From December 11-18, ask or answer a question today for your chance to win one of four $250 gift cards—$1,000 in prizes!
The giveaway closes on December 18, 2024. To be eligible to win you must live in the United States or Canada (with the exception of Quebec) and be over the age of 18.
Click here to review the full rules of this giveaway.
Winners have been announced here!
Has anyone else felt as if the business environment is more hostile than it once was? Let me explain...............
I own a chimney company and I was targeted multiple times by scammers. One scammer started pretending to be from our company so he could scam customers out of their hard-earned money using our good name and posting fake 1-star reviews on our social media pages. A few other scammers went after our company, using fake insurance claims. Another scammer stole my personal identity and, when that didn't work, tried to take out credit cards in my business name. Another scammer launched a fake lawsuit based solely on us completing her job late due to us finding a massive carpenter's ant nest in her wall. She found our untimely finish to the job to be extremely offensive and taxing! We even had Paycom doing our employee checks only to find out they never paid the taxes for said checks! On top of all that, we caught many employees stealing from our company and doing drugs. In the end, we fired all the employees, got security systems on every last thing we own, froze our credit reports, changed our company name, hired lawyers, etc. The end result?.........
1>The insurance company told us the insurance scammers were on their scam list and were known to be repeat offenders but they couldn't stop them! I asked why and they said, "Because, taking them to court costs small businesses like yours far more money in legal fees and the such than it does to simply pay them to shut up and go away!! If they were taken to court they may or may not stop their little game when they lose their case but you, the small business owner, will be out tons of money!"
2> The fake lawsuit lady got some money because our lawyer told us that scammers like that can sue for anything and get away with it. Some people that is simply how they live. From lawsuit to lawsuit instead of from paycheck to paycheck like us normal people! In other words, it is their career to find ridiculous reasons to sue people!! UGG!!
3>The guy who used our company name to scam innocent people got away with it because, according to the BBB, one business cannot launch a complaint against another business! The fake one-star reviews were removed but so was our Google account! The scammer had set up multiple Google accounts in our company name and, according to Google, we had too many accounts open so they closed the legitimate one despite us proving that was the real one!!!!!!!!!!!! We have never been capable of opening a new one, even under our new company name. Despite everything we have tried they refuse to cancel the fake accounts because we don't have the necessary information to access those accounts so we cannot cancel them because we aren't the legal owners of said accounts!! OMG!! That is the stupidest thing I've ever heard!! The scammer has all the rights and we have nothing!
4>Paycom refuses to get back to us about the tax situation and they haven't allowed us access to our files so we are now battling with the employment tax people but they refuse to budge. So where did Paycom go with the money they removed from the employee checks on our behalf?????????????? A question they refuse to answer and the government refuses to help get us answers to!
5>After my identity and the identity of my company were stolen the Maine State Police got the FEDS in on the investigation. After a few days, the FEDS told me they couldn't do anything as there was no evidence of a crime being committed despite the mountains of fake credit card, mortgage, and loan applications I had arrive in my name and/or company name! They also didn't take into account all the activity on my credit reports! So I was left to clean up that mess all by myself and the perpetrator is still on the loose!
6>The employee thefts were treated as a domestic situation by the local police where the business was registered. As a domestic dispute, it was considered not to be an actual crime!! We lost a good $200,000 in vandalism damages and theft damages, yet that wasn't a crime because the morons were hired by us!!!!!!!!!!! On top of that, when we fired the employees after finding out they were stealing and/or doing drugs, they would become enraged at us!! The employees would launch verbal, physical, and emotional attacks on me and my family because we fired them unjustly! According to them, they had the right to steal because they were poor and we rich people owed them money!!!!!!!!!!!! UMM??????? I'm not rich!! Again, the police said the threats were not on camera so they couldn't prosecute and it was considered a domestic dispute anyhow!!
In the end, we had to rebuild everything we worked so darned hard to build but we are still struggling to come up out of the ashes. We no longer trust anyone and refuse to ever hire an employee again. We are still fighting the Paycom issues with the employment office. We are still paying off loans we had to take out to fix the damages that all of this caused us. Our retirement money is all gone thanks to these things. The criminals who targeted our business are out running around terrorizing other small businesses freely. Can I ask why all the rights are on the side of the criminals and there are no rights for the small businesses?
Given the hostility of the business world of today, we small business owners have an uphill battle. The path to success is obstructed almost the entire way. Why is this? Shouldn't we, as a society, be building up and supporting small family businesses? Shouldn't we support each other as a community and not tear each other down? Has anyone else experienced these problems in their businesses or are we all alone here? Thanks so much, everyone.
