Lending A Hand
Have you ever needed help with something small or trivial, but didn't think anyone would be interested? OR, you didn't know where to look to find someone? Until NOW....
What we are....
potless.co.uk links those seeking help around the home (or workplace) to people willing to offer them their time. Help providers fall into 3 categories; those volunteering their services for FREE, those who offer services and expect to be PAID, and those willing to BARTER. In contrast to other ‘service sites’ collecting BIG COMMISSIONS & HIGH BID CHARGES, potless rates are LOW, based on a tiny flat fee of just 99 pence with many help seekers paying NOTHING AT ALL
What we're not...
We’re not just another site flogging tradespeople, manipulating reviews & raking in SQUILLIONS in fees! Nor are we merely a ‘lite version’ of some big American online auction site. 'potless' is a site with a soul. Our fingers are on the pulse of what’s happening to ordinary folk & households in contemporary Britain. Our #1 objective is to match people needing help at REASONABLE COST, LOW COST or for FREE with good kind & reliable Service Providers. Helpers are volunteers/altruists, handymen/women and tradespeople. Often, it’s the little things in life that folk old and young struggle with. We’re doing our best to address those needs & make life easier. The 'About Us' page on our website tells you more... check it out.
‘Potless’ was born in Spring 2019. It was originally planned to be an online forum & marketplace for people concerned & angry about inequality, dwindling levels of disposable income & a widening wealth gap. An estimated 14.3 million people are ‘in poverty’ in the UK including 8.3 million working age adults & 1.3 million+ pensioners [Social Metrics Commission figures]. Millions of self employed & gig economy workers face bleak futures, even after a lifetime of work in many cases. These people are frequently held up as ‘the back-bone of the country’, yet their long term needs & welfare are largely ignored by government. People raised their glasses in January 2020 to a new decade, forecast by some to be a re-run of the Roaring Twenties. In reality, most of the Western World was already mired in debt and well down the road towards another Great Financial Crisis. Many ‘household names’ were predicted to go under in 2020.
The current 'situation' has added FUEL TO THE FIRE, hastening the demise of thousands more companies and SME's. As we’ve come to expect, knee-jerk political decisions have been taken with scant regard to EXIT STRATEGIES. It looks likely the USUAL PEOPLE will pick up the bill; not the big corporations & hedge funds but ‘ordinary’ working people, including those who’ve been ‘furloughed’ as they like to call it, or even worse made unemployed through no fault of your own.
POTLESS seeks to lend a hand to households & individuals on both sides of the fence; consumers AND service providers as they struggle to come to terms with some of these big issues. Can we be described as an altruistic organisation? In truth, we’re a commercial site first and foremost, nevertheless we’re a site with a CONSCIENCE and a SOUL. One characteristic of Altruism is that it leads people to do what’s best for others. It also makes them feel good in the process, Welcome to our platform….
WHY does the platform need help with funding?
I've already spent a five figure sum (of my own money not a bank's) developing the site you see so far. Its now working, but still fairly basic, nevertheless it's fit for purpose. I'm running low on liquid resources to pump into the project and need additional funding to help me 'spread the message' to all corners of the UK. This doesn't mean lining Google's pocket to the tune of £20999 in the form of advertising; it means spending the money on continuous improvement in all areas (a Kaisen approach if you like) from website optimization & development, to software & effective PR by which I mean getting out & about promoting the concept directly at street level. potless.co.uk was started primarily to help others and to be cheap and accessible. WE're already seeing 'green shoots' from street campaigning (August 2020), with the promotion attracting the very people we hope to help. But we need YOUR HELP to make potless.co.uk the #1 choice when it comes to Lending a Hand with 'the little things in life' to households and individuals across the UK. Any contribution you can make however small will be most appreciated. Will you support our cause?
To put some flesh on the bone with regard to numbers, typical cost of promoting a street level campaign in ONE of 58 areas identified nationwide would range from £3000 to £6000 depending on whether we included mobile media. I've run similar campaigns before, for national companies, local SME's & on two occasions political parties in the course of electioneering. (See two pictured examples) I've 35 years experience of street campaigning. 21k will enable us to build on what we've already done, kickstarting potless.co.uk in more regions of the UK by engaging with people directly.
WHEN do we need the funds?
Now, although we anticipate a 'drip feed' to sustain development over 24 months and beyond. Further funding rounds are under consideration, however, we want and expect the platform to fully fund itself sooner rather than later. We firmly believe we're the RIGHT PRODUCT at the RIGHT TIME, with pandemic related hardship, difficulties and chaos actually assisting us on our mission which is? To provide good honest Help for FREE, Help for Hire and Barter Opportunities across the UK not just in hard times, but good times too. (when they return)
WHAT'S in it for YOU?
Apart from feel-good-factor for supporting a good cause, we're offering all GoFundMe donors FREE MEMBERSHIPS (subject to one or two reasonable conditions) across the platform, with terms ranging from 3 months to LIFE depending upon the size of their donation. Site membership unlocks Directories, Barter Opportunities and numerous 'Add Ons' giving people more chances to get the best from the platform in terms of earning or SAVING MONEY. 
GRATEFUL THANKS
I'm 64 years young with a lifetime's work (47 years) behind me. I'm happily contemplating working full time for many more years God willing, indeed I have to, to keep a roof over my head. I've spent the last 12 years learning new skills including internet marketing and web design. I've invested thousands of hours and thousands of pounds in self improvement. I've never claimed any kind of benefit and never been off work sick apart from 2 half days. Holidays in my humble opinion are a luxury, and I don't like to take them unless I feel I've deserved them. In short, I'm a driven individual who likes working and STRIVING to SUCCEED. I've had minor success in the past though its fair to say the past twenty years have been a struggle, as I, and millions like me have had to adapt to new ways of working and new 'attitudes', therefore, any help you can give me would be truly welcomed.
I'll wrap up by asking if you've ever heard the story about Colonel Sanders of KFC fame? He, like me, found himself short of funds to survive later life and unable to retire. He went out & knocked doors to sell the only thing he had of value...his recipe. Most people laughed at him, and it was not until he'd pitched it over a thousand times that anyone took him seriously or so the story goes....the rest of course is history. He died in 1980 leaving behind a company worth an estimated 15 BILLION DOLLLARS. At least people don't laugh when I introduce them to potless.co.uk! Most of them find it interesting and think it 'has legs'. Will you help me on my journey, and turn this thing into a Household Name as we Help for FREE, Help for Hire and Barter our way across the UK in the weeks, months & years ahead? Thank You.
Click on this link to take a look at what we've done so far.
