Survey says: ‘Net involvement varies

Survey says: ‘Net involvement varies
The Internet has been called a “disruptive” technology — an innovation that almost immediately changes the way people work or live. And judging by Contracting Profits’ recent reader survey, 76 percent of building service contractors have embraced that change.

That’s because 76 percent of the respondents to the survey indicated their companies were doing at least something with the Internet, including selling services, buying goods, providing customer services or maintaining a Web site.

Not surprisingly, the larger the company, the greater the technology presence. Companies that indicated they sold services, bought supplies and provided customer service via the Internet (what we’ve dubbed “high-tech” companies) had an average revenue of $11.4 million in 2000, while companies with no Internet presence at all only earned $1.4 million. (See the chart for a breakdown.)

But those small companies, if they want to grow, might have to move out of that “Won’t utilize the Internet” category, and soon.

“We’ve been starting to communicate with clients via the Internet,” says Chris Gwin, president of Beelabor Janitorial Services Inc., Bethesda, Md. “They’re becoming more dependent on e-mail, and less dependent on faxes and phone calls.”

Wasted Web sites?
However, Gwin’s company does not have a Web site, nor does he see a big need for one.

“In this industry, it’s more about communication. We get more business through personal interaction and referrals than we would through a Web site,” he says.

Selling via a company Web site, he says, is “not a truism” in the industry.

Large office managers who need extensive nightly cleaning will be unlikely to scout BSCs’ Web sites for new business, although they will be more likely to use e-mail and other ‘Net services once the contract is in place.

Small businesses, on the other hand, may indeed search for a twice-a-week contractor via the Internet, Gwin says, so having some sort of Web presence may help. For example, Beelabor’s residential carpet-cleaning arm sees a lot of business through a third-party Web site.

“Our residential carpet-cleaning division registered with the manufacturer of our equipment,” Gwin explains. “Customers, surfing the Internet, might type in ‘carpet cleaning,’ reach the manufacturer, then look for a local provider.”

The Internet has been extremely useful for Gwin in several ways that were not discussed in the reader survey. For instance, Beelabor submits its payroll to an Automatic Data Processing payroll service via the Internet.

Also, Gwin sees the Internet as an invaluable tool for gathering knowledge.

“This is a small industry, and you can find Web sites with very focused industry news and articles,” he explains.