ThemBid.com

Describing Your Project to a Contractor

When you are searching for a contractor online, with a service such as ThemBid.com, it will save time for you and the contractor, if the project is well described with accuracy and detail. This post will give you some guidance on how to write a complete “scope of work”, which is the term contractors use for project requirements/description.

Title
Use a brief, but descriptive title. Think about a contractor looking for work that will do a search using a service like Google.com. Will they find your project? Titles such as “Help Needed Now!!!” are useless, instead use “My Washing Machine is Broken, Assistance Needed ASAP”. The latter will attract the right contractor and will also convey your sense of urgency.

Description
The first few lines should summarize what you need, making it easy for a contractor to quickly determine if they need further detail or to move on. Following are some key elements to describe:

• Budget - If you know what you want to spend, otherwise allow the contractors to bid.
• Photos - With ThemBid.com you can upload as many photos as you need for free.
• Expectations - Make it clear what the completed project will look like in detail.
• Timeline - Specify when the project must be completed by. In some cases you may want to set this time earlier to ensure you meet your target date.
• Location - Specify where the work will be performed and any describe any time frames that must be honored (e.g. work can only be performed between 11am and 5pm Monday through Thursday).
• Level of Expertise - Specify the level of expertise you require if necessary.

There will be cases when there are elements that you just can’t describe. A contractor that does know the details will use our built in commenting system to ask the right questions or contact you to find out more.

Contact Information
Provide your preferred means of contact, and details about what times are acceptable for calls. Give detailed instruction about what you want to know when they call to keep the conversation structured. Create a template to easily capture the results of incoming calls to make comparison easier, or require the contractor to respond in writing at ThemBid.com and let our service help you choose the best value.

General

• Do not use ALL CAPS when writing your title or description.
• Run your writing through a spell checker and then proof at least once.
• Try searching on the Internet for your problem. You may find some useful information that will help you better describe your issue.

Now that you have several contractors bidding on your project, you can find help with selecting the right contractor here.