This Podcast Is Episode Number 0177 And It Will Be About Pain Free Lien Waivers For Contractors, Lenders And Title Companies Geoff Arnold, Luis Trejo And Sean Richardson were interviewed for the Contractors Success M.A.P. Podcast, and were very generous with their time and provided some extremely valuable insights for how you can streamline your lien waiver process. The article below is a recap of how it all works. Tell us about your background and how you came to be where you are now. In January 2016, Geoff Arnold, Luis Trejo and Sean Richardson started lienwaivers.io with the simple vision of creating a better way for all parties involved in a construction project to collaborate in the disbursement process. With their combined background in construction, finance, technology and product marketing, the team is uniquely suited to solve this problem. Their solution is a simple, intuitive, cloud­-based platform that integrates directly with common construction accounting software without requiring users to re­-enter data. In February 2016, lienwaivers.io launched a private beta of their platform with a handful of Midwestern lenders and builders, with great success.  The team is now expanding their lien waiver exchange platform into a full­-featured automated disbursement platform, complete with payments, project budgeting and approval chains. What are some differences between you and your competitors? While there are a number of construction accounting and project management packages that support lien waiver functionality, lienwaivers.io is the first to integrate with common construction accounting softwares to generate lien waivers in bulk, at an economical price point. We launched with our first customer in 7 minutes, generating and distributing 36 lien waivers in seconds. What problem or issue does your product or service solve? A lien waiver is a legal document from a contractor, subcontractor, supplier, equipment lessor or other party to the construction project stating they have received payment and waive any future lien rights to the property. Lien waivers are exchanged anytime a payment is made. Once lien waivers are signed and executed they are distributed to clients, title companies, banks or other financiers for downstream processing. Currently the lien waiver process is manual, often paper­-based, and leaves valuable data locked away in unstructured documents. A single missing lien waiver can introduce lien risk to a project, delay bank draws, and have adverse effects on future financing. It’s a risk and compliance nightmare, begging for a technology solution ­­ which is lienwaivers.io What are three things a contractor should consider when hiring your services? ■  Do you make payments to your subcontractors / suppliers / lessors with an accounting software such as QuickBooks? ■  Does your lender or the owner of the property require lien waivers? ■  Are you spending multiple hours creating, sending and tracking lien waivers? How can you tell if someone is a good fit for your company? ■  Making payments to vendors (examples of this are general contractors, banks, and/or title companies) ■  Spending multiple hours creating, sending and tracking numerous lien waivers every month ■  Open to adopting new, time­saving technology to improve current inefficient processes ■  Using a construction accounting system such as QuickBooks to make payments What types of advice do you give a contractor? Many contractors are hyper focused on building quality homes/buildings, providing superior customer service and controlling cash flow, as they should be. Sometimes there are elements in business that don’t provide a lot of visible value but are protecting your company in the background. Lien risk is one of those elements. Every time a payment is made and a lien waiver isn’t returned in exchange, lien risk is introduced. This can create legal liabilities throughout...

