ContractSpot.com

I was recently invited to review a site specializing in providing contractors services ranging from marketing to actual accounting. It seemed intriguing, so I checked it out. In the process I came away fairly impressed with the dimensions of their focus as well as their sincerity, believe it or not. It’s not often websites such as this answer your questions in such honest and straightforward ways about not only their origins but their expectations. After joining for free and playing around inside just a bit, I came away with some simple questions I could not really answer on my own. So I picked up the phone and called their main guy, Jude, in Cincinnati. I mean, why wait? His number was listed! 😉

I got an earful of excellent stuff. It made their approach so much clearer and it made sense. Their primary interest – and an important one for guys like me – is in a sort of banking function. My company in Reno did around $450K a year in total volume. Naturally, I did as much as I could of this in cash or check – the “old fashioned way”. However, let me say now, had I been able to process credit cards, I would have done more business. I always turned down those opportunities – even neglecting to offer estimates if they insisted, as a few did, that credit card payments were only what they would use to employ us.

Credit Card Processing

I fully understand the reasoning behind paying by credit card. More and more I see people wanting it, too. They get their “miles” from it, get impressive credit ratings – more reasons than we need to share here. But I honestly had no facility through which to process them and, really, no desire to because I had a slew of work and this became simply a crowd of potential clients I plain ruled out.

ContractSpot offers processing services – for which they take a small slice – and thence refers the money to the bank of the contractor’s choosing. I had an example transaction processed which worked splendidly. The amount taken out is understood from the get-go – there is no mystery, nor is it that much. In the end, it’s the same processing as if one did have the same organization as those who develop the facilities on their own. It is a most interesting and pain-free element and, I think, a timely one, suitable for companies and individuals who prior to this have been loathe to take on this increasingly common form of payment. It therefore opens doors.

Marketing

Upon joining, a contractor lists his areas of specialty. This is in order to lure potential clients who look for help via ContractSpot to contact them via the Internet and set up meetings and potential contracts. An example: I listed a few categories of experience and, the next morning, I woke up to an email mentioning someone had posted a project in ContractSpot. I logged in and found a local guy who had acreage and who wanted it leveled. What was interesting is that, under the potential states of readiness on that end, the guy said he was “just checking prices at this time.” In other words, it was a project he was considering. I liked that, myself. Naturally, I emailed him back and we will be meeting face to face in a week, at his property.

Inasmuch as the response time is swift, as well as the notification of posted projects, arrangements can be made in real time rather rapidly. It does not require oodles of phone calls for a potential client and he can check the CV of any potential contractor over the Internet as well in all the various ways that exist for that purpose. To my mind, it is yet another benefit of Internet speed and commercial possibility.

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The Services

What happens over time is a record of transactions commences, including virtually everything mailed out or manually recorded over the time spent dealing here. Invoices are made and archived, leads, quotes, all messages and communications are a matter of record and serve as a virtual accounting service, including the recording of communications in general.

You can even make your own website, complete with personal photos from your own cache, tailored to the marketing niche you might have in mind. Endless photos are allowed to aid in supplying ideas and guidelines to potential clients. Not bad at all, in my opinion and, yes, I have signed up for this free service.

What They Want Out Of It

In the end, they are patient. Jude’s honest statement deals with the fact that they would make any money from the project via the processing of the credit card payments. Naturally, contracts can still be made from the clients garnered through here via checks, cash or services like barter, just like anywhere else. They just believe they have a niche they can develop which could not only aid businesses through the various sensible aspects of business they offer here, but which could also make them some money down the road. This is not a get-rich-quick operation, which made it more believable, somehow. I am not unaware of Internet scams, having been around now a bit. I am also aware of the wild potential as yet untapped at the same time for enterprising and smart people. So far, this fall under the latter for all sorts of reasons, not the least of which was Jude’s sincerity.

He hastened to add that this is a relatively new concept and that it will evolve over time. He asked me for comments or suggestions and wants to keep a line of communication to find out if there are ways to improve things even more. I liked that as well.

My Summary

I like it. Hey -It’s free!

It has the potential to not only offer a newer and very relevant market but also to actually generate a possible community. Obviously, anyone pleased with a contractor gained through here would try again. The record-keeping aspect of things would be new and different to a bad businessman like myself, I admit freely. With the Internet not only developing but growing rapidly, transactions formerly held over the phone can be thoughtfully short-circuited, pondered  at leisure and can allow a more thoughtful response and approach. Estimates can be arranged, references asked for and researched, even the money can be transferred, all in one spot.

At the worst, this is a result of concentrated effort by strict professionals who believe they detect a market for those services they specialize in – banking, accounting and marketing. I am actually somewhat impressed, frankly.

I am recommending it under the proviso that this is my blog and I can deal with disappointment loudly enough to reflect it, and why. But in talking with them, I also developed a really good feel for something I would not have paid attention to had they not contacted me and literally asked me what I thought. I happen to trust them and I do hope it works, not only for me but for purposes of strict commerce. It seems like a novel and interesting new wrinkle to me.

Click here to check out ContractSpot yourself

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Time management has been kicking my behind with all this Springtime madness. Thankfully, I now have an interlude from it all. I have more pictures than should be legal, too.  😉 I have been snapping at a fairly insane rate – it has been “that Spring” – just gorgeous and one during which I actually had the wherewithal to do something about capturing all these sights in real time, just the way I always wanted to. This has been a chore resplendent with pleasure and pride. I take landscaping personally……….it is what I am and have been. I have an ideology which feels landscaping and gardening are something other than idle pursuits of the well-off. My take is that it is a life-enhancer, making us happier and healthier human beings. It is soulful and therefore therapeutic.

