Many problems can be traced back to the "Halo Effect," which happens when a contractor thinks, "We are so good at (fill in the blank) we should expand into (fill in the blank)."

The most common situation is when a residential remodel contractor with a reputation and a substantial company generating 15% or more profits decides to start building custom homes. Or the opposite, a home builder who decides to branch out into residential remodeling.

Residential Remodel Contractor Building A Home

The processes, tools, equipment, materials, skills, and invoicing procedures required to build a house from the ground up differ entirely from modifying a home with people living there.

 

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Topics: High Profit Construction Projects, High Return On Investment, Clients or Customers, Boost Construction Profitability

As a small business owner, you're likely already aware of the importance of keeping your finances in order. Financial management goes deeper than paying your bills on time and collecting invoices (although those are also important). It involves regularly checking your financial situation to ensure your accounts are in order, your records are up-to-date, and you're spending within your budget.

Among those activities, financial reconciliation is vital in keeping your finances and business on track. Force reconciliations can cause your net income to be over or understated, which means you pay too much in taxes now or too little now and the rest later with penalties and interest because the IRS can ask for a copy of your bookkeeping record. 

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Topics: QuickBooks For Contractors Financial Reports, Contractor Tips, financial fraud, Financial Reconciliation

Starting a construction business is not for the faint of heart. A certain level of stress comes with ensuring your company's success. If things go wrong, it all falls back on you. That said, the freedom and sense of accomplishment of running your own business make the challenges well worth it.

With good planning and strong business practices, you can avoid the pitfalls and drive your trade business to financial success. Learn the top reasons why small businesses end up in bankruptcy and what you can do to prevent that from happening to you.

1. Poor cash flow

Not bringing enough money in is the main reason why businesses fail. You must have more money coming in than is going out, or you're on the express train to bankruptcy. This might mean increasing your prices, decreasing costs, or combining the two. There might also be different service models you can offer (such as subscription services) or ways to branch out your income. 

 

Work with an accountant or bookkeeper to help you identify issues with your cash flow as soon as you know there's a problem–or to prevent one before it happens. The earlier you catch a cash flow problem, the better.

 

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Topics: Construction Accountant Who Listens, Contractor Tips, Bankruptcy, Construction Company Bankruptcy

Deciding to purchase something to help your construction business is a big decision. It can be challenging to part with hard-earned money, especially in the early days. To understand the right time to invest by purchasing something for your business, you must calculate whether the Return on Investment (ROI) would be profitable.

The cost is the money you spend making the purchase plus any indirect costs (such as training costs) related to the purchase. The ROI is a calculation of financial gains or benefits that you obtain due to that cost.

To determine ROI profitability, there is a simple formula you can use. If the purchase yields a positive return, it can be considered profitable. However, if the purchase does not earn back the money it costs, it would be considered a negative return on investment. 

 

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Topics: High Return On Investment, Clients or Customers, Contractor Tips, ROI for Contractors

Most business owners receive plenty of well-intentioned advice and 'helpful opinion' from family and friends. However, good business advice spoken from commercial experience is another matter entirely.

That's not to say it's hard to find, but finding a reputable source in the Internet age is sometimes less than straightforward – especially if you have a specific problem to solve and limited time.

This is why, for good times or bad, developing a network of peers or seeking out a business mentor can be a great idea.

 

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Topics: High Profit Repeat Construction Clients, Construction Accountant Who Listens, Clients or Customers, Contractor Tips

Raising prices can be a sore subject. Many construction business owners like you assume doing so will spell the end of your competitiveness. But by not raising prices, you're simply letting inflation and your suppliers' maintenance of your margins quietly eat away at profitability. The bottom line is that costs will always rise long-term - at least with inflation.

That means you have to pass on the costs to your customers or consume those costs yourself to the point where one day, you'll have to either suddenly raise prices or accept the eventual failure of your business.

The worst thing you can do is avoid measuring your costs by sticking your head in the sand. Cost rises will catch up with you eventually, so take action to maintain your margins.

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Topics: Marketing Tracking, Construction Marketing, Construction Accountant Who Listens, Contractor Marketing, Contractor Tips, Pricing Jobs, How To Raise Prices

A USP (Unique Selling Proposition) is a compelling reason for your target market to choose your construction business over your competitor's. Examples range from cutting-edge service and product features to simply being more convenient and easier to find for the target market.

 

But it all boils down to meeting your local market's needs in a more accurate and improved way than the competition and being able to market these points more effectively.

 

By doing this, your business can stand out in the marketplace with a strong reputation attracting more clients.

 

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Topics: High Profit Repeat Construction Clients, Construction Accountant Who Listens, Clients or Customers, Contractor Tips

When you go into business as a tradesperson, you often focus on performing your trade to the best of your ability – as it should be. With time, the quality of your work will speak for itself, which is the most valuable testimonial of all.

Before the internet was commercially available, just as many experts advised contractors about the layout and design of yellow page ads and which books to spend money on, I say you spend money because that is what it was - Marketing.

Many of us who owned and operated construction companies spent thousands of dollars on these experts. Based on their recommendations, we spent tens of thousands of dollars annually in full-page yellow page ads as close to the first position.

 

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Topics: Marketing Ideas For Contractors That Work, Marketing Tracking, Construction Marketing, Construction Accountant Who Listens, Contractor Marketing, Contractor Tips, Inbound Marketing For Contractors

We're in a dynamic, multicultural country with many different races of people from diverse origins, just within the domestic market; it's vital that you know who might be interested in your goods or services and how they could perceive particular messages.

Whichever specialty your construction business is in, cultural differences can directly impact your profitability. If you try to understand your crew's and clients' cultures – their customs and differences – you'll have a better chance of keeping them and gaining more, respectively.

 

Suppliers, vendors, and service providers respect leaders who have a vision, mindful and considerate, and can power through every obstacle to achieve success. 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.

 

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Topics: Contractor Tips, cybersecurity, Employee Fraud, financial fraud

How often have you hired someone with the expectation that they know how construction works, and then you found out they did not know about it? You are a master in the construction industry, so you recognize what to look for in your particular field and quickly observe if someone has the skillsets, and you proceed accordingly.

You know what happens when you send your best Rough Carpenter that you pay piece work for framing spec from the ground up in all kinds of weather and working conditions to install some custom-made cherry wood cabinets with gold plated pulls and knobs in the home of your best client (who happens to be in the wealthiest neighborhood in your town). It is not a pretty sight.

Have you pictured a crew with muddy work gear and boots stepping onto your client's pristine floors? The dirty secret is that Tax Accountants operate like Rough Carpenters because they work fast and furious, and they are paid piece work. The main difference is that they earn the bulk of their annual income in three and a half months. This means they do not waste any time going through your receipts to ensure you get all the deductions you are entitled to.

 

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Topics: CPA Vs Construction Accountant, When Contractors Need A CPA, Construction Bookkeeping, Construction Bookkeeping And Accounting, Construction Accountant Who Listens, CPA, Contractor Tips