This Podcast Is Episode Number 0176 And It Will Be About How Paper Invoices Are Bad For Your Construction Company Cash Flow By Anastasia Harold - Coolfront Affiliate Manager - Western Region You might be afraid to “go mobile” and ditch your paper work orders. I’m here to tell you there’s nothing to fear. In fact, it’s the paper invoices you should be afraid of. Here're the top ways that paper invoices are hurting your business: #1 They Get Lost Paperwork gets lost. Price Waterhouse Coopers (PWC) estimates finding one piece of paperwork can cost a company about $122. That could be your profit from an entire service call! PWC also estimates 7.5% of paperwork is lost forever. That could be 7.5% of your revenue from unbilled invoices. Customers agree too - they would rather have it in their email inbox. That’s one less receipt to keep track of. Storing your invoices digitally, or in the cloud, is the best way to eliminate lost paperwork and keep more information stored forever.   It's also estimated that 20% of an employee’s time is spent looking for paperwork. As a bonus, digital copies are searchable by customer’s name or date, and can be accessed almost anywhere when needed. #2 They're Messy Handwritten paper invoices never look pretty. Chances are, your handwriting doesn’t hold a candle to “Times New Roman” or “Arial.” It’s hard to project a professional appearance with misspellings and worse, illegible writing. Electronic invoices get the benefits of spell check and a clean appearance. #3 And Even More... They have to be ordered, so you’re likely to run out when it get’s busy. They’re expensive, especially if you make mistakes or have to mail them out. And to top it off, they’re bad for the environment. Not Convinced? Try Mobile Invoicing For Yourself! Coolfront provides a zero-cost solution to help you eliminate paperwork, stay organized and make more money. Get 50 free invoices with no obligation courtesy of Fast Easy Accounting by going to www.coolfront.com/fasteasyaccounting I trust this podcast helps you understand that outsourcing your contractors bookkeeping services to us is about more than just “doing the bookkeeping”; it is about taking holistic approach to your entire construction company and helping support you as a contractor and as a person. We Remove Contractor's Unique Paperwork Frustrations We understand the good, bad and the ugly about owning and operating construction companies because we have had several of them and we sincerely care about you and your construction company! That is all I have for now and if you have listened this far please do me the honor of commenting and rating podcast www.FastEasyAccounting.com/podcast Tell me what you liked, did not like, tell it as you see it because your feedback is crucial and I thank you in advance. You Deserve To Be Wealthy, Because You Bring Value To Other People's Lives! I trust this will be of value to you and your feedback is always welcome at www.FastEasyAccounting.com/podcast This is one more example of how Fast Easy Accounting is helping construction company owners across the USA including Alaska and Hawaii put more money in the bank to operate and grow your construction company. Construction accounting is not rocket science; it is a lot harder than that and a lot more valuable to construction contractors like you so stop missing out and call Sharie 206-361-3950 or email [email protected] Thinking About Outsourcing Your Contractors Bookkeeping Services? Click On The Link Below: www.FastEasyAccounting.com/hs This guide will help you learn what to look for in outsourced construction accounting. Need Help Now? Call Sharie 206-361-3950 [email protected] Thank you very much and I hope you understand we really do care about you and all contractors regardless of whether or not you ever hire our services. Bye for now until our next episode here on the Contractors Success MAP Podcast....

This Podcast Is Episode Number 0175 And It Will Be About Why Construction Accountant Is The Best Bookkeeper For Your Construction Company Experts Have Increased Knowledge And Skills. This is true whether you are talking about general bookkeeping, tax accountants, your mechanic, your doctor or other business professionals. “You’re Just the Bookkeeper” Yes in its most simple term – I’m just the bookkeeper. Of course, my clients look at it a little differently when we talk about the details of their business. What they do, how they do it, when do they bill, do they collect a job deposits.  If and when they should take payroll for themselves and how much should they take. And all of the “What About” questions that can come up – I’m an Ear – I’m a Resource! The list can go on for hours as I chat on the phone with existing clients, new clients from weekend warriors to brand new contractors to those who have been it the trades forever. Between all of the paperwork, taxes, and forms; bookkeeping is more complex than a person realizes. Bookkeeping is more than balancing the checkbook.  Do you have a “Hobby” instead of a “Construction Business”? It’s a mindset followed by action.   Someone Can Be In Business For Yours Make A Reasonable Living And Still Treat Their Business As A Hobby A good clean set of books can help get financing at the bank, construction loans, bid bonds required for some projects, happy tax accountant who can easily do your tax return. A tax accountant is not going to bother you for missing expenses that should be there. Learn More. When someone who does not understand about bookkeeping in general or that construction bookkeeping is more difficult than saying “You’re Just The Bookkeeper” is not said in a complementary way.  Usually, that person is unable to Do-It-Themselves. My Car Has Mystery Noises. I hear this noise when I drive. It drives funny. There is nothing worse than your car driving perfect when you take it in. I always start with the firm that changes my oil, checks my gauges and fluids. I go to the tire shop if it seems to be tire or steering issues. Why because if it’s a low tire or an assortment of other issues I trust them to fix them. If it’s something simple, it’s while I wait. Lastly, I go to the mechanic. Plan my time and my budget because it usually a larger project taking longer than a day.  Additional decisions. Do I want to work from home, arrange transportation or plan a trip and add a little fun to the car rental because I know my mechanic can find and fix the problem. They will always tell me if the issue is Urgent and Important including something needs to be fixed Soon, or lastly it’s just an annoying noise due to the age of the vehicle, and I can wait a bit and plan the repair or ignore it. Same thing applies with your Doctor. You may be one of the people who doesn't go to the doctor unless “It Hurts”. Your Primary Doctor is usually a General Practice Doctor who is the first line of defense with your overall heath. Your Doctor knows how to fix a “zillion” little aches and pains. When it’s something more serious, your Doctor is going to run tests and call in a specialist to review the tests and give a solution to the problem. There are several web-based Accounting programs focused solely on balancing your checkbook, sending, an invoice, and linking to your favorite app. Is this the best option for construction contractors? Our Answer Is NO! Why? Because we are the Construction Accounting Specialists which means we understand what you do and your construction accounting needs. From Job Costing Reports to Invoices to Job Deposits, Retention Tracking and more. We are located in Washington State, one of the few states in the USA with destination sales tax. This means Contractors here have major issues with Invoicing and customer payments. Every state in the USA is slightly different on how they collect...

