5 Fails by Angie’s List

Many window cleaners in North America use Angies List for getting jobs, but how do they perform for the customer?

5 Fails by Angie’s List — Why “Soft Skills” are Key to Customer Service Success Editor's Pick! (by Bob Thompson) - One might think that a small company like Angie’s List (~$100 million/year) would outperform e-commerce giant Amazon.com (~100 Billion/year) on customer service. Sadly, no.

After moving to San Diego, I was a happy Angie’s List customer, using the service to find local service providers for moving, cleaning, and more. All went well until I booked a house cleaning service advertised as “deep cleaning” when the actual service was anything but. When I contacted Angie’s List to complain — multiple times — the customer service rep (CSR) basically read me their terms and conditions which said no refunds after 30 days.

It didn’t matter that I couldn’t schedule the service provider inside that 30-day window. My only option was to book something else within another short time window, which I didn’t want to do. So, they kept my money. Yes, that’s right. Angie’s List kept my money and provided nothing of value whatsoever. That “free” money cost them a lot. I’m now a “never Angie’s List” customer, and have relayed my story to hundreds of people in person or speeches. And now I’m writing about it on CustomerThink, a site that serves 100K visitors per month.

So for a short-term “win” that forced me to comply with nonsensical rules, Angie’s List lost my business forever, and this post will be added to growing pile (82K and counting) of Angie’s List Sucks posts easily found on Google. Stupid beyond belief.

Contrast that with Amazon, where I recently had a problem with a delivery. I contacted them and they promptly refunded my money. The rep (yes, I spoke with a real live person) was helpful, friendly, and clearly wanted to resolve the issue to my complete satisfaction.

Agent Training/Development Ranked Biggest Investment

I recently completed a study of customer service practices (disclosure: sponsored by Oracle) to determine the relative impact of 14 different practices on success. My online survey (n=209) also asked service managers/execs to select their first-, second-, and third-largest customer service investments for the coming year.

Investment priorities generally correlated with the more critical customer service practices, including new customer service solutions, channels and other capabilities. However, one investment stood out as a bit of a surprise — “agent training/development” was ranked No. 1.

That raised a question for me — training in what, exactly? Here is what I learned after putting that question to a number of customer service experts.

Listen with Empathy

Nearly everyone mentioned how critical it was to truly listen what a customer is saying, and understand how they feel. As Jeff Toister points out, this skill shouldn’t be taken too literally and limited to just phone calls.

Listening skills including listening to and interpreting verbal messages, but I also include written messages (email, social media, text, etc.) in this category too. Employees are faced with countless distractions at work that make it difficult for them to understand what their customers really want and how their customers are feeling. One of the best things a customer service professional can do is try to understand the underlying emotion a customer is expressing when they’re sharing their issue.

My Angie’s List rep showed no evidence of actually listening, or caring about my situation — only in repeating their terms and condition. Fail #1.

Solve Problems

Why treat CSRs like robots and only allow them to do exactly what’s in a script? People have brains, put them to use! According to Steve Curtin, taking ownership is key:

… a process, policy or service model rarely contains the sentiment that a customer’s problem is your problem. When employees lack this mindset, their solutions to customers’ dilemmas are limited to what’s on the screen or page before them – and this may not completely solve the customer’s problem. But when employees take ownership by adopting the mentality that a customer’s problem is their problem, this enhances their ability to consistently resolve problems to the satisfaction, if not delight, of customers.

In my case with Angie’s List, the “problem” was a 30-day refund window which didn’t allow for fulfillment delays. But the CSR was clearly not interested in solving that problem, wasn’t empowered to give a refund, and refused to escalate the situation to management. Fail #2.

