What are the responsibilities and job description for the Sales Estimator - Comfort Advisor position at Driveway Design?
Most estimators show up, measure the driveway, quote what the customer asked for, and leave. That's not this job.
Driveway Design has been in the Twin Cities since 1977. Not because we undercut every competitor on price. We've survived four recessions because we ask better questions than everyone else, then actually build what the customer didn't know they could have. A couple calls about a small driveway extension — you notice the garbage cans crammed in the garage, ask one question, and an hour later you've redesigned the whole project. Bigger contract, happier customer, better commission check.
We're looking for someone who already thinks this way. If that's you, keep reading.
You're right — that section is doing too much at once and the math is hiding inside paragraphs. Here's the issue and a cleaner rewrite.
What's confusing:
- The commission section mixes the rate, the goal, the payout, and a stretch goal in one paragraph. Reader can't tell what's guaranteed vs. what's earned.
- The "two installments" note at the bottom contradicts the commission math above it — you just told them they'd earn $52,875, then quietly mentioned they get it in pieces. That belongs with the commission explanation, not as a footnote.
- The monthly bonus uses "8" and "16" without anchoring what those numbers mean relative to the annual goal. Is 8 a month easy? Hard? Reader has no frame.
- "Top performers clear $90,000–$115,000" is the headline number — it's buried at the end of paragraph two.
Rewrite:
THE PATH
Here's what you'll earn and how.
Guaranteed base: $750/week for ~30 weeks = $22,500 before you close a single contract.
Commission:
- 4.5% on residential and smaller commercial
- 2.5% on large commercial
- Paid in two parts: 1.5% when the contract is signed with down payment, 3% when the job is paid in full
Hit the annual sales target of $1,175,000 and commission lands at ~$52,875. Push to $1.5M and add another ~$11,000.
Monthly volume bonus:
- $100 per job closed beyond 8 in a month
- $500 bonus when you hit 16 in a month
- Example: a 20-close month = $1,200 on top of commission
Package: Company car gas card (season), company phone, 50% of health insurance premiums covered.
Realistic total for a full season: $90,000–$115,000.
WHAT THE WORK ACTUALLY LOOKS LIKE
Appointments come through the office. You show up to the property, figure out what the customer actually needs, and sit at the kitchen table to close it.
The territory is the entire Twin Cities metro — a lot of windshield time. Monday through Saturday, days and evenings. Peak estimating months run 45 hours without exception. Time off gets scheduled around the pipeline, not around your calendar.
Documentation is yours. Job sheets go to the crew with everything they need to install the work — nothing missing, no follow-up calls required. Customer contacts go in Zoho same day. Every running job gets a check-in. Every call gets returned within 24 hours. Every completed job ends with payment collected and a referral asked for.
The season runs April through September. Base pay covers roughly 30 weeks. When the season ends, the paycheck ends — this isn't a year-round salary with a seasonal busy period.
There's also a 3-year non-compete in the seven-county Minneapolis/St. Paul metro area. If you're planning to use this as a bridge to start your own company, this isn't the right fit. Read that clearly before you apply.
If you're still here after reading all of that, you're already a different kind of applicant.
WHO BELONGS HERE
We find a way. When the property has a drainage problem the customer didn't mention, you figure it out and design it into the proposal. When a week goes sideways, you find coverage. This isn't a role where you wait to be told what the answer is.
We do the work right or we don't do it at all. A wrong calculation that causes a crew problem is yours to fix. An incomplete job sheet is yours to own. The standard is simple: if you sent it, it was right.
We find unique solutions to common problems. The customers who come back — and who send their neighbors — are the ones who were shown something better than what they asked for. You have to be paying attention to their property to do that. Pay attention to their property, not just their driveway.
Everyone does their part. Estimates, customer relationships, job documentation, final payment — those are yours. The office fills your calendar. The crew installs what you sold. Nobody is covering your half.
WHAT YOU NEED
- Solid knowledge of residential asphalt and/or exterior flatwork concrete — you can design, measure, and calculate a job correctly
- Valid driver's license and a clean record
- Available Monday through Saturday, days and evenings, flexible during peak season
- Detail-oriented on paperwork — job sheets, Zoho entries, follow-ups
- U.S. work authorization
You do NOT need:
- Previous experience specifically in driveway sales — trades background transfers well
- Experience with every product we offer — we train on proprietary work
- A college degree
WHY DRIVEWAY DESIGN
Four recessions. Still here. Still family-owned, still paying their crew through the slow stretches. That's the company.
- Proprietary asphalt and concrete products the competition doesn't have
- Appointments set by the office — you estimate, you don't hunt leads
- Company car and gas card, company phone for the season
- 50% of health insurance premiums covered
- Real commission upside — $75K–$115K for a strong full season
THE HIRING PROCESS
- Apply — takes about 5 minutes.
- 15-minute phone call. We'll ask about your background and give you an honest picture of the role. You can ask us anything.
- 7 written questions by email. No trick answers — takes about 15 minutes.
- 45-minute in-person interview.
- Ride-along on an estimate visit. You see the work before we both commit.
- Offer, if it's a fit for both of us.
Salary : $55,000 - $115,000