PowerTips Unscripted

Most remodelers wear many hats, and sales management is only one of them. So you have to handle sales functions on a part-time basis. As you grow and add salespeople, overseeing that department becomes yet another job duty. In this episode, Chip Doyle discusses how to successfully manage the sales department on a part-time basis with Victoria and Mark. Chip wrote the book Selling to Homeowners — The Sandler Way. He trains many R/A members, including owners, salespeople, designers and project managers how to sell — without sounding like salespeople. Being a good sales manager takes a different skill set than being a salesperson does. You need to be patient, predictable in your coaching, and temper your expectations for their own lead generation. Chip says he’s seeing a higher success rate with developing salespeople from within remodeling companies, rather than hiring from outside — people who are good at selling are already busy and making great money. But wherever your find your new sales staff, Chip talks about ways to set them — and your company — up for success, including: When to hire a new salesperson Performing a sales assessment What they should sell first Why prospecting is crucial Why they should under-qualify leads How many meetings to have and when The questions to ask your sales staff How to help your salespeople Why truthfulness is mandatory How much time to spend on sales management And more … Including why just selling the next step — not the whole project at once — is the key to good sales. Get The Edge You Need If you’d like to help brushing up your — or your staff’s — sales techniques, Chip runs a weekly training session called Sales Edge. It brings together a group of non-competing R/A members to sharpen their approach to this vitally important business function. Find out more today. The post Ep.68: Managing Your Sales while Wearing Many Hats with Chip Doyle appeared first on PowerTips Unscripted.

Here at Remodelers Advantage we set aside the month of June to focus on an issue that plagues most service-based businesses, but can be a critical metric in looking at the success of a remodeling firm. This is our third annyal “Slippage Awareness Month” and this year you’ll see content submissions from our consulting, sales, and production experts here at R/A. Enjoy! Every remodeling business owner wants to add more money to the bottom line. Reducing slippage is the lowest-hanging fruit to pick in your quest. In this episode, Tim Faller talks to Victoria and Mark about reducing slippage in your remodeling company. Slippage occurs when your estimate is lower than the real costs of the job. Reducing it takes a change in mindset throughout the organization. For 17 years, Tim has worked with hundreds of remodeling companies to improve profits by creating smooth, efficient production systems. As a Senior Consultant and Master of Production for Remodelers Advantage, Tim’s field and business ownership experience is vital to his additional role as facilitator for Owner and Production Manager Roundtables Groups. He’s also  a published author and popular industry speaker, Tim is co-host of The Tim Faller Show, a weekly podcast focused on “Improving The Bottom Line Through Production Training.” The biggest challenge in reducing slippage is getting your whole team involved in the effort. Tim says slippage is too often brushed off with “It is what it is.”  That’s where the change in mindset comes in — the attitude should be “It is what we make it.” Slippage is controllable, but it takes a company-wide awareness and work to corral it through realistic and accurate estimating,  job scheduling, and building in time to de-bug a job before it starts. He talks about the ways to reduce slippage in your processes, including: Finding the slippage The perfect planning process Building in time, and how much Developing a critical eye, not a critical attitude Why realistic estimating geared to your team is key Why you need long-term, short-range, and daily planning Killing schedule creep for better net profit Building extra time into the schedule Figuring out days-per-job overhead Controlling the client Doing change orders properly And more … Cutting slippage is possible — and will make a big difference in the health of your business.   The post Ep.67: Kicking Off Slippage Awareness Month with Tim Faller appeared first on PowerTips Unscripted.

If everyone in your remodeling business feels like they’re invested in your company — so invested that they think and act like owners — they’ll make better decisions, solve more problems, and make it more profitable. But how do you get there? In this episode, our own Steve Wheeler talks to Victoria and Mark about how to get your employees to think and act like owners. It’s a process he started when he had his own remodeling business for 12 years, and then he dove deeper into the subject through his work with R/A. As director of business development for Remodelers Advantage, Steve is responsible for new membership sales and helping business owners find the program or product that will help them reach their financial and personal goals. In addition to leading business development for R/A, Steve is co-host of The Tim Faller Show, a weekly podcast focused on improving the bottom line through production training. Getting employees to think and act like owners is one of the biggest challenges for our Roundtables members, and for every remodeler we talk to. Steve developed his approach by trying to get his team to care about his company as much as he did, based on the cycle of accountability and the TOADS steps developed by Linda Galindo in The Accountability Experience. There are actions that can cause real change. He talks about the keys to the process, how to get there, and the benefits, including: The power of delegation Reducing owner stress Transforming through transparency Getting beyond the to-do list to higher thinking Talking about the big picture Enabling decision-making power Thinking of employees as renters or owners Allowing employees to fail And more … Including the Clear Agreement Form we promised. And the story of how one of Steve’s projects turned a duplex into a single family home (it was supposed to stay