This is one of those company’s that I do not have a major problem with I just don’t get why some one would pay to offer reviews or read reviews. I also am bothered by the slick marketing and fluff in the print copy. What do I mean by fluff? its like a new car sticker that list 100 items on it. The sticker shows things like included 4 tires, side view mirrors, trunk carpet. No shit you really have to tell me that it will come with 4 tires? mirrors? carpet? What I can get 4 crates instead? Well angies list on their website. List MSNBC, NY TIMES, FOX & FRIENDS, TODAY and US NEWS prominently like they are some kind of endorsement. In reality they say very little more than fluff.
NY TIMES: “Not sure where to look for a reliable contractor? …join Angie’s List.”
FOX & FRIENDS: “Angie’s List is the premier agency for finding consumer reviews on just about any service, from plumbing to health.”
The next thing that bothers me is this statement:
Why Angie’s List is better than free review sites:
- No anonymous reviews. BIDPETE calls BULLSHIT
- Certified data collection process prevents companies and providers from reporting on themselves or their competitors. BIDPETE calls DOUBLE BULLSHIT
I in fact know of one company and have worked for another that offered their employees incentives to go home and write phony reviews about the company they work for so the company’s rating on angies list can go up. (will tell you in a minute why rating to a company are important) NO anonymous reviews. How dopey do you really have to be to believe this one? Anybody can makeup a Hotmail, yahoo, Gmail account to write positive reviews on a company.
The next thing that bothers me is this statement:
- Companies can’t pay to be on Angie’s List
- Reviews come from real people like you, not anonymous users
Companies can’t pay to be on angies list. True. Well sort of. This is slick and in my book equal to the “reach around” Companies do not pay to get into angies list, but once they are on angies list they pay big to get their company higher on the list! Here is a small sample of a letter a company received once they were on angies list. Make sure members choose you by becoming a featured company on Angies list. Web placement or keyword advertising: Appear on the first page of search results so members can easily find and access your reviews. Call center advertising. Be 1 of only 4 referrals provided when a member calls Angies list looking for a highly rated service provider in your category. This last one is the one that really bothers me, if I am working on the premise that I should trust a company because of the reviews, and then I call Angies list call center and they recommend the top 4 company’s because the company’s paid to become one of the top 4. Then the reviews don’t matter so why am I reading them or writing them? Reviews are worthless if they are not the only thing that rates a company.
Reviews come from real people not anonymous users: Slick wording going on here! Yes no anonymous users are allowed, what they mean is that you must have a valid email. You can’t just write as anonymous. But as I said anyone can make up a fictitious email address and then write a review. Yes a real person but still anonymous and not a true review. Angies list would probably counter by saying that they charge for membership to make sure that the person is real, and BIDPETE will counter that if I own a company on Angies list, the monthly fee of $13.60 to be a member is an acceptable cost of doing business to have my employees or friends write positive reviews on my company. I could go on and on, but what I want is for you to look at everything around you with open eyes. Be an educated consumer.
