SEATTLE, Aug. 09, 2016 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Porch.com ( https://porch.com ), the home services platform, today announced the expansion of features to help home improvement professionals grow their business, as well as Porch Perks, a loyalty program that provides exclusive business and entertainment discounts for Porch Guaranteed professionals.
The new features make it simpler than ever for home service professionals to connect to homeowners by providing businesses with more flexibility and choice. Some of the new product enhancements that Porch unveiled include:
Enterprise Direct Connect: Porch is announcing an easier way for national and regional service providers to access projects through Porch. With Direct Connect, larger companies can integrate into our project marketplace and have requests flow directly into their CRM systems. Porch has already launched the Direct Connect experience with hundreds of the largest national and regional home service companies across the country.
Flexible Features for Local Professionals. Local professionals across the country wanted more flexibility and control in how they worked with Porch. The following capabilities were announced today:
- For professionals who prefer little up-front commitment, “Pay As You Go” is an easy way to get started. By adding a credit card, professionals can browse a list of homeowner projects in a desired area and choose who to connect with. This feature is great for test driving the Porch project marketplace or for filling an occasional hole in a professional’s schedule.
- Instead of browsing projects, professionals can set criteria based on type of work and a monthly budget. Projects that meet the criteria will automatically be "reserved" and delivered to the pro each month. This feature is for professionals who want a steady stream of project requests from the Porch marketplace. This is an evolution of the Premium product that was launched 2 years ago. Porch has thousands of active professionals already reserving projects.
“Professionals can now decide the best way to grow their business through the expansion of our pro product suite. With our new offerings, Porch caters to every home service professional across the country, big or small, by providing features that are tailored to their business. Over the past year, project request volume on Porch from homeowners has exploded so now is the right time to accelerate the connection with all types of quality professionals,” said Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Matt Ehrlichman.
The new features accompany the Porch Guarantee, a free program for homeowners that guarantees a quality experience with Porch professionals to homeowners. Guaranteed professionals have passed a 30-point check system that includes pre-screening, a comprehensive background check and accepting the Porch Pledge, a commitment to making it right for every customer.
Also launching today is Porch Perks, available immediately to all Guaranteed professionals. These high quality professionals will now be able to receive dozens of business discounts and hundreds of local deals to help them operate and grow their business.
“Professionals are core partners in building Porch with us. For the past two years, we’ve been working on increasing the amount of qualified service requests that come through Porch. With the quality and value of these requests at an all-time high, we want to reward our professionals by helping them grow their business in other ways. Access to discounts for home products, legal services, payment processing benefits, or food for their crew are just a few examples of how Porch will give time back to professionals so they can continue to focus on doing the work they love,” said Chief Customer Officer, Matthew Neagle.
First wave Porch Perks partners include:
Lowe's: "Lowe’s partnership with Porch continues to demonstrate our commitment to helping customers find solutions to their home improvement needs," said Jay Rebello, Lowe’s vice president of new and emerging business. "Participating in the Porch Perks program is a great way to extend that commitment to our ProServices customers and provide exclusive offers and discounts from LowesForPros.com on the products and tools Porch’s Guaranteed Professionals need every day."
Wayfair: "Earlier this year, Wayfair partnered with Porch.com to further enhance our customer experience by offering the ability to add superior installation and assembly services to orders at checkout," said Steve Oblak, Senior Vice President and General Manager, Wayfair. "Now we’re giving Porch Perks members access to Wayfair Pro, where they will enjoy competitive pricing and volume discounts across our extensive product catalog, as well as personalized service from industry experts."
Square: "At Square we want to make sure that every home services professional can get paid and grow their operations," said Mike Cieri, Services Lead at Square. "Working with the Porch platform is a win-win for contractors who can connect directly with their customers and manage their entire business through Square Invoices and Appointments."
Weebly: A beautiful website is key to growing your business to a new audience online. Weebly allows you to power your site and gives you all the tools you need to build a thriving online business. We're proud to partner with Porch to help professionals get started and be their partner as they grow.
Capella University: "We are proud to be an educational partner for Porch’s Guaranteed Professionals,” said Barbara Butts Williams, PhD, executive dean of external relations and partnerships, and dean emeritus, business, at Capella University. “Our professionally-aligned, competency-based programs will provide their professionals the opportunity to advance their education and skills, which we believe can further prepare them to advance their businesses forward."
Intuit: "At Intuit, we’re on a mission to change the financial lives of self-employed people, such as the professional contractors who work with Porch,” said Liz Baker, Senior Business Development Manager at Intuit. “We’re proud to be able to offer QuickBooks Self-Employed as part of Porch Perks, empowering professional contractors to take control of their financial lives with an easy-to-use solution that simplifies tax time and provides clear visibility into their income throughout the year."
ATGStores.com: "Joining Porch Perks is a natural fit for us as a local Seattle business that’s also part of the larger Lowe’s home improvement network,” said ATGStores.com President Michelle Newbery. “We treat every customer like family even if they live across the country, and our dedicated account executives provide the kind of product expertise, pricing and high-touch service that can take a Porch Pro’s business to the next level."
Avvo: "We’re thrilled to be involved in Porch Perks and the opportunity to provide Avvo legal services to the highest quality home improvement professionals and their businesses," said Sachin Bhatia, Chief Product Officer at Avvo.
Taunton Publishing: "Fine Homebuilding is the most trusted and authoritative resource for residential construction and remodeling professionals, and we’re committed to sharing the industry best practices and advancements that help building professionals succeed in their trades. We are pleased to provide an exclusive subscription discount to Fine Homebuilding Magazine to Porch Professionals, a community of builders and designers that share in our commitment to the pursuit of quality craftsmanship and the advancement of home building," said Renee Jordan, Publisher of Fine Homebuilding.
Hanley Wood: "We are pleased to participate in the Porch Perks program. At Hanley Wood it is our mission to provide construction professionals with the information they need to be successful. We are happy to offer discounted subscriptions to our JLC magazine, and the online JLC Field Guide reference platform to Porch Guarantee Professionals. JLC has a 40-year tradition of providing construction professionals with how-to best practice skills information and we are thrilled to partner with Porch," said Rick Strachan, President, Hanley Wood Contractor Group.
Wintac: "Taking part in the Porch Perks program is an exciting opportunity for Wintac to work with contracting professionals who are committed to providing the highest quality and best customer experience possible," said Seth Hauben, Chief Marketing Officer at Wintac.
Ruby Receptionists: “We know how busy home improvement professionals are between managing projects, producing quotes, and meeting with clients,” said VP of Business Development, Kevin Gillam. “We’re thrilled to partner with Porch Perks to provide these professionals with some well-deserved relief through our live, virtual receptionist service. We offer peace of mind by providing friendly, professional receptionists who handle all calls with care, making callers feel special!”
About Porch.com
Seattle based Porch.com is a home services platform that helps homeowners maintain their home and get projects done by connecting them with quality home improvement professionals. Porch is available nationwide online and serves as the exclusive in-store resource in over 1,720 Lowe’s stores across the U.S. For more information about Porch, visit https://porch.com .
Contact: Jessica Piha Director of Communications Jessica@porch.com 206.422.0712 (Mobile)
