"Thumbtack" is another service.
Service provider signs up, picks categories of work, selects a geographic radius, and gets notices. If you choose to reply, and are one of the first 6 to do so, your reply of a few hundred words goes to the possible customer. If they don't read it in a few days, your fee is refunded.
Customer has a few bits of information to fill out - description of project, timetable, services they think they need.
In its current mode, they charge you to reply to inquiries ($10-$15). At least, potentially, you're only competing with 5 others.
If you identify as an architect, you will get "leads" for everything from "need drawings for kitchen rebuild" to "structural review of house, we want to take out a wall that might be a bearing wall", and from time to time some decent projects, residential and commercial.
Because of the service radius factor, I get inquiries that are within my circle, but in the wrong direction. Those, and the ones with almost all information blank, or the ones with impossibly short timelines, I just ignore.
I have used the service (free to customer, btw) to try to round up simple structural engineering resources (houses which don't quite meet IRC 'braced wall' criteria, typically) but that didn't pan out last year.
As far as success - I've sought out a few jobs (maybe 1 a month) and snagged maybe 1/4 of those. So, pretty cheap.
------------------------------
Joel Niemi AIA
Joel Niemi Architect
Snohomish, WA
------------------------------
Original Message:
Sent: 01-05-2018 18:19
From: William Gregory
Subject: Network
Hi Kathy:
I am a one person office and have been a member of Home Advisor (Formerly Service Magic) since 2009 and have tracked the returns up to the start of 2017 and it has provided almost 40% of my projects during that time. Many of these clients have become return clients and my signs on the construction fence have brought in more clients and I have not factored those into my 40%. It took me a year after starting my own office during the great economy of 2008 and after doing several of my neighbor's small projects, I decided that I needed another form of connecting with potential clients. While there are many forms of getting the word out, advertising (online advertising) was the one that seemed to be the most likely approach to cast the widest net for the fewest dollars. My original feeling was that spending money without having a definite return was a difficult mental hurdle. However, after I jumped in, it was a savior especially during those leaner years. They have provided a 9:1 return on the advertising costs over that time. I spend about $2500/year on lead generation and I can determine how many leads per month (lead budget) they will send to me. I can also turn off the leads for two weeks at a time and I can do that easily online and consecutively.
Note - per the other responses, yes, there are bogus leads - shoppers just looking for free information, potential clients who are not aware of actual construction costs or reasonable design fees, no response to a return phone call or e-mail, etc and they are frustrating. On many occasions, I have called Home Advisor and stated that the latest lead was not a valid lead (phone number doesn't work, an architect testing the system - yes - it has happened several times, etc.) and they have researched it and removed the charge or sent me a new replacement lead - not always but many times. There are also claims by some of the potential clients that several (more than anticipated) architects responded to their request and so one wonders how many architects were sent the lead. However, in the long run it has been well worth it.
The best way that I have found to at least get your foot in the door is to call the lead contact right back (within minutes - not hours) as soon as the lead comes through. Many times, the first one who calls gets the project. I also do not charge for an initial visit.
Right now, I have put my leads on hold as I am busy enough and do not wish to bring on employees just to bring in more work.
Thanks,
Bill Gregory, AIA
Arcelab Inc. Architects
7480 S. Osage Ave.
Los Angeles, CA 90045
Cell - 310-507-5434
Fax - 310-910-0483
Web Site - www.arcelab.com
Original Message------
Have not heard of Porch.
Talked to HomeAdvisor and contractors who have used HomeAdvisor. They do not screen their leads like they say they do.
John A. Feick, AIA, CSI, LEED AP
224 East Water Street
Sandusky, Ohio 44870
419-625-2554 (w)
419-656-3017 (c)