Sofa Over A Balcony!

Why Does The CBC Hate Movers? Because It’s Good Business

Over the past few years the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC) has repeatedly put the boots to Two Small Men With Big Hearts moving company. Billed as North America’s largest network of independent moving companies, TSM has consistently come under scrutiny by the national public radio and television broadcaster. From claims of negligence and  incompetence to more recently extortion, the CBC articles have exposed TSM as a very ordinary service provider. But if you are to look more carefully at the CBC articles you get the impression there is also an agenda being served.

Let’s face it movers are drop kicks; low paid, uneducated, bottom of the barrel workers. And this is precisely the stereotype the CBC is banking on when it does this type of exposé. I mean ask yourself, when was the last time you saw stories about movers that were positive? Let me answer: Never. The CBC churns out this type of hit piece because they can; under the guise of consumer watchdog they are allowed to hammer a company and an industry, while the unwashed masses clamour for justice and retribution in the Comments section of the article. It’s a win-win as the CBC throws out some red meat, the dogs of society howl for more, and traffic to the website increases.

The moving industry does have its issues and I’ve written about them extensively over the years. My suggestion to the CBC is this; The next time you are gearing up to take a swing at TSM perhaps you should refocus your attention upon the politicians who refuse to regulate this industry, or perhaps that would be biting the hand that feeds you?

Craigslist For Movers? Ruh Roh!

Craigslist is a terrific resource for a variety of products and services, but it can also be the very embodiment of the maxim caveat emptor - buyer beware.

For many years we used Craigslist as part of a collective strategy to promote our business in the Labor/Moving section of Craigslist Vancouver. About six months ago C/L started making changes to the posting process for companies in this section. Regular posters’ were deleted daily in what appeared to be a push back against those who had been on C/L over the years and who no longer fit the bill as small, by C/L standards.

In the ensuing months a healthy mix of cheap upstarts and established professionals was diluted to the rough and ready only, as all established companies were wiped off the list in an inexorable campaign of ad deletion. And therein lies the rub – if you visit Craigslist Vancouver for movers today, there is nothing more than muppets masquerading as professionals.

“Who cares” I hear you say. Consider this point: To stay atop C/L these days a ‘company’ needs to change its phone number and name regularly to avoid ad deletion. Do you really want to do business with a company for whom deception is the very starting point of their business existence? Foresight and common sense suggests you will get what you get, if anything goes sideways on your move.

Moving is a stressful event, yet it doesn’t have to be if you shop carefully for a moving company in Vancouver. It’s like shopping for a car, you test drive a few and the best one becomes evident. The same applies to the moving business; contact a few reputable companies and outline your needs. You will be surprised how quickly the wheat separates from the chaff.