Tag: Errund

Company News

Errund receives State of Wisconsin QNBV Certification for its seed round

Errund, Inc has received Qualified New Business Venture (QNBV) certification from the Wisconsin Economic Development Corporation (WEDC).

QNBV certification program allows investors in qualified early-stage companies to receive a 25% state tax credit on the amount they invest in the business. The program, one of several WEDC initiatives aimed at helping early-stage companies secure new investment and accelerates their potential for job creation in Wisconsin.

Investors in Errund can receive up to $125,000 in state tax credits through March 2018 as the company is in the process of closing its seed round, allowing the company to raise as much as $500,000 for its seed round under the program. Errund previously raised $75,000 of pre-seed funding.

“We are really excited to receive QNBV. We were just about to move to Chicago earlier this year and gener8tor kept us in Wisconsin for 3 months. Now, WEDC is keeping us here for another 3 years” said founder Jacob Ong, who worked a year at Epic Systems as a Technical Project Manager prior to launching Errund in early 2016.

Earlier this year, Errund was one of five companies chosen from 691 startups to qualify for gener8tor, a top startup accelerator program headquartered in Wisconsin.

Ong is also contemplating moving Errund’s headquarter from Madison to Milwaukee, Wisconsin to be closer to the Chicago market in which the company currently provides service.

About Errund:
 
Errund connects customers to cleaning and other service professionals for homes and offices. Despite its uber-like business model, Errund bookings are backed by its 100% Satisfaction Guarantee and Property Protection Insurance.

Errund currently focuses on cleaning services and has plans to quickly expand to other home and office services, as well as to other cities beyond the 10 Midwestern cities in which its customers can book next-day cleanings instantly.

 

Cleaning Tips

Dust or vacuum first?

One common question that our customers and professionals ask us is should I dust or vacuum first? Another way of asking is will dusting or vacuuming last result in a cleaner home?

Many cleaning experts have mixed answers and so we attempt to provide you a clearer one based on the feedback from our cleaning professionals.

Dust First.

If you have a good vacuum that does not kick up a lot of dust, then dust away first. Depending on how you dust, dusting can push all the dust onto your floor and into the air.

By vacuuming last, you are able to clean the dust in the air and the floor. This way, you won’t be surprised by dusty surfaces shortly after you cleaned your place.

Vacuum First

If your vacuum is not effective and often takes you multiple times to clean an area, then vacuum first. After you vacuum, dust your furniture and take a wet microfiber cloth and clean the surfaces and fixtures.

This is because a mediocre vacuum can create a more dusty environment by kicking up a lost of dust than the act of dusting itself.

Dust or Vacuum First For Errund Professionals?

Because majority of our professionals have decent vacuums, they report that they dust first and then vacuum the place. Later on, the professionals often use a wet microfiber cloth to clean your fixtures and surfaces in order to ensure that any settled dust gets wiped up.

How often should you dust and vacuum?

This question depends on your tolerance for dust. Some of our customers get a cleaning once a month and some 4 times a month. As a guideline, we recommend dusting and vacuuming your place at least once every 2 weeks if you are home daily.

To clean your place less regularly, read also our 3 guaranteed ways to make your home cleaner.

Cleaning Tips

3 Guaranteed Ways to Make Your Home Cleaner

One of the most common questions we get from our customers is how can I make my home cleaner? We always answer with 3 guaranteed ways to make your home cleaner:

1. Don’t wear outside shoes around the house!

Perhaps the most important of 3 guaranteed ways to make your home cleaner is to not wear outside shoes in your home. Wearing shoes in the home seems commonplace in the United States. In certain countries like Japan and Canada, it’s considered rude to wear shoes around somebody’s house.

This is actually one of the surest ways to dirty your home as our shoes carry a lot of bacteria, dirt, and all sorts of other dirty stuff picked up from walking the streets and yet people have little qualms wearing them around the house. Imagine stepping on someone’s spit and later bringing it around your home.

So loose the shoes once you get home! Put them in a shoe rack or at the entrance and have your guests do so! If you are worried about your feet getting cold in the winter, have shoes specifically for the house.

Try this even if you ignore the two other advice below.

2. Clean common areas regularly

The second most important of 3 guaranteed ways to make your home cleaner is to clean the frequently used areas of your home. These commons areas include dining area, kitchen counters and sink. They get dirty faster than other parts of your house because they are more frequently used. Cleaning them briefly after each use can go a long way in making your home cleaner. As the saying goes, three foot of snow does not accumulate from a night of winter, a dirty house does not happen overnight too.

If you don’t have time, consider our cleaning service. It’s only $24/hr for a minimum of 2.5 hours so that’s $60, if you do it monthly. 2.5 hours of cleaning are good for a studio and sometimes a 1 bedroom apartment.

3. Don’t let the dishes pile up

I think many of us are guilty of this – letting dishes pile up mountain high. Eventually, we grow to resent washing dishes because we have to do so much at once. But if you minimize the dishes you use and clean them whenever you use a few, you won’t hate doing dishes as much as you do now.

