Excellent communication skills are part of any process, and by definition, it entails more than just talking. Today, it's the phone, emails, messaging, faxes, and it includes the flow of soft documents.
Of course, talking is a significant part of it. Most of us would be lost without our mobile phones. With internet access and a handful of applications, the newer smartphones replace the need for a traditional landline, fax machine, laptop, desktop computer or camera.
Many people already go to their bank, move money, pay bills, and pay for services. Banks have added the technology where you can stop going to the bank altogether, with the bank's app, you can now snap a picture of the check and deposit into your account from your customer's location.
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Topics:
Communication Skills For Better Accounting Results,
Construction Marketing,
Clients
Many contractors are having trouble adapting to the new economy. I have made more mistakes – than ten of the average contractors put together. I've learned a great deal of hard, hard lessons, and worked my way through several "Character Building Moments." What I am about to ask you to do is something I have done for many years during my contracting days, and it still works.
Understanding Other Costs:
Marketing Cost
The cost your company spent to acquire and maintain the job. Depending on how you allocate marketing dollars as a percentage of sales or a fixed budget will have an impact on your marketing cost per job. Your cost-per-call, closing ratio, and other related information is all part of your operations, accounting, and bookkeeping reports.
Mobilization Cost
Are the costs you incurred to get a crew to the job site in terms of travel time and vehicle operating costs; and then the labor costs to unload tools, equipment, and material and put everything in place for easy access and not in the way of the work to be done. These costs are generally high and fixed.
Demobilization Cost
Are the reverse and generally lower because it takes less time to load the truck or van since you know where everything goes, and you know the quickest route back to the shop or office. These costs are also generally high and fixed.
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Topics:
Contractor Challenges,
Contractor,
Contractor Tips,
finance,
Contractor Operating Tips
All construction contractors have experienced the financial pain of bad debt, which is defined as a customer who refuses to pay no matter what you do.
I've been there before, and it will probably happen again in the future. Owning and operating any business, including accounting, means sometimes you provide goods and services and not get paid.
Knowing The Answers Helps
"If you know the answers, the questions will not bother you" - Randalism.
In school, when you sat for an exam or a test, and you knew the material forwards, and backward, it was fast and easy. The exams and tests for the classes you struggled with were the opposite.
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Topics:
Contractor Challenges,
Contractor,
Contractor Tips,
finance,
Contractor Operating Tips
It takes work to make the phone ring. It takes even more work to increase the sales ticket. Customers are looking for a contractor to do a little work. If you offer three options, do you find customers usually choose the middle option?
When trying someone new, they may go with a "Low Risk" by prepaying for services on a "Deal" on a contractor lead generation service. The deal allows them to set a "budget." It allows them to try you out before mentioning any additional details. Have you ever heard anything like this from a prospect: "Hello Contractor, I had nothing better to do this week, so I filled out your form and called you on the phone to ask you come to my house and while I act your tour guide because I am thinking of having some work done."? Not likely.
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Topics:
Construction Marketing,
Customers Vs. Clients,
Clients,
Inbound Marketing For Contractors,
offline marketing for contractors
Employees need to fill out timecards. The most practical reason is that all employees want to get paid, early, often, and regularly.
For those of you that are parents, do you remember when you brought home your newborn baby? They need food, water and diaper changed. You learned all about "Goldilocks and the Three Bears" Some children who are born on a HOT summer day seem to get "overheated" quickly and do not suffer quietly.
If you have employees, you may notice in some similarities to raising children because in some cases you the contractor take over where your employee's parents left off. They want their paychecks (allowance) on a regular basis, and it had better not bounce at the bank due to insufficient funds.
If any of your construction worker's paychecks do happen to bounce or they are not able to cash it at the bank because your construction company does not have enough money in the payroll account then most likely you will find whatever tools and equipment they have easy access to at the nearest pawn shop.
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Topics:
Time Cards,
Contractors Bookkeeping Paperwork,
Time Card Issues,
QuickBooks For Contractors,
Construction Bookkeeping,
Painless Paperless Contractor Bookkeeping Services
In the mechanical trades of the construction industry, plumbing, electrical, HVAC and related fields of irrigation, low voltage and audio / visual equipment companies there are lively discussions happening regarding "Repair Versus Replace."
Most of the time, the participants are more fixed in their positions and intense with passion than any political or religious discussion I have ever seen.
The primary question involves a deep-seated paradigm regarding the definition of honor and integrity. Is it more honorable and better for the client to treat every mechanical part as something that must have every last bit of use squeezed out of it before replacing it? Or is it better to replace it at the first sign of breakage? Or lastly is there a middle ground?
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Topics:
Contractor Challenges,
Contractor,
Contractor Tips,
finance,
Contractor Operating Tips
Construction company cash flow is the movement of money in and out of your contracting business; these movements are known in accounting circles as inflow and outflow.
Inflows for your construction company primarily come from the sale of goods or services to your customers, but keep in mind that inflow only occurs when you make a cash sale or collect on receivables. Cash is king! Other examples of cash inflows are borrowed funds, income derived from sales of assets, and investment income from interest.
Outflows for your construction company are generally the result of paying labor, material, other direct and indirect costs of goods sold and overhead expenses.
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Topics:
Payment Collect,
Contractor,
Contractor Tips,
finance,
Contractor Operating Tips
Estimating and submitting bids are one of the most stressful and nerve-wracking sides of your construction business. It is essential to keep in mind that "break-even" in the construction business is challenging to calculate because most projects are one-of-a-kind custom jobs. Proactive contractors have systems and cost libraries with pre-priced assemblies for bidding, which works in conjunction with Strategic Construction Accounting to provide management with progress invoicing, job costing, and job profitability.
With poor bookkeeping, misguided judgment, and clerical errors come bad decisions on what projects to bid and not to bid on until eventually, you'll run out of time and money. This is why some construction projects fail or worse, construction companies get bankrupt.
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Topics:
Payment Collect,
Contractor,
Contractor Tips,
finance,
Contractor Operating Tips
Perhaps more.
An alarming number of construction company owners are being ripped-off and driven into bankruptcy.
That sounds harsh, but it's true. Whenever we see a contractor heading towards a problem, an issue, or a big disaster, we immediately raise the alarm. We are cautious about doing it so when we say there is a potential problem, our clients know we are serious.
Contractors by nature are tenacious, resilient and have a tremendous amount of "Grit And Determination To Succeed" which means they are not easily disturbed or prone to react hastily or rashly at the first sign of trouble. This is just one of the many qualities I sincerely admire about these wonderful men and women.
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Topics:
Payment Collect,
Contractor,
Contractor Tips,
finance,
Contractor Operating Tips
If you are the typical construction contractor trying to keep track of your construction projects, meetings, tasks, and conversations without the tools and technologies you could be living in a nightmare. You can either keep on "Powering Through"- spend your life endlessly chasing details, missing appointments, suffer untold losses in cash flow and profits; or you can start developing a plan and work on your business.
You may be getting your construction projects done with sheer will-power, but the lack of processes, business plan, and strategy will eventually wear you down.
Successful contractors improve processes all year long. Your construction company can benefit from this system that other successful contractors are using now, which means there is no need to "Reinvent The Wheel." As your construction company grows and evolves, your processes can support the controlled and planned expansion.
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Topics:
Payment Collect,
Contractor,
Contractor Tips,
finance,
Contractor Operating Tips
