Frequently Asked Questions

What are the advantages of the Service Sold Selective Bidding System™?

With a normal forward auction, the price goes up with the bidding. At Service Sold providers compete against each other and the price tends to drop down. We are not a reverse auction where you must select the last and lowest bid. You have the ability as a customer to post a job and select any of the bids for any reason at any time. You are never required to go with the lowest bidder. We also also allow same price bidding and higher than the lowest price bidding. In practice, instead of using a reverse auction, Service Sold uses a very unique business model that acts as an adjustable price job posting that's transparent, flexible and extremely effective for all users. Our unique process can bring significant value to all customers.

Why should I post my project on Service Sold?

Here are 5 exclusive advantages you will get using Service Sold compared to the Manual Method:

• Reduced Cost: Significantly reduces the cost of the services (up to 60% or more off retail prices in 60 seconds). Bidding is free at Service Sold so the service providers have no overhead costs to pass on to you and with our Selective Bidding System™ they will compete against each other for pricing - not directly against you.
• Reduced Time: Save substantial amounts of time looking around and screening service providers (up to 90% or more). In less time than it takes you to make arrangements and show your project to a single service provider, you can just fill out our easy step-by step project listing that will be seen by thousands.
• Increased Quality: Increased quality from the service providers who know their job performance will be evaluated then published in their provider profile for everyone to review every time they bid on future jobs. With this global exposure you are assured of getting the very best possible effort and quality they can provide because they are really performing in front of the whole world - not just you.
• Increased Selection: With our unique Selective Bidding System™ format you can choose among the best value service providers from up to 200 miles or more to find the one that best fits your needs. Choosing the correct service provider is very important for any project. With our large coverage area, you can choose up to 5X the service providers than before which significantly increases your chances of success.
• Increased Privacy: You and your property address always remain completely anonymous. You will no longer have to hide your valuables during an on-site estimate or open up your private property to complete strangers. Only after your approval and selection will your service provider be able to contact you. Remaining anonymous increases your security and gives you peace of mind as well.

All Projects are FREE to post and there is no commitment. You just post your project and enjoy the competition as service providers battle to give you great value.

See all the benefits of Service Sold here.

What should I list as my Max price if I do not know a fair price?

Some people list that price because of genuine economic constraints because that is all the monies they have available. Most people have the money to complete their project just once, but no extra money to do it over again if the project fails. This is why we try to give you many choices (from up to 200 or more miles away) to reduce the chance of failure.

Other people however have already received outside price quotes from local service providers so they are very familiar with what they can expect to pay when they find someone they feel is a good fit to complete the project. Either way, the max price for any project is just the starting point - the price you will actually pay will be lower as the prices continue to decrease - just be sure you can pay your selected price upon project completion.

What are the fees?

Customers - Posting a service project is always Free.

On a completed auction the customer pays Service Sold only the first 8% (eight) of the final winning price. Customer will pay a minimum fee of $20 (twenty dollars) for smaller projects where the winning price is below $250 (two hundred fifty dollars) and only the first 5% (five) for Jumbo Jobs™ with the winning price is over $50,000 (fifty thousand dollars). There is no fee charged by Service Sold for charity projects. After the fee is paid to Service Sold the web site will then provide each party with contact information to start your project.

For example on a $1,000 USD winning bid the listing customer will send Service Sold 8% or $80 USD and pay the remaining 92% or $920 USD to the service provider upon job completion. ($80 + $920 = $1,000). The winning price is the TOTAL you pay even including the state sales tax where applicable. Permits not included.

Service Sold does not charge additional fees, all fees are within the final project price.

Service Providers - No annual or registration fees at all. Joining and bidding is always free. Welcome aboard.

Do I have to choose a Service Provider at the end of my project auction if I do not like any of them?

At the end of the project auction you are not obliged to choose a service provider if none fit your needs. At a Service Sold project the lowest bid is non-binding which means you are not obligated to pick the lowest priced service provider, you may pick anybody you choose at anytime. In practice Service Sold only works if you are serious! If you have a need for a service value you will love this site and everyone wins. Service providers get the opportunity to sell you their service, and you save time and money.

How does the Service Provider contact me after the project auction ends?

At the end of each project auction the contact details of both customer and service provider will be made available to each other so service can be arranged immediately. Only the service provider you choose will ever get your contact information.

What information is needed to post an project?

