Houzz Co-Founder Alon Cohen Reflects on Houzz Pro’s Growth
New tools and increased adoption have made Houzz Pro an integral part of remodeling and design pros’ businesses
After the pandemic hit last year, home design and remodeling professionals had to adjust their businesses and adapt to a new environment of remote collaboration and virtual communication. At the same time, Houzz expanded its Houzz Pro marketing and business management software to provide more tools to help pros win clients and work more effectively — vital for home pros anytime, but crucial then. And since last April, pros have increased their use of Houzz Pro collaboration and transaction tools significantly.
We recently talked with Houzz co-founder Alon Cohen about the many enhancements the company has made to the software since we interviewed him a year ago about Houzz Pro. Here, he shares what pros have told Houzz about the way they are working now and how that has guided product development. He also reveals the features he is most proud of.
We recently talked with Houzz co-founder Alon Cohen about the many enhancements the company has made to the software since we interviewed him a year ago about Houzz Pro. Here, he shares what pros have told Houzz about the way they are working now and how that has guided product development. He also reveals the features he is most proud of.
What has been the reaction and feedback from pros about the product?
The response from our professional community has been overwhelmingly positive. We’re so inspired by stories we’ve heard from professionals who are using Houzz Pro to grow and manage their business — from the builder in Phoenix who launched revenue and profitability ahead two years, to the interior designer in Atlanta who built her business from the ground up, to the remodeler in Wilmington, Delaware, who creates estimates twice as fast and doubled his revenue.
The response from our professional community has been overwhelmingly positive. We’re so inspired by stories we’ve heard from professionals who are using Houzz Pro to grow and manage their business — from the builder in Phoenix who launched revenue and profitability ahead two years, to the interior designer in Atlanta who built her business from the ground up, to the remodeler in Wilmington, Delaware, who creates estimates twice as fast and doubled his revenue.
Why is it important to you that Houzz provides this solution to pros now?
We’re seeing a shift in the way homeowners want to work with home professionals, moving away from paper and pencil and toward online tools for invoicing and payments, document and contract approvals, visualization and remote collaboration. As homeowners become accustomed to the ease and transparency these tools provide, they have come to expect them of remodeling and design pros, much like we saw a decade ago with online portfolios on Houzz. Our goal is to provide pros with the tools they need to stand out, win more clients, increase profits, get paid faster and stay connected with their clients and teams.
We’re seeing a shift in the way homeowners want to work with home professionals, moving away from paper and pencil and toward online tools for invoicing and payments, document and contract approvals, visualization and remote collaboration. As homeowners become accustomed to the ease and transparency these tools provide, they have come to expect them of remodeling and design pros, much like we saw a decade ago with online portfolios on Houzz. Our goal is to provide pros with the tools they need to stand out, win more clients, increase profits, get paid faster and stay connected with their clients and teams.
How is Houzz Pro helping industry professionals not only work smarter but actually thrive during this challenging time?
While we could not have anticipated the pandemic when we built Houzz Pro, we knew our industry-specific remote communication and collaboration tools could uniquely help pros at a time when the “normal” way of working was not possible. We saw use of collaboration tools on Houzz Pro grow tenfold over the past year.
With Houzz Pro, pros have been able to move their projects forward remotely with tools like video meetings, online messaging and photo and file sharing when they can’t meet clients in person. They send approval requests online and get e-signatures from clients. Using these Houzz Pro tools, pros are delivering a world-class client experience.
While we could not have anticipated the pandemic when we built Houzz Pro, we knew our industry-specific remote communication and collaboration tools could uniquely help pros at a time when the “normal” way of working was not possible. We saw use of collaboration tools on Houzz Pro grow tenfold over the past year.
With Houzz Pro, pros have been able to move their projects forward remotely with tools like video meetings, online messaging and photo and file sharing when they can’t meet clients in person. They send approval requests online and get e-signatures from clients. Using these Houzz Pro tools, pros are delivering a world-class client experience.
What improvements has Houzz made in the product over the last year and what prompted those changes?
Since we introduced Houzz Pro, our team has worked with our pro customers to build new tools and features that both support business operations and help pros get ahead. For example, pros shared that they were looking for a way to capture and organize all of the tasks related to each project in one place. We created a task management tool that helps pros to stay on top of key activities for each project and note and follow up on unfinished tasks identified on the job site.
We’ve also added new tools to our local advertising program, including advanced ways to communicate with client leads via text messaging and enhanced analytics to give pros better insight into what’s working and how they can optimize their profiles. In addition, we launched a completely new custom-website-building service to help pros market their businesses and build credibility with potential clients. With the unprecedented demand from homeowners for professionals on Houzz — up more than 50% compared with pre-pandemic levels — these tools help pros stand out.
