A concrete subcontractor in Phoenix runs three job sites simultaneously. Every evening, his superintendents text him photos and notes about the day's work — scattered across iMessage threads. When a dispute arose about whether reinforcement was installed correctly, he spent hours searching through 6 months of texts to find the relevant photos. The lawsuit cost more than the original job.
Construction daily logs are legally critical documents. The $1.4 trillion US construction industry has 750,000+ companies, yet paper-based daily logs remain the norm for small contractors. Digital adoption is slow because enterprise tools like Procore ($4,000-20,000/year) are overkill, and most alternatives bundle daily logs with project management features contractors don't need.
The gap is a focused daily log app at $19-29/mo for subcontractors who just need: mobile photo capture with automatic organization, weather auto-fill, crew time tracking, and PDF export for clients. Not project management, not scheduling — just documentation. Position it as 'liability insurance' that costs less than one hour of a lawyer's time.
💰 Revenue Blueprint
Three-tier value ladder to monetize from day one
Full features trial, 1 project, unlimited photos
3 projects, unlimited logs, photo capture, weather auto-fill, PDF export
10 projects, 3 users, crew time tracking, client sharing, cloud backup
📊 Market Evidence
The Market Gap
Most tools ($49-375/mo) bundle daily logs with features contractors don't need. Gap at $19-29/mo for JUST daily logs: offline-first mobile app, photo attachment, weather auto-fill, PDF export. Target subcontractors who only need documentation, not full PM.
Revenue Examples
Pricing + customer testimonials
Team size + pricing (60+ employees)
Public company (bundled)
🏆 Competitor Landscape
How existing players stack up in this market
| Competitor | Pricing | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Procore | $375+/mo ($4K-20K/year) | Enterprise leader. Unlimited users. Daily logs bundled with full PM suite. |
| Contractor Foreman | $49/mo | 35+ features including daily logs. QuickBooks integration. All-in-one for small contractors. |
| Raken | $27-50/user/mo | Daily reports focus. Multimedia support, offline sync. Procore integration. |
| Buildertrend | $129-499/mo | Residential focused. Weather tracking, Gantt charts. Bundled features. |
| Fieldwire | $39/user/mo | Task-linked documentation. Procore/Autodesk integration. |
| Knowify | $68/mo | Small contractor focused. QuickBooks sync. Weather tracking. |
Enterprise leader. Unlimited users. Daily logs bundled with full PM suite.
35+ features including daily logs. QuickBooks integration. All-in-one for small contractors.
Daily reports focus. Multimedia support, offline sync. Procore integration.
Residential focused. Weather tracking, Gantt charts. Bundled features.
Task-linked documentation. Procore/Autodesk integration.
Small contractor focused. QuickBooks sync. Weather tracking.
Launch Strategy
1) Focus on subcontractors (electricians, plumbers, concrete) who have simpler needs. 2) Partner with construction insurance companies (position as risk mitigation). 3) Content: 'How daily logs prevent construction lawsuits'. 4) Local outreach in construction-heavy cities (Houston, Phoenix, Denver). 5) Integration with QuickBooks for time tracking export. 6) Referral program with 1 free month.
🛠️ Recommended Tech Stack
Suggested tools and technologies to build this idea
Why this stack: React Native for cross-platform mobile. Offline-first is critical for job sites with poor connectivity. S3 for photo storage. Weather API reduces manual entry.
Score Breakdown
Good market signals with room for growth
Market (20%) + Revenue (20%) + Trend (15%) + Competition (15%) + Build (15%) + Pricing (15%)
7/10 — Raken, Contractor Foreman prove demand. 750K+ construction companies. Clear pain point.
6/10 — Contractor Foreman at $49/mo has customers. Less public indie revenue data.
6/10 — Offline-first mobile is complex. 4-5 weeks MVP.
🚀 Start Building
Copy a prompt into your favorite AI coding tool and start building this idea right now.
Build a SaaS product called "Construction Daily Log". ## Product Overview Digital daily reports for job sites: photos, weather, crew hours, and progress notes. ## Problem Digital daily reports for job sites: photos, weather, crew hours, and progress notes. ## Solution Build Construction Daily Log ## Target Audience indie hackers, small businesses, and solopreneurs ## Tech Stack - Next.js 15 (App Router) with TypeScript - Tailwind CSS v4 for styling - Supabase for auth, database, and storage - Vercel for deployment - shadcn/ui for UI components - Framer Motion for animations ## MVP Features to Build 1. Landing page with clear value proposition 2. User authentication (sign up, sign in, forgot password) 3. Core product functionality based on the solution above 4. Dashboard for users to manage their data 5. Pricing page with at least 2 tiers (free + paid) 6. Basic settings/profile page ## Known Competitors Procore, Contractor Foreman, Raken, Buildertrend, Fieldwire, Knowify ## Key Risks to Address Standard market entry risks ## Deployment 1. Set up Supabase project and configure environment variables 2. Deploy to Vercel with `npx vercel --prod` 3. Set up custom domain 4. Configure Supabase RLS policies for security ## Instructions Start by creating the project structure, then build the landing page first. Use server components where possible. Make it mobile-responsive from the start. Focus on getting the core value loop working before adding polish.