Contractor Blog
Practical guides for running a trade business: pricing jobs, scheduling crews, getting paid and keeping the books straight.
From Estimate to Approved Job: A Contractor Proposal Workflow That Prevents Rework
A contractor proposal workflow that carries scope, pricing, approvals and site details from estimate to approved job, so you cut rework and protect margins.
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13-Week Cash Flow Forecast for Contractors: Plan Cash Before You Add a Crew
A 13-week cash flow forecast shows your bank balance week by week for the next quarter. How to build one, and how to use it before you add a crew or a big job.
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90-Day Business Plan for Contractors: One Goal, Named Owners and Weekly Reviews
A 90-day business plan for contractors: one objective tied to your constraint, three milestones, actions with owners and dates, and reviews that keep it moving.
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Bookkeeping for Contractors: A Simple System and How to Work With an Accountant
Bookkeeping for contractors: categories for a trade business, a weekly and monthly routine, money set aside for taxes, and working with an accountant.
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Budget vs. Actual: Compare Estimated and Actual Job Costs, Line by Line
Budget vs. actual for contractors: turn the estimate into a job budget, track actual costs on the same lines, read the variance and fix it while the job runs.
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How New Contractors Build Trust Before They Have Many Reviews
Win jobs as a new contractor before you have reviews: proof points you already have, photo permissions, credentials, and review requests that follow the rules.
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Choose Your Services and Ideal Customer: Write an Offer People Understand
Score your customer groups, pick two or three lead services and turn them into a one-sentence offer, a homepage headline and your Google profile services.
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Construction Business Plan: From Tradesperson to Business Owner on One Page
Write a construction business plan on one page: what you'll do and won't, your customer, area and capacity, your hourly target, and how you'll get paid.
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How Much Does It Cost to Start a Construction Company? Build Your Launch Budget and Checklist
How much does it cost to start a construction company? Build your startup budget: one-time and monthly costs, a cash cushion, real quotes, a launch checklist.
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Construction Company Org Chart: Which Role to Hire Next
Draw your construction company org chart with real names, find the boxes the owner still fills, and write a role scorecard before you post the job.
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Construction Sales Process: A Pipeline Your Team Runs Without You
A construction sales process with an owner and a deadline for every stage, follow-up that someone owns, and a 30-minute weekly pipeline review.
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Construction Workflow: Map One Job From Request to Final Payment
A construction workflow shows every stage of a job, who owns it and when it's done. Map one real job from request to payment and find where the work waits.
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Contractor License Requirements: Licenses, Permits, Insurance and Bonds, Explained
Contractor license requirements explained: registration, trade licenses, permits, insurance and bonds, who issues each, and the exact questions to ask.
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Contractors Advisory
Advice for contractors who run crews: pricing, cash flow, job costing, proposals, office-to-field coordination, and the signs a business is ready to…
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Featured articles from the MotionOps blog: scheduling crews across multi-day jobs, markup vs. margin, managing subcontractors, and client…
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Step-by-step guides for contractors: close out jobs with a punch list, track labor and materials, build proposals, bill by progress, and manage crews.
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Software
Software guides for contractors: how to choose field service, scheduling, dispatch, estimating and job costing tools, and when spreadsheets stop…
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A monthly catch-up on the news that matters to contractors, starting with the September roundup: what U.S. contractors should know heading into fall.
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Useful tips for running a contracting business: job costing, markup vs. margin, work orders, punch lists, crew handoffs, and keeping clients informed.
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