Beyond price wars: A practical playbook for mid-market builders
After a period of sustained uncertainty for the construction sector, and many operators in the sector are still struggling to adapt. Industry expert Greg Wilkes shares strategic guidance for UK construction companies turning over £1 million and £20 million.
Material inflation has slowed from the eye-watering spikes of 2022, yet tender‐price indices are still climbing 2-3% annually while clients expect yesterday’s rates. Bank overdrafts cost more, professional indemnity premiums are up, and the new building-safety regime adds programme risk. Mid-sized firms – too large for “mates’ rates”, too small for Tier-1 buying power – feel the pinch first.
According to Greg Wilkes, a former contractor turned construction business coach, how you win work now matters as much as how much you win. His Mastermind Model emphasises three levers owner’s control: clear positioning, disciplined margins, and a leadership bench that frees the founder from day-to-day firefighting.
“Competing on headline price alone hands every shock – design drift, weather delays, labour shortages – straight to your balance sheet,” he explains.
Sell Results, Not Resource
Clients don’t really buy labour hours or linear metres of stud wall – they buy outcomes. Rewrite your proposal language so each line item answers: “What does the client gain or avoid?”
“The key point here, is outcome language moves the conversation from ‘How cheap?’ to ‘How valuable?’”
Play to Your Home-Turf Advantage
The most profitable builders Wilkes coaches resist bidding for everything. Instead, they double down on a context where their experience is obvious to the buyer and the stakes are high enough to justify a premium. Ask three questions:
- Which project type have we delivered at least five times without drama?
- Which client role recognises that success – bursar, estates manager, regional developer?
- Which pain keeps that person awake – programme certainty, compliance risk, community goodwill?
If the answer is “school refurbishments during summer break”, every marketing asset – website banner, LinkedIn headline, bid preamble – should say exactly that. You are no longer a generic contractor; you are the partner for “zero-disruption school upgrades”.
Wilkes adds, “The key take-away here is, specialising isn’t about a flashy niche statement – it’s about being the obvious safest pair of hands for one recurring problem.
Turn Expertise into Fixed-Scope Packages
Once you know the problem you solve best, bundle it into clear options so clients pick a result, not haggle on prelims. Example packages for the school market:
*Illustrative figures – adjust to your costs and region. Valuations are certified at milestones; client funds sit in a Project Bank Account so cash flow is secure for both parties.
According to Wilkes, “Packaged outcomes make like-for-like price comparisons impossible for rivals still selling day-work.”
Prove Capability – Little and Often
Mid-market buyers need proof before signing six-figure contracts. Provide it in formats that travel fast:
- One-page case metrics - photo, challenge, solution, result (days, £, risk).
- 60-second site reels - walk through with your PM explaining how pre-fabricated panels shaved ten days.
- Voice-note testimonials – the school business manager thanking your team on hand-over morning.
Posting one proof-point a week keeps your LinkedIn feed (and Google search results) fresh – an easy win under the Mastermind Model’s “visibility” pillar.
He adds, “Take this away: evidence – not eloquence – earns the right to charge more than the lowest bidder.”
De-risk the Deal for the Client
Price is only one risk; cashflow and delays worry clients more than price. Offer:
- Valuation schedule tied to programme milestones – work done is measured, certified, and paid – no up-front deposits draining the client’s capital.
- Project Bank Account (PBA) – funds for the job sit in a ring-fenced account cosigned by client and contractor, improving cash certainty for both main and subcontractors.
Add an on-time assurance: if delay is caused solely by your controllable factors, you fund accelerated labour or overtime to recover the programme. This positions you as a safe, not cheap, choice.
“When you neutralise client nightmares scenarios, a higher price feels like cheap insurance,” he advises.
Guard the Margin – 25%+ Gross, 15% Net
Wilkes teaches owners to set guardrails before a proposal leaves the office:
- Gross profit floor – target 25 %+ on every job. Drop scope, not price, if you can’t hit it.
- Overhead discipline – allocate real indirect cost per project so you see true contribution, not hope.
- Net benchmark – aim for 15 % after overheads. Anything less starves the cash needed for warranties, training, and growth.
Price erosion starts internally: if your team believes “we can always sharpen the pencil”, margins die. Make the guardrails visible in every tender review.
Wilkes says, “Importantly, profit is the fuel that fund guarantees, technology, and sane working hours; defend it like plant on site.”
Build a Leadership Bench Before You’re Exhausted
The Mastermind Model insists the owner must own the business, not every decision. Start with:
- Role scorecards – PM, QS, Ops Manager, each with three weekly KPIs.
- Monday huddle – 30 minutes, red/amber/green on those KPIs, owner speaks last.
- Profit-share pool – small percentage of net profit distributed quarterly against scorecard performance.
Firms that implement this rhythm find the founder can step away for strategic work – or a holiday – without profit dropping.
“Systems and empowered managers convert turnover into lifestyle and company value,” Wilkes notes.
A 90-Day Positioning Sprint
Complete the sprint and you’ll enter the next quarter with a sharper offer, stronger margins, and a team that can deliver without you burning out – exactly the shift Wilkes engineered in his own contracting days and now coaches through the Mastermind Model.
Final word
You can’t out-cheap a market determined to grind margins – but you can out-smart it. By articulating outcomes, focusing where you excel, packaging value, proving delivery, derisking cash flow, and defending a 25 %+ gross profit, mid-market builders will thrive while rivals fight for scraps.
Greg Wilkes likes to remind owners that winning better work is not luck: “It’s a deliberate choice to play a game where expertise beats price.” Choose your game, set your guardrails, and leave the price war to someone else.
