Community emergency call number

John R. Hall

As usual, my brain is working overtime and I'd like to "test market" an idea with my friends here at The Wall.

Has anyone heard of or been part of a "community emergency call number"? I am thinking that this idea would involve businesses in a certain radius who would band together to support one emergency service phone number/e-mail contact. If a home or business owner has an emergency at 3:00 a.m. on a Sunday morning that person could call this hotline and get help from one of the participating contractors.

In order to be on the list, the contractor would pay a flat fee. If the contractor wanted a higher position on the list, he or she would pay more. All contractors would need some type of screening criteria and would agree to charge the same price for the service. I'm not sure about the laws of price fixing so I don't know if this is viable. Perhaps a "range" of prices would be more acceptable.

If anything, this would raise the bar for service in the community, give contractors an opportunity to set a good price for their services, enabling them to make a decent profit and pay their tech on call a good premium as well. It would also be a great way to get a new customer.

I know it is probably a pie-in-the-sky idea and we've already seen national consolidators do it, but I've not heard of a local group of contractors banding together.

Thoughts? I'd like to use your feedback for a future News' column.

Weezbo

It sure sounds like a considerate asset in any community...

the structuring of the "service site" might present some difugalties , as a non- profit enterprise say an "outreach " program to women in crisis or retirees on fixed income ...then your site costs would be lower and the service work might be done by companies willing to trade some advertizement dollars into helping someone else, were it for profit...it might be a hassel to structure...and administrate.

John R. Hall

Bump

C'mon guys -- you gotta have an opinion (even if you believe opinions are like but*holes).

lchmb

sound's to good

Sound's to good to be true, or work. Unfortunately even though it sound's like a great service for any community I can easily see it being taken advantage of. The guy with the most money is the guy on top. I pay more I come first. That doesn't mean I may offer the best service, I just paid the most. If I paid more to be on top, how would the little guy ever get heard of? If you rotate then the guy who paid the most get's mad!! He paid most, he come's first. Sorta like the yellow page's. I pay for the biggest add I look the best. In my area there are very few contract companies that offer night or weekend service. Most of this is handled by the supplier's who only deal with their customer's. JMHO...:)

Mad Dog

Its a great Idea but so was Utopia

I know of similar arrangements on Long Island that have had very mixed results. The only way I could see it working is if you had a manager that expediated and directed the calls. Many times "the beeper" gets passed off to someone who doesn't really care to answer all the pages and people fall through the cracks. I know that the Vet we use is part of system like that. But vets usually have a decent office staff that can handle the scheduling et cetera. If it were to work, it would have to be several like-sized and like minded companies with similar price structures. Its a splendid idea, but would take a tremendous amount of oversight, management, and cooperation. Mad Dog

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Bill Nye_2

Take two

Take two asprin, go back to bed and call me in the morning. Who wants to go out a 3AM?

I will gladly show up after 6am and I will be well rested and better able to deal with the situation.

These people should be sleeping, not calling some one in the middle of the night.

MIKE6

nuts

you are nuts

Keith_8

Call me a skeptic

It sounds like a good idea but call me a skeptic.

1st of all it seems to eliminate the need for the consumer to have any loyalty to the contractor. Why should they?

2nd of all who keeps track that everyone is getting their fair share of the pie? Sounds like a recipe for payola.

Largest fee payer gets priority means humongous mechanical wins by default. Why would I want to pay into a stucture where I'm the 8th in line to get called out?

We offer emergency service to the customers who call on us during normal business hours. My feelings are that if they think enough of us Monday thru Friday to use our services then I think enough of them to help them out during an off hours emergency.

Among other objections I am hesitant to pay for the privilage of having my men on call.

Keith

John R. Hall

Mike

Thanks for the insightful feedback. It contributes a lot to the conversation. Care to explain your well-thought-out reply?

Tony_8

I'm with Keith

and furthermore, I have sacrificed quite a bit to keep myself from being viewed as similar to some of my competitors. To be on the same "call list" as some guys would drag me down to their level to a degree. We are not all the same and assimilation would blur that.

Mad Dog

I'll second that

and I have done the same as you. Mad Dog

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John R. Hall

Okay, but...

What happens if business goes South and you need some cash flow? Are you saying there are no circumstances which would make you reconsider and join the list?

keith

never is a strong statement

If I fall on my face and don't pull thru enough work to keep the men busy than chances are I would lose my job well before signing on to this arrangement.

Lets just say my company finds it in their graces to keep me employed under these circumstances. The work generated from this arrangement most likely would not satisfy the GM$ required to keep me employed.

Along the way I have generally worked for some good outfits. The couple of outfits that I have worked for that don't fit this profile would still beat unempoyment. That being said lets hope it never comes to that.

Tony_8

well...

I think entering into a situation where price is more than likely going to dictate volume, won't improve cash flow in a positive way. Competing on a price based level hardly ever produces healthy profits. By the time you need to resort to that mode, you're probably not going to make it anyway. When "business goes South", the lowballers generally go first because they have little or no reserve.

Ranger

I second that Bill! Exactly Right!

In the past 20 years I can think of only 2 service calls that actually had merritt to be responded to in the middle of the night (life 'n' limb) ....besides the supply house does'nt open 'till
7:30...:-)Ya needed a U model Mack 15 years ago to have enough stuff to try and handle service calls after hours,I could'nt imagine what you would need now (admittedly the company(s) I worked for at the time worked on everything imaginable,from giant Iron Fire Monsters,Leave it to Clever Brooks,Superior's and Jackson Churches to MRI chillers to Ice Banking machines to Cruise Air Marine units to Pizza Huts)...and than half the time having to fight for your money after the fact!(homeowners don't wanna here ya don't have the parts you need at 3 a.m.,and commercial accounts don't wanna pay the O.T.on the chance ya m-i-g-h-t get It runnin',you can come durring regular hours thank you)Fogettaboutittt.

Ranger

I have had this discussion many a time...

...as a service tech,as a countermen,as a company partner,at R.S.E.S. meetings,Wetstock,whatever...In my opinion (disclaimer) I have observed that any service tech worth his/her salt aspires to work commercial/industrial.
There is alot less running around like mad all night long,the pay is generaly much better,AND you don't have to deal with the homeowner "K-Mart" mentality which I feal sucks the life out of everyone over time.Been there,done that,stared in that role....I wish that crap on no-one.

Weezbo

this is a bit diffusional...

it now seems to have gone from would there be anyone who would feel like it was ok to help people in your community to some how perhaps your company will experience a turn for the worse and it would then be an great way to stay in business...i dunno that sounds quite like some adventure i'd be interested in ,now that you mention it.

Tony_8

I may be wrong...

but I don't think the intent of the "central call number" was to help people down on their luck and needing services. I thought it was more of a distribution point type of service to simplify things for the consumer. That's what the Yellow Pages do already.

As far as needy people are concerned, DSS handles that and funds come from HEAP to pay for it if they qualify. Getting on that list costs nothing. Our County also has an "Office for the Aging" that helps out the old folks with referrals, handyman services, meals on wheels, etc. A couple of us do what we can for them, pro bono, to catch some that would otherwise fall between the cracks.

The catch is knowing when and how to say no when necessary.

Ranger

Your right weezbo....

....sorry,but my thought is this.I have several friends that are 1 to 4 man shops.Thay help each other out when man power is short on a project (not to mention the "Tech for Hire Cartell" that we have going on here,but that's another story) cover each other's service when the other one's away on vacation or whatnot.But I could see walking into someone else's "Boo-Boo" in middle of the night with the homeowner standing over your shoulder...bad situation for the tech. on call number 37....