Your kitchen is flooding.
You search for a plumber and call the first number you find.
It rings.
And rings.
And rings.
Eventually you get an answering machine asking you to leave a message.
You try the next one. Same thing.
Meanwhile the water is still pouring out under the sink.
Home services have seen massive growth over the last two decades, but finding a home service business that communicates in the way people expect today is still bounded by websites designed for how we communicated in the late 1990s. Phone calls that go unanswered, emails that never get replies, and websites with outdated contact forms, often with frustrating “select the cats from these pictures” challenges.
Traditional directories in the UK such as Yell.co.uk, TrustedTrader, Checkatrade and Google Maps list businesses. Locally.co.uk lists home service businesses that respond via WhatsApp.
Traditional directories focus on reviews. Our directory focuses on businesses that are easy to communicate with.
Why? Because in the UK there is around 95 percent market penetration of WhatsApp. Homeowners like communicating via WhatsApp, and home service businesses that use WhatsApp often provide a better level of customer service.
Home service businesses that use WhatsApp also enjoy efficiencies. Customers are often willing to quickly share photos or short videos of their issue. This allows faster qualification and quoting without unnecessary site visits. After the work is completed, businesses can also send follow-up photos as proof of work.
They do not need a separate or personal phone number. A WhatsApp Business account can be attached to an existing number, either landline or mobile.
When using an appropriate system, home service businesses can enjoy additional benefits such as automated responses in and out of business hours, automated appointment reminders, and after-visit follow-ups.
Beyond enquiries, WhatsApp can also become a powerful marketing channel. Home service businesses can use it to stay in touch with past customers, send reminders, follow up after work is completed, and share relevant offers or seasonal messages. WhatsApp marketing campaigns are often far more successful than email.
“WhatsApp has an average open rate of 98 percent, compared with 21 percent for email.”
Marketing Week
Two-thirds of millennials expect real-time customer service.
McKinsey & Company
Messaging channels can have lower cost per interaction and allow agents to handle multiple conversations simultaneously.
Deloitte
Customers already live in WhatsApp.
Increasingly, they expect businesses to meet them there.