NEED IT DONE?BOOK SOMEONEWHO CAN.
An appointment-driven local service marketplace. You say what you need and when. We match you with a qualified local provider, and they show up.
“ShowUp” is a placeholder name (the plan’s working title is “Need It Done?”). We still need to check trademark, SC entity name and domain availability. Prepared for Mike · Oct 2026 · Draft.
Illustrative screen
Getting small jobs done means posting, waiting and chasing.
Classified-ad style boards give you a list of strangers. They don’t give you a time, a commitment, or a record of what was agreed.
Classified-ad board
- You post and hope somebody replies
- No set time, so “I’ll come by sometime” is the answer
- You can’t tell who’s qualified or nearby
- The scope lives in scattered texts, and changes get argued later
An appointment
- You say what, where and when
- Only providers who are available at that time get the offer
- Matched by category, travel radius and calendar
- A booking record with a versioned scope that both sides can see
Customer segments are assumptions from the plan. We still have to validate them in interviews.
“I need something done. I know when I need it. Find somebody qualified who can show up and do it.”
This is an appointment and dispatch marketplace, not a listings site. Three systems work together:
Customer scheduling
What, where, when, how long, how urgent (scheduled, same day or ASAP) and an optional budget.
Provider dispatch & matching
The job goes to available, qualified local providers. They can accept, decline with no penalty, or quote a price and propose a new time.
Scope, payment & accountability
Once a booking is confirmed, both sides share one record: what was agreed, and every change after that.
Five taps from “ugh” to done.
I Need Help
Pick a job type (moving, assembly, yard work, cleaning, hauling, minor handyman), add details and an address.
Choose a Time
Set a date and time, or pick Same day or ASAP. Add the estimated duration and an optional budget.
Get Matched
Up to 5 qualified, nearby, available providers get the offer right away.
Confirm Booking
A provider accepts, or you accept their quote. You get a confirmation number and scope v1.
Get It Done
They show up. Any change to the job gets recorded, then the job is marked complete.
Your schedule. Your radius. Your call.
Find Jobs
Set your weekly hours, travel radius and services. Offers only show up when they fit all three.
Accept Appointment
Accept it, decline it with no penalty, or send a quote with a different time.
Complete Work
Work from a clear, versioned scope. If the job changes on site, record it as a new version.
Get Paid
Planned: payouts through Stripe Connect (Stage 2). In the prototype, payment is simulated only.
Built to protect provider independence: providers set their own availability, radius, categories and prices, use their own tools, and have no mandatory schedules or uniforms.
Rule-based, explainable, and it never double-books.
Every provider has to pass all four filters. The matches are then ranked and the job is offered.
Booking runs as a single transaction. It checks again that the request is still open and that the provider isn’t booked at that time, so two providers can’t take the same job. If nobody matches, the customer can try matching again.
“That’s not what we agreed” has a paper trail.
Each booking starts with scope v1, the job as requested at the agreed price. If something changes, either side records a new version with a new price. Old versions are kept and never overwritten.
Versioned
v1, v2, v3… each with its author, time and price.
Audited
Every scope change also goes into the admin audit log.
Move a sofa from the living room to an upstairs bedroom. Assemble a flat-pack desk.
Also haul the old desk.
Illustrative This example mirrors the prototype’s demo data and test case. It is not a real job.
Three levers to test, not a final price list.
Mike’s figure. Optional, for customers or providers. Ideas to test: priority on offers for provider members, waived booking fees for customer members.
Charged to the customer on each booking, to cover payment processing on small jobs. Assumption
Taken from the provider’s job price, so revenue only comes from completed work. Test anywhere from 5–15%. Assumption
Recommended starting model
Free to sign up · $2.99 customer booking fee + 10% provider commission · optional $10/mo membership for either side. Run it for 60 days, then compare against the alternatives.
Real cost to price in
Stripe’s standard online card rate is 2.9% + 30¢ per successful charge (stripe.com/pricing, checked Oct 14, 2026). Connect payouts may add more fees.
About $9.70 net to the platform per booking.
This uses the plan’s break-even assumptions: an average job of $100, the $2.99 fee, a 10% commission, and Stripe’s fee on the full charge.
Illustrative only
A lean launch. The founders build the product. All estimates
| Item | Low | High | Basis |
|---|---|---|---|
| SC LLC formation (Secretary of State) | $110 | $150 | Confirm at sos.sc.gov |
| Registered agent (if not self) | $0 | $150/yr | Assumption |
| Local business license(s) | $50 | $300 | Varies by city |
| Attorney review: terms, provider agreement, privacy | $500 | $3,000 | Assumption |
| General liability insurance (platform) | $500/yr | $2,000/yr | Broker quotes |
| Domain + email | $30 | $100/yr | Assumption |
| Hosting / database | $0 | $50/mo | Free tiers → paid |
| SMS / email notifications | $10/mo | $50/mo | Usage-based |
| Provider background checks | $20/check | $50/check | Vendor quote; may pass on |
| Marketing: flyers, yard signs, local Facebook ads | $300 | $1,500 | First 90 days |
| Total, first 90 days (rough) | ~$1,500 | ~$7,500 |
– $7.5K
The total is a sum of estimates. Every line needs a real quote before we spend anything.
