FieldproxyAI-native field service softwareSubcontractors
How can subcontractors receive, update and close jobs without downloading an app?
Send each subcontractor a secure link to that one job by email or text. The link opens in the phone's browser, shows only what the sub needs (address, scope, access notes, PO number), and lets them accept the job, upload photos, fill in the completion form and capture a signature, all of which land on the job record your office works from. Make the link expire, let the office revoke it, and require the photos and form before the job can be marked complete; give a portal login only to the subs who work with you every week.
- One link per sub per job, not one shared link: it is the access, so treat it like a password.
- The link shows scope, address and PO number only. Never client pricing or the client's contact details.
- Completion is blocked until the required photos, form and signature are in.
- Links expire (30 days is a common default) and can be revoked the moment a job is reassigned.
- Regular subs graduate to a portal login that shows all of their jobs; one-off subs stay on links.
Browser links suit occasional subs and simple close-outs. A sub doing several jobs a day in areas with no signal will still be better served by an app that works offline.
Facts checked as of November 2026. Sources at the end of the page.
Step by step
How it works, step by step
The pattern is the same whether you send 10 jobs a month to subs or 500. The difference is how much of it is automatic.
1. Create the job as normal, then assign or offer it to a sub
The job keeps your client, site, scope, client price and PO. The sub record holds their trade, area, rate and contact details. Assigning the sub is what triggers the link, so the office never copies job details into a text by hand.
2. Generate a link for that sub and that job
Each link is unique to one person and one record. It carries an expiry date and, for forms, a cap on how many times it can be submitted. If the job moves to another sub, revoke the first link and send a new one.
3. Send it where the sub already reads messages
Text for trades who live on their phone, email for vendors who work from a desk or forward jobs to their own crew. The message says what the job is, when it is due and what proof you need back. Nothing else.
4. The sub accepts or declines from the page
Accept sets the job to Accepted and stamps the time. Decline, or no answer within your window, frees the job to offer to the next sub. This is how you avoid ringing round.
5. On site, they update the job from the browser
Status (On the way, On site, Complete), notes, photos taken straight from the camera, the completion form and the customer's or site contact's drawn signature. The browser asks for location permission if you want a GPS stamp at check-in.
6. The job cannot close until the proof is in
Required fields stop Complete from saving: for example 2 before photos, 2 after photos, the checklist and a signature. Missing items are named on the page, so the sub fixes them on site, not three days later.
7. The office reviews, then bills and pays
Everything the sub sent sits on the job. Someone checks the photos and form, approves the work, invoices the client and approves the sub's bill. The link stops working when it expires or is revoked.
Where it breaks
Why it goes wrong
These are the problems buyers described on our sales calls, from facility maintenance, emergency home services, installation and lift maintenance businesses that run on subcontractors.
One-off subs will not install an app for one job
A commercial facility maintenance coordinator with about 200 subs on file, a quarter of them used regularly, said asking a new sub to download an app is the hard part the first time. When the sub refuses, the job goes back to phone calls and texted photos.
Subs are good at the trade, not at software
A hybrid in-house plus vendor FM company described its vendors as people swinging hammers who use email and nothing else. A 24/7 emergency home services business with 5 sub technicians said anything technical is hard for them, so everything happens over text.
Updates scatter across chat threads
A furniture installation network with about 100 subs runs them through group chats. Finding the photo or the time a sub promised means scrolling back through everyone's messages, and none of it is on the job.
The sub sees things they should not
Several buyers said subs must never see the client's price or contact details, or they will quote the client directly next time. Forwarding the client's work order to a sub as it arrived leaks both.
Paperwork comes back unreadable or late
A UK lift supplier with about 70 subcontractors receives handwritten sheets, photographed, sometimes in another language. Proof that arrives days later, or that nobody can read, holds up the client invoice.
A forwarded link becomes a shared password
A link that never expires and is not tied to one person can be forwarded, opened by the wrong crew or found in an old thread. W3C guidance on these capability URLs says they should use HTTPS, should expire and should be revocable by the person who issued them.
