Thumbtack Questions & Answers

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Here’s what consumers have asked with answers from Thumbtack staff and previous consumers.

90 questions answered
18% answered in 1 day
Question:

Why are the staff generating fake requests?

Answer:

Thumbtack does not generate fake requests. When our professionals come to Thumbtack to meet new customers, we know how important it is to receive requests that can help them expand their clientele. We have a lot of customers that come to Thumbtack and hire professionals to help them complete their personal projects. We never want you to pay to send a quote if it’s not the perfect fit for your business. This is why you can view the details of each request before you send a quote and introduce yourself to the customer. James - I’m so sorry that the concerns you’ve brought to our attention haven’t been responded to in an appropriate amount of time, this is never our intention. It's important to us to obsess about answering our customers and professionals questions and concerns within a timely manner. We are a real company that can always be improving. You can read more about our company in reputable sources such as Forbes and the New York Times. If anyone has specific concerns about certain requests you’re receiving, we’d be happy to review them and see how we can help. Feel free to give us a call at (800) 343-1710, we have an amazing support team that is just waiting to talk to you.

By Thumbtack-Support -.,
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Question:

Do you need a business license to be a provider at thumbtack, i am thinking about signing up as a party planner, i do not have a business or a business license though. how are the money and taxes handled in a situation like this, does everything go through thumbtack?

Answer:

We love to see that you’re interested in joining Thumbtack, Grace! Your party planning business sounds like it will be a blast. When it comes to having a license, it's up to each professional to determine what licenses are necessary and follow their local, state and federal laws. I recommend checking with your state to see if a business license is needed for your service. Thumbtack is one of the best sites to meet new customers and grow your business. Robert S. Gave a really good explanation of how we work. You can sign up and receive requests for free, and you only pay us when you send the customer a quote. Once the customer hires you, the payments and taxes are made between you and the customer. This is a great way to connect with the customer and build an extensive referral network. We wish you the best of luck with growing your business. Have an amazing day!

By Thumbtack-Support -.,
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Question:

I'm trying to understand your business structure. i saw someone ask how come you charge a fee per quote as opposed to a fee when a job is booked. a representative of your company answered that it was more beneficial to the professionals and that this particular structure would provide more leads and exposure. please explain this. no offense, but this makes no kind of sense. if i receive 30 quotes and i pay $2 for each, that is $60. if i don't get booked, i ll just be paying out money for no reason. please elaborate on how this makes any kind of sense. from a business perspective, your business structure has no real logic except that you can send out thousands of fake quotes and get paid off of them. your structure is really simply for you to make money. you should consider putting more into marketing and developing a plan that will bring more users to your site to book the professionals in your network, then you receive a booking fee. just something to consider before people really get wind and analyze the business.

Answer:

Hi Kay, I’d be happy to answer your questions. When we initially started Thumbtack in 2009, we tried multiple business models. This included a commission based model, but there were some concerns. When professionals didn’t pay for each quote they sent out, there was nothing to stop pros from quoting as much as possible, regardless of if they were the right fit for the job. Paying for each quote encourages better quality quotes and creates a much better experience for customers. Like you mentioned, it’s important for us to get customers to try our site and continue to hire professionals. In the end, pros are paying to promote and advertise themselves to customers that are already actively looking for that particular service. S. G has an amazing point, and Thumbtack is a great introduction site. There’s a lot of potential to expand your clientele, but sometimes it takes some tweaking to your profile and quotes to increase your response rate. The goal is to create a connection through your profile and quote message, and we’re here to help you do this. It’s kind of like sending the customer a virtual portfolio of your experience, achievements, and reviews. I do want to clarify that Thumbtack does not create fake requests, and it goes against everything we value as a company. While Thumbtack may not be the perfect fit for every business, we strongly believe that we can help connect businesses with new customers and foster growth. If you’d like to give us a call at (800) 343-1710, we’d love to give you more personalized help or answer any other concerns you may have.

By Thumbtack-Support -.,
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Question:

Answer:

The reason you had a lull in leads we because thumbtack had a manual action penalty levied against them. If you are not sure what that is you should google search it. The letter you received from Thumbtack regarding this was (as usual) not fully truthful. The letter does not detail the slimy tactics thumbtack used ti enhance google rankings in organic search returns. Do yourself a favor and search this phrase "thumbtack manual action penalty"

By Tyson K.
Question:

Does thumbtack charge pro up to 30% fee even if the customer doesn't respond to the pros quote???

Answer:

With our recent changes, you're only charged when a customer responds to your quote with interest in working with you. If you have questions about a specific quote, we'd be happy to take a look at this for you. Just send us a message on Facebook with your email address and the customer's name.

By Thumbtack-Support -.,
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Question:

Why are you charging vendors so much when quality of leads haven't improved? who is profiting from this ? only thumbtack?

Answer:

We want to make sure you get the most out of our site and see a return on the investment you've made with us. Please give us a call at (800) 948-2034 when you have time so we can go over your concerns with us.

By Thumbtack-Support -.,
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Question:

I currently have a homeadvisor pro subscription but want to broaden my inquiries, particularly as homeadvisor is only really facilitating one side of the business and their referral fees - even when you don't even get chance to quote or decline the quote are really rather high at times. what's the deal with thumbtack? what are the costs to the service provider and what's the process?

Answer:

We like that you're expanding your options, Rebecca. Thumbtack is a local services marketplace that connects customers with the right professionals for anything they need done. A lot of pros have met new customers off our site and you can too. You can see more information about how we work here: https://www.thumbtack.com/pros/how-thumbtack-works. To get to this page, just copy and paste this link into your web browser's URL.

By Thumbtack-Support -.,
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Question:

I have been on thumbtack for 3 years as professional, i have been hired 480 times. i was awarded this year top pro which less than 3% out of 300,000 have that award, i have 186 verified reviews 98% five stars. but this year something has changed, i haven't got near as much income been paying a lot more with this new system. has any other professionals use that site. what your experience for this year. very curious to know.

Answer:

We value you as Top Pro, David, that really shows how great your service is. We're here to help increase your hire rate. Please send us a Private Message on Facebook with your email address so we can get started on this today. You can reach our Facebook page by following this link: https://www.facebook.com/Thumbtack/. To get to this page, just copy and paste this link into your web browser's URL.

By Thumbtack-Support -.,
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Question:

Most customers will look at quotes if they are serious or just shopping. if they don't hire anyone from the list or not happy, what happens? refund?

Answer:

Hi Quyen. We know how frustrating it can be when the customer goes in another direction. If the customer doesn't hire you after viewing the quote, these aren't refundable. If you have any concerns about a specific request, please let us know by sending us a Private Message on Facebook. You can reach our Facebook page by following this link: https://www.facebook.com/Thumbtack/. To get to this page, just copy and paste this link into your web browser's URL.

By Thumbtack-Support -.,
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Question:

I unsubscribed and deactivated my account. why am i still getting marketing emails almost every day?

Answer:

We're sorry you're still receiving these emails. Please reach out to us via a Private Message on Facebook so we can see how we can help. You can reach our Facebook page by following this link: https://www.facebook.com/Thumbtack/. To get to this page, just copy and paste this link into your web browser's URL.

By Thumbtack-Support -.,
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