Onlinetradesmen.com, launched in 2005, has generated over €735m in projects for its tradesmen and processed over 50,000 property owner requests to date, its founder has announced.
The Irish-owned trades networking website, which was shortlisted in 2006 as best new website by Eircom, hooks up property owners with professional tradespeople.
There are numerous categories on the website, ranging from plumbing to landscaping.
The website sources tradespeople from all over Ireland and from all trades. “We go out and advertise to trades professionals, advertise through the National Guild and do direct advertising through trade magazines and at shows,” said Ted Laverty, managing director of Onlinetradesmen.com.
The site ensures that all tradespeople working with them are qualified and reputable, he said. “We partner with the likes of the Registrar of Electrical Contractors and the National Guild, and we are supported by Fas and FETAC.”
This service is free for property owners, with revenue generated by charging a membership to tradesmen that sign up with the site.
For this fee the tradesperson is listed on the website and given their own personal profile. There are also teamed up with a number of providers to get group discounts.
“We have exclusive deals with O2, rates on health insurance, we can get cheap websites and there’s a panel of accountants and solicitors,” said Laverty.
“This is a community, a social networking site for tradespeople,” he added.
By Marie Boran