The options
Ways to do it
| Approach | Sub needs | What the sub can do | Good for |
|---|---|---|---|
| Text or email plus photos sent back | Nothing | Anything, in any format, with nothing tied to the job | A handful of jobs a month and one coordinator |
| ServiceM8 Network Request | Nothing if they are not on ServiceM8: the request arrives as a link that opens in a web browser | View details and complete job requirements (To Do, Photo, Document, Form); cannot mark complete until each requirement is done. ServiceM8's own guide still encourages subs to use its app | Small trade businesses already on ServiceM8 |
| Simpro contractor portal | A username and password at your Simpro URL with /contractor on the end; no licence needed | View (not edit, invoice or archive) their work orders, mark pending jobs complete, enter the works completed, approve or reject RCTIs | Simpro Premium users with regular subs |
| Add the sub as a user in the FSM (for example Jobber's Field crew permission level) | A login and the vendor's app | See their own schedule, mark work complete, add notes and photos; cannot see pricing or costs | Subs who work for you most days |
| Secure job links plus an optional portal login (Fieldproxy) | Nothing for links; an email and password for portal users | Accept, update status, photos, forms and signature from the browser; portal users see only their own jobs | Mixed networks of one-off and regular subs |
As of November 2026, from each vendor's own help pages (sources below). Check what the sub can do on the link, not only that a link exists: viewing a job is not the same as closing it with proof.
Worked example
A worked example: 120 sub jobs a month, 40 subs
Say a commercial maintenance company sends about 120 jobs a month to 40 subs. Eight subs do most of the work every week; the other 32 take one or two jobs a month, often for a single store in a far-off town.
The 8 regulars get portal logins. They sign in once, see every job offered or assigned to them, and never see another sub's work or any client price. The 32 occasional subs get a link per job by text. That is roughly 40 to 60 links a month, each made automatically when the job is assigned.
Take one job: a door closer repair at a retail store, PO 48812. The sub gets a text at 9:10 with the address, the scope, the store's opening hours and the PO number. They accept at 9:25. On site at 14:00 they open the same link, tap On site (the browser asks once for location), take 2 before photos, replace the closer, take 2 after photos, tick the 4-item checklist and get the store manager to sign on screen. Complete saves at 14:50 because every required item is there.
At 15:05 the coordinator reviews the photos, approves the work and the client invoice goes out with the photos and signature attached. The sub's link expires 30 days later. Compare that with chasing photos by text, saving them to a computer, renaming them and uploading them to the job, which one engineering firm on our calls described as their daily routine.
One practical check: if you text links to US mobile numbers from a regular 10-digit business number, the number must be registered for A2P 10DLC. Twilio, for example, blocks messages to US numbers from a +1 10DLC number that is not tied to an approved campaign, so register before the first link goes out.
Before you buy
What to check before you buy
Good signs
- The sub can close the job from the link, not only view it
- Required photos, form and signature block completion on the link too
- Each link is per person and per job, with an expiry and a revoke button
- You choose which fields the sub sees, and client price is hidden by default
- Regular subs can move to a portal login without paying for seats
- Photos open the camera directly from the page on iPhone and Android
Red flags
- One shared link for all subs, or links that never expire
- The link shows the client's work order as it arrived, prices included
- Sub updates arrive as an email to the office instead of on the job
- Every sub needs a paid licence to see a single job
- Texted links go out from an unregistered US number
In Fieldproxy
Setting it up in Fieldproxy
Fieldproxy gives one-off subs a link and regular subs a portal login, both writing to the same job your office uses. Field names and timings below are examples; we set them to your process.
A record link for each sub job
A record link opens one job for the person it was made for, with no login. Each link's URL is returned once and stored only as a hash, can carry an expiry and a maximum number of submissions, and can be revoked. An automation can make the link and send it by email or SMS in one step when the job is assigned, with a default expiry of 30 days.
What the sub sees and sends back
You choose the fields on the link (e.g. address, scope, access notes, PO number, due date) and leave out client price and client contacts. The sub accepts, updates the status, adds notes and photos, fills in your completion form and captures a drawn signature. One response can carry up to 12 files and 60 MB.
A gate on completion
Required fields on the form (e.g. 2 before photos, 2 after photos, checklist, signature) must be filled before the job can move to Complete. Opening, submitting and signing each fire automation triggers, so the coordinator is told the moment proof arrives.
A portal login for regular subs
Subs who work with you every week become portal users: they sign in with their own email and password and see only the jobs tied to them, enforced by Postgres row security. Fieldproxy is one price per company with unlimited users, so subs do not add seats.
Offers and chasing
Jobs can be offered to a ranked shortlist of subs or broadcast, and escalate to the next sub when nobody accepts in time. Autopilot (/agents/autopilot) drafts the chase when a sub has accepted but sent no photos, and a person approves before it sends. The Text agent (/agents/text-agent) answers a sub who replies to the text with a question about the job.
