During Roofing Insights’ visit to Lincoln, Nebraska, Dustan Biegler and Marcus Kuhlmann, the CEO and COO of Apple Roofing, respectively, shared their thoughts on a few things currently affecting the roofing industry; namely HomeAdvisor’s misconduct and also how powerful branding one’s company can be. So we broke the Apple Roofing vs HomeAdvisor video down into a post:
“I’m not a genius, and Marcus ain’t a genius,”
Biegler said at the beginning of the interview.
Yet, it doesn’t take a genius to see that HomeAdvisor has adverse effects for every company, even one like Apple Roofing, a roofing powerhouse that would rather not subscribe to the deplorable services that an entity like HomeAdvisor sells.
A few years ago, Biegler and his staff noticed that when they Googled “Apple Roofing,” the first thing that popped up was a link to a website that wasn’t theirs.
After a little sleuthing, they soon discovered that other companies were using their company’s name to generate business. Some even went as far as listing Apple Roofing’s warehouse as their address.
The crux of Apple Roofing’s problem could be traced back to HomeAdvisor, a company who claims they won’t sell your information.
But what HomeAdvisor won’t tell you is that if someone else sells your information, it’s not their problem.
What likely happened to Apple Roofing was that one person subscribed to HomeAdvisor, somehow got hold of Apple Roofing’s information, then gave/sold that information to their friends and business partners.
HomeAdvisor’s egregious mishandling of their clients’ information no longer comes as a surprise, especially to the thousands of people negatively impacted by the conglomerate.
But what many don’t know is just how connected HomeAdvisor is, their pipeline running all the way to the White House.
Chelsea Clinton, daughter of the notorious Hillary Clinton, is a board member at HomeAdvisor. Reports have stated that Chelsea has made upwards of $8 million in the last three years.
Having that sort of political firepower behind their company is one reason why HomeAdvisor has been able to avoid major litigation and continue to scam people over the years.
Biegler recounted how he once tried HomeAdvisor. He said that he was put in touch with potential clients who had previously received 30 queries from roofing companies. Biegler also said that even after cancelling HomeAdvisor’s services, they still found a way to charge him six months later.
When Biegler called to complain, a representative from HomeAdvisor told him that at the end of their conversation from months prior, Biegler said he would be open to pausing the account and reopening it later.
It was a blatant lie by HomeAdvisor into scamming Apple Roofing for more money.
“Nothing really surprises me about those guys,”
Biegler said.
Dmitry and Roofing Insights have experienced the same deception as Apple Roofing. Roofing Insights even went as far as recording conversations, just to catch HomeAdvisor in their web of lies.
Ex-employees of HomeAdvisor have also reached out to Roofing Insights to offer their personal testimonies condemning the nature of HomeAdvisor’s suspect tactics.
Unfortunately, HomeAdvisor simply has too many people in high places that are able to ensure the company never suffers irreparable damage.
The sad part to HomeAdvisor’s wretched tyranny is that their actions mask the fact that there are good lead services still out there, companies who legitimately want to connect contractors and clients.
Roofing Insights is one.
We have created our own directory, devoid of all the corporate nonsense you will find with a quick Google search.
Our directory spans the entire United States. Click here to find a roofer in your area
Switching gears, Roofing Insights has made videos in the past about how much your company should budget for marketing. Doing so will ensure that you can promote your business without breaking the bank.
That being said, Apple Roofing takes a different approach than most. Biegler and Kuhlmann estimate that only 0.02% of their revenue is put back into marketing.
Instead, they promote their company by branding their cars and equipment with their patented apple logo.
It’s not the kind of apple that would have Steve Jobs squirming in his grave either.
Apple Roofing’s logo is different.
In fact, it’s so popular that at a tradeshow one time, Biegler was approached by a woman who said that each time she brings her kids to Lincoln, they all make bets on who will see the first Apple Roofing logo.
“That goes back to your first question,”
Kuhlmann says with the utmost sincerity.
“Does a brand matter? Absolutely.”
The power of branding is REAL.
While many companies don’t have the budget to market to the extent of Apple Roofing, a solid marketing and branding strategy is still essential to separating your business from the rest of the pack.
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