Finally, a startup that can take the pain out of hiring service providers in Indonesia

In Indonesia, finding a person to fix your leaky roof, install air conditioning units, or solving any typical chores around the house can be a pain. Few of these service providers have an online presence. Your best bet is to keep an eye out for flyers that float onto your porch or fill your mailbox. Or you ask neighbors, family, and friends for recommendations.

But even if you have a recommendation, it’s complicated. Service providers in this category often operate informally, which means they don’t abide to regular office hours and may be difficult to reach by phone. Negotiating prices is cumbersome too, because there is no simple way to compare, and norms don’t exist.

Like a Tinder for services

Enter Seekmi, a startup still in its infancy but with promising potential to help sort out this matchmaking problem. Seekmi asks service seekers to submit their request through a form. It then links them up with matching providers from its database – they submit quotations directly to the seekers. Once the seeker has chosen one service provider, further discussion is taken offline. Seekmi does not handle the payment process on its platform.

Nayoko Wicaksono, Seekmi’s co-founder and CEO, expects domestic services – including household staff and nannies, which are common even in Indonesia’s middle class – to be popular. But the platform will cover a broad range, including creative services like photography and design, and masseurs, and makeup artists.

“In a way, we’re like a Tinder for services. We just make the introduction, everything else happens afterwards,” says Wicaksono.

While that’s a handy comparison, fortunately, it’s not quite true. Joining Seekmi is not as instantaneous as signing up for Tinder. Service providers must submit ID, a valid phone number and references from previous clients or employers to be considered. Seekmi follows up with all applicants manually to ensure the offers are legit. It’s a process Wicaksono feels is right to ensure quality, while still enabling informal service providers to participate. Seekmi does not ask for a tax number or company license.

Seekers, on the other hand, must fill out a form describing their particular needs. “Each type of service will get its own job. For example, if you want to hire a photographer, you need to be able to describe pretty clearly what it is you want.”

Learning from Thumbtack

If signing up is free for providers, and the actual transaction happens offline, where does Seekmi take its cut?

The answer lies in quotations: Every time a service provider submits a quotation they pay a fee. This fee is dependent on the type of service they offer. For example, an interior designer would be charged more than a gardener.