Roughly 36 bookings + 7 members a month covers $400 of fixed costs.
Assumes ≈ $9.70 net per booking plus $10 per member, against $400/mo of fixed costs (insurance, hosting, SMS, software, small ads). Illustrative · not a forecast
−$156
≈ break-even
+$820
Net per month = bookings × $9.70 + members × $10. We’ll swap in real numbers after the pilot.
Build it the right way from day one.
No silent pay deductions
Under the SC Payment of Wages Act, an employer can’t withhold wages without legal permission or prior written notice (§ 41-10-40(C)). Violations can mean penalties of up to 3× unpaid wages plus fees (§ 41-10-80).
Contractor classification
Calling providers “independent contractors” doesn’t settle the question. The IRS looks at behavioral control, financial control and the relationship.
Licensed trades
SC LLR’s Contractor’s Licensing Board covers contractors and certain trades (S.C. Code Title 40 Ch. 59).
Also on the list: platform GL and cyber insurance, terms and privacy policy, provider agreement, cancellation and refund policy, FCRA-compliant background checks, TCPA consent for SMS, and accessibility. This is a checklist, not legal advice. Have an SC attorney and a CPA review it before launch.
Supply first. Small, local, hands-on.
Recruit 10–20 providers
People Mike already knows, local Facebook groups, church and community boards. Every provider gets a personal interview and manual verification.
Pick 3 categories
Moving and lifting, assembly, and yard work and hauling.
Pilot with 20–30 customers
Customers come from personal networks. Mike watches every booking in the admin dashboard and fixes problems by phone.
Local marketing
Flyers at apartment complexes (with permission), senior centers and hardware stores, yard signs at finished jobs, and referral credit.
Measure
Request → match, match → booking, no-shows, cancellations, disputes and repeat customers.
From prototype to a go / no-go decision in 90 days.
Stage 1 → deployed
Product
- Prototype core is already built (see next slide)
- Real auth (Supabase Auth)
- Move to Postgres, deploy to a test URL
Business
- LLC, EIN, bank account
- Attorney: classification + terms
- Recruit first 10 providers
- 15 customer interviews
Stage 2 · Money & messages
Product
- Stripe Connect payments (test → live)
- SMS / email notifications
- Cancellation and refund rules
- Photo uploads, messaging
Business
- Insurance quotes + policy
- Local licenses
- Finalize terms / privacy
- Soft-launch pilot: Spartanburg + Greer
Stage 3 · Trust & scale
Product
- Provider verification workflow
- Completion + review flow
- Basic analytics
- Dispute / adjustment workflow (no automatic deductions)
Business
- Expand to Greenville
- Test fee vs commission vs membership
- Go / no-go on public launch, based on real pilot numbers
A working Stage 1 prototype. Demo data only.
Works today
- Sign-up as a customer or provider, with town, radius and services
- Request form: category, details, address, 8 Upstate towns, date and time, urgency (scheduled / same day / ASAP), duration, budget
- Instant matching: category + radius + availability + no conflicts, verified first then nearest, up to 5 offers
- Provider hub: accept, decline (no penalty), or quote with a new time. Weekly hours, radius and services can all be edited
- Atomic booking with a double-booking check, a confirmation # and scope v1
- Versioned scope changes (v2, v3… with full history), plus mark completed / cancel
- Admin dashboard: counts, requests, appointments, verify toggle, audit log
Stubbed / simplified
- Payments are simulated. No card is charged and no money moves
- Login is “act as”, a cookie with no passwords
- “Verified” is a manual admin flag. There’s no real background check
- Distances use town-center coordinates, not geocoded addresses
- Licensed trades are labeled at sign-up but not yet blocked in matching
- SQLite locally. The path to Postgres / Supabase is documented
Not built yet (Stage 2+)
- Real auth, Stripe / Stripe Connect, $10 membership subscriptions
- SMS / email, photo uploads, messaging, reviews, repeat bookings, dispute workflow
Need it done?
Booked.
One request, one time, one qualified local provider who shows up, with a record both sides can trust.
Next step, Mike: book 15 customer interviews and sign up your first 10 providers.
Sofa from the living room to an upstairs bedroom. Assemble a flat-pack desk.