New Google Search Features: Online Estimates Filter and “Have AI Check Prices” — what does this mean for service pros?
Google has recently started rolling out new pricing-related features in local home service search, and they could impact how service businesses get discovered. Two early changes we’re seeing: “Online estimates” filter Google is beginning to surface an Online estimates filter in some home service searches. Early signs suggest businesses that provide clear, machine-readable pricing or instant estimates may be favored over generic contact forms. “Have AI check prices” or “Ask AI for Pricing” feature Google is also testing an AI feature that gathers pricing on a homeowner’s behalf by using AI to call businesses and collect price quotes. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=illIa8LSfY0 These features are still new and evolving, but they raise big questions about pricing transparency, estimates, and local search visibility. We’re curious: Have you noticed either of these features in your area yet? Do you currently show pricing or estimate ranges online? Do changes like this make you rethink how you approach pricing and Google visibility? Would love to hear what service pros are seeing so far 👇
How do service businesses track service contracts and manage multi-day or multi-visit jobs?
Hello! How are you entering and keeping track of service contracts? We sell, install and service generators and want to make sure we are properly tracking these and ensuring renewals don't slip through the cracks. Some are once a year visit, some need 2 visits, some need 4. How do you guys do this? What about jobs that require multiple visits? Our installs take time from the moment we get the project approved, to then getting the permit approved, and the individual days of work, inspections, etc. Looking for tips on this. Thanks!How do you train your team so they can run the business without you being everywhere?
In this episode of the Masters of Home Service (around the 17:35 mark), Jeff Guldalian (@The360Electrician) breaks down how training your team gives them the authority, foresight, and knowledge to make fewer mistakes—and as a result, get fewer phone calls from upset customers. Do you have any training tips that have helped you let go of some of the daily burdens so you don't have to be everything, everywhere, all at once?
4 wheel drive and winter tires.
In my past jobs I was always provided a work truck. All companies would buy the standard Chevy Colorado 2 door WT, rear wheel drive and all weather tires. If there was a bad snow storm, sometimes I couldn't even get out of my driveway! Funny thing is, back then I didn't care, I was an employee and if I can't make it safely, it was the companies problem to figure out. Now that I have started my own business I have decided that I would buy a 4 wheel drive truck and install winter tires. I want to be available to my customers no matter what the weather and I don't want any excuses. I feel I can safely make it to a home or business no matter the weather and I think that is going to make me stand out to customers. I know that not all businesses have cold weather problems to deal with but in Ontario where I live and operate, I think being ready for winter is very important. If anyone is thinking about purchasing a work vehicle, and live in a snowy area, I would highly recommend making the investment in a 4 wheel drive vehicle with good tires!Add Category & Subcategory Structure to Pricebook Items for Faster Field Quoting
We’d love to see Jobber’s pricebook evolve to include Category and Subcategory fields that can be used to organize services and products within quotes and invoices. Currently, line items can only be classified as “Service” or “Product.” This flat structure makes it difficult for technicians in the field to quickly find the right line item when quoting or invoicing on site. Other trade service platforms (like Housecall Pro) allow items to be uploaded with a “Category” and “Subcategory,” which can then be used to filter or browse within the app. Adding this capability to Jobber would make a major difference for trades with large or detailed pricebooks — especially electrical, HVAC, and plumbing contractors. Example use case: Our team is building a standardized pricebook with over 1,000 items. If we could categorize items (e.g., Devices → Switches → Single Pole or Breakers → AFCI → 20A), our field techs could easily quote small jobs or extras on the spot without relying on estimators. This would: Reduce office workload by enabling accurate in-field quoting and billing Improve efficiency and consistency across the team Buy back time for company owners and estimators to focus on higher-value tasks Suggested Implementation: Add optional “Category” and “Subcategory” fields to the pricebook import/export template Allow field staff to filter or browse line items by category when adding items to quotes or invoices This would be a huge workflow improvement for growing teams trying to scale quoting in the field while maintaining accuracy and consistency.How do you measure crew productivity?
I know Jobber has the employee productivity report. It doesn't work great for a company that has a ton of recurring jobs with fixed billing. I'm curious how people are measuring their crew performance. There are so many ways to track it. Budgeted hours vs actual, revenue per hour worked, jobs completed, visits completed - the list goes on. Curious to know what works for you and your team. What metrics do you look at to gauge crew productivity?Best Jobber Automations
I just wanted to get a post going for these. They can be super powerful in your business and I feel like they don't get talked about enough sometimes. What are your best Jobber automations you have set up?? I really enjoy dashboards myself that give more custom information about my business. I like to use Airtable / Asana / Zapier. Cheers !Has Anyone Here Built Their Own GPT Yet? Or Just Using ChatGPT Like Google?
Hey everyone just curious where the community stands with AI right now. I’ve seen a lot of folks using ChatGPT to look stuff up (like Google 2.0), but I’m wondering if anyone here has gone deeper? Has anyone tried to build or train their own GPT yet? Or customized prompts/workflows to actually support your day-to-day? We’ve been working on building a custom GPT model trained on contractor logic — estimating, soft skills, job-site communication, pricing, SOPs, etc. For our company now, instead of broad knowledge. I see huge value in contractors having their own smart assistant, not just a chatbot. Something that speaks the language of our company. Is that something you’d use or find helpful? Curious to hear what direction you guys are taking.
