Bill Stanley’s Top Tips for Estimates, Part 2
BY Bill Stanley
You don’t need to drive 100,000 miles a year to win good work. In Part Two of Bill Stanley’s series on estimating, Bill shares how winning work doesn’t start with his truck keys—it starts with a smarter estimate.
I used to put 50,000 to 60,000 miles a year on my truck just driving to look at jobs. Walkthrough after walkthrough, shaking hands with people who may or may not even be serious. These days? I still rack up plenty of miles, but I’ve cut that number almost in half—and I’m doing better business because of it.
That’s what this second part is all about: working smarter, not harder. If Part 1 (steps one through six) was about figuring out which jobs are worth your time, this one’s about what to do after you’ve found one that is. I’ll walk you through how we draft quotes without leaving the office, how we protect ourselves with the right paperwork, and how we make sure we’re the ones the customer calls next time—without all the back-and-forth. Because a good estimate doesn’t just land you the job. It sets the tone for everything that comes after.
Step 7: Use online tools to draft a preliminary quote.
These days, before I ever get in the truck, I’m pulling up the site online. Tools like Google Maps or Go iPave let me take a good look from the sky and start sizing up the job without burning a drop of fuel. Not only do we collect more information for the estimate, but it’s an opportunity to illustrate our expertise and build rapport with the customer.
Once we look at the project from the sky, we often determine it might not be as good a fit as we thought. Then, we can recommend another company to perform the work without having wasted time and gas on a walkthrough.
If this virtual walkthrough goes well, we’ll send a preliminary quote. If the customer likes our preliminary quote, we’ll schedule a walkthrough. This way, I’m only traveling for estimates that are halfway sold already.
Step 8: Prepare your estimate.
By now you should know the importance I place on doing my homework before I ever put pen to paper (or input project details into an estimating software).
Once I’ve done that legwork, I know I’m spending my time preparing competitive estimates. Believe me, once I’ve determined a project is in our wheelhouse, I turn around that estimate lighting fast. And my numbers are going to be aggressive because that’s the exact type of job I want on my job board.
A lot of companies feel okay putting together an estimate based on the basic job details, but I need to know more than that the project is a 10,000-square-yard 2-inch mill and fill. For me, it’s all about the logistics. This starts with establishing my mobilization charge. I need to know where the job is, my route to get there, and whether or not my crew can park on-site, but I also need to know how I’ll deliver my equipment and whether or not I can store my equipment on-site overnight (or for a few days). The ability to store my equipment on-site alone will have a huge impact on my bid, not only because of transport costs but also the cost of paying my crew to wait around for equipment to arrive because the lowboy’s stuck in commuter traffic.
All else equal, my mobilization cost may be the one and only reason a perfect project might not be so perfect. If the project’s smaller and far away, a local contractor will probably give that customer a more competitive bid–and I’m not afraid to tell the customer that!
I also estimate the cost of prep work and related manhours. Next, I look at my material costs. Then, hauling costs. I need to know the miles, route and travel time from the plant I’m sourcing material to the project site. If I can, I want to know how fast or slow that plant is loading trucks. Then, I factor my paving crew and equipment (including both laydown and breakdown time/activities).
Another overlooked line item on commercial work is traffic control. Just because it’s private property doesn’t mean you don’t need traffic control. And it isn’t only a matter of safety. Inadequate traffic control can really slow down the paving process. Maybe we need a pre-site visit to set up signage and cones, maybe we need to factor in adjusting traffic patterns throughout the day, maybe the project requires a couple of crew members dedicated to traffic control. If those things aren’t in the bid, that’s coming out of your profits.
All else equal, my bid for a parking lot with two entrances will be cheaper than a lot with only one entrance. With two entrances, we can leave half the lot open while we work on the other half. With one entrance, we’ll either need the customer to close shop for the day or else pay us more because the job’s going to take a lot longer.
Step 9: Close the deal.
Once the customer has accepted our estimate, we get our proposals signed. This is an especially important step with new customers. We also confirm both parties are on the same page in terms of project timing and payment terms.
Although I’ve taken on many projects with different payment terms, what I prefer to put in the contract is 50% due upon signing and 50% due upon completion. Most of our larger projects don’t meet those terms, but I still put terms in there that give me an advantage to walk away if necessary.
Before we close on the deal, I make sure to talk customers through what could go wrong on a project, such as weather delays or mechanical failures outside our control. I also make sure the customer understands how their choices will impact the pavement in the long term. For example, if we’re working in a large lot with a 1% grade and one drain in the corner, I let the customer know they’re risking bird baths on their lot in a few years. There may be no money in their budget to improve drainage, but I don’t want my customer to face any nasty surprises down the road.
We just did a large project with a 60-day payment term and a 10% retainage, which means on a $1 million job, $100,000 stays with the client until everything is signed off. That can take a very long time! If the company goes bankrupt while they’re holding that money, we won’t be getting it. That’s why I factor in the total retainage in my bids at the outset.
Step 10: The estimating process doesn’t stop when the contract is signed.
Years ago, a semi-retired paving guy who was estimating for me part time brought in a new customer. He’d promised this customer we’d show up on a specific day. When that day came and we weren’t ready to do the job, he asked me to “just send a couple guys over to drop off a piece of equipment.” I said no way. What if I need that piece of equipment between now and then? What if the customer has a question the guys can’t answer?
I’d rather deliver the bad news to the customer that we’ll be there in two days. Of course I want to make good on my promises–and that’s why I never make a promise I can’t keep. This is also why APS self-performs all the work we do. I don’t even subcontract my trucking. If a project requires a service we don’t offer, I don’t sub out that work. I provide the customer with a recommendation for a reputable company that performs that service.
If I tell the customer the lot’s going to be paved by Wednesday, I want to make sure my portion of the work is done by Wednesday. That’s going to be much harder to do if I’m hiring subs who might reschedule on me. If ever expectations aren’t met–whether we did something wrong or if it’s a matter of mismatched expectations–you can bet I’m not going to let that complaint linger.
By the time we leave that project, I want our customer not only to have a beautiful new pavement, but also to feel like APS delivered on our promises without disrupting their business. That’s the key to the repeat and referral business that fills our books without requiring so much estimating effort.
The estimating process also doesn’t stop when we finish the project and leave the lot. I make sure my customers have my cell number and encourage them to call me if they have any problems in the future. A new parking lot is a large expense and I want them to know I stand by my work.
The Bottom Line
I didn’t cut 25,000 miles off my year just by luck. I did it by treating estimating like the foundation for everything that follows—protecting my time, my crew, and the promises we make. It’s not just about winning the job; it’s about making sure the job we win is the right one, done right, for the right customer. That’s how you build trust, repeat work, and a business that runs smoother every season.