If you know a main contractor is preparing a package and need to find out who's pricing it, pick up the phone. If you know the contractor buys your trade but don't have a particular job to discuss, start on LinkedIn. Use it to learn who's involved and give them a reason to remember your firm.
That's how I'd split the two for a specialist subcontractor. The choice comes down to what you know about the opportunity and what you need to find out next.
When a cold call makes sense
A call is useful when you have a specific question that someone at the company can answer quickly. You might know the project and need to confirm whether the package has gone out, who handles enquiries or whether there's still time to express interest.
Say you've seen a main contractor announce a refurbishment in your region. You deliver commercial decorating, but the announcement gives no detail on how the finishing packages will be bought. You could open with:
Hi, it's [name] from [company]. We deliver commercial decorating in [region]. I'm calling about [project]. Who's handling the decorating package?
If they give you a name, ask how that person prefers to receive enquiries. If they direct you to a supplier portal, use it. If the package has already been placed, record that and move on. A two-minute call can still save you an afternoon of chasing the wrong job.
The phone is harder to use well when your only reason for calling is to ask if there's any work going. The person answering has to work out what you do, where you fit and who should take the call. Do that research first wherever you can.
When LinkedIn makes more sense
LinkedIn is a better starting point when the company looks like a fit and you're still working out who handles your type of work. A regional commercial team, a project estimator and a group supply-chain manager can all be relevant, but they may have different responsibilities. A profile or project post can give you a starting point, and a short message can help confirm it.
It also gives you somewhere to show your work before you need to ask for anything. If you want to price refurbishments in occupied buildings, explain how your team phased a comparable job, what access had to stay open and how you managed the handovers. That gives a buyer something specific to remember or forward.
A connection or a reply is an opening. If someone tells you a colleague deals with your trade, follow that referral while the conversation is fresh. If there's a real requirement to discuss, suggest a short call with a clear purpose.
For more on finding the right people and showing relevant project evidence, see our LinkedIn marketing guide for construction companies.
How the two can work together
Imagine you run a concrete repair firm in the Midlands. A main contractor you want to work with regularly delivers commercial refurbishments, but you haven't found a live repair package. Here's an illustrative sequence.
Start with a relevant contact
You find a regional estimator through a project post and send a short message asking who normally handles concrete repair enquiries for that team. You include one comparable project if it helps explain what you do.
Call when you have a reason
Later, the contractor announces an occupied office refurbishment. The announcement doesn't say there are concrete repairs, so you call to establish whether there's a package you can help with. If the estimator previously pointed you to a colleague, start there.
Follow up with evidence that fits
If the buyer confirms a relevant requirement and asks for details, send a short example showing the repair scope, the access constraint and how your team kept the building usable. Ask what they need next, whether that's a registration form, a capability summary or a discussion with the project team.
You can reverse the order. If you hear about a live package first, call while the information is useful. Then use LinkedIn to stay in touch with the people you spoke to between opportunities.
How to tell which is working
Track the next step each contact produced. For a call, that might be a confirmed package owner or a date to check back. For LinkedIn, it might be a referral, a request for project information or an introduction to a buyer. Record invitations to price, quotes submitted and work won as separate outcomes.
Keep the original source and the later steps in the same record. If LinkedIn introduced you to the buyer and a call confirmed the package, both mattered. Tracking only the last touch would hide how you found the opportunity in the first place.
If you're starting next week, split your prospect list in two. Put firms with a specific project or package question on the call list. Put firms you want to work with over the next year on the research list. Give every firm one next action and a reason for it.
If you've already identified the main contractors you want to work with and need help getting in front of their teams, talk to Market Maestro.
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