How to Build Your Construction Business and Who to Hire for Help
How to Build Your Construction Business and Who to Hire for Help
People have been building houses since the beginning of time. In retrospect, people used to build houses manually using natural resources. You get the picture; no cranes or ready-to-build cement, just dried-up bricks from the sun.
Construction Industry as a Determining Factor in Economic Growth
Construction Business in a Transformative Society
We live in a world where change is inevitable and there is a need to keep up with its demand. Old ways of building houses have transformed in a modernized way as society evolves.
Humans need to protect themselves and build a roof above their heads. In short, it is the root activity in the construction business. The things we rely upon have to be constructed; such as houses, bridges, roads, railways, factories, churches, mines, mills, and sky tower buildings. Hence, the construction industry plays a vital role in society.
At present, construction businesses are still shifting from manual labor to modern construction equipment to increase productivity. According to Ryfan Electric, despite the reports that the construction industry projects $17 trillion by 2025, it still evolves slowly. Most industry experts conclude that there is a need for the construction industry to modernize equipment and invest in technological devices.
The goal of modernizing the process of construction leads to numerous advantages. It mainly increases production efficiency compared to manual labor. Digital transformation is beneficial to support the unemployment gap in the industry.
The industry has decreasing skilled laborers and young adults are not interested in working in the construction industry. Modern construction equipment can lessen the work of manual workers.
More importantly, the construction industry needed digital ways to improve communication and coordination. This way, the industry can avoid hazardous errors that may arise due to miscommunication and lack of proper coordination.
How do you start a Construction Business?
The revolutionary ideas in human history did not happen overnight. There is a massive amount of hard work and collaborative efforts to make an impressive contribution to society. In particular, envisioning a construction business needs constant action in drafting your coherent business plan to guide your business.
Start with a Plan
In every construction business, there must be a plan that will guide everyone towards the business’ success. One must put in black and white their bombshell idea. Write an ideal and realistic business plan for your construction business start-up.
Be Familiarized with Legal Requirements and Taxes
Organizing the company’s corporate papers is the first thing every start-up business must straighten out. That includes getting the corresponding business permits, complying with laws and regulations, and the mandatory registrations for the company.
It is also advisable to seek professional advice for your start-up business to ensure that you are not missing out any single detail. Consult a lawyer for legal clarifications, and hire an accountant for tax requirements and documentations.
Ensure to be Insured
In the construction business, it is only wise to be insured. Business owners must consult their insurance agent to discuss policies that will protect their company from unforeseen incidents.
Financial Liquidity
For businesses to survive, they must be financially liquid among others. The business owner must ensure your company’s operating expenses. Operating expenses include payroll, insurance, rent, marketing costs, and research costs.
Work on Expanding your Network
Having a solid network is one of the biggest perks in establishing your business. It is also necessary to create good credit standing with suppliers and connect with industry professionals.
Invest in good marketing and construction software
One of the advantages of investing is the potential for long-term returns. As a construction business owner, you must allocate funds in good marketing for brand awareness. Additionally, investing in construction software is essential for a construction business.
Full-time or Part-Time Contractors
You have to decide if you are going to hire a contractor or full-time employees. In terms of cost-efficiency, hiring a contractor is recommended for a construction business. However, you must also consider hiring full-time employees for the core positions in your construction business.
Challenges in starting a Construction Business
Construction companies have practical knowledge about the hardships that come along with starting a construction business. Rationally, they will find the best team members to work for their construction company. That includes finding a contractor, project manager, customer support, and marketing or social media management team for the company. Indeed, finding the best support team is compelling in running a construction company.
However, efficient customer support and team members cannot quickly rectify some events beyond their control. This refers to economic depression, natural calamities, a threat to safety, or a pandemic.
Here are some of the common challenges encountered when starting a construction business.
Wrong classification of employees
The misconception that most business owners overlook is the wrong classification of employees. If the company misidentifies a contractor as a full-time employee or vice versa, the employer is obliged to pay for the taxes due.
Shortage in skilled laborers
The effect of the economic crisis that laid off almost 2 million jobs in the construction businesses is still recognized today. Indeed, most of these laid-off workers opted to find a new career in different industries, some already retired. There is a massive demand in the construction business; however, there are a few laborers to supply that demand.
Lack of Development in Productivity Levels
The shortage of skilled laborers can impact the productivity level of every construction project. Relative to this are factors such as disorganized planning and calendar management for the projects, poor communication and collaboration, and wasted time in waiting for construction materials.
Worker’s Safety
Above all reasons, health and safety have been everybody’s business nowadays since the pandemic made its appearance in March 2020. Health and safety concerns contributed to another significant safety issue in the construction business.
Now, there are two major safety issues involved: workplace injuries and battling of COVID-19 infection. Business owners are responsible for prioritizing these, not resulting in yet another decrease in the workforce. More importantly, prioritizing worker’s safety is essential in improving the worker’s morale.
