So, you’re thinking of becoming a construction contractor, huh? Well, to slap you with a little bit of great news, contractors are absolutely necessary. They are a huge contributor to the economy without whom homes, businesses and constructions of every kind would literally fall apart.
Basically, what we are saying in a rather long-winded way is, starting your own construction business can be a super-lucrative decision.
But you have to get it right.
That’s the flip side of the coin. Getting yourself set up to be a success in the long-run takes more than just a website and some experience in contracting. So, before you go and get yourself too involved in this dream, we have pulled together a list of ways you can give yourself the best chance of growing a construction company that will pass the test of time and lasts just as long as the projects you get stuck into.
1. Know The Best Business Practices
If you have any ounce of experience in contracting, then you will know firsthand just how problematic it can be to improve your efficiencies and boost your business, and that’s because everyone has a different idea of what are the best practices in this industry. It’s just one of those sectors where everyone has their own sort of systems in place; systems they’re used to and think are working okay. The good news is, you can use whatever systems you prefer using. This can be applied to your bookkeeping, your invoicing, the way you schedule a project, how you go manage a deep foundation situation, the way you train your employees and the way you delegate your tasks. The trick is making sure each system understands the basics of each task and is easily understood by each of your employees. The reason for this is simple: the more efficient your systems are, the better you will be able to grow and that’s because you will have everything in place to scale up with any instabilities arising.
2. Take A Peek Inside Your Business
Another absolutely critical assessment you need to make is of your company. After all, you can’t hope to survive or thrive if you don’t understand a few things about your company, such as your financial stability, how much repeat business you’re getting, what your referral rate is like, how much people appreciate your customer service efforts, what your employee turnover rate is like and things like that. The best way to answer all these questions is to open your eyes more. Look at your books more frequently, take a look at your online reputation and talk to your customers. If you do find room for improvement, then you need to remedy this before you focus on growing too much.
3. Get Into An Industry Association
There are plenty of options out there for you to choose from, so pick one that suits your type of contracting an where you are based and get involved. Not only will you find this to be really beneficial from a networking point of view, you will also find it is extremely useful in your marketing to have this sort of social-proof in your locker. People are getting more and more wary of cowboy builders, which is why you need to fill new-clients with confidence. Of course, the other major benefit of joining an industry association is our chance to develop as a business leader. That could be something as complex as knowing what to charge a client for a specific job or something as relatively straightforward as knowing how to write a contract, not to mention which materials should be used here and there and where to find sub-trades.
4. Marketing Means Everything
All too many business leaders think successful marketing strategies are all about landing new clients. But that’s not the case. Marketing campaigns are actually your chance to secure more profitable projects while simultaneously keeping your current client base more than satisfied. In today’s world, that means more than just having an Ad in the Yellow Pages. You need to have a solid online presence (yup, that means a snazzy website like this one), interacting with your clients through social media, sending out an email newsletter and even having a blog, all of which will boost your ability to demonstrate just how you can solve their problems. That said, don’t just focus on the online thing and that’s because you’re not just an online business. Instead, make sure your company address and phone number is easily found online and back this up by having a presence in your local newspaper and town.
5. Hire Top Talent
Boosting your business is on you. It has to be. You’re the business leader, the owner, the boss. However, you’re only going to be as successful as the guys and girls you have working for you. Not only will this get rid of any micromanagement issues you may be facing as you rush between different projects, you will be able to trust them to handle any and all projects you assign them too and that is going to make your business more attractive to customers. You’ll have the best people doing the best work and that will produce referrals and repeat business. Best of all, though, is the amount of time you’ll save yourself; time you can spend on growing your business. Of course, attracting top talent isn’t easy, which is why you should check out this article for some ideas.
6. Staying Small Is A-Okay
The reason we’re saying this is because a lot of small construction businesses find themselves caught in a weird middle ground where they have to bring on more employees to manage the extra workload, but their profits aren’t any bigger – just their headaches. That’s when staying small can be really beneficial. It is the answer to a higher cash flow with lower overheads, and even lower stress levels. The opportunity may come to grow, but you don’t need to force it and put that extra dollop of risk on your shoulders.
7. Make your services as specific as possible.
When you first launch a construction business and begin making a name for yourself, you may feel as though you need to offer a wide range of services. After all, the more services you offer, the more clients you will attract, right? Unfortunately, this is not necessarily the case. In fact, it is far better to specialize in a particular area or field and build a reputation of excellence within this area. For example, you may choose to focus on a certain area of construction – such as residential construction or commercial and business construction. Alternatively, you could work to provide construction in specific areas of the home, such as extensions.
While this narrows your target demographic somewhat, it means that you can provide your clients with a more specific, tailored service – which will often help you earn more money in the long run. Furthermore, specializing in a certain area doesn’t mean that you cannot offer other services in tandem. For example, you could accept a job to add an extension to a client’s home while also providing them with concreting services by collaborating with a Concrete Supply Company. This means that you will only purchase the materials and supplies you need to complete specific tasks as and when you need them instead of buying stock you will never use.
