Moving to a new place is the kind of experience almost everyone goes through at least once in their life, with most people having to do it quite a few times too. However, it is also the kind of experience that varies a lot depending on how far you’re moving, how much stuff you have, whether you’re moving alone or with a large family, whether you choose to do everything yourself or hire professional help, as well as where exactly you’re moving to and from.
What if you’re moving in or out of Akron, Ohio, or to Cleveland or Canton? In such a case, you’d want to look for an Ohio-licensed and Ohio-based moving company that is FMCSA-compliant and has a history of excellent service and customer satisfaction. That is often easier said than done, however, so here are some tips for how to make your move in Akron easier.
1. Find the right moving company
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Proper licensing and insurance can seem like a given, but many moving companies don’t actually have full licensing and insurance. What’s worse, many of the ones that do will often use subcontractors, and those aren’t always insured. Finding a company like Three Movers in Akron that has all the necessary U.S. DOT licensing numbers issued by the U.S. Department of Transportation Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) is crucial if you want to make your move safer, easier, and smoother.
2. Focus on personal referrals over online reviews
We all know that relying on online reviews is often folly, yet we often do it anyway. And we’re not saying that online reviews should be ignored altogether, there are certainly some benefits to comparing the reviews of different companies. However, with so many fake review bot farms out there, this just isn’t a reliable method to use when looking for complex, comprehensive, and crucial services, such as a moving company.
Instead, using personal referrals is a much safer way to look for potential companies you can hire. Even if you can’t find referrals from friends or acquaintances, a referral from someone you’re at least certain is a real person is still more beneficial than online reviews.
Another thing to consider is the difference between professional reviews and user reviews on aggregator sites. The latter can come from everywhere, whereas the former at least comes from people and businesses who do this for a living and who are ready to put their names behind their reviews and opinions.
3. Do some in-depth research on the company yourself
Once you’ve found one or a few companies you’d consider hiring, it’s also important to do some in-depth research. This includes going over the company’s details on their site, their licensing and insurance (or lack thereof), but it can also include a thorough search into their history. For example, looking at local news sites and papers in Akron and Ohio more broadly can give you an idea of how this company’s history goes, whether they have had lots of issues in the past, or they are as close to efficient and effective as can be.
4. Look for more quotes
Even if you’ve found a company you like, it’s still a good idea to look for a few more quotes from other prominent local moving companies. For one, you never know, and you might find an even better offer if you research some more. But, even if you don’t, you will certainly learn a bit more about how the market works in this niche, what you can expect, what more you should discuss with the company you do choose to work with, and so on. Having more know-how is never a bad thing.
5. Keep an eye out for potential red flags
A lot of things can constitute a “red flag” when it comes to moving companies. For instance, many companies ask for a cash deposit before the day of the move. They will usually try to rationalize it too and may almost manage to make their request seem reasonable, but this is a huge red flag that something isn’t right, and you’re either getting scammed or they are in a very bad financial situation.
Another red flag is not giving your detailed information about the move, such as details about the crew, their credentials, and so on. This often happens when the company has something to hide or isn’t sure which crew or subcontractor they are even going to use. Or, it’s just a sign of bad customer support, which is also a red flag.
In general, bad customer service should always make you look elsewhere, as that is a crucial part of a moving company’s job, and it’s a very common problem for small and local companies in particular. Other common red flags include showing up late for a meeting, using a rented van and/or equipment, and being unsure about how they are going to go about the move itself.
