Job software set-up
Job software, set up properly for your trade
For owners starting with job software, or getting more from the one they pay for. Diary, customers, templates and price list set up, and your team shown how to use it on their phones.
Enquiry
Quoted
Booked
Thursday
Friday
Monday
Paid
Who it helps
Wherever you're starting from
Starting out
Jobs live in a diary, a notebook and your texts. You want one place for all of it.
Half set up
You pay for the software, but quotes and invoices still get done the old way.
One person knows
When the person who knows how it works is off, it all waits until they're back.
Thinking of switching
You're on one system and wondering if another would suit you better.
Core set-up
What I set up
Built on your own account, around how you run your jobs now.
Diary and job types
Your usual jobs set up with the right details, so booking one takes a few taps.
Customers imported
Moved in from your spreadsheet, phone contacts or old system, checked for duplicates.
Quote and invoice templates
Your logo, your terms and your wording, ready to send from the job.
Price list
Your usual parts and labour rates, so quotes start from your own numbers.
On everyone's phone
Each person with their own login and the app set up, so nobody shares a password.
Messages sent for you
Booking confirmations, unpaid invoice reminders and service reminders, in your words.
Optional extras
Add these if they'd help
Website enquiries in
With a connected website, quote requests arrive as new jobs.
Materials lists
The parts on a job gathered into a list ready to send to your merchant.
Paperwork on the job
Certificates, warranties and photos kept together, ready when the customer asks.
Quote wording drafted for you
Saved instructions that draft quote descriptions in your words, or Van Note Quotes from a voice note. You check every one.
On Xero or QuickBooks Online? Approved invoices and payments can be sent to your accounts once I've tested the link on your account. How the accounts link works →
Demonstration
See a sample job run
I work with your job software and build custom tools on your own accounts. For standard jobs at your agreed price, the admin from enquiry to invoice can be set up to run on its own, with an approval step wherever you want one.
- Your website enquiry becomes a jobAutomatic
- Your quote goes out at the price you setAutomatic once you set your price
- Your customer gets a booking confirmation textAutomatic
- You mark the work complete and your invoice goes outAutomatic after your tap
Examples of what can be set up. Extras, unusual jobs and anything over a limit you choose wait for your OK.
Experience and limits
What I know, and what I check first
ServiceM8
I can set up ServiceM8 for you; on other systems I look first and tell you plainly.
Other systems
Tradify, Fergus, Jobber and others
It starts with a free 20-minute look: you stay logged in and share your screen. I'll say what I can help with, and what still needs checking before I can offer a set-up.
Training and handover
How set-up works
- A free 20-minute lookShow me one job, quote to paid, on a screen share. You stay logged in and no passwords are needed. I tell you what I'd set up first.
- Fixed price, then set-upOn your own account, around the jobs you do most.
- Training and handoverYour team shown on their own phones, with a short written guide to keep.
Price
Fixed before I start
You pay the software company directly, on an account you own.
I'm not VAT registered, so there's no VAT to add.
- ServiceM8 set up for your businessfrom £750
- Help choosing job softwarefrom £150
- Call answering set-upfrom £395
- Call check, optionalfrom £30 a month
- Full price guide
Questions
Job software questions
Do I need office staff for this?
No. It's set up for owners who do their own admin from the van, and for firms with someone in the office.
Can you move my customers from my old system?
Usually, yes. Most systems can export a spreadsheet of customers, and I bring that in and check it.
What does the software itself cost?
That's set by the software company and paid to them, on an account you own. ServiceM8's UK plans run from free (one user, 30 new jobs a month) to £25, £59 or £119 a month for most small firms, depending on how many jobs you book. I'll show you which plan fits before you sign up.
I use Tradify or Jobber. Can you help?
It starts with a free 20-minute look on a screen share. I'll say what I can help with, and what needs checking, before any price.
Will my team cope with it?
Yes. Each person is shown on their own phone using your real job types, and keeps a short written guide to look back at.
ServiceM8 or Tradify?
Both run the diary, quotes, invoices and reminders. The differences are the monthly price, how each one feels on your phone, and what your accountant needs. ServiceM8 is the one I set up hands-on; a choice session (from £150) compares them against your jobs, with a written recommendation.
Is there free job software for a sole trader?
Yes, some have a free plan. ServiceM8's is free for one user and up to 30 new jobs a month, which suits someone starting out. Once you're busier or take someone on, a paid plan makes more sense.
How long does set-up take?
Usually live within 5 working days of you sending your price list and customer list. Set-ups often take weeks; most of that is waiting for those two lists, so the sooner they come, the sooner you're running.
The next step
A free 20-minute look at your set-up
You share your screen and take me through one job, from quote to paid. A made-up job is fine, and you never need to send a password. I'll tell you what I'd set up first and what it costs.
Call answering
Calls answered when you cannot pick up
I choose and set up UK AI call answering to suit your business, whatever software you use. Your wording, common questions and test calls. from £395 for set-up, with an optional Call check from £30 a month. You also pay the answering service each month on your own account, usually about £25 to £100 for a small trade. I confirm the exact cost before you agree.
See call answering set-up →