The Pros Guide to Pro Profiles

People now look for professionals like plumbers and pipefitters online. But how can they find reliable professionals who provide the highest standards of service? This guide takes a deep dive into online professional profiles and outlines what customers should look for before they hire a professional to carry out a service in their home.

Online profiles provide you with all the info you need when hiring a professional. Ignore someone's profile and you're just asking for trouble. Understanding how to read pro profiles properly, however, will provide you with in-depth insights that will guide your hiring decisions.

Getting Started

Before you look for a handyman or teacher, make sure you have all the documents you need when hiring a pro. You will probably need insurance, for example. This provides you with a financial forward upon carrying out a comparison website to find the best deals on the market.

Get to Know Your Pro

So, you've found a pro. They look cheap, reliable, and honest. But are they too good to be true? Make sure you do the two following things.

1. Read Their Credentials. A pro might talk the talk, but can they back up their claims? Read a pro's credentials online. This way, you can discover more about their background, education, and objectives- all the information you need to hire them to read about who they are, what they do, and what makes them different from the rest. You can also find out how many people have hired them online in the past.

Sometimes words can be deceptive, though. Look out for example, which are awarded to top-rated contractors. There is other important information to look out for. Keep your eyes open for a license badge, which verifies the pro license number, and a background check badge, which means the account holder submitted a background check.

2. Check Out Customer Reviews. This is really important. Make sure you find out what customers are really saying about a pro - the good, the bad, and the ugly. You can do this by reading verified customers who hired a pro online. Remember, the customer isn't always right and not every review will be 100 percent truthful. What's important, though, is how a pro responds to negative feedback. This provides you with insights into how they deal with customers.

Dig Deeper

Once you've uncovered the basics, you need to dig deeper into your pro, but there are some things you just need to know. After all, you're inviting a stranger to your home and giving them your hard-earned cash.

Follow these two tips:

1. Ask Questions

Don't be shy to ask questions. The more information you have about a pro, the easier it will be to make a hiring decision. You might want to ask your pro some of the following questions:

• What inspired you to do this job?
• Where do you see yourself in five years? 10 years?
• Do you have references from previous customers?
• Do you have a portfolio of your work?

You can ask these questions (and more) via email, live chat, or phone. The best pros might not always provide you with the answers you want, but they will respond quickly and answer you honestly.

2. Keep Digging

Is your pro who they say they are? There are various ways you can check. Use resources like the Better Business Bureau, the Federal Trade Commission, and local business