Yes you can find a great contractor on the Web

So our users tell us, and why we are so committed to making HomeStars a trusted forum to read and write our experiences.

I was reading Mike Holmes' article in the Globe this weekend about how so many directory sites are a joke. He didn't name anyone but gave an example about a site where companies are automatically rated 5 star and only get knocked down if there is a complaint. I'm still trying to figure out which site that is. We certainly have our fair share of bad reviews and even the best companies will get critiqued on our site. But the good ones understand this is important feedback and get involved in the conversation. My favourite example is Rafina Flooring. He was hopping mad when he got his first bad review. He called and told me in no uncertain terms that he knew who wrote it and they were a crazy and overdemanding customer that shouldn't be allowed to air their ridiculous views. But the owner took the time to respond and he found out users would comment on how well they thought he handled the beef, and hired him because of his response. Touche!

Some companies reviewed on our site you want to just run from. One craftsperson has racked up dozens of horrific stories and the owners continue to stay in business, and even respond to many of them. You can even find these guys at the major home shows.

Regarding Mike's comment on the false claims of hiring pre-screened contractors, I couldn't agree more with the lack of credibility of these statements. How can a site possibly guarantee insurance is paid and up to date from one month to the next or a licence is valid? Homeowners should do their homework before hiring anyone for a significant project and getting word-of-mouth referrals and reading reviews on HomeStars is a great starting point.

Our main challenge is ensuring companies don't post false positive reviews on themselves - and we've had to pull down quite a few so far! We are getting smarter at detecting these autobiographers. Soon we will be adding features to provide more visibility for trusted reviewers - those that provide more details about their identity, have contributed multiple reviews and regularly on our site, and where other users have found their posts helpful.

P.S. If you want to win a kitchen makeover, go to this site. We only offer a cup of coffee : )

Posted by Nancy Peterson
6 comments | Permanent Link

 

The .com is now ours!

The law of the internet jungle... when you launch a web based business GET THE .COM first!

After being live for 16 months, we now own ours. I chose HomeStars as the name of the company as it was simple, and somewhat descriptive about what we are all about. It links to ratings and - doesn't everyone want to be a star? Especially after a lengthy home reno!

We had prototyped the first site with the name HomeDirection - which many commented was terrible (way too long and sounded like a map site). So HomeStars.ca was launched in Toronto last year, and we registered as many HomeStars dot somethings as possible. As we planned our expansion, it became mandatory to have the .com. So goes our 6 month journey to get it. The person who owned it was squatting on the domain and had an inflated value in his mind. It took six months, many unanswered emails and phone calls, and a friend of ours living in the city of the squatter, to finally come to a price that we could all live with. We did the exchange using escrow.com, which provided a safe and secure online mechanism for transferring the money and domain.

So my lesson learned; if you are just starting an online business, get the name and .com first. If you're negotiating after you've already established yourself in a market, decide how much it will really cost to change. And brainstorm a great back-up if you can't afford to buy it (easier said than done!). Our back-up, HomeKarma, was loved by some, hated by others.

There's an interesting article in the Wall Street Journal which talks about Topix.net changing over to the .com and it's impact on traffic. As we move from the .ca to the .com in the next few weeks - we will be faced with this challenge yet again. For now, we are glad we've closed the chapter on our name!

Labels: buying a domain, company name

Posted by Nancy Peterson
3 comments | Permanent Link