Victor, from Construction on Time, Talks ServiceWhale & Recalls His Experience on HGTV’s House Hunters

The other day we had the pleasure of speaking with Victor Fonta, owner and operator of Construction on Time. We enjoyed getting to know more about him, his company, and his TV debut on HGTV’s House Hunters.

ServiceWhale: Can you tell us a little bit about how you became a contractor?

Victor Fonta: I started doing flooring about eight years ago with my brother. I was laying floors for Empire Today. I learned a lot while I was with them.

SW: What does it take to become professional flooring contractor?

VF: In the flooring business you don’t need any kind of certification. You do need a license though. I’m an engineer by trade and I think that has helped me to build my company fast.

SW: What makes Construction on Time unique?

VF: My company is very much customer orientated and hands on. I stand behind all jobs. If there is a problem I either send someone out or go there myself to take care of things and I make sure that the customer does not have to wait for things. We do our best to make everything as easy as possible for the customer.

SW: What is it that you like about being a flooring contractor?

VF: I like the way that this business works and that I don’t have a pre-determined schedule to follow. If I keep things simple, then the business seems to run smoothly. Running a business can certainly be stressful but it really helps too when you plan everything from the start and are prepared for the job.

SW: Was there any job that you can recall that was particularly difficult?

VF: There was one job that we did for Lumber Liquidators that was a little challenging. We were installing a showroom in Deptford, NJ and had just one week to do it. Initially they sent me the wrong drawings, so I lost two days because of it. I had to get 12 guys on the job in order to finish on time. The last day I was working until around 11 pm because it had to get done, the store was opening. It all worked out though, afterward they asked me if I wanted two other stores to do.

SW: What would you consider to be an easy job?

VF: I don’t really look at any job as easy or hard. I suppose I might consider a job that we finished ahead of schedule to be easy.

SW: Has there been any period of time that was difficult for you or the business?

VF: I used to do jobs for Lumber Liquidators, it was something like 200 to 300 jobs a year. When I decided to no longer do that, I had to start advertising a lot. There were a couple of months that were a little bit harder to keep my guys busy and I was worried I would lose them. Now everything is good.

SW: Would you say that now things are the best they’ve been?

VF: I wouldn’t say that the volume of business is the best it’s ever been, not after having those five stores. It will likely take another year or two years to get to that point but every month, Construction on Time is growing by 10-15%.

SW: What is your cost to acquire a new customer/get a deal?

VF: I’m not really sure of the cost per customer. I try to keep expenses down as low as possible. Initially I paid for leads, but once business picked up and I was able to implement everything I needed as far as an online presence, I stopped purchasing leads. People are just calling me now; more than half of them are calling because they have read our positive reviews. We also get a lot of referrals from other customers.

The cost of advertising varies but if I had to guess, I would say we spend nearly $3,000 a month on it.

SW: What would be the best case scenario for you to get a job?

VF: Getting a job due to a referral is great, which is why it is so important to make sure every job you do is perfect. You definitely don’t want to get any bad reviews. People today want to know what your customers have said about you and they search everywhere to find it.

SW: What is the hardest part about being a contractor?

VF: It takes up a lot of your time. If someone calls me at eight or nine at night, I’ll answer my phone. Customers have questions and I want to be able to answer them right away, otherwise I won’t sleep well at night. It’s also tough not having weekend’s off, but that will change in the next year because I plan to get some more help.

SW: Speaking of the future, what are your future plans for your company?

VF: Like I mentioned, I will be hiring a couple of guys to do some of the estimates and measurements as well as the ordering of materials. In two or three years I plan to have my own flooring store.

SW: That’s super!

SW: With regard to the industry, have you observed any problems or areas that can be improved?

VF: I don’t really see any problems. Everything is set up a certain way and if you don’t do it all by the book then you’re going to experience problems. You just need to do things right.

SW: Have you seen anything that you would call innovative in the industry?

VF: I see a lot of growth in the lead system, with 80% of the people using the Internet to find a contractor. Every few months, lead generation companies approach me asking me to join their service. What ever happens on the market you have to go with it. In order to keep a lot of people working for you, you can’t rely on referrals alone.

SW: How did you hear about ServiceWhale?

VF: When I first started advertising, I called all the companies that were highly rated online. ServiceWhale was one of those companies. I decided to give it a try, so I opened an account. I think by now I’ve tried all the lead generation companies out there.

SW: What do you like about ServiceWhale?

VF: What I really like is that I don’t have to spend a lot of money and that I’m not taking any risks. It’s not until after the job is sold that you take care of commissions. This is something nobody else is doing. It’s great for me because with other companies I had to pay $50 to $70 for a lead and it doesn’t always pan out. I would call the person but sometimes nobody would answer the phone; then that lead is gone. With ServiceWhale, the customer sees the price and our information. They can then decide if they like us and if they want to go with us. When they already know a price, it helps them make a decision. It also eliminates that awkwardness of having to invite a stranger in your house and not knowing what to expect from it.

SW: What do you think about ServiceWhale’s pricing model with regards to the commission?

VF: The pricing is great. There are definitely other services out there that charge more for commission. In my opinion, ServiceWhale is perfect. It’s one of the most decent companies offering leads for contractors. I like that you pay after it is done instead of ahead of time.

SW: What has your experience been like with ServiceWhale?

VF: All of the jobs I got were because of ServiceWhale’s great customer service. Customers have relayed to me that Nick was extremely helpful. If they had a question or concern, he was always available and assisted them through the process.

SW: What advice can offer homeowners with regard to hiring a contractor?

VF: They need to make sure that the contractors are insured and have all the proper licensing to do their job. Also, get at least three estimates before choosing a contractor and do your research on the contractors. But the most important thing is the licensing and insurance.

SW: That’s very good advice, thank you. Is there a way a customer can verify the contractor’s license and insurance?

VF: Every company has a business license number that can be checked with the state. They can check to make sure the license is not expired and they can also see if there were any issues or complaints regarding that contractor.

For the insurance, the customer has to ask for the proof of insurance before the work is started. Usually no one asks for that except if you are going to be working somewhere where they have an association that requires you to provide the insurance information. I think everybody should ask for it though- you’ll feel more comfortable having the work done.

SW: Victor, what do you like to do in your free time?

VF: I enjoy fishing. I didn’t really get a chance to do much fishing last year but I hope that this year I will be able to do it more.

SW: Do you have a favorite television show?

VF: I like to watch HGTV. A few years ago we did a floor for the show House Hunters. We installed a cherry wood floor in a high rise in downtown Philadelphia. I think they may still have that video on their website.

SW: That’s so exciting!

SW: When you’re in your truck, what type of music do you like to listen to?

VF: I’ll listen to whatever, but I prefer to listen to talk radio. You get to hear a lot of different points of view about various subjects.

SW: What does the perfect day with your family look like?

VF: Getting away for a couple of days to go fishing with my family is something I enjoy. But to me, just spending time with them each day is perfect. The way I schedule my day, I get to spend at least half of every day with my son.

SW: What motivates/inspires you in your in work and your life?

VF: Well, one thing is I that I like to grow with my company, it makes me feel good. I see results every month. Also, I’m doing something for myself rather than working for someone else. It keeps me going.

SW: Victor, Thank you for taking the time to speak with us.

If you’d like to sign your business up for ServiceWhale, visit our website or give us a call at 866-977-3897 to speak with a customer service representative.