This Podcast Is Episode Number 0173 And It Will Be About You Have Employees Now What? You started your Construction Company, Handyman Business, House Builder, Specialty Contractor or another form of contracting because you wanted to be your own boss, make a lot of money and enjoy some personal freedom. Then You Hired A Construction Worker And Something Went Horribly Wrong!      Welcome To The World Where You Are The B.O.S.S. (Bad Old Sorry Sucker) Most construction workers are good decent people who enjoy working with their hands making, building, repairing, remodeling and fixing homes and commercial buildings.  Good construction workers will not tolerate chaos or unfair labor practices. They will try out a lot of contractors until they find a contractor with a system. Preferably with documented processes and procedures. Good Construction Workers Have These Five Traits In Common: #1 High Self Esteem #2 Strong Work Ethic #3 Always Learning #4 Loyal To Family And Friends #5 Law Abiding Citizen Know The Fully Burdened Cost Of A Construction Worker Fully Burdened Construction Worker Cost - Simply means what it will cost you to hire someone including the company portion of the payroll taxes.   Considering The Cost Of Construction Worker on your payroll including taxes and overhead will be 1.3 to 2.0 times the hourly salary you are paying them is why labor is your most expensive cost in running a construction company. Hire Slow And Fire Quick! If You Think You Should Fire Someone You're Already 15 Minutes Too Late! Three Must Haves When Screening Applications: #1 Ask them to fill out an application in person and give them a pen with blue ink. You can learn a lot about a person including if they follow directions. Their handwriting, spelling, and grammar speak for itself. Make certain the application clearly states you have the right to run a background check, and you will ask for a drug test before considering them eligible for hire. #2 Subscribe to a service that will run a background check including as much detail as possible #3 Ask them to get a copy of their driving record. This is huge! If there are any DUI, Reckless Driving or other serious offenses perhaps it would be best to pass on them. If they are not respectful or men and women, who carry guns and are licensed to kill, law enforcement officers they will not show you, your other employees or your customers and clients any respect. Probationary Period Offer Probationary Period 30 days Or More. Most people will get comfortable and show who they are within 30 days. I trust this podcast helps you understand that outsourcing your contractors bookkeeping services to us is about more than just “doing the bookkeeping”; it is about taking holistic approach to your entire construction company and helping support you as a contractor and as a person. We Remove Contractor's Unique Paperwork Frustrations We understand the good, bad and the ugly about owning and operating construction companies because we have had several of them and we sincerely care about you and your construction company! That is all I have for now and if you have listened this far please do me the honor of commenting and rating podcast www.FastEasyAccounting.com/podcast Tell me what you liked, did not like, tell it as you see it because your feedback is crucial and I thank you in advance. You Deserve To Be Wealthy, Because You Bring Value To Other People's Lives! I trust this will be of value to you and your feedback is always welcome at www.FastEasyAccounting.com/podcast This is one more example of how Fast Easy Accounting is helping construction company owners across the USA including Alaska and Hawaii put more money in the bank to operate and grow your construction company. Construction accounting is not rocket science; it is a lot harder than that and a lot more valuable to construction contractors like you so stop missing out and call Sharie 206-361-3950 or email...

