Marketing & Sales + a Productivity app

Thryv (www.thryv.com) is a comprehensive marketing and sales software platform for driving business growth for small HVAC and plumbing service contractors by helping them get discovered online, capture and convert new customers, and drive repeat business.

Marketing Center tools from Thryv include campaign management software to help reach your target audience cost effectively across social, paid ads, and search engine marketing. Real-time analytics provide insights on your customers that are aimed at helping maximize impact of your market spend.

The software integrates easily with ServiceTitan, Jobber, Gmail, QuickBooks, Constant Connects, PayPal and other third-party platforms.   

Automated appointment scheduling allows customers to log on at the client portal 24/7 to schedule, reschedule, or cancel appointment slots on your calendar. An all-in-one inbox gives you one place to view and respond to email, text, web chat, DMs, and phone calls.  It also delivers transcriptions of voicemails to your inbox, making it easier to find information left in voice messages. 

Thryv also supports automated appointment reminders by text and email, automated invoicing, and payments. Customers can sign documents online with Thryv Signatures.

The software facilitates creating estimates online, sending them to customers digitally, and notifying you when they have been received, read, and approved. You can attach documents and markup images to clarify communication. Once you create a template to welcome new customers or present them with seasonal money-saving tips, for example, Thryv will personalize the message with customer details and send it at the appropriate time. 

The client portal gives customers a secure place online to log in and make payments, schedule appointments, upload files, view account information, and access other self-service options.

Thryv has also integrated AI into their marketing software. AI Content Assistant enables quick crafting of emails and social captions after you submit an AI prompt, generating personalized copy which you can adjust if needed. (You can also customize copy with hashtags and emojis.) AI Review Response instantly generates three responses to reviews that customers can choose from when replying to reviews—pick one and publish. They can also respond to positive and negative feedback on Yelp, TrustPilot, and 21 other popular review sites in short time. 

Pricing: three plans available  with escalating capabilities and fees: Marketing Center  supports 50+ local listings, enhanced online profiles, professionally designed website, social media management, marketing analytics, and competitor tracking; Marketing Center with CRM capabilities also includes contact and lead tracking, email campaigns and templates, invoices and payments, online booking and calendar, reporting and dashboards; Upgraded Growth package includes higher ad budget, keyword strategy and done-for-you SEO management, and website optimization.    

Tofu Premium

Tofu Premium (www.tofu.com)  is a productivity app for iOS, Android, tablets, and desktop, built for one-person crews and small teams to create and send invoices and accept payment. It features unlimited customizable invoices per month, a variety of templates that allow you to easily create estimates with your logo and business details, adjust pricing, and apply taxes and discounts.  

Once the estimate is accepted it can convert it to an invoice with one click, with the current estimate deleted and the new invoice created using the same data. Clients do not need to sign up to view invoices. Users can apply a percentage or fixed amount discount to any invoice and use the integrated notes section to add any extra information. Users can also add a tax number.

Invoices are in PDF by default and you can tap “print” or “share” as desired. For those who use it, a Stripe account (service for online payment) can be connected from within the app.

For those who receive payments through Tofu, users will receive a push notification on their computing device and the invoice status (i.e. Paid).      

The app works offline and users can save and sync automatically once they are back online.  

Pricing: per month, paid annually.  In addition to the Stripe fee, which is separate, Tofu charges an additional 1% per successful transaction. Tofu also offers free invoice templates, accessible online, that support input of your business information, client information, invoice number issue and due date, and list of products or services delivered and total price.

Arcsite

Arcsite (www.arcsite.com), a mobile sales-tool platform for contractors that allows users in the field  to create accurate drawings, proposals, and material take-offs directly from their smartphones and tablets, recently introduced a major expansion of features to streamline workflow, improve measurement accuracy, and expedite and enhance proposal-to-payment cycle for small and mid-sized contractors, as well as meet the needs of larger, multi-location service businesses looking to streamline their field operations and sales processes.

The expanded capabilities of the new mobile-optimized Proposals-to-Payment Suite enable service professionals to create branded professional estimates, collect signatures, and get paid faster without leaving the worksite. Contractors can convert accepted proposals into invoices on the spot with e-signature functionality for digital contracts and collect payment on the spot, eliminating manual processes, delayed payments, and administrative overhead.

Arcsite also tracks invoices and can generate payment insights into such cashflow situations as open invoices and unpaid balances, and  can enable flexible financing for businesses that want to establish payment over time.