The idea
After being in the construction business for many years, I sold my company. I was tired, the type of construction I was in was very demanding, very time consuming and required a lot of traveling. When you are in this part of the industry, its hard on everyone, the stress level can be high for customers too employees not to mention your own relationship.
I went back to trucking, I owned a tractor and trailer so I went back on the road. A year after being out of the contracting world I would still get calls from homeowners, contractors, subcontractors and employees looking for each other.
When I worked for other companies as a project manager they would often stress out about what if something happen to me because I had all of this information in my head. The who, what & where all of these contractors, subcontract and employees where. You see every contractor, subcontractor and construction employees have different trade expertise, skill levels, travel areas, time constraints and needs that can change from one day, one minute to another. At one time I could put you in touch with who or what type of contractor you needed in many different states and cities. All of this information was in my head. I would get calls from homeowners, contractors, subcontractor and employees from different states I hadn’t work in in years all looking for each other in one way or another. I got so good at this at, one time I carried four Nextel phones and two pagers. I could put you in touch with just about anyone in a variety of states.
I found myself on the road driving from state to state doing my trucking job, but on the phone. Putting homeowners in touch with contractors and contractors in touch subcontractors and employees who need to make some extra money on the weekend in touch with contractors who needed help just for that weekend.
I have listen to many homeowners, contractors, subcontractors and employees over the years complain about this and that, how this or that can be better and why not this or that, where do I find this or that, do you know anyone in this or that state, for years I answered these questions, and now I was doing from inside a black 379 Peterbilt attached to a 53 foot trailer and had nothing to do with the construction industry anymore.
That’s where the website idea came from, so I designed a website. A website that worked, separated and stored information like my brain.
Trying to explain my vision of MyContractorList.com to website builders.
That was a task all in its on, it was all in my head I would explain to to several different web developers and they would give me the “no problem” I can build that for x amount of money should only take about 3 months.
Budget
Well in the beginning I was trying to build a great website on a small budget much like some homeowners want a grand remodel with all the best on a small budget. Like most homeowners I new what I wanted in my head, sometimes its hard to express in words. The first web developer I hired said he understood what I wanted and could do it for a great price and great time frame. The results where much like what a homeowner may get when they go for the great price and great time frame, bad communication a misunderstanding I am not sure but it wasn’t what I wanted it look like a telephone directory. I took my disappointing results to other web developers to show what I don’t want and finally hired another developer who I felt understood my project.
Asking the right question
But I didn’t ask the most important question WHO will be building my website? After the deposit was made I never heard from him until it was time for a draw, much like some stories I have heard from homeowners in the past discuss about their home improvement contractors. I finally got some results I demanded before I would give a draw and was I ever disappointed. I just got a fancy looking directory, nothing like what I had explained, that’s when I find out that he wasn’t building my website that some guys in India where building my site and sometimes they don’t understand the meaning of some English words. I tried to communicate with the India web developers with no luck. They had no understanding of what I was saying, now I know how some homeowners feel when trying to communicate with construction subcontractors or employees who don’t speak English. Frustrated because I have spent this time & money not getting what I wanted.
Being forgotten
I also learn that web developers will put you and your project on the back burner and leave you there, forever, if you complain that the project is not going in the right direction. Some may think yep, just like some contractors do, at least with a contractor you have the satisfaction of knowing their phone number, what state and city they live in, you can complain to the BBB, leave a very bad messages on their answering machine if your calls are not return, even call the police. But with most web developers/designers after they have the contract and you down payment they only want to communicate through email and sometimes you just don’t know what state, city or country they are from.
The comparison
I was so frustrated with the way I was being treated, emails not being returned, being ignored with every attempt. Finally they contacted me to show me the project and ask for another draw, after I review the project, it looked the same, I even ask did you make any changes? The reply was yes we are going to make the changes “they only take a minute” but we need some more money. WHAT!!!!! if the changes only take a minute then MAKE THE CHANGES. I explain to them that contractors get a bad name because of a “few bad apples” Yes some “want a be” contractors will not return calls take your money and not finish the job…BUT most are good contractors and if they get busy, ignore you – they will make it up to you and do the right thing if you give them a chance. My experience thus far with web designer/developers was worst than any horror story I have heard about a contractor at least in a very long time. Some people don’t have a high opinion of contractors, some don’t think we are very well educated that why we have to do this type of work (some of us just love it) but you know what so far I not very impressed with web designer/developers.
Thinking like a contractor
I decided it was time for me to take matters into my own hands. First, if I was going to build a house, building or an addition I would want some blueprints, that would give me something to work off of, some plans. That is what I was going to do, but how do you get blueprints for a website? That would be the job of a web developer, web designer right? I still don’t know I decided to lay out my design and ideas on paper about 70 pages worth step by step pages, with instructions my own website blueprint.
