How Does a Great General Contractor Eliminate Customer Concerns?
Homeowners who decide to complete a home improvement project, especially a complex project, can experience a considerable amount of stress. Even if a general contractor is running the project, issues such as project delays and shoddy workmanship can keep homeowners up at night. The most effective way a general contractor can eliminate customer concerns involves maintaining open lines of communication. If there is a problem with your construction project, you can expect Mares & Dow to contact you right away with a detailed explanation of what has gone wrong. We also promptly return phone, text, and email messages.
A great general contractor eliminates customer concerns before a project begins as well. Let’s take a look at five topics to discuss with a general contractor such as a skylight contractor before your home improvement project begins.
Proper Credentials
Eliminating customer concerns is all about giving you peace of mind. The first step to eliminate your concerns before a project starts is to verify the professional credentials of a general contractor. At Mares & Dow, we present our customers with the proper license and insurance paperwork to confirm our professional credentials. If a general contractor cannot present the right credentials, you should search for another general contractor to take on your home improvement project.
Testimonials
Most general contractor websites include a section called “Testimonials,” in which former customers provide positive feedback about the work done by a general contractor. Although website testimonials give you insight into the caliber of a general contractor, you should support website testimonials with references given to you in person or over the phone. If a general contractor on your shortlist of candidates cannot present positive references, then you should move on to the next general contractor.
Experience Matters
Although years of experience give you an idea of the reputation of a general contractor, make sure the years of experience have resulted in delivering high-quality workmanship. In addition, you should consider a general contractor who has years of proven success completing the same type of home improvement project that you want done at your house. The Better Business Bureau (BBB) website page for a general contractor lets you know how many years of experience the contractor has compiled.
Access to Materials
Several factors can delay the completion of a home improvement project, with bad weather representing one of the most common reasons. Another common reason for causing a project delay concerns the inability to have access to the right materials. Disruptions in the supply chain, such as the ones that we witnessed during the COVID-19 pandemic, can result in project delays that last weeks, even months. The general contractor hired for your home improvement project should explain to you how the contractor plans to avoid costly and time-consuming supply chain disruptions.
Fully Staffed
One of the most important responsibilities of a general contractor involves recruiting the most qualified trade professionals to work on your home improvement project. Acute labor shortages have caused project delays for general contractors across the United States. Before your home improvement project starts, ask the general contractor to provide a list of the names of every trade professional recruited to work on your project. If the general contractor has not yet filled all the trade professional positions, you can expect a delay in the start of your home improvement project.