Online scheduling with the Fittlebug and Service Monster.

[Mikey P]

Word on the web is the soon Fittlebug brand online scheduling will be integrated with Service Monster.

What are you concerns?
Will you use the service?
What percentage of new jobs do you THINK will come from it?


Steve from Fiddlebug is here to answer your questions..

 

[TomKing]

Canwe get a basic discription of features and benefits?

Are they going to do a update with SEO companies?

I would like to ask my guy to attend and see how that might work for us.

 

[The Great Oz]

Some customers would be likely to schedule using an on-line app, so is worth looking into. There are lots and lots of them available though, so it would have to be better, or prettier, or easier to use, or cheaper...

 

[smastio]

Canwe get a basic discription of features and benefits?

Are they going to do a update with SEO companies?

I would like to ask my guy to attend and see how that might work for us.

TomKing - This is Steve Mastio and I am the creator of FittleBug Real-time Scheduling. Here are some answers to your question on the application. First - it's real-time, which means that it tells consumers exactly (down to the minute) how long it takes to perform the tasks they choose from a list of tasks that you allow them to book from. It works very much like booking an airline ticket. It is NOT just a form that people will out and send to you. It's a 24 hours Booking application. They Book it and their Done. Women make most decisions on acquiring the service providers, they work about 50% of the labor work force, and so they are busy during the day like most men. You'd be surprised at some of the hours that the booking takes place!

FittleBug is totally customizable and can be changed easily by any novice. If you know what you call what you do, how much you charge for it, how long it takes and what locations you want to do it in - then FittleBug is an option for you.

Feature and Benefits

Consumers: they can book with you on their time, based on your available time, anytime it is best for them. They do tend to do their home processing in the evening when service providers aren't answering their phone.
Consumers want to get in and off the internet to resolve issues; they don't get on the internet to continue processing, they get on to finish it. Bottom line is that it saves moms time, and there is nothing more important to her, other then her family, then her time. Empowerment is the key to successful Internet client acquisition - not flashy websites. Just ask Google.

For the Service Provider like you: the downside is as little as $50 a month (Plan B) to offer a differentiating value proposition to distinguish yourself from your competition. the upside is up to you. You must tell people that you have it and why they should use it. I can help some ideas. Our first client in Seattle has about 475 new clients in the last two + years. Providers can offer their services 24/7 for a small amount of money and control all aspects of the program themselves without paying others to change things. (pricing, times, services added, etc.) And very shortly FittleBug will sync with Service Monster to automatically make sure the calendars are synced and data flowing between the two programs when consumers book or data changes. (i.e. no data input needed by you). There is much more like automated one click online social media referral program, DOD (deal of the day , like Groupon and Living Social) integration scheduling and more.

Call me (630-444-2000) if you want and I would be glad to walk you personally through a live webinar. Also, I'll be in Indy Friday the 5th if you want me to stop in.

Steve Mastio
Sorry about the size of the video link. I didn't know that it would embed and it - and so big!

 

[smastio]

Here's a recent article that really hit home with me about why a carpet cleaner should put their pricing online...

[h=1]Embrace the Controversial: Why You Should Publish Pricing on Your Website[/h][h=4]by Doug Kirk[/h]

