Thanks @DefiningImagery ! I'm a TopPro and have noticed similar. TT is simply NOT generating enough leads for my Service Category which is Musical Entertainment. In a recent Insight they indicated very few jobs for the 157 Active Pros for a 3 month period. I'm very disappointed. I tried "Promote" for a 3 month period and won exactly 0 gigs. Now they are calling it "Targeting" but it's essentially the same thing where you are auto charged for targeted leads. I may try it one more time but I'm afraid their business model is simply no longer working for me. I'm a Top Pro and provide excellent service and very competitive pricing. If I have to go months on end without winning business as a result of being here, it makes little sense to continue to pay for leads. If things do not improve quickly I'm sure others will do likewise.  ... View more

OK, I gave it a shot. I drank the Kool-Aid and went with Promote  for 3 solid months. I am a Top Pro with many High Quality Reviews. My Profile is complete and I have had 2 sessions with Customer representatives helping me tweek my Profile. They even admitted there was not much they could suggest because I was already doing the right things. I made very minor changes over 3 months ago and have not gotten a single Gig since. Prior to that things were already sketchy as TT had implented changes and I could tell something was different. As best I can tell they simply are not generating enough leads for the number of "Active Pros" in this category. In fact their own statistics bear this out as recent Insights indicated. 235 Jobs in 3 months for 150 Active Pros. That is not per week, that is not even monthly. That's the last  THREE MONTHS! I did significanlty better prior to their recent changes, I respond quickly and follow up. It is simply NOT WORKING for this PRO! I'd really like to see things go back to the way they were. I got a lot more for my money. I'd like to know what other Pros are seeing.  ... View more

@Kameron Thanks for the follow up. I hope the Rep you mentioned is well. He seems very knowledgeable a nd professional. That is why I was surprised when I didn't receive the follow up or response to my inquiry. At this point I don't think much can be done. There are not enough leads coming in vs the number of providers competing for them. That is probably good for TT but not so much for the providers. I have Promote on but the past 2 weeks have been incredibly slow.  ... View more

I'm a Top Pro. I have done EVERYTHING support has requested and the leads have practically disappeared. I don't know if they have changed things but 3 weeks ago tomorrow I had a consultation with a Representative that I will not mention here. He suggested some minor changes that I agreed to allow him to make while we were on the phone. He scheduled a 2 week follow up and then FAILED to follow up 2 weeks later. I sent a response to a reminder email from him and CRICKETS! He stated that I was just the type of PRO they wanted TT to work for and assured me these changes would make a difference. I have had ZERO additional contacts since .  I'm sharing this now because I have yet to receive a response from the representative. TT should at least have the decency to do what you say you are going to do. Bottom line folks, this site is NOT the answer but MAYBE, MAYBE ONE of the tools you should CONSIDER to grow your business. I'm very fortunate because I don't have to rely on this line of business to provide for my family. It's just one of the hats I wear but I'm truly disappointed with the level of effort I have put forth and the lack of results. It was NEVER great but it was BETTER before they made the changes. I don't know what to think. This is just my honest opinion. I wish all my fellow ENTREPRENEURS great success! ... View more

I had a long discussion about Pricing with Adam. TT has it locked down so you can only state per hour. There are too many variables there. I don't mind giving a range but it is rather short sighted for that not to be a free form field IMO.  ... View more

@DJStevie I don't think it is near as critical in our line of business. I'm not sure why TT pushes it so hard. I've never heard the first concern from a customer. If that was all that was keeping me from getting the gig I would probably go ahead and do it. I just don't see where it is that big a deal.  ... View more

@Meckell Thanks for the response. I have NEVER had a customer inquire about the background check. The only reason I'm hesitant is that the background check requires my SSN. I HATE to share it anyhwere. I really don't see where this would help regardless in my line of business. I had an extensive conversation with support on Promote and I may try that. Right now I am concerned it will simply result in more charges to me without generating addtional business.  ... View more

@MidknightGenius Great Question! I can state unequivocally that I am NOT seeing  better success with the new system. I am a Solo Musician and Top Pro. The current system is misleading in certain respects IMO. You get notified that a customer "Chose You" and "No Need to Quote". Pros respond and are immediately charged even if the customer is simply checking availability and without the potential customer seeing a quote.  I am certain this has resulted in greater revenue for Thumbtack! And as an unabashed Capitalist I applaud them for that but we need to win as well. The old system at least allowed the Pro the ability to share that information with the customer and you were charged only if the customer responded. That seems more fair and worked better for me as I imagine it did for others. In my business as well as many others I can not quote on an hourly basis which is the only method offered by Thumbtack. I have to quote by the job due to so many variables. I had an extensive conversation with support and shared my frustrations with them on this issue as well. I have not booked a gig in over 2 months from Thumbtack. Honestly I feel a fair degree of it is that we just came out of the Holiday season and business has yet to pick back up. Initially I thought Thumbtack was going to be a fairly reliable source for quality leads and I enjoyed some success with the original system where they were simply sending the leads to a Maximum of 5 Pros. With the new system ALL Pros in the area are forwarded the lead and up to 15 Pros can respond.  I now use multiple sources for leads. At best it appears Thumbtack should be one of many that a business owner uses. Let's face it. There is no substitute for hard work and there are no guarantees even if you do everything right. We are all looking for that magic bullet to make our businesses grow. I will keep an eye on this thread and I really hope to see some great insight from others. Thanks for posting! ... View more