Customers Can’t See Our Rates Before Contacting Us — This Is Costing Pros Money

ArthurHandyman

I’d like to share some important feedback about the way pricing is currently displayed to customers.

Previously, customers could see a Pro’s hourly rate before contacting them. This was extremely helpful because customers could immediately determine whether a Pro’s pricing fit their budget before reaching out.

Now, customers appear to be contacting Pros without seeing the hourly rate upfront. This creates a serious problem for those of us who pay for leads.

Customers contact me, I pay for the lead, we start discussing the project, and only then do they ask about the price. Once I tell them my rate or provide an estimate, some stop responding or say that the price is outside their budget. If they had been able to see my rate before contacting me, many of these unnecessary leads could have been avoided.

This has had a real financial impact on me. Recently, I spent approximately $150 on Thumbtack leads and only completed one $120 job from that spending. I understand that not every lead will turn into a job — that is a normal part of doing business. But there is a big difference between a customer choosing not to hire you and a customer contacting you without knowing your basic pricing in the first place.

If Pros are required to pay for these leads, I believe customers should be shown our hourly rates before they contact us. This would help customers choose Pros who actually fit their budget, improve lead quality, save everyone time, and reduce unnecessary costs for Pros.

I would really like Thumbtack to consider bringing back visible hourly rates in customer search results and Pro profiles before a customer initiates contact.

I’d also appreciate it if this feedback could be shared with the product team. I’d be interested to hear whether other Pros have experienced the same issue.

ArvinC

Hi @ArthurHandyman , thanks for taking the time to share this and for including a specific example of what you've been experiencing. I can understand why you'd be concerned when you're investing in leads and then finding that pricing becomes a deciding factor after the customer has already reached out.

There have been some recent updates to how and when pricing appears throughout the customer experience. The intent is to give customers an opportunity to consider the overall fit of a Pro, including their experience, reviews, availability, and expertise, since the final cost of a project can depend on details that aren't always known while a customer is initially browsing.

At the same time, I hear the point you're making about wanting customers to have enough information to determine whether a Pro is within their budget before making contact. I appreciate you sharing the impact you're seeing with your own leads and spend, and I'll include that context when we're surfacing Community feedback around the pricing experience.

In the meantime, one option is to include general pricing information or a starting rate in the Business FAQs section of your profile, which customers can still see when viewing your profile.

Thanks again for laying out your perspective so clearly.