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Posts Tagged ‘construction projects’

Jobtrio.com Partners with Internet Marketing Inc. To Provide Greater Exposure to Contractors

Posted by jobtrio.com Staff on April 13th, 2009

Santa Barbara, California – April 9th, 2009 – The construction contractor directory website Jobtrio.com has retained the search engine optimization firm Internet Marketing Inc. to help increase the exposure offered to California contractors.

Search engine optimization (SEO) is a process through which the quality and volume of organic, or natural, search engine-generated traffic to a website is improved. “In a nutshell, this means that it will be much easier for consumers to find our contractors,” says Josh Groves, President of Jobtrio.com. “For instance, a Google search performed for a specific contracting company’s name will now be more likely than ever to return that company’s Jobtrio.com profile as a top result.” The ability of consumers to find contractors translates directly into Jobtrio.com contractors acquiring more construction leads.

Jobtrio.com selected the SEO firm of Internet Marketing Inc. based on their track record with such organizations as US Army and Ritz Carlton Resorts. “We chose a top tier firm because more Internet visibility equals more contractor leads for our members. We want our clients to get the most value possible out of Jobtrio.com,” says Brett Vernon, CEO of Jobtrio.com.

Jobtrio.com is a free Internet service that allows users to browse more than 250,000 listings of California contractors, or quickly locate a business by name, location, or specialty. Key features include candid customer reviews and detailed profiles so it is easy for project managers and home owners to find great construction professionals.

Disparity in Construction Contractor Presence on the Web

Posted by jobtrio.com Staff on April 13th, 2009

April 13, 2009 – When my partner, Brett Vernon, and I began the conceptualization of jobtrio.com, we were spurned by a vacuum both of us had experienced first hand:  Why is it so hard to find contractors on the Internet.  With only a couple clicks you can find every restaurant in town, every doctor, or every car dealership, but where are all the construction contractors?  Below is a collection of other interesting facts we have stumbled upon which have encouraged jobtrio.com along the way:

  • Consumers are searching. A 2008 Yahoo study found that 59% of homeowners use the Internet to help them choose the right contractor for their projects.
  • Contractors are absent. In a study conducted by jobtrio.com team members, a random sample of 100 contractors was selected from a database of all 250K+ licensed contractors in the state of California.  A Google search was performed using the business name for  each of these 100 contractors.  Of these 100, only 9 contractors appeared in the first 2 pages (top 20) results on Google.  Of course, I realize that 100 is not a very large sample size, but it is certainly enough of a sample to indicate a disparity.
  • Just having a company website doesn’t cut it.  We have found that about 15-20% of contracting companies with more than 5 employees have a company website.  A website is a great way to spread information about your product and services, but who is going to your website?  Chances are, unless you have employed search engine marketing (SEM) and search engine optimization (SEO) firms, the majority of people landing on your site are either existing clients or someone who heard about your site through some other media outlet (newspaper, radio, word-of-mouth).  In other words, your website may be doing very little to generate new business for your organization.
  • “You come to me” is on the out. In the late ’90s there was a wave of web-based companies that featured “you come to me” business models, meaning, a consumer specifies their general desires for a product or service, and a handful of providers then bid to get the consumer’s business.  As the web and its users have evolved, this old-school approach has proven to have little staying power.  For one reason, the “bidders” began to setup automated response systems or other tactics which are intended to lure-in unsuspecting consumers.  Also, consumers have grown much more savvy, and wish to be in the driver’s seat, with all decision-making tools placed right at their fingertips via the Internet.

These above mentioned discoveries have been integral in shaping the jobtrio.com product.  Here is how we responded:

  • jobtrio.com is built around a database already containing the business name and contact information for 250K+ California contractors.  The information was hiding out there on the web, we just assemble it all in one place.
  • jobtrio.com is absolutely free for consumers to use.
  • we have employed top-notch SEM and SEO firms to assure that jobtrio.com listing come up with high rankings in Google and Yahoo searches
  • We set our Enhanced Profile pricing as low as we possibly could.  In order to benefit the consumer and contractor, we are aiming for volume, volume, volume.

As always, I would love to hear any feedback on this blog!

