HomeBlogWise Up WednesdayIt’s Wise Up Wednesday: What A Shambles!

It’s Wise Up Wednesday: What A Shambles!

Date: 20/03/2019
Category: Wise Up Wednesday

No I’m not talking about Brexit, although of course that is a complete shambles.

I’m talking about the Construction Industry!

Carillion, Lakehouse, Forrest, Dawnus and now Interserve!

Whose next I wonder? And what does it all mean for you as a Specialist contractor, Trade Contractor or Subcontractor?

How Can You Protect Your Business?

One of the biggest financial risks to you as a Specialist Contractor, is the insolvency of the party for whom you are working.

As we have seen, size is no guarantee of success, in fact quite the opposite is almost true!

So how can you ensure you and your business are safe, get paid what you are owed, and make a decent profit? After all that’s not too much to ask, is it?

The answer is that that there is no single answer, but there are some steps you can take that will ensure you have the best chance of surviving and making a tidy profit.

Working Backwards

I’m going to work backwards to the beginning of the job, and hopefully you will see the logic behind my thinking.

Immediate Payment Issues

Rather like the guy who found himself up to his neck in alligators, it is no use him dwelling on the fact that he set out that morning to drain the swamp! He needs to take action.

So, first things first, if you have an immediate payment issue, then we are here to help and our Consultants are experts at getting good hard cash in for you guys.

You can give our friendly team a call on 01773 712116 or email info@streetwisesubbie.com and initial advice is free, subject to our terms and conditions, and there is no obligation, no catch, just good honest advice.

And here you can also download our free “How to Get Paid” Report.

Onerous Contracts

It could be that you are suffering financially because you have agreed to some rather onerous terms and conditions. Of course everything will be sweetness and light at the outset, but now things are taking a turn for the worse and Contractor is clobbering you with the contract.

Again you can call our friendly team for advice and we will help you to sort it out, but how about knowing from the outset whether the contract you are about to dive into is onerous.

And how about being able to do that for free?

Well now you can with our Checkit Service. So why not Checkit out?

Back To The Future

So now we have worked our way back to the future. We are back at enquiry stage, in fact we are back at pre-enquiry stage. When that lucrative project is just a twinkle in someone’s eye.

If you think you’re doing great because you have a big pile of enquiries to price, then let me ask you to take a step back and think about them for a minute.

How many came through the door unsolicited from companies you have never worked for before? Why did they choose you? Is it because no-one else wants to work for them, and no-one will price their work?

Next weed out how many are from Contractors you have worked for before, but don’t have a great relationship with? How many others with a better relationship are you pricing against? Are you only going to get the job at a rock bottom price?

And what about the risks in the ones you have left?

What are the terms and conditions?

What’s the risk if things go wrong?

And most importantly, is it the kind of work that you are really really good at and can make a good return from?

If this has got you thinking then maybe it’s time for you to take control of the enquiry process and fill your estimating office with exactly the right kind of profitable low risk jobs that you do want to price, rather than ones you don’t!

We can help with that too, so why not take a look at Lead Pro!

Whatever You Do – Don’t Prevaricate – Take Action – Don’t Go It Alone

If things are going wrong there is a tendency amongst Specialist Contractors to think that they should know what to do, that it’s all their fault and that they should try and muddle through on their own.

Worse still the Main Contractor may even encourage you to do nothing!

All this is BS! Dealing with problems is time consuming and stressful. And it isn’t easy.

So, if you are in a situation where you’re not getting paid, or things are not going according to plan, then please seek our professional advice.

Initial advice is free and our team are really friendly and approachable, so please give us a call on 01773 712116 or email us on info@streetwisesubbie.com.

I hope you found this week’s WUW of benefit, and please don’t hesitate to get in touch.

Best regards

Barry

Streetwisesubbie.com

P.S. Please remember that we are here to provide solutions exclusively for Specialist Contractors, Trade Contractors and Subcontractors. If you want access to professional solutions that work, then please give us a call on 01773 712116, or email info@streetwisesubbie.com today.

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