Choosing the right Trader for your needs
Make a more informed choice
Dundee Trading Standards has partnered with Referenceline since 2005 because they offer a unique way to help you find the business that is best able to meet your needs
Business Type and Experience
Every business is listed according to the services it offers, so you can search for Accountants, Builders, Carpenters, Decorators, Electricians and so on. But every review also includes a space for the customer to describe the service in detail, so you can look to see whether the firm really has experience of the kind of work you are looking for.
Budget
Some businesses tend to specialise in smaller jobs, others are better suited to larger contracts. Take a look at the overall profile for the business to see if they generally handle the size of contract you have in mind and then filter their reviews to read the ones that matter most to you. For example, if you are looking for a builder, do they:
- Build entire houses (Budget £100,000+)
- Add extensions (Budget £30,000+)
- Renovate interiors (Budget £10,000+)
- Repoint brickwork (Budget £1,000+)
- Replace tiles (Budget: £100+)
Serving customers near you
We never publish the details or postcodes of individual customers, but we do show you the general area where they work. If you are looking for someone who is likely to be willing to come back regularly, or to come quickly if they need to solve a problem, then this may be important to you.
Recent Reviews
We show the monthly pattern of reviews, so you can make sure that they are recent. Don't be impressed by a few old reviews which are out of date and which may suggest that the business is not really committed to asking for feedback.
Customer Age and Gender
We ask customers to share some information about themselves, and the overwhelming majority do so. It's reassuring to know that a business has hundreds of reviews but you can't possibly read them all. Instead, we make it easy for you to see which reviews are from people like you or from people whose views you are likely to respect.
Customer Experience
Many of us have limited understanding of the details of accountancy, of building work, or of car maintenance etc. We depend on the expertise of the trader to give us honest advice and to explain things in a way which gives us confidence and isn't patronizing. So we ask customers to tell us whether we should consider their review as coming from an expert, a beginner, or somewhere in between. If you are a beginning, you might like to read the reviews from the experts (to see if the business knows its stuff) but also to read the reviews from other beginners (to see how they treat people who might lack the confidence to challenge any advice - or prices - offered)
How long they have known the business
Customers can also tell us how long they have known the business. You may find it especially interesting to read the reviews of people who have known the business for 10 or more years, as they are likely to have got to know the business really well. But equally, the reviews of people who have never used the business before should give you a good idea of what it will feel like to deal with them if you have never met them before.
Images
Business can add up to 6 images with each review, but these are ONLY published with the customers' approval. This means that you know that they really are genuine photos of the work done by that business and not simply random photos of other people's work. It also means that if the customer is not happy with the photo (maybe it shows the front of the house, or a valued possession, or a family member) they they can decline publication of the photos to protect their privacy.
Business Responses
Businesses can leave a reply to any review. This is clearly important in case of a complaint, as it allows the business to respond with its own version of events as appropriate. It is also a very useful facility generally, as a business reply will often give an insight into the personal relationship between the firm and the customer. Business responses are moderated by Referenceline.