A few questions we’ll present in this blog post are:

• When Can You Get a Free Estimate?
  • Some Inside Information
• Is the Estimate Actually Free?
  • More Inside Information
• Is it Ethical to Gather and Compare Multiple “Free” Estimates?
  • How to Gather Three or Four Estimates, and Make a Decision
• How Do I Present My Bid Request and/or Counter Offers?
  • Site Conditions, Scope of Work, Specs, Descriptions, Etc.
  • The Help Me Help You Approach
• What are some criteria to help choose the most qualified company?
  • Reputation and Reliability
  • Research and Personal Interaction
  • “Gut Instinct”
  • Evaluating the Bid Proposal
• What is the Bidding Process of Gold’s Concrete?
  • Receiving a Bid Request on Flatwork
  • Moving Forward: Discovery
  • Negotiations
  • Contractor to Sub-Contractor Bid Requests
  • Homeowner Bid Requests on Complex Designs
  • My Extended Role

Note: This blog post discusses ways of presenting your bid request in a way that will appear attractive to and inspire the best deal from the bidder. The post references only concrete construction, but the information here can be applied to the estimating phase of any trade or combination of trades within the construction industry. Valuable, industry-specific insight is shared within this blog post. Our goal in sharing this information is to shed more light on the decision-making process of contracting, whether it’s on part of the customer or the contractor, whether for a multi-million dollar project or for an individual driveway.

When Can You Get a “Free” Estimate?

The answer to this question depends largely on the complexity of your project. For most of what is known as “flatwork” (such as driveways, walkways, patios and concrete porches), it is not difficult to obtain free estimates, or “quotes,” from local concrete companies and freelancers. Some will even give you a quote right over the phone, based on square footage and location. Some are more methodic in their bidding process and insist on conducting a site walk to ensure there are no unforeseen obstacles or drawbacks that could result in a loss to the company.

Examples of obstacles or drawbacks that could increase the cost of your project:

• A permit is required
• Existing concrete will need to be demolished and removed
• Hard, rocky soil requires additional labor to excavate, grade and/or prep
• The area is on a slope that will require additional excavation and grading
• The area is difficult to access, and may not allow for heavy equipment
• A concrete pump is required
• Color or decorative design is added to the concrete, or to the finish

Some contractors, freelancers or small companies may take awhile to respond to a bid request. Some may only work within existing business relationships. Some will not even return your call. Construction is a savage industry with a low barrier to entry, and many start-ups and unknown freelancers tout “free estimates” via a magnet slapped to the side of their vehicle as their only selling point. Mostly all legitimate and reputable contractor firms will charge an estimating fee on complex design plans.

Some Inside Information

Contractors, Sub-contractors and Freelancers all work together within the same industry, so a lot of bid requests wind up going to the same company even though you sent it to a different one. For example, if Basements on Bellevue and Bountiful Builders both contract Gold’s Concrete to execute their basement conversions, and you requested a bid from each, well at the end of the day both bids will be coming back from Gold’s Concrete. So a third or a fourth request comes through a different company to bid on the same project over again, and the same bid is given again.

Is the Estimate Actually Free?

The company is able to provide “free” estimates because the cost is off set by projects won, or “awarded.” A sales professional is typically employed to attend to these bid requests, to show up, represent the company, confirm the scope of work, answer questions and generally be there for the customer. A reasonable salary is paid for this representative’s time and expertise, but his service is provided for “free” because an average of one out of ten “free” quotes (or estimates) will result in a sale.

For this reason, many contractors or sales professionals will provide a quote over the phone on straight forward applications such as a new driveway. If a homeowner or any prospective buyer is not familiar with the costs of construction, they may be immediately disillusioned when learning about actual construction costs and no longer have interest in moving forward with the project. In that case, the quick conversation and a preliminary bid over the phone saves everyone the time and trouble of scheduling a site walk.

More Inside Information

Different companies or professionals have different approaches to providing the “free” estimate, but as with any kind of sale, there is usually a tactic for “qualifying” the buyer. Qualifying factors may be whether the prospective buyer is serious and in a position to move forward, whether the expense is within his or her means, whether the scope of work can be executed profitably and bid competitively, whether there is a likelihood of winning the project, etc. If the sales professional is not able to “qualify” the prospective buyer, he may politely decline to bid.

Is it Ethical to Compare Multiple “Free” Estimates?

The answer to this question is yes, and no. Everyone gathers estimates before making a significant purchase, so what’s the difference between doing it ethically and unethically? Someone is paying for the estimating service, but it isn’t necessarily the customer. If the customer were paying out of pocket the same amount the company is paying for the professional to show up and provide the estimate, how would that change the customer’s approach to the bid request? Would the customer offer to provide more information over the phone? Pictures? Anything to simplify the process?

