We've just made a structural change to how Tradelynx works for traders.
Leads are free. The platform is free. The only thing a trader pays Tradelynx is a 2% fee on the value of a job they actually complete.
No subscription. No membership tier. No paying for leads that didn't convert. No monthly minimum.
We make money when you make money. That's it.
What this changes for traders
Most platforms in this space charge for the introduction. You pay a subscription, you pay per lead, you pay whether the work happens or not. Add up the cost of finding work via the established platforms over a year and you're looking at four-figure overheads before you've turned a wheel.
That cost has to come from somewhere. It comes from your margin.
Either you absorb it ā and your hourly rate stays the same while your take-home shrinks ā or you pass it on. The customer ends up paying for the platform's cost of finding you, baked into their quote.
Take the cost out of the introduction and that maths changes. The work hasn't got any easier. The job hasn't got any smaller. But the overhead between you and the customer has gone.
Some traders will use that to be more competitive on price ā quote tighter, win more work, build volume.
Some will use it to take more home from each job ā keep the rates the same, end the month with more in the bank.
Some will mix the two depending on the job, the customer, the season.
That's your call to make. It's your business.
Why we're doing this
Tradelynx isn't really a lead-generation platform. It looks like one if you only see the top of the funnel ā homeowner finds a tradesperson, books a job ā but that's the engine, not the product.
The product is the property record.
Every job booked through Tradelynx creates a verified maintenance event tied to the property. The homeowner ends up with a record of what's been done to their home ā by whom, when, with what certifications, with the receipts and the photos attached. Over time that record compounds into something valuable: to the homeowner when they sell, to insurers when they underwrite, to lenders when they review, to estate agents when they list.
That's where the platform's value lives. Not in charging traders for introductions, but in the data that comes out of the work being done well.
If we charge traders for the introduction, we're competing for a small piece of the trader's margin. If we don't, we're aligned ā every job that happens makes the platform's records more valuable, and the trader keeps more of what they earned.
The 2% completion fee is what keeps the platform running and what funds the engineering and operations work that goes into it. It's also the only thing that comes out of the trader's pocket. No leads paid for that didn't land. No subscription paid in months where work was thin. No charges for sitting in a queue.
What this means in practice
If you're already on Tradelynx, nothing changes on your end except that you'll see your credit balance disappear from the dashboard. You don't need credits any more. Accepting leads is free.
If you're thinking about joining, the pitch is simpler than it was a week ago: sign up, get verified, accept work in your area, pay 2% on what you complete. That's the whole arrangement.
Pro and LabourLynx remain available as optional add-ons for traders who want them ā Pro gives you analytics and queue visibility for Ā£19/month, LabourLynx gives you access to the day-labour pool for Ā£29 every 30 days. Neither is required. The base platform is free.
And the long view
Most platforms in this space are positioned against each other on a continuum: who charges less per lead, who has more traders, who has the better app, who has the cheaper subscription.
We're not really in that race. Tradelynx is positioned to be the platform where every UK home's maintenance history gets recorded properly. The trader marketplace is how that data gets created. The 2% fee is how the platform stays operational. The valuable thing we build over time is the record, not the introduction.
Removing lead costs aligns the economics with that thesis. Traders win because they keep more of their money. Customers win because the quote they get isn't padded with the trader's platform overhead. And the platform wins because every job creates a record we can build a serious business around.
That's where we're heading.
ā Mike
Tradelynx is currently live for verified traders in Portsmouth, Southampton, and Bournemouth, with consumer-facing HomeLynx Passport claims available nationwide across England. Find out more at tradelynx.co.uk or apply to be a Founding Trader at tradelynx.co.uk/?role=trader