A Real Fixer-Upper
Home repair services broker JoeFixit.com combines the phone and the Web to improve customer service
Have a leaky roof or a broken water pipe? Never fear, JoeFixit.com is here.
The new Web site – launched by Del Mar, CA-based ServiceBeyond.com – allows consumers to schedule appointments for home repair and maintenance service in metropolitan San Diego. It debuted last month with a customer service-oriented business plan integrating the phone, the Web, e-mail and online text chat.
JoeFixit serves as a go-between for consumers and contractors, similar to the way FTD Florists and the American Automobile Association process and outsource consumer orders for products or services. In this instance, JoeFixit sets appointments for consumers on behalf of local contractors.
Customer service agents support the JoeFixit site by answering questions and helping customers place orders online. They also make outbound calls to confirm information entered online.
“People need the option of speaking to someone because cyberspace is a cold and anonymous place,” says Kevin M. Denny, president and COO of ServiceBeyond.
Consumers visiting the site set their own appointments by filling out forms detailing the services needed and providing contact information, which JoeFixit forwards to contractors by e-mail, fax, phone call or through an intranet link.
While self-scheduling appointments, customers can click into a chat room to type online messages back and forth with customer service agents, or click a call-me button to request a phone call.
ServiceBeyond outsources the text chat, e-mail and phone call management work for JoeFixit to an online teleservices agency, Ivus Technical Services Inc., based in Oakland, CA.
The debut of JoeFixit in San Diego is supported by a $1 million advertising campaign being handled locally by Phillips Ramsey, a division of McCann Erickson World Group. The campaign for creating brand awareness, generating Web traffic and phone calls includes space, radio, billboard and online banner ads.
Although fragmented, the market for services such as residential carpet cleaning, plumbing, appliance repair, electrical work and glass repair is worth $115 billion annually. according to the Home Improvement Research Institute, says Denny.
ServiceBeyond plans to offer additional products and services as its customer database grows, but Denny says the more immediate concern is to establish JoeFixit and good customer service practices. One possibility is to sell service maintenance contracts to customers with online direct marketing.
As a start-up, JoeFixit is unique because it a commitment to customer service is part of its business plan, says Lawrence Byrd, vice president of marketing at Quintus Corp., a software company in Fremont, CA, that supplied the customer service technology JoeFixit uses.
Typically dot-com start-ups put all their energy into creating Web sites and give little thought to backend operations, which results in “truly horrible” customer service, says Byrd. Probably less than 5% of online marketers give serious consideration to customer service, but that is slowly improving, he says.
With the Quintus software, JoeFixit has the capacity for database marketing to customize offers and route customers based on demographics and purchasing history to a designated agent.
The company’s database is being built using data volunteered online by customers, clickstream data and transaction records. Customers also provide information to JoeFixit by storing household repair and maintenance records online, plus product warranty information and manuals. To address privacy concerns, only basic information is requested for online forms and JoeFixit asks for customer permission to contact them.
ServiceBeyond will expand JoeFixit into Denver next, with as many as 10 other markets – such as Dallas, Houston, Atlanta and Kansas City – planned by the end of the year.
