This Podcast Is Episode Number 0320, And It Will Be About What Every Contractor Needs To Know About Profit And Growth Coaching When my partner, Sharie DeHart and I, were running construction and plumbing service and repair businesses beginning in the early 1970s until 2000 we felt we did not need to pay anybody to tell us what to do because we knew exactly what to do.   After several very painful and extremely costly mistakes, we found the adage "Experience Is The Best Teacher...And The Most Expensive" to be oh so true!   We found ourselves, our family, employees, and suppliers were all riding on our Roller Coaster of Surprises, some good, some bad. On occasion, we would wake up screaming bloody murder only to discover it was the middle of the afternoon, and we were not asleep!   After a while, we decided perhaps there was truth to "If you think education is expensive, try ignorance." I will admit I was a bit arrogant thinking since I was raised in a family of contractors that I knew a lot about construction. In fact, I knew quite a bit about what Michael Gerber calls "Working In The Business But Not On The Business."   At that point in the late 1970s, we decided to move to The Merry-Go-Round of a business with a Strategic Plan that could grow-up and provide us with a more predictable result.   Books, Tapes, Seminars and Gurus   For the next several years we added a combined total of over 4,000 books, cassette tapes, VHS videotapes, workbooks, and several hundred handouts from every How-To-Do-It guru we could find.   And we were still not getting anywhere fast because the seminars are like energy drinks, they pump you up, and after a week or two in the real world, we were beaten down again. It was back to a roller coaster ride.   Be, Do, Have   In time we found several consultants and professionals some good, some bad, some nightmares and one, in particular, kept repeating: Be, Do, Have. Be the person, Do the work, Have the results.   In life, we produce reasons or results and, reasons don't count. Having experienced success and failure several times, this message slowly sank into my head.   We even hired a few consultants that were worthless because they had no construction experience and could only teach what they had learned in university or by hanging around hyped up seminar presenters selling Get-Rich-Quick-Schemes to rooms full of desperate people.   We discovered that success came fast and easy when we engage the services of mentors that are skilled in construction because they were where we wanted to be.   Here are some tips that could help you in deciding on a consultant:   1. Make sure they have hands-on experience in your profession. Preferably a Journeyman License, Certifications or some kind of external proof of their expertise.    2. Though the dogs (people who think you should tough it out and go it alone) may bark, the caravan (a long line of successful people with consultants on their team) moves on.   3. Choose wisely the six people you spend the most of your time with as leveling is always occurring.   4. Make sure your consulting sessions take place in a safe, nurturing environment.   5. Reflect on what you think, believe, or feel and if it's important to the topic of conversation.   Questions To Ask Yourself:   1. Are you judged or criticized for anything you say or do?    2. Is your consultant brainstorming with you on management to management level about your issues and concerns?   3. Does your consultant suggest working with a Board of Advisors?   4. Do you feel you can do a brain dump in a safe, nurturing environment?   5. Are your specific problems and/or issues being addressed?   Over to you   Do you own and operate a small construction company? Have you ever wondered if having a consultant with construction expertise to call on and ask questions would help...

