Why is there no Uber for plumbing/HVAC? (and why there ought to be)
nikolaihlebowitsh.substack.com
Why is there no Uber for plumbing/HVAC? (and why there ought to be)
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Re: Why is there no Uber for plumbing/HVAC? (and why there ought to be)
#2There definitely is something like that in several EU countries: it's called Yoojo and there are people using it.
They've got local sites, per country:
And there are electricians and plumbers who can fix (and install) HVAC.
Re: Why is there no Uber for plumbing/HVAC? (and why there ought to be)
#3[deleted]
Re: Why is there no Uber for plumbing/HVAC? (and why there ought to be)
#4Learn how to fix your own stuff. Problem solved.
Re: Why is there no Uber for plumbing/HVAC? (and why there ought to be)
#5Yes, it would be nice if everything was easy, fair, and equitable. But:
Almost anyone can become an Uber driver without much effort. Not true for plumbers and HVAC people.
There are so many drivers available they're waiting for your call. Any decent plumbing/HVAC company has a backlog.
All Uber drivers are centralized under one pricing system. Plumbers/HVACs control their own pricing logic. I've never gotten contractor estimates that weren't across a huge range from low to high.
You can never trust a referral unless it's from someone you know that received the service themselves.
Uber vs. plumbing/HVAC is apples and oranges.
Re: Why is there no Uber for plumbing/HVAC? (and why there ought to be)
#6People on a forum run by VC types or wannabes complaining about the capitalistic system. They have the money, get to it. Figure out how to make plumbing robots or ai systems that turn software geeks into wrench jockeys.
Why does $Company charge so much? Cuz they can.
Re: Why is there no Uber for plumbing/HVAC? (and why there ought to be)
#7You mean Jackie's List? A thing that already existed? Or this thing called The Phone Book?
Re: Why is there no Uber for plumbing/HVAC? (and why there ought to be)
#8Yes, it would be nice if everything was easy, fair, and equitable. But: Almost anyone can become an Uber driver without much effort. Not true for plumbers and HVAC people. There are so many drivers available they're waiting for your call. Any decent plumbing/HVAC company has a backlog. All Uber drivers are centralized under one pricing system. Plumbers/HVACs control their own pricing logic. I've never gotten contract…
Just like you have many taco places on UberEATS/doordash, you could have many plumbing/HVAC companies to chose from along with common tasks, etc.
Re: Why is there no Uber for plumbing/HVAC? (and why there ought to be)
#9Plumbing, HVAC and other skilled trades operate almost entirely B2B, not B2C. The very premise of this article is why that is the case...people who don't understand what is required, what is good, and how construction operates shopping solely on price with unreasonable expectations.
That $22k quote? That's how a company can pay for capacity during peak demand...i.e. paying skilled workers enough to make extra long hours with no expectation of repeat business worth the effort, paying suppliers enough to get priority access to inventory, and of course making it worth dealing with customer-is-always-right amateurs.
Uber operates by letting customers not give a shit about their drivers (and not giving a shit about them itself). In the world where people have reasonable options, relationships matter and relationships are non-fungible.
Re: Why is there no Uber for plumbing/HVAC? (and why there ought to be)
#10Learn how to fix your own stuff. Problem solved.
"All you need to remember for plumbing is that s*t runs downhill" - Tony Soprano