These guides cover the parts of commercial mechanical work that are won or lost away from the bid form: the paperwork that decides whether you're shortlisted, the maintenance book that keeps your service team busy, and the outreach that keeps you in front of the people who send work. Each one is written for a busy owner or estimator, with checklists and worked numbers you can copy.
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CASL basics for B2B outreach by mechanical contractors
Before you email or text a GC, owner or property manager about your services, you need a reason you're allowed to. This guide explains the basics from federal guidance and shows how to keep records.
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The math of a PM agreement book
A preventive-maintenance book grows or shrinks on four numbers: new agreements, renewals, average value and churn. This guide shows how to measure each and which one to fix first.
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The mechanical contractor's prequalification package: a working checklist
A prequal package is scored before your price is read. This guide shows how to assemble one master set, tailor it in an hour, and stop losing shortlists to paperwork.
The prequalification package checklist
The mechanical contractor's prequalification package walks through building one master package, section by section: company profile, safety, insurance and bonding, financial capacity, people, project history, and quality and close-out. It then shows how to tailor the package for a specific request in about an hour, and how to keep it current with a monthly 30-minute review.
You'll learn why most packages fail on completeness and consistency rather than capability, and how to keep a simple submission log that reveals your pass rate by sector and buyer. A worked example shows what fixing paperwork failures alone can be worth in awards.
Best for: firms that rebuild prequals from scratch each time, or have been dropped from shortlists without explanation.
The math of a PM agreement book
The math of a PM agreement book shows how to measure a preventive-maintenance book with four numbers: agreements in force, new agreements, renewal rate and average value. A worked example follows a hypothetical firm whose busy year left its book flat, then shows how raising renewals and turnover conversion grows it faster than prospecting.
You'll also get a renewal routine (90, 60 and 30 days out), a turnover kit for project managers, and a five-line monthly report.
Best for: firms with a service department that's under-used, or owners who want steadier cash flow between projects. It also helps owners planning a succession, since a documented book is easier to hand over.
CASL basics for B2B outreach
CASL basics for B2B outreach explains, from the federal government's published overview, the difference between express and implied consent, the time limits on implied consent, what every message must include, and how quickly unsubscribes must be honoured. It then shows how to build a consent record for every contact, and a sensible monthly outreach rhythm.
Best for: firms with a contact list built from trade shows, old quotes and business cards, and no record of who agreed to what. It's practical guidance, not legal advice.
How to use them
Each guide is built to be acted on, not just read. A practical approach:
- Read the guide that matches your biggest gap, all the way through.
- Copy the checklist or spreadsheet columns into your own systems the same day.
- Pick one owner in your firm for that guide's routine, whether that's the prequal package, the renewal calendar or the consent record.
- Review the numbers after 90 days. If they've moved, keep going; if not, look at what the guide says about common mistakes.
None of the guides assume a big marketing budget. Most of what they recommend is organisation: knowing who sends your work, keeping documents current, and following up when it matters.
Each guide also ends with the common mistakes in its area, so you can check your own process against them before spending a dollar on outside help.
How the guides connect
The three guides follow the same chain as our services. Outreach and relationships produce invitations; invitations bring prequal requests; projects you win become maintenance prospects at turnover. Read them in whatever order matches your biggest gap.
If you'd rather have help, the matching services are prequalification packages, service-contract (PM) sales and CASL-compliant outreach. For contractors on the general-contracting side of the same projects, Marketing.Construction covers builder and GC marketing. Plans and costs are on the pricing page.
Frequently asked questions
Can we use these guides without hiring you?
Yes. They're written so an owner, estimator or office manager can act on them alone. If you'd like help, we're a call, text or email away.
Are the guides legal or safety advice?
No. They're practical marketing and business guidance. The CASL guide summarises federal guidance and links to it; legal questions go to your lawyer, and safety questions to your safety adviser.
How often are the guides updated?
We review them when the underlying guidance changes or when we learn a better way to explain something. Each guide shows its last updated date.