Please don’t do this

Mbravo650
Mbravo650 New member Posts: 13 ✭
in Community News

please don’t take away our access to the clients phone numbers. I’ve been with thumbtack for 4 years and having access to their numbers is a big reason why I’ve been able to be successful using thumbtack. I spend a lot of money on thumbtack every month and it’s worth every dollar because thumbtack helps my business by providing me with clients but not having access to the clients numbers is a really bad idea. I prefer not using thumbtack for communication in fact if I only use thumbtack for communication the amount of jobs I get reduces by a lot. Clients have always thanked me for being so quick to call them right after they message me and if I can’t call them with my direct line they will think I’m a scammer and that’ll be just another chance of me not getting the job. Please don’t fix what doesn’t need to be fixed the app is great and thumbtack is doing a good job with the way they have designed the app that’s why it’s the best of its type app available

Comments

  • ArvinC
    ArvinC Administrator Posts: 124 admin

    Hi there @Mbravo650, thanks for sharing your experience! I completely understand your concern, especially since calling quickly has been key to your success.

    I wanted to quickly clarify that you can still call customers straight from your direct line! The Thumbtack number provided works just like a regular phone number and routes directly to the customer's real phone. To your point about looking like a scammer, the customer's Caller ID will usually say "Thumbtack," which helps keep their personal information safe and often makes them more likely to pick up the phone

    You are also absolutely free to request the customer's direct contact info once you connect. Just note that if you move the conversation off the platform before they reply, you will lose the ability to qualify for the unresponsiveness refund

    You can learn more about how everything works here. Please don’t hesitate to keep sharing your questions and feedback with us. We’d really love to hear about your experience as you continue using these new numbers, since our team is closely monitoring feedback during the rollout.rolls out.

  • Mbravo650
    Mbravo650 New member Posts: 13 ✭

    @ArvinC how will they know which number to call if they get calls from multiple handyman ? How will they know which number to call to reach me ? Will it say thumbtack Angels handyman services on the caller ID? A very small percentage of my jobs come from just chatting on thumbtack. I have a system where I call right when I get a lead and if they don’t answer I text them letting them know it is calling and to call me when they get a chance so they can tell me about the work. How will we text clients now. I’d rather loose money on clients that don’t answer phone calls or texts or messages on thumbtack then loose access to their numbers. There will always be clients that are just window shopping on the app and won’t reply to anyone. that will not change just because the calls are now through thumbtack.

  • Mbravo650
    Mbravo650 New member Posts: 13 ✭

    @ArvinC thumbtack used to says we will always have access to their numbers why is this changing. This is making me start considering leaving the app and my business and get a full time job and that’s the last thing I want to do because I love using thumbtack to provide for my family

  • ArvinC
    ArvinC Administrator Posts: 124 admin

    Hi @Mbravo650 , those are completely fair questions, especially since your current process has been working well for your business.

    To clarify a few things, the caller ID will usually show “Thumbtack” rather than your business name. The number itself is dedicated to that specific lead, so if the customer calls or texts it back, it will route directly to your registered business phone number without them needing a different contact number from you.

    You can also still text the Thumbtack number just like a regular phone number. Messages go directly to the customer’s phone and are also saved in the app, so you can continue using a similar workflow of calling first and following up by text if needed.

    And once you connect with the customer, you’re still free to exchange direct contact information as well. The main thing to keep in mind is that if the conversation moves off-platform before the customer replies, the lead would no longer qualify for the unresponsiveness refund.

    Really appreciate you sharing how you currently manage leads. Feedback like this is exactly what the team is paying close attention to during the rollout.

  • beachscribe
    beachscribe New member Posts: 2 ✭

    I am frustrated by this new phone number situation. As noted in one of the above posts, how will the prospective client know who is contacting them if it only says "thumbtack" on their phone. I always answer via the lead message and then I text the person. I have gotten most of my jobs that way. I rush to do it as soon as the lead comes in. Granted, some of the people do not look at my thumbtack response of even respond to my text, but at least I know that I made the effort. I can't see how this new system will be beneficial to the vendors.

    Also, we will only get a refund if the person does not respond to any of their selected businesses?

  • Mbravo650
    Mbravo650 New member Posts: 13 ✭

    @beachscribe i agree Im worried because i know this is going to lower our income

  • marylandman
    marylandman Posts: 24 ✭

    let me get this straight: I will pay 10% more per lead, and NOT get the customer’s actual phone number? So I pay more and get less. Do I have that right?

