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How On-Site Estimating Doubled His Close Rate
When Ty Brown started Mountain West Painting, he had a vision: build a successful painting business that gave him freedom, not just work. Four years later, he's running a thriving operation serving the Southwest Corridor of Denver and into the foothills of the Rocky Mountains. But the path from startup to success wasn't quite as straightforward as he'd hoped, and it took finding the right tools to make his vision a reality.
The Dream vs. The Reality
Every painting contractor who's made the leap from employee to business owner knows the feeling. You start your company with a clear picture of what success looks like: freedom, flexibility, and the time to actually enjoy the life you're working so hard to create.
For Ty, that dream included being present for his family. Not just physically present while mentally running through estimates, but actually present, engaged, and available.
The reality? Like most painting contractors in the early years, Ty found himself living a very different version of that dream.
During the day, he was out meeting with clients, walking properties, and doing all the things necessary to win projects. That part was fine. But then came the evening. Kids would go to bed. The house would quiet down. And instead of relaxing with his family, Ty would sit down at his computer and start the real grind: building estimates.
Hours would tick by. One estimate. Two estimates. Sometimes more, depending on how busy they'd been that day.
"I got into business for freedom," Ty says. "Going home at night, doing estimates while you're spending time with the family, doing estimates at night after the kids go to bed, I can't keep doing this."
Something had to change.
The Problem with the Old System
Mountain West Painting wasn't starting from scratch with estimating software. Ty had already invested in another platform. It worked, technically. But "getting the job done" and "working efficiently" are two very different things.
The platform had several critical limitations:
The process was slow. Building estimates took significant time. Time on-site measuring, then more time back at the office or at home inputting data, calculating pricing, and formatting proposals.
On-site presentations weren't realistic. The platform was too cumbersome to work quickly in front of a client. So Ty would tell the client he'd get the estimate to them soon, leave the property, build the proposal later, and email it over. That delay was costing him sales.
Training new team members was difficult. New hires had to learn not just the estimating principles but also the quirks and complexities of the software itself.
The system didn't scale with growth. Ty was spending too much time on estimates. New hires were taking too long to become productive. The sales process was slower than it needed to be.
Ty knew he needed something better.
There's a Better Way
Three years ago, Ty discovered PaintScout. Like many contractors, he was initially cautious. Switching estimating platforms isn't a trivial decision.
But two things about PaintScout immediately stood out:
First, the ease of building an estimate. PaintScout's production rate estimating system was fundamentally different from what Ty had been using. Instead of manually calculating every detail, the platform handled the math based on production rates—how long specific tasks actually take in the real world.
Second, the ability to present estimates on-site. With PaintScout's mobile-friendly interface and quick estimate generation, Ty could build the estimate while still at the property and present it directly to the homeowner before leaving. No delays. No "I'll get back to you."
Ty ran both platforms side by side for a short period, building the same estimates in both systems to verify accuracy.
What he discovered during that test period changed everything.
What Changed
The Numbers Don't Lie: A Dramatic Jump in Close Rate
Running two platforms simultaneously gave Ty a direct comparison of results. Same company. Same crews. Same market. Same estimator. The only variable was the estimating platform and the process it enabled.
The difference was stark.
When Ty presented estimates built with PaintScout, leveraging the ability to create and present proposals on-site, his close rate jumped significantly.
Why such a dramatic difference? Ty attributes it to three factors:
Speed of delivery. The faster you can get a detailed, professional proposal in front of a decision-maker, the better. When you can deliver an estimate while still standing in the client's driveway, you're communicating that you're organized, efficient, and serious about their project.
Face-to-face presentation. When you're physically present with the client, you can walk through each line item, explain your approach, handle objections in real-time, and read their body language to address concerns before they become deal-breakers.
Immediate feedback and adjustments. Client wants to add another room? Done. Want to see a different paint grade? No problem. Want to phase the project differently? Easy. That flexibility to respond in real-time makes the difference between "I'll think about it" and "Where do I sign?"
