Shorewest service provides customers with all the work with fewer hassles
Pushing the customer service envelope has been a trademark of Brookfield-based Shorewest Realtors. From insisting that Realtors be full-time professionals to PIN numbers that customers can call to get the lowdown on a property, the management team at Shorewest, led by John E. Horning, CEO, and Don Horning, president, always seems one step ahead of the competition.
That still holds true today. The company’s latest value-added service is Home-Link.
Introduced in fall 2000, the system is a network of product and service providers – offering everything from appliances to home security to plumbers to window and door installation – tailor-made for people moving into new houses or out of old ones. The timing couldn’t have been better considering Shorewest closed nearly $1.65 billion in properties in 2001, a company record.
Since January, 2001, the program has provided 3,500 customers with more than 4,600 products and services, Shorewest recently reported. Approximately 9,300 families are enrolled in Home-Link, with Shorewest predicting 9,000 more in 2002.
Some of the items and services provided to Shorewest customers include 1,482 gas and electric transfers, 332 appliances purchased, 260 carpets cleaned, 152 houses cleaned, 167 new floors or carpets, 209 handyman services, 217 plumbers, and 703 movers.
"Home-Link enables us to offer our customers a choice in every category of service," said Marilyn Looney; director of Home-Link. "And our list of service providers continues to grow." The list of providers stands at 85 local and 15 national vendors.
The concept came from an independent real estate company in Connecticut. The owner of that company decided to share his business model with other Realtors around the country. After hearing about the concept, Shorewest decided to implement it in Wisconsin.
"We are always looking for ways to offer better customer service and additional tools for our agents as well as services to customers who end up ordering or doing those things themselves during the process of the transaction," said Joe Horning, vice president of Shorewest and John E. Horning’s son.
The Home-Link program basically lays the groundwork for the customer by screening providers – making sure they have insurance and licenses, among other things. The goal, according to Horning, is to have a minimum of three vendors per category – not to exceed 10 – to give customers options. The goal of having at least three vendors does have its exceptions, most notably in title services, mortgage lenders, relocation services and real estate services. Those categories have single entries, all of which are either Shorewest itself or one of its subsidiaries such as Heritage Title Services or Wisconsin Mortgage Corp.
Vendors must also maintain a 95% satisfaction rating. If they drop below 95%, they’re automatically not referred out until Shorewest addresses the issue with the vendor and the vendor makes the necessary correction, Horning said.
All of this is managed by personal move coordinators (PMCs) who do everything from getting a house ready for market to getting utilities turned on to follow-up calls six months after closing to make sure things are still going well. Customers must call the PMCs first to set up appointments with vendors. By utilizing the PMCs, customers get top priority and may be eligible for discounts or other bonuses not offered to the general public.
Home-Link services are available for as long as the customer is a Shorewest customer.
May 24, 2002 Small Business Times, Milwaukee
