Send a pdf report and get paid for it before the client/realtor sees it.
The system is built on Stripe (world-class banking technology).
InterNACHI members get 50% off - you only pay $1 fee per use after the client pays the bill.
I use it every day and love it.
After 10 years of running my own inspection business, I wanted a drop-dead simple way of getting paid. I made this system along with a very experienced computer science partner.
The link below will get you the 50% off discount that never expires.
That’s cool, Jeff. I use outlook too and I really like it.
It’s just that now that I have the Inspectorly system. I send my PDF reports through Inspectorly. The benefit is that I can drop in my pdf report, set the price, and then set the recipients.
All the recipients get a branded email with a link to the report.
When the recipients click the link, they get are greeted by a professional paywall.
The client gets a really nice payment experience based on the latest technology, and then they get the report along with a PAID invoice.
Plus, when the client pays, the money goes automatically to my bank account with no hassle via stripe technology.
The system really saves everyone time and works great.
For me when I use the system the biggest benefit is ZERO hassle and ZERO managing anything, and I always get paid without my money being stuck anywhere other than my bank account.
Maybe I am holding myself back. In my opinion, the fewer hands in the process the better. I find it easy to attach the PIA to my confirmation email and send out an invoice through Square. If they are not returned by 10:00 PM the night before the inspection, it is canceled. Everyone else in the transaction has committed to the inspection time and conditions, why shouldn’t the buyer?
I don’t disagree with either side. All inspectors can run their business as they want. I personally accept payment after I do the inspection. After 7 years, I have yet to be stiffed on a payment.
My reasoning is that if, for any unfortunate reason (like getting wiped out by a dump truck on my way) I don’t want my wife or family members trying to get the client a refund during this time. I do however let the client know that the report and any information regarding such, will not be provided until payment has been received.
I use Outlook to send an email explaining my expectations prior to the inspection. Gmail and Yahoo would work as well. Use what works best for you. I just don’t see a reason to overcomplicate things.
I have always accepted payment after the inspection. I’ve only been stiffed three or four times in 33 years. The people who stiffed me would have done it even if they had paid me in advance. They were checks that bounced, with one notable exception. One was a woman who stopped payment on her check because she had a dispute with her inspector from five years earlier. She accused me, and all inspectors, of collusion because I pointed out that her inspection report from five years earlier had mentioned the specific problem she had but that she hadn’t addressed.
I don’t take credit cards in my inspection business, but I do in my other business. Anyone can file a fraudulent chargeback months after making the payment. We fight fraudulent chargebacks hard. We win sometimes, but when we do it’s usually a Pyrrhic victory. The main selling point of credit cards in their early days was that a merchant could extend credit risk free. The credit card companies have flipped that so that today merchants are extending credit to complete strangers with almost no protection against fraud. Whereas in the early days, credit card companies bore most of the risk, today, merchants bear most of the risk. Merchants who sell tangible goods get better protection than merchants who sell services such as home inspections or intangibles such as software.
I also use PayPal for sending invoices and for taking credit cards for software, books, coaching, and training. I’ve compared PayPay to other services many times over the years. They all claim to have better prices and service, but none have been a better overall value than PayPal. PayPal isn’t perfect, but it’s hard to beat.
No payment method is 100% safe unfortunately. Cards can get chargebacks, checks can bounce or be stopped-payment, cash can be counterfeit. We have a retail store and occasionally get counterfeit cash. Some are done really well where our workers can’t tell. Odds are good our customer doesn’t even know it was counterfeit either. The bank lets us know though, lol.
I agree. Steve Jobs famously said that there is elegance in simplicity. He often said it was the underlying philosophy for Apple. Albert Einstein had a similar opinion that things should be made as simple as possible, but no simpler. And then, of course, there are the closely related Occam’s Razor and the Parsimony Principle.
Small business proprietors who have little or no business experience or education tend to gravitate towards services that add complexity to their business, when they should be endeavoring to minimize complexity. That’s why guys like Dan Huber with his ISN and the man-bun kids with their Spectora software have been successful.
Thanks for the information about what you use. I agree, keeping things simple is the way to go.
I also love the idea of getting paid in advance (PIA - I didn’t know that acronym). I have never tried to implement that in my business. But I do really like the idea.
With Inspectorly, you can send an invoice with no report paywall. In this case, the software works just like PayPal or similar competitors. You can send an invoice, watch for it to get paid, and then go to the job once payment is confirmed.
With Inspectorly, you can also send a report with a paywall. That’s another option but not required.