Imagine the person who gathers ten free quotes, spends an hour gathering information, feedback and advice from each of them, then chooses the absolute cheapest to haggle with and try to get a little more of that cost shaved off the top. If you think this is ethical, just imagine if you were one of the nine losing bidders trying to run a legitimate business while being undercut and ousted by smaller, illegitimate businesses.

How to Gather Three or Four Quotes, and Make a Decision

A rule of thumb within the industry is to gather three or four quotes on your project. Vet the companies first and make sure they’re legitimate and reputable. Get the three or four quotes and consider your options among them. Communicate any questions or concerns with those who took the time to provide you the quote, even if you’re declining their bid. They would probably appreciate your feedback and benefit by knowing whether your decision was based on cost, credibility or other factors.

You may even attempt to negotiate among these bidders, and any qualified business or sales professional will respect and respond to your willingness to engage. If a business owner or representative takes offense to an attempt to negotiate, they are probably not qualified for their position. Do not hesitate to negotiate with contractors, sub-contractors or freelancers in construction. Just be reasonable and present counter offers or adjustments to the scope of work in order to bring down the cost.

How Do I Present My Bid Request and/or Counter Offers?

If the bid request is for flatwork such as a new driveway or walkway, it shouldn’t be complicated, but there are a few things you can do that will present your bid request in a way that will inspire the best deal, that bidders will find attractive and respond to quickly.

Site Conditions, Scope of Work, Specs, Descriptions, Etc.

The first thing you’ll want to do is gather information such as existing site conditions, proposed scope of work, measurements, square footage, depth, access points and pictures. I’ll drop a few pics here with the information that I put together during a bid request. This information, if marked out with pictures and a map view, is sufficient to present and request a bid from any concrete contractor on flatwork.

The Help Me Help You Approach

This approach will eliminate the need to meet and do site walks with several different contractors at different times. Some may still ask for a site walk, but most will not if the information you provide is complete. A quick phone call is usually the best method of contact in construction. Briefly explain what you’re working on and ask for an email address to send the info to.

The contractor would actually be relieved to do business with someone who is attentive to construction job detail, and far more likely to negotiate a better price than with someone who is inconsiderate of the contractor’s time or inattentive to detail at the expense of the contractor.

When Engineered Design Plans Are Required

A new foundation, renovation, addition, crawlspace to basement conversions or other types of structural concrete applications will call for engineered design plans in order to gather accurate cost estimates. Design plans may cost upward of $2,000 depending on several factors, mainly the complexity of the design. Most contractors charge an estimating fee upward of $1,000, also depending on complexity of the design, or an hourly rate of $75 to $150/hr for pre-construction services (plan, design and detailed estimate). Some contractors offer a design and proposal integration.

Once design plans are obtained, a digital copy can be forwarded to the contractors who you’ll be requesting a quote from. Summarize your request in the body of the email and clarify anything that may be unclear in the plans. Put the location and expected start date. Include any additional information such as pictures of the area, a street view, access points, etc. Ask the contractor or contracting firm, “would you be interested in bidding on this project?” and see what they say.

What Are Some Criteria to Help Choose the Most Qualified Concrete (Or Any Construction) Company?

Reputation trumps most things, and in construction contracting is no exception. If you receive a referral from a friend or family member for a company, contractor or freelancer who they were happy with, it is strongly recommended to give that company or that person a call for your next project. Of course you’ll still want to gather other quotes and consider your options, but the verified referral should remain at the top of the list of businesses to consider. Why?

Reputation and Reliability

Like my dad always used to say, “it’s hard to find good help!” This is also true in construction, and for that reason (among others, of course) the contractor acts as a sort of liaison between the customer and the workers, managing the project and making sure the workers show up every day and follow protocol. It’s usually gritty work, physically demanding, challenging and exhausting. Laborers, unless given proper incentive or means to cultivate some kind of meaning within their work, do not stay for long.

In summary, if you know first hand of a contractor who has done good, reliable work for a friend or family member and treated them with kindness and respect, you may want to prioritize consideration of that contractor.

Research and Personal Interaction

Of course reputation isn’t everything, and can sometimes mask a lot of undesirable traits. Do online research, read reviews and navigate the company’s website. Are they genuine, home-grown and well put together? Or are they obscure, have no reviews, are difficult to pull up online, and when you finally do it looks like their website was slapped together in 15 minutes?

Some freelancers operate exclusively from word of mouth and existing relationships, so an online presence, or lack thereof, should not automatically exclude the candidate from your consideration. You might obtain references and reach out to people they’ve done work for. Ask them about their expertise and similar jobs they’ve completed.

“Gut Instinct”

Ask the contractor or his representative if they have any projects that they’re working on currently, and if you could swing by and take a look at that project. If he agrees, schedule this site walk during regular business hours while he or his workers are on site, so that you can verify ownership of the job. Look closely for good workmanship, but also look internally at how you feel around the contractor.

