Running a contracting business while being on the tools is a split-brain problem. You’re managing crews, ordering materials, and doing physical work while your business’s lead pipeline, online reputation, and schedule quietly drift in the background.
A 5-minute daily check-in prevents most of the drift. Six items, every morning before you leave for the job site. You’ll catch missed leads before they go cold, review requests before customers forget, and scheduling conflicts before they explode.
The 6-item checklist
1. Missed calls (2 minutes)
Open your call log. Any calls from unknown or new numbers that didn’t leave a voicemail? Those are likely leads. Call back before 9am if you can. Homeowners who called at 8pm last night are still warm at 8am today.
If you use a CRM (ServiceTitan, Jobber, Housecall Pro, etc.), pull up “new leads from last 24 hours” instead. Same exercise.
2. Lead inbox (1 minute)
Website contact form emails, GBP messages, Yelp messages, Houzz inquiries, Facebook messages. Scan for anything new. Reply or tag for follow-up within the hour.
If you’re getting more than 5 new lead messages a day, set up an autoresponder so nothing sits silently. See our speed-to-lead guide for templates.
3. Google Business Profile messages and reviews (1 minute)
Open your GBP dashboard (via the Google Maps app or business.google.com). Check:
- Any new messages? Respond before you leave.
- Any new reviews since yesterday? Respond within 24 hours.
- Any new Q&A questions? Answer them (or they’ll be answered by someone else).
GBP tracks your message response rate. If you have messaging enabled and you’re not checking it daily, turn it off. An unanswered message is worse than no messaging at all.
4. Review requests to send (30 seconds)
Any jobs that wrapped up yesterday? Send the review request text this morning before the job site energy fades from the homeowner’s mind.
Template:
“Hey [Name], great working with you on the [job type] yesterday. If you have 2 minutes, a Google review helps us out a lot: [link]. No pressure either way. [Your Name]”
If you’re using a review platform (NiceJob, Podium, BrightLocal reviews), log in and fire the pending requests for jobs marked complete.
5. Today’s calendar (30 seconds)
Scan the day. Any conflicts you need to resolve now? Any estimate appointments that need confirmation texts? A quick “Hey, just confirming we’re on for 2pm today” text reduces no-shows by 30 to 50%.
Template:
“Hey [Name], confirming we’re still on for [time] today for the [service] estimate. See you then. [Your Name]”
6. One thing to follow up on (30 seconds)
Open your CRM or a simple spreadsheet. One lead that’s been sitting. One estimate you sent last week with no response. One past customer you haven’t heard from in 3 months. Send one follow-up today.
Template for an estimate follow-up:
“Hey [Name], wanted to check in on the estimate I sent over [date]. Let me know if you have questions or want to talk through the scope. Happy to adjust anything. [Your Name]”
One follow-up per day is 5 per week, 20 per month, 240 per year. Many of those convert. The ones you don’t follow up on convert to competitors.
The actual 5 minutes broken down
| Task | Time |
|---|---|
| Missed calls | 2 min |
| Lead inbox scan | 1 min |
| GBP messages and reviews | 1 min |
| Review requests | 30 sec |
| Calendar confirmation | 30 sec |
| One follow-up | 30 sec |
Total: under 6 minutes. Do it in the truck before you walk onto the job site.
Making it a habit
The hardest part isn’t the 5 minutes. It’s the consistency. Three tactics that help:
- Anchor it to something you already do. Morning coffee, truck ignition, crew check-in call. Attach the checklist to a habit that never skips.
- Use a phone wallpaper reminder. A simple “check leads / GBP / calendar” as your lock screen wallpaper sounds basic. It works.
- Set up a shared list with your office manager (if you have one) so they see what got checked. Accountability speeds up habit formation.
What falls apart when you skip it
For most contractors, skipping the daily check-in means:
- Leads that went cold in 4 hours because you didn’t respond
- A 1-star review that sat public for 3 days with no response
- A no-show estimate because you didn’t confirm the appointment
- An estimate you sent 2 weeks ago that a competitor closed because you never followed up
None of these are catastrophes in isolation. Compounded over a year, they’re the gap between a business that grows and one that treads water.
5 minutes. 6 items. Do it every day.