Community at Thumbtack - TackVets

Suzanne

At Thumbtack, we're proud to support our TackVets, an employee resource group (ERG) that fosters an open environment for Veterans. TackVets and their allies recognize important military related dates throughout the year such as Military Appreciation Month, which the ERG celebrated in May. “Being a member of the military has shaped who I am today. Boot camp and Officer Candidate School taught me that I CAN do hard things! I've never been at a company that has ERGs and I was so pleasantly surprised to find that there’s a group for veterans. The experiences of being in the military are pretty unique and I love the fact that Thumbtack values and appreciates my military experience. That is rare for a tech company!”, says the ERG’s lead, Suzanne Roese.

DustiO

Now that we've met TackVets, we would love to hear from our veteran-owned businesses - @bgood2021 @Noble_Canon @PSD @Lyndonj3 @shape2tone @CaptJJ @scphotography @babspete7 @altconstructionllc @micahc @akanodoz @Robert_Murphy @abramsjon85 @danielasrios @Jimkan @valandsurv83 @Hullskitchen @lvenzant @tirvine @markmcgovern @PaulRobison @Danlupomusic @raybeaty53 @RippdFitness @amelamed67 @CHIllc @RENEGADE @rosssystems - Comment below and let us know how we can help foster a Community of support and advocacy!

markmcgovern

I have not seen anything about Thumbtack that makes me think they value veterans more than any other business owner. Is there something specific that they do for us that they don't do for non-veteran people?

They gladly take our money just like they gladly take other business owners' money.

DustiO

@markmcgovern Thank you for sharing your thoughts. This Community is a start, and I'm hoping if we can help connect our veteran pros and employees they can share thoughts, ideas and resources for other veteran-owned businesses. For example, I was able to attend an event with Bunker Labs last year, and they are a great resource for veterans who are just starting out on their professional or entrepreneurship journeys. Do you have any resources that have been helpful to you? And how can we as a Thumbtack Community better support and advocate for veteran-owned businesses?

markmcgovern

That's a good question. Thumbtack used to be (two years ago) a great source of quality leads. I can't imagine what they would or could do differently specifically for veterans vs. non-veterans. Lately, all the leads (direct and otherwise) have been duds, bots, or people not really looking to hire any pro, and Thumbtack has no interest in changing this since the money is all the same to them. Whenever I contact them about a lead not initially responding or providing a fake phone number, they assume I'm just looking for a refund for a lead, but what I am trying to do is let them know about errors in the algorithms and marketing.

I can think of several ways that Thumbtack could improve (for both pros and customers) in general, but I don't know how this would be different for non-veterans or what Thumbtack could do differently in general for veterans. I don't see how veterans who own businesses would need different or more resources than non-veterans who own businesses. It just feels patronizing when I hear that a company "supports veterans" but that doesn't seem to mean anything concrete.

DustiO

@markmcgovern Truly appreciate the feedback and sorry to hear that you haven't been having the best luck with leads. Is there anything I can help you with in that area?

Later this month we will be posting a survey in the Community where pros can opt-in to be connected with our ERGs (like TackVets, Women, ProudTacks, NobleTacks, etc). Hoping we can plan some networking events, listening sessions, knowledge/resource shares, webinars, etc. But, would absolutely love to hear what your thoughts are and what you think would be helpful!

Feel free to DM me too, if you'd like specific help on your Thumbtack account. Thank you!