Defuse Anger, Build Human-to-Human Relationships

If everything went perfectly, you wouldn’t need customer service. But even in highly automated, quality-obsessed companies like Amazon, occasionally something goes wrong. At these moments of truth, Richard Shapiro advocates creating a human connection:

If a rep says, “I hear you are concerned, but I can help you,” it automatically provides a human connection, the first building block to building a relationship. In person, the rep can authentically compliment the customer about something he or she may be wearing or even make a comment about the weather. If the rep is on the phone with the customer, make mention of a noise in the background like a dog barking or baby crying. This shows the customer that the rep is actually a person, too.

I was unhappy when I contacted both Amazon and Angie’s List to deal with issues. Amazon handled it well, while the Angie’s List rep just poured fuel on the fire. Fail #3.

Turn Calls into Revenue

After my Amazon experience which required a refund, I was back online a few days later ordering more. Really outstanding CSRs can turn a customer call into new revenue, says Chip Bell:

Customers are smarter, Internet savvy and more demanding than ever. They expect CSRs to be smart and resourceful, not human robots with programmed scripts. Up selling takes specialized skills, not rote order taking procedures.

After my Angie’s List experience, I immediately stopped ordering and have tried my best to discourage friends and neighbors, too. Fail #4.

Blend High-Tech and High-Touch

With rare exceptions, most businesses will continue to offer customer service by phone, even as adoption of digital channels increases. In fact, a recent NewVoiceMedia study found that “68 percent of respondents claim they would prefer to interact with a live agent rather than automated self-help (FAQs/guided support, dial directories, chatbots, etc.) when dealing with customer service.” People are the key to delight customers, says Shep Hyken:

Obviously a good self-service portal on the company’s website is important, but there are many channels that customers interact on that are responded to by the CSRs of a company. A comment on a social channel, like Twitter or Facebook, will take a well-trained CSR to respond in way that is correct and personal. Until these online and social channels are take care of by computers and robots, in such a way that the customer is delighted with the interaction, it will be the people that will make the difference.

Angie’s List had good automated tools for finding contractors and booking orders. But when human judgement was required, they failed miserably. That’s Fail #5, which is enough for this article.

Empower, Reward, Improve

There are other skills that need development, including decision making and time management, says Bill Moore of Customer Relationship Management Institute (CRMI). He also counsels managers to empower their reps and recognize them for improving customer satisfaction:

Be sure to compliment the training with internal procedures that provide the service representatives with the authority to resolve conflicts up to a certain dollar amount without approval. The Ritz Carlton and Nordstrom’s are two examples of where employees are authorized a certain level of remuneration to immediately resolve a customer issue.

And … ensure measurable improvements of customer satisfaction are tied to an ongoing employee recognition and reward program.

And finally, Ron Kaufman writes that a passion for “perpetual service improvement” is the key to growth:

Excellence in service is not taking a prescribed set of actions. Rather, service excellence is taking the next right action to create new value, better value, or more than expected value for someone else; an internal colleague or an external customer. Service excellence is the commitment – not merely to predictable standards – but to continuously stepping up.

Bottom line: People still matter. My sincere thanks to the customer service experts who helped me better understand the skills customer service reps need to avoid defections (Angie’s List) and build genuinely loyal relationships (Amazon).

Chip Bell: The Chip Bell Group

Steve Curtin: Steve Curtin LLC

Shep Hyken: The Customer Focus

Ron Kaufman: UP! Your Service

Bill Moore: The Customer Relationship Management Institute (CRMI)

Richard Shapiro: The Center for Client Retention

Jeff Toister: Toister Performance Solutions

Amazon Connection Gives Boost For Window Cleaners

Juan Marn, of Everclean Cleaning Services, on the job. He says about a third of his work comes from Amazon Home Services.

Amazon connection gives small businesses a boost: In October last year, cleaning-business owner Juan Marín heeded the advice of a friend and signed up with Amazon Home Services, which connects customers of the Seattle tech giant to local plumbers, electricians or someone who can assemble an Ikea bed.

The loss of a full-time job in 2013 prompted Juan Marín to plunge all his efforts into the home-services business he and his wife, Yesica, had started in 2010. They expanded what had started as a housecleaning service into roof and gutter cleaning.