This Podcast Is Episode Number 0172 And It Will Be About QuickBooks Financials Do Not Match Your Contracting Company Tax Return  All Accounting Is Not Created Equal. Have you ever compared your QuickBooks Profit & Loss Report to your annual Income Tax Return and scratched your head trying to figure out why the numbers are so different? If you have, you are not alone because there are two different types of Accounting, and they serve two different purposes.   Tax Accounting Vs. Management Accounting  Tax Accounting Is external; its purpose is reporting income, preparing tax forms and making certain you pay your fair share of taxes and perhaps a little extra. For example Quarterly Tax Reporting, annual tax returns, state, county, city and local business and occupation taxes and sales tax reporting. Tax Accountants Are good people, and they have their place in the accounting world. Regular accounting, bookkeeping and contractors bookkeeping and accounting are not something they should be doing. No different than Professional Bookkeepers and construction accountants should not be preparing annual tax returns. Your QuickBooks File And The IRS - Is something you should be aware of and how important it is more than ever to have everything in your QuickBooks clean and up to date. Read More.. Tax Accounting Is important and so is the tail on a dog! Just understand the tail does not wag the dog! It is important that you understand tax accounting has very little to do with helping you run your business and everything to with paying taxes and keeping the tax preparer's boss, the government happy! Construction Management Accounting Is internal; its purpose is to help you operate and grow your construction business profitably. For example The Five Key Performance Indicators, Cash Reports, Receivables, Payables, Profit and Loss, Balance Sheet, Job Costing, Job Profitability Analysis. Business Process Management For Contractors Includes: · The 80/20 Rule For Construction · M.A.P, · Marketing · Accounting · Production · Sales · Invoicing · Payroll When to grow the business, what markets to serve, when to hire more people, loans, lines of credit, bonds, performance bonds, insurance cost savings, business planning and your overall construction company business strategy. Contractors Bookkeeping And Accounting Is completely different from standard accounting systems primarily because contractors take their entire business inside trucks and vans to people's homes and businesses to perform services, deliver and install products. Standard accounting when people go to the businesses to shop and buy products and services.   Construction Accounting Is a specialty similar to the difference between a family doctor and a brain surgeon Read More. Construction accounting cannot be learned; it has to be understood. To become a construction accountant, you must spend years working on construction sites to understand the industry and then with a foundation in standard accounting you can understand it. If You Allow Your Accounting To be dictated by the whims and wishes of the tax accountant you could be losing a lot of money! Because the entire Chart of Accounts will be structured in a way that makes it easier and quicker for them to prepare the tax report one day a year. Because saving you money on your tax bill is not what they are paid to do; they are paid to fill out tax returns. We Have Fixed Hundreds of QuickBooks files that were "setup" by tax accountants. Our Contractor clients say they are amazed and very happy because they can get the reports they need to operate and grow their construction businesses and we make it easy for the tax accountant to fill out the annual tax return and get more deductions, so you pay fewer taxes. We can help you too, simply fill out the form on the right or call us 206-361-3950 or email [email protected] to get started! We Do Not Prepare Annual Tax Returns For two reasons....

