How To Get Subcontracting Jobs

Finding work as a subcontractor isn't e'er like shooting fish in a barrel, especially for companies based in large urban centers with enough of competition. Proceed reading for some tips regarding how to get work equally a subcontractor, regardless of your specialty.

How to find subcontracting piece of work: 9 tips

Achieve out directly to full general contractors in your surface area

You don't have to await for general contractors to go far touch with RFPs. As a subcontractor, it often helps to strike start and let potential clients know you're available for requests.

Start by creating a listing with contact information for local contractors that would do good from your services. And so, create a procedure for engaging with these contractors periodically then y'all remain elevation-of-mind.

Not sure where to observe clients for your list? Bank check out our article on the superlative 40 largest construction companies in Canada. Given their size, many of these companies take locations throughout the entire country.

If yous work in the Usa, check out Engineering News-Record's Top 400 Contractor listing. As with entries on our Canadian list, many of those companies have offices throughout Canada.

If you lot don't take any luck with these major general contractors, enquire around in your network. Other subcontractors yous've worked alongside may be motivated to provide leads.

Any strategy you use to identify full general contractors worth contacting, make it part of your routine. Fifty-fifty if your correspondence doesn't translate into new contracts immediately, view it as relationship-building.

Set alerts for online advertisements relevant to your services

At that place are many platforms on which prospective clients post jobs you can apply to. Check out our list.

Many subcontractors create accounts on multiple platforms and fix alerts for relevant listings. This is a smashing way to automate your lead generation process.

Make sure your alerts are specific enough to provide genuine value. Otherwise, y'all'll find yourself ignoring alerts equally they come in, which defeats the purpose. Tailor your notifications to specific keywords relevant to your specialty (i.e. "electrician," "HVAC," "masonry," whatever the case may be).

Look for government contract opportunities

The individual sector is simply ane expanse in which yous can detect potential clients. Throughout Northward America, many state and local governments also maintain websites that host contract opportunities.

These websites can be a corking source of work for subcontractors of whatsoever size, especially those looking to add valuable experience to their portfolios.

Continue an updated website showcasing your capabilities

Many subcontractors looking for piece of work neglect to recognize the importance of their websites. This is a grave error since clients almost invariably have a expect. If your website seems like it hasn't been updated in x years, potential clients may assume your contracting business doesn't get much work. This might prompt them to wonder why, which isn't the initial impression you want to make.

Fifty-fifty if your website is updated regularly, a lack of specificity tin similarly enhance doubt regarding what your contracting business organisation really does. Consider including a frequently asked questions section that volition articulate up whatever potential confusion.

Present your company'southward all-time side in every interaction

Of grade, your subcontracting company'due south website is only one of many client-facing elements you need to remember near. Don't ignore the importance of loftier-quality concern cards and proposal templates as well, to proper name a couple of additional avails.

Prospective clients will often view these materials as indicative of your visitor's attention to detail and workmanship. Presentation matters!

Focus on submitting the right proposals to the right jobs

To some degree, behest on projects as a subcontractor is a numbers game. Many companies in construction accept bid-striking ratios around 1:5, requiring hundreds of bids just to go along everyone decorated for the year.

If your bid-hit ratio is far poorer than that (or whatever's the norm for your area), however, there'south a good run a risk your bidding process needs an overhaul. Rather than increasing the number of proposals y'all submit (which can exist unsustainable), writing better bids. Once your ratio is more reasonable, it may brand sense to ramp things back up.

Cheque out this post for some tips on crafting winning bids.

Keep your workforce's chapters in listen

Every bit a subcontractor, idle workers are problematic for several reasons.

First, when they're non working yet still receiving salaries and benefits, your visitor'south bottom line is patently impacted. Second, workers who feel insufficiently challenged may be tempted to go out elsewhere for other opportunities, which disrupts your homo capital management procedure.

This isn't always as obvious as workers visibly idling around the shop, though. An under-utilized workforce tin too manifest itself in the form of workers taking much longer to complete tasks than they would if other projects were waiting on them.

This underscores the importance of maintaining a comprehensive workforce direction process that includes software capable of tracking related data. Check out our flagship program, Bridgit Bench, which is used past countless contractors for workforce management.

Related to workforce capacity, remember that keeping your workforce occupied 100% of the time isn't platonic. Savvy subcontractors make room for professional development in their employees' schedules. Check out this post for some tips on striking a balance.

Once you're tracking these data points, you'll find it's much easier to gauge your visitor's capabilities, which can inform your chore-seeking.

Better people planning is just one click away

Accept a quick 1 minute walk-through of Bridgit Demote earlier booking a demo with i of our representatives.

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Nourish networking events with potential clients and business concern partners

Group networking events provide an opportunity to shake hands with prospective clients and business partners. Making the right impression at these events can dramatically increase your company's likelihood of catching a procurement director's attention when submitting futurity proposals.

While COVID-19 has rendered in-person events impractical for the foreseeable hereafter, there are still online opportunities. At Bridgit, for example, we've been hosting online events and webinars throughout the pandemic. Check them out!

Although you may lack the ability to collaborate fully with other attendees of online events, you can still glean valuable information that can make your bid-related conversations more personable.

Be consistent

Finding jobs and submitting bids is part of a subcontractor'southward piece of work. It's every bit equally important equally honing your craft.

That's why smart and successful subcontractors apply for new jobs consistently (as long as their workforce has chapters). It's not a matter of applying for a few contracts here and in that location then waiting to hear dorsum. With substantial labor costs on the line for each day of inaction, taking the bidding process seriously can be an existential matter for your visitor.

Nosotros hope this article has been helpful in showing you lot how to find subcontracting work. For more tips on construction projection and resource management, visit our weblog. You may as well want to cheque out "bridging the gap betwixt construction and technology".