Is the contractor or representative pretentious, arrogant or dismissive? Is he not excited at the opportunity to meet and possibly do business with you? Or is he super excited, pleasant to speak with, communicative, inquisitive, attentive, smiling and courteous? I would pay special attention to those instinctive queues in my evaluation of a company, because if they show up with a negative or complaining disposition toward the job or your request before they’ve even been hired, chances are they’ll have that same disposition throughout the job, and it will not go well for anyone involved.

Evaluating the Bid Proposal

Review the bid proposal and make sure the prices quoted are at, or near, market value. This cannot be done accurately with a google search. A cost analysis can only be done accurately if it’s weighed against actual local rates of time and material. The quickest and easiest way to do this will be by gathering cost estimates from other reliable sources, such as other credible companies who will bid on your project. You can then research and cross reference costs of materials and skilled labor. These costs will typically be marked up by about 30% on the bid proposal to account for various aspects of managing the project.

What is the Bidding Process of Gold’s Concrete?

Receiving a Bid Request on Flatwork

Gold’s Concrete provides free estimates on local bid requests for relatively straightforward concrete applications such as driveways, walkways, patios or other flatwork replacement and/or installation. In some cases we can do this right over the phone.

Right now we’re starting at approximately $10/sq ft for 4″ thick flatwork installation, and an additional $5/sq ft for demolition and removal of old concrete, if it’s a replacement. Of course those costs vary depending on several factors which we could assess by looking at pictures or having a conversation over the phone, and get you a preliminary quote sufficient to make an educated decision on how you’d like to move forward.

Moving Forward: Discovery

If the preliminary quote is within your budget and you’re ready to move forward, we’ll do a site walk and confirm specs on the scope of work (dimensions, existing slope, sub-grade requirements, site accessibility, etc.) needed for a formal cost estimate. We’ll make every effort to match the formal cost estimate as closely as possibly with the preliminary quote, but actual specs on the scope of work will determine our exact bid price. We do these meetings that are known as a “discovery” in sales, and the purpose is to “discover” if there is a possible match between what the customer is looking for, what they can afford, and what we can provide.

Negotiations

If it’s a relatively small or simple purchase, there may be only one or two discovery meetings before an agreement is reached. If the project is complex, there may be a series of discovery meetings before a decision is reached. As a sales manager I can attest that the most rewarding of these meetings, both for the company that I represent and for the customer, are in those in which the customer is a keen negotiator. My goal is to get the best deal possible for the customer, so it’s not necessarily them that I’m negotiating with, but rather with the company owner on behalf of the customer.

“Would you agree to do this job for $X?” Is my usual opener to these in-house negotiations with the company owner. By this point I’ve already done the math and have discussed with the customer whether the deal may be achievable. The owner may look the deal over and say “No, but we can do the job for $X,” and sometimes a deal can be reached.

Contractor to Sub-Contractor Bid Requests

We collaborate with builders and place our bids on construction projects as a standard industry practice. We prioritize estimating for those with whom we have an existing business relationship, but also seek and accept bid requests from new contractors with the hope and expectation of continuing to grow our business, and cultivating new, mutually beneficial relationships.

We focus on bid requests for projects that are within our capacity and expertise, so new single-family foundations, renovations and additions, crawlspace to basement conversions or, if Right-of-Way work, up to about 3,000 lineal feet of curb and gutter, and up to about 100,000 square feet of flatwork. We’ll bid on those projects for free not only because it’s an industry standard practice, but because those jobs account for the majority of our sales.

Homeowner Bid Requests on Complex Designs

With homeowners the bid process on a new foundation, renovation, addition or any kind of structural work is a little bit different. We offer over-the-phone or on-site consultations to discuss and educate on the various steps, phases and costs of the construction project to provide the homeowner with information that will help them to determine whether this project will be worth their investment. The cost of the consulting service is credited back if the homeowner proceeds with Gold’s Concrete services.

If the homeowner believes the project will be worth their investment and would like to investigate further, we offer formal cost estimates on crawlspace to basement conversions or other complex structural designs. If a consultation was purchased, that amount would be credited back toward the cost estimate. If the homeowner chose to award the project to Gold’s Concrete, the amount of the estimate would then be credited back toward the agreement, so essentially the homeowner would pay nothing for our pre-construction services.

My Extended Role

I remain available to the customer throughout the sale and, if they prefer, continue to act as liaison between them and Gold’s Concrete throughout the duration of the project. I introduce our project manager to the jobsite to communicate the scope of work and get the guys started. I collect, obtain or deliver any documents that are needed for the job, address any questions or concerns, process payments and finalize the deal. I relay any grievances or concerns to Gold’s Concrete and follow up to ensure all customer issues have been addressed, and that is our bidding process in a nutshell.

Gathering quotes on your upcoming project in the Denver, CO area now? Give us a call today at 303.451.6951!

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