Running your business online
Let customers book jobs, take deposits, and reach you from the one device they always have — their phone.
Accept credit card payments
Sign up with a payment processor like Stripe, Square, or your invoicing app's built-in option, then send a pay link by text or add a 'Pay now' button on your site. Expect to pay roughly 2.6 to 3 percent per card transaction. You can take cards in the field with a phone reader or get paid online without any hardware at all.
ReadBest field service apps for trades
For most small trades, Jobber and Housecall Pro are the top all-in-one picks for scheduling, invoicing, and customer records. Joist and Invoice Simple are great if you mainly need quotes and invoices. Service Fusion and ServiceTitan suit larger crews. Start with the one job that hurts most, then add features as you grow.
ReadCollect customer info before a job
Use a short intake form, sent as a link or built into your booking step, that asks for the address, a clear description of the problem, a photo, and the best time to reach them. Gathering this before you drive out means tighter quotes, fewer wasted trips, and a customer who feels looked after. Keep it brief and let them add a photo from their phone.
ReadContact form that emails you
Add a short form to your site, connect it to your email and a text alert, and confirm the notifications actually arrive. Keep it to four or five fields, send the lead to an inbox you check constantly, and add a tap-to-call button beside it. The whole point is a buzz on your phone the second a lead submits, so you can call back in minutes.
ReadKeep your website secure and backed up
Make sure your site uses HTTPS, keep any software and plugins updated, use strong unique passwords with two-factor login, and run automatic daily backups stored somewhere off the server. If that sounds like a lot, it's exactly why many trades use a managed service that handles security and backups for them so a hack or a crash never takes the site down for long.
ReadLet customers book a job online
Add an online booking tool to your website so customers can pick a time without calling you. The simplest version is a request form that sends you a job and a callback time; the fuller version shows your real calendar and lets people grab an open slot. Start with whatever you'll actually keep up to date, and always keep a tap-to-call button for the folks who'd rather phone.
ReadLet customers schedule jobs online
For most trades, the best 'scheduling' is a short request form plus a tap-to-call button, not a live calendar. Let customers tell you the job, address, and a couple of time windows that work; you confirm by text or phone. A real-time booking calendar only makes sense for fixed-length, fixed-price visits like a tune-up or an inspection.
ReadRun your website from your phone
Yes. Updating hours, swapping photos, posting a new service, replying to leads, and checking payments can all happen from your phone. The trick is to separate quick edits, which you do yourself in seconds, from big rebuilds, which are easier on a laptop or handed to someone. With the right setup, you'll rarely need a computer at all.
ReadSend estimates and invoices online
Use a dedicated invoicing app like Jobber, Joist, Invoice Simple, or QuickBooks to create an estimate, text or email it as a link, and let the customer approve and pay in a couple of taps. The estimate converts to an invoice with one click, and a built-in pay button gets you paid faster than paper ever could.
ReadTake deposits or payments online
Connect a payment processor like Stripe or Square to your site so customers can pay a deposit or an invoice with a card. A deposit before you schedule cuts no-shows and covers your parts; a 'pay your invoice' link gets you paid faster after the job. You don't build the card handling yourself — the processor does that part, and they take a small percentage per payment.
ReadWhy your website must work on phones
Most people who find a local tradesperson are on their phone, and Google ranks the phone version of your site first. If yours is hard to read or tap on a phone, you lose calls and rankings at the same time. Check it by opening your site on your own phone and trying to call yourself in under ten seconds — if you can't, that's the problem to fix.
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