Tips & Strategies from Construction Business Coach Shawn Van Dyke

Shawn Van Dyke is a construction business coach, an international keynote speaker, and author of two books: Profit First for Contractors and The Paperwork Punch List.

Most contractors are not profitable, which makes them feel uncertain about what they need to grow their construction businesses. Shawn believes that construction business owners should be as good at business as they are at their craft. That’s why, after 20+ years of owning and operating multiple construction businesses, Shawn became a construction business coach. He now works with construction business owners, executives, and managers all over the world and shows them how to stop losing profits and wasting time.

Shawn helps contractors get their lives back. He is the founder of the Built to Build Academy, which creates confident construction business owners through on-demand training and coaching programs so you can make more money, stop worrying, and get your life back.

Shawn shares a lot of insight on how to hire, build a company culture, how much time to spend on marketing, what best practices to keep in mind when spreading your message, lump sum versus cost-plus, and establishing trust with your clients.

Topics Discussed:

• 05:43 Gaining confidence as a coach and public speaker
• 11:10 Mastering sales
• 15:52 Balancing empathy towards customers with the needs of the business
• 19:18 The power of “no”
• 22:39 Guiding your clients through the decision-making process
• 28:24 Answering the three questions of the “delight trifecta” to save thousands of dollars
• 34:26 The number one mistake contractors make when running their business
• 37:16 Hiring “above the line”
• 40:33 Identifying what you hate doing in the business to know who to hire
• 43:17 Understanding “transparency” and how to achieve it with your customers
• 48:39 Lump sum versus cost-plus
• 56:04 When to use cost-plus pricing, especially with supply chain issues amid COVID-19
• 1:01:11 The right way to think about profit first
• 1:06:53 The value in having systems
• 1:10:46 Intentional marketing using social media
• 1:15:40 The importance of sticking to your core message in your marketing efforts

Connect with Guest: 

• Instagram @shawnvandyke
• Instagram @profitfirstcontractor
• Instagram @builttobuildacademy
• Website
• YouTube
• Facebook
• Twitter
• Linkedin

Resources & People Mentioned:

• Built to Build Academy
• Profit First for Contractors by Shawn Van Dyke
• Ted Talks
• The Science Behind TED’s 18-Minute Rule
• Start with No by Jim Camp
• Never Split the Difference by Chris Voss

Key Quotes by Shawn:

• As a business owner, you’re there to make an emotional connection with people first, because if they don’t buy into what you’re doing on an emotional level, it doesn’t matter how good the information is.
• Your business starts with sales.
• “Yes” is a lie; “maybe” is worthless; “no” is a decision. Get to the “no” as quickly as possible. Invite your clients to tell you “no” from the get-go.
• You never, ever, ever, ever want to surprise the client; but you want to delight them constantly.
• The biggest mistake I see with business owners is them thinking that they have to be the one who figures everything out and waiting too long to bring in an expert.
• Transparency is not trust.
• I would rather try to sell my value upfront and then perform a great project than to justify it afterwards.
• You can only price what you know.
• You can only spend 100% of your income on your business
• Money—profit—is a measure of effectiveness. The more effective you are with your customers, employees, and community, the more money you’re going to make. The more money that you make, the more you can do great things with it.
• Systems provide truth: Our systems are either working, or they’re not.
• Word of marketing sucks if you don’t control the words people are saying.