Indonesia seems to magically run by word of mouth. Brands still require advertising. Services do not. If you need a service, talk to your friends. At least one of them will say, “I know a guy.” This guy will always be able to do the job cheaper, and sometimes better, than [insert whatever you would have done originally].
Some real-life examples:
- Family B needs a housekeeper, so Family A asks their housekeeper for recommendations. Family A’s housekeeper recommends Ibu so-and-so, and Family B now has a housekeeper. Family A’s housekeeper also recommends (and gains employment for) housekeepers C, D, and E for three other families. You can bet all of the housekeepers know other people who could use a gig.
- Our kettle’s handle broke at the weld 2 weeks ago. The kettle was effectively non-functional though it held and heated water well enough. We did not throw it out! We took it to Family A’s housekeeper, who knew a handyman. We received a fixed kettle 2 weeks later for the Indonesian price of a coffee.
- A friend’s backpack stitching had come undone. Housekeeper B suggested a friend who could fix it for a cheap price. The backpack returned a week later with the stitching redone.
- Some friends needed furniture for their new, empty house. They asked a friend where one could get good quality furniture that is not Ikea (Ikea is considered high quality). That friend knows a guy who makes good furniture. The guy made 2 large bookshelves, a coffee table, a dining table, and 2 lovely lounge chairs, far cheaper than Ikea. He will also plug your roof leaks.
Skeptics will dubiously ask, “But is that guy any good?” Therein lies the magic. Indonesia, like many other Asian countries, is (a) highly collective; (b) an honor/shame society. These two facets coalesce into a simple pragmatism: only recommend high-quality workers. Recommending a person who does low-quality work shames the recommender as well as the recommended. If a friend recommends someone, that person is practically guaranteed to perform a satisfactory, if not excellent, job.
I’ve been trying to think of a task or good that I could not get from the ubiquitous untapped talented amateurs that lurk on the fringes. I can get a rooster, a refrigerator salvaged from other refrigerators, my knives sharpened, my teddy bear restuffed and restored, new furniture, and my broken metal items rewelded. If I really wanted a functional knife made from the horns or bones of an animal, I’m positive I could find it through the network. One need only talk to one’s friends. They’ll know a guy.