Max Feller is a co-founder of Hey Jodie, where he leads growth and makes sure an AI that never misses a call reaches the trades and small businesses that need it most.
Before Hey Jodie, Max spent years at the heart of the local-services economy at Bark.com, one of the world's largest marketplaces connecting customers with local professionals. Working across growth and product as the business scaled internationally, he saw at enormous scale exactly how local businesses win and lose work, and how often a single missed enquiry is the whole difference between a booked job and a customer who simply calls the next name on the list. That insight is a big part of why Hey Jodie exists.
He has also co-founded and scaled his own data and analytics products, and brings that builder-and-marketer mix to Hey Jodie. He writes about winning more work, getting found online, and turning every enquiry into a booked job.
Guides by Max Feller
The best locksmith software for a small US shop in 2026
A vendor-neutral look at the software a US locksmith business actually runs - scheduling, dispatch, invoicing and call handling - and how a one-truck operator should choose. Not key-cutting or key-code tools.
Best towing software in 2026: a no-nonsense buyer guide
An independent buyer guide to towing software. Compare the real dispatch, impound and billing tools in one table, see what each tier costs, and find the one layer of the stack every vendor skips: how the phone actually gets answered.
How to Get More Accounting Clients: The Channels That Actually Work
The marketing channels that genuinely win accounting clients, plus the lead-capture step most firms skip - answering the inquiry call before a competitor does.
What to charge for pest control: a pricing playbook for operators
How to price pest control jobs and contracts for profit: US service-call and hourly benchmarks, a per-pest price table, where the margin really hides, and how to quote with confidence. Written for the operator, not the homeowner.
What to charge for accounting and bookkeeping services: US rates and how to set your fees
How to price your accounting or bookkeeping practice: real US fee benchmarks, the pricing models that beat hourly billing, a worked example, and how to win the fee you quote.
Best answering service for property management: AI vs human vs voicemail vs in-house
AI receptionist, human answering service, voicemail, or an in-house hire - the four ways to cover a property management phone line, ranked on maintenance triage, after-hours emergency routing, around-the-clock coverage, and real monthly cost.
Best cleaning business software: a US buyer guide for 2026
A vendor-neutral comparison of cleaning business software for US operators, covering scheduling, job management, online booking, and the intake layer most roundups skip.
Best gym management software: a straight-talking buyer guide
An independent guide to picking gym management software in the US - what to compare, what it really costs, and the inbound-call gap every platform leaves on your plate.
The best home care software in 2026 (US agencies)
A vendor-neutral, category-by-category look at the software a non-medical home care agency actually needs in the US, with the real products agencies run and the one layer none of them cover.
What does it cost to start a home care agency? (Real numbers)
A line-by-line look at what it really costs to start and run a non-medical home care agency in the US: state licensing, insurance, software, caregiver payroll, and the working-capital gap nobody quantifies.
How to get cleaning clients (without burning your marketing budget)
A practical playbook for winning cleaning clients - the free and paid channels with the best ROI, plus the step most guides skip: answering the inquiry fast enough to actually book the job.
How to get more customers into your auto repair shop
A practical car-count playbook for shop owners: the marketing that actually books work, what to budget, a one-page plan you can copy, and the one leak that wastes the rest.
Property management fees: what to charge and how to package it
How to set your property management fees in the US: percentage of rent vs flat fee vs leasing fee, market benchmarks by service tier, and packaging that wins owners instead of scaring them off.
The best salon booking software in 2026 (an honest comparison)
A neutral, owner-trusted look at the real salon booking platforms - Fresha, Booksy, Square, GlossGenius, Vagaro, Mangomint and Acuity - with price, best-for and booking channel in one table, plus the gap every booking page dodges: none of them answers the phone.
How to get more electrical work: a practical playbook for electricians
A step-by-step playbook for winning more electrical work in the US: the lead channels that actually pay off, then the conversion half nobody covers - answering every call so the leads you generate turn into booked jobs.
How to get more HVAC leads: the complete playbook
Where heating and cooling leads really come from, ranked by cost and conversion - plus the one lever almost every guide skips: picking up the phone.
Landscaping pricing: what to charge so the job actually pays
How to price landscaping and lawn care jobs so you make money: US day-rate and hourly benchmarks, a simple cost-plus-margin method, and the truck, insurance and downtime your rate has to cover.
The real cost of salon no-shows and missed calls
Most salon advice stops at "rent and payroll stay fixed." Here is the actual math on what empty chairs, no-shows, and unanswered calls cost your salon over a year, plus a cancellation policy that holds up and the always-on fix.
What to charge as a self-employed electrician: US rates and a pricing formula
A pricing model for self-employed electricians: US benchmark hourly and day rates, the overhead and non-billable-time math, and how to set a rate that hits your take-home target.
Best chiropractic software: PMS, EHR, scheduling and the phone layer
A vendor-neutral look at chiropractic practice management software, from EHR and scheduling to billing, plus the front-desk call-handling layer every other roundup skips.
What it really costs to start a private therapy practice
The real cost of opening and running a private therapy practice: itemized startup and monthly numbers, what to charge per session, what owners take home, and the revenue that quietly leaks away.
How to get more dental patients (without losing the calls)
Where new dental patients actually come from, ranked by cost and conversion, and the final step the agencies leave out: capturing the phone call your marketing already paid for.
How to get more clients for your veterinary practice
A no-nonsense growth playbook for independent veterinary practice owners: which marketing channels actually pay back, how to win on reviews and word of mouth, and why the demand you spend money to create is wasted if nobody answers the phone.
How to get more roofing leads: a contractor playbook
Where roofing leads really come from in the US, ranked by cost and conversion, plus the last step nobody else covers: picking up the phone.
The real cost of a veterinary front desk: software, staff, and missed calls
An honest operator breakdown of what a veterinary front desk costs a practice owner: practice management software pricing, the true cost of a receptionist seat the software cannot replace, and the lost-appointment math on the calls nobody answers.
What plumbers charge and earn in 2026: a pricing guide for owners
What the market pays for plumbing work and what a plumbing business owner actually takes home: typical service-call, hourly and day rates, how to set your own prices, and what quietly eats your margin.
Best Answering Service with CRM Integration (2026)
An honest ranking of the best answering services that integrate with your CRM, with real monthly costs, how each one syncs calls into HubSpot, Salesforce and the tools you run, and where each wins.
Best Answering Service for Multi-Location Businesses (2026)
An honest ranking of the best answering services for US businesses running multiple locations, with real monthly costs, how each one routes calls across sites, and where each actually wins.
The best real estate agent software in 2026
A vendor-neutral guide to the software a real estate brokerage actually needs in 2026, organized by job rather than brand, with the well-known tools in each category and who they suit.
What missed calls really cost real estate agents
No agent ever sees the listings they lost to a phone that rang out. Here is the honest math on what a missed inquiry costs, plus a simple sum you can run on your own numbers.
Best Answering Service for Small Business (2026)
An honest, transparently-priced ranking of the best answering services and virtual receptionists for US small businesses, with real monthly costs and where each provider actually wins.
The best software every plumber needs in 2026
There is no single best plumbing software. Here is an honest, vendor-neutral look at the categories a plumbing business actually needs, the tools worth knowing, and how to choose without overpaying.
Plumber answering service vs voicemail vs hiring a receptionist
Voicemail, a callback habit, a hired receptionist, or an AI answering service. We break down what each one actually costs a plumber and which option wins for most shops.
How to get more Google reviews as a plumber (and turn them into jobs)
A practical, plumber-specific system for earning more Google reviews: when to ask, how to make it one tap, how to reply to every review, and how those reviews turn into booked work.