This Podcast Is Episode Number 0318, And It Will Be About Increase Traffic And 30 Content Ideas For Construction Blogs Go through a quick search of construction/home service-based businesses near you, whether it’s a Handyman, Plumber, Painter, or a Framing company, or better yet google your competition and look at their information. Does it link to their websites? And if so, do they maintain a blog? How many people, including you, search the web for information before making a decision – buying equipment, booking a hotel, or eating at a restaurant? While a company website establishes your credibility as an industry leader, blogging presents an excellent opportunity for you to develop a relationship with your audience, strengthens your reputation as an authority in your field, and helps you stand out from the competition. You care enough to provide your prospects and followers relevant and useful information that they can practice and apply. When creating content, ask yourself these questions: • What is the purpose of this blog post? • Am I adding value? • Why is this important to my readers? Let’s get to practical pointers first and what you can do to improve your search ranking and drive more traffic to your blog (ask your website administrator or blog editor to ensure this is implemented, or you can do-it-yourself by searching tutorials particular to your website hosting platform): 1. Local SEO (Search Engine Optimization) Make it easy for Google (or a search engine) to understand the essential elements of your business. Clearly state information like the location - city, state, specific trade, and the particular clients (commercial or residential) that you serve.  2. Post photos with alt text (alternative text) An “alt text” also known as “alt attribute” is used within an HTML code to describe the appearance of an image on a page. If an image is not rendering on your page, an alt text will be displayed in place of it. It helps search engine crawlers to index an image properly, therefore improving your search ranking. 3. Title count and meta description Describe your page precisely and write exclusive information particular to that blog post. You can preview how your blog post will look on a Search Engine Result Page (SERP) using this tool. 4. Clickable email and phone number How many times have you looked something up using your smartphone and would like to give them a call right away? To see if they're still open, if they can deliver to your house, or if they offer pricing options? You see their number on the web page, clicked it, and nothing happens. This is clearly a missed opportunity. As example: Clicking (206) 361-3950 or email [email protected] will launch the phone app or your email app, waiting for you to take action. Depending on the website hosting platform you’re using, you can configure the settings or add some coding to your content. Click here for an in-depth tutorial. 5. Layout Create a better user experience by providing your visitors an easy to read, digestible, and scannable content by using: subheadings bullet points checklist short paragraphs blocked quotes Here are the blog posts and content ideas: Client Interviews Testimonials are one-sided and usually a short text of how you performed. Take it up a notch and make it a Q and A post: Why did they hire you? What processes have you been through together to come up with a successful plan? This would deliver an impactful message to your audience. How-to Guides Imagine a mother’s anxiety before a significant renovation, add her full-time job and her family’s needs to that. If you can address most of her concerns before wreaking havoc inside their home, that’s value right there. Example: How to Prepare for a Kitchen Remodeling Project Checklist Write about safety and procedures, your daily inspection, or tasks reminders on what to do. Guide By creating a handbook post, you are basically telling...

This Podcast Is Episode Number 0318, And It Will Be About Establishing Your General Contracting Business - T.I.P.S. On Starting It Right Running a business for general contractors like you is an overwhelming yet fulfilling task because there are so many things only the company owner can and should do. In most cases, when the owner's spouse contacts us, it is because they are trying to help with the business, but they know they need outside assistance, so there is more quality time with the family. Most contractors, and small business owners, in general, haven’t realized that what you don’t know can keep up at night. Instead of focusing your efforts in maintaining your relationship with your past clients and building a new one, you were up wondering whether you’re making or losing money. Today more than ever, it is necessary to have a properly set-up accounting and bookkeeping file and maintain it. Someone with the knowledge and training combined with an understanding of construction to Set-Up, Clean-Up, Tidy-Up, and manage your bookkeeping system. T.I.P.S. On How To Get Started Right T – Taxes The last thing we want to think about is TAXES when it should be the first thing we should think about. Our office is in Lynnwood, WA so this tax tip, in particular, is directed to Washington State residents. Think/Research/Choose Your business name: Who are you? Is that your trade name? Are they the same? What is your domain name? First Stop: Secretary Of State What is your ownership structure for the Federal/State agencies? This will determine what type of taxes you need to pay as part of your personal 1040 tax return. To prevent duplicate identification numbers (UBI), it is recommended to file your company identity to the Secretary of State. Second Stop: Federal Employee Identification Number Apply for a Federal Employer Identification Number (FEIN). Whenever you have employees, this number is required no matter what type of ownership structure. Many years ago, a personal security number was used. The government will request both the personal social security and FEIN on some forms. Third Stop: State Of Washington Business License Application Washington Business License Application (commonly known as the Master Business License) is what registers the business. Depending on your type of business, whether you need to collect sales tax, pay business and occupation tax to the state of Washington. I – Income and Invoice We are not business without clients. Our new clients become existing clients. Once the job is completed (last month/last year), they become our previous clients. As part of the bidding, estimating, scheduling, doing the work, and collecting the money, you need to understand a few basic rules. It involves paperwork. Tax, certifications, liens, and permits depending on who you are as a business and what type of work you do. New Construction – depends on the type of new construction Commercial – depends on the type of commercial project, your individual trade, and location. Residential – depends on the size of the project, the owner may be actively involved Service and Repair – usually emergency driven and price shopped “after the work’s done") Invoicing is all about presenting the agreed upon amount in a format the customer can easily understand and be willing to pay promptly. It’s all about getting a fair price for the work performed and payment in a timely fashion. The type of invoice presented varies from the size of Job and Job Type. P – Payroll, Planning, Production, and Profit Prospective applicants need to submit a formal employment application and complete the hiring process before going to work on the job. Hiring an employee has added benefit to your overall production. The downside is there are additional costs for Labor/Taxes/Overhead that comes with hiring an employee.  As with any business, the goal is to make a profit. One way to do that is leveraging your...

