Construction Bidding Process: How to find and work with the RIGHT clients

This video details my EXACT construction bidding process for every client who calls me for an estimate.
I spent so much time for FREE chasing down leads that lead to nothing which ultimately cost my business SO MUCH MONEY. Nail down your construction bidding process to start making more $$$ for your business.
00:00 Why you should LISTEN to me
03:31 Rule #1 - Reveal clients budget by doing THIS
08:49 Rule #2 - Always get paid for work you do
11:57 Rule #3 - Never start work without THIS
15:48 What you can do NEXT
Follow along my projects here:
Website: www.thattilechick.com
Instagram: thattilechick
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[@satbirjoura]

Please make a video on marketing and the filming process. Keep up the good work. Thanks

[@stevenward6413]

😮‍💨Thanks Tile Chick! I just have to express to you and your husband our appreciation for these videos! My GF and I are in our first year of our own business (finding a niche in (no pun) and falling in love with tiling.) and your guidance is perpetually aiding in the struggles we find ourselves traversing!

[@user-lp1iw2mo5t]

I really appreciate your pragmatic approach. It's a wonderful and easy to understand process of limiting the time involved in vetting customers and building trust along the way...well done!

[@carloso1886]

PAD YOUR SELF, THIS WAS GREAT.

[@nickking7067]

So I'm just starting out as a handyman, but a lot of people have me doing bathroom remodels. I know my current project I've underbid in scope and skill. I've got the skills to do the work but not nearly as fast as it would be if I hired another pro. This video really helped me to understand a lot and is going in my learning archive. Thanks a ton!

[@ThatTileChick]

Thanks for the feedback Nick! Glad we could help!

[@joshuasotelo4695]

Very helpful information please make the other videos!

[@ThatTileChick]

More to come!

[@Russ15076]

Your transparent and honest. If I lived closer I'd enjoy meeting your husband for a beer and talk about the business in greater detail. I do bath remodels here in Pittsburgh. We share many commonalities in the entire process

[@forrestwebb6182]

Another great video! I'm a master electrician and toying with the idea of working for myself, but have already dealt with the dilemma of "helping" people out with side-work. I'm seeing the importance of finding a work-life balance and keeping your time and energy in the forefront of your decisions of what to take on.

[@Stew4arts]

Great advise

[@anthonyflores9336]

Love this video!

[@jamescrozier8156]

Great video, informative. Thank you

[@MikeHuntz810]

i needed this video in my life. thank u

[@johnmurphy2063]

Love this!! Thank you. Been looking for something like this and you are a great fit for me.

[@terysamartin727]

just found your channel thank you for the tips

[@manuelfernandez2427]

This is awesome. Thank you for sharing. So, I was a carpenter and mason for 15 years until I cut my fingers off in a freak accident. I went back to school and got a degree in accounting and finance. Now I'm an accountant at our local FQHC clinic. I have the itch do work with my hands again. So, I have done several tile jobs throughout this year, 2022. But, your videos are sooo inspirational to me. This video has opened my eyes to the mistakes I have been making with my bidding process. I am so guilty of helping people and running out to potential client's homes. Thank you for sharing. I look forward to watching a video on how you market yourself on social media. Aloha from the Big Island of Hawaii.

[@Bennovember1]

Absolutely amazing video! Please keep them coming.

[@MattLeFaitMusic]

Great info!

[@ThatTileChick]

Glad it was helpful!

[@fernandoalvarez3522]

It's was really good stuff thanks!

[@ThatTileChick]

Glad you liked it!

[@ovationhomerenovation]

I'm about to listen to this again @thattilechick … such useful info and it's more so because we are new to the industry too .. Thanks for putting this one out there!! Also, please provide a more detailed breakdown of the marketing piece + the breakdown of how much the business costs to run etc.

[@ThatTileChick]

So happy to hear its helpful. I will definitely do more in the future! Awesome feedback!

[@abrahamhernandez3284]

Thank you for these tips and for putting trust on the media you guys are Amazing

[@jordangaudio6729]

This was great. Adds value to your content. I thought the Information was insightful and interesting.

[@guitarcovers9987]

Keep Up the Amazing work guys! 🔥 Thanks for this and God bless.

[@ThatTileChick]

Thank you ! same to you

[@WorkinwithWolkon]

This is really helpful, thanks Schannon!

[@ThatTileChick]

Glad to help!

[@lakesiderenovationsllc]

I started my general contractor business in 2022 and this was extremely timely and helpful. Thank you.

[@TheEndsMeatShow]

Thank you for the much needed information. Very straight forward to the point without any un nessesary tangents. Wow i actually learned something today without getting super frustrated or bored to death.