July 25, 2013 at 4:00 PM

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in[COLOR=#333333 !important]Share[/COLOR]<iframe src="http://www.facebook.com/plugins/like.php?href=http://blog.hubspot.com/marketing/why-publish-pricing-on-website-var&send=false&layout=box_count&width=75&show_faces=false&font&colorscheme=light&action=like&height=90&appId=445851638794887" scrolling="no" frameborder="0" allowtransparency="true" style="border-style: none; overflow: hidden; width: 50px; height: 63px; margin-top: 3px;"></iframe><iframe id="twitter-widget-0" scrolling="no" frameborder="0" allowtransparency="true" src="http://platform.twitter.com/widgets/tweet_button.1383343979.html#_=1383920143492&count=vertical&id=twitter-widget-0&lang=en&original_referer=http%3A%2F%2Fblog.hubspot.com%2Fmarketing%2Fwhy-publish-pricing-on-website-var&size=m&text=Embrace%20the%20Controversial%3A%20Why%20You%20Should%20Publish%20Pricing%20on%20Your%20Website&url=http%3A%2F%2Fblog.hubspot.com%2Fmarketing%2Fwhy-publish-pricing-on-website-var&via=hubspot" class="twitter-share-button twitter-tweet-button twitter-count-vertical" title="Twitter Tweet Button" data-twttr-rendered="true" style="width: 56px; height: 62px;"></iframe><iframe frameborder="0" hspace="0" marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" scrolling="no" tabindex="0" vspace="0" width="100%" id="I0_1383920142947" name="I0_1383920142947" src="https://apis.google.com/_/+1/fastbutton?usegapi=1&bsv=o&size=tall&origin=http%3A%2F%2Fblog.hubspot.com&url=http%3A%2F%2Fblog.hubspot.com%2Fmarketing%2Fwhy-publish-pricing-on-website-var&gsrc=3p&ic=1&jsh=m%3B%2F_%2Fscs%2Fapps-static%2F_%2Fjs%2Fk%3Doz.gapi.en_US.tirAHAqTugo.O%2Fm%3D__features__%2Fam%3DAQ%2Frt%3Dj%2Fd%3D1%2Frs%3DAItRSTOTctqlYPj6m_znm82wWPRBeok7gA#_methods=onPlusOne%2C_ready%2C_close%2C_open%2C_resizeMe%2C_renderstart%2Concircled%2Cdrefresh%2Cerefresh%2Conload&id=I0_1383920142947&parent=http%3A%2F%2Fblog.hubspot.com&pfname=&rpctoken=17638883" data-gapiattached="true" title="+1" style="position: static; top: 0px; width: 50px; margin: 0px; border-style: none; left: 0px; visibility: visible; height: 60px;"></iframe>
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One of the most controversial decisions for almost any business owner is whether to post pricing information on their website. Invariably, business owners are inclined to keep this information off the website (this is not true for pure commodity driven sites, such as car rentals or hotels, of course, but for B2B services such as consultants, accountants, translators, and high end B2C items).
But why is this the case even though it’s perhaps one of the most important pieces of data in the buying cycle?
We’re here to say and show (in detail) that this is a huge mistake! If there is one thing that every buyer wants to know, it's “What is this going to cost me?”
[h=2]So, why won't people put price on their website?[/h]When I suggest placing price on a client’s site typically I get some version of these responses:
1) “It’s not done in our industry”
2) “What happens if my competition sees it?”
3) “All our pricing is custom, nothing is standard”
And then simply:
4) “We would never do that”
It takes some negotiation, to be sure, but there are some very compelling reasons to rethink those lines of thought.
[h=2]Own the Price Conversation[/h]Here are some compelling reasons that reticent business and site owners should start including price.
Here's my logic: any buyer is trained to search for price as part of any purchase decision. They will continue to search until they find a price. And if it’s not on your site, you are not part of the price dialog. If there's a price conversation going on anyway, don't you want to be a part of it? It's up to you to own the price conversation.
Not having price on your site cedes the opportunity to your competition -- or worse, someone not even affiliated with your industry -- to control this crucial aspect of the buying decision. In fact, in keeping with a true inbound strategy, you should even blog about price. Openly share results and what your service costs with the people who are looking for that information. The goal is to own the price and value dialog of your product or service, so you can provide researchers with the context they need to understand your pricing model.
[h=2]What About Sticker Shock?[/h]There are several tactics you can employ to offset the fear that a visitor arrives at your pricing page and experiences sticker shock -- another common concern among the reticent.
First, use testimonials right on the page that speaks to the value of your product or service. Quotes from satisfied clients or buyers who shopped around and decided to purchase your product or service is a powerful strategy. There is an innate sense from buyers that the low cost provider is never the best, and there is more assumed value in a higher priced product.

I also recommend listing the prices of other providers alongside yours -- you can name them “Competitor 1” and "Competitor 2” if you’d rather not call them out by name -- and use this chart to detail what is provided in your pricing versus the competition. Call out the features you and your competitors provide in the rubric, and accompany those with actual consumer benefits, too. Tying product or service features to things that matter to buyers, like support or quality, are what make buyers recognize the value behind additional cost.

Finally, show actual results. Nothing is more powerful than, say, a before and after example. Instead of simply listing price on your site, use it as an opportunity to address anticipated buyer reactions like sticker shock, turning those research experiences into sales opportunities.
[h=2]And Don't Forget the SEO Opportunity[/h]Here’s something else we’ve discovered: Ranking for pricing related keywords is easy. Why is that?
No one wants to put price on their site!
This is SEO gold. Highly searched terms with little to no competition means we should all set out to do some keyword research. Check out the terms and phrases in your industry related to "cost" and "price," and invariably you'll uncover some huge content opportunities. You can garner easy SEO wins by creating a pricing page and optimizing for these terms, and even including free offers to capture that qualified traffic and engage them in a sales conversation. This strategy works alongside another viable strategy for the really price-averse out there -- putting detailed pricing information behind a landing page to make the exchange of this valuable information more controlled.
Just to show you this strategy is grounded in experience (I have, indeed, employed this strategy on several occasions with profound results which you can see in our Inbound Marketing Strategy Case Study: The Priceless Download), here's one example of a client of ours with decent traffic, but very few conversions. We conceived and launched a price chart behind a landing page and received 223 submissions over 4 months:


We’ve employed this strategy on several occasions and the results have been profound. If you're looking for more details on how to create, market, and distribute pricing downloads, please feel free to read our latest guide that explains how to turn pricing information into many, many (many!) leads.