This Podcast Is Episode Number 0317, And It Will Be About Five Basic Construction Accounting Tasks To Complete Every Month   Proper construction accounting is all about the details. The answers you need to operate and grow your company are in reports. Everything starts with cash because "cash is fact, profit is an opinion." All transactions in the bank account of your construction accounting system no matter if it is QuickBooks or Xero, must be assigned to the proper accounts: Income Job Deposits Payroll Taxes Cost of Goods Sold (Direct and Indirect Costs including Labor, Material, Other and Subcontractors) Other costs including permits, plans, bills from suppliers, and purchases on your personal credit cards Overhead These tasks form the solid foundation of your small business. As a small business owner, you have more important things to do than to keep your own books. We take care of your books for you, so you can get back to the job of running your business and generating profits.  1. Bank Reconciliation Reconciling your business checking account each month allows us to keep your bank account, accounting, and taxes up-to-date. Having us reconcile your account each month allows you to: Identify lost checks, lost deposits, and unauthorized wire transactions. Detect and prevent excess/unjustified bank charges and ensures transactions are posted correctly by your bank. Detect and prevent embezzlement of funds from within your company. Know how your business is doing. You can't really know unless all accounts are reconciled and properly accounted for on your financial statement. Manage your cash more effectively. Proper management of funds not only saves money, but it also makes money for you. Protect yourself. By timely reconciling and promptly objecting to your bank about any unauthorized, fraudulent or forged checks presented to your bank and paid by that bank, you can relieve your agency of responsibility for the shortfall and transfer the risk to the bank. This reason to reconcile alone should be enough. Crime exists. Sleep Better. You will sleep more peacefully at night knowing your bank accounts are reconciled, in balance and that all escrow funds, accounts, checks, and disbursed funds are properly accounted for. 2. Generate An Income Statement An income statement, otherwise known as a profit and loss statement, basically adds an itemized list of all your revenues and subtracts an itemized list of all your expenses to come up with a profit or loss for the period. An income statement allows you to: Track revenues and expenses so that you can determine the operating performance of your business. Determine what areas of your business are over-budget or under-budget. Identify specific items that are causing unexpected expenditures. Like phone, fax, mail, or supply expenses. Track dramatic increases in product returns or cost of goods sold as a percentage of sales. Determine your income tax liability. 3. Generate A Balance Sheet A balance sheet gives you a snapshot of your business' financial condition at a specific moment in time. A balance sheet helps you: Quickly get a handle on the financial strength and capabilities of your business. Identify and analyze trends, particularly in the area of receivables and payables. For example, if your receivables cycle is lengthening, maybe you can collect your receivables more aggressively. Determine if your business is in a position to expand. Determine if your business can easily handle the normal financial ebbs and flows of revenues and expenses. Determine if you need to take immediate steps to bolster cash reserves. Determine if your business has been slowing down payables to forestall an impending cash shortage. Balance sheets, along with income statements, are the most essential elements in providing financial reporting to potential lenders such as banks, investors, and vendors who are considering how much credit to grant you. 4. Ledger Clean Up ...

