Service Magic, Service Magic Bogus Leads, Unqualified, waste of money USA National Internet

This response is not an official response of the company, nor is it authorized by the company.  I am speaking solely for myself as an individual and am solely responsible for the contents of this rebuttal. This being said, the following is an accurate and fair depiction of operational procedures.

I'd like to address a few specifics in this comment.  ServiceMagic leads are, quite simply, consumers who have expressed interest in a home project - normally on the internet.  They are in various stages of the buying cycle and this stage (IE:planning, ready to hire, etc.) is usually disclosed by the consumer when submitting a service request.

The company does not expect a contractor to sell every account nor are contractors even expected to contact every account.  Contact rates can vary, but 70-80% is normal.  All of these facts are disclosed to the contractor upon enrollment. 

The company, under published specific written guidelines, will offer a lead replacement credit, not a cash refund.  This procedure is also disclosed during the enrollment process.  In fact, these disclosures are made during the initial enrollment process and subsequently confirmed again by another department to insure the new member understands these basics.  Responses confirming this understanding by the contractor are also recorded with consent and full knowledge of all parties.

I have also used the service to find a specific contractor for a home service.  It was a service request that could and should have been bid over the telephone (such as repairing a leaky pipe).  Once I pressed submit, I received 3 contractor calls within 90 seconds at about 9 PM. 

Contractor A quoted a price.  Contractor B quoted a price that was 25% higher than A.  Contractor C quoted a price that was 150% higher than contractor A and 80% higher than Contractor B.  The Ratings and Reviews were comparable for each contractor.  Only an idiot - not a low-ball consumer - would have picked Contractor C.

Member contractors are often businesses using best practices, speed, professionalism and competitive bids.  Not every contractor can rise to that level of competition and be successful with the service.  Thank you for taking the time to read this.