First, I want to say how incredibly sorry I am that you’ve had to endure such a relentless series of challenges. No one deserves that level of stress, and it’s completely understandable to feel frustrated, betrayed, and disillusioned by the systems that are supposed to protect small business owners like you. Your perseverance in rebuilding everything despite all of this speaks volumes about your strength and resilience.
I've rarely had these issues. I run a dumpster rental business. Some calls us, orders a dumpster, we put it in their driveway, invoice immediately, and then pick the dumpster up when they say, "It's full." I thought when I bought this business, "what could go wrong!" However, someone once rented a dumpster from us, we delivered it, and they paid with a stolen credit card. Immediately Quickbooks (which we integrate into Jobber) flagged us that the credit card was stolen. Soon thereafter, someone called us to ask us why the number on our dumpster wasn't the one in our "for sale" ad. "What for sale ad?" we asked. Seems that the person who fraudulently rented the dumpster put up a for sale listing on Facebook Marketplace SELLING our dumpster! Had we not gotten alerted by the hopeful buyer, we would have lost a dumpster. Who steals dumpsters? Anyway, I just want you to know that, unfortunately you’re not alone—many small business owners have faced similar hardships, though maybe not all at once as you have. Scams, fraudulent lawsuits, employee theft, and identity theft have become more prevalent, and it often feels as if the law protects the wrong people. That said, there are steps other small businesses have taken to try to reduce their risk moving forward. You’ve already implemented some smart moves—like installing security systems and freezing your credit reports—so I want to share a few other ideas that might help:
Finally, you’re absolutely right—society should do more to support small businesses like yours. Small, family-run businesses are the backbone of our communities, and it’s incredibly disheartening when they’re the ones left unprotected. I hope sharing your experience helps others realize just how serious this issue is and encourages small business owners to band together for change.
Please know that your struggles matter, and your resilience hasn’t gone unnoticed. I hope better days are ahead for you and your company. If there’s any way this group can support you further, please don’t hesitate to ask. You’ve been through more than enough on your own.
Take care, and keep fighting the good fight!
David, you telling me your story is enough. Your story is so similar to some of the things we have gone through that it helps to make me feel a little less alone. One guy scamming us thought he had gotten away with it, and he almost did until a customer wanted a refund and had to call us because the scammer's number mysteriously didn't work anymore after the scammer had secured the customer's down payment for the job! The customer looked up our company name, which is the name the scammer had used when securing the deposit, found our real number, and called us to have us settle up. I was confused and that is when the sh*t hit the fan for that scammer! The customer was livid and told me he would handle it and not to worry. I was worried but the customer was brilliant! He sued the pants off of the scammer! That was the most satisfying outcome we had concerning scammers but that one guy who sued the scammer was the only one who stood up for us. It made us feel so alone in our uphill battle. I cannot even imagine stealing a dumpster! That is beyond crazy! We had an employee steal our work van so he could go steal drinks from a convenience store with his drug buddies one day and I thought that was ridiculous! Arrested over a root beer and then, having a vehicle theft added to the root beer theft? Then the van was impounded and searched and they had drugs and stolen goods in it! So it went from a root beer theft to grand theft! It was a bit funny in a way, except the morons were set free on bail and went right back to "work". Not for me obviously, because I fired his sorry butt. I mean he went back to his job of stealing and selling drugs! I had to pay to get the van out of impound by the way!! UGG!! Stealing your boss' van so you can steal root beer and stealing a dumpster? Yup, those are beyond crazy! You and I need to write a book about dumb criminals! LOL! Thank you for making me feel less alone. I truly appreciate that!
Hi there! For better visibility, I invite you to share your comment as your own post in our Entrepreneurship Board. : )
Sorry to hear all of this happen to you. To answer your question, I think the culture has changed. It seems what you’ve experienced reflects today’s society. I don’t understand it either. When I decided to open my handyman business, it seemed like most of my family responded negatively. Instead, in their minds it was like you should work for some big company to collect a paycheck and benefits when my job’s paycheck was barely enough with no way of getting more hours and a crap benefits package which didn’t even include retirement. In my mind I thought, 1) how do you think those big businesses started and 2) I know those things need to be factored in so why not take some control over that and start my own. I was amazed at how many people were against entrepreneurship and I think it reflects the shift from the US being a country of producers to being a country of consumers.
I agree completely with you Tim! I don't understand why people treat trade businesses as if they are the plague!! Being a handyman and owning a handyman business is a very admirable thing if you ask me! Neither of my kids went to college. Why? Because their hearts weren't in it that's why!! My son works for an HVAC company and my daughter is the head of a Redwing Boot store! They wanted to work in trade-related jobs. They didn't become doctors and lawyers and they didn't go to Ivy League colleges but they are successful and happy. I raised my kids in my chimney business. My daughter can sling mortar with the best of them and can install a liner if the need ever arises for her! Our son took plumbing and HVAC in high school, yes Maine schools provide those classes believe it or not. College and white-collar jobs are not for everyone and they are not a guarantee of success either! Keep doing what you do best because that is where you will be the most successful. By the way, try being a female in the trades! UGG! I get all sorts of sexist remarks about not belonging in my chosen career!! Oh, and ignore the ney sayers. They are probably jealous that they don't have your talents! Big hugs!