This Podcast Is Episode Number 0316, And It Will Be About Contractor Tactics On How To Avoid Payment Problems Construction companies need short-term liquid working capital such as cash, lines of credits, loans, owner financing, credit cards, supplier accounts, and other forms of money to conduct daily operations. Small construction companies with annual sales volume less than $10,000,000 and other requirements enjoy some benefits that are not always available to larger firms. Likewise, larger firms can leverage economies of scale. The larger your construction business grows, the more likely you could end up operating as a bank without the hundreds of ways to generate revenues from fee income and interest calculation that banks use. The most popular method designed by investors and developers and shrewd business people who understand the concept of divide and conquer is for contractors to get little or no down payment for a construction project, do all the work, including change orders and then try to collect their money. What often happens is that contractors hate paperwork preferring to keep everything in their head. Then when it comes the time to collect their money, they find themselves having to re-sell the job and talk their customer into parting with their money. It's been said: "The value of services rapidly diminish after the services have been performed," which is why highly profitable companies like McDonald's gets your money before they deliver your meal. Compare the success and profitability of a McDonald's franchise to most restaurants. The least popular method is getting work orders and contracts signed, and deposit checks before starting the project, because most of us were conditioned from childhood through adulthood and beyond not to ask for money. Some construction company owners are gung-ho about doing the work and yet are embarrassed about asking for money.  Here are the 10 most popular excuses for not asking for money: 1. The customer just signed the contract, and I haven't done any work yet 2. As soon as I need money I will ask for it  (see Cash Flow Diagram) 3. I don't want to look bad in front of my customer by appearing needy 4. I don't want to appear financially weak in front of my staff 5. My wife is good at managing what little money I bring in, so I don't need any just yet 6. I have personal and business credit cards to finance the work 7. I have many charge accounts at suppliers everywhere 8. My sub-contractors don't bill me until the end of the month 9. I have a little cash in savings I can use for a while 10. I have a line of credit on my house (wives hate and FEAR this one) Solution: Offer payment options Financing - Get set up at a bank and/or credit union that will offer to loan your construction client money for small projects under $25,000. They sign paperwork with the lender; you do the work and get paid. Accepting Credit And Debit Cards - It's like having an "Electronic Armored Car" on standby 24 hours a day, seven days a week ready to take your money to your bank automatically. If your QuickBooks is set up correctly, an invoice can be emailed to your client, and when they open it, there is an option for them to pay by credit card immediately. When is a good time for you to ask for payment? When the contract is signed - Ask for a deposit and record it in QuickBooks and on the Pay Application. We recommend one week of work as a fair deposit. To calculate it, take the contract amount and divide it by the estimated number of weeks to complete. For example: Contract $50,000 / 5 weeks = $10,000. Use this money for working capital and stop financing somebody else's dream. Progress Payments - Every week, perhaps on Monday, you could review the work that was completed the week before, issue a simple invoice or better yet give your customer a full payment application and get paid. Payment Application Summary Page Payment...

This Podcast Is Episode Number 0315, And It Will Be About Bookkeeping And Accounting Solutions For The Busy Contractor   The calls, emails, messages, and walk-ins that our company deal with every day come from construction contractors, spouses or significant other, construction bookkeepers, advisors, students, and financial planners among others. I do my best to offer support even if it does not lead to an immediate request for our services. The pressures of running a construction company are tremendous. Incoming money is usually unknown, but expenses and bills are due now. You are not alone; many contractors feel the same way. Owning a construction company is so much different from just working for another construction contractor, and in most cases, new contractors had no idea what is involved in the business end of the operation before they started. To make a lot of money in contracting, you need these three things, and that means paperwork: Since you got into the construction business because of your skills, Production is natural for you. If you do it slightly better than your competition, with proper Marketing and Accounting, you can make a lot of money. This is where we come in and help you succeed. Every construction company has common issues. To customize our service to your needs, we use a range of accounting tools and offer a variety of bookkeeping and accounting solutions for your business. I hope this list will give you clarity on what you need help with in your construction bookkeeping challenges (for more information please click on each photo): Bookkeeping Review A 36-Point list of the current issues with your bookkeeping file. If you are a start-up, handyman, trade, or general contractor and confused about the reports generated by your bookkeeper or accounting software and have questions like: How much cash I have in the bank? Who owes me money? Whom I owe money? What is my income for this year? Or What is my company worth? Then this is for you. Get a full, in-depth analysis and review of the biggest concerns you are having with QuickBooks or Xero and any other part of your contracting company. A comprehensive report only costs $29.95 and Contractor Bookkeeping Review with a 30-minute consultation costs $79.95, review with a 1-hour or 2-hour consultations are also available. Bookkeeping Trial Would you like to determine if our bookkeeping process will fit your construction business and test our services before outsourcing your accounting to us? Our $9.95, 14-Day Triple Play Trial might suit you. We will set up Xero, Workflow Max, and Xero Projects For Contractor for your construction company using your existing data. Trial count begins the day your account is set up. Payment Application QuickBooks For Contractors works well if you have a few simple invoices. The problem is when you get beyond two invoices - add some job deposits and change orders and the process gets really tricky because there's no "Magic Button" that will generate an invoice that makes sense to your client. These applications for payment invoices show the money trail from beginning to end in a way that your clients can understand and appreciate, which means you get paid faster and with less hassle. Buy it one time and use it as many times as you need, no need for license codes. It is designed from 1 to 15 consecutive applications and works well with Microsoft Excel or Google Sheets apps on your smartphone or tablet. Business Performance Report Recognize what's happening in your contracting business and how to take action when needed. Turn your accounting data into accounting intelligence. Assess your business performance, monitor trends, and identify improvement opportunities using a custom management and financial report produced from your bookkeeping files. This report will help you understand and improve your business profitability, cash flow, growth,...

