thomsonlocal.com

Men need to get to grip with DIY in order to pull

61% of men believe women will find them more attractive if they can handle a hammer

Do you think possessing basic DIY, house and car maintenance skills can make men more attractive to women? Apparently for most men the answer is yes. A new report from thomsonlocal.com has identified that 61% of men believe that possessing such skills will make them more successful with the ladies.

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How to avoid being ripped off by unscrupulous tradesmen

The thomsonlocal.com Man Skills Academy’s top tips to make working with tradespeople easier.

1. Always ask if your tradesperson has public liability insurance.  Ask to see a certificate if you are in doubt. This will ensure they are covered if there is any damage to your property.
2. Never pay for a job in full up front.  However it is not unreasonable to be asked of a deposit before work starts to cover the costs of materials.  It can help to pay in instalment but remember to only pay for work which has been completed
3. Ask for a building schedule, so you are both clear on deadlines
4. Make sure you have the right contact details for your tradesperson.  If they only have a mobile phone be a little wary. Landline numbers are much easier to trace and a good sign
5. Trust your instincts.  If you don’t feel comfortable with a particular tradesperson don’t feel rushed into making a decision. – If they look dodgy or you need time to think things over, don’t feel pressured into making a decision on the spot
6. Before commissioning a job always get references. Ask family and friends for recommendations.  Don’t be embarrassed to ask to see previous jobs or speak to previous customers
7. If it sounds too be good to be true, it probably is. Shop around to see the going rate
8. If you’re looking for a tradesperson to do a big job, invite two or three different people to give you a quote.  Make sure you give them a detailed brief and it always helps to do this in writing
9. Ask tradespeople for written estimates upfront, including VAT. Get a written contract as this will help protect you and make sure you request any changes to the work in writing too
10. It is also always check if the tradesperson is registered with a professional institute such as the Chartered Institute of Plumbing & Heating Engineering. The institute offers another layer of backup and support and will check all your tradesperson’s qualifications if they are members.  Also if you have a bad experience they will investigate it for you!

In response to this thomsonlocal.com is launching a new Man Skills Academy to help a new generation of men learn basic DIY tasks, how better to commission tradespeople and how to overcome their fear of dealing with household emergencies.

The Academy is a result of research conducted by thomsonlocal.com which revealed:

• 30% of men felt intimidated and confused when commissioning tradespeople – mainly because of their lack of knowledge and uncertainty around technical terms and lingo – with men working in advertising, recruitment or banking the worst affected

• Almost 40% of men either rely on tradespeople or friends to help with their DIY problems

• Almost 1/3 of men admitted that their minds go blank and they feel nervous when dealing with tradespeople

• 1 in 5 DIY disasters could have been avoided if men hadn’t tried to solve problems themselves or had called a tradesperson out sooner

Why men avoid calling out tradespeople:

1. Intimidated and confused: as they don’t know what the problem is and don’t understand technical terms and lingo
2. Lack of knowledge: unsure of the price they are being quoted is accurate but don’t know enough to question the quote
3. Embarrassment: they feel it is a bit of a blow to the male ego, especially when you need to call out a tradesperson out for a relatively simple problem

For tips and advice on how to improve work with your tradespeople visit www.facebook.com/thomsonlocal.com for your online virtual Man Skills Academy.

thomsonlocal.com appoints Finance Director

Local media company, thomsonlocal.com has announced that it has appointed Gautam Sahgal as Finance Director effective from 1^st March 2012 reporting directly to thomsonlocal.com Chief Executive Officer Elio Schiavo.

Sahgal, who will continue to sit on the company’s Board of Directors, joins thomsonlocal.com from Italian publisher Seat Pagine Gialle where he was Head of Group Portfolio Strategy.  With Seat Pagine Gialle, Sahgal also held the roles of Head of Group Planning & Control and Manager of Corporate Development, Mergers & Acquisitions.

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thomsonlocal.com launched mobile website

Local media company, thomsonlocal.com has announced that it has launched a new HTML5 mobile website.

Designed by Mobile Commerce, the site allows the user to access thomsonlocal.com’s database of over 2 million businesses, the most comprehensive of its kind in the UK, via an app-like cross-platform interface, developed by Mobile Commerce using HTML5.

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