5 tips to increase your visibility as a subcontractor

As a subcontractor, you would of course like nothing more than to work on great projects. You want to receive relevant invitations to tender for work that matches your areas of expertise. But how do you ensure that general contractors can find you? That they know what you have to offer? And that they also look beyond their regular network of subcontractors? You have more influence on that than you think. We have set out the most important tips for you.

1. Ensure there is good communication

General contractors would like nothing more than to receive a number of appropriate tenders to choose from. Tenders from subcontractors who understand what the work involves and who are experts in the type of work that is required. Specialists who meet all the criteria and who possess the appropriate profile. And who are able to show an impressive portfolio of similar work they have carried out. Perhaps you are that ideal subcontractor. All you have to do now is to ensure that the general contractor also knows this. Good communication is essential. Respond as soon as possible to an invitation to tender and show that you understand what the general contractor wants. In every detail.

A small additional tip: On average, subcontractors in all specialisations respond to an invitation to tender within 10.9 days. Can you top that?

2. Show what you are capable of

As a subcontractor, you are proud of your work and convinced of your own abilities. Convince general contractors what you are capable of. To do this, it is important to show what you have already done. So develop a portfolio of reference projects. Unique projects on which you have worked. Creative solutions you found to problems you encountered. And work which demonstrates you can handle a whole range of jobs. Make sure to show your certificates and quality labels as well. This will help convince a general contractor that you are the one for the job.

3. Maintain an overview

It is essential to store the administration and communication in one place. If not, you can quickly lose the overview, especially in larger projects. Documents you need for the tender, endless e-mail exchanges, collections of spreadsheets and even WhatsApp messages… It pays to bring order and structure to all this. It will prevent you from forgetting something and making mistakes. And then you can focus on what is really important: getting great jobs and delivering quality work.

4. Expand your network

Costing staff, purchasers and planners like to work with parties they already know and who they have built a personal relationship with. It is therefore worthwhile to work actively meeting new people and making sure they can easily find you. Fortunately, this is now easier than ever.

5. Complete your profile on 12Build

The easiest way to achieve success with all these points is to have a complete profile on 12Build. Responding to invitations to tenders has never been so easy. Your profile shows who you are, what your specialisations are and which qualifications you have. And this will not only be seen by existing contacts, but also by relevant parties who do not know you yet. With 12Build, general contractors have the possibility of using a filter for selecting subcontractors the company has already worked with before. This means that colleagues of your contacts can also easily find you. An extensive company profile on 12Build will even increase your visibility on Google. You will also have all your communication conveniently in one place, just like the documents you need for the project. This will enable you to attract those commissions that are best suited to you.