Specs + Selections
Client view
No, your clients can only see information about their own home. Even though you can access all of your projects in one place, the clients will be unable to see anyone else’s information. ...
Communicate with clients and trade partners about specific scope of work directly from the Specs & Selections page. Each item has its own Comment thread to organize and streamline communication between everyone. Simply select View/Add Comment to ...
The Specs & Selections page is the bread and butter of your project’s scope of work. Client’s logging into the system can rely on this page for the full details of the project, including which decisions require their attention. Even for clie ...
If you check the box for "Client may decline this selection item", CoConstruct will automatically add a "I do not want this selection" choice when the client goes to enter a decision. You should leave this option unchecked whenever the client ha ...
Clients may be able to see certain files on the selection item. To check, click the "Edit" link next to the selection. In the "Related Files" section, any file with a green client icon (the picture of the 2 people holding hands) will be visible. To h ...
Does this scenario sound familiar: "Mrs. Smith, can you meet with the electrician next Tuesday at 11:00? No? Well, how about Friday at 4:30?" This back and forth exchange to arrange appointments between clients and vendors can be time consuming. Save ...
Want to wow your clients with pictures or visuals of their selection options? Want clients to SEE exactly what they're choosing? Go for it! Simply attach relevant files and photos to any specification or selection item. SAVING IMAGES FROM VENDORS ...
There are two main things to keep in mind as you decide how to use the Specification, Client Information, and Trade Partner Information boxes on the Specs & Selections. #1 - Visibility Different people will be able to see different information, d ...
Your projects may have certain selection items where the clients can pick anything they want, but you still have a basic selection that you have priced into the contract. In this case, you want to give the client the ability to go with your basic o ...
Selection items
Your client enters a selection for marble countertops, but later decides they want to change their choice to granite. So what do they do? Your client can enter in their own selection change until your team has either: 1. Clicked the "Update status ...
Co-construct gives you two different ways to let your clients respond to a selection item: Open-Ended Choice Choice to be entered by client – This gives your clients the ability to enter an open-ended response. When your clients, or you, go to ma ...
There are two ways to create a Choice item on your Specs & Selections page. A) Create your own Choice Item. Click on the "New” link at the top left the Specs & Selections page > choose "Selection". Enter the item name and select the categ ...
Dates will show on your selection items for one of two reasons: You specifically set a date as the deadline for the selection item. You have picked a milestone as the deadline and you have allowed your clients to see the schedule on this pro ...
Any changes to a selection, including making and changing choices, are saved in the change log. Click the “View change log” link on the selection item to see exactly what has been going on. ...
Yes, any builder side user with permission to edit financial information can make a choice. Remember, though, that the change log will reflect that you are the one making the choice under your login – not your client’s. In situations where the cli ...
“Differences” are the price of the selection choice minus the allowance amount, if there is an allowance. Co-construct does not do “use it or lose it” allowances. ...
Most of the time your clients are writing out the checks to you -- thank goodness. But there are instances where you have to apply a credit back for selections on a project. Here are options for handling credit situations in Co-construct: Use al ...
It says “upcoming” because a decision needs to be made soon. When it says “upcoming” depends on what kind of “requested by” deadline you have set for the selection item. If you set an absolute date, then it will show as “upcoming” when you are ...
No, selection items do not automatically lock themselves. Because schedules are rarely written in stone, and since you have to go to the selection sheet anyway to get information to place an order, Co-construct waits for you to lock the item when ...
There are times when you need a yes or no answer, such as whether or not the client wants to finish off a bonus room. In this case, in the section for "Option to Decline" check the box for "Client may decline this selection item". Then enter a single ...
If you have enabled web access for a partner on this project and have allowed access to the selection sheet on the "Partner Web Access Settings" page, he may be able to see certain files on the selection item. To check, click the "Edit" link next to ...
Sometimes you just need signoff on an item that is standard or had previously been decided prior to using Co-construct on the project. In this case, create a new selection item, ensure that the box for "Client may decline this selection item" is unch ...
This may be the case if you are offering the client a cost-neutral selection or if you are giving the option of a base package that you included in the contract. If you haven't entered an allowance amount, the most common way of handling this is t ...
TBD means “To Be Determined.” When setting up a choice item, you may not always know the price of your client's selection. Checking the "Show as TBD" box lets you at least show the selection information to your client, even though the pricing informa ...
Only "Selection" items on the Specs & Selections can be unlocked. Specification items are always locked based on their nature. Remember that you only need to unlock the selection if you want the client to be able to change the choice. At any tim ...
Some builders may want multiple copies of a selection (such as having a sink selection item for the master bath, one for the powder room, guest bath, etc.) on their project's specs & selections without having to manually retype the information fo ...
You can have up to 5,000 characters in each of the three information fields - Specification Information, Client Information and Trade Partner Information. ...
To add a link into any of the information sections on a spec or selection item, just type in the web address - like www.coconstruct.com. After you save the item, when it appears on the main specs & selections page, you'll see that the system will ...
Upcoming selection items will not show up on the builders' main page as items requiring attention. This is to avoid any unnecessary clutter for the builder. The selection items will show up on the builders' dashboard and project overview page once ...
Editing a Category on the Specs/Selections Template: Select "Edit" for any item on the template. From there you can select "Edit Category" at the top right. From here, you can edit any existing categories, add or delete and reassign.
To move a specification or selection item, click "Edit" next to the item on the Specs/Selections page. From there, you can change the item's category and/or name. Once you click "Update Item" at the bottom of the screen it will move the item to its n ...
Selection items can be locked manually once a choice is made by clicking the “Update status” link on an item and choosing "Lock Choice" under the Change Lock Status. This method prevents the client from making any further changes on the selection. ...