Having said that, I suppose, compared to the less fortunate in the world, this truly is something less than necessary. Yet we do live somewhere – in real time and with real lives – and I feel we owe it to our own posterity to leave it better than how we found it. As far as the poorer parts of the world are concerned, Lord knows we want them to share our lives and their love on this planet in the best possible ways. I don’t forget them, let me put it that way. On this Easter Sunday, I am saying a special inner prayer for the less fortunate among us all. I like to think I do this every day. I think that is also our job as people.

My recollections of Easter focus on my boyhood, growing up in Owensboro, Kentucky, with all the scents of early roses and the freshly popped leaves and plants. It always seemed just muggy enough to be a sensual sort of weather, made for romance and experience.

Inasmuch as my daughter was born on the unbelievable date of April 1st, I also have another person’s childhood as a memory as well. I recall living in Santa Cruz and hosting a party for about 80 people on an Easter that coincided with her birthday. We went nuts, my fun-loving wife, Alice, and I. We spent a minor oodle of money on candy and other hosting apparatii like food and birthday cake. I dressed as the Easter Bunny – an experience I hope never to repeat owing to the universal derision of my male friends. Typical response: “Wow, that is hilarious, but I would never do that!” In truth, my make up designer did have me a bit closer to Skeletor, Protector of The Universe, than some cuddly bunny. I drew tears from the younger ones, let me put it that way. I only mention it for purposes of full disclosure.

We diligently hid the candies in places entire age groups would appreciate. We hung candy from the branches of Redwood trees, hid them in more outrageous places and the kids managed to find them all. Imagine!! My best friends, Steve Bare and his lovely wife, Jody, helped prepare a Kentucky special – “Burgoo” – 3 meats, celery, Okra, onions, carrots and Lord knows what else in a hickory-fed “smoker” that really did flavor the stuff with a Kentucky sort of cachet. The food lasted hours, not days. Yummy stuff, like a Louisiana “gumbo” in the end. Those Californians had never had anything like it………..but where was I?

Oh, Spring.

The early blooming Spring time here has me agog at the wonder of it all. There is sometimes some sense in the 4 season thing – Spring becomes something more than what it is. The Eternal Spring exists in our minds as an ideal of youth and budding promise. Easter, in the strictly Christian sense, reinforces this with yet another tale of Renewal, and a wonderful story at that. And make no mistake – renewal is the issue – particularly in the plant Kingdom. The budding glories, the flowers, the overall sense of newness and fresh life opening up around us and we watch it take place on a daily basis. It is truly a wonder of Life itself.

From these Rhodies, taken at the Crystal Springs Rhododenron Garden in Portland, to the blooming Cherry Trees below, taken in my own small neighborhood, Spring is bursting out and reminding us to pay attention to the small details in our lives. Nature doesn’t miss much.

Shirotae Cherry Trees – Prunus Shirotae “Snow Drop” – became very popular in the ’80’s and ’90’s locally and I want to thank them for getting popular. They are a favorite of mine, as always. Here is one big sucker, hard by our local library – here is an up close and personal view:

And here is the same one at a bit more distance –

And yet more distance –

Once again, I’ll have to abbreviate a post owing to server capacity or some such thing. No worries – I have more, this time all bulbs and perennials, next. See you then. May you and yours have a gloriously happy Easter.

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Driving to projects recently, I have pulled over – of had those driving pull over ;-)- to accommodate my photographic whims. This Spring seems somehow more precious for some reason. Or maybe it’s just that I have a reason to make an organized effort at loving it more owing to this blog. But it is becoming a visual feast, for sure. We just had our first 70 degree days (and, sadly, the forecast is to plunge back into some gloom) and it made the blossoms go just a bit nutso. Here are trees around town, just bustin’ out.

Trees add an outrageous mellowing influence in any large town or city. A look at the wires and lights, signs and traffic are about as interesting as watching paint dry. But take a look at these urban zones where trees give some Natural spunk to the surroundings and tell me they are not the single most welcome sight in human existence. The contrast might be even ore outrageous, contrasting the utilitarian functionality of out techno world and that of Nature herself who it pleases me greatly to say will outlive all these human contraptions.

Portland gets a legitimate 2 month Spring. Unfortunately, it can be combined with a lot of rainfall and some exceptionally dreary days but, all in all, much like Vancouver, BC, it can also result in some amazing colors, smells and sights in general with the lushness of moisture and cool air. I’ll be going again to the Crystal Springs Rhododendron Park later, when the Rhodies really get going and who can forget that? Here are a couple of examples from an earlier post of mine during last year’s visit over there:

This Higan Cherry (Prunus subhirtella var. pendula ) has always been a favorite of mine. Scrunched in here between the houses, it actually makes an absolutely delightful “fit”, softening the house lines and now towering over a fairly large home and its neighbor. We’ll keep an eye on this one as it develops more color in the days to comen Under that, is the same lot, but with another Higan out front:

Here, below, we revisit a Star Magnolia, now in all its glory. An early blooming Magnolia, these guys never fail to produce fabulous early shows. Competing as it does with all the paraphernalia around it makes it just that much more interesting to me. It’s unbelievable to me how compelling these plants can be – and not just this one. I am surprised the powers-that-be don’t disallow all this good Nature stuff owing to the neck-twisting drivers do at this time of year! 🙂

Back to my neighborhood gives us a few more glimpses of how things are proceeding locally. First up, the Star Magnolia from earlier, when it was just coming on:

The little side street nearby my place is still doing its thing:

As is this other nearby street:

And the local Camelia population are showing up as if invited or something. The gall!

Sometimes moving 600 pound boulders around takes second place to just paying attention to the air and to the things around us. This is definitely one of those times.

These are good days.