The Associated Press reports that Amazon is getting into the referral service business, putting it into competition with the likes of Angie's List.
"The system, called Amazon Home Services, is the e-commerce company’s latest attempt to expand its empire beyond online shopping," the AP writes. "It was introduced on Monday across the United States after several months of testing in New York, Los Angeles and Amazon’s home city, Seattle."
The story goes on: "Amazon says it believes connecting consumers with handymen and home-maintenance specialists will be a logical extension to its e-commerce business because about 85 million of its customers buy products needing installation or periodic servicing. About 700 different services, including housecleaning and goat-grazing, can be booked through Amazon in major United States cities. Amazon collects a commission ranging from 10 to 20 percent from most of the services. All companies listed in the service are vetted by Amazon, which also guarantees all the work."
"The system, called Amazon Home Services, is the e-commerce company’s latest attempt to expand its empire beyond online shopping," the AP writes. "It was introduced on Monday across the United States after several months of testing in New York, Los Angeles and Amazon’s home city, Seattle."
The story goes on: "Amazon says it believes connecting consumers with handymen and home-maintenance specialists will be a logical extension to its e-commerce business because about 85 million of its customers buy products needing installation or periodic servicing. About 700 different services, including housecleaning and goat-grazing, can be booked through Amazon in major United States cities. Amazon collects a commission ranging from 10 to 20 percent from most of the services. All companies listed in the service are vetted by Amazon, which also guarantees all the work."
- KC's View:
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Goat grazing? Really?
I have to admit that I'm a big Angie's List fan ... it is a great resource and I've never been disappointed by the people I've hired through it.
I'm not sure how successful Amazon will be at this, but it certainly will have tons of data about its customers with which to target its pitches. But maybe it doesn't have to make that much money ... it is all about getting a piece of every transaction, which means making money quite literally on the margins. If Amazon can fold even more people deeper into its ecosystem, that's good for Amazon, and not necessarily bad for consumers.
