Help center · The Jobs & Jots manual
How can we help?
Everything Jobs & Jots does, explained step by step — 53 guides.
Popular: Send your first estimate (quick start)Connect Stripe to take card paymentsPut the request form on your websiteSet up recurring jobsSend an estimate and get it approvedAdd your team and choose what they can see
0 results
No guides match that search. Try another word, or clear the search to browse the manual.
New to Jobs & Jots? Start here
Follow these guides in order and your account is ready for real work in about 20 minutes.
- 1 A quick tour of Jobs & JotsWhat's in each part of the menu and where to find things. 4 min
- 2 Set up your company info and logoYour logo, contact details and license show on every estimate and invoice. 3 min
- 3 Build your products & services listSave the work you do most with cost, markup and photos. 3 min
- 4 Send your first estimate (quick start)From a blank account to an estimate in your client's inbox in five minutes. 5 min
- 5 Connect Stripe to take card paymentsClients pay by card, Apple Pay or Google Pay from the invoice link. 3 min
- 6 Add your team and choose what they can seeGive each person their own login with the right access. 3 min
How a job moves through Jobs & Jots
Every job follows the same path. Click a step to learn how it works.
- 1 Request A client asks for work from your form, by phone or from a lead site.
- 2 Estimate You price the work and the client approves and signs online.
- 3 Job The approved work becomes a job with its visits, notes and costs.
- 4 Visit Your crew goes out, checks off tasks, takes photos and tracks time.
- 5 Invoice Bill the job or the completed visits in one click.
- 6 Payment The client pays online or you record the payment.
Browse the manual by topic
Getting started Create your account, set up your company and send your first estimate. 6 guides Estimates Create, send and get estimates approved. 7 guides Invoices & payments Invoices, payments, reminders and online payments. 5 guides Clients & requests Clients, properties, the request form and the Client Corner. 7 guides Schedule & jobs Visits, recurring jobs, routes, field work and job costing. 7 guides Products & services Your item list, markups and the Home Depot catalog. 3 guides Team & permissions Users, access groups and where your crew is right now. 2 guides CRM & marketing Follow-ups, the Job Trail, campaigns, maintenance plans, reviews and texts. 6 guides Finances & reports Expenses, profit, sales tax, reports and QuickBooks. 3 guides Settings & account Every setting explained, your documents, language, plan and support. 7 guides
All guides
The full manual, chapter by chapter.
Getting started
Create your account, set up your company and send your first estimate.
A quick tour of Jobs & JotsWhat's in each part of the menu and where to find things. 4 min How a job moves from request to paymentThe six steps of every job and the button that takes you to the next one. 4 min Create your Jobs & Jots accountSign up and get into your account in a couple of minutes. 2 min Set up your company info and logoYour logo, contact details and license show on every estimate and invoice. 3 min Send your first estimate (quick start)From a blank account to an estimate in your client's inbox in five minutes. 5 min Add your team and choose what they can seeGive each person their own login with the right access. 3 min
Estimates
Create, send and get estimates approved.
Create an estimateClients, line items, photos, sections, discounts and deposits. 4 min Offer optional items and upgradesLet clients choose extras on the estimate link. 2 min Send an estimate and get it approvedEmail or text the link; clients approve and sign online. 3 min Convert an estimate into an invoiceTurn approved work into an invoice in one click. 1 min Add a change orderExtra work (or less) after the client approved the estimate. 2 min Contracts, terms and your signatureThe terms the client accepts and your signature on documents. 3 min Draft an estimate with AIDescribe the job and get suggested lines from your own items. 2 min
Invoices & payments
Invoices, payments, reminders and online payments.
Create and send an invoiceInvoice from scratch, from an estimate or from completed visits. 3 min Record a paymentCash, check, Zelle, Venmo — full or partial. 2 min Connect Stripe to take card paymentsClients pay by card, Apple Pay or Google Pay from the invoice link. 3 min Add PayPal and VenmoA Pay with PayPal button with the amount filled in. 1 min Automatic follow-ups for estimates and invoicesFriendly reminders sent for you. 2 min
Clients & requests
Clients, properties, the request form and the Client Corner.