Review before billing
The office reviews the photos and form on the job, approves the work, then invoices the client and approves the sub's bill. Insurance and license expiry on the sub record can keep a non-compliant sub from being offered the job at all.
By country
Regional notes: signatures and texting
| Country | Signature captured on a phone browser | Texting links to subs |
|---|---|---|
| US | Under the federal ESIGN Act, a signature or record in interstate commerce may not be denied legal effect solely because it is electronic | Register 10-digit business numbers for A2P 10DLC, or use toll-free or short code numbers |
| Australia | The Electronic Transactions Act 1999 says a transaction is not invalid because it happened electronically; a signature requirement is met by a method that identifies the person and their intention, reliable enough for the purpose, with the recipient's consent | No 10DLC equivalent; follow your SMS provider's sender rules |
Summaries of official sources as of November 2026. A job sign-off is usually a record of work done, not a contract; check with your lawyer for anything that changes price or scope.
How switching works
How switching to Fieldproxy works
We move your data over and set the system up to the way you already work. Fieldproxy replaces the old tool; it does not run alongside it.
Show us how a sub job runs today
How a job reaches a sub, what you send them, and the proof you need back: photos, forms, signatures, PO numbers.We build the link and the completion form
The fields a sub sees, the required photos and checklist, and the rule that blocks Complete until they are in.We load your subs
Your sub list with trades, areas and contacts comes across in setup. Regulars are invited as portal users; everyone else gets links.Turn on the automatic send
Assigning a job sends the link by text or email, and the office is told when proof arrives.
FAQ
Questions people ask
- Can a subcontractor get a job by email instead of downloading an app?
- Yes. Send a secure link to that one job by email or text. It opens in the phone's browser, and the sub can accept, update and close the job from there without installing anything.
- Can subs take photos from a browser link?
- Yes. A file input on the page can open the phone's camera directly, using the HTML capture attribute with the rear camera. It works best on mobile; on a desktop it usually shows a normal file picker.
- Can I get a GPS check-in without an app?
- Yes, with limits. A web page can ask for the phone's location only over HTTPS and only after the sub grants permission, so the first check-in shows a browser prompt. If the sub declines, record that the location was refused rather than blocking the job.
- What if the sub forwards the link to their own crew?
- That is often fine, because the crew is doing the work. Keep it safe by making each link expire, capping submissions, and revoking it the moment the job is reassigned. Never put client pricing on a page that might be forwarded.
- Will subs see my client's pricing or phone number?
- Only if you put it on the link. Show scope, site address, access notes and your PO number, and keep the client price and contacts on the office side of the job.
- When should a sub get a login instead of a link?
- When they do several jobs a week for you. A portal login shows all of their jobs in one place, while a link per job suits a sub you use once a month.
- Do links work without signal on site?
- A browser page needs a connection to load and to send. Subs in basements or rural sites can open the link before going in and submit when back in signal. For daily work without coverage, an offline app is the better tool.
- Do subs need paid seats in Fieldproxy?
- No. Links need no account, and portal users count as users, which are unlimited. Fieldproxy is one price per company with unlimited users. See /pricing.
Sources
Competitor details on this page come from the vendors' own pages and documentation, checked as of November 2026. Plans and prices change, so check the vendor's current page before you decide.
- ServiceM8: How to send a Network Request: https://support.servicem8.com/hc/en-us/articles/205121296-How-to-send-a-Network-Request
- ServiceM8: Best practices for using ServiceM8 Network to subcontract jobs: https://support.servicem8.com/hc/en-us/articles/11147585428239-Best-practices-for-using-ServiceM8-Network-to-subcontract-jobs
- Simpro: How to set up the contractor portal: https://helpguide.simprogroup.com/Content/Service-and-Enterprise/Contractor-Portal.htm
- Jobber Help Center: user permissions: https://help.getjobber.com/hc/en-us/articles/115009568687
- W3C TAG: Good practices for capability URLs: https://www.w3.org/2001/tag/doc/capability-urls/
- MDN: HTML capture attribute: https://developer.mozilla.org/en-US/docs/Web/HTML/Reference/Attributes/capture
- MDN: Geolocation getCurrentPosition(): https://developer.mozilla.org/en-US/docs/Web/API/Geolocation/getCurrentPosition
- Twilio: Error 30034, message from an unregistered 10DLC number: https://www.twilio.com/docs/api/errors/30034
- 15 U.S.C. 7001 (ESIGN Act), Cornell LII: https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/15/7001
- Australia: Electronic Transactions Act 1999: https://www.legislation.gov.au/C2004A00553/latest/text