Recently, the Shine Bright team headed to the Gold Coast for the annual Softwash Australia Trade Show. Besides roller coasters and great weather, it was a great excuse to catch up with the best and brightest in the exterior cleaning world. Talks and demonstrations abounded about the latest technologies in window cleaning, pressure cleaning, soft washing, car cleaning, and driveway sealing.
Cleaning Industry Trade Shows
For starters, why should I care whether the cleaning company I work with goes to trade shows?
Well, consider this: which surgeon would you rather have operate on you? The surgeon that, although operating for decades, hasn’t read a medical journal or improved their surgical skills since they graduated university in the 70s? Or the surgeon that constantly stays up to date with the latest and most advanced life-savings strategies, constantly honing their craft?
Whilst window and exterior cleaning is definitely not quite as life and death as surgery, it illustrates the point well – someone who cares about mastering their trade and being the best they absolutely can understands that there is always more to learn. We want to deliver the most efficient, safest, and best cleaning results around. So if there is a more efficient, safer, better way of doing something, I want to know about it! That’s what these events do for us. They give us the drive and knowledge to not just do good work, but the best work.
This is especially important because you don’t need an official qualification to be a pressure cleaner, window cleaner, or gutter cleaner. It’s the wild west. Anyone can come along and say they’re the sheriff of the town – as long as their pressure cleaning wand is the biggest. As such, as a homeowner, how do you know whether or not the company you’ve chosen to clean your property has the right training needed to protect your property? Anyone can say they can clean windows or roofs, but to do so without damaging things? That’s another story. Knowing the correct cleaning method to deliver the highest quality results whilst keeping their workers and your property and family safe – now that’s the secret sauce.
So what are we doing about it?
At Shine Bright, we’ve embraced a life of learning. Whilst yes, there might be extremely limited formal training available for things like window and pressure cleaning, there is still a lot of knowledge out there. For example, we’ve had paid training from the most successful exterior cleaning business in Tallahassee Florida, Charlotte North Carolina, and Nashville Tennessee. The US are ahead of us in regards to exterior cleaning knowledge, so we learn from the best. All of these host very successful companies with plenty of industry experience to share – opening their playbooks of how they operate. I’ve been blessed to have been able to study and learn from them, having personal conversations with many veteran business owners. Learning, adapting their strategies to the Central Coast, and all resulting in you getting the best clean possible for your castle.
Not only that, but by attending local Australia-based trade shows, you get to discuss all the latest laws, technologies, and techniques with fellow business owners, ensuring that the industry leaders are operating on the same page and at the same high standard.
So what was the key takeaway from this event? Always keep learning! It can be tough to accept that others might know things you don’t. Sometimes I experience real feelings of embarrassment when I go and do a Google search or reach out to a friend to ask for advice. But I’m much better for it. We embrace this culture of always being willing to ask at Shine Bright. We embrace learning. Even when the path isn’t clear and cut, we find our way by asking around and planning the best way to get the job done. Ceaner, faster, better!
Some Additional Key Takeaways from the Softwash Trade Show
A Huge Emphasis on Protection
A significant part of any house soft washing project is ensuring your property is protected prior to starting cleaning. Sometimes I’ve felt like I was going overboard with what we do to protect property, but it’s nice to be reassured that what we are doing is, in fact, critical to preventing damage when cleaning homes.
We got to see some amazing photos of blown fuse boxes and ruined paint work. I don’t want this to happen to you.
Driveway Sealing Can Half Your Pressure Cleaning Bill
Ask us how! Some great leaps and bounds in the concrete, pavers, and tile sealing world. And your surface will look better and stay clean longer between cleans.
Community
We’re all in this together. That’s why Shine Bright freely shares our cleaning advice, loves talking shop, and incorporates a wide range of techniques in our cleaning repertoire. We learn from each other.
Need free advice?
Need specialised cleaning advice on the Central Coast and surrounding areas? Give us a call on 0431 114 827 or fill out our contact form. We service the entire Central Coast including Terrigal, Davistown, Umina, Ourimbah and Lake Munmorah.