Add clients and their propertiesContact details, tags, notes and service addresses. 2 min Put the request form on your websiteGet new work requests from your website and social media. 3 min Share the Client CornerOne private place with everything for your client. 2 min Get your texting numberRegister your business once and text clients from your own local number. 3 min Properties with residents (tenants)For landlords and property managers: who pays and who lets you in. 3 min Let clients book onlineClients pick an open time on your booking link. 3 min Get leads from Angi, Thumbtack and YelpLeads from the sites you advertise on land in Requests. 3 min
Schedule & jobs
Visits, recurring jobs, routes, field work and job costing.
Schedule a visit and remind your clientBook visits, assign your team and send reminders. 3 min Set up recurring jobsWeekly or monthly work that schedules and invoices itself. 3 min Plan the best route for the dayVisit order, driving time and Google Maps directions. 2 min Checklists, photos and time on a visitEverything your crew does on site. 2 min See the real profit of a jobRevenue minus item costs, labor and expenses. 2 min Send On my way with a live mapTell the client you're coming and let them watch you arrive. 2 min Create a job and plan its visitsA job holds the visits, documents, notes and costs of the work. 3 min
Products & services
Your item list, markups and the Home Depot catalog.
Team & permissions
Users, access groups and where your crew is right now.
CRM & marketing
Follow-ups, the Job Trail, campaigns, maintenance plans, reviews and texts.
Follow-ups: never forget to call backReminders to contact clients, and the CRM overview. 3 min Track every deal on the Job TrailRequests and estimates from new to won or lost. 2 min Send email and text campaignsPromotions, maintenance reminders and news to a group of clients. 3 min Sell maintenance plansSteady income from yearly or monthly service plans. 3 min Collect Google reviewsAsk happy clients for a review at the right moment. 2 min Text with clients in TextsTwo-way conversations with clients from your company number. 2 min
Finances & reports
Expenses, profit, sales tax, reports and QuickBooks.
Settings & account
Every setting explained, your documents, language, plan and support.
Every setting, explainedWhat each part of Settings does, in one page. 4 min Sales tax and markupsTax rates on items and a hidden markup on lines. 2 min Customize your estimates and invoicesPaper size, payment terms, footer, email messages and notifications. 3 min Import from JoistBring your items, clients, estimates and invoices from Joist. 3 min Language and light or dark modeUse Jobs & Jots in English, Spanish or Portuguese. 1 min Your plan and billingChange plan, update your card and see your invoices. 2 min Get helpSupport tickets, the chat and the Community. 1 min
Words you'll see in Jobs & Jots
A quick glossary of the terms used across the app and this manual.
- Request
- A new work request from a client, before there's a price. It can become an estimate, a job or an assessment visit.
- Estimate
- Your price for the work. The client opens it from a link, picks optional items, signs and approves.
- Change order
- Extra (or less) work after an estimate is approved. It lists only what changes and is signed like an estimate.
- Job
- The work you're doing for a client. It holds the visits, estimates, invoices, notes and the job's real profit.
- Visit
- One trip to the client on a date and time, assigned to someone on your team. A job can have many.
- Assessment
- A visit to look at the work before you send a price.
- Invoice
- What the client owes. It can be paid online from its link and shows in Receivables until it's paid.
- Client Corner
- Your client's private page with their estimates, invoices, payments and visits, opened after they confirm their email.
- Property
- A service address of a client (a rental unit, a second home). It can have a resident who gets the visit texts.
- Item list
- Your saved products and services, with cost, markup and price, ready to add to any estimate or invoice.
- Access group
- What a group of users can see, create, edit and delete. Every user belongs to one.
- Job Trail
- The CRM board where every request and estimate moves from new to won or lost.
- Follow-up
- A reminder to contact a client on a date: after a job, about a waiting estimate or a quiet client.
- Receivables
- Money clients owe you on invoices that were sent and aren't fully paid.
Still stuck?
Tell us what you're trying to do and we'll help you get there.
A simpler way to run your business.
Send your first estimate today. Free while Jobs & Jots is in beta — no credit card.