In October last year, the 46-year old native of Monterrey, Mexico, heeded the advice of a friend and signed up with Amazon Home Services, a then-nascent marketplace that connects customers of the Seattle tech giant to local plumbers, electricians or someone who can assemble an Ikea bed.

The move gave Marín’s business a sudden boost. He says perhaps a third of his work comes from Amazon, and that his plate is filling up after favorable reviews (his small firm, Everclean Cleaning Services, has 22 reviews, all five-star.) “We are looking to hire to extend the services we can offer, because my wife and I can’t keep up,” he said. “We’ve had to turn down requests.”

It’s been about a year since Amazon.com opened an online marketplace dedicated to the home-services category, throwing itself into a market first carved out by Angie’s List and more recently by Seattle-based Porch.

It’s not known exactly how many service providers like the Maríns have enrolled, but Amazon says it has done well, with orders growing more than 20 percent per month since the marketplace launched in March 2015 in four metropolitan areas. Now Amazon Home Services extends to 30 major metro areas.

For Amazon, the home-improvement business is an interesting field to conquer in its quest to becoming the place where everybody goes for purchases or services. The company, of course, takes its cut — a 10 to 20 percent commission per job in the case of home services, depending on the complexity of the order.

By taking similar cuts from third-party merchants of everything from diapers to high-priced art, Amazon has built its Marketplace business into what CEO Jeff Bezos calls one of the three “big pillars” of the company.

Amazon Home Services not only adds a new segment to that pillar, but also enables its online store to sell more things by, say, selling both a new TV and the service to mount it on a wall. Erika Takeuchi, a spokeswoman for Amazon Home Services, said Amazon has seen an uptick in certain categories of home improvement and electronics because of the associated services offered. 

Amazon brings to buyers and sellers something in return. It does background checks on providers, and its well-established review system allows customers to have some reassurance.

Juan Marín, owner of Everclean Cleaning Service, prepares to wash windows for a client. His business has improved since signing up with Amazon Home Services, a marketplace for local cleaners, electricians, etc.

At the site of one of Marín’s window washing jobs, on Queen Anne, the customer, who declined to be identified, said it was easier than “asking her neighbor for someone who might or might not do a good job.” Amazon will automatically suggest a provider if the client is unsure about whom to hire, and guarantees the job.

To the service providers, Amazon offers a line into its millions of customers. It handles payment and scheduling, and the way it connects sellers and clients (providers have an app on their phone that pings them when a job is offered) is pretty much automated, helping harried small-business owners run the trains on time.

Customers approve a bid online and pay Amazon when the job is completed; then Amazon pays the provider every 14 days. “You save a lot of time on calls,” Marín says.

That said, there are challenges. For Amazon, dealing with people was different from dealing with companies that sell merchandise. It was a task to reach out to these service providers, many of whom weren’t even online, Takeuchi said.

(Amazon has run into trouble before identifying these providers: Last year Angie’s List sued Amazon Local, a now defunct Groupon-like deals business, for taking leads off Angie’s site. The companies agreed to a settlement last month in which Amazon agreed to bar its employees from using Angie’s List accounts for business purposes. But Amazon Home Services is a separate business.)

Its guarantee to customers had to evolve as well. “If you have your roof leaking you don’t just want your money back,” Takeuchi said. “You want to make sure it stops leaking.”

For service providers, the challenge is to keep up with increased competition, which brings the same downward pressure on prices that third-party merchandise sellers are already familiar with.

For Marín, who lives in Edmonds, it means that there are some jobs he won’t do. He’ll take a $125 window cleaning job on Queen Anne or Magnolia, which is his usual area of service. But “if it’s in Issaquah, that’s too far,” he said.

Also see: Now Google Go Head to Head with Amazon Home Services

Deal Or No Deal?

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Here's an onion..

