Article reprinted from Western Roofing magazine July/August 2007.

Making That Extra Buck

It's Profit, Not Sales, That Keep a Company Afloat

It's summer, and by
now you're all probably
sitting around the
campfire toasting your weenies,
musing about how you can
increase your sales. You've
already underbid most of your
competitors for the last few jobs,
in fact you got your bid so low,
you're just breaking even. But
you'll make it up on the next job,
and after all, sales are up… so just scoot a little closer to
the fire and toast your weenies real good. You haven't a
care in the world.

Now I don't want to make you choke on your marshmallows, but the first time that somebody is slow in paying,
or doesn't pay, or goes bankrupt, or the job cost more
than expected, you could be in real trouble. Keep in mind that it's profit, not sales, that keeps a company afloat.

So it comes back to that age-old question that has kept
contractors awake at night for centuries: How do I make
an extra buck on this job? In an industry that awards its
jobs based on the lowest bid, how do you make that extra
profit? We’ve published several article and numerous seminars have been presented about differentiating yourself from the mainstream so you can ask for
more for a job.

Additionally, there are other ways to get more from a
job, even after you've taken the job at a price lower than
you wanted to. The answer is salesmanship and offering
options. I've said it before, but I'll say it again, when was
the last time you bought a car without options?

By spending a little more time in the planning and
sales presentation, you could increase your profits considerably. Reroofing, in particular, is ripe for this approach.
After all, why would a building owner simply want to
replace a failing roof with a similar one? He doesn’t, but he doesn’t know where to start. Here's a chance
to upgrade the roof from the smallest detail on up. Fasteners, underlayment, and roof systems can all be upgraded. It’s easy to demonstrate how upgrading roof insulation
can save money on energy costs in the long run. What
about roof drains, scuppers, flashings, and gutters? These
are all designed to get water off the roof and, therefore,
make the roof assembly last longer. Coatings to protect
the roof, skylights to let in more natural light and save on
electricity, walk pads to protect the roof, hatches for
easy access. These items will all help the building owner and fatten your bottom line.

The building owner overlooks many of these accessories, but they should never be overlooked by the
contractor. Not only will most of these accessories add to
the sales price, they are much higher profit items than
most roofing material.

And while we're at it, let's not forget the most profitable accessory of all: a maintenance agreement. An
agreement that lets you (not your competition) come back
to inspect the roof at regular intervals and repair as needed. Pure profit… and that's what staying in business is all
about. •••