In need of plumber / remodeler

[Anybodyhome]

You have to pay to use Angies List? And anybody can pay to be listed?

 

My kids used to bring that "Who's Who" crap home from school that said, basically, that you had to pay to be in there. I told them that was some stupid poo. This appears to be along the same lines.

 

Yes, it's all subscription based.

 

http://www.forbes.com/sites/maggiemcgrath/2013/09/18/why-consumer-reports-says-you-cant-trust-angies-list/

 

“[Angie’s List] makes a big point to say they’re consumer-driven, when in fact 70% of their revenue comes from advertising. It’s not advertising Coca Cola, it’s advertising from the companies they rate,” explained Jeff Blyskal, a senior editor for Consumer Reports.  While companies do not pay to be listed on Angie’s List, companies can pay to appear higher up in the search results – which Blyskal believes compromises the validity of the Angie’s List sorting system.

___________________________

 

Trust me, you can go to your local Better Business Bureau site and get info there, Yelp, Google and read reviews if that's what you want to do.

___________________________

 

Why This Angies List Policy is Dumb

Let's say that I'm a consumer. If Angie's list charges me $5/month I have to get a lot of value out of the list for it to be worth that membership fee. They have millions of customers though, so apparently it's compelling to some folks. Let's say that I'm the business owner, though. If I can create a fake email account and use my home address (or my neighbors address) so that Angie's List doesn't know who I am, then $5/month is a pittance for being able to enter a review of my own business. So, their whole "we charge a small fee to keep the reviews honest" thing doesn't work for the stated policy, but it sure does help them bring in revenue without worrying about advertising.

Paid Position/Advertising on Angie's List?

Here's the worst part - after your company gets added they contact you and say something like "your company has been added and reviewed. If you'd like you have an enhanced listing you can pay us for that."

So the whole "we are acting in our members best interests" thing is bullshit! They have one interest in mind: their own.

The Review Problem is Real

The thing is - it's really hard to run a review site. Really hard. Getting valuable metrics is difficult. How does each user know if they should be trusting the other users of the site. Angie's List's paid membership program clearly doesn't make sense (though it may work than other current options). So, what's the future? Fortunately, it's the online corollary to the system you already use in real life: you ask your friends and colleagues via social bookmarking that helps guide you to the best local plumber. This is the clear way to solve the problem in the future.

Sorry, Angie's List. You could implement these features in your site, but don't pretend that the $5 is for anything other than your own pockets.

 

 

 

[Panthro]

I'm not sure I care if it's subscription based. They care a lot about their scores and are always on time, pleasant, and do good work.

If they don'tabd you score them below ab A it has a huge impact on their business

[Panthro]

I'm not sure I care if it's subscription based. They care a lot about their scores and are always on time, pleasant, and do good work.

If they don'tabd you score them below ab A it has a huge impact on their business

[Panthro]

Holy repost

[Anybodyhome]

I'm not sure I care if it's subscription based. They care a lot about their scores and are always on time, pleasant, and do good work.

If they don'tabd you score them below ab A it has a huge impact on their business

 

A consumer has to pay a subscription rate to use Angie's List.

 

A company can also pay to be on Angie's List, but if a business does not have a subscription, they have no recourse if negative reviews are posted. But, as I quoted in my earlier post, subscribing companies have been known to blast their competitors and pay people to post rave reviews for them.