.

If housekeeping carts are cluttered or impractical, this can reflect in the ability for the staff to clean properly and may aggravate guests. On the other hand, large and cumbersome housekeeping carts can obstruct hallways and doorways and may be difficult to manage during times of heavy foot traffic.

In an effort in recent years to appear more modern and for the sake of convenience, many high end hotels have indeed been switching over to smaller, more efficient housekeeping carts. The evidence is there that the switch has improved brand image and guest satisfaction.

The ambience of a hotel is integral to the experience a guest will have at the hotel. This is why investing in a classy, modern product that fits your hotel’s ambience is so important.

Practical Means Efficient
Efficiency is a huge part of customer satisfaction. This goes for just about any industry. If you are able to provide your service more efficiently than a competitor without sacrificing quality, you have a distinct edge. This could even define you as a brand.

People will tend to seek out services that can be delivered with the most efficiency. A customer will put up with great service that takes a while, but they will do so begrudgingly. It’s far better to maximize your efficiency in order to provide the best possible customer service in your specific industry.

This can mean hiring the right people, creating the right atmosphere, or having the right equipment. The best tools in the world are only as useful as the people using them. Likewise, great employees can be hindered by unoptimized or aging equipment.

The hotel industry is no different.
If housekeeping staff are dealing with aging or impractical equipment, it can hinder their ability to do their job efficiently, and this can in turn impact client satisfaction.

We’ve all been in that situation where housekeeping comes along and it seems like they take forever to get through their tasks. Even if they leave the guest room spotless, it can leave a bad impression in the mind of the guest if they were forced to wait an inordinate amount of time to get back into their room.

These are the kinds of situations you want to mitigate by providing your staff with the right tools. Newer, better made, and more efficient housekeeping products translate into quicker cleaning turnaround. Ultimately, this leads to an improved experience for the guest.

What makes a product such as a housekeeping cart efficient enough to make a significant impact? Often it comes down to a combination of the overall quality and the design. Some carts suffer from inefficient compartment layouts that make it difficult to either carry all of the right supplies or carry them in such a manner where it doesn’t impact the duties of the staff.

Newer, more efficient models manage to reduce the overall size of the cart while providing the necessary compartments to house supplies properly. In other words, they are extremely practical. Practicality is the driving factor behind this kind of product efficiency. A practical enough product will simply increase efficiency by merit of its design. This is one of the most essential aspects of what we look for in our utility carts. Which leads us to the next important point. 

Product Brand is Essential
When selecting reliable products that improve customer satisfaction, the specific brand is often a crucial component. There are certain brands that are committed to high quality design and prove themselves to be trustworthy, while other brands fall short.

As a hotel trying to maintain its reputation and provide an unforgettable guest experience, you want to associate yourself with brands that you can count on, that have years of industry leadership, and that match your hotel needs.

Brands like Rubbermaid and Suncast Commercial, for example, have been leaders in this area for years and are committed to crafting exceptional carts for housekeeping as well as other industries.

One of the most important parts of selecting the right product for your hotel is knowing which brands provide the kinds of products you can trust and invest in, as well as which brand most closely matches the image and experience you are trying to convey to guests.

After all, no one is more impacted by the efficiency and quality of a housekeeping cart than the people staying at the hotel. They can spot and appreciate quality.

Housekeeping Cart Features
What are the specific features you are looking for? This can also be a deciding factor in what brand you ultimately choose.

In most cases, you’re going to be looking for a complete solution that includes every major standard industry feature without being overly cumbersome or obstructive. This includes plenty of shelving and vinyl bags, as well as the right compartments for cleaning supplies.

More obscure features such as quality wall bumpers and adjustable shelving may not seem important if you are simply looking for an efficient solution, but in the long run could save you money, time, and hassle on multiple fronts.

Non-marring wall bumpers can greatly reduce the amount of cleaning and maintenance that is needed for hotel walls, while the right holders and shelving combinations can make housekeeping a breeze if it fits the needs of your staff.

Keep in mind these finer points when selecting the right housekeeping cart for your hotel and you will greatly increase the likelihood that you will find a product that matches your specific needs. You also should take care to analyze what your cart priorities are. Does your housecleaning staff need more space for towels or a place to properly fit your vacuums? Do you need a little extra room for cleaning supplies or are you more concerned with minimalism and presentation?

Weighing the costs of a full-sized cart vs a reduced size model is also something you need to take into consideration. While the trend is certainly toward more cost-efficient, smaller models for hotels, you may simply be in the market for one that is roomy and has all the right features. In that case, you’re going to have to carefully decide if the higher cost of a larger model is necessary to get the job done and increase guest satisfaction, or if it would be more beneficial to simply go with the more compact model.

Final Thoughts on Selecting the Right Housekeeping Cart
There’s a lot that goes into managing a hotel and ensuring that your guests feel that they are having a quality experience. Hotel owners go to great lengths to make sure that the hotel meets the needs of the guests and even exceeds their expectations. For this to become a reality, you can’t afford to cut corners, especially when it comes to the cleanliness and safety of the hotel itself.

Choosing the right cart ultimately comes down to how well a specific make and model meets the needs of your housekeeping staff so they can best accomplish their duties. Whether this means more storage, a smaller profile, or simply a more modern product, it’s important to take these factors into consideration.

If you think your hotel needs to upgrade their carts after analyzing the needs of your staff and the desires of your guests, it’s best to take the initiative and make sure your hotel has a quality product sooner rather than later. Your guest’s health and safety, not to mention their comfort, is in your hands.

For a guest, this is probably the unspoken key factor in whether or not they will feel as if they had a positive experience or not. Just about anything can be forgiven outside of a dirty hotel room. Ultimately this is what you are investing in, the image your guests have of your hotel. If this isn’t maintained, it can quickly work against you, as in most industries these days. However, the opposite is also true. Guests that feel like they are taken care of and see the investment you put into your property will not only be far more likely to come back, they will also spread word of this quality on social media. Investing in your guest’s comfort is the best return on investment you could ever ask for.

Our housekeeping carts for hotels are designed to meet the diverse needs that hotel staff have on a daily basis while appearing modern and unobtrusive for guest satisfaction. This is the ideal combination that results in an improved experience for both housekeeping staff and guests that isn’t overly complicated or costly. Small improvements to the way the daily tasks of the hotel are managed and executed can directly translate into a better experience for everyone.