Price, Plan, and Perform

Pricing and project management are two of the most hotly debated topics in the restoration industry. They’re also the most treacherous. Price too low, and you’re bleeding cash. Manage poorly, and even “profitable” jobs collapse under the weight of inefficiency.

In a Cleanfax webinar moderated by Jeff Cross, three industry veterans—Jeremy Reets of Reets Drying Systems, consultant Nate Cisney of Restoration Made Simple, and Brandon Burton of Cotality^TM—pulled back the curtain on how to avoid costly mistakes, manage scope creep, handle insurance drama, and scale a restoration business for sustainable profit.

The most common pricing mistakes

Cross opened the panel with a straightforward question: What’s the biggest pricing mistake you see restorers make, and how can it be avoided?

Reets came at the problem from a mitigation perspective. Too often, he explained, contractors hesitate to provide necessary services out of fear they won’t be reimbursed. “You should always start with what’s the right job and then figure out how to get paid for it,” Reets said. “Don’t let the thought, ‘I might not get paid for this,’ become part of the decision-making process.”

Cisney, who works with contractors nationwide on estimating and operations, pointed to the rebuild side. “The biggest mistake I see is project managers not creating a budget,” he cautioned. “Without a budget, you’re running blind and hoping you make money at the end of the job. That is not the way to run a business.”

Burton tied both perspectives together. He claimed many restorers leave profitable services on the table by defaulting to replacement over restoration—out of fear of adjuster pushback. “Restoration is much more profitable than replacement,” Burton said. “If you’re capable of restoring, do it, document it properly, and you’ll be surprised at the profitability.”

Project management that actually works

Anyone can claim to run “on time and on budget.” Few do it consistently. When asked for their go-to strategies, the panel agreed on one theme: communication.

Cisney noted that budgets can be controlled, but timelines often slip due to subcontractor issues or unforeseen conditions. “The No. 1 problem in our industry is communication,” he explained. “We could screw up on a job, but if we communicated, homeowners were forgiving. Run the job perfectly but fail to communicate, and they hated us.”

Burton expanded on that point, stressing the importance of managing expectations, not just reporting progress. “If you don’t set realistic expectations at the start, the client will set their own—and you’ll fail every time,” he stated.

Reets cautioned that sales pressure often leads companies to promise unrealistic timelines to win the job. “Salespeople tell customers what they want to hear,” he said. “Then project managers inherit the problem. The best thing you can do is be honest—even if that means telling clients to ‘get ready to be disappointed’ when insurance delays are inevitable.”

Scope creep: The silent killer of profit

Every restorer has battled scope creep, that slow drift where jobs grow in size or complexity without corresponding revenue. Burton put it bluntly: “Scope creep is scope creep when communication and documentation are ineffective.”

In mitigation, scope naturally evolves as conditions change, but failure to identify and document changes immediately turns into unreimbursed work. “Discover it quickly, document it thoroughly, and charge for it,” Burton advised.

Reets added a twist: scope creep doesn’t only grow upward. It can also shrink downward when technicians, rushing through back-to-back jobs, cut corners. “Your average sale will drop when you’re busy,” he pointed out. “Scope creep downward is a silent killer because no one catches it—except you, if you’re watching.”

Cisney pointed to another root cause: poor field documentation. Even with today’s digital platforms, technicians often fail to capture all details. “Everything starts at the technician level,” he said. “If they won’t do it, you need strong oversight. Have managers check jobs to verify the scope is captured and documented.”

Navigating adjuster drama

No restoration webinar would be complete without discussing insurance. All three panelists agreed that the relationship with adjusters is more complex now than in the past.

Reets recommended negotiating earlier in the process. “If you wait until the job is done, you’ve lost leverage,” he said. He also urged contractors to stop seeking “approval” and instead focus on “agreement.” Approval is binary, he noted, while agreement allows for negotiation.

Cisney observed a bigger shift: Adjusters are being instructed to limit communication with contractors altogether. “We’ve always gone to adjusters for approval when we don’t even have a contract with them,” he explained. “The contract is with the homeowner. That’s who we need to communicate with and advocate for.”

Burton emphasized the role of documentation. “The one piece of communication that still moves between contractor and insurer is the project documentation,” he explained. “Make sure it speaks to the integrity of your work and compliance with standards. It has to stand on its own.”

Scaling a restoration company

Many contractors dream of growth, but scaling comes with hard lessons. Cisney warned that “the middle” is the worst place to be. “When we were small, we made great profit,” he said. “When we hit $5–7 million, margins went down, and headaches went up. You either stay small and efficient or build the systems to scale big—but the middle is painful.”

Burton urged owners to maintain pride and ownership at every level of the organization as they grow. “The larger the company, the easier it is for the passion of the founder to get lost,” he said. “You have to push that sense of pride and skill down into the trenches.”

Reets, whose family has been in restoration for over 50 years, encouraged contractors to simplify. “Stop trying to do everything,” he counseled. “Pick the most profitable services, build great systems, and scale those. Don’t chase every service line under the sun.”

The role of technology and AI

Technology can help—or hinder. Burton, who works in the software sector, made it clear that not every shiny tool pays off. “Technology is only right if it preserves the integrity of data from the field to the office,” he said. “That’s what contractors need—reliable, high-fidelity documentation that defends their bills.”

On artificial intelligence (AI), the panel urged caution. Burton warned that AI often pulls from outdated or inaccurate sources, especially around standards of care. “AI can help with a draft, but don’t assume it’s fact,” he said. Reets added that we’re still in the “AOL Instant Messenger phase of AI”—exciting, but immature. “It’ll evolve, but for now, don’t rely on it to negotiate your estimates.”

Final takeaways

As the webinar wrapped, each panelist shared a closing thought.

Reets: “If you’re going to run a business, run a business. It’s a different skill set than running a truck.”

Cisney: “Keep an open mind. This industry changes too fast to be closed off to new opportunities.”

Burton: “Ensure your documentation speaks for itself. That’s what keeps projects defensible.”

The bottom line? Restoration success isn’t about software clicks or lucky estimates. It’s about disciplined pricing, proactive communication, airtight documentation, and a willingness to simplify and systematize. Those who master these fundamentals won’t just survive—they’ll thrive.