$138 for a lead on a job that cost $450.?

Orenda

I have not been able to contact anyone at thumbtack to straighten this out, I have previously reported other leads that were over priced and I don’t see anything being done about it. Can anyone give insight as to why my leads have jumped from $30. to more than $100. at random and no matter if the job is $10. and in the same area as a $28. Lead that. Can someone make it make sense for me? This is random and I should not be paying more for a lead than I’d make doing the job, that’s called slavery.

DustiO

Hi @Orenda - so sorry you've had trouble reaching support, we do have a lot of people out for the holidays right now, as well as some ongoing trainings that take people away! I am glad you came here and hopefully I can help. First, here is an article that talks about how leads are priced. You can also change your max lead price to control what you pay for leads. You may already know all of that, but hopefully those articles shed some light! If you do feel like the lead didn't match your preferences for jobs I would definitely request a refund, too. And, I would also recommend (if you haven't already) emailing support (support@thumbtack.com) so that they have a record of your feedback about the job value vs the lead price, because that information is always really helpful! Keep me posted if there is anything I can help with! And thanks again for posting here when you didn't have luck getting through to support!

Js_Garage_Door1

@Orenda your definitely going to want to set a max lead price to an affordable amount that works with your business model. If you want to save even more money set up auto pay and the lead will be disconnected more. This might not be ideal for everyone but for business that want practically every lead it saves us a ton of money.

Orenda

At one point all the leads were $30., when I set a lower max lead amount the leads dramatically slow down. My reviews are great so that’s not the issue, and my profile is great. thumbtack keeps changing and I have a 3 man crew and you never know if it’s a $10. Repair or a $2000. Slow season brings light work and thumbtack doesn’t lighten up with it, it’s still suggesting customers chose more than one pro when they know who they want to pick. That’s not fair to the other pros who pays for the lead and had no chance from the start, now they give the phone number when I respond and there’s no refund because of it. I know thumbtack has to make money too but it doesn’t have to be in a draconian manner.

DustiO

@Orenda I'm truly sorry for the struggle! I will make sure your feedback gets to the right team. In the mean time would love to have you join us for CommuniTEA in the new year so we can chat live (with myself, other Thumbtack team members, and most importantly with other pros).

Js_Garage_Door1

@Orenda I hear you, it can be frustrating with the rising price of gas, materials, insurance, advertising, and all the other things. Have you had time to break down the numbers and calculate your job cost? Add up the cost of advertisement, insurance, websites, and your business property's rent and divide it by your total number of jobs. Then you'll have an idea of what each job you get actually costs you. This is a good starting point ball parking minimum fees. At the end of the day you need to adjust and overcome changes or you can be consumed and ruined by it. If you have good reviews you should be alright.