What To Do With Jobs You Can't Take

It happens every week. You're knee-deep in a switchboard upgrade, or it's 7 PM and you've just cracked a beer, and the phone rings. It's a customer with no power, or someone wanting a quote for a full rewire on the other side of the city.

You can't take the job. What do you do next?

For most electricians, the answer is "Sorry mate, I'm booked out," and they hang up. But every time you do that, you are literally throwing money away. Here is a breakdown of your options and how much they cost—or make—you.

Option 1: Do Nothing (The Expensive Option)

Saying no is the easiest option, but it has hidden costs.

• Lost Revenue: The obvious one. A $5,000 job just walked out the door.
• Lost Customer Lifetime Value: Customers are loyal to the tradesman who solves their problem. If you turn them away, they will find someone else, and they will call that someone else next time, too.
• Reputational Damage: If a real estate agent or a good builder refers you and you constantly say you're too busy, they will stop referring you.

Option 2: The Mate's Network

You call a mate and say, "Hey, I've got a job I can't get to, do you want it?"

This is better than nothing because it solves the customer's problem. Your mate gets the work, and maybe they'll buy you a carton or flick a job your way in the future. But it's informal, unreliable, and rarely results in actual cash in your pocket.

Option 3: Formal Referral (The Profitable Option)

Instead of turning the job down or giving it away for free, you can refer it through a structured system and get paid.

This is exactly what Spark Your Leads does. If you can't take the job, you send us the customer's details. We contact them, quote it, complete the work, and when the invoice is paid, we send you a referral payout.

How the Numbers Work

We believe in transparent, dollar-value payouts. We take the risk, do the work, and you get rewarded for the lead. Here is what a typical referral payout looks like based on our standard tiers:

• $1,850 Job (e.g., Blown Service Fuse): Your payout is $370.
• $5,000 Job (e.g., Switchboard Upgrade): Your payout is $750.
• $10,000 Job (e.g., Fallen Power Pole): Your payout is $1,200.
• $50,000+ Job (e.g., Major Commercial Rewire): Your payout is $3,000.

This is money you made from a job you were going to turn down anyway. If you forward just two decent jobs a month that you couldn't fit in, that's easily an extra $1,500+ in your account for zero physical work.

The "No Win, No Fee" Guarantee

The best part about referring the work is that there's no risk. If you send us a lead and the customer decides not to proceed, or they find someone cheaper, it costs you nothing. You don't pay a subscription, and you don't pay a fee for the lead. We only make money if we win the job, and if we win, you get paid.

Keep Your Customer

We aren't here to steal your clients. We act professionally and handle the immediate problem. When the job is done, the customer is still yours for future work. We just handle the overflow.

Next time the phone rings and you can't take the job, don't say no. Send it.