13 min
What Sets Your Construction Company Apart Contractor Success Map with Randal DeHart | Contractor Bookkeeping And Accounting Services
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- Marketing
This Podcast Is Episode Number 491, And It's About What Sets Your Construction Company Apart Let me start by saying it's good if you have competition. Indeed, competition pushes you to be innovative. It also means there's an established community for your services. If no one else is offering the service, there's a chance there's no market for it.
But, have you always wondered how a small construction company like yours could stand out from the crowd and its competitors? Awareness of what others in your industry have developed and provided leads to a newfound motivation and belief in making an impactful difference, whether within your company or your community.
The key to benefitting from the competition is knowing how to take on competitors. You measure your share in the particular segment you operate in and obsess about your immediate competition, just as contractors who did not market effectively did years ago.
But first, you need to step back and ask yourself these three key questions and make sure you answer them in a way that will define and liberate your construction company at the same time.
Ask Yourself:
What am I offering? New construction, remodeling, or service and repair? Who is my competition? DIY, other contractors, money homeowners for a construction project? What is my fundamental competency - Residential, Commercial, or both? Challenging yourself is the key to answering these questions. Write your answers on paper or computer, sleep on them and then revisit them again and again until you get to the truth.
Define The Type Of Contracting You Offer And Who Is Your Competition
Be that homeowner doing a weekend project, Handyman Contractors, Remodel Contractors, Trade Contractors, and other contractors and House Builders. It may not be the same form, structure, and category that you operate. For example, Home Depot does not see itself competing in the building supply business but for a share of the home and commercial remodel and repair market.
This approach and behavior across the organization, too, saw themselves as fighting for a share of the building supply market.
Getting The Leads And Doing The Work Is Only Part Of The Answer
Not answering them and acting on the knowledge is one reason many construction companies shrivel and die. They focus on the wrong areas to innovate or improve. They focus on the wrong enemy and threat. As a result, they miss what they could be doing to succeed and prosper over time.
Here are three ways your small construction company can establish itself from competitors and stand out from the crowd:
1. Concentrate, then generate.
What separates wealthy contractors from poor contractors? They concentrate then generate.
Returning to the critical questions at the start, successful contractors know what type of contracting they are good at. SWOT Analysis is one tool used in strategic planning for construction companies to evaluate the Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats involved in determining the particular target market.
Concentrate
Strengths - are projects that your construction company does exceptionally well and earns a higher than average gross margin that gives you an advantage over other contractors. What are they, and how can your construction contracting company expand on them?
Weaknesses - are projects your construction company does poorly at and breaks even or loses money. What are they, and how can your construction contracting company turn them into strengths?
Opportunities - are projects and markets not currently being served where your construction company can enter and turn them into strengths. Have you considered tapping into the "work-from-home" market during this time? Or commercial establishments looking to remodel to implement a better floor plan?
Threats - are elements outside your construction company that could cause trouble for you or your construction projects. What are they, and how can your construc
This Podcast Is Episode Number 491, And It's About What Sets Your Construction Company Apart Let me start by saying it's good if you have competition. Indeed, competition pushes you to be innovative. It also means there's an established community for your services. If no one else is offering the service, there's a chance there's no market for it.
But, have you always wondered how a small construction company like yours could stand out from the crowd and its competitors? Awareness of what others in your industry have developed and provided leads to a newfound motivation and belief in making an impactful difference, whether within your company or your community.
The key to benefitting from the competition is knowing how to take on competitors. You measure your share in the particular segment you operate in and obsess about your immediate competition, just as contractors who did not market effectively did years ago.
But first, you need to step back and ask yourself these three key questions and make sure you answer them in a way that will define and liberate your construction company at the same time.
Ask Yourself:
What am I offering? New construction, remodeling, or service and repair? Who is my competition? DIY, other contractors, money homeowners for a construction project? What is my fundamental competency - Residential, Commercial, or both? Challenging yourself is the key to answering these questions. Write your answers on paper or computer, sleep on them and then revisit them again and again until you get to the truth.
Define The Type Of Contracting You Offer And Who Is Your Competition
Be that homeowner doing a weekend project, Handyman Contractors, Remodel Contractors, Trade Contractors, and other contractors and House Builders. It may not be the same form, structure, and category that you operate. For example, Home Depot does not see itself competing in the building supply business but for a share of the home and commercial remodel and repair market.
This approach and behavior across the organization, too, saw themselves as fighting for a share of the building supply market.
Getting The Leads And Doing The Work Is Only Part Of The Answer
Not answering them and acting on the knowledge is one reason many construction companies shrivel and die. They focus on the wrong areas to innovate or improve. They focus on the wrong enemy and threat. As a result, they miss what they could be doing to succeed and prosper over time.
Here are three ways your small construction company can establish itself from competitors and stand out from the crowd:
1. Concentrate, then generate.
What separates wealthy contractors from poor contractors? They concentrate then generate.
Returning to the critical questions at the start, successful contractors know what type of contracting they are good at. SWOT Analysis is one tool used in strategic planning for construction companies to evaluate the Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats involved in determining the particular target market.
Concentrate
Strengths - are projects that your construction company does exceptionally well and earns a higher than average gross margin that gives you an advantage over other contractors. What are they, and how can your construction contracting company expand on them?
Weaknesses - are projects your construction company does poorly at and breaks even or loses money. What are they, and how can your construction contracting company turn them into strengths?
Opportunities - are projects and markets not currently being served where your construction company can enter and turn them into strengths. Have you considered tapping into the "work-from-home" market during this time? Or commercial establishments looking to remodel to implement a better floor plan?
Threats - are elements outside your construction company that could cause trouble for you or your construction projects. What are they, and how can your construc
13 min