The results
Another directory, I was told your idea is to complicated, this is better – but the web is already full of directory’s?!!
I then new I needed a better blueprint, I bought a template, designed and build my vision of what I wanted, my version of a blueprint for my website.
Less confusion
You may think, as I did that with a 70 page blueprint of my site, a complete somewhat working website. A website that you could go to, look at everything see click by click what the look and feel of and how the site was supposed to work, and a 70 page step by step instructions on paper as a reference, I was ready to once again to find the right developer. Wrong, I spoke with many who wanted to talk me into changing my idea into a directory, I didn’t want a directory for contractors there are plenty of directory’s out their. I wanted & had something that would benefit all homeowners, contractors, subcontractors, employees, suppliers and the construction industry, (nothing like it was or is on the market) NOT another directory that gives very little helpful information.
Meetings and more meetings
Its been almost a year to get here I have spoke with many website developers, web designers and I decide to go with a web developer who had a very impressive office, local company, lots of awards on the walls a huge staff and price I might add, but I needed results quick. They said from start to finish the project would take about 14 months. Longer than I wanted but OK, I was learning like some homeowners and contractors do after they have tried to turn shoestring budgets and deadlines into quality accomplishments. It almost never works and I was learning that in the website business it doesn’t work either. I had a great idea, I need a professional website and a professional web designer/developer on my team to help me complete this project. Meeting after meeting with these guys 3 months of meeting every time I ask how are things going they would say we need to have a meeting and go over a couple of things. Meetings again, I would ask do you have anything for me to see yet? I want to make sure we stay on the right course and not end up with another directory. Finally into the forth month we have yet another meeting to discuss the website they where going to build for me. I find out they haven’t even started yet, the lead guy took off with all of their notes and we had to start all over again. I’m a contractor I was thinking, I am not falling for this but OK. I let them keep working on the site and started looking for another web designer. I knew getting any money back from them would be difficult we did have a contract and as long as they where done in 14 month and I was happy, I couldn’t complain, that was the deal the end results sometimes the middle is a mess, I ‘Ive been their I was a master at meeting deadlines. But I always had a back up plan.
The back up
I did know a guy I had spoken to about the website who was a contractor and a web site builder. I told him of the problems and he said 14 months was crazy he could build my site in two weeks and for a lot less money. Anytime someone tells you they can do something in a lot less time and a lot less money than everyone else you have spoke with (the professionals), THINK ABOUT IT. If it to good to be true it probably is, we’ve all heard it before but when you get a little desperate out of you element you just get stupid. I gave him half of the money and started buying advertising for the site based on the completion date he had given me, I have lost a lot time and have none to waste. He’s a contractor, I’m a contractor I can believe him he had the experience and he had my website blueprint. Everything on the site looked the way I wanted it everything worked accept the database all he really needed to do was make the database work.
Promises, promises
The other company promising me something to look at in six weeks, but I don’t care I got my back up. The two week deadline comes I literally have ads going out the following weekend. I am then told it will be a few more days and promised it will be done by next weekend. He promises me next weekend, run the ads again if he’s not done he will pay for them, OK. Next weekend comes the ads are running and I have a “cheezy” cartoon like DIRECTORY!!!!! WHAT THE~##%%~<>%%##@@!!%$$&&++##@@&&%%~ not again!!!! and so six months after signing a contract with the fancy office, fancy talking, fancy awards on the wall web designer/developer I got my first look at the most expensive directory I had seen to date.
Facing reality
I had my blueprints, I had my non database working website.
Everything on the site looked the way I wanted it everything worked accept the database.
I was unsure how to build a data base, I had just barley learn enough code to build a template site I had no website building experience before this. My theory, has always been leave it to the professionals, you do your job and I will do my job. Job experience is supposed to make us good at our job, on the job training on the job experience. If you are sick you want a doctor, if you want to remodel your home you call a contractor and if you want a website built, build it yourselves that is what I was thinking, that was becoming my reality. So I started reading and trying to learn everything I could on how to build a website how to write code and on and on and on. I learn a lot about building websites most are simple I learn enough to know my site was not simple. Building a site like mine and to make it successful for all users was going to take a professional. Back to my theory you do your job and I will do mine.
