Are You Building a Business or Just Creating Yourself Another Job?
It’s easy as a small business owner to get caught up doing everything yourself. At what point do you start delegating, hiring, or putting systems in place so the business can operate without you being involved in every job? I’d love to hear how other owners are making that transition while still keeping quality and customer service high.Do you still want every lead that comes into your business?
When I first started, the answer was absolutely YES. 😂 If someone wanted a cleaning quote, I wanted that job. I didn’t care where they lived, what day they needed, what kind of service they wanted, or whether they were actually a good fit for us. A lead meant potential money, and turning down money felt crazy. As we’ve grown, I’ve realized that not every lead is a good lead and not every dollar of revenue is good revenue. Some jobs look great until you factor in the drive time. Some want a schedule that completely disrupts your routes. Some are looking for a level of service you don’t provide. And sometimes you can tell during the very first conversation that their expectations and your business just aren’t going to be a good match. I think one of the hardest parts of growing has been learning that saying no to the wrong client can actually leave room for the right one. We’ve become much more selective about the work we take on, and I don’t necessarily see turning down a lead as “losing business” anymore. Sometimes it’s protecting the business you’ve already built. Has growth made you more selective about the leads you accept? What are the things that make you immediately think, “We’re probably not the right company for this one”?
💡FEATURE REQUEST: Price Increases in Products & Services List
Do you increase prices for ongoing customers? Do you know how long it takes me to increase my prices for 700 ongoing clients in my cleaning business? Whether you increase your prices on an annual basis or just as needed in these unpredictable times, it would be easier to make these changes en masse in the Products and Services tab! How would it work? When editing a product or service line item in the Products & Services List, there should be an option to carry that modification over to any existing Jobs that have that line item on it. Currently, this would only update for new jobs created, but I'd love to see a little pop-up that says, "Would you like to change the price for existing Jobs with this line item? Yes/No" Use Case Example: Because I am in the cleaning industry, it will be my primary use case. Let's say you have a minimum price that every client's rate will be at or above. When you create a new job for a recurring customer, you add a line item titled "Minimum Rate + current year," like for 2020: "Minimum Rate 2020," which is $150. You also add another line item based on how your pricing model is set up - in this case, I will use a simple one: "Small House" for $10 "Medium House" for $30 "Large House" for $50 When it's time for your prices to increase, consider the following options: you could decide to raise prices only for people with large houses and keep your minimum rate the same, or you may want to increase the cost for clients who have been with you for more than 5 years. Instead of making this change one client at a time and trying to sort through who the change applies to, I could go to the Products and Services List and find the specific line item I want to modify. Then, I could edit the price in there! Ta Da! You've raised your prices! Why should Jobber care? This would be huge for any business industry that has recurring clients. ServiceTitan, Housecall Pro, and other competitors already have this feature. I have found other threads that mention something like this or frustrations with how to go about raising prices. This would allow businesses that only see customers once or twice a year to set up their customers as recurring with one Job, saving them a lot of time and effort as well. You'd have at least one very loyal customer in me! I've spoken to two support agents who thought this was a simple but fantastic idea! My next price increase is in June, and I'd love you guys if you saved me weeks worth of work in a single click 🤞🙏 QUESTIONS, COMMENTS, FEEDBACK, AND MORE USE CASES WELCOME!!Has anyone here been a Jobber Grant recipient? I’d love to learn from your experience.
Good morning, everyone! I recently completed my Jobber Grant application, and regardless of the outcome, I’m grateful for the opportunity and everything I’ve already learned through this community. I was curious if anyone here has been selected as a Jobber Grant recipient in previous years. If so, I’d love to hear about your experience. How did receiving the grant impact your business? What investments made the biggest difference? Were there any lessons you learned after receiving the funding that you wish you had known beforehand? I believe hearing real success stories can help all of us prepare for future growth, whether we’re selected this year or not. Thank you in advance for sharing your journey!