Reclaiming Evenings and Family Time
Before PaintScout, Ty's typical day ended with several hours of estimate work after arriving home. Site visits generated a backlog of proposals that needed to be built, formatted, and sent out.
After switching to PaintScout, that entire dynamic changed.
Now, Ty's estimates are delivered on-site. By the time he gets back to his truck, the proposal is complete and the client already has it in their inbox. Even in cases where he can't deliver on-site, Mountain West typically sends the proposal within the hour.
As Ty puts it: "When my day is done or my salesperson's day is done, that's it. Everything's sent out and you're good to go."
That simple shift from estimates as evening homework to estimates as part of the daytime workflow transformed Ty's quality of life.
Scaling Through Simplicity: Onboarding New Team Members
As Mountain West continued to grow, Ty needed to add salespeople and estimators. PaintScout solved the training challenge through its production rate foundation.
"Once you invest the time into getting your production rates dialed, it was very easy to hand over to a new salesperson or estimator. It's very hard to screw up an estimate based on production rates. You're just going out and taking measurements."
This means:
- Shorter training timelines: New estimators become productive within two weeks instead of months
- Consistency across the team: Everyone uses the same production rates and platform
- Less oversight required: Production rates provide guardrails that keep estimates within appropriate ranges
- Confidence in delegation: Ty isn't trapped doing all the estimates himself
Templates: The Secret Weapon for Speed
Ty has leveraged PaintScout's template system extensively. Mountain West serves a specific geographic area and deals with common project types repeatedly: full exterior repaints, interior refreshes, deck staining, cabinet refinishing.
Instead of building every estimate from scratch, Ty created templates for these common scenarios. When he shows up to bid a full exterior, he starts with the exterior template. Then it's just a matter of adjusting measurements, quantities, and project-specific details.
Benefits:
- Estimates built faster, making on-site delivery realistic
- Improved consistency across all estimates
- Easier training for new team members
- Guaranteed professional presentation every time
The Ripple Effect
The improvements weren't isolated to just estimate speed or close rates. They created a ripple effect:
- Revenue increased through higher close rates without increasing marketing spend
- Profitability improved through more accurate estimates and faster production
- Customer experience improved through faster responses and professional presentations
- Team morale improved because salespeople felt more confident
- Business growth accelerated because the bottleneck was eliminated
- Work-life balance became real because evenings were free
Why Ty Recommends PaintScout Constantly
Ty doesn't just use PaintScout, he actively recommends it. Other painters reach out regularly asking what estimating software Mountain West uses.
"As soon as I get them on a Zoom call and run them through my PaintScout and they see it, they're like, 'Okay, this is what we need.'"
A demonstration does what words can't. Contractors can see themselves using it, imagine delivering estimates on-site, and envision having their evenings back.
That's the mark of a true advocate, someone who actively evangelizes a product because they've experienced genuine transformation.
The Results
Four years into building Mountain West Painting, Ty has created something that aligns with his original vision:
- Running a successful operation serving Denver and the mountain communities
- Built a team that can handle growing volume without requiring evening work
- Achieving strong close rates through on-site estimate delivery
- Positioned for continued growth without sacrificing quality of life
Most importantly, when his workday ends, he's present with his family. Not physically present while mentally reviewing estimates. Actually present. Available. Engaged.
That was the goal. PaintScout helped make it a reality.
Your Next Step
If you're reading Ty's story and seeing yourself in those evening estimate sessions, ask yourself: what would change in your business (and your life) if you could cut your estimate time in half while also increasing your close rate?
What if your estimates could be delivered on-site, professionally formatted, before you left the property? What if training a new estimator took two weeks instead of six months? What if your evenings were actually free?
These aren't hypothetical questions. They're exactly what Ty Brown and Mountain West Painting experienced after switching to PaintScout.
Ready to see how PaintScout can transform your estimating process and give you your evenings back? Schedule a free demo to discover why contractors like Ty Brown trust PaintScout to run their businesses and reclaim their time.