Hey there, How many days after you send the initial invoice is it okay to send a friendly reminder?
This answer may not suit every situation--and it depends quite a bit on your customers. We require payment when the project starts. But, Griffin Waste is a dumpster rental business--so when we drop off the dumpster, we invoice immediately. The customer is now happy the dumpster has been delivered, and we send an invoice through jobber by text. They pay us often before we've left their driveway!
For most businesses, and for any net 30 customer, it’s generally a good idea to send a friendly reminder 7 to 10 days after the initial invoice if the payment hasn’t been received or acknowledged. This timeframe strikes a balance between giving the client sufficient time to process the invoice and ensuring it stays on their radar.
If your payment terms are shorter (e.g., pay upon receipt, net 7 or net 14), you might send a reminder a little sooner, around the 5-7 day mark. For longer terms (e.g., net 30), a reminder at the 10-14 day point works well.
The key is to keep the tone light and polite—sometimes payments just get overlooked! Also, if there is any time, have the friendliest person on your staff give them a call. If it is truly, "Oh, I forgot," well you just reminded them. A written invoice is very official--a friendly call is just a nice discussion that might start, "Hey, did everything get done to your satisfaction? Oh, and . . . we've not been paid yet" comes up later in the conversation.
We’ve been using Jobber for 6 months now, and it has completely transformed the way we run our company. Before, we were doing everything by hand, which was time-consuming and often disorganized. Now, with Jobber, everything is streamlined and accessible at any time. The ability to view schedules, track jobs, and manage our business from one platform has been a game-changer. It’s made our operations more efficient and has significantly reduced stress for our team. Highly recommend it to any business looking to improve their workflow and organization!
Hello Jobber fam. Is there a way to synch tax preferences in Jobber to QB? Thanks
Hey Sugarland, I suggest posting your questing in our Using Jobber - Integration board!
So does someone want to explain to me what jobber even does? And then further elaborate why we need this service!
It is the most amazing, life-changing site on the web for those of us in the trades. It replaces tons and tons of office staff, thus streamlining your business and saving you time and money. I used to have three secretaries in my office handling bookings, billing, quotes, etc. Quotes and appointments were getting lost, some by accident and some on purpose. No one knew who had sent what so some customers were getting double billed or double booked and no one ever knew who told what customer what info. It was sheer chaos! On top of all that mess, our workers were skimming money and doing drugs when unsupervised. Worse yet, we caught one worker red-handed stealing customer addresses, phone numbers, and appointment information. They would send the info to their friend who would then take over our jobs and take the down payment money while pretending to be us. However, they wouldn't complete the jobs! We were not wise to the tricks since the calenders and files were always a big mess anyhow and the employee in question would make sure all the customer info was deleted from our accounts. I was racing all around trying to clean up messes and divert disaster while trying to run the office. We looked really bad since jobs were going unfinished, payments were being doubled, and employees were drugged up. It was a literal train wreck! I was missing so much of my kid's lives while babysitting my staff. I finally threw in the towel at the end of 2020 and fired everyone! I got Jobber and never looked back! Jobber doesn't get drugged up, doesn't steal my customers, and doesn't skim money off the top of my bottom line! Furthermore, I don't have to babysit Jobber like it is some toddler needing its Mommy 24/7! Jobber keeps my jobs straight and secure, collects the money owed to me, keeps my quotes organized, keeps my customer's information locked up and safe, and Jobber keeps my customers informed of their appointments! I am now doing the work of 4 people in less than half of the time it took me to run around like a crazy person when I had employees mucking up the works! I therefore have more time for my family and friends. Everything takes far less time with Jobber because everything is organized and in one place. Less time means less labor and less labor means less overhead costs. It is pure genius! My accountant even said that minus all the employee disasters we are now making more money. That in itself is a huge testament to Jobber's worth. From setting the appointment to sending the quote to doing the job, collecting payment, and getting feedback from the customer, it is all done right through Jobber. It has saved my sanity and my business! I love, love, love Jobber!!
Been using Jobber now for about 2 months, and it's really helped with organizing my work. Best service I've ever used. Just wondering if there are any Jobber in-person events? if so I'd love to go and learn more from people face to face.
Just signed up with Jobber! Looking forward to getting started.
We are looking at adding finance options for our service. Does anyone currently offer financing options and does it integrate with Jobber?