We use a combination of five different methods to identify variables for each project so your service provider has a clear understanding of your needs. For each specific project you will fill out the job details and specifications that we provide under each general category. You also get a chance to put it in your own words with open text box to be more clear of what you need done. You will have to measure some dimensions if that service requires it. The more details you give the better the savings because the providers will know precisely what you want and bid aggressively.

Do I get to give feedback of the Service Provider performance when my project is completed?

Yes, please let your community know how they did. This public feedback of the service providers performance is critical because we all need to know how they did. As a result of this public review they tend to work even harder for you than other private jobs so you will hopefully praise their performance in front of many others who may hire them in the future. Please do not give positive or negative feedback that is untrue. The Service Provider also has a chance to leave feedback as well.

Why are the Service Provider reviews so trusted at Service Sold?

Service Sold is widely recognized as the most reliable feedback because only paying customers from our website are eligible to post a review here after they had a documented service project. This is referred to as Closed Source reviews. On the other hand, Open Source reviews can come from anyone with intent to help (ballot stuffing) or harm (slander from competitor) a Service Provider. Open source reviews are common in the industry and can easily be influenced or even purchased in some cases. When you read a review of a Service Provider on Service Sold you can be assured it is an unbiased and authentic review for that provider.

Are registered charities required to pay a fee as other customers must do after selection?

No, they are not required to pay a fee after they select a winner. This results in lower bids and more savings for those who give so much to the community. They are restricted however to service projects at their place of operation/business only and no personal property.

What are the things a Customer should NOT do on Service Sold?

• Post a project with limited or false information.
• Give out personal information about themselves or property location prior to selecting a winner.
• Give inaccurate feedback about the service provider.
• Post a project for a property you do not own or control

What are the things a Service Provider should NOT do on Service Sold?

• Post a company profile with ANY false information about your experience, credentials, or profile
• Ask for or give out any personal contact information with the customer during a live auction
• Try to change your price or terms after you are selected as a winner
• Even attempt to bid on a project that you cannot perform in a timely manner

If I have a service project going on may I select the winner at any time?

Yes you can choose a winner at any time that you wish prior to the project end time.

Can I ever be trapped while using Service Sold?

No. You can never be trapped or forced to do anything against your wishes during a project.

For the service customer : If you select a service provider and have paid the Service Sold fee and for any reason the provider fails to start the project you may use our Plan B which allows you to select a different Service Provider from your initial choice or relist a project for no additional fee. You may only use each option once per project. Once a project is relisted, you can no longer choose from your inital Service Provider list - the project will start over.

For the service provider: If you are selected for a project and upon the project inspection there is a "material" or significant difference in the project from what was listed in the project details, you may, before the project starts turn down the job in good faith and receive no negative feedback.

How can I or my group/organization make income from servicesold.com?

We offer a three tier referral commission scale for all paid out projects that you or your group exclusively originated. Essentially, we split our net fee ( after our administrative costs ) with no limit to the amount you or your group/organization can earn each day. It's free and easy to sign up with your own referral account.

See how to make money with referral cash here.

Can I be both a Customer and a Service Provider?

Yes you can. In fact you can also be a referral agent as well. Customer and Service Provider accounts require separate e-mail addresses to log in and be recognized by Service Sold. The referral program is separate and any email can be used. Three ways to win - save money ( Customer ), earn money ( Service Provider ), and make extra income ( Referral Agent )!

Can I win some money if I actually save a lot of money on servicesold.com?

Yes. Each quarter, we have a contest of the biggest saver. This involves a written outside estimate (a previous written estimate) you received for your job prior to the servicesold.com project then deducting the final selection price you choose on servicesold.com for that same job. The winner who submits their giant savings wins a $100 certificate upon your story publication approval.

What is Price Leader?

Price Leader is the industry's only reverse proxy bidding feature where a service provider can enter a minimum bid amount for a project and in their absence, it will automatically bid in $10 decrements below the competition. A proxy bid moves down only enough to keep them as the current price leader and holds the rest of their minimum price amount hidden to be used only if needed. Only the Service Provider and Service Sold know this amount. Proxy bidding is essential for service providers because it means they don't have to be at the project listing every single minute of their busy work day to make sure they are not outbid. The proxy bid will stop decreasing at the very lowest price given. They can, at any time, adjust their stated lowest price (called floor price) to always be the current price leader.