It is very easy to fall into a routine when running your plumbing business. However, some routines may not be all that effective. That is why you need to take a step back from your normal routine from time to time to evaluate its efficiency.
It is understandable that you are running a business and may not have the time to do lengthy evaluations or learn new things. But you do not have to change everything at once. You can start small and constantly build on it by improving one aspect of running your business after the other.
Five tips to improve the efficiency of your plumbing business
1. Automate your estimation process
Creating correct estimations requires getting the right information about a project, such as the time it will take to complete the project, cost, and expected profit margins. If you go the manual route, the chances of making errors are very high. Besides, manual estimates can be time-consuming, which will ultimately affect your business’s efficiency.
The best approach to ensuring your estimation process is fast and efficient is by incorporating automation. An online estimation tool such as this plumbing estimating software from ServiceTitan is a great way to improve your business’s efficiency and ensure that your estimates are error-free.
2. Handle one task at a time
As your business grows, you may realize that you have many projects on your waiting list. In such situations, you may be tempted to try working on them concurrently. While it might sound like a good idea, it isn’t.
The best approach is handling one task at a time. Doing this ensures that you do not have some projects stalling midway, negatively affecting customer experience. However, make sure you let every customer understand where they are on your waiting list and when you expect to start and complete their project. If you feel overwhelmed by your workload, you may consider subcontracting.
3. Set goals and work towards them
If you do not have set goals, you will not have the motivation to achieve anything. After some time running a plumbing business, you can easily estimate the time spent on a specific type of project. Based on experience, set realistic goals for every project and work towards achieving those goals.
After setting your goals, break them down into weekly, daily, and hourly goals. That way, you can easily identify when you are on track and when you are falling back.
If you are doing your best but still falling short of your goals, your goals may not be realistic and need some tweaking. The same applies if you are achieving more than your set goals by a big margin.
4. Delegate tasks
Understandably, your business is your baby, and you want it to run as perfectly as possible. However, if you try to micromanage everyone, you will end up wasting everyone’s time, which will ultimately affect your business’s productivity and efficiency.
The right thing to do is delegate some duties to your employees and trust them to perform their tasks effectively. After all, you hired them because they qualified for the job. So go ahead and let them prove their worth. Additionally, trusting your employees with responsibilities communicates that their input is valued, which can be an effective morale booster.
5. Eliminate non-performers
As an employer, you want to ensure that every member you add to your team adds value. Often employers set goals for the team. While it may be a good approach, setting achievable targets for individual employees is better.
However, employees may not always hit their targets. If a specific employee shows a low-performance trend, it would be in your best interest to lay them off. After all, efficiency is all about getting the most out of your available resources.