[@Realgirl4]

I LOVE THIS! Thank you 🙏 very helpful as I’ve started to branch out my handy girl business. 💃I will continue to watch & learn from you. I just discovered you in your video shorts. Great job!

[@causewaykayak]

Just saw part one of the Stick Welding on Weld Tube. Amazed how fast you picked it up in that one session. Hope you chose to keep it up. I guess you have lots of transferable skills which made that possible. That's the sort of video which makes WeldTube so interesting. Thanks, (From Ireland)

[@ThatTileChick]

Awesome ! thanks for watching. Yes, I love picking up new skills and learning new things. Once you get proficient with different tools, a lot of things come naturally. It was still a bit of a challenge though.

[@arnoldocornejo1060]

Awesome video. Exactly what I needed. When are you dropping the excel spreadsheet for the estimate? Day rate, materials, etc… Great work! Great video!

[@jonsanchez9938]

Awesome video! Definitely need a video on marketing and filming content on site

[@ThatTileChick]

Noted!

[@isaacbeckel6634]

Would definitely like to see an operating cost video!

[@ThatTileChick]

Thanks for the feedback Isaac

[@kellybelcher7054]

Social media is where I first saw you. I would like to see your social media marketing tips.

[@medic704sf]

Great video - and I like that you pointed out to NOT ask about budget...it's how I (as a consumer) automatically rule out a contractor. Trust is blown in that moment. I'm a consultant, so I do contracts and bid on opportunities all the time, so my caveat is that I'm not in the trades and recognize that yours is a very different world. My comments are from the consumer perspective. That said...surprises are always bad. When a contractor comes in with a FFP of $x to do the job...but only if they don't find anything else when they open the walls (and there's ALWAYS something that isn't as expected), that's a surprise even if there's small print on the contract. Better to have a realistic discussion up front about things you might find and adjust the scope of work to allow some padding for the unexpected. One other ting... many homeowners want to provide the materials themselves, so please be very clear on what that means....who's providing thinset and fasteners? Do they just mean they want to pick the tile? The plumbing trim? Many people have no idea what's under the pretty part. Personally, I like to write a request for proposal and have the contractors bid based on that, it protects both of us in that my expectations are documented (and if I screw up I can't blame them)...but like I said I do contracts all day. Most people don't.

[@BonBon770]

Great video!

[@ThatTileChick]

Glad you enjoyed it

[@TimothyLaib-ps4yg]

I saw you at Coverings 2023. Very helpful video. Estimates are definitely my weak point

[@ThatTileChick]

Thanks Timothy! Hope you had a great time at Coverings

[@TimothyLaib-ps4yg]

@That Tile Chick I had a blast and won tools. Definitely plan on going next year.

[@deanbollhardt3984]

I happened across ur video and it's the first 1 I've seen. It's amazing that I i did cause I'm in Residential maintenance currently and have been thinking of starting out on my own. The only thing that has stopped me is that the business end of it has always scared me. I was a union carpenter for over 10 years but got injured so that's why I got into this line of work to keep it a little lighter and easier on my body but there's really nothing, skill wise I can't do from plumbing to tile to windows, to basic electrical so basically everything along the lines of handy man. My only downside is job completion time. Yeah I can do everything but what might take me a half day cause I don't come across it much, might take a plumber 2 hours or something along those lines. I'm assuming that's kinda what drove u to a specialty in Tile and bathrooms which has given me something to consider that I never did before. I'm gonna watch ur videos and just wanted to say thank you because I haven't seen anyone go over the "office" or business side of it. I would very much be interested in more videos of how u run yours. Just when u described the contracts and estimates and that stuff I would of never even thought of how to go about it the way u just described. It makes complete and total sense. It's opened my eyes. Again thank you so much and I hope to see more on this topic. Good luck out there and stay safe!

[@michaelstashick9495]

Ben there done it

[@levonstilson9032]

Very interested in a marketing video.

[@margaretbear]

This is really great info and I haven't seen anyone else covering it. Would love a video on how you break down your costs, like labor, mark up (if any) on materials, and do you break all that down for the client in the contract. Also curious what you do when you find issues in the walls during demo - rot, broken plumbing vents, issues with insects or animals, code violations etc.

[@ThatTileChick]

Thanks for watching and I appreciate the input! I will definitely make some more videos on these topics. Typically we definitely have the conversation before the job is accepted that if there are any major unforeseen issues, the cost is on them. make sure this is in the contract and also make sure if you DO find issues you stop working immediately, take photos and write up a change order. If they don't want to pay, you don't work.

