RWK Construction: Growing project profits with construction financing options for clients

Cary’s day-to-day duties include managing the office staff, onboarding, bookkeeping and working closely with project managers. With a growing business, trying to keep track of everything using pen and paper wasn’t going to work. So, Cary began her search for a solution and found Buildertrend.

“I suggested that we start using it to help project managers with their scheduling, and to help us better communicate with our clients,” Cary said. “We needed something that was better than texting, especially when we started adding more project managers to our team.”

They decided to give Buildertrend a try and soon got all their project managers on board. Cary dedicated herself to learning the ins and outs of Buildertrend’s digital features and has become the company’s resident Buildertrend expert.

Using Buildertrend’s construction tech platform has allowed them to continue growing their team. They also suggest Buildertrend to their subcontractors, who have also adopted it, which makes it easier to keep workflows streamlined.

Their story: Turning client visions into realities through remodeling

Ryan Koller decided to take charge of his construction career and founded his own company, RWK Construction, in 2001. He ran the company himself until 2016 when he brought on his first project manager and then Cary as the controller.

RWK specializes in basement design and finishing, but they also do home renovations and make movie lovers’ dreams come true with fully customized, in-home theater rooms.

From day one, RWK has strived to make their clients’ visions a reality while setting themselves apart in the remodeling industry. And with most of their business coming from referrals, they provide five-star service and nothing less.

“We have a five-star Google review that we take very seriously,” Cary said.

Their goal: Upgraded project management processes to grow clientele

In addition to providing superior customer service and the best project managers, who treat their clients with the utmost respect, RWK has something else that gives them a competitive edge.

Yep, you guessed it.

“Buildertrend,” Cary said. “It’s always been very important to us to have good communication with our homeowners, and Buildertrend has helped ensure that and allowed us to differentiate ourselves from our competitors.”

Since initially implementing Buildertrend’s tech almost five years ago, Cary and the team have seen the benefits of adopting many of its key features including the Schedule and Customer Portal.

RWK starts jobs in Buildertrend and passes them to their project managers who master their project scheduling and maintain client relationships. Using the Customer Portal has helped RWK by allowing their clients to see the schedule in real time with quick and easy communication.

By using these tools and adapting to the new age of construction software, RWK has continued to see success.

Their solution: GreenSky® financing options and forming client connections

RWK expanded its excellend client experience by turning to Buildertrend’s partnership with GreenSky® to offer its customers financing options for their renovation projects.

GreenSky® is a powerful asset that not only makes client dreams a reality, but also ensures more sales and company growth. Offering financing gives RWK’s clients greater spending power to complete their home renovation or add an awesome theater room.

RWK began using GreenSky® after its launch last year and it immediately benefited their clients, who were working from home in the pandemic.

“The one year, no interest if paid in full, with no minimum monthly payments plan* has allowed clients to finish more spaces in their homes while not having to worry about making payments for a year,” Cary said.

With GreenSky®’s financing options, RWK closes more sales by showing up to three payment options and offering quick financial approvals.

“We’ve had an overall increase in growth and sales over the last year,” Cary said. “We offer different financing options, and it’s been good for homeowners who want to do a full basement renovation but don’t quite have the budget. It allows them to complete the entire project at once and not have to do it in pieces.”

They’ve even made sales because they offer financing options – and other Utah renovators in the area don’t.

“I don’t know of any other basement and remodeling contractors, in our area, that offer financing,” Cary said. “Having Buildertrend, the Customer Portal and GreenSky®, these are all big differentiators for us.”

RWK makes signing up for GreenSky® easy by including information in their initial estimates as well as on their custom website built by Buildertrend.

With Buildertrend’s Pro Websites, RWK customized their webpage to showcase GreenSky® options and allow clients to apply. They also have a leads page that sends potential client information directly to their Buildertrend account for easy tracking.

“Our website has been great,” Cary said. “The layout is super easy to work with. The designer showed me how to use WordPress when I wanted to add photos, but she’s also been available when I email and ask her to update or add something. When we added the leads page and the GreenSky® page, she helped with that.”

Another partnership that RWK takes advantage of is Buildertrend Payment Processing. With this service, Cary can seamlessly send client invoices and easily keep track of online payments through Buildertrend’s construction tech platform.

“I use Buildertrend to invoice all deposits the same day we take on jobs,” Cary said. “We use Chase WePay every day for all our invoicing and payments.”

Custom in-home theater by RWK Construction

Their success: Better communication and time saved for construction pros

While Buildertrend and its partnerships have been critical for helping RWK grow over the last few years, they’ve also been essential for improving processes and saving time on the job site and behind the scenes.

“We’ve saved time with back and forth on scheduling and being able to do invoicing without having to drive to houses and pick up checks.” Cary said. “Using Buildertrend has definitely been a big time-saver for us.”

And when asked if she would recommend Buildertrend to other construction pros …

“Yes, absolutely,” Cary said. “It’s been great for our organization. It will allow you to grow from a small company to a large company. It’s been helpful having communication and one place to find consistent information on scheduling, clients and addresses. I definitely recommend it.”

With Buildertrend’s digital tech tools and partnerships on their side, RWK will continue to see sustainable business growth for years to come.

*Subject to credit approval. Interest is billed during the promotional period but all interest is waived if the purchase amount is paid within 12 months. There is no minimum monthly payment required during the promotional period. GreenSky® Program loans are offered by federally insured, equal opportunity lender banks. GreenSky® is a registered trademark of GreenSky, LLC. GreenSky Servicing, LLC services the loans on behalf of participating lenders. NMLS #1416362