I am so sorry I have been remiss in blogging.  It is a busy spring and we have a NEW AWARD to be excited about.  Our very own Team 3 was chosen out of over 1000 teams in the country as the best in the nation.  Primarily based on what their customers have to say about them.  (To brag a little, we actually have 9 teams in the top 20 list)  I will let you read the press release, but I wanted to give a personal shout out of congrats to Team 3.  Also, thanks to our customers and all our teams who work so hard and care so much.  Thanks for making my job of “quality assurance” that much easier!

Here's the team getting the award with owners John and Elaine

THE MAIDS Home Services Recognizes Austin, Texas, Cleaning Team as 2009 Team of the Year

OMAHA, NE — (DATE) — Team Three of THE MAIDS Home Services of Austin, Texas, was recognized as the inaugural 2009 Team of the Year at THE MAIDS Home Services National Convention this week in Omaha, Nebraska. The award honors the single four-person cleaning team that consistently displays exceptional quality, including dedication to providing outstanding service, building strong customer relationships and achieving continuous improvement.

This year’s Austin-based winning team is comprised of team leader Micaela Terrazas, assistant team leader Raquel Martinez, and team members Maura Santiago and Marilu Martinez. The team has consistently garnered customer satisfaction, cleanliness and high attentiveness scores, regularly placing the team at the top of THE MAIDS’ charts despite challenges that include serving a territory with some of Austin’s largest homes and one of the longest drive times from the franchise office.

“Team Three takes their customer concerns very seriously,” said John Gibbs, owner/operator of THE MAIDS Home Services of Austin. “Their performance has had a lot to do with our success, especially during the recession when cleaning services have had to work extra hard to maintain customers.”

Every other week, for example, Team Three members meet on their own time to discuss what their customers are saying – “the good, the bad, and the ugly,” Gibbs noted. “They know that every customer comment contains valuable clues that can be used to exceed customer expectations.”

Gibbs singled out team leader Terrazas for her contributions to the team’s success. “Micaela is one of the best trainers we have. She instills a positive attitude,” he said. “We see her treat new people with respect and they enjoy working with her. She has really helped new people grow and is a significant contributor to our excellent employee satisfaction.” In addition, Terrazas started to learn English in 2009 to improve communications with her customers, and now makes her own phone calls for cleaning reminders and arrival time changes.

THE MAIDS Home Services of Austin provides service to Austin and the surrounding communities of Bee Cave, Cedar Park, Georgetown, Hutto, Leander, Pflugerville, Rollingwood, Round Rock, Sun City, Sunset Valley, Volente and West Lake Hills, Texas. For more information, call 512-419-0021 or visit http://www.themaidsservingaustin.com/.

About THE MAIDS Home Services
THE MAIDS Home Services is the only residential cleaning franchise that cleans for health, providing the most thorough housecleaning in the industry. Started in 1979, THE MAIDS provides regular maintenance cleaning and additional home services to clients in over 40 U.S. states and three provinces in Canada. THE MAIDS’ exclusive 22-Step Healthy Touch® Deep Cleaning System is comprehensive and meticulous, utilizing state-of-the-art equipment, environmentally preferable products and a systematically engineered cleaning method. THE MAIDS’ teams of four are professionally trained and supervised, uniformed, bonded and insured.