Customer stories
Builders winning jobs they'd never have seen.
Real builders, real numbers. See how construction companies across the UK are using PlanPost to land more work.
The challenge
Mike was checking three council portals a week, spending two hours each time. He'd find applications days after they were filed and often discovered a competitor had already knocked on the door. He'd tried one of the expensive lead platforms but found the data stale and the price hard to justify at £3k a year.
How PlanPost helped
Mike set up PlanPost on a Tuesday lunchtime. He entered his postcode, set a 15-mile radius, picked extensions and loft conversions, and uploaded his company letterhead. By Wednesday morning, 12 new leads were in his dashboard and the first letters were already at the printers.
The results
In his first month, Mike's letters reached 34 homeowners. Four called back, he quoted three, and won a £48k two-storey rear extension. That single job paid for over four years of PlanPost Professional. He now averages 2-3 quoted jobs per month from PlanPost leads alone.
“Signed up on a Tuesday, first letter went out Wednesday, first call-back by Friday. Quoted a £48k extension the week after. Paid back the year's subscription in one job.”
The challenge
CSK Property relied on word of mouth and the occasional referral. Chris knew planning applications were a goldmine but didn't have the time to check Kent's multiple council portals daily. They'd tried a competitor platform but found the letters weren't included and the data was often weeks old.
How PlanPost helped
Chris signed up to PlanPost Business, covering a 20-mile radius across east Kent. He set up three letter templates for different project types, turned on auto-send, and enabled QR code tracking so he could see when homeowners were engaging. Within a week, letters were going out to homeowners across Canterbury, Ashford and Faversham without him touching a thing.
The results
In the first three months, CSK Property sent 147 letters and received 19 callbacks. They quoted 12 jobs and won 5, totalling over £180k in new contracts. The QR scans gave them proof the letters were landing. Chris could see scan activity within 48 hours of letters going out. He estimates PlanPost saves him 6 hours a week in admin time alone.
“We'd tried the expensive lead platforms before. The data was always stale. PlanPost is live council data and the letters actually land on doormats, not someone's inbox at 11pm.”
Sheffield S7 4RQ
0114 555 0192
22 Laurel Gardens
Sheffield
S7 1DH
Dear Homeowner,
Congratulations on submitting your planning application for a loft conversion at 22 Laurel Gardens. It's exciting to see local homeowners investing in improving their properties.
I'm writing to introduce Oakwood Construction, a local building company that specialises in extensions, loft conversions and home improvements across South Sheffield. We've been trading since 2012, and everything we build is carried out by our own team rather than subcontractors, so someone is on your job every day and the work never stalls.
We finished a loft conversion much like yours on Abbeydale Road earlier this year: two bedrooms and a shower room, done in eleven weeks with the family living at home throughout.
I know the two big questions at this stage are what it will really cost and what it's like to live through the build. Those are exactly the things I'd rather set out honestly with you before you commit to anything.
If you'd like to discuss your plans or would welcome a free, no-obligation consultation, I'd be happy to visit at a time that suits you. Call me on 0114 555 0192, or scan the code below to see examples of our recent work.
I look forward to hearing from you.
Kind regards,
The challenge
James had been sending follow-up letters by hand for years. Whenever he saw an application get approved on the council website, he'd print a letter, address an envelope, and walk to the post box. It worked, but it was slow and he missed more approvals than he caught.
How PlanPost helped
PlanPost Professional gave James the one thing he couldn't do manually: automatic follow-up on approval. He set up his area, turned on the follow-up feature, and let PlanPost handle the monitoring, the approval detection, and the letter dispatch.
The results
In his first six weeks, PlanPost detected 11 planning approvals in James's area and automatically posted a follow-up letter to each homeowner. Five called back, and James won two of them, both jobs he'd otherwise have missed entirely. He describes the follow-up letter as 'the one that actually converts'.
“The follow-up letter on planning grant is the magic. Nine times out of ten that's the one that converts. I used to send them by hand. Now I just see 'letter posted' in the dashboard and get on with the work.”