As a construction business owner, understanding what your clients want is the first step towards building a solid working relationship with them. Clients want confirmation that you’re able to manage their project efficiently and throughout its entirety – and your skills as a construction project contractor are exemplified by how well you understand and connect with your client’s needs. Transparency builds trust, which then fundamentality snowballs into a great working relationship between both parties. Our clients want to know the costs of materials and labour, how the project is progressing, any potential problems that might arise and what our backup plan is. They also want design options that reflect their own specific tastes and preferences.
After you have determined the specific needs and expectations of your target audience, it is time to start finding ways to fill those wants. Quality-based plans and processes are an integral part of this process. To support them, many contractors rely on construction management software that takes these plans and puts them into practice in a way that can be tracked and measured. This also allows for a better interaction between contractor and client, which will only serve to strengthen the business relationship in several ways.
1. Offers visibility into project data, progress and status
Accountability is key for contractors working on construction projects, yet clients are sometimes left in the dark about progress being made on the construction site. With new technological advancements, it has become easier for contractors to demonstrate they’re meeting their commitments and managing risks by delivering timely updates and details about the project.
Having an online dashboard and daily reports helps manage construction technology in a simpler way, by sharing information and avoiding miscommunication.
By having a dashboard to display all the vital project data, both you and your client can have an accurate understanding of how the project is progressing. This enhanced visibility will provide your clients with peace of mind that everything is being managed well, while also giving them updated information to base decisions on – instead of old assumptions or incomplete reports.
Regular reports that can be automatically customized and set up to the client’s preferences help keep them updated on project progress. These reports include essential details about what is happening with the project, as well as an explanation for why these events are taking place. By being more transparent about aspects of the project like delays, risks, changes, and resources used onsite, clients will be more likely to trust you and see you as a partner instead of simply someone they’ve hired. They’ll also be more understanding if changes or delays do occur because they’ll know there’s a reason behind it and that steps are being taken to rectify the situation.
2. Visually explores design possibilities and limitations
Your clients all have different visions for their construction projects — not just in terms of its intended purpose or use, but also how it will look once completed. Construction technology has advanced to the point where you can give clients a direct line of sight into every detail of their project’s bid and estimate. You can also use more advanced options like building information modeling (BIM) and augmented reality (AR), which allow clients to see their projects in ways that are far more immersive than traditional 2D images.
BIM’s interactive 3D modeling abilities let you not only explore how different design choices would look but also take clients on a realistic tour of the structure. This way, you can confirm that their project requirements are being met while at the same time communicating why specific decisions were made during the design phase and what effect those choices will have not just on the structure itself but also its surroundings.
With AR, you can project a virtual model, such as BIM, onto what the camera is seeing in real-time. For example, if you want to show clients how a future project will look at the jobsite itself, including all other current surroundings, you can do so with AR. Alternatively, if modifications are needed and you want buy-in from others beforehand on these changes; projecting proposed structural changes onto the relevant portion of an already built structure could get the point across prior to wasting time and resources going down a path that won’t be successful.
Clients who can see the construction project’s design and evaluation process as it progresses will feel more confident that everyone is on the same page, and that you can deliver what they expect.
3. Strengthens owner trust and confidence in your abilities
The construction industry is under immense pressure to keep up with new projects and become more efficient. The adoption of construction technology helps companies not only meet this demand but also provides a better client experience at every stage of a project — from planning through execution. And the most pragmatic option for this is an integrated platform.
By having an integrated construction project management platform, you can manage the flow of information better and have real-time access to every part of your project. With only one source for all their data, clients won’t run into any gaps in knowledge or misunderstandings. Furthermore, by using an integrated platform with data from every stage of a job, clients can base decisions off actual numbers and timestamp instead of mere estimates.
Not only does it permit you to more efficiently share construction data organization-wide, but everyone from project managers to construction workers to clients can have immediate access to current information about site progress. This fosters transparency throughout the process — which is crucial for enhancing trust between consumers and contractors.
How construction management software can benefit your projects and your client relationships
Today’s construction management platforms are not only assisting contractors in managing increasingly complex projects, but also helping them keep expectations in check and improve the client experience. By incorporating these technologies into their businesses and client relationships, contractors can help ensure project success while avoiding budget and schedule overruns.
To learn more about how construction management software can deliver on a stronger relationship with your project owners, book a free PlanRadar product demo or contact us today!
