The field walkthrough checklist: photos, video and voice notes that make the bid write itself

Most slow bids aren't slow because writing is hard. They're slow because the contractor sits down that night and realizes they don't remember if the niche was on the back wall or the side wall, or how tall the window sill was, or whether the client said they're buying the tile. Then it's a text, a wait, maybe a second trip.

A good walkthrough fixes that. Here's the checklist.

Why does the walkthrough decide the bid?

Because everything downstream comes from it: your measurements, your scope, your exclusions, your price and how fast you can send it.

It's also the moment the homeowner decides what kind of contractor you are. Someone who walks in, measures carefully, takes photos from every angle and asks good questions looks like someone who'll run a careful job. You're being interviewed the whole time you're in that bathroom.

What photos should you take on a bathroom walkthrough?

Think coverage, not count. You want to be able to see every surface you're pricing, plus anything that could change the price.

The wide shots

• Every wall you're tiling, straight on.
• The whole room from one corner, then from the opposite corner.
• The floor, as much of it as you can get in one frame.
• The ceiling, if anything's happening up there.
• The doorway and the path in from the street or driveway.

The detail shots

• The existing tub or shower, including where it meets the walls.
• Valves, shower head, drain and any plumbing in the work area.
• Windows in or near the shower, and how they sit.
• Outlets, switches, fans and lights near the work area.
• Vanity, toilet and anything that has to come out and go back.
• Transitions to other flooring at the door.
• Anything that looks off: stains, cracks, loose tile, soft spots, old repairs. Don't diagnose it on the spot. Just document it.
• A tape measure in frame for the key dimensions. A photo of the tape is a measurement you don't have to remember.

The reference shots

• Any tile or finish the homeowner has already picked out, including the box label.
• Inspiration photos they show you on their phone. Ask them to text them to you.

Should you shoot a walkthrough video too?

Yes, if you can spare a minute. Photos are great for detail. A video catches the layout and the stuff you'd never think to photograph.

Keep it short and slow:

1. Start at the door so you can see how you get in.
2. Pan slowly across the floor.
3. Go wall by wall around the room.
4. Look up at the ceiling.
5. Finish on the shower or tub, closer in.

And talk while you film. Call out the measurements as you go: "back wall is five feet wide, tile goes to the ceiling, niche goes here." Your narration is as valuable as the footage.

What should you say in a voice note?

Talk like you're briefing a helper who wasn't there. Don't worry about sounding polished. Just get it all out while it's fresh.

Here's a simple order to follow:

1. The room and the job in one sentence. "Hall bath, tub out, walk-in shower in, floor retiled."
2. The measurements. Wall by wall, plus the floor. Say the numbers out loud even if they're in a photo.
3. What's coming out. Tub, tile, vanity, toilet, flooring.
4. What's going in. Tile sizes and where, niche location, bench, trim, anything else they asked for.
5. What the client chose, and what they still need to choose. And who's buying the tile.
6. What you noticed. Anything that could turn into a change order later.
7. What you're not doing. Glass, plumbing, paint, whatever applies. These become your exclusions.
8. Anything about the site. Parking, stairs, pets, working hours, where the dumpster can go.

Five minutes of talking in the truck saves an hour at the kitchen table.

What should you ask the homeowner before you leave?

The questions that change the price or the schedule, asked while you're both standing there:

• Have you picked the tile, or do you need an allowance?
• Are you buying the tile, or am I?
• Anything you want that you haven't mentioned yet? (Niche, bench, heated floor, tile up the wall further.)
• Who else is part of this decision?
• When are you hoping to start, and is there a hard deadline?
• Is this the only bathroom, or is there another one you can use during the job?
• Are you getting other bids? (Not to pressure them. It tells you how fast you need to move.)
• What's the best way to send you the proposal, and when should I follow up?

That last one is underrated. If you tell them "you'll have it tomorrow by noon" and then deliver, you've already beaten most of your competition. More on that in how fast you should send a bid.

How do you organize it so the bid writes itself?

Go room by room, and do it in the same order every time.

If you're bidding a primary bath and a hall bath, don't shoot them all mixed together in one camera roll. Finish one room (photos, video, voice note), then do the next. Name the room in your note. When you sit down to write, or when software reads your notes, everything for one room is in one place.

The same order every time also means you stop forgetting things. Your checklist becomes habit, and the habit becomes speed.

The short version

Print this or save it to your phone:

1. Wide shots of every wall, the floor and the ceiling, from opposite corners.
2. Close-ups of fixtures, plumbing, windows, transitions and anything that looks off.
3. A tape measure in frame for key dimensions.
4. A slow walkthrough video, talking as you go.
5. A voice note: measurements, out, in, choices, concerns, exclusions, site notes.
6. The homeowner questions, especially who's buying the tile and when they'll hear from you.
7. One room at a time, same order every time.

How BidCraft uses what you capture

This checklist is the reason BidCraft starts with capture. You add photos, a walkthrough video and voice notes to each room in the app, right from the job. BidCraft transcribes what you say, including the narration on your walkthrough video, and reads it all to work out the measurements and the scope.

When you say a number out loud, that number wins over anything the AI estimates from a photo. And if a measurement comes out wrong, you tap it and type the right one. Your measurements beat the AI's.

From there it drafts the scope and builds a priced proposal from your rates. The step-by-step is in start a new bid from photos and a voice note.

Try it on your next walkthrough with the 14-day free trial (card required), from the pricing page.