Record Number of Consumers Search For TrustMark
09 Jan 2013
TrustMark, the Government endorsed quality mark for tradesmen, today records its highest number of 'tradesmen viewings' on its website, www.trustmark.org.uk, with 3.9 million homeowners searching for local tradesmen in 2012 to carry out work on their home or garden.
During 2012, the average number of viewings across all trades increased by over 20% compared to the same period in 2011, with electricians, heating engineers, plumbers and glaziers seeing the largest rise, primarily due to homeowners wanting urgent work on their properties as a result of the poor weather conditions across the UK.
Stuart Carter, Head of PR & Marketing at TrustMark, said: "With the economy in its current state, we are delighted to see such high numbers of viewings from homeowners searching for TrustMark tradesmen, particularly as it shows that many still require a professional tradesman to do their work. TrustMark tradesmen's details have been increasing year on year and this considerable success has been a result of a number of marketing initiatives carried out during 2012 and working in partnership with key consumer organisations such as Citizens Advice, the Trading Standards Institute and National Home Improvement Council who are all signposting people to TrustMark."
All TrustMark firms' technical skills have been independently checked through on-site inspections to ensure a high quality of workmanship and trading practices. TrustMark is the only scheme that requires qualified inspectors to do these visits, so that technical competence is checked as well as business practices and customer satisfaction.
With more than 23,000 licensed trades searchable on its database, TrustMark is able to help people find a good local firm to get the best job done at a fair price, and if things don't go quite right, to provide a clear and easy to use complaints procedure to resolve any problems.
For further information about TrustMark, visit www.trustmark.org.uk
ENDS
Issued on behalf of TrustMark - For further information or photos,
please contact:
Georgina Watkins, Tel: 07595 158460, Email: georgina@georginawatkins.com
TrustMark
1. TrustMark is the Government endorsed quality scheme that signposts people to reputable local tradesmen. It is a registered social enterprise, operated under licence from the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS).
2. TrustMark's website has an easy to use UK wide postcode search facility, which provides details of more than 23,000 licenced trades and has the largest database of accredited tradesmen in the country.
3. All TrustMark firms' technical skills have been independently checked through on-site inspections to ensure a high quality of workmanship and trading practices. TrustMark is the only scheme that requires qualified inspectors to do these visits, so that technical competence is checked as well as business practices and customer satisfaction.
4. TrustMark firms work to Government endorsed standards and are able to offer insurance backed warranties and deposit protection, as well as operating a user-friendly complaints procedure.
5. TrustMark launched a new smartphone 'talk to your tradesman' app in June 2012 to help homeowners ask all the right questions and to have better conversations with a tradesman before they accept a quote for work to be done in or around their home. The app is free and currently available for iPhones, with other versions coming soon. To download the app, follow the link from www.trustmark.org.uk/apps. A paper copy of the questions and guidance is also available to download from www.trustmark.org.uk/apps/print/.
www.trustmark.org.uk