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Using Angie’s List to Spread the Word on Your Small Business

by Matt Berkley

What do your customers really think of you? It’s an age-old quandary that’s constantly on the mind of every business owner. And if it isn’t, it should be. In the business world, a bad reputation can drive away customers and sink your firm before you have a chance to hang your shingle. As a small-business owner, it’s essential to keep your clients happy. Fortunately, technology is making this less of a chore.

Angie Hicks knows that word-of-mouth networking is important to every business. Fed up with the pitiful service she was getting from so many contractors and service providers, Hicks set out to create a networking tool where consumers could give detailed ratings on local companies and notify others about their real-life experiences with the businesses. Her website, www.angieslist.com, serves more than 200,000 consumers in 27 cities.

“Looking for a contractor is a game of hit or miss,” Hicks says, “whether you’re opening the phone book or searching the Internet. Angie’s List, though, takes a lot of the guesswork out of the process for consumers and puts reliable, unbiased information at their fingertips. Consumers know they can get the real scoop on local contractors from others who’ve hired them.”

Hick’s says that Angie’s List is great news for companies that do quality work and are committed to good customer service, but not good news for companies that don’t. “Because of the word-of-mouth nature of Angie’s List, companies that do good work benefit from what our members have to say about them. Through the list, members can quickly and easily access the opinions of literally thousands of other consumers in the St. Louis area. Any good businessperson will agree that there’s nothing better than a one-on-one referral from a customer. Angie’s List literally makes that type of word-of-mouth referral possible.”

That’s great, but can’t consumers get this info from conventional sites like the Better Business Bureau? Hick’s says no. “Unlike the BBB, at Angie’s List, our members can get more than just ratings, including detailed information from consumers including how they would rate the company’s responsiveness, price, punctuality, professionalism and ask if they would hire the company again. Members describe the work performed and comment on their overall experience with the company. Members can also get information on what services a particular company provides, what services they don’t, and what areas of the city they work in.”

Scott Quinby, president of Compusmile LLC, a local computer consulting firm, says Angie’s List was the perfect fit for his small operation, “I’m already inspired to do the best work I can for each and every client of mine, but knowing that my Angie’s List customers will likely be supplying reviews for the work I do; it gives me extra incentive to strive even higher. Being part of the Angie’s List community holds me to a higher standard, which works to everyone’s benefit: mine, my clients and Angie’s List as well.”

Quinby adds that being a member on Angie’s hasn’t exactly hurt his business: “In terms of the bottom line, Angie’s list subscribers account for a full 35% of my revenue. To put it another way, Angie’s List has given me a full 50% more business than I had prior to working with them.”

Hilary Daniel, president and owner of Garden’s By Hilary, Inc, a landscaping business based out of Shrewsbury, recommends Angie’s List to people all the time, calling it a hassle-free way of finding good contractors who value positive characteristics. Daniel notes that it’s crucial for businesses to maintain contact with their clients to keep them satisfied and head off any problems. “A satisfied client may tell five people,” Daniel says, but “A dissatisfied client will tell ten or twenty people.”

How can you get your business on Angie’s List? There’s a good chance you already are. “Companies can’t pay to be on Angie’s List,” says Hicks, “Only our members can report on the companies they hire.”

Websites like Hick’s are effectively putting small companies under the consumer microscope. In today’s competitive marketplace, this could mean serious trouble for firms with sub-par customer service skills. So business owners be warned: the next person who walks into your office might be taking notes.

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