Inquiries & Connections
Q: What are inquiries?
When a service provider sees one of your projects and is interested in helping, they can send you an inquiry. It's a way for providers to introduce themselves and start a conversation about your project.
Q: How does someone send me an inquiry?
If your project has Accept inquiries turned on, visitors will see an "Interested in this project?" form on your project page. They fill in their name or business, what they do, relevant experience, and an optional message.
Q: Where do I see my inquiries?
Click Inbox in the navigation. You'll see three tabs:
- Inbox — inquiries you've received on your projects
- Sent — inquiries you've sent to other people's projects
- Connections — upcoming scheduled meetings
Q: What do I do with an inquiry?
When you receive one, you can:
- Read the message — see who they are and what they do
- Mark as Interested — signals you want to continue the conversation
- Decline — if it's not a good fit
- Send messages — have a conversation back and forth
Q: How do proposals work?
Once an inquiry is marked as "interested," either party can propose a connection — a way to meet or talk. There are three types:
- Call — a phone call or video chat (you provide a Zoom link or phone number)
- In Person — a face-to-face meeting (you provide an address)
- Message — continue talking via a messaging platform
For calls and in-person meetings, you select a duration (15 min, 30 min, 45 min, or 1 hour) and propose time slots. The other person picks a time and accepts, or declines and counter-proposes new times.
Q: How do I propose a connection?
Click Propose Connection in the inquiry thread. Choose the type, duration, and location/link. For calls and in-person, you'll pick dates and times from a calendar. Propose 2–3 time slots to make scheduling easier.
Q: What happens when a proposal is accepted?
Both parties see the confirmed time in the thread. The accepted time slot is highlighted. You'll also receive an email notification. Upcoming connections appear in the Connections tab and as a banner at the top of your inquiries page.
Q: Can I cancel or change a proposal?
- If you received a proposal, you can decline it and optionally counter-propose new times.
- If you accepted a proposal, you can cancel the connection with an optional reason.
- If you proposed and it hasn't been responded to yet, you can cancel it.
Q: How do I close an inquiry?
As the project owner, you can close an inquiry at any time. Closing it ends the conversation and cancels any active proposals. If there's a scheduled meeting, you'll see a confirmation asking if you want to cancel it.