Begin the month of June with a thank you to a veteran. We live in the greatest country in the world where we are free to pursue our goals thanks to those who serve. Have you thought about sending a package of cookies, candy or other “good stuff” to a military person stationed overseas?
Check your May sales and production numbers. Do they match your company goals for 2024 year-to-date? You should be in the full swing of production right now. Normally, June, July and August are the top sales and production months for any given year in the U.S. If you’re behind, make sure what you have on the books is getting done. If your sales are on target or even ahead of your goals, good for you. If not, then you might consider increasing your advertising program.
Review and, if necessary, revise your markup for the second half of the year. Keep your overhead and profit percentages intact or you will end up in January of 2025 looking at a P & L with little or no profit. That’s not what you want when you’re in business.
If your sales are below projections, it’s time to refocus and get sales in the door. It’s not too late to get an advertising program together for the summer if you haven’t already. Also, your website is the best advertising tool that you have. Make sure it is fine tuned and producing leads.
Get ads out for fall work (October, November and December). It’s not too early to start thinking about work you will need to carry you through the winter months. When those months get here and the phone isn’t ringing, it’s too late to fix so start planning now. Christmas will be here before you know it.
Check the maintenance schedule for your office building. Is your maintenance up to date? Summer is here and you want to keep your building neat and clean so the public sees your best face. Piles of building materials, trailers full of trash, old job signs, beat up vehicles should be removed ASAP. The buying public will look at your building and think that if you don’t take care of your own building, you certainly won’t take care of theirs. Clean stuff up and get rid of it. Plant some flowers, maybe some flowering shrubs, wash your office windows, touch up or repaint your building and be sure and fix any cracked or broken window panes that can be seen from the street or your parking lot.
Be sure that all your subcontractor licenses, bonds and insurance are up-to-date. Are you using a subcontractor agreement with all your subs? If not, based on the emails and calls we get, you may soon wish you had. Get your documentation together and make written agreements. Our Subcontractor Manual is the place to start.
Be careful not to acquire the two expensive sins in construction: Inventory and Invoicing (Receivables).
Lastly, make some money, dust off your flip-flops, tank tops, cut-offs and/or bikini and take your spouse or significant other on a date. Have some fun.
The knowledge and experience Michael Stone gained in his 60+ years in construction has helped thousands of contractors improve their businesses and their lives. He is the author of the books Markup & Profit Revisited, Profitable Sales, and Estimating Construction Profitably, and is available for one-on-one consultations.