This Podcast Is Episode Number 0171 And It Will Be About Business Consultants Scamming Contractors As the economy is improving in mid-2016, we are seeing a disturbing trend of Business Consultants asking Contractors to make them a part owner of their Construction Companies in exchange for their services. I had seen this nightmare come to life several times beginning in the 1970's when I started my Construction Company. It usually happens just as the economy starts to improve and demand for construction services is far greater than the supply of Contractors to fill the need. There are a lot of seminars being put on by less than honest people promoting Get-Rich-Quick-Schemes for Business Consultants to take advantage of honest hard working contractors! There Are Several Parts To This Scam: They Make You Think They Know More About Running Your Business Than You Do They Want You To Pay For A Life Insurance Policy Naming Them Beneficiary They Have A Network Of People Who Need Work Done At Low Rates And Provide Kick-Backs They Slowly Get Control Of Your Construction Company And Work You To Death LITERALLY! Please do not misunderstand, most Business Consultants are good solid, decent hard working, honest people just like you and me. The ones you want to watch out for are the "Pirates And Thieves". I will not say what I think, but you can figure it out for yourself. Plumbing Contractor Who Almost Got Scammed In 1995, a Plumbing Contractor in the Seattle area had a decent sized business with seven trucks and over twenty employees and earning a very comfortable living. He and his wife were not the smartest people on earth, but they were not stupid either. One Fine Sunny Day A Couple Of Slick Salesmen Came To Thier Office With A Plan That Would Make Them RICH MILLIONAIRES Beyond Thier Wildest Dreams! Their grand plan was to get paid $7,000 per month each, plus expenses and they would take over the day-to-day operations and install their people to answer the phones and dispatch the plumbers to the service calls. And they wanted the owners to take out a Life Insurance Policy for $500,000 naming the salesmen as beneficiaries in case something happened the Plumbing Company could keep on running. They guaranteed to generate so much money that their costs would be minor in comparison to all the new money coming in because they knew everything about how a construction company should be run. To prove it they wanted to put on a uniform and act like plumbers and show the real plumbers how to increase every dispatch by offering to do more work on each service call. It is good business practice for a professional technician to survey everything and perform a proper diagnosis before prescribing a solution. If you take you car for a tune-up, and the mechanic noticed the hoses and belts are worn out it is prudent for them to let you know about it and then let you decide to have it fixed or not. In this case, the two "Salesmen" were only interested in selling as much as possible without any regard for the customer. When I was brought it to review the opportunity for the owners of the firm I ran some "What If Scenarios" using the reports from their accounting system and Excel and determined how much the new "Salesmen" would have to generate to cover their cost. It turns out the Plumbing Company would have to double their annual sales which would bring a whole lot more headaches because of the principles involved in Expansion Isoquants. When a business grows too fast, it runs the risk of running out of cash, and the internal systems may not be capable of handling the growth. The biggest obstacle is not understanding The People That Got You Where You Are Cannot Take You Where You Are Going! They sent the "Salesmen" down the road and continued operating a moderately successful Plumbing Company for many years to come. I trust this podcast helps you understand that outsourcing your contractors bookkeeping services to us is about more than just “doing...

This Podcast Is Episode Number 0170 And It Will Be About Ten Construction Tools You Can Fit in Your Pocket Today's Guest Article Is From Simon Worsfold A Copywriter At TSheets There are some tools that apps will never replace. Hammers for example. But smartphones are making lighter work for many in construction and the industry has definitely switched on to their potential. According to at least two recent surveys, one by On Center and the other by JBKnowledge, four out of five construction workers are now using apps on the job site. From punch lists to project management, there’s a huge range of construction apps out there now and to help you choose the best of them, TSheets has recently announced a new “Top Ten Construction Apps” awards. For A Tsheets 14 Day Free Trial Go To https://www.fasteasyaccounting.com/tsheets The winners fall into ten categories: Safety, Estimates & Bids, Measurements, Time Tracking, Photo Annotation, Task Management, Blueprints, Project Management, Reporting, and Communication. There’s also a Virtual Toolbox category with recommendations for a high-exposure safety app called Fall Safety as well as practical tools for roofing and carpentry. But the big winners in the awards are apps that specialize in calculating and sharing critical information such as measurements, blueprints, and reports, and many of them are either free or have free trial versions that give you a chance to try them out yourself. Interested in adding some new apps to your toolbelt? Head over to TSheets’ website now to find out who won. Save Time and Money on the Job Site The experts have weighed in, the reviews have been tallied, and your peers in the field have cast their votes. These are the top 10 apps for the construction industry in 2016—able to accomplish everything from bidding to time tracking to calculations and measurements for contractors and mobile workers. How can these apps improve your business? Keep reading below to learn what makes each of these construction apps #1 in their area of specialty, and how they can revolutionize communication, collaboration, and profitability for you and your crew. Read customer reviews, pros and cons, business benefits, and more. This is technology that will help you do your job—not replace it. The future of construction is bright for contractors and crews with their feet on the ground and these best-of-breed apps in hand. ___________________________________________________________________ Best App for Safety SafeSite What if you could save lives and save paper at the same time? With SafeSite, you can. The app was developed by construction professionals, for construction professionals and aims to decrease the number of workplace injuries while increasing productivity, reducing paperwork, and keeping everything organized in one handy app. SafeSite is a digital solution that allows field workers to upload checklists, conduct safety inspections, and export completed forms with accuracy and speed—all while ensuring compliance. Using the mobile app, you can log safety hazards and observations on the spot and automatically notify responsible parties for a solution. Safesite will track and log the progress of each resolution along the way. Features ·    Report safety hazards on the spot, then assign follow-up actions and deadlines ·    Create custom inspections, checklists, and forms ·    Share reports and from the field instantly to internal and external parties—saving time and paper! ·    Generate daily and weekly automated safety reports for effortless compliance ·    Upload pictures to communicate quickly and effectively with everyone involved—no matter when or where ·    Create plant and equipment profiles, and complete scheduled inspections against them ___________________________________________________________________ Best App For Estimates And Bids Job...

