MEMPHIS, Tenn.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--The holidays are the most wonderful – but also the busiest – time of year. These memorable events spent with loved ones are worth all the preparation that goes into them, but they often come at the cost of last-minute chaos. Merry Maids, one of the nation’s largest home cleaning services and a ServiceMaster (NYSE: SERV) company, has a simple solution that will make the next few months considerably less stressful: make a pre-holiday game plan.
“Thinking through – and even writing down – a plan of attack for the holiday season will not only hold you accountable, but also alleviate stress,” says Debra Johnson, Merry Maids home cleaning expert. “Think of it as your master to-do list that helps you prep for everything from gift-giving to cleaning your home as you prepare for the hectic holiday season ahead.”
Here are four tips from Johnson that can make planning for the holidays (and surviving them!) much easier to accomplish:
1. Declutter and get organized – Before you even think about the impending holiday season, take this downtime to transition everything from your wardrobe to your whole home from fall to winter, getting rid of all the clutter that has built up throughout the year. Take note of what you’ve accumulated room-by-room and toss anything that doesn’t serve a specific purpose, hasn’t been used in over a year or doesn’t have a storage spot that makes sense in your home.
2. Make plans early – Align on travel, hosting and cooking duties early in the season so it’s clear who is doing what and when. If you’re hosting, go ahead and delegate specific dishes to others. If not, ask your host what you can contribute so you’re not left with last-minute stress.
3. Make a detailed shopping list – Shopping for gifts can be stressful, and oftentimes results in another last-minute scramble. Before the last leaf falls, determine who you and everyone in your family will be shopping for so you have plenty of time to shop sales and find the perfect gift for each recipient. This also gives you time to ask each person to share what’s on their list so you can get them something they want or need.
4. Bring in cleaning pros – Whether you’re traveling across the country for the holidays or buckling down to host in your own home, Merry Maids highly recommends taking one of the biggest stressors of the holidays – deep cleaning – out of the mix completely. After all, two-thirds (68%) of people said having a cleaning service alleviates stress when asked by Merry Maids. If hosting duties fall with you this year, schedule a deep cleaning with a Merry Maids crew the day before guests arrive. If you’re traveling, have them come while you’re away so you come home to one less chore and a sparkling clean home.
To find the nearest Merry Maids location or receive an online quote, visit merrymaids.com. Stay up-to-date on the latest Merry Maids news and tips by visiting the company’s Facebook page.
About Merry Maids
Merry Maids is the largest home cleaning franchise network in the United States. Merry Maids provides services in 48 states and the District of Columbia. The company also provides home cleaning services in Canada, Ireland and the United Kingdom and has licensing arrangements whereby licensees provide these services in Hong Kong, Japan, South America, South Korea, Southeast Asia and Australia. Through its company-owned and franchise locations, Merry Maids employs more than 8,000 home cleaning professionals who service homes on four continents, including more than 200,000 homes in North America every month. Merry Maids is a business unit of Memphis-based ServiceMaster Global Holdings, Inc. (NYSE: SERV), a leading provider of essential residential and commercial services. Go to MerryMaids.com for more information about Merry Maids or follow us at twitter.com/MerryMaids and facebook.com/MerryMaids.
About ServiceMaster
ServiceMaster Global Holdings, Inc. is a leading provider of essential residential and commercial services, operating through an extensive service network of more than 8,000 company-owned locations and franchise and license agreements. The company’s portfolio of well-recognized brands includes AmeriSpec (home inspections), Furniture Medic (cabinet and furniture repair), Merry Maids (residential cleaning), ServiceMaster Clean (janitorial), ServiceMaster Restore (disaster restoration), Terminix (residential termite and pest control) and Terminix Commercial (commercial termite and pest control). The company is headquartered in Memphis, Tenn. Go to servicemaster.com for more information or follow the company at twitter.com/ServiceMaster or facebook.com/ServiceMaster.
Survey Methodology
The 2018 Merry Maids Cleaning Survey presents the findings of an online survey conducted by Toluna from May 8-11, 2018 among a sample of 2,093 Americans 18 years of age and older. The margin of error for a sample of this size is ± 2% at a 95% level of confidence. For full survey results please contact the media relations team at (866) 397 7921.
