How to automate a contractor business, from the first lead to getting paid
Automating a contractor business means the steps that repeat on every job take a tap instead of an evening, so your time goes to the work and the customer.
Short answer
Automate the steps that repeat on every job: hearing about new work, answering missed calls, sending quotes customers approve on their phone, letting them pick a visit time, turning the quote into the invoice, and taking card payments. Keep the price, the scope and the conversation yours.
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What to automate first
Every job goes through the same seven steps, from someone needing help to the review after. The ones worth automating are the ones you do the same way every time, and the ones where a customer is lost while you are busy on a job: the call nobody answered, the quote that took three days, the invoice typed again from the quote.
One job, step by step
For each step: what can run by itself, what stays with you, and which LeadHunter USA tool does it.
| Step | What to automate | What stays yours | With LeadHunter USA |
|---|---|---|---|
| Finding work | Being told when someone nearby asks for your trade, instead of scrolling groups yourself. | Answering the person, in your own words. | LiveLeadHunter USA Alerts: people nearby asking for your trade, sent to your phone within minutes, while your computer is on. |
| The missed call | One text back to a caller you couldn’t answer, so they don’t call the next contractor. | Calling them back. | LiveLeadHunter USA Line Pro: a business number that texts back missed calls, with replies in one inbox. Texting is an add-on. |
| The quote | Building it from your price list, sending the link from your phone, and the customer approving it on their phone and, with card payments on, paying the deposit right there. | The price and the scope. | LiveLeadHunter USA CRM: quotes with options, tax, a discount, a valid-until date and an optional deposit. Some states limit deposits: see deposit limits by state. |
| Scheduling | The customer picking a visit time from the ones you offer on the quote, the visit showing in your phone’s calendar, and repeat visits set once. | Which times to offer. | LiveLeadHunter USA CRM: A calendar for your visits that also shows in your phone's Google, Apple or Outlook calendar, and customers pick a visit time from the times you offer on the quote. Visits can repeat every week, every 2, 3 or 4 weeks, or every month. |
| The invoice | One click turns the approved quote into the invoice, so nothing is typed twice; a card payment marks it paid by itself. | Checking it and sending it. | LiveLeadHunter USA CRM: invoices made from approved quotes, and receipts. |
| Getting paid | A pay link on the invoice or a QR code on the spot, and the money sent to your bank by Stripe. | Asking for it. | LiveLeadHunter USA Payments: card payments from the invoice, the quote’s deposit or a QR code. 3.3% + 30¢ per US card, all in. |
| The review | Asking every finished job for a Google review, the same way each time. | Doing the job well enough to deserve one. | LiveLeadHunter USA Line Pro: review requests after a job. The rules: how to ask for a Google review by text. |
What to keep personal
- The first real conversation. An automatic text buys you time; the call back is what wins the job.
- The price. Saved prices make a quote fast, but you decide what this job costs.
- Problems and complaints. Nothing automatic should answer an unhappy customer.
- Asking for money that is late. A pay link makes paying easy; the reminder is yours, in your tone. Wording for it is in estimate follow-up and payment-reminder texts.
Before you auto-text anyone: read is it legal to auto-text people who call your business.
Where to start
- If the phone is quiet: start with finding work. See how to get contractor leads.
- If you miss calls on jobs: start with the text back. See missed-call text back.
- If quotes take days: start with quotes the customer approves on their phone. See how to write a contractor estimate.
- If you chase payments: start with a pay link on every invoice. See how to accept card payments as a contractor.
Where LeadHunter USA fits
LeadHunter USA LLC makes four tools for the steps above; all four are live today. LeadHunter USA CRM (free) holds customers, quotes, invoices, receipts and the calendar. LeadHunter USA Payments takes card payments, 3.3% + 30¢ per US card. LeadHunter USA Alerts sends you local posts from people asking for your trade, $75 a month after a 7-day trial; it needs a Windows or Mac computer. LeadHunter USA Line Pro, a business number with missed-call text back and review requests, is $39 for the first month, then $89 a month. Missed-call texts need the texting add-on: $30 once, for the carrier registration.