Shock as window cleaner posts annual loss of nearly £700: George Kerr, a 68-year-old window cleaner from Birmingham, has stunned friends, family and City analysts by reporting a loss of £693 for the financial year ending 5th April 2015. Fears are growing that this may not be the only disappointing set of annual results in the self-employed trading sector.

The loss contrasts starkly with the £2,500 profit posted for the previous year, prompting suggestions of false accounting and a cover-up. Tax expert Vaz Singh from accountants Singh, Singh and Singh pointed the finger at ‘unrealistically low depreciation figures being applied to Kerr’s 5-year-old Vauxhall Combo during the previous profitable year’

The loss will mean that no dividend is payable to Kerr’s drinking partner and brother-in-law, John Wade. Kerr added in a statement: ‘And my bone-idle bitch wife who is probably shagging the delivery man while I’m out working my fingers to the bone can f*ck off and all.’

Now Google Go Head to Head with Amazon Home Services

Now Google Go Head to Head with Amazon Home Services. It will all end up as a price war for window cleaners.

Google to go Head to Head with Amazon Home Services: Later this spring, Google is expected to officially launch its online, on demand home services site, comparable to the recently launched Amazon Home Services as well as Angie's List, HomeAdvisor, and Thumbtack. Currently available for finding car insurance, Google Compare may become the location-based evolution of Google Places as the platform for connecting searchers with local services in their area.

Google Follows Amazon Into Home Services: Google's ambitions are virtually limitless: curing death, teleportation, renewable energy and so on. Add another one to the list: fixing your clogged toilet.

Following closely behind its arch-rival Amazon, Google is planning to launch a new product connecting users with home services providers like plumbers, housecleaners, electricians and carpenters.  The move, expected to be announced within the next few weeks, is in keeping with a broader corporate strategy of "closing the loop" between buyers and sellers rather than simply introducing the two through advertising. Google Express, its e-commerce service, now serves six urban areas, including Chicago and Boston.

But for a company that prides itself on total informational awareness, the home-services market poses unique challenges. “Local services will be harder because the data’s not as transparent on what you can provide,” says Manpreet Singh, founder of TalkLocal, a startup that helps customers book appointments with approved service providers. A contractor doesn’t know how much it will cost to retile your bathroom until she goes in and sees it.

For that and other reasons, Singh expects Google to partner with companies like his rather than try to go it alone, even though it will mean cutting in another middleman. That’s the approach Yelp has taken in its own efforts to close the commerce loop, and it’s also how Amazon, which has a partnership with TaskRabbit, is easing into the home-services game.

One unanswered question in all this is how Google will square its new push with the $100 million investment it made in Thumbtack through its Google Capital arm last year. The San Francisco-based company provides essentially the exact same service Google is looking to start, connecting service providers to customers for a commission.

The apparent conflict of interests is reminiscent of the situation unfolding between Google and Uber. Google Ventures has invested $250 million in the car-service startup, but Google is also said to be developing its own ride-summoning product, a development that would put the two giants into direct competition.

Did Google Just Declare War on Amazon (Again)? Pull up a chair, and get the popcorn out… We have yet another fierce scrap between two of the world’s biggest tech giants. In the race to develop new technologies and innovations – and break into untapped, highly lucrative markets –  such scuffles are common. In August 2014, for example, Google (GOOGL) went public with “Project Wing” – a previously secretive project to develop a drone-delivery service. The revelation was a shot across the bow of fellow tech juggernaut, Amazon (AMZN). Eight months earlier, CEO Jeff Bezos had appeared on 60 Minutes to announce Amazon’s own drone-delivery ambitions – Prime Air.

Well, if the latest rumors are true, the search giant is stirring up trouble again. This time, in a high-dollar market, worth up to $400 billion per year… A Whole New Spin on “Google It” Now, you’d think that Google’s latest venture would be another cool, high-tech offering like drones. But instead, it’s rather low-tech… involving plumbers, electricians, and roofers.