Doug Kirk is the President of Optimize 3.0, an inbound marketing agency located in New York that specializes in delivering online marketing strategies for websites seeking more return on their inbound marketing expenditure.

 

[TomKing]

They only reason you want to put your pricing online is to place yourself clearly in the pack of cleaners who are building their business on price.

Have you ever run a cleaning or for that matter service company?

You do not build a first class service company by starting with price.

The first question most everyone asks about anything is what is the price?

What they really need to know is what will this service do for me? What is the value of this service?

I want my staff to talk live to those who the first question is what is the price?

Sounds really nice to think we can do everything online in the middle of the night.

Home or personal services are not like buying a book on Amazon at 3am in the morning. They require a personal connection so we can understand the need and set expectations. Pricing online does not do that for you.

I know you can call and confirm everything but if their expectations are not what the service really is you are going to be switching things around and for high end customers that is not the positive interaction I am shooting for.

Please don't go into one of your big explanation's of your service you a trying so hard to sell here.
You asked for feedback I gave it now take it and use it to improve your product.

Also I have yet to hear a multi truck operator on here raving about this. Just saying.

Oh buy the way your link is bad. LOL

Here's a recent article that really hit home with me about why a carpet cleaner should put their pricing online... http://blog.hubspot.com/marketing/why-publish-pricing-on-website-var
What are some of your thoughts....

 

[smastio]

Sorry for the bad link. Not sure why cut/paste of the Url wouldn't work, but as you can see I solved it. Now it can be read. Thanks for your opinion. Yes I have started from scratch a commercial cleaning service company, build it up to 40+ employees and still run it today (8 years); and I lead the nation selling prior to that for the 3rd largest commercial cleaning company, so I understand desires in services. Grant it, I have not run a residential carpet cleaning company. I hope that my background resume gives some insight.

Also, now that you have the opportunity to read (sorry again) the article, you will see that it about posting pricing on-line. Not booking. That's what I do.

All the Best,

 

[jcooper]

Steve, not busting your balls, but your graph is basically showing winter bookings and spring bookings. Most people will book more in: Feb, March, April etc. Then the dead of winter.

 

[Shane Deubell]

Its a good tool imo, especially for room pricers. BUT way too expensive for this industry for $20 month or something i could see guys lining up.

 

[smastio]

Guys - This is not MY chart or MY blog post. It is just a professional marketers opinion on putting your pricing online. The chart above has nothing to do with Carpet Cleaning. It's just a study of a business they are showing you. The premise of this professionals article is Consumers want pricing as part of the sales process and he suggests that you need to be there when they are shopping which today is online more and more. They are using the internet and your wrong if you think your competition doesn't already know your pricing already. What would it be like if pizza places didn't post their pricing on their websites? What if United, American and Southwest didn't put their pricing online? Other home services do it...
View attachment 3280

 

[knoxclean]

Service minder works similar to service monster with some additional features one of which includes free online scheduling for customers at no additional costs. Service monster needs To step up there game with features and price. Aligning themselves with bottle bug is a step in the wrong direction

 

[TomKing]

No one here is dumb enough to think people do not know our pricing.
It is not about pricing it is about setting expectations and properly understanding the scope of the work prior to arrival as much as possible.

Carpet cleaning is not a pizza. Everyone knows what a pizza is and what you should expect. 16 inches semi warm and what it should taste like.
Carpet Cleaning is not a plan ride - Everyone fly's the same planes, the same routes and has similar flight times.

Carpet cleaning is not even close to that we need, no must have a pre conversation to set proper expectations. This board is full of stories of customers in spite of our best efforts still have expectations different from what where explained.

The sales cycle for commercial office cleaning and the sales cycle for residential carpet cleaning are vastly different.

They are using the internet and your wrong if you think your competition doesn't already know your pricing already. What would it be like if pizza places didn't post their pricing on their websites? What if United, American and Southwest didn't put their pricing online? Other home services do it...
View attachment 3280

 

[hogjowl]

Mikey, I think you are not going to be able to get a free ride with this Fiddle Bug dude.

He seems to be dead on arrival.