Why Sweep? Here's Why It's Important to Keep Business Parking Areas Clean.
Keeping all outside areas clean and properly maintained
is becoming increasingly recognized as an important element
of successful business property management. Studies have
shown that cleanliness ranks as a top factor in determining
where people shop, and external cleanliness is seen by many
as equally important as that of the interior of the building.
Gauging customer loss due to having unkempt grounds is
harder than doing a similar assessment for a business' interior. The number of people who choose not to patronize
a particular business establishment or mall because they
'don't like the looks' is almost a complete unknown, since
that is a choice made by many before they ever park and
come inside.
In today's highly competitive market, business property
managers can't afford the tarnished image caused by cutting
back on exterior grounds maintenance. Regular sweeping
is arguably the most important component contributing to
overall looks.
Following are some of the many reasons why
it is so important to retain a sweeping contractor on an
ongoing basis:
-
Outside parking areas are where business
owners hope their potential customers will derive an initially
good 'first impression.' The way the outside area looks
also projects an image of how the rest of the concern
will be operated. If exterior maintenance is slipshod,
then potential customers might well expect the internal
cleanliness and other affairs of the mall or business
to also be poorly run.
-
People like to patronize the successful.
Clearly, all businesses would choose to have a clean parking
area, all other considerations aside. The unwillingness
or inability to keep a particular area cleaned projects
an image of not being successful.
-
Shopping centers are finding maintenance
of market share to be an increasingly competitive proposition.
It's virtually impossible to develop or retain the desired
competitive edge if the grounds on the exterior of the
business are unkempt.
-
Even the most beautiful landscaping project
is negated by a parking area that is cluttered with debris.
If it has objects which might flatten a tire, people hesitate
to drive in due to the potential for tire damage.
-
Correct management of stormwater runoff
is a big factor for owners of parking areas today. Sweeping
is a Best Management Practice (BMP) for stormwater runoff,
and a structured sweeping program can help to ensure the
business is doing all it can to minimize pollutants in
its stormwater runoff stream.
-
When a parking area is clean to begin
with, shoppers are more careful throwing trash out of
their cars when they come to shop.
-
Sand, dirt and other trash are abrasive,
and will shorten the useful life of pavement, as well
as the length of service time of any sealcoating, striping,
etc.
-
The professionalism of the local business
community at large is a composite of the individual images
projected by each of the businesses within it. When people
have several places where they feel comfortable shopping
in a particular neighborhood or township, traffic is increased
throughout the entire general area.
-
When a parking area remains unswept for
a long enough period, it will attract rodents and other
potentially disease-carrying or dangerous animals.
-
Keeping litter picked up reduces the chances
of slip-and-fall injuries, as well as the business property's
potential liability in any resultant lawsuits.
-
When dirt is allowed to stay on pavement,
it quickly starts deteriorating the paving material. This
is especially true when enough dirt collects to start
plants growing, since their roots cause cracking in cement
and asphalt. Replacement costs for pavement far exceed
the routine expense of sweeping.