In CoConstruct, you want your selections and schedule to be in sync, working hand in hand toward your project's completion. To link these important pages, use milestones for selection deadlines, which will tie the selection items back to the schedule ...
The Specs & Selections in CoConstruct have categories, which then contain your individual items. Categories give you and your clients an easy way to review the scope of the project and make decisions without getting overwhelmed, especially when y ...
Most of us have heard of Tiffany's and their famous blue jewelry boxes. Well, CoConstruct has a handy gray box on the selections page that might not be as famous, but you'll like what it can do. Let's say you go to a project's specs & selectio ...
"Champagne taste on a beer budget." Lots of custom builders and remodelers use that phrase when it comes to their clients. And while not all clients watch every penny, at the end of the day, they're still writing a check. So money matters, and Co ...
One of the great things about CoConstruct is that it can help you corral lots of information, but with very little effort. For example, when setting up your selections, you can attach files containing quotes and selection information from your vend ...
Attaching photos and important documentation to specific scope of work on the project benefits your team and your client(s). Since the Specs & Selections page offers the "bread and butter" of the project for anyone involved in the project, consi ...
Organization is an important key to success, right? That's why keeping your selection items ordered in a logical manner will help your clients and team as they work through the selections process. By default, the categories on the Specs & Selecti ...
Comments are used throughout CoConstruct so that you, your clients and trade partners have a place to have a “conversation” about a particular item. By adding comments directly to a selection item, schedule task, warranty request, question, etc..., y ...
CoConstruct offers a couple of ways to obtain approval from clients on selected and/or new items to the contract. Clients Making Choices: If your client logs into CoConstruct and interacts with you via the online portal, they are able to select ...
The Change Log records updates made to your Specs & Selections so you can track the progression of the project scope over time. This creates a paper trail for you to reference if there are ever any questions about what the previous details of an ...
If a selection has no history of a choice being made, you can remove it by clicking the “Delete item” link in the upper right corner of the selection item. There you will see the option to move any files, photos or comments that are part of the sele ...
There are two ways to add a selection item. To add a selection item just to one project, click the + New option at the top of the Estimate or Specs & Selections page. Choose Selection from the list of options. If you have selection items that yo ...
A large part of any custom project is client selections. While creating something completely custom is exciting, the number of decisions required during that process can be overwhelming - for all parties involved. Effectively using selections within ...
Contractors have differing definitions of selections, upgrades, options, and change orders. To address this, CoConstruct has a very broad definition of a “selection item,” that encompasses all of these by grouping them together under the selections ...
ADDING FILES TO ITEMS Add files and photos to any specification or selection item on a project to add visual color to your information. Pull in files from those on your computer or already loaded into the project. Here's How: Find the item on the S ...
Files on the Project Files page should relate to the project as a whole or to non-selection topics. You can, however, see the files attached to the Specs & Selections, plus photos attached elsewhere in the project by clicking either the “Attached ...
Specification items
On the Specs & Selections page you can create both specification and choice items to cover everything that goes into a project. Specifications are the basic building blocks of what goes into a project, and include things like the type of lumber o ...
To change a Selection Item to a Specification Item: Click "Edit" for that choice item from the Specs & Selections page. Change the "Type" at the top from "Choice" to "Specification" Update any corresponding information related to the specificat ...
There are two ways to create a specification item on the Specs & Selections: A) Create your own Specification item. Click on the “New” button at the top left of the specs & selections page. Select “Specification” from the drop down. Fill out ...
Templates
CoConstruct lets you maintain a library of your specs & selections within your selection templates, and it's an easy process for getting those template selection items copied down to a particular project. You can start from your project's Selecti ...
Ever have a great Specs & Selections sheet on a project that you wish you could use as a template? You can create a template from a project's specs & selections by going to Templates > Specs/Selection Templates. At the top of the page, cli ...
When you're copying items from a selection template to a project, and that project is set up for estimates & job costing, the selections that you copy down may include financial details and various cost lines. Since your selection sheet includes ...
You can add budgeting information when adding or editing items on your Spec/Selections template by using the "Add cost line" link under the original budget or options. This is a great place to enter standard costs that go into a particular spec or se ...
As they teach in Scouts, you want to be prepared for any situation. And if you focus more on semi-custom homes built in different communities, you may have different plans and choices that you offer in each area. CoConstruct can help you efficiently ...
To delete a category for your specs & selections, select "Edit" for an item under that category. From there, you can select the "X" icon next to the category name to delete it. When you delete a category, any remaining items that are also in th ...
Get some ideas for your spec & selection templates from these real examples, contributed by other CoConstruct customers. Want to share your templates (minus your name)? Email us at support@co-construct.com and we'll post it here so other can bene ...
Yes, this list can be helpful for both custom and semi-custom builders. While no two jobs may be the same, there are almost always windows, flooring, paint color, etc... You may not need to list specific options, but you at least know that a certain ...
Users with admin access can control and limit non-admin users' ability to update spec/selections and schedule templates. To do so, go to Contacts then My Team and click "Edit" from the ellipse menu next to the desired builder user.
You have lots of flexibility in deciding how detailed you want to be on your selection template. Some builders, particularly those with a finite number of floorplans and options, have very detailed template items that need little or no tweaking when ...
No, even if you delete an item from a template, it will not affect any existing projects that contain that item. ...
No, even if you copied an item from the template to a project, the spec/selection item on the project will not change if you later change the template item. Changing a template item will only affect the information that you copy to future projects. ...
No, your clients cannot see you Spec/Selection templates as these are intended as a library for you to build out your project information. If you're giving your client login access to their project, they will be able to see the specs & selections ...