Good fit
- One-person and small home-service businesses doing the office work themselves
- Owners who want quotes, the calendar, invoices and card payments in one place
Not the right tool
- Teams that need crew dispatch, routing or several logins
- Businesses that need bookkeeping or bank (ACH) payments in the same app
The office work of every job, in one place
Quotes your customer approves on their phone, visits on your calendar and invoices from the quote, in the free LeadHunter USA CRM. Card payments with LeadHunter USA Payments, 3.3% + 30¢ per US card.
Create your free accountLeadHunter USA CRM
Send quotes and invoices, and keep every customer and job in one place.
Free
LeadHunter USA Payments
Customers pay you by card: show a QR code on the spot or send a pay link. Works on its own or with the CRM. Stripe sends the money to your bank: the first payout takes about 7–14 days from your first card payment, then about 2 business days.
Free to join · 3.3% + 30¢ per US card
LeadHunter USA Alerts
People nearby asking for your trade, sent to your phone within minutes, while your computer is on.
7 days free, then $75/month
LeadHunter USA Line Pro
Your personal assistant on every call. After a call, tap Yes: it writes the call out, fills in the customer’s card, puts the visit on your calendar, drafts the quote or invoice from what you said, and reminds you if you agreed to talk later. You check it and tap Send. Nothing goes to a customer without you.
$39 first month, then $89/mo
LeadHunter USA Alerts is the paid lead-alert product; the CRM does not need it. Payments works on its own or with the CRM.
More guides
- Start a home-service business: the first-month checklist
- LeadHunter USA CRM: the free CRM for contractors, and what other free plans include
- LeadHunter USA Payments: card payments for contractors, what they cost and when the money arrives
- How to invoice as a contractor or handyman
- How to accept card payments as a contractor: fees and rules
- QR code payments for contractors
- Estimate vs quote vs invoice vs receipt
- How to keep track of customers in a small service business
- Customer won’t pay your invoice? The steps
- How to write a contractor estimate
- How much deposit a contractor can take, by state
Common questions
What can a contractor automate?
The repeat steps of every job: being alerted to new work, texting back missed calls, sending quotes customers approve on their phone with a deposit, letting customers pick a visit time, turning the approved quote into the invoice, taking card payments, and asking for reviews. The price, the scope and the conversation stay yours.
What is the first thing to automate in a contractor business?
The step where you lose customers today. If calls go unanswered while you’re on a job, start with the text back; if quotes go out days later, start with quotes; if invoices wait, start with a pay link.
Do I need expensive software to automate my business?
No. LeadHunter USA CRM is free: customers, quotes, invoices, receipts and a calendar. LeadHunter USA Payments has no monthly fee, 3.3% + 30¢ per US card. LeadHunter USA Alerts is $75 a month after a 7-day trial and needs a Windows or Mac computer that is on. LeadHunter USA Line Pro is $39 for the first month, then $89 a month.
Is it legal to auto-text people who call my business?
One plain reply to someone who just called your business is the most defensible kind of business text, but it is not a settled safe harbor. Treat it conservatively: tell callers a text is coming, send one text that names your business, include no offers or links, and honor STOP immediately. Our guide on whether it is legal to auto-text people who call your business has the details.
Can I run it from my phone?
LeadHunter USA CRM runs in the web browser on a phone or a computer. LeadHunter USA Alerts needs a Windows or Mac computer that is on; the alerts arrive on your phone.
Can I bring my customers from my old system?
Yes: customers and your price list import from a CSV file, and customers from a contacts file (.vcf), with a preview first and Undo.
What should a contractor not automate?
The first real conversation with a new customer, the price, anything about a complaint or a problem on the job, and a message that asks for money in a tone you wouldn’t use in person.