Home Services Network Frontdoor has announced a new app, meant to streamline service calls to Homeowners. Utilizing “see what I see,” remote guidance, it empowers homeowners to diagnose – and even fix in some cases – home issues using the live help of experts and an upheld smartphone.
This technology is a flavor of augmented reality that lets remote experts see what the homeowner sees. That may just sound like a mobile Facetime or Zoom call, but what makes this technology different is the ability for remote home-services experts to make spatially-anchored annotations to guide homeowners.
The idea is to empower home-services pros to diagnose issues before they show up at a given job. That advance knowledge can do a few things including job scoping and estimates, as well as bringing or ordering the right tools and parts. All the above can reduce or eliminate costly home visits.
If this sounds familiar, the technology was pioneered by Streem, which Frontdoor acquired in 2019. After operating Streem independently, Frontdoor is folding it into its own branded app. This makes its family of products – including Frontdoor and American HomeShield – more federated and synergistic.
Sometimes Painful
Going deeper into the user experience and value proposition for “see what I see” support, it solves a real and common pain point for homeowners. Picture a cable company phone rep visually walking you through a router setup versus the disjointed (and sometimes painful) voice-only instructions.
An even better area to reduce pain is traditional home services categories like plumbing. Homeowners can be the eyes and ears of a remote pro, via upheld smartphone. The latter can then diagnose issues — or even instruct the homeowner for lighter jobs — with voice and positionally-accurate annotations.
The real value plays out through reducing preliminary technician visits, as noted. In fact, Streem has already done this to the tune of 42 percent fewer visits. Otherwise known as a truck roll, this includes an initial home visit to scope and price a given job. Essentially, they can turn two visits into one.
And it’s not just fewer visits but more streamlined ones (one reason it’s called Streem). The standard practice of showing up with a big truck with all possible tools to handle any job can be replaced with a lighter dispatch. Speaking of dispatch, Pros can also cluster similar jobs and other logistical tactics.
Security Blanket
All the above isn’t new in that the smartphone’s promise has always been to streamline home services. The camera helps homeowners inform service pros while cell service operates during home emergencies like flooding and power outages. Frontdoor is basically offering a 2.0 version of that vision.
As for the company’s positioning and footprint, Frontdoor offers membership plans for homeowners. Its Basic membership is free and includes one video chat session, along with a list of vetted local service pros. It also includes access to Frontdoor’s online knowledge base for repair and DIY work.
Meanwhile, its Prime membership is $99 per year and includes 3 video chat sessions, and discounts on service calls, which Frontdoor farms out to its network of local service pros. Altogether, it’s a home-services referral network and digital subscription meant to be a security blanket for homeowners.
Remote AR support should be a nice addition to that services mix in that its value can be tangible and realized immediately. This could boost customer acquisition and/or retention And there’s plenty of room for growth as the value proposition applies to many verticals – from landscaping to real estate tours.
