Looking to save cash and aggravation on everything from home improvements to health care by weeding out the bad guys?
Check out Angie’s List, which I just did for the first time.
A few friends had used Angie’s List to vet contractors — they wanted to find companies that others had raved about instead of looking in the phone book.
Getting hosed by a painter or plumber is not only a financial mess but a major headache.
I knew I wanted a new dermatologist.
Not only did my ex-doc’s smarmy billing tactics piss me off, but he made me feel like an ATM machine: He got his cash and he got me out of there.
I wanted a doctor who would take time with my office visits, listen to my concerns, look at my medical history and offer solutions instead of a wham, bam, thank you ma’am approach.
I talked to my primary care physician about recommendations, but he didn’t offer much more than a list of dermatologists who take my insurance.
I typed “dermatologist” into yelp.com, which is a user generated review site, but the results were too noisy.
While I appreciate the “free” aspect of yelp.com, it’s not really regulated. Someone with a personal grudge could make up a profile and start ranting against a local business. Or a doc could sign up all her friends and start saying nice things about her services.
Searching “dermatologist” didn’t always bring up actual doctors, either. Cosmetics and beauty supply places? How’s that going to help my eczema?
So I ponied up the $15 activation fee and $7.50 for one month of Angie’s List services. (You can also pay $59 for one year, $106 for two, $159 for three or $189 for four.)
Angie’s List started in 1995 in Columbus, O.H. by a woman named Angie (shocker, right?) who wanted more information on local contractors.
Since then the service has expanded to 124 cities with 750,000 consumers on its roster. In March 2008, Angie’s List added health care categories to their list of ranked and reviewed providers.
Like free review sites, consumers submit reviews, whether they pay for the service or not. But Angie’s List has a few layers of checks and balances to make sure those reviews are legit.
No matter who submits, they can’t do so anonymously — they have to be available to Angie’s List staff. Because they screen all reports before they go online.
Companies are allowed to give their side of the story for any negative review, but they can’t pay Angie to ditch a bad review.
Angie’s List only accepts one form of advertising from companies it ranks. Those who consistently get an “A” or “B” rating from consumers can offer coupons. That’s it.
The reviews customers give are detailed, too.
For dermatologists, I could read every customer’s full reviews and read details like how long they waited for an appointment, how the doc handled first time patients, billing policies and the condition of the office and exam rooms.
If you don’t have time to read all the reviews, an average grade is listed for each doctor, in everything from office environment to bedside manner.
Impressive.
I went through the list of doctors reviewed and drew up a list of five possibilities, which I’ll start researching this week. I feel like an empowered consumer, not just someone at the mercy of my primary care doctor’s list of who’s available.
(6 votes, average: 4.33 out of 5)
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