Australians aren’t stupid
February 22nd, 2010
I don’t know about you, but I get a bit tired of being treated like I’m useless and I can’t work things out for myself. On every hand we see people making some kind of business out of making us think we have no idea of what we’re doing so they want to wrap us in cotton wool and try and scare us into believing that negotiating a deal or organizing a project around the home is so difficult we shouldn’t even attempt it without their well paid help.
The Government’s collapsed home insulation scheme is a good example of what shonky dealers can do. The government can’t even keep control of rogue businesses. This new alternative introduced this week has put the onus back onto the home owner to screen the businesses that they use to have the insulation installed.
It has been Best Trade Bid’s way of doing things right from the start. Australians aren’t stupid. We put the power back into the hands of the buyer, where it should be. In the majority of cases, if Australians had have been left to decide which contractors to use for this scheme, there would not have been the deadly outcome that there was. In some cases it wasn’t the fault of the insulation company, certainly procedures needed to be altered, but previous works done on the buildings have also been the cause of the tragic losses we have seen. We are capable of discerning right from wrong. We are capable of screening capable contractors from those who would take the shortcuts. People trusted that anyone approved by the government for this scheme were competent in their field. If we had to screen contractors ourselves, we would have done a more thorough check on their credentials.
We knew, and it has been made obvious that a single company is incapable of a thorough screening of businesses. Not even the government is able to screen and control every contractor in every sector in Australia. Companies that claim they screen their recommended businesses are kidding themselves, and in the fine print of their disclaimer would state that they distance themselves from responsibility of third parties they associate with. It would only take one person to work around the system to destroy the reputation of that company. Even when we look through our news paper ads, or our local phone directory for a contractor, we can’t be assured of their legitimacy, or quality of workmanship.
Ultimately, we as individuals have to take responsibility for our decisions. At Best Trade Bid, we do our best to provide a variety of contractors to contact you about the job you have added to our site, but you still have to check them out for yourself. We can’t guarantee anyone and we don’t recommend anyone. We have found, that businesses that have no intention of being around for the long haul, don’t bother registering with us. We’re here to help the client, who is discerning and they don’t like that.
We’re also here to give a leg up for small businesses that are trying to compete with the large advertising budgets of the bigger firms. There are many really good quality small businesses. These small business people often have a fantastic attitude to new clients, because they realize the lifetime value of each new satisfied customer. They are often self employed people doing their best to stay out of the government’s handout systems, seeking to get ahead and make an honest living for their family. Both small and large businesses get the same opportunity.
If you know of a small business that could do with a helping hand to gain new clients, do them a favor and tell them about Best Trade Bid.