B&Q puts customers and tradesmen in touch

B&Q and retail stablemate Screwfix have joined forces to launch jobsorted.com - a brand new online directory giving homeowners access to local tradesmen.

The site, which launches this week, displays details of more than 150,000 tradesmen and offers live feedback and ratings from homeowners who have used their services.

The details have been collected through "a combination of tradesmen from Screwfix and Trade Point who have signed up as a result of our advertising, and tradesmen who are not necessarily customers, but who have flagged an interest in this type of service," a spokesperson told DIY Week.

The site has been in development for the past nine months, and was created in response to research carried out by B&Q and Screwfix, which showed that a third of UK homeowners struggle to find a tradesmen and 70% worry about getting ripped off.

The site will rely on consumers who have used a tradesperson's services logging on and rating their work. All feedback will be displayed on the site so homeowners can make a judgement about who to pick based on peer experience.

Once launched, and populated, how it will dovetail with B&Q operations is yet to be seen - in-store recommendations about local tradesmen would seem a logical progression for example. The spokesperson told DIY Week that the site will be advertised in B&Q stores, but there are "no other plans as yet" in terms of a tie-in with the retail brand.

B&Q already installs around 15% of the kitchens and bathrooms it sells. Speaking in Vienna in June last year, Kingfisher ceo Ian Cheshire said that 'Do it for me' was one of the five major trends the retail group had identified. "People want to press the big orange button and say 'B&Q, you do it,'" he said.

The site officially launches tomorrow at www.jobsorted.com

Source : DIY Week.net