Material prices go up. It’s not a question of if, only when and by how much. The contractors who protect their margins aren’t the ones who avoid price increases. They’re the ones who have a plan for handling them when they land in an email inbox.
Start with a conversation, not an assumption
Before you accept a new price sheet, ask your supplier what’s actually driving the increase. Is it raw materials, labor, freight, or all of the above? Understanding the “why” tells you whether there’s room to negotiate or whether the whole market is moving together.
Negotiate before you accept
Increases aren’t always final. A few angles worth trying:
- Lean on loyalty. If you’ve been a long-term customer, say so, and ask directly whether there’s flexibility.
- Buy in bulk. Larger orders often unlock better per-unit pricing, especially on materials you use on nearly every job.
- Push on terms, not just price. Even if the sticker price won’t move, extended payment windows or early-pay discounts can ease the cash flow hit.
Know when to shop around
If your supplier’s new pricing is noticeably out of step with the rest of the market, it may be time to get quotes elsewhere. But if the whole industry is absorbing the same increase, jumping suppliers over pricing alone probably won’t solve much, and it will cost you the relationship equity you’ve already built.
Diversify so one supplier isn’t your whole business
Adding secondary services such as gutters, siding, solar, windows will spread your exposure across more materials and more suppliers, so a spike in shingle pricing doesn’t hit your whole bottom line at once. The same goes for expanding into new service areas: more revenue streams means less dependency on any single cost input.
Protecting your margin against rising material costs starts with knowing your real numbers- what a job actually costs you today, not what it cost six months ago. Estimates built on stale pricing are exactly how a price increase quietly eats your profit without you noticing until the job’s already done.
CRMs like JobNimbus have integrations with major suppliers that can help manage your pricing.