This Podcast Is Episode Number 0169 And It Will Be About Secrets Of Successful Handyman Contractors Why do some Handyman Contractors make a good living and have a solid income while the majority are struggling with cash flow, profit, and dealing with the same daily tasks until they retire or die of old age and a worn out body? Here are ten secrets you can use to make more money. 1. Vision For Where Your Handyman Company Is Going Your inner world shows you exactly where your outer world is heading. Daydream and ask yourself "What if.." It’s fun and easy and very profitable. Interview yourself about where your Handyman Company is going. Have a conversation with yourself and record it on paper, computer, audio recorder or whatever works for you. To begin with go wild and wooly, no judging, no censoring, just let your thoughts flow and record it all. The first step to deep analytical thinking and decision making is letting loose then sifting through to find the nuggets of wisdom. Sleep on it, review it the next morning for a few minutes before you get involved in your daily routine, make notes, take stuff out and put new stuff in and repeat this process every day until you have settled on your truth about what you want. It will take time because The Truth Is Four Levels Deep and there is no short cut.   2. Vision For Leadership Lead, follow or get out of the way and go work for somebody else. You went into business for yourself because you have the heart of a leader, you want to control your destiny, and you decide how much you are worth, not somebody else! Employees crave leaders with confidence and passion. "The Goal Is In Stone; The Plan Is In Sand." You will be wrong most of the time; however, your inner strength and grit will make you respond to changing circumstances rather than react to them. You will develop and implement as many plans as it takes to accomplish your goals. Suppliers, vendors, and service providers respect leaders who have a vision and power through every obstacle to achieve victory because they need high-profit successful Handyman Companies to buy their products and services. They will support you in ways you cannot even imagine because it is in their best interest. Decide how you want to lead, how you want to be respected and the work culture you want to create and refuse to put up with anyone who does not support you! See my chat on "Leveling Up Makes Contractors Wealthy." 3. Training And Education Make training and education as important as breathing. Every Monday morning has a safety meeting and 5-minute training session on a new tool, process or procedure. Most tool and material suppliers will send someone to your shop meeting, bring snacks and present their latest tool, product, and service and answer questions about how it used and they do it for FREE! If you want to step it up and grow, your cash flow and profits assign everyone a to prepare a 5-minute presentation about something new they learned recently. Some employees will be reluctant at first to participate because they will be stepping out of their comfort zone, too bad! Everyone is either "Green and Growing or Ripe and Rotting". Like attracts like, so if you want a high performing team replace weak people with strong people and watch your bank balance go up! Sounds harsh doesn't it? You know what's harsh? Having an adult day care center where you pay people to show up and be entertained, babysat, and coddled while they drain your energy, resources, and most important your money. The #1 cause of business failure is running out of money. Do you think weak people will help you rebuild? Not likely! 4. Cross-Train Builds "Bench Strength." Every employee has strengths and weaknesses. Find out who has what and let the people who are strong in certain areas train everyone else to have enough skill to step in and help when needed because a more diverse workforce means easier scheduling. Having and having more than one worker...

Three simple questions contractors need to ask themselves to ensure your company and brand continues growing cash flow and profits.

Three questions that if all owners of failed construction companies had asked themselves, they might have survived and thrived. They are simple, obvious questions, but how you answer them will determine if your construction company will stand the test of time.

There was a time when a contractor put a simple ad in the paper or a line listing. There was a time when a contractor put rely on referrals, newspaper and Yellow Pages ads to get more leads than they could handle.

Could Those Contractors Have Avoided Failure?

I believe they could have. This article explores three fundamental questions that every contractor needs to ask themselves. They need to answer them in ways that provide a clear path to continued and future growth and success.

Contractors who did not evolve into having a Marketing Plan made the same mistake other failed companies and brands made. They failed to Innovate, Reinvent, and Evolve.

