# The Bid Builder A prompt sequence that turns your job walkthrough into a structured estimate and a clean customer-facing bid. **Time to complete:** 20 to 40 minutes, depending on job complexity. You still do the takeoff math. The prompts help you organize it and write it up. --- ## Honesty Note Every price, quantity, and labor figure in your final bid must come from your own takeoff, your supplier quotes, and your actual rates. AI does not know your local material costs, your crew's speed, or what the job will actually take. It will mark anything it cannot derive as [VERIFY] rather than invent a number. Recompute every total yourself before you hand anything to a customer. This guide is not financial or legal advice. It does not guarantee you win the job or that your price is right for your market. --- ## Step 1: Capture the Job Before you run any prompt, pull together everything you know about the job. Paste it all into one place. Include: - Your walkthrough notes - All measurements and counts - The scope the customer asked for, word for word if you have it - Any known site conditions (access issues, existing damage, material to demo) - Your labor rate (per hour or per day) - Any material prices you already have from your supplier You will paste this block of information into Step 2. The more specific you are here, the more useful the output will be. --- ## Step 2: Takeoff and Labor Prompt This prompt takes your job notes and produces a structured material list and a labor-hours breakdown by task. Anything the AI cannot derive from what you gave it will be flagged [VERIFY] rather than guessed. Paste your Step 1 notes where indicated. ``` You are helping a trades contractor build a job estimate. Here are my job notes, measurements, scope, and known prices: [PASTE YOUR STEP 1 NOTES HERE] Produce two things: 1. MATERIAL TAKEOFF List every material item needed to complete this scope. For each item include: - Item name and description - Unit of measure - Quantity needed - Unit price (use my supplied prices where I gave them; mark as [VERIFY] where I did not) - Extended cost (quantity x unit price; mark as [VERIFY] if either input is [VERIFY]) 2. LABOR HOURS BY TASK List each task required to complete this scope. For each task include: - Task name - Estimated labor hours - Notes on assumptions Mark any quantity or hours estimate you cannot reasonably derive from my notes as [VERIFY]. Do not invent numbers. If a measurement is missing, say so and ask me to supply it before continuing. Do not include overhead, markup, or profit yet. Raw costs and hours only. ``` Review the output carefully. Replace every [VERIFY] with your own number before you move forward. Do not proceed to Step 3 with [VERIFY] still in the list. --- ## Step 3: Pricing Prompt This prompt takes the verified takeoff and labor hours and assembles a total with your markup. It shows the math line by line so you can check every number yourself. Paste your completed takeoff and labor table where indicated. ``` You are helping a trades contractor build a job estimate. Here is my verified material takeoff and labor hours breakdown: [PASTE YOUR COMPLETED TAKEOFF AND LABOR TABLE FROM STEP 2] My rates and markup: - Labor rate: [YOUR LABOR RATE PER HOUR OR PER DAY] - Material markup: [YOUR MARKUP PERCENTAGE, e.g. 15%] - Overhead and profit margin: [YOUR O&P PERCENTAGE, e.g. 20%] - Sales tax rate on materials: [YOUR LOCAL RATE, e.g. 8.5%, or "included in prices above"] Produce a pricing summary with the following sections: MATERIAL COST List each line item, quantity, unit price, and extended cost. Show subtotal for materials. Show markup applied. Show tax applied. Show total material cost. LABOR COST List each task, hours, and rate. Show total labor hours. Show total labor cost. PROJECT TOTALS Show: material total + labor total = direct cost subtotal. Apply O&P to the subtotal and show the math. Show final bid price. Show every calculation as a formula (e.g., 12 sheets x $42.00 = $504.00) so I can verify each line. Do not round until the final total. Flag any line where I did not supply a price as [VERIFY]. ``` Recompute every line yourself. Do not hand this to a customer until you have checked the arithmetic independently. --- ## Step 4: Customer Bid Prompt This prompt turns your priced estimate into a clean, professional customer-facing bid. It includes scope, exclusions, assumptions, a payment schedule, and a workmanship note. Paste your pricing summary and any job-specific details where indicated. ``` You are helping a trades contractor write a customer-facing bid document. Here is my priced estimate and job details: [PASTE YOUR STEP 3 PRICING SUMMARY] Additional details: - Customer name: [CUSTOMER NAME] - Job address: [JOB ADDRESS] - Bid date: [DATE] - Bid valid for: [NUMBER OF DAYS, e.g. 30 days] - Payment schedule: [YOUR TERMS, e.g. 40% at contract signing, 40% at rough-in, 20% at final] - Warranty or workmanship period: [e.g. 1 year on workmanship] - Any items the customer mentioned that are NOT included in this bid: [LIST EXCLUSIONS] - Assumptions made during estimate: [LIST ASSUMPTIONS, e.g. "existing framing is level and plumb", "no hazardous materials present"] - Permit responsibility: [e.g. "Permits are the responsibility of the owner" or "Contractor will pull permits; permit fees are in addition to this bid"] Write a bid document with the following sections: 1. BID SUMMARY: Contractor name, customer name, job address, bid date, total bid price, and validity period. 2. SCOPE OF WORK: A plain-language description of exactly what is included. 3. EXCLUSIONS: A numbered list of items not included. 4. ASSUMPTIONS: A numbered list of conditions this price relies on. 5. PAYMENT SCHEDULE: Terms as I listed them above. 6. WORKMANSHIP NOTE: State the warranty period. Note that warranty covers workmanship defects; it does not cover damage from misuse, acts of others, or conditions outside the contracted scope. 7. ACCEPTANCE LINE: Space for customer signature and date. Write in plain, professional language. No jargon. No promises about code compliance unless I explicitly stated a specific code reference above. Do not make any claim about permits or inspections beyond what I supplied. ``` Read the entire bid before you send it. Confirm every number matches your Step 3 output. Confirm all exclusions are present. Remove any sentence that promises code compliance if you did not verify the applicable local code. --- ## Final Verification Pass Before this bid leaves your hands, run through this list yourself. Do not skip it. - [ ] Recomputed every extended cost line by hand (quantity x unit price) - [ ] Recomputed material subtotal, markup, and tax by hand - [ ] Recomputed labor total by hand - [ ] Recomputed final bid price by hand - [ ] Confirmed no [VERIFY] remains in the bid - [ ] Confirmed every quantity came from your own takeoff, not an AI assumption - [ ] Confirmed every unit price came from your supplier quote or your rate sheet - [ ] Confirmed all exclusions from your walkthrough are listed in the bid - [ ] Confirmed no code compliance or permit claim appears unless you verified the local adopted code and permit requirements yourself - [ ] Read the bid once more as if you are the customer If any item on this list is not checked, fix it before you send the bid. --- Part of The Skilled Trades Business Library at vetslearn.com/libraries/trades