Why renovators really pick their tradesperson

  Posted by: electime      1st July 2021

Having a constant stream of new enquiries in the pipeline is a goal of many renovation business owners and no matter how busy tradespeople may be during this renovation boom, it’s important to be thinking about the future. But how do you stand out from the crowd and encourage potential clients to pick you?

Houzz Pro, the all-in-one business management and marketing solution for construction and design professionals conducted a survey* to discover why renovators choose to contact their tradesperson, the most important deciding factors when hiring and the challenges they face.

Findings include:

• Online credibility is a significant factor in homeowners’ hiring decisions, with homeowners reporting that a pro’s online presence, along with the ability to offer remote collaboration tools, are major determinants (66 per cent).
• Even among homeowners who rely on word-of-mouth referrals to find pros, more than half report that they conduct additional online research before deciding to make contact (54 per cent).
• In addition to referrals from friends and family, the ability to view examples of projects with a similar scope is the most important factor when deciding whether to contact a professional (61 per cent), followed by the ability to view online reviews (41 per cent).
• Renovators value communication, speed and clarity when deciding to hire a professional. Communication and organisation skills (58 per cent), speed of receiving a quote (39 per cent) and easy to understand pricing (35 per cent) are all key deciding factors.
• When planning a project, renovators state that getting an estimate or proposal with enough detail (31 per cent) and the lack of financial transparency in estimates they receive (21 per cent) are challenges.
• During their projects, renovators’ report that understanding timeline changes (33 per cent) and getting timely & accurate communications about the project (30 per cent) make projects challenging.

To give industry professionals insight into their level of business credibility online, Houzz launched the Houzz Pro Online Impact Score. Based on an analysis of nearly one million pros worldwide, including designers, builders and speciality contractors, the score reflects the strength of a pro’s website and Houzz profile. Houzz provides the total score and a breakdown of its components, as well as a benchmark against the top 10 percent of pros in each category.

“The home renovation industry is booming, but our research shows that a majority of pros could attract and close more of the work they really want. Even pros who rely on word-of-mouth referrals may miss out on significant new business opportunities, since those prospects conduct additional research to confirm the recommendation before reaching out. With a more credible online presence, they’ll build a stronger pipeline for the long-term,” said Liza Hausman, vice president of Industry Marketing at Houzz. “Houzz is the industry leader when it comes to helping pros build their brands online and making quality connections with homeowners. The Online Impact Score, together with Houzz Pro marketing and business management tools, are a simple and powerful way to help our pro community build stronger businesses now and for the future.”