Construction Businesses in Remote Setup
Construction businesses are one of the most fast-paced industries needing full attention.
Employees working for construction business’ back office and on-site work tasks need constant checking and collaborating to deliver quality projects. Given the background of the industry as well as the additional challenge of the current pandemic situation, it is right to wonder how things are going.
Here’s what it looks like for construction businesses in the remote set-up:
- Construction companies make sure they are connected to everyone while embracing the new concept of remote setup.
Most people going through the new work-from-home concept could cope by using modern technological devices, primarily laptops and a stable internet connection. In addition to this, construction companies learned to use communication software such as Zoom, Skype, Slack, or WhatsApp.
- Construction companies make sure they do what the top priority is.
Overwhelming is an understatement in construction businesses. Construction business owners are often bombarded with emails and phone calls even when their day hasn’t started yet. There is a definite solution to this and one is to know what the top priority is. This way, fundamental matters are being addressed firsthand to avoid consecutive errors.
- Construction companies make sure they delegate tasks.
Jessica Jackley, an American businesswoman, once said that, “deciding what not to do is as important as deciding what to do.”
This is true in terms of the workload of start-up construction business owners. They have the tendency to act as the head of every department or unintentionally micromanage.
Business owners need to reflect on their tasks. It is natural to oversee your business as long as you don’t dread doing everything at once. While there is comfort in knowing about every aspect of your business, there is also satisfaction in growing your business without sacrificing much energy.
Sometimes, the convenience we long for also depends on our actions. Learning how to delegate and take away unnecessary administrative tasks can be the first step. In simpler terms, hire a virtual assistant to help you.
- Construction companies make sure they have the best virtual assistant to help them.
It is pivotal when you have the best virtual assistant to help your business grow.
Business owners can set aside their worries on where to find the best VA to support your start-up construction business. At Live Free Virtual Services, we can assist you with your technical, administrative, live call, creative, and online business management services. We are here to find your perfect VA who can help you support your business and you can focus on doing what you love.
We coined the term TALCO as an acronym for our services!
Technical Services
LFVS acknowledged the importance of having a systematic approach to your business processes. We can provide you with a strong team consisting of well-trained and experienced technical support virtual assistants.
Administrative Services
Managing administrative tasks while doing sales calls can be overwhelming at times. LFVS can pair you with a virtual assistant to handle your paperwork and other general administrative tasks. No need to worry about the back office and you can focus on looking for business opportunities.
Live Call Services
At LFVS, we feel that providing our customers with accessible customer support through live chat and phone calls is vital. We have a professional team to handle customer inquiries including chat support for answering and making calls to clients, vendors, and supply stores. Ultimately, our goal is to assist you so that you’re not distracted at the job site.
Creative Services
LFVS is constantly doing research and observing market trends. We aspire to provide our clients well presented and curated marketing strategies to enhance their business and brand awareness.
Online Business Management
LFVS aims to help business owners achieve their goals. We offer to help business owners manage projects, operations, metrics, and people to get their jobs done efficiently.
What are the benefits of hiring a VA for Construction Start-ups?
Hiring virtual assistants for construction start-ups is one of the most efficient moves a business owner can make. It can cut operating costs as your assistant is working remotely at home. There will be no rental fee for office space, electricity, internet, and even office supply bills.
Learning how to delegate your tasks to your assistant is also a concept in hiring a VA. Delegating tasks can make you more productive while focusing on doing the work to explore more business opportunities.
The delegation will lead to having more time for yourself. You don’t need to stress yourself finding the time of the day to do the tasks a VA can help with. Lastly, hiring a VA will reduce your stress.
How LFVS Can Help?
At LFVS, we elevate small trades business owners’ profitable growth by pairing them with a Rockstar Virtual Assistant (VA) that perfectly matches their needs.
LFVS specializes in the trades industry, which offers a portfolio of enterprise solutions and promises to achieve successful and scalable results. We endeavor a customer-centered approach that helps to develop a winning plan for the success of your business.
At its core, that is what LFVS is all about. We ensure your businesses achieve the desired outcome with the help of our specialized virtual assistance.
Take it to the next level! Contact us now and learn how we can help you transform your business into a success.
Written By: JENEEVA BISPO
Jeneeva Bispo is a creative freelancer with a background in communication, marketing, and corporate relations. She has a bachelor's degree in Communication Arts and has been enchanted with both literature and art since the age of nine. Jeneeva views life as a labyrinth of uncertainty yet celestial through her own lens.
Being a Gemini, Jeneeva is constantly in pursuit of anything vibrant that awakens her soul. Her hobbies include meditating, writing in a journal, and she is fascinated by twenty dogs.
Jeneeva is fortunate enough that she is able to create a career out of her passion.