This Podcast Is Episode Number 0314, And It Will Be About Proven Tax Reducing Opportunities For Your Construction Company Accounting has two sides: Internal Accounting (Management Accounting) - for making money. Its purpose is to help you operate and grow your business profitability. External Accounting (Tax Accounting) - for paying taxes. Its purpose is to prepare tax forms, report your income, and make sure you pay your fair share of taxes. Understanding the difference will impact your company's financial health and wealth. Both groups of accountants must know the relationship between your internal bookkeeping and the Internal Revenue Service, and the importance of paying the right amount of taxes. There are a lot of professional bookkeepers, accountants, and tax preparers and they all serve a different role in your business. In-House Bookkeeping Contractors who do not earn a lot of money see bookkeeping as overhead which costs money and therefore is a drain on profits so they get a cheap computer, tiny monitor, garbage printer, small desk and broken down chair that even the dog would not sit in and tell the bookkeeper this is all the company can afford. In an effort to get their money's worth the contractor assigns all kinds of additional tasks to the bookkeeper like running business and personal errands; delivering materials, supplies, and paperwork to the job site, make coffee, answer the phones, take out the trash and clean the bathroom. Anything and everything to get "value" out of the time and money that is being wasted on bookkeeping. One of the biggest challenges construction company owners have with an in-house bookkeeper is training them to work for your best interest, not theirs, and deliver consistent results and the reports you can trust day after day, year after year. Do you suspect your bookkeeper is overwhelmed trying to figure out how to do construction accounting? They cost you more than they are worth in salary, fees, and profits. If you cannot get accurate financial reports, chances are you're overpaying your taxes. Outsourced Bookkeeping The other option would be to outsource your bookkeeping. However, there are red flags that you need to watch out for when going this route. You need someone who specializes in your industry that can guide and mentor you. Today more than ever, remote access to your QuickBooks or bookkeeping file is essential to monitor your business profitability, any outsourced bookkeeping service who cannot provide you with access to a cloud-based environment is doing you a disservice unless you don't want to see your financial documents. Furthermore, remember the value of your security; the cost of proper bookkeeping combined with secured cyber information is priceless. Trust but verify - consider this when looking for an accounting and bookkeeping company. My thirty years of experience in the construction industry as a contractor, a construction accountant, and a profit and growth coach enabled me to identify these opportunities that you can seize to help with your business process and lower your tax bills: Use The Right Accounting Method Construction bookkeeping and accounting are entirely different from standard accounting systems primarily because contractors take their entire business inside trucks and vans to people's homes and perform their services, deliver, or install products. Finding the right bookkeeping and accounting solution that will do "all I need it to do" is a challenge for construction contractors like you. It all depends on how you get paid, the type of work your company does, and if you need financial reporting (such as Job Costing for instance).  Hire A Professional Construction Bookkeeper According to Malcolm Gladwell, author of the book "Outliers", it takes 10,000 hours of practice to master a skill. That is what your professional construction bookkeeper should have...