[@margaretbear]

@@ThatTileChick Thank you!

[@mrscott01]

@That Tile Chick How do you work out the bill when you only did partial job?

[@kellybelcher7054]

I saw on a previous short of yours that you were doint the water lines. You mentioned subs. How much do you use subs and which work won't you guys perform? Sorry for all the ?'s but I've been wanting to ask you questions for a long time.

[@nicholasmartinez4529]

Hey I'm contractor on long island new york I renovate dozens of bathrooms yearly and basement renovations iam a very good contractor but a terrible busines man i have had customers fail to pay the last few payments many times and get away with it..i was wondering if it's possible to see a copy of the contract you use with everything you were explaining such as phases of the project, payment breakdown, and timeline for materials to be paid for. It would be enormously helpful to me as I do everything like your saying with the exception of charging for estimates but I seem to very often get screwed and I could really use the help ? I thought it might be cause I don't charge enough and iam just getting bottom of the barrel customers but I'm not sure...any help you can offer would be greatly appreciated. Thanks I love your channel you do great work

[@michaelbacile8439]

Pretty high value stuff, similar to what I do. Although y’all have a lot more professional process. In the last year I changed my business model over to doing more demo work than anything. In my area people are starting to hold on to their money. They don’t seem to want to pay for higher end installs and that’s what I try to attract. So I offer to do the demos which I can do in a fraction of the time, still make pretty good money with less moving parts and a more streamlined service. I always tell them I do installs to but I’m fine if they don’t want that part. I do all my front end communication and “contracts” through text or email so I and my client have a physical copy that can’t be altered. I’ve never been good at drafting up and presenting contracts to customers, you have any templates for that part?

[@kellybelcher7054]

Also just curious I know you said that you guys focus on tile but do you end up doing a lot of complete bathrooms?

[@jeffalan6339]

I no longer provide bids, i am not going to become as sundat paper flyer to compare prices and fone with linie by line items

[@dailodai9586]

question on materials if included in the bid, how much of a percentage markup if any, is fair. ive been mostly bidding just labor only and no markup on materials. what are your thoughts on that? thx

[@ThatTileChick]

If you are supplying materials you should mark up 15-25% and some will go up to 30% depending on what item it is. If you are picking up a huge pallet of tile that has to be loaded and unloaded for example, I would charge more for that particular item. We don't markup, I just do a delivery fee for my time so its very transparent to the client when I have to pickup something like tile and spend time unloading.

[@michaellarson7572]

What city r u in ?

[@williamp9158]

Do you bid based on how many days it takes you to finish the job or by the square foot? How do you come up with a price? What's a good daily range a one show bath remodeler should be charging to be profitable in your area? Is $800-1000 a day enough? I've been doing this for years and i only charge $500-1000 a day plus materials. Whenever I bid over $1000 a day for labor, i simply don't get the job. I suck at marketing, that's probably why.

[@ThatTileChick]

Hey, yes we charge per day which is a # we came up with to cover expenses for our business and to make a profit. We came up with our day rate by finding out what our expenses where for the year, and how much you want to make for the year. Add that up and divide by 12 and you have what you need for a month and you can even break that down by day to get a day rate to cover expenses and to cover you making a target profit. Each person is different when it comes to pricing and I honestly believe you will need to do your numbers. I will say we charge over 1,000/day and will come down a bit all depending on if we really like the project but say if we charge 1,500/day we will come down to 1,200/day if we really want the job. We honestly turn down more work than we take because we want to get paid what were worth and by the time we get the bid in their hand we already had the convo about how much we know the project will cost with a range. I just simply don't allow customers to dictate my pricing and I stick to that (which is really difficult to do). You can either charge less and do more projects to make up for it or charge more and work with select clients to provide high end finishes and a custom experience. Marketing does have a lot to do with it but also being able to turn down work that is not a right fit for you and instead work more towards finding those right clients. We spent a lot of time chasing the dollar and not enough time working ON the actual business which cost us money in the end. I can do a video breakdown of our estimate spreadsheets or how we come up with our day rate.

[@williamp9158]

@@ThatTileChick Thank you for replying. That was really helpful! 👍

[@jeremygarrison8017]

Excellent response! I had been doing the same (chasing work) and it’s just exhausting.

[@victorv3077]

*

[@CharacterizeMeh]

Swoletega sent me

[@ThatTileChick]

🖤

[@michaelstashick9495]

your sweet

[@richardmckrell4899]

First, deposits are non-refundable. Second, this women is coming from an accounting perspective, which is wrong. Think Branding, Marketing and Sales. Study and practice sales.