Small Business Summit Center

Josh Brown, Cityhammer.com

Joshua Brown and his business partner Ryan Perrotti (below) have started an online directory of local remodeling professionals.

AB: How are you going to compete against bigger companies?

JB: We feel that we are very competitive with the larger companies because we're a local company with boots on the ground and our content is by New Yorkers, for New Yorkers. Being a small company allows us to focus on our niche of remodeling and renovations in the Tri-State area, we can be a lot more hands-on for the benefit of both the visitors looking for information and the professionals who are looking for more exposure. More importantly, our site is free and easy to search. The consumers do not have to jump around to different sites to find what they are looking for.

AB: What are the best and worst things about doing a web startup in NYC?

JB: The best thing about starting up an internet company in New York would have to be the sheer quantity of talented and creative people we have to draw on. This combined with the fact that there is a huge pool of incredible and eclectic home improvement providers here, keeps the site's listings diverse and interesting, while still useful and relevant to the user. The worst thing would probably be how "noisy" New York can be in terms of getting the word on what your doing out to the public. We've got ads bombarding us from every building-side, subway and bus stop, and even the roofs of taxicabs, not to mention the 8 or 9 daily newspapers and myriad of local websites. While it may be difficult and expensive to make a big splash, New Yorkers are savvy; if you're providing a valuable service and have a fresh point of view, they'll find you eventually.

AB: Hm, about that "sheer quantity of talented and creative people". How much does it help to have vendors nearby, in an urban environment?

JB: Great question, we estimate that in the New York Area, there are over 7000 companies, people and entities that are involved in some way with residential home improvement. Within this group, the specialization and diversity is simply staggering. We have members in downtown Manhattan that strictly do painting and murals with glazed tiles for bathrooms and kitchens, we have a member that takes reclaimed wood from old farms and buildings and makes custom furniture, there are architects that specialize in additions for the roofs of brownstones and window tinting companies that can lower your AC bill if you live in a high rise with an apartment baking in the summer sunlight's heat. Because NYC is so densely populated, there are many air-quality control firms and a huge community of temporary wall companies. There are specialty moving companies that use vans to move people with a relatively small amount of stuff from one studio apartment to another. And we can't leave out the home entertainment center pro's, who will take the stuff you bought at Best Buy and make it all actually function together, plus hang your flat screen TV and mount your surround-sound speakers.

AB: How do you make it easy for contractors to get their customers reviewing them on your site?

JB: We've come to see that not only do customers find contractors on our site; they also search for the contractors that have been recommended to them to "double-check" before they hire. When one of our members is searched for, very often, their cityhammer.com profile comes up high in the results. This makes their listing on our site almost like a business card and so it behooves the contractor to encourage their customers to rate and review them here. People can review a pro very easily, there's a form to fill out and then a follow-up email which helps us make sure the review is legitimate and honest. The web has the effect of being an equalizer, in that even a small-time contractor without a massive ad budget can get the exposure they want by doing great work and having happy clients who endorse them online. We like to think that we can play a part in getting those who strive for customer satisfaction the notice and accolades that will help them grow their business.

AB: What marketing tactic worked the best for the CityHammer launch in 2007?

JB: We would say that keeping the content on the site fresh and relevant has been the most important marketing tactic. They say that by 2010, 70% of all purchases of items or services will start with a search on the web. cityhammer.com consistently comes up for internet searches related to home improvement thus driving high quality traffic to our listed contractors and designers. We've also built the site in such a way that our pro's are our best marketing tool. Because they are listed in the order of how many positive reviews they have, they have a big incentive to tell their satisfied customers to visit cityhammer.com and leave them a review. This has been a great way to generate word-of-mouth interest throughout New York.

AB: What would you do if you weren't in business for yourself?

JB: This is a tough question, because my partner Ryan and I don't feel as though we work 100% for ourselves. The way we run cityhammer.com is that we feel as though we "work" for the remodeling professionals that have listed on the site. Every single one of the 500 plus companies listed on cityhammer.com has put their profile up themselves. Our goal is to work to get these listings the attention and business they are looking for, and we give them a one-of-a-kind forum to showcase their work and reputation.