This Podcast Is Episode Number 0313, And It Will Be About Construction Company Technology Practices To Reduce Financial Management Cost There is a thread of success weaved into the fabric of the most successful, wealthiest, consistently most profitable house builders, general contractors, residential remodel contractors, flipper house contractors, commercial tenant improvement contractors, sub-contractors, specialty contractors, handyman, architects and designers and over 100 other types of contractors and construction-related companies - they adapt to a continually changing environment. Everything in the Universe is in balance, and parts of it are easy to see and understand and some parts are hidden in plain sight and require some effort to see and understand. Your ability to look beyond the initial statement and understand the hidden meaning why successful contractors adapt to change to survive and thrive will serve you well. The truth is the most successful, wealthy, highly profitable construction contractors don't like change. From the mid-1970's until 2000 we owned and operated several construction companies and a few Plumbing Contracting companies. Six keys helped us outperform other contractors in terms of cash flow and profit year after year regardless of the economic conditions: I was raised in a construction family I majored in Accounting in the first of several Universities I have attended Subsequently I have become a perpetual student of Construction Accounting We understood the difference between Regular Accounting and Construction Accounting We understood the value of being Process Dependent Vs. People Dependent We embraced technology that reduced dependency on people by automating a process Here's where being adaptable counts, construction company owners like you should begin to take note of technology advancements that you can use to implement in your business processes. Listed are some of the ways we can help you: Smartphones - Keep two  - one dedicated for business use and one for personal use. Evaluate your business smartphone and all of the "apps" and discard the ones that are not helping you make money. You can also download our free app here. Cloud Backup - Use an automatic backup service to store files, documents, contracts, job site photos, change orders and everything else you need to operate your construction company daily in the cloud. It is imperative to include all of your computers, desktops, notebooks and any web-enabled device that contains data. There are several services available (no one is best for every contractor), we can consult with you to determine the best one to serve your needs. E-Mail - Outlook linked to a cloud server means you can have all of your standard email accounts, G-Mail, Yahoo, Hotmail, etc. downloaded automatically into one Outlook program on your office desktop and laptop, and your desktop and laptop at home. This gives you the ability to access, automatically synchronize and manage all of your emails wherever you are. Time Card Calculator - Upgrade from paper-based time cards to web-based time card calculator that can be accessed from any web-enabled device including smartphones, tablets, desktops, notebooks, etc. For more information about the only web based time card calculator we trust for our contractors' bookkeeping services firm staff, that links to QuickBooks and works without messing up your QuickBooks; and will dramatically improve your Job Costing Reports and save time and labor click here. Cloud-Based Financial Reports - Without having to open QuickBooks for contractors and get lost in the muck and mire. We have a program that links to QuickBooks and allows contractors to visit and very straightforward yet powerful secure portal website to review, analyze and run hundreds of financial reports including ratios without opening QuickBooks and risk...

This Podcast Is Episode Number 0312, And It Will Be About Job Costing For Small Construction Companies - The Key To Profitability  Job Costing, in its simplest terms, links the money you spent on a job against the money you received to do a particular job. It is the process of tracking all the costs related to a project to determine its profitability. A common misconception is that Job Costing is only for large contractors with a dozen employees. Since keeping track of all costs and expenses involves a lot of additional work for contractors and field workers, and most construction company owners do not see an immediate benefit, some contracting businesses still haven’t implemented Job Costing procedures despite the financial risks. In Construction Accounting, there are two types of Cost of Goods Sold (COGS) – Direct Construction Costs and Indirect Construction Costs. Both are equally important in generating useful Job Costing Reports.   (Everything that is not Overhead or Other Income and Expense falls under Indirect Construction Costs) With this in mind, it is crucial to establish a Job Costing Library and understand the value of investing your time, energy, and resources to build and maintain one. Knowing in advance which jobs have the highest probability of success and profit before getting involved moves your construction company from an unpredictable roller coaster to a peaceful merry-go-round. The key to a useful bid is having accurate job costs. Your estimator needs access to the past job histories to accurately calculate the construction costs. Contractors with annual sales volume under $5,000,000 are not likely to have a $100,000+ a year professional estimator on staff so do not expect them to be 100% accurate.  The important thing is to get the final job costs as close as possible to the project estimate and budget. The only differences between your bid and the finished project should be overhead and profit. Estimates Vs Actual Reports Money Out – what you thought the job would cost and what it did cost Money In – how much you collected The difference between Money In and Money Out Weighted Average Of Indirect Costs And Overhead Next, you need to calculate the weighted average of Indirect Costs and Overhead, ignore Indirect Income and Expense as it has no bearing on Job Cost Calculations, to determine a metric you can use to allocate those costs to find the fully burdened Job Cost. Example: Job 001 Money In $1,000 Money Out $500 Difference $500 Annual Sales $100,000 Annual Indirect Construction Costs $20,000 Annual Overhead $10,000 Job 001 = 1% Of Annual Indirect Construction Costs $200, ($20,000 X 1%) Job 001 = 1% Of Annual Overhead $100, ($10,000 X 1%) Job 001 = Burden $300 ($200 + $100) Job 001 = Profit $200 (Money In $1,000 - Money Out $500 - Burden $300) With this information, you can create more accurate quotes when you bid on future jobs. Job Costing will help you identify the most and least profitable areas of your construction company and most profitable clients (and projects) and outsource or subcontract the less productive aspects of your contracting company. If your construction company is not paying you an owner's salary, what it would cost to replace you, and at least 15% return on your investment then you need to rethink the intrinsic value of your Construction Accounting System. Over to you: Over to us: Our Account-based Job Costing and Job Profitability Reporting option is the best value for contractors working on short projects that last between one hour and two weeks and do not need Estimates vs. Actuals report. The Job Costing and Job Profitability Reports are based upon the direct and indirect cost codes in the Chart of Accounts module we use to set up your QuickBooks for Contractors file, which is based upon the type of construction your company performs. Item-based Job Costing and Job Profitability Reporting is more comprehensive and...

