In the world of contracting and construction, expertise matters—so can we honestly say that combined experience is a metric worth trusting?
In our opinion . . . Not really.
But before you say we’re being harsh, let us explain.
A lot of businesses—construction-related and otherwise—like to use the phrase “combined experience” to advertise their expertise. Expressions like, “Here at Company X, we’re proud to possess over 32 years of combined experience!” are intended to lend credibility and build consumer trust.
On the surface, there’s nothing particularly wrong with that (as long as the business is being honest about their combined experience, of course).
However, in an industry so heavily inundated by companies that consistently find themselves in a cycle of open-close-rebrand-reopen, the concept of “combined experience” feels like a disservice both to consumers and, potentially, to the businesses boasting their combined experience.
The fact of the matter is, our clients are intelligent people with critical thinking skills. When the average person hears “32 years of combined experience,” the next logical step is to wonder who they’re working with exactly. Is this a long-trusted company that’s actually been in business for over 30 years? Is this a pro with 28 years of experience being supported by four rookies? Is this a team of 16 newbies with about two years of experience apiece? Yikes.
While seemingly harmless, the expression “combined experience” contributes to unspecificity and a lack of transparency between the contractor and the client. And the way we see it, no one wins when that’s the game being played.
Contracting With Honesty & Integrity
At JC Smith, we prefer to be totally up-front about our experience as a company, and to give individual credit where credit is due within our team.
Sure, we could slap a headline about our combined experience on our site to try and impress you (it adds up to over 50 years!). But we’d rather just tell you that our company—which is run by a whole team of experienced, qualified, licensed professionals—has been growing and thriving for over a decade now.
