Do you want to improve business by landing larger-scale residential building projects? Here are five strategies you can use in your business.
1. Gather accolades.
One of the best ways to build brand credibility is to apply for – and win – construction business awards. You can also apply for notable accreditations that will differentiate your company from the competition. Be sure to include your awards and accreditations on your website and all press releases.
2. Track your bid-hit ratio.
Most contractors equate success with winning bids. In reality, this doesn’t necessarily reflect a winning strategy. Many times, builders win a lot of bids simply because they bid on more projects compared to the competition. To assess the actual quality of your bids, you need to know your bid-hit ratio. If your scoreboard shows a 5-to-1 bid-hit ratio, you are averaging one contract award for every five jobs you bid on. Obviously, lower is better, especially since builders tend to invest time and overhead learning about potential projects before making a bid. If your bid-hit ratio turns out to be lower than you’d hoped, reassess the way you compete for projects.
3. Expand your geographic boundaries.
You can’t expect to get the first major residential building project you bid on, especially if you lack experience for these types of builds. Increase your pool of potentials by looking more broadly at where you can work.
4. Invest in outreach.
To consistently land large-scale residential building projects, you will need to elevate brand recognition. This means spending more on sales, marketing, pre-construction services, public relations and customer development. You can’t realistically expect to score a big project if no one has ever heard of your company. Invest in brand awareness, so you will seem like a safer, more reputable option compared to lesser-known contenders.
5. Certify.
If your construction business is veteran-owned, women-owned, located in a HUBZone, or a small and disadvantaged firm, you can get specific certifications that could give you a competitive edge and pave the way toward more opportunities.
Are You Ready for Bigger Projects?
Because they yield greater profits, larger-scale residential building projects are tough to resist. Unfortunately, they can come with hefty overhead expenses and require large amounts of skilled labor. This latter requirement can be especially troublesome, since there has been a widespread shortage of skilled labor in the U.S. for the last decade.
Before you throw your hat into the ring on a major construction job, make sure you’ve honestly assessed your business’s realistic capabilities. Nothing is more demoralizing than bidding on a project and then having to turn it down after you realize it’s too much to handle. Maybe you can’t afford the overhead. Perhaps you just can’t find enough skilled labor. Whatever the case, there’s nothing wrong with sticking to what you’re good at. If you are making a nice profit by regularly churning out smaller builds, it may be best to stay in your comfort zone. If you do decide to seek bigger projects, make sure you have reliable leads on skilled labor, so you can get started quickly without costly delays.
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