What Expertise.com does

Expertise.com is a U.S. service-professional directory and lead-generation platform that operates as a d/b/a of Forbes Digital Marketing, Inc. The company researches, vets, and ranks more than 60,000 local businesses each month across 200+ industries spanning Legal, Home Improvement, Finance, Insurance, Business, and Lifestyle categories, with coverage in all 50 U.S. states. Its core methodology is a proprietary five-step selection process (Identify, Analyze, Verify, Screen, Mystery Shop) that combines public-data screening, credential verification, background checks, and live mystery-shopping calls, supported by what the company describes as a proprietary reputation-analysis algorithm. The consumer product includes a free Concierge service that connects callers with ranked providers by phone.

Name

Expertise.com

Legal name

Forbes Digital Marketing, Inc.

Website

https://expertise.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2015

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

101–250 employees

Short description

Expertise.com is a U.S. service-professional directory covering 200+ industries across all 50 states, monetizing via B2B lead-generation subscriptions from SMB service providers under the Forbes Digital Marketing brand.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Online local services marketplace

NAICS

Marketing Consulting Services (541613), Web Search Portals and All Other Information Services (51929), Marketing Research and Public Opinion Polling (541910)

SIC

Services-Engineering, Accounting, Research, Management (8700)

akta.pro primary industry

Due Diligence & Investigative Research (BPAHALAI)

akta.pro secondary industry

Competitive Intelligence & Benchmarking (BPAHALAB)

Keywords

• Local services directory
• Service professional listings
• Lead generation platform
• Professional services marketplace
• Consumer matching service

Headquarters

HQ city

Los Angeles

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Digital Commerce or Content

Cost components

Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Personnel, Operations, Others

Revenue model

1. Lead Generation and Marketing Services for Service Providers: Expertise.com generates revenue by selling marketing placements and lead generation services to service providers (businesses). Providers pay for placement in corresponding category listings. Payments are made monthly at the beginning of each month under a month-to-month agreement.
2. Sponsorship Fees: Service providers pay sponsorship fees for placement in corresponding categories on the Expertise.com platform. Clients must cancel within five days of the payment date to receive a refund.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Expertise.com operates an online directory and ranking platform that researches, vets, and ranks local service professionals across more than 200 industries in all 50 U.S. states, then serves both consumers (free directory search and Concierge matchmaking) and service providers (paid monthly placement/lead-generation subscriptions under the Expertise Marketing Agreement). Its proprietary five-step research process is applied to roughly 60,000 businesses each month to score providers in legal, home improvement, finance, insurance, business, and lifestyle categories.

Product overview

Expertise.com operates as a unified consumer-to-professional matching platform that combines a curated directory service, a free concierge matchmaking function, and a B2B lead-generation marketing service. The core Expertise.com Platform (1) serves as a directory of 200+ service industries across all U.S. states, researching and ranking approximately 60,000+ businesses monthly. The free Concierge Service (2) is a staffed matchmaking function that connects consumers directly with ranked providers. The Provider Rankings & Listings (3) module presents city-specific curated provider lists with aggregated review scores. The Resources & FAQs section (4) provides educational consumer content. The Marketing Agreement service (5) is a separate paid B2B lead-generation product for service providers seeking placement within Expertise.com categories.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Expertise.com Platform Consumer-facing online directory and ranking platform that researches and curates top local service providers across 200+ industries in the U.S., helping consumers find qualified professionals for legal, home improvement, finance, insurance, business, and lifestyle needs.
• Concierge Service Free phone-based matchmaking service where Expertise.com staff connect consumers with top-ranked service providers based on their specific needs, including booking appointments on behalf of customers.
• Provider Rankings and Listings City- and category-specific curated listings of ranked service providers, including detailed profiles with ratings and aggregated reviews from platforms such as Google and Yelp.
• Resources and FAQs Educational content library including guides, how-to articles, and frequently asked questions covering service categories to help consumers make informed decisions when hiring service professionals.
• Expertise Marketing Agreement (Provider Lead Generation) Paid monthly subscription for service providers that delivers consumer leads through category-specific sponsored placement on the Expertise.com directory and via the Concierge service, governed by the Expertise Marketing Agreement.

Named customers2 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• Forbes Digital Marketing, Inc.coreGTM or Marketing PartnerExpertise.com is powered by Forbes Digital Marketing, Inc. D/b/a Expertise.com. This partnership provides brand credibility, marketing support, and leverages the Forbes brand recognition to attract both consumers seeking service professionals and service providers looking for marketing channels. The marketing agreement is explicitly between Expertise.com and clients, with Expertise.com identified as powered by Forbes Digital Marketing.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Angi (Angie's List): Angi is a leading home services lead generation platform that connects homeowners with prescreened local professionals via paid membership and per-lead pricing. It is directly comparable to Expertise.com's home improvement vertical and overall lead-gen monetization model.
• Bark: Bark.com is a global marketplace where consumers post jobs and local professionals pay to be matched with leads across hundreds of service categories. Its broad-vertical, pay-per-lead model closely mirrors Expertise.com's B2B monetization approach.
• HomeAdvisor: HomeAdvisor matches consumers with prescreened home improvement professionals through a paid lead-generation model and is now part of Angi Inc. It overlaps directly with Expertise.com's home improvement category coverage and service-provider monetization.
• Porch: Porch is a home services marketplace that connects homeowners with local professionals and monetizes via leads and provider partnerships. It directly competes in the home improvement vertical that is a major category on Expertise.com.
• Avvo: Avvo is a legal directory that profiles, rates, and ranks attorneys and connects consumers with lawyers through sponsored placements. It is a direct comparable in the legal vertical that Expertise.com serves heavily.
• Thumbtack: Thumbtack operates a two-sided marketplace connecting consumers with local professionals across hundreds of service categories, charging pros for leads/project inquiries. It is the closest pure-play comparable to Expertise.com's directory + paid placement model.
• Lawyers.com (Martindale-Avvo): Lawyers.com, operated by Internet Brands/Martindale-Avvo, is a legal directory that connects consumers with attorneys and offers paid attorney marketing profiles. It is directly comparable to Expertise.com's legal listings and consumer-matching model.

Broad incumbents

• FindLaw: FindLaw, part of Thomson Reuters, is an established legal information and directory platform that connects consumers with attorneys through listings and marketing services. It competes with Expertise.com's legal category but operates as part of a much broader legal information business.
• Yelp: Yelp is a large-scale local business directory and reviews platform that monetizes service providers through advertising and upgraded listings. It competes with Expertise.com for consumer attention in local service discovery and overlaps in the SMB advertising model.
• Houzz: Houzz is a major home design and remodeling platform with a pro directory that connects homeowners to design and home improvement professionals via paid placements. It overlaps with Expertise.com in the home improvement vertical but extends into design content and e-commerce.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/ExpertiseLocal
• Facebookfacebook.com/ExpertiseLocal
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/expertise-llc

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Expertise.com