Installers — hire vetted freelance wrap installers (and get hired)

Who it's for

The Installer network has two audiences. For shop owners and managers, it's where you find and hire freelance wrap installers when you need overflow help, a specialty skill, or a set of hands in another city — and pay them safely through Wraptor. For freelance installers, it's a free public profile that brings shops to you, plus the tools to message clients, get paid into escrow, and build a verified reputation. It's separate from your shop's Directory listing (which faces customers) — this faces shops hiring labor.

Where it fits

Hiring an installer slots into the production stage of the job workflow: when a job is booked but you're short on install capacity, you bring in outside help. The public installer directory lives on the open web at wraptor.io/installers (no login to browse), and once you hire someone, the work itself still runs through your normal Jobs board — assign the job to the installer and it shows up on their My Jobs screen.

Overview

There are four pieces, in the order you'll use them:

The directory (/installers) — a public, searchable list of freelance installers with ratings, rates, skills, location/travel radius, and trust badges.
Hire requests & messaging — reach out from an installer's profile, then go back and forth in a built-in 1:1 message thread.
Escrow payments — pay the installer through Wraptor; the money is held until the job is done, then released. Cancel before release for a full refund; open a dispute if something's wrong.
Reviews & badges — after a real, paid hire, rate the installer; installers can earn Verified and Insured badges.

For an installer, the mirror image is: join → build a profile → get verified → receive hire requests → message shops → set up payouts → request payment → get paid → collect reviews.

One account, not two. Being an installer isn't a separate login. An installer is a regular Wraptor account flagged as an installer (you choose "independent installer" during first-run setup). Everything below runs inside that one unified dashboard — there's no separate installer login or /installer portal.

For shops (hiring):

Directory — wraptor.io/installers (public). Drill into any installer at /installers/<name>. Browse without logging in; sign in to message or hire.
Hire & message — the Message and Request this installer buttons live on an installer's public profile.
Installer payments — Payments lists every escrow payment you've funded and its status, with the right action on each (/installer-payments).

For installers (your unified dashboard): Your installer tools appear in the "More" drawer of the sidebar (because your account is flagged as an installer):

My Listing (/installer-listing) — your public profile editor. The top of the page also links to Hire requests and Payouts.
Hire requests (/installer-listing/inquiries) — every request a shop has sent you.
Payouts (/installer-listing/payouts) — set up Stripe payouts, request payments, and track every escrow.
Messages (/installer-messages) — your 1:1 threads with shops.

Your day-to-day install work shows up on My Jobs — the jobs shops assign to you.

Capabilities

Browse & compare (shops, public)

Search installers by location and filter by skills, Insured, and rating.
Each profile shows headline, bio, years of experience, rates (hourly / per-sq-ft / day), skills, travel radius, portfolio photos, average rating, and Verified / Insured badges.
Cards are ordered to surface verified, higher-rated installers first.

Hire & message (shops)

Send a hire request from a profile (your shop name and email pre-fill) with the job location, dates, and a message.
Message an installer directly — a thread auto-creates on the first message; no hire request required first.
Replies arrive in-app within seconds; email nudges keep both sides in the loop without spamming.

Pay safely with escrow (shops)

An installer sends you a payment request (amount + description); you pay it into escrow with a card.
A platform fee is added on top — the installer receives their full quote; you're charged quote + fee. It's tiered: 0% when you brought the relationship to the platform yourselves, 5% when the network made the introduction and the installer holds an active membership, 10% on network-sourced hires without one.
The money is held by Wraptor, not sent to the installer yet. When the installer marks the job complete, you Release it — or it auto-releases 7 days after they mark it complete, so honest installers aren't left waiting.
Before release you can Cancel for a full refund, or Dispute if something's wrong (which freezes the funds for Wraptor to resolve).

Join & get found (installers)

Create a free public profile: name, headline, bio, location + travel radius, skills, experience, rates, and portfolio photos.
Apply to Get verified (a one-time review) and optionally upload proof of insurance to earn the Insured badge. Both are free; neither is required to list.

Get paid (installers)

Set up payouts once via Stripe (a guided onboarding on the Payouts page). You can't request payment until payouts are active.
Request a payment from any shop you've talked to — pick the conversation, describe the work, enter your amount. The shop pays it into escrow.
Mark a job complete to start the shop's 7-day release window; you can Cancel a request before it's paid.

Reviews & reputation

After a paid hire (a released escrow), the shop can leave a ★1–5 review with an optional comment — one per shop, editable.
Reviews are paid-hire only, so ratings reflect real jobs. Your average rating and count show on your profile and on directory cards, and shops can sort by rating.

Step-by-step tasks

Hire a freelance installer (shop)
1. Go to wraptor.io/installers, filter by your city/skills, and open a profile.
2. Click Request this installer (or Message to chat first). Add the job location, dates, and details.
3. When you've agreed on a price, the installer sends a payment request; open Payments (/installer-payments) and click Pay to fund the escrow.
4. Hand off the work — assign the job to the installer so it lands on their My Jobs.
5. When the install is done and the installer marks it complete, click Release (or let it auto-release after 7 days). Leave a review.
If something goes wrong before release (shop)
1. Open Payments and find the escrow.
2. If the job was called off and not started, click Cancel for a full refund.
3. If there's a disagreement, click Dispute — the funds freeze and Wraptor reviews it, then either refunds you or releases to the installer.
Become a freelance installer
1. When you sign up, choose "An independent installer" in the first-run picker — this flags your account as an installer (no separate login).
2. Open My Listing (/installer-listing) and fill in your profile — skills, rates, travel radius, and portfolio photos matter most.
3. From My Listing, apply to Get verified and (optionally) upload insurance for the Insured badge.
Get paid as an installer
1. Open Payouts (/installer-listing/payouts) and Set up payouts (Stripe onboarding) — do this once.
2. Click Request a payment, pick the shop conversation, describe the work, and enter your amount.
3. After the shop pays and you finish the install, Mark complete. The shop releases the funds, or they auto-release in 7 days.

Settings & permissions

The public directory and installer profiles need no login to view.
Hiring, messaging, paying, and reviewing require a signed-in account; everything is scoped to your shop.
Being an installer is a flag on your normal account (chosen at first-run setup) — not a separate login. Your installer tools appear in the "More" drawer.
Verification and dispute resolution are handled by Wraptor.
Escrow card payments run through Stripe; installer payouts use Stripe Connect.

Tips & common pitfalls

It's one account. You don't keep a separate installer login — choose "independent installer" at sign-up and your dashboard gains the installer tools.
Escrow protects both sides. Pay into Wraptor, not directly. The hold is your safety net; release only when you're satisfied (or let the 7-day timer do it).
Message before you hire. Confirm scope, dates, and price in the thread first, so the payment request matches what you agreed.
A held payment isn't paid yet. Funds only reach the installer on Release (or auto-release) — cancelling beforehand refunds you in full.
Set up payouts early (installers). You can't send a payment request until Stripe payouts are active.
Verified ≠ Insured. They're two independent badges; an installer can have either, both, or neither.

My Jobs — where assigned jobs show up for the installer doing the work.
Jobs — run the actual install; assign the job to the installer.
Onboarding — the first-run picker where you choose "independent installer."
Directory — your shop's customer-facing listing (don't confuse it with this installer network).
Plans and AI — plan tiers and AI credits.
Workflow map · Personas