Ask yourself:

1. What are you offering? New construction, remodeling or service and repair?

2. Who are you competing with? DIY, other contractors, the available cash homeowners have to spend?

3. What is your real competency? Residential, Commercial or both?

Challenging yourself to answer these questions, sleep on them and then revisit them again and again until you get to the truth. The Truth Is Four Levels Deep!

Getting The Leads And Doing The Work Is Only Part Of The Answer

Not adapting to a changing environment is one reason why so many contractors companies shrivel and die. They focus on the wrong areas to innovate or improve. They focus on the wrong enemy and threat to compete with. As a result, they miss what they could be doing to succeed and prosper over time.

Define The Type Of Contracting You Offer And Who Really Is Your Competition. It may not be the same form, structure, and category that you operate in.

For example, Home Depot does not see themselves as competing in the building supply business, but for a share of the home and commercial remodel and repair market. Be that homeowner doing a weekend project, Handyman Contractors, Remodel Contractors, Trade Contractors as well as other contractors and House Builders. This drives a very different approach and behavior across the organization too if they just saw themselves as fighting for a share of the building supply market.

Summary

It is very easy to get caught up in the short term and what you have today. You measure your share in the very particular segment you operate in and over obsess about your immediate competition. Just as contractors who did not market effectively did years ago you need to step back and ask yourself the three key questions and make sure you answer them in a way that will define and liberate your construction company at the same time.

1. What are you offering?

2. Who are you competing with?

3. What is your real competency?

Listen to this Podcast for more…

If you are Thinking About Outsourcing Your Contractors Bookkeeping Services you are invited to download a guide to finding the right contractor bookkeeping service to fit your particular situation at www.FastEasyAccounting.com/hs

Call Sharie now 206-361-3950 or [email protected] and schedule your no charge one-hour consultation.

The Four Most Important Words Your Construction Clients Say:

• "While it's open anyway" (the walls, floors, ceiling)

• "Since we're this far..." (in the project, remodel, new house)

• "I have an idea..." (for more work to be done, change something)

• "Now my wife wants..." (more, more and more)

Highly profitable and very successful Contractors like you respond with "Tell me more and let me take some notes so that I can better understand what you want." And they open their paper notepad or electronic device and start documenting everything.

People love to buy stuff and even more important they loved to listen too and interviewed so when you are listening and taking notes you are giving them what they crave most; respect and attention!

Contracting clients are more profitable because they understand and respect professionals that have processes and systems. They willingly participate in the interview process. Customers dislike processes and systems because it means the contractor is a professional whom they cannot bully or intimidate so they will not participate in the interview process.

Contracting Clients operate primarily from the adult ego and see everything in their world as a Win-Win encounter. Otherwise, they walk away. Clients want the work done, right and on-time, and they expect to pay a fair or even high price to get what they want when they want it and to create long-lasting, fruitful relationships with everyone, not just contractors.

Customers operate from the child or parent ego and see everything in their world as a Win-Lose encounter, or they walk away. Customers use manipulation tactics and play word games to chisel, cheat, steal and negotiate everything in life and death struggle to get the lowest possible price and to cripple or destroy any hope of a long lasting relationship with everyone, not just contractors.

Clients are a source of repeat work massive increases in cash flow and profits for your contracting company because they are "The Goose That Laid The Golden Egg". Smart contractors like you will pamper them, give them exactly what the want (Click Here To Learn More) and watch your bank balance skyrocket.

When Your Construction Client Says:

• "While it's open anyway...." (the walls, floors, ceiling)

• "Since we're this far..." (in the project, remodel, new house)

• "I have an idea..." (for more work to be done, change something)

• "Now my wife wants..." (more, more and more)

You Say: "Tell me more and let me take some notes so that I can better understand what you want." And open your paper notepad or electronic device and start documenting everything. Then as soon as possible transfer your notes to a change order, get it signed, collect the amount of the change order, put the money in the bank and put the change order in the work schedule.

Listen to this Podcast for more…

If you are Thinking About Outsourcing Your Contractors Bookkeeping Services you are invited to download a guide to finding the right contractor bookkeeping service to fit your particular situation at www.FastEasyAccounting.com/hs

Call Sharie now 206-361-3950 or [email protected] and schedule your no charge one-hour consultation.