There are increasing rumors that Google is preparing to expand its specialized search capabilities in order to connect consumers with local home service providers. Currently, searches for things like plumbers only return links to local contractors’ websites or contact information. Then, consumers must navigate strategically placed advertisements, as well. But Google’s new service will reportedly connect search users directly with contractors.

In other words, while a regular search just spits out a list of options and a few ads, Google will now act as a middleman and actually allow you to set up and schedule the service. In return, it’ll take a cut of the fee. Again, this is all speculation. But keep in mind that in 2014, Google led a $100-million investment in home service company, Thumbtack. So it’s obviously interested in the home services market.

Sources say an official announcement is likely to come at Google’s annual advertiser summit in May.

Coincidence? Hardly… Not even two weeks ago, Amazon launched a similar service, which allows customers to schedule home services after making purchases. Dubbed Amazon Home Services, it was beta-tested in major cities – including Seattle, Los Angeles, and New York – as Amazon Local Services. Now it’s available in 41 states and 30 of the biggest metropolitan areas in the United States, according to Peter Faricy, Vice President for Amazon Marketplace.

Say, for example, you order a new sink. Amazon will hook you up with a plumber to install it. Or if you buy a new, 60” Samsung (SSNLF) LED TV, Amazon has a guy who can come mount it on the wall for you. Amazon benefits by taking a cut (anywhere from 5% to 19%) of the service providers’ fee.

So why in the world are two of the biggest technology companies interested in such a low-tech, local opportunity? It’s All About the Money… or Is It? Although the home service market might consist of a lot of small ticket items – $150 to install a ceiling fan… $600 to clean out a chimney… they add up.

“It’s a huge market,” says Gartner analyst, Jason Daigler. Indeed. Estimates peg the overall addressable market size at $250 billion to $400 billion. To put that into perspective, the high end of the estimates is bigger than Google’s or Amazon’s current market cap!

So expanding into home services and capturing a meaningful market share could contribute substantial profits to the bottom line. At the same time, home services represent a low-risk expansion opportunity for both companies. As consumers, we clearly don’t like to go it alone when it comes to finding service providers. Consider that the likes of Angie’s List (ANGI), Yelp (YELP), Groupon (GRPN), and Craigslist already connect us directly to service providers. So they’ve validated that demand exists.

Obviously, Amazon and Google believe they can do a better job of helping us. I tend to agree, given each company’s platforms, extensive reach, and the invaluable intelligence gleaned from a near-endless supply of data on consumer habits.

But it’s not going to come without challenges…

Wanted: A Critical Mass of Contractors. The home services market is extremely fragmented and localized. Think about it: Very few, if any, national chains exist for plumbers, electricians, roofers, etc. It also lacks uniformity. Some handymen have nothing more than a truck and a sign. Meanwhile, some service companies boast fleets of trucks and technicians. Local… fragmented… heterogeneous. Add it all up, and it requires a highly customized approach to succeed. And that inevitably cuts into margins.

Even more so when we throw in additional layers of complexity and due diligence, such as performing background checks (for example, Amazon has a full-time vetting team in Seattle) and providing a platform for reviews and consumer protections for bad service. But, as I told CNBC’s Morgan Brennan in a recent interview, “If anyone can automate a seemingly daunting market via data, it’s Google.”

Above all, Google and Amazon need to get a critical mass of service providers on the system in order to make it a true benefit for consumers and a boon for shareholders. But the tech behemoths’ move into home services isn’t simply another opportunity to make money, though…

Show Me the Money: The desire to “go local” serves a much higher purpose – expanding each company’s reach and entrenching their services into our everyday lives as much as possible. And Rolling Stone thought Goldman Sachs (GS) was the vampire squid, “relentlessly jamming its blood funnel into anything that smells like money!”

