We’ve had the opportunity to reach out to tech entrepreneur Al Lijee to talk about his US-based platform myWindshield, which helps Americans find auto glass repairs quickly and easily. Below is a transcript of our discussion:
Tell us a little bit about the history of myWindshield? How did you get started and what motivated you to create it?
So I launched myWindshield back in 2014 after seeing great success with a similar website I launched in the UK called myWindscreen. The goal was to use the same recipe for success with myWindshield, so the website layout and business model is essentially the same, just for the United States market rather than the UK market.
The spark of genius, if you can call it that, was really simple. I walked over to my car one day after work to find the windshield completely shattered. “No big deal,” I thought, “I’ll just get on the phone and have someone come over and fix it.” Well, you would think it were simple as I was dealing with – what I assumed – was a reputable big national chain, but it was just such a headache that I couldn’t believe it. I was convinced that there had to be a better way, preferably from someone local and independent and not one of the big national franchises.
What makes myWindshield different from traditional auto glass repair services? What’s your USP?
That’s a good question, but it might not be the best comparison. We don’t necessarily compete with traditional auto glass repair shops directly; instead, we try to help auto glass repair shops boost their online visibility and generate leads for them.
The thing is, everyone’s searching for services online these days, including auto glass repairs. Try searching for “windshield repair near me,” for example, and you’ll probably see the same national chains that often charge too much and often leave drivers waiting days or weeks for an appointment. The small guys that used to be in the Yellow Pages are just invisible nowadays unless they’re somehow able to compete pound for pound with these big national franchises. So as digital marketing experts with decades of experience, we try to leverage that to the benefit of smaller, independent auto glass shops.
Who is the target audience of myWindshield? Are you trying to attract any particular auto glass shops or vehicle owners?
We’re trying to reach vehicle owners all across the United States that need windshield repair, windshield replacement, ADAS recalibration, or any other auto glass service. In terms of auto glass shops, myWindshield will accept any qualified and reputable auto glass shop to be listed as a member partner, so long as they undergo our vetting and approval process. We want to work with genuine and honest professionals. We also ask that our member partners be willing to provide free over-the-phone quotes to customers.
What is the process like in terms of connecting vehicle owners with your member partners? Walk me through it like I’m a customer.
From the point of view of a customer, the process should be easy and hassle-free. Just like when I was dealing with a shattered windshield all those years ago, I probably wouldn’t have wanted to stumble across a clunky website that made it a hassle to just get the darned glass fixed.
That’s why I’ve tried very hard to keep the design and layout of myWindshield clean and simple with a clear call to action to get a quote on the homepage and elsewhere. As a customer, it only takes two clicks and a couple strokes of the keyboard. Click on GET QUOTES, enter your ZIP code, then have a look at our member partners operating in your county or state, then just pick up the phone and call them. No signups, no spam, no ads, just a clean user experience.
What sort of customer experience can someone expect by using myWindshield? Are there any benefits or advantages compared to, say, calling a national auto glass franchise?
Again, we want to have a website that’s designed and laid out as cleanly and intuitively as possible with a clear call to action to get a quote. Everything the customer does after that, such as calling one of our member partners for a quote, we want to be hands-off and leave everything to them.
We like to believe that, generally speaking, small and independent auto glass shops across the United States tend to offer far more affordable prices, same-day auto glass services, and genuine customer service that are simply not being offered by the big national franchises.
Could you tell us about some of the challenges that you’ve encountered myWindshield?
Well, seeing as how we launched myWindshield in 2014, one challenge that we’re currently overcoming simply comes down to how people search online. It hasn’t quite been a decade yet, but things have changed so much and just about everyone is using mobile phones so our website had to be revamped quite a bit to offer a better user experience.
There have also been many changes to the Google Search algorithm, but the latest ones haven’t really affected us as much as perhaps many other sites since we try to always publish high-quality, authoritative content that’s 100% human-written. Nevertheless, the constant struggle is trying to maintain best practices with regards to SEO and to genuinely try to reach that coveted first page of search results.
Are there any plans to grow myWindshield or add any additional features?
As of right now, our commitment is currently to keep growing our network by adding more independent auto glass shop member partners. We’ve got an iOS and Android app for our member partners to visualize their leads and to send quotes to customers, but we really don’t plan to expand on features since the overall point of myWindshield is to be simple and straightforward.
We really want to just act as a bridge between the customer and a nearby auto glass shops and mobile technicians, so we want to be as hands-off as possible and let the auto glass technician do what they do best without interfering in their work.