Have a great day,

Josh

President of jobtrio.com

Profiles and Review of California Contractors

California Construction on Path to Recovery

Posted by jobtrio.com Staff on April 13th, 2009

April 13, 2009 – In scouring the net for the latest news which affects the California construction industry, I recently came across a couple articles that I felt were quite encouraging in nature, indicating a likely increase in California construction work and construction projects as a whole.The first snippet is a statistical analysis taken from www.dqnews.com and is a comparison of Southern California home sales for February 2008 vs. February 2009.

Sales Volume Median Price
All homes Feb-08 Feb-09 %Chng Feb-08 Feb-09 %Chng
Los Angeles 3,468 4,590 32.4% $460,000 $299,000 -35.0%
Orange 1,471 1,879 27.7% $520,000 $375,000 -27.9%
Riverside 2,147 3,420 59.3% $325,000 $190,000 -41.5%
San Bernardino 1,242 2,324 87.1% $290,000 $153,000 -47.2%
San Diego 1,954 2,473 26.6% $415,000 $285,000 -31.3%
Ventura 495 545 10.1% $445,000 $327,000 -26.5%
SoCal 10,777 15,231 41.3% $408,000 $250,000 -38.7%

Though this may not look immediately encouraging, the increase in sales volume, despite the low sales prices, means good news for new construction, general constractors and their subs. With so many loans in default and so many homes in foreclosure, it is a necessity that this market surplus in lower-income home supply be first depleted before lower-income new construction projects can thrive again.

The other article I’d like to share with you is from the WordPress blog of David Edwards. His article summarizes the ideas presented recently at a Realtors summit by Lawrence Yun, chief economist of the National Association of REALTORS®. Here are a couple key quotes from David’s blog:

“[Yun] forecasts price stabilization by the end of the year and a 10 percent to 20 percent increase in sales of existing homes nationwide as the impact of the housing stimulus package kicks in.”

. . . and:

“Yun said the Housing Affordability Index is at its highest-ever level, thanks in part to declining home values and historic low interest rates. Stricter underwriting standards, “frozen” jumbo loans (a big factor in the high-cost markets such as the Puget Sound area), and shaky consumer confidence are impeding sales activity, Yun believes.
Yun also spoke of the correlation (or lack or correlation) between jobs, the recession, interest rates and home sales. In the 2000 recession, “we lost jobs yet had rising home sales because of falling interest rates.” Interest rates make the difference, he said.”

. . . also:

“”Using California as a barometer, Yun said momentum is rising “much faster than I ever anticipated.” In Orange County, where prices are considerably higher than Seattle, activity had been stalled, but began turning around over the past six months. He attributes the shift to a combination of pent-up demand and psychological factors. Some who have been sitting on the fence don’t want to be the last ones left sitting,” he observed.

Yun also cited a return of multiple offers in some California markets. That suggests prices may be bottoming or have bottomed out,” he stated.”

I know what you might say: It’s this guy’s job to put a positive spin on our current recession. But, whenever an “expert” invokes historical evidence and statistics the way Yun has here, I am much more willing to pay attention. Let’s hope that his interpretations have some validity, as it could indicate that California construction is rounding the corner, on its way to a rebound.

Josh Groves
President
jobtrio.com
Profiles and reviews of construction contractors.
“Let’s get to work!”

Victorville Construction of Train is Full Speed Ahead

Posted by jobtrio.com Staff on July 10th, 2009

July 10, 2009 – The long talked about high-speed train which is to connect Victorville to Vegas got some attention from the federal government Wednesday, as it was designated a high-speed rail corridor. What does that mean? Not much, since the state of California is not applying for any of the federal $8 billion in stimulus funding for the Vegas rail project.  Fortunately, the construction is still very likely to occur, thanks to private funding.  But, the designation of the corridor could make federal loans more attainable for the project, should it need them.

The construction of the $4 billion DesertXpress, which is set to be an electric train which could reach speeds of 150 mph, could bring thousands of jobs to the desert, especially for Victorville contractors, Apple Valley contractors, and Barstow contractors.

The state of California is presently concentrating its federally funded rail efforts on the proposed San Francisco to Los Angeles train.

Josh Groves
President of jobtrio.com
“Where contractors and their clients meet.”