ECJ EUROPEAN Cleaning Journal

Anna Garbagna in Italy tells us about a book about the science of cleaning which is enjoying success.

In Italy over the last few months, a book called La Scienza delle Pulizie (The Science of Cleaning) has been enjoying great success among readers. The author, Dario Bressanini, explains with a simple and engaging style, which detergents to use to obtain perfect results. As well as debunking “false myths” and outdated beliefs, Bressanini explains the “causes” of dirt and offers efficient solutions as well as curiosities, charts and insights which can help anyone regarding the hygiene in their own house.

Beyond the fact it is a book for domestic use only the author,  a professor of chemistry and researcher, has emphasised with the success of this book that hygiene is a topic which is more than ever of common interest these days, especially after the pandemic. He also put the emphasis on communication in relation to domestic cleaning and also professional cleaning.

In addition to quality, accuracy and professional training of staff, communication of the company’s expertise plays a vital role for customers when they are choosing a supplier.

It is undeniable that communication has changed and the cleaning sector has followed the new trend that social networks have become the companies’ main channels. Facebook, YouTube, Twitter, LinkedIn and Instagram carry messages, new products or management changes of companies operating at professional level in the cleaning sector. Thus, in addition to conveying news, the image of the company itself is consolidated in the mind of potential future buyers.

However,  new digital platforms have not completely replaced traditional communication, at least in Italy, where radio, TV, printed advertising in specialist magazines and on advertising billboards still have great relevance. Radio, for example, has recorded, an overall increase of four per cent in  2022 compared to the previous year while away-from-home (outdoor) has recorded 80 per cent positive (Nielsen data on the advertising market).

We must not underestimate the words which are used: sanitisation, cleaning, disinfection etc, which are not synonymous but clearly distinct processes, with different characteristics and the subsequent necessity to use specific products. Clarity in communication and the correct use of words or the lack of it can have a  diametrically opposite effect: totally positive if the correct use of products is explained or negative if they are wrongly used - confusing the buyer who could buy items inappropriate for their needs.

For this reason, communication in the cleaning sector can never be separated from science, because information must always be totally reliable at the scientific level. “On the other hand, it is different when communication is subjected to the logic of the market, which sees its fulfilment only in making profit and not in the correct information to the customer.

If companies wish to be conscious communicators they must use the correct terms so the consumer, if they wants to be sure of their product choice, can seek information in the first place from the experts.

Images then, are key. Especially in professional cleaning, a picture really does speak a thousand words.