Tamás Ő.
—
Verified by
Sander D.
—
Last updated:
July 14, 2024
— User Reviews
(0)
The Best Reviews team tests all products first-hand and relies on first-hand research. We've been reviewing products and services since 2012 and only publish human-created content.
“If there is something weird in the household, who you gonna call? Amazon Home Services!” Yes, it might sound surprising at first that Amazon has something to do with freelancing (aside from countless services like VoIP and photo books), but there is a very good reason for that. Amazon realized that customers who buy electronics or furniture are often in a tight spot when it comes to installing the freshly purchased items. Hence why Amazon Home Services allows home owners to hire handymen who’ll do the necessary setup of the stuff you bought. Professionals can be hired for any kind of job whether it takes inside or outside the house: cleaning, moving, pipe maintenance, plumbing, and even dealing with electronics and smart devices are done with ease by Amazon’s freelancers. As for service providers, partnering up with Amazon is a promising opportunity, since, in exchange for a 10% to 20% service fee, they can easily get work in their vicinity without having to spend time on marketing and selling their services themselves.
Amazon Home Services offers a wide range of options to choose from when it comes to hiring craftspeople and professionals. Unlike most freelance sites, however, this one focuses on businesses that do manual labor. The list of services is very compelling, though: from simple household tasks like home improvement (painting, plumbing) and cleaning to furniture assembly, car repair and electronic device installation, you’ll find an expert for every kind of task. Additionally, Amazon even offers consultation for home automation devices in case you wish to turn your house into a smart home. The following are a handful of categories that you find service providers for through Amazon Home Services:
Plumbing is a top ranking category at Amazon Home Services, meaning that there is a high chance of coming across a company up for such tasks in your neighborhood. You can either hire a plumber as a custom service and negotiate the price of the actual work, or pick a service that matches your specific needs. Within the plumbing category you can ask for having your bathroom items fixed, installed or replaced, unclogging or cleaning your toilet, and getting the water heater up and running again. As a nice little extra clients can even check the condition of the pipes and sewer system by ordering a camera inspection.
House cleaning is one of the more expansive categories on Amazon. There are services that are limited to only a couple of rooms that need some refreshment, but you can also ask cleaners to wash and rejuvenate the floors and windows or even get them completely restored.
Keep in mind, however, that in most cases there are no exact price tags on the offers, since the scope of the work depends on how big the house in question is. In other words, you need to agree on the fee directly with the chosen company or individual.
Since this is a very precise job request, there are no individual offers available, therefore you need to specify the size of your TV, whether or not you have a mounting bracket, and which way should the cables be concealed. Only after setting these perimeters you’ll be contacted by companies specialized in setting up electronics to work out the rest together.
There are two options to choose from when ordering a service: you can either submit a custom request or pick an offer recommended by Amazon. With the first option it’s up to you to set the main characteristics of the job, such as your location, whether it’ll be a replacement or a first-time installment, how many units are involved, and whether you have the necessary materials at hand or the pros need to deliver them for an extra fee. With that said, it’s still more convenient to just roll with the picks of Amazon, though, because with the company’s hits chances of running into a fraudster are basically down to zero.
Either way, companies within your vicinity willing to take the gig will soon be contacting you. If you placed the job on Amazon’s site, you must negotiate the payment, but choosing an Amazon offer means that handymen cannot ask more than the listed price. Regardless of which method you go with, all you need to do is to pick the winner and expect the best results.
Like we said before, Amazon Home Services reserves its platform for qualified professionals – which is the selling point of the company to begin with. In case you want to join the list of professionals, you must register to the marketplace as a service provider.
The setup is fairly quick: you need to share some basic information, like what kind of services you provide, whether you are a freelancer or a registered business, the area you operate in, and so on. Bear in mind that Amazon Home Services is based on individual invitations: you or your business can only earn the proof of quality (being featured on the site) once a team of professionals has judged your application by running a thorough business and background check.
Other benefits of being an Amazon Home Services provider include a well-structured interface that allows the easy checking of upcoming schedules. Many people put great trust in the Amazon brand, America’s most reputable company as reported by Reputation Institute. Ultimately being associated with Amazon’s strong name is the biggest pro of being featured on Amazon.
Amazon’s useful little app (probably the only one of its kind) will surely come in handy for service providers who are always on the go. If you are already a verified member, just link your Amazon Home Service account with your ID and enjoy accessing all major features from a handheld device. The app shows the schedule of upcoming assignments, but also allows you to communicate with customers to finalize custom requests, receive new jobs and mark projects as finished right on the spot.
Not only Amazon Home Services is one of its kind, but it also sports no subscription or signup fees and doesn’t ask for monthly costs either. However, do not be fooled by seeing the giant ‘free’ sign, because the service charges various fees on projects. The scope of said projects is the main deciding factor: in case the whole gig costs less than $1,000, then 20% is deducted from the payment, while large-scale projects (above $1,000) are expected to deduce only 10%.
Mind you, these numbers are valid for projects with a precise goal. Services without scope and projects based on the client’s custom quote are charged by a 15% (up to $1,000) and a 10% (above $1,000) service fee. In case of recurring services following a predetermined schedule, Amazon Home Services keeps 10% of the payment.
The fact that Amazon set up several different support options for customers and sellers proves that the company pays extra attention to all of its users. Unregistered businesses may submit their questions using a separate channel (after filling out numerous details), while Amazon-approved businesses are able to contact the staff directly from their account and without providing personal information again and again. Aside from the aforementioned option there is also a brief FAQ and some testimonial videos intended to inform sellers regarding various issues involving them.
As for buyers, they don’t get such exquisite treatment, because they are left with the standard customer support, namely the ticket submission system. Still, the site is very informative and transparent, and it guides users and sellers through the first steps with a firm hand.
Even though freelancing is definitely not its main profile, Amazon Home Services has an undeniable edge over freelancer sites, because it focuses on companies specialized in household services instead of dealing with copywriters, programmers or designers. Since Amazon only authorizes companies after a deep background check, home owners can expect high-quality end results. The system is also beneficial for both parties: on one hand, customers receive offers from several companies, not to mention they have a clear picture regarding tasks. On the other hand, service providers can easily find new assignments, even via the one of a kind smartphone app, and keep tabs on the scheduled ones.
So whether you are a customer looking for a skilled craftsperson or a handyman/business in search of the next gig, we recommend you to take a look at Amazon Home Services to further familiarize yourself with the concept. Amazon still has still some rough edges to iron out, but we can see this type of model take off for certain services.
Best Reviews may receive compensation for its content through paid collaborations and/or affiliate links. Learn more about how we sustain our work and review products.
©2012-2024 Best Reviews, a clovio brand –
All rights
reserved
Privacy
policy
·
Cookie
policy
·
Terms
of use
·
Partnerships
· Contact
us