Indianapolis, IN, May 16--As owner of a Mr. Handyman franchise in Los Angeles, T.L. Tenenbaum has rigid guidelines for the best approach to difficult drywall and plumbing problems. He also has ground rules for other home hazards his workers might encounter -- say a misplaced pair of racy underwear or, as once happened, a butcher knife found under a bed, according to the Indianapolis Star.
"Avert your eyes and pretend it doesn't exist," Tenenbaum instructs his techs on day one. "Pretend everything you see is perfectly normal."
Another common land mine: feuding spouses who involve technicians in personal matters -- such as asking whether a married man should be friends with his ex- girlfriend.
Tenenbaum's orders: Agree with everyone, and don't take sides. "We are doctors for their homes and -- people feel -- for their relationships and their personal problems as well," he notes.
Trade professionals long have faced unique challenges when conducting business in the privacy of their customers' homes, but how they handled them was generally up to the individual. Now, a fast-growing industry of branded, home-maintenance franchises with such names as House Doctors and Mr. Handyman are trying to hone protocols for prickly on-the-job scenarios from scantily clad customers to overeager kids who want to play with tools.
Summer is key home-improvement time, and helping fuel these franchises' growth is an aging U.S. housing stock; the average abode is 33, older than at any previous time in U.S. history and often in need of a little nip and tuck that major contractors are too busy to take on.
Meantime, overall home-improvement spending by homeowners continues to tick upward, rising 5.2 percent from the end of the first quarter of last year through the first quarter of 2005, according to Harvard University's Joint Center for Housing studies.
As with any franchise outfit, standardization is vital to developing a unique brand and streamlined systems. In the case of franchised home helpers, protocols help distinguish workers from the rather laissez-faire world of local "Chuck in a Truck" servicemen who often get tapped for small jobs.
Trying to toss out bad apples at the front lines, many handyman franchises run criminal background and motor-vehicle department checks on the techs they hire. About 70 percent of applicants fail right off the bat, says Andy Bell, founder of Handyman Matters Franchising Corp. of Denver, which manages 100 franchises in 37 states.
For the techs his franchisees do hire, Bell is strict about how initial contact is made with a homeowner. Techs must take two steps back after ringing a doorbell and wear a uniform with an identifying logo. (That includes belts to prevent the "plumber problem," Bell notes.)
Among other specifics in the corporate operations manual for Handyman Matters: "No music in the house without headphones" and "Don't use foul language, even if we hit our finger."
Rival Mr. Handyman International LLC of Ann Arbor, Mich., requires its workers to remove sunglasses and carry clipboards when approaching a house. They also must present a business card immediately. "Otherwise, customers feel suspicious," says Mr. Handyman's vice president of operations, John Eggenberger, who sets corporate policies for the company's 98 franchises.
At Mr. Handyman, uniforms are a collared shirt and slacks -- no jeans -- and techs are told to don booties or spread a tarp before stepping on carpet. That is all to put the customer at ease.
Indeed, the home fix-it industry's reputation is ripe for a little polishing of its own: For the past five years, home-improvement contracting has been listed among the top three areas of consumer complaints, according to the National Association of Consumer Agency Administrators.
