PLANNING FOR SUCCSESS Marketing may be defined as the planning, pricing, promoting, and placing of your product of service. General construction companies have an unusual marketing problem because they are sometimes hard to categorize, especially if their project tends to be unique, as opposed to products of manufacturers, which tend to be massed produced. Some important questions the owner should ask are exactly the same issues covered in the mission statement: Who are my customers? Where are they? What do they want? When do they want it? Why should they buy it from me? How do I get it to them? Pricing, for the construction company, relates to how well the project is estimated. After the contractor estimates the cost of the project they must add a fair profit. At this point it is important to know your competition and to determine construction “profit margins” for your locale. The better you know your competitors the more competitive you will be. The success of the firm can very well be determined by the skill of the estimator. In the competitive bidding market the lowest reasonable bid most often get the contract. There are many suggested outlines accessible available. The best are flexible and can be tailored to your own needs. The following is a good example: Outline of a Business Plan Section One: The business Section Two: Financial Data Section Three: Supporting Documents Location is a key to help your business to make money. When you first start your business, first try to locate the ideal site, th ...