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Stay away from the guys that use the low ballers. Introduce yourself to the guys that do quality work and pay their subs. Check up on them, ask around, make sure they pay their bills and are fair to deal with first then send them a letter saying you'd love the opportunity to bid on some upcoming work and would love to show them what you can do "prove yourself" with some smaller jobs that the established (with them) contractors don't or won't do. Then go out and under promise and over deliver. If your good they'll consider you for the bigger stuff too.
Consider their point of view: if they are working with a good contractor already that is taking care of them why would they want to go anywhere else? You want to be that guy though so how do you do it? Take care of them. Under promise and over deliver.
I have found that most guys in the trades are terrible business people. They don't return phone calls promptly. They don't do what they said they's do. Ex: verbal price was this but we ran into some problems so surprise, Whamo! We'll be there next tuesday, two weeks later they show up without even a call to let people know. Start the job one day and leave the next to start another job and come back next week and put in a couple of days then off again. I could go on and on. If you are doing this stuff you'll never be the go to guy for anybody and never make any real money. If you have your act together you'll get the chance if you ask for it. I did great work for a long time and figured the world would beat a path to my door, it never happened. I had to go out and get it. Make some phone calls, go visit some job sites, offer to take some prospects to lunch/dinner. Talk in terms of how you can benefit your prospects/clients. Figure out what they want and then figure out how to deliver it and then let them know you know what they want and can deliver if given the opportunity, then show'em.
It's simple it just isn't easy!
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