Bottom line: By offering more services, Google and Amazon can keep us – and our hard-earned capital – from straying elsewhere on the web. In the process, we’ll give both companies even better data to keep serving us even more services. Talk about a domino effect. And with an entire world of consumers to go after, it’s no wonder the two companies are squaring off again in what promises to be another fierce battle.

Amazon Now Offering Home Services

Amazon is counting on convenience craving customers who want to know the price up front. Some pre-packaged services are offered at set prices, and there's a price-matching guarantee on those services. More than a dozen custom-priced home services; interior design, yard maintenance, pest control, window washing are also are available. Amazon collects a fee of 10 to 20 percent of the charges from participating service providers.

Amazon now offering home services: Amazon.com strapped on a home improvement tool belt this week, with an announcement that the site will now help users find pros to get things done around the house.

The online emporium that helps its affiliated sellers get even the most obscure products to a buyer's doorstep has been expanding its list of services with data storage, movie streaming and more. Now Amazon can send people to those same doorsteps to assemble a new treadmill, hang flat-screen TVs, clear clogged drains, repair a heating system or paint the bedroom.

Amazon Home Services will be competing with go-between sites like Angie's List, Home Services Pro, Home Advisor and others that promise to make it easier to find the right person for the job, usually at the right price.

As with similar sites, Amazon Home Services pros can compete for a customer's business through pricing and their availability. But Amazon isn't charging a subscription fee as Angie's List does. And it spells out exactly how it checks out its service providers in ways other sites don't.

Amazon is counting on convenience craving customers who want to know the price up front. Some pre-packaged services are offered at set prices, and there's a price-matching guarantee on those services. More than a dozen custom-priced home services.. interior design, yard maintenance, pest control, window washing are also are available. (Curiously, beyond having someone bring in weed-clearing goats, the list also includes acrobatic silk aerialists who might swing from the ceiling and twirl themselves up using lengths of cloth.)

Window washers already being hired, click here.

According to Amazon, its hand-picked professionals have a record of service quality. "We screen through a combination of media searches, online interviews and reference checks." While any home service provider can now apply to work with Amazon, all will be subjected to a 6-point criminal background check and must keep proof of licenses and insurance on file with Amazon. Business registration, liens, judgments, bankruptcy status and more are checked for participating providers on an ongoing basis, according to the site. Providers also must "meet ongoing performance targets" including responsiveness, quality work and positive ratings.

And then there's the "Happiness Guarantee." According to the site: "Our goal is to make sure you're 100 percent happy with any service you've purchased from Amazon Home Services. If the work was not completed to your satisfaction and you're not wearing a gigantic smile, let us know and we'll work with you and your pro to help ensure the job gets done right." If it can't be done right, a refund is the next step.

Don't get excited yet. Not one New Jersey city is listed among the locations to which the service is presently offered. While a search with a central New Jersey ZIP code did pull up a number of mostly assembly services available, the return for searches for more heavy-duty jobs like housecleaning or drywall repair was most often "We're sorry, no pros near."

Customers pay for the work once the job is completed, and Amazon collects a fee of 10 to 20 percent of the charges from participating service providers.

The full roster of home services will include lessons (music, language, yoga -- including aerial), automobile repair, lawn and garden help and computer- and electronics-related repairs and service. Amazon says it is constantly adding providers and services and that those in New Jersey and other areas not yet fully served should "check back frequently for updates."

Chris Dawber - Write A Book - "Job Done"

Click to see the book.

This is a book from a window cleaner we all know well from his YouTube videos. Chris Dawber (aka Wagga) says he began to write this book out of bitterness. Bitterness at all the hard work and failure he has endured in his life, but as he progressed through his book, he began to realize how many experiences he could share with others. This is largely an account of an ordinary man searching for a place in life and trying to find out just who he is. Much of what Chris did was borne mainly out of fear, fear and failure. This was to lead Chris into all sorts of adventures and situations that he could not cope with, let alone have the ability to carry out with any competence. From cleaning toilets to Royal Naval Aircrew, Merchant Seaman to Psychiatric Nurse and even a window cleaner, a life lived to the full, he regrets none of it. This led to many humorous and some dangerous situations, many of which he sought to escape by Running For Home. A book, written with honesty and sincerity - this book may help anyone to come to terms with their lot in life! Just to remind you... Chris in action..