Product News

Errund Property Protection Insurance

We are here for you when accidents happen. We understand that honest mistakes do happen and we are committed to protecting your property. Therefore, we offer you the Errund Property Protection Insurance.

What is the Errund Property Protection Insurance?

Our incidence rate is 0.1%. This means there’s only 1 incident per 1,000 cleanings. While property damages are rare, we understand that you may need protection and a peace of mind.

Therefore, all cleanings after March 9, 2017 will be covered by the Errund Property Protection Insurance which will protect you against eligible damages to your properties caused by an Errund professional during an eligible cleaning.

What is an eligible damage?

An eligible damage is one that is caused by an Errund professional by accident during the course of cleaning according to our checklist. We do not cover any damages due to cleaning outside the scope of our checklist.

An example would be when a cleaning professional accidentally break the glass shelf while cleaning the inside of your refrigerator.

What is an eligible cleaning?

An eligible cleaning is defined as a cleaning that was booked through errund.com and took place after March 9, 2017, and complies with our recommended duration of cleaning.

What is the coverage amount?

Currently, we cap the claim limit to $200 due to past reported damages and we found the amount to be satisfactory for your need. We anticipate raising the claim limit in the near future.

How do you make a claim?

To file a claim, compile as much documentation as possible and email them to support@errund.com. Useful documentation and information that will help process your payment request as quickly as possible include:

  • photographs of the damage being claimed
  • receipts or some alternative evidence of the accurate fair market value or report cost
  • proof of ownership
  • any other documentation that you feel will be helpful to processing your request

What is not covered?

The Errund Property Protection Insurance should not be considered as a replacement or stand-in for homeowners, renters and office insurance. The Property Protection Insurance does not cover:

  • theft (this is often covered by renters’, homeowners’ and office’s insurance)
  • cash, securities, and jewelries
  • pets
  • personal liability
  • health issues
  • injuries

Refer to the official insurance policy here. Read also about our Satisfaction Guarantee.

Company News

Errund joins top startup accelerator

We just received our term sheet from gener8tor! gener8tor is ranked as one of the few gold-tier startup accelerators in the US by the Seed Accelerator Ranking.

For each class, gener8tor only accepts 5 companies out of hundreds that apply to their program. They run only 2 classes a year. For the Spring 2017 cohort, Errund is one of 5 companies chosen from 691 companies. That’s a 0.7% acceptance rate.

We are proud to announce that we will be joining one of the top startup accelerator programs in the US from February 15, 2017 to May 11, 2017. We will be in Madison, WI. Here’re 3 reasons why we are joining:

1. Growth

Errund has been bootstrapped for a year. We have used the time to our operations more robust. But we are at a stage where we are ready for more accelerated growth.

gener8tor will invest up to $140,000 in us. This will allow us to develop more features for our customers and increase our growth rate.

2. gener8tor’s concierge approach

A very hands-on approach to mentoring their portfolio companies is the main reason why gener8tor is a top startup accelerator in the country. One huge reason they can do that is that they only have 5 companies to work with for each class.

We have heard of horror stories of how various accelerators bring little value to the table to justify the 6-7% of equity that they take from their startups. This is so because those accelerators often accept close to a hundred startups per class, hoping to hit a few startups that will eventually become unicorns.

3. Midwest focus

Our focus is on the Midwest market and gener8tor is based in the same region. Joining them will therefore allow us to capitalize on their regional connections and expertise.

Geographical focus is one of the key yet often overlooked strategies to gain high market penetration, market share and customer loyalty. By catering to the needs of their geographical audience, smaller companies can edge out their global competitors. Case in point: Didi causing Uber billions of losses in China and eventually Uber’s exit.

Product News

Errund Satisfaction Guarantee

Errund connects you to quality, background-checked cleaning and home service professionals. Our professionals strive to provide you 100% satisfaction, yet they are not perfect. So while we have a no refund policy, we have the Errund Satisfaction Guarantee instead to ensure you are satisfied and have a peace of mind when you make a booking.

Errund Satisfaction Guarantee:

We will send a cleaning professional back (the same person or someone else) to touch up the imperfectly cleaned areas for free if you satisfy two conditions:

1. You book our recommended hours or more.

This is to ensure that our cleaning professionals have enough time to clean your home according to our checklist. A cleaning professional can’t clean a 2 bedroom and 2 bathroom apartment well if you only give the professional 2.5 hours to do so even though we recommend that you book 4.5 hours.

2. You inform us of the imperfect cleaning within 48 hours of your cleaning by sending an email to support@errund.com. Your email must include pictures of the imperfect areas and the pictures must visibly show what are imperfect and how you want them better cleaned.

This is to ensure that our cleaning professional can fix the imperfectly cleaned areas quickly and not let more dirt and dust settle. At the same time, the pictures will let the returning professional know exactly what to clean and how to clean so that you are satisfied with the end result.

Let us know what you think about the Errund Satisfaction Guarantee and how we can make it better.

March 2017 Update: Read more about our extra protection for you: Errund Property Protection Insurance.