  • Mbravo650
    Mbravo650 New member Posts: 13 ✭

    @marylandman yea because it will help for us to get refunds for customers that don’t reply to us but I usually get 80-90% of leads that message me. Our chances of getting leads will be going down and we have to pay more for leads now. I hope if this doesn’t work they don’t take months to remove this

  • marylandman
    marylandman Posts: 24 ✭
    edited May 25

    The vast majority of my non-responsive leads have responded to another pro. Therefore,this new method is not going to help me at all. I’m going to pay a little more for a lot less! I won’t have the client’s number and they won’t have mine! This is going to drive me away from Thumbtack. How do we opt out of this change?

  • Mbravo650
    Mbravo650 New member Posts: 13 ✭

    @marylandman we can’t opt out we’re going to have to wait for this to fail and people to stop using thumbtack pro for this to go away

  • Mbravo650
    Mbravo650 New member Posts: 13 ✭

    @marylandman when I went to the thumbtack summit at HQ I was told thumbtack would start to listen to its Pros on what we think helps and doesn’t help us but this is an example that we aren’t being listened to because I’m sure most pros are against this

  • ArvinC
    ArvinC Administrator Posts: 124 admin

    Hi @beachscribe and @marylandman , I really appreciate both of you sharing your concerns and explaining how you currently manage leads. I can understand why this feels like a major adjustment, especially when fast calls and text follow-ups have been an important part of your workflow and success on Thumbtack.

    Just to clarify a few things, you can still call and text customers through the dedicated Thumbtack number tied to each lead, and customers can call or text that number back to reach you directly. Messages also continue to go straight to the customer’s phone while being saved in the app as part of the conversation history.

    You’re also absolutely free to ask for a customer’s direct phone number once you connect with them and continue communication outside the platform if both sides prefer that workflow. The main thing to keep in mind is that if the conversation moves off-platform before the customer replies, the lead would no longer qualify for the unresponsiveness refund since the system needs to detect a response tied to the Thumbtack conversation.

    I also want to acknowledge the broader feedback being shared here around lead quality, communication flow, and concerns about business impact. The team is actively monitoring pro feedback during this rollout, and detailed experiences like the ones you’ve shared are genuinely valuable in helping inform those discussions moving forward.

  • Mbravo650
    Mbravo650 New member Posts: 13 ✭

    @ArvinC can I choose to opt out of this update ? I’ll gladly pay the 10% increase in the lead prices if I don’t have to take part of this feature

  • marylandman
    marylandman Posts: 24 ✭

    Haven’t received a single lead since this update. This is unusual for me

  • Mbravo650
    Mbravo650 New member Posts: 13 ✭

    @marylandman you haven’t received a lead for two days ?

  • Wilbur
    Wilbur New member Posts: 3 ✭

    Will replying to the client via sms, will it qualify as a logged reply?

  • marylandman
    marylandman Posts: 24 ✭

    May 7-20: 12 leads

    May 22-24: paused leads due to vacation

    May 25-28: zero leads.

  • Wilbur
    Wilbur New member Posts: 3 ✭

    I don't have a problem with the new system, TT Top Pro for 10 Years

    I've never once called a new lead, I only reply via TT, and a direct SMS.

    I've been using the new system the past few days, I got a refund already since the lead didn't reply to any pro! This is groundbreaking to stop ghost leads!

    So far I've captured the clients direct line no issues after the chat starts, no issues.

    If the lead asked for 4 quotes, and only replies to 1 (i'm going to assume this will be somewhat normal), it's on the Pro that didn't get a reply, to close leads better. Dial in your replies, we've never been able to see this data before. High Analytical value!!!

  • Mbravo650
    Mbravo650 New member Posts: 13 ✭

    @Wilbur 👍🏼

  • marylandman
    marylandman Posts: 24 ✭

    charging four pros for leads when only one is hired is a questionable money-making scheme, especially when customers don’t realize that by inquiring with pros, they are generating automatic lead charges on behalf of Thumbtack.

    As for direct numbers, I got my first two leads under the new system today. One hasn’t responded, and the other, when asked for their direct number, responded “this IS my direct number.” They don’t know I can’t see it. What a disaster.

  • marylandman
    marylandman Posts: 24 ✭

    Up till this week I would enter the client's phone number in my CRM, which would follow up with texts to book and confirm appointment times, etc. Now that a "registered phone number" and "access code" is required - will this still work???

  • DustiO
    DustiO Administrator, Moderator Posts: 2,548 admin

    @marylandman you can get more detailed information here, but these numbers never expire and can be used exactly like any other number. You only need the access code if you are calling from a number other than the one in your Thumbtack account (and you would only need to use the access code the first time you called from that number).

  • marylandman
    marylandman Posts: 24 ✭
    edited May 29

    Typically I contact the client once from my own number, and after that it’s mostly by CRM, which sends automated appointment confirmations, reminders etc. can I not do that anymore?

  • DustiO
    DustiO Administrator, Moderator Posts: 2,548 admin

    You should be able to use the exact same process :)

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