A few snippets from Chris...

I was cleaning windows for over 20 years until I changed my system over to what is called WFP (water fed pole) where ladders are not required. In all this time I never once fell off. There were some very close shaves though. Several times the ladders slipped a bit then stopped. Once a rung snapped but it was the last but one, closest to the ground, so I just fell backwards onto the grass without injury. Once when my wife was working with me, I climbed onto a roof to do a window above a porch. I had muddy boots and as I got to the window I slipped, began to slide back down the roof on my bum, my progress only halted by the plastic gutter into which both feet went. This flexed alarmingly and I was terrified and called out to my wife to catch me if I fell, which sounds hilarious now. Somehow I managed to get back to the ladders"

Some customers have been the same ones since I first started window cleaning in 1986 up to 2011 as I write this. Many became friends and many now know my name. Sadly several have died and I can remember most of them and hear their voices. One of my customers was actually murdered. My wife and I would talk to her every time we cleaned the windows. Then one day the whole of Aycliffe Village was crawling with police but I did not know at the time what was going on. It was only several weeks later whilst we were watching Crime Watch on TV that we realised what had happened. We had no information so we did not ring up Crime Watch but in hindsight, we should have done. Its just that I had felt that the police had been incompetent in not talking to me when they saw me in the village cleaning windows. It was as though I was invisible or something. Some years later, I asked a detective who’s house I cleaned, how the case had gone since I had an interest. I mentioned that no one had thought to interview me and my wife and surely the forensic team had found the ticket that I had put through her letter box. It was the very same stamp I used to make the ticket that he got in his letter box. I said “Surely you found my ticket?” The next time he saw me, he knew my name and appeared to know quite a lot about me.

One morning a few years back, I had just started work when an elderly woman came out of the house next to the one I was cleaning. She was obviously in distress and shouted that her husband had collapsed. She was on the phone and the emergency services were talking to her when I entered her house. I found her husband Francis, aged 78 collapsed on the floor of the kitchen. He’d obviously fallen against the wall and was sat up. His eyes were slightly open and I could not see any movement whatsoever. My worst fears began to set in as my training in the forces kicked in once again. The first thing I did was check for a pulse, first on his neck and finding none, on his wrist. At first I could not believe that there was no pulse so I checked over and over again. I said to his wife, “there’s no pulse”. The emergency services asked her to tell me to start CPR. I knew what I had to do and dragged Francis into the hall where I began to try and breath some life back into him.

I opened his mouth and breathed into his. His chest rose. He had been sick and I could feel bits of vomit in my own mouth. I didn’t feel sick though, that would come later when the adrenalin wore off. I pumped at his chest, counting as I went, then back to giving him air. It seemed to go on for ages. When would the ambulance arrive. On and on it went, some colour returning to his face but I was getting no response. Still no pulse. On and on without success.

Then the paramedics burst in and took over. Their professionalism really showed since they did not just brush me aside but instead asked me to help carry him into the living room where there was much more space. Then said its okay, "we’ll take over now."

I stood in the doorway watching as they did all they could to bring him back but the monitor stayed resolutely blank. They began shaking their heads. I knew it was over but still could not accept he was dead. I sat in the kitchen where his wife made me a cup of tea. When the doctor arrived he pronounced Francis dead. The tears rolled down my face, but one of the paramedics consoled me by asking if I had done this sort of thing before. I said I had been in the Navy. He nodded knowingly.

If you feel that this book would interest you or you have enjoyed or learned from Wagga's videos, please shake your pocket & give something back. As Chris would say... "Job Done!"