This Podcast Is Episode Number 0311, And It Will Be About Five Common Security Questions Contractors Ask Before Hiring Our Service  Right now, if you are like most construction company owners, your construction accounting records are in an unlocked file cabinet, or worse, sitting on someone's desk. As an accounting firm, our client's privacy and security remain our top priorities and are continually looking at ways to develop and evaluate our system to prevent breach and network holes. We utilize 128-bit Secure Socket Layer encryption which ensures that all data passed between the web server and browsers remain private and integral. There are two levels of restrictions and passwords must be entered before you can get your data file. At Fast Easy Accounting, Cloud Security is not an option- it is a fundamental requirement. We only use Intuit Approved Commercial Hosting Services. We have taken steps to select the best to ensure that your data is as secure as that found for online banking and financial institutions. Their Cloud Security rests on U.S. based servers, backups, data centers, and technical support. Not one aspect of our Cloud security relies on outsourced services or offshore locations. Online Data Protection is critical to being able to provide you reliable and professional grade outsourced contractors bookkeeping services. With this in mind, let me assure you by answering the common questions contractors ask regarding cybersecurity, data, and financial concerns: Where are the bookkeeping and accounting done? Our headquarters is in Lynnwood, Washington, where everything's done. We have a team of qualified construction bookkeepers, construction accountants, and support staff. Everyone understands the importance of maintaining the integrity of your data and nothing is sent out. Can other people access my data? No one can have access to your data without your company's express permission; this includes your CPA, advisors and specific employees. We can also set up restrictions so that specific functions can be limited to those you do allow access. Can I access the QuickBooks Desktop version securely in the cloud? Yes, we outsource to an Intuit approved commercial hosting environment so we could offer our clients all of the benefits of the full desktop version of QuickBooks accessible online 24/7, and it has been a huge success! Will you be managing our money? The only money we touch is our Fees.  Auto receives for Monthly Outsourced Accounting and Bookkeeping Services on the 1st day of each month.  Auto receives for Weekly Outsourced Accounting and Bookkeeping Services on Monday of each week.  You sign all checks. We do not touch your money. Will I lose control of my company by outsourcing my bookkeeping? Absolutely not! You maintain 100% control of all the decisions. You decide who gets paid, when, and how much they are paid. We provide you with the list of payables and record the transactions, but you approve all invoices for payment and sign all checks and control your credit cards. The cost of good bookkeeping combined with secured cyber information is priceless. Having clean, up-to-date bookkeeping records, accurate financial reports, and protected data all make up for a good night's sleep. By eliminating all your paperwork frustrations and providing your business document security, you can focus more on doing what you love and being with the ones you love. About The Author: Randal DeHart, PMP, QPA is the co-founder of Business Consulting And Accounting in Lynnwood, Washington. He is the leading expert in outsourced construction bookkeeping and accounting services for small construction companies across the USA. He is experienced as a Contractor, Project Management Professional, Construction Accountant, Intuit ProAdvisor, QuickBooks For Contractors Expert and Xero Accounting Specialist. This combination of experience and skill...