Since we introduced Houzz Pro, our team has worked with our pro customers to build new tools and features that both support business operations and help pros get ahead. For example, pros shared that they were looking for a way to capture and organize all of the tasks related to each project in one place. We created a task management tool that helps pros to stay on top of key activities for each project and note and follow up on unfinished tasks identified on the job site.
We’ve also added new tools to our local advertising program, including advanced ways to communicate with client leads via text messaging and enhanced analytics to give pros better insight into what’s working and how they can optimize their profiles. In addition, we launched a completely new custom-website-building service to help pros market their businesses and build credibility with potential clients. With the unprecedented demand from homeowners for professionals on Houzz — up more than 50% compared with pre-pandemic levels — these tools help pros stand out.
What new feature rollouts or milestones are you most proud of?
Houzz Pro provides a huge competitive advantage with client management and visualization tools. Imagine you are interviewing three general contractors and in addition to a detailed quote, one general contractor provides you with 3D floor plans, complete project lists and a dashboard outlining project timing and payment schedules. That pro is more likely to win the project because they’re addressing homeowners’ biggest concerns — understanding what they’re paying for, the process and any schedule changes.
Over the past year, we’ve invested in our visual tools, launching our Houzz Pro 3D Floor Planner and Mood Boards, and further enhancing them with the announcement of a partnership with Benjamin Moore to provide premium paint colors for walls and swatches. Pros have been increasingly adopting these tools, with use of our 3D Floor Planner up 6 times and Mood Boards usage up 3.5 times since June 2020.
Houzz Pro provides a huge competitive advantage with client management and visualization tools. Imagine you are interviewing three general contractors and in addition to a detailed quote, one general contractor provides you with 3D floor plans, complete project lists and a dashboard outlining project timing and payment schedules. That pro is more likely to win the project because they’re addressing homeowners’ biggest concerns — understanding what they’re paying for, the process and any schedule changes.
Over the past year, we’ve invested in our visual tools, launching our Houzz Pro 3D Floor Planner and Mood Boards, and further enhancing them with the announcement of a partnership with Benjamin Moore to provide premium paint colors for walls and swatches. Pros have been increasingly adopting these tools, with use of our 3D Floor Planner up 6 times and Mood Boards usage up 3.5 times since June 2020.
Houzz co-founder Alon Cohen. Photo by Noa Penn
What has the past year taught you about pros’ businesses and how Houzz Pro can help?
The past year has reinforced what we already knew about home renovation and design professionals — they are truly resilient. Faced with new regulations and increased demand, they quickly adjusted their procedures and adopted tools like Houzz Pro, to ensure their projects could move forward safely and efficiently.
With Houzz Pro, they now have one login and password, with all of the information they need for each project organized and at their fingertips so they can spend more time doing what they love and providing a great experience for their clients.
What’s coming next for Houzz Pro? Any new features people should watch for?
We continuously enhance Houzz Pro to bring even more value to our pro community. We are working on a number of new features based on their feedback, so stay tuned for more to come!
Learn more about Houzz Pro
More for Pros on Houzz
Read more stories for pros
Learn about Houzz Pro software
Talk with your peers in the Pro-to-Pro discussions
Join the Houzz Trade Program
What has the past year taught you about pros’ businesses and how Houzz Pro can help?
The past year has reinforced what we already knew about home renovation and design professionals — they are truly resilient. Faced with new regulations and increased demand, they quickly adjusted their procedures and adopted tools like Houzz Pro, to ensure their projects could move forward safely and efficiently.
With Houzz Pro, they now have one login and password, with all of the information they need for each project organized and at their fingertips so they can spend more time doing what they love and providing a great experience for their clients.
What’s coming next for Houzz Pro? Any new features people should watch for?
We continuously enhance Houzz Pro to bring even more value to our pro community. We are working on a number of new features based on their feedback, so stay tuned for more to come!
Learn more about Houzz Pro
More for Pros on Houzz
Read more stories for pros
Learn about Houzz Pro software
Talk with your peers in the Pro-to-Pro discussions
Join the Houzz Trade Program
Designers, remodelers and other industry professionals have always been core to our community and they inspire us to build products with their unique needs in mind. When we started Houzz, we focused on helping pros to reach homeowners and grow their businesses. Over time, they began asking for help with running their businesses. We knew that meant helping with both business efficiency and profitability, and that our solution needed to be easy to use and affordable.
So we developed Houzz Pro to be that one tool, where pros can manage their entire project and client life cycle in a single place. We have special tools tailored to each pro category, including interior designers, builders, remodelers and other industry professionals. Using everything we’ve learned in building successful consumer technology, we focused on making Houzz Pro intuitive and easy to use. We also developed a dedicated app so that pros can manage their businesses from anywhere, whether that’s in the field, in the office or, these days, at home.