The gig economy continues to grow offering millions of people a chance to work from places of their convenience. When it comes to home improvement, some tasks and projects are simply too big to tackle on your own. If you are thinking of hiring a professional to help you out with home improvement tasks. Home Advisor can be a great resource for your consideration. In today’s guide, we shall have a closer review and look on HomeAdvisor, how the platform works, how to join, signing up for gigs, pros and cons as well as compensation plan.
What is Home Advisor?
HomeAdvisor is a platform that connects contractors with homeowners who are ready to hire pros for their home projects. Whether you need help with home improvement, maintenance, repair and other services, you are likely to find a professional on HomeAdvisor who can work on your task. The platform gives you access to targeted leads for your business. You only need to choose the services you offer and the location you serve and the platform matches you with homeowners looking to start projects in those areas.
It is a free website and app, on both iOS and Android, that is owned by ANGI Home services. It is the same company that owns Angi. The platform lets users find prescreened local professionals, request quotes and book appointments. You will find listings for different tasks such as construction, landscaping, home repair, house cleaning and much more.
In addition to the platform helping you to hire professionals, it also serves as a resource center that provides expert tips and tutorials. You will find guides on common home maintenance and repair projects as well as ideas and inspirations. The platform has True Cost Guide, which is a free tool to give you an idea of how much you can expect to pay for professional services.
History of Home Advisor
Contractor matching services have been there for a long time. However, HomeAdvisor is a rare company that is still operating 21 years later. It began as ServiceMagic. During that time, Microsoft owned HomeAdvisor.com domain but kept it parked and without operation. ServiceMagic went ahead to acquire the new domain.
Eventually, ServiceMagic began to experience issues on both sides of the homeowner/professional business structure. So, it was time to make some changes, and along with that, a name change.
In 2004, ServiceMagic was acquired by IAC/InterActiveCorp. Afterward, the company changed its name—domain and all—to HomeAdvisor. For a company that does all of its business online, a domain change is quite a dramatic step.
The real reason for change of name was that homeowners were not interested in magic performed on their homes, but were interested in solid, real work.
How to Get Started with HomeAdvisor
To get started, you need to visit Home Advisor online or just download the app, available for both iOS and Android users. After that, create a free account, though it’s not a must.
From the home screen on either the web platform or app, there will be an option that will direct you to HomeAdvisor’s pro finder tool. This search tool will allow you to enter details about your project and connect with up to three professionals. You can as well scroll down for additional information and links to other free resources.
How Does Home Advisor Work
Using Home Advisor platform, you can search for local contractors for multiple types of home repairs and home services. HomeAdvisor prescreens each company and its owners to ensure they are properly licensed and that customers are satisfied.
HomeAdvisor will match you with a contractor by guiding you through a series of questions as well as providing you with quotes from qualified local contractors. You can as well look for and book a fixed price immediately on the platform.
Alternatively, make use of the search bar to search for a local page for your area and see the available companies. HomeAdvisor will provide a snapshot of each company with relevant information such as services, reviews and phone numbers. While comparing options, you can directly reach out to HomeAdvisor by phone or live chat.
In case you are not ready to contact a local professional, read through some of HomeAdvisor’s articles about the topic you are searching. There is the company’s resource center section that contains a library of information about home services and projects.
How to Find a Professional with Home Advisor
There are three main ways on how to find a nearby professional with the use of the platform.
First, you can use HomeAdvisor’s ProFinder Tool. This tool lets you enter details about your specific project and contact the company as recommended by HomeAdvisor. With the use of this method, you end up with one to three quotes.
Second, you can make use of the directory. Here, you browse through nearby professionals and make a decision on the ones to contact. This method lets you request as many quotes as you want.
The third method is to search for fixed price services. Here, you pay an upfront fee for HomeAdvisor to send a qualified and background checked professional to complete your request. You agree to have the job done by a professional whom HomeAdvisor chooses, for a non-negotiable price.
What are the Costs Associated with Home Advisor?
HomeAdvisor is completely free to use for homeowners searching for information about contractors and professionals in their area. There is no obligation whatsoever to book a service if you choose to receive quotes.
For contractors looking to promote their business using the platform, the site charges a membership fee of around $300 per year, as well as additional fees per lead. These additional fees can range from $15 to $60. The exact cost will depend on the businesses’ location and associated industry. Remember that the price per lead is charged even if the lead doesn’t convert to a customer.
Companies normally pay to be featured on HomeAdvisor. They pay membership fee and have a price per lead that varies depending on industry and location. Homeowners searching for a professional do not need to pay anything.
Pros and Cons of Using HomeAdvisor
Just like any platform, there will always be some sharp criticisms on its use and applications. That said, here are some pros we were able to sample over different review platforms.
- The platform allows you to solicit bids within minutes
- It offers the largest number of affiliated contractors more than any other matching service.
- There are TrueCost Guides
- It keeps track of past jobs in your account profile.
Here are some associated cons
- Call backs from contractors can sometimes be spotty
- Some important sub categories of work are missing
- Pre-screening is not a guarantee of quality.
Tips for Using Home Advisor
To get leads that fit your business, you need to choose your service types and location preferences and HomeAdvisor connects you with homeowners seeking those services in those locations.
- When completing your service request, it is important you be as specific as possible with information about the job.
- In case you liked a previous service provider’s work, you can order work again from your projects menu
- When you are given a list of interested service providers, you should click on their nae. Doing so will help you find more about the company or individual. Additionally, you can find a money saving coupon from the click.
Controlling your Leads with Home Advisor
Your online account setting gives you control over what you can do. You can define your service and Zip code preferences to ensure you receive the type of requests you want. Additionally, you can modify your spend target and also specify of you are buy and narrow your preferences accordingly.
There are different tools to manage your leads. There is a robust and user-friendly system that lets you categorize and organize your leads, keep track of communications and connect with your prospects through phone or email just with a touch of a button. Their mobile app lets you take these tools on the road to help you in staying on top of your pipeline.
What you will pay for a lead varies by the type of work you do. Regional costs can also have an impact on the price paid. Spend target is estimated 28 days period dollar amount that you would like HomeAdvisor to try to meet when sending you leads.
The spend target is not a hard cap, but rather an estimated goal of monthly spend. Instant Booking leads and all Job Opportunity leads are charged outside of you spend target. It is possible to exceed your spend target. It is important that you review your invoices regularly to make sure that you’re satisfied with your current spend target.
About Home Advisor Badges
You need to know that HomeAdvisor doesn’t provide guarantee for jobs. You will be charged for each lead you receive, whether you ultimately win the job or not and regardless of whether the customer hires any pro to complete the job.
As a pro, you should always aim for HomeAdvisor Badges. These badges present a great way to set yourself apart from the competition. They can boost your staff morale and effectively market your business. They recognize a lot of things including licensing, certification and high-quality work. Each badge has a different set of qualifications to win. When you win a badge, you can display it on your website and HomeAdvisor profile so that Homeowners can see your achievements.
There is also Home Advisor Elite Service Pro badge. HomeAdvisor pros earn the Elite Service Pro badge with an overall customer service rating of 4.5 or better. These pros have at least five reviews with a five-star rating, among other qualifications.
How to Use TrueCost Guide for Home Advisor
HomeAdvisor platform introduces TrueCost Guide to help homeowners have an idea of how much it would cost them to order a service. Most contractor-matching sites are simply a passthrough route to link homeowners with service professionals. TrueCost Guide is an important feature found on HomeAdvisor that encourages lingering which spans hundreds of types of projects.
The guide offers a new and highly accurate way for homeowners to calculate the cost of various home repair and improvements. The HomeAdvisor cost estimates are based on surveys from actual project costs as reported by HomeAdvisor members. As soon as a project is completed, the cost is added to cost guide for future reference. These are normally actual costs of projects and not just estimates.
Is HomeAdvisor Worth Using?
For most part of the platform, bad reviews are typically specific to contractors and not homeowners. HomeAdvisor prescreens each business on its site and shows ratings and reviews from previous customers. The company has handled more than 100 million service requests as stats from the website show.
It presents a good way for homeowners to find vetted contractors in their area. However, because contractors pay to be featured on the website, it doesn’t offer a full picture of all options available locally.
It is important to note that HomeAdvisor is worth using. It presents a great way to start your search when looking for contractors. You can ask your friends and family for recommendations as well.
Bottom Line
HomeAdvisor is a free online resource for homeowners. The company helps in matching you with professionals in your area that offers the services you need. It connects residents who are looking to start a project or repair to pros and contractors in the area.
The site provides estimated costs for services to help you understand what to expect when requesting quotes. HomeAdvisor has an online booking tool that lets you schedule a fixed-price service without picking up the phone. Services available on HomeAdvisor include maid services, plumbing repairs, lawn care, electrical services, general contracting and hundreds of others. In general, you can book any home-related work through HomeAdvisor.
The company backs its service with a Happiness Guarantee, promising to make it right if something goes wrong. If you are a pro, you can find good leads with HomeAdvisor. However, you can also check other good business opportunities that can work for your favor.