Taking my own advice
All along I had spoken with or emailed many website builders, all said they understood, but didn’t all said they had a plan, but didn’t at this point I had spoken with so many different web designer/developers and learn so much I could tell who was giving me the bull. When you have been a contractor for long enough, you can talk to other contractors, subcontractor and others in the business an tell by the lingo they use and the way they use that same lingo if they know what they are saying or if they are just trying to get the job. That was where I was with web designer/developers. I decide to take my own advice. Treat this like I have told many homeowners before in the past, when asked who is the best contractor or builder? Sometimes even after you have done your homework on different contractors or builders you want to hire and all are good, they have all the right answers and you just don’t know who do go with. I say most contractors are good, most will stand behind their work most will hit their deadlines at least within reason, most will make you happy in the end but how happy will you be in the middle? After you have narrowed it down to the final two or three on the standard rule of thumb. The question should be how well can you get along with this contractor/builder? How well do you connect with them? How are they going to react to change orders? If, its a big enough project many things on both sides can effect the outcome of your project, make sure you can get along with them. That’s what I decided to do.
The final website developer
After accepting the fact that this was going to be a long project with many change orders possibly to come. The need to keep my site builder focus on what I wanted not what they wanted me to have. Upon interviewing for a final web developer, I learned that the reason everyone wanted me to have a directory is because their was a template for that already in existence it was quick and easy money for them. Most web designer/developers don’t like change they don’t like anything new that’s why so many websites have the same basic look and feel the same basic function because that’s something that has been tested and works. What I needed was a custom builder I could get along with, someone in the united states, someone who did the work or was at least involved in the process. What I got was Chuck with WebNet Creative. www.webnetcreative.com A local company who said they could work with my blueprint, took the time to understand what I was trying to accomplish, the time to understand the nature of my industry and had suggestions on how to make it better for the user, future expansion and willing to explore untested database ideas I had for MyContractorList.com. In fact up until this time I still didn’t have a confirmed website name, because up until WebNet Creative I would pay the web developer/designer for my domain name and when I fired them they would refuse to give me my domain name, tell me it was theirs and I would have to pick another name every-time. I thought that was the way things where done, until Chuck told me to pick out a name, he would give me all the rights, the info to the name and it would be mine to do as I pleased.
The final design
I had a problem with other site directory’s, they didn’t give the user many options when it came to finding a contractor, they didn’t give the user enough credit to be able to make their own decision or view an in depth profile and worse they where confusing. To use most of them you have to contact the site, they do all of the work and you pay for it or the contractor pays for it & then you pay for it. Don’t get me wrong these sites are good for some, but what about the rest of us? Some of us don’t want to pay for lead fee, commission fees, referral fees, percentages fees and they go on and on.
What I had and wanted to maintain was a simple site for everyone, some say it too simple, that we repeat information and some say it is still confusing. We will keep making it better with everyone input. But you must remember I was building a site for contractors, I wanted contractors to get involved and for that to happen they needed to be comfortable on the site, it needed to be easy to use, easy to figure out or contractors won’t be back. I am a contractor, I know how they feel, most contractors are uneasy using a computer, they don’t want get a virus, they get confused on what to do, they don’t have the patience to figure it out, but most know the Internet is way of the future. When a contractor does get on the Internet to visit a site if they are comfortable with a website, they will use it, they will go to that site for everything they need and hope it is there.
Countdown to launch
I understand now, why web builders like to stay with what works, with the same o, same o type of website, you make a change to the original plan or realize that doesn’t work the way you thought it would and now you need to ad this or that to make it all work. Do a test launch and realize that the Spam bots find your site before you get a chance to tell anyone about it. Make some changes only to find out the spammers love your site more than you do. Make more changes, lock the site down secure all around, hope and pray you got them blocked for now at least. It can be a nightmare getting out the “bugs” the punch list seem to never end.
After a year and a half of building a custom site, site changes, new ideas tested, public surveys, frustrations, fights with the wife, fights with Chuck and a lot of time in prayer with God…
We did finally launch on 11/20/08
Today
After working with WebNet Creative or Chuck, I know the In’s & outs of my site. I can make almost any changes I want to the site immediately,without needing a developer or designer. I still need Chuck for some changes and new ideas I have for the future, after all he does what he does and I do what I do. I still believe in leaving it to the professionals.
Thank You
Thank you to God, for giving me the strength and courage to keep going when it look like their was no hope of ever getting MyContractorList.com to become a reality.
Thank you to my wife Kelly, for not leaving me, being patience & understanding, with the many days and nights, I would work all day in construction and stay up all night working on the website having very little results, she could see. The times she did without, because I spent money we didn’t have on building this website.
Thank You Chuck, for your patience with me and seeing this project to the end, even to the point of talking me back into my own project when I had quit.
Apologies
I didn’t mean to write a book just a Blog about some of the struggles to get the site launched. I did leave a lot out…
Jonathan
Mycontractorlist.com
