They often fall into distributors and sales reps, developing, delivering and promoting the right combination of innovative products and equipment needed to meet the rise standards of professional cleaners and their discerning clients. As if that wasn’t enough, artificial intelligence (AI) has been proven to be a potentially important tool that can rapidly appear on the ground, providing solutions that allow distributors to automate routine tasks and strengthen client relationships. AI can even increase operational efficiency, often inexpensive. This allows businesses to balance their downsizing budgets with difficult employee retention conditions.
Cleaning industry experts, especially business owners, who may feel like they lack deep technical expertise, doesn’t have to worry. AI tools are designed to be accessible and often require minimal training to begin offering useful benefits. By streamlining common mediocre processes like scheduling, customer service, and even inventory management, AI tools allow distributors and salespeople to truly focus on activities that drive growth. In short, it is worth exploring the possibilities of AI reshaping the cleaning industry by examining current and new tools and assessing whether return on investment (ROI) is worth the learning curve.
For example, scheduling is often cited as an issue for distributors and salespeople as well, and AI tools can provide a powerful solution to help optimize this troublesome process. Salespeople responsible for managing visits for multiple clients can use AI-powered tools to map the most efficient travel routes to minimize time and fuel costs, taking into account real-time traffic and booking windows. Meanwhile, distributors can leverage AI to schedule delivery tailored to the needs of specific clients, replenish critical supply in a timely manner, and strengthen their overall relationships.
Average lean seller
“AI can streamline operations, make scheduling more efficient, and create processes that allow teams to focus on high-value tasks,” said Mike Marks, founding partner of the Indian River Consulting Group in Indian Runch, Florida.
Thankfully, there are already widely available tools. For example, a Google Calendar armed with AI integrations such as Motion can suggest the best meeting times based on availability. Meanwhile, small investments in paid platforms like Calendly and Hubspot integrate with customer relationship management (CRM) systems to help automate follow-up. Additionally, programs like Route4ME specialize in optimizing distribution routes.
AI scheduling tools are expected to continue to grow rapidly, and eventually incorporate real-time inventory data to predict when clients need to prepare. These tools can help salespeople increase productivity by reducing repetitive tasks. When it comes to fuel costs, a distributor who can trim 10% could save thousands of people, depending on the size and type of fleet and the delivery area.
Automated technology has already had a significant impact on customer service, and many website users have already noticed the recent spread of chatbots and virtual assistants programmed to handle everyday inquiries. JAN/SAN distributors can deploy these chatbots to their websites to instantly address product availability and compatibility questions, reducing response times from hours to seconds. Using this technology to handle small questions, it can free up personnel, tackle large inquiries in a timely manner, and improve overall customer service.
Save time and money
“AI helps to drive transactions faster. Answer questions and process customer claims faster helps to retain,” says Quinn, author of Distribution Strategy Group.
Free tools like Tidio will allow small distributors to get started right away, set up basic chatbots that can handle FAQs, and paid options like Zendesk AI and Intercom will provide more sophisticated and personalized responses.
The new generation AI chatbots that distributors may recognize through the Google Cloud management interface are rapidly adding features that also provide multilingual support, a useful feature that takes into account the diverse clients of the industry. The service, according to experts, can provide large returns. For example, if a distributor who handles 50 inquiries every day can save 10 hours a week at $20 per hour, you’ll save $10,400 a year.
Market research and lead generation are also important factors when it comes to staying competitive, and so far AI tools have helped us analyze trends, customer behavior, and competitor delivery. (After all, they are primarily designed to work with pattern recognition.) Distributors can use AI to track nationwide demand for eco-friendly cleaning products and identify facilities that will benefit from incorporating specialized equipment. Salespeople can use AI-driven insights to prioritize high potential leads, such as facility managers with expired supply contracts.
“One customer found that AI-based reps were increasing sales by 1,000 basis points faster than non-representatives,” Marks said, highlighting sales advantage.
Google Trends is an easy way to gather free insights into product search trends, and paid tools like Salesforce Einstein and Cognism can provide advanced lead scoring and market analysis. Future tools can also integrate social media data to predict more specific regional demand. A 10% increase in lead conversion could add $50,000 to the annual revenue of a sales person with a target of $500,000, for example.
Like the real thing
Training is another area where AI has the potential to transform the cleaning industry. It provides personalized education by keeping up with the right product use, sales techniques, and industry changes. Salespeople can pitch new equipment or products via interactive AI modules (which are essentially practiced using live feedback), while distributors can train inventory management staff via simulations such as new product lines. The possibilities of AI that can be useful for small staff and agile businesses prove to be invaluable.
“AI can create and translate original training content, including procedural guides and checklists, making it easier for staff to be efficiently loaded,” Quinn says.
Free platforms like Khan Academy specialize in creating a holistic framework, but they customize the meticulous learning path with paid tools such as TalentLMS and Articulate 360. Generation AI continues to be refined, allowing you to quickly create a virtual reality training environment for practical practice.
Another game changer for distributors and salespeople is automating iterative tasks, such as order processing and inventory tracking. AI can generate purchase orders when it notices a decline in inventory levels, reducing manual workloads and reducing the time spent on “grant work.” For example, AI tools that update inventory and reorder supplies at real-time alert distributors already incorporate these features to minimize stockouts.
Importantly, AI can quickly make standard workflows, reduce errors, and free staff for valuable tasks such as relationship building. Zapier’s free tier automates basic workflows, while paid platforms like NetSuite and Hubspot Sales Hub offer advanced automation of inventory and CRM tasks.
But most importantly, relationship management remains the heart of the cleaning industry’s heartbeat, with AI-powered CRM systems offering opportunities to enhance client interactions by personalizing recommendations and predicting needs. Salespeople can suggest specific tailored products, such as specific MOPs for client floor types, but distributors can track purchase history and offer targeted promotions, such as discounts for clients who have not ordered for 60 days.
Some AI CRMSs can also quickly incorporate tools such as voice analysis to measure client sentiment during calls. It provides real-time insights and feedback on how the pitch is progressing, creating opportunities for course revisions.
After all, the ROI of AI tools is probably the most persuasive factor, offering time savings, revenue growth and cost savings.
AI may not completely revolutionize the cleaning industry and can cause pain, but it can make a difference and help to curb the trend of lower retention and rising business costs. These tools could provide enough free time for distributors and salespeople to streamline operations and build stronger client relationships.
Jackson Silvanik is the managing editor of sanitation maintenance, contract benefits, facility cleaning decision magazines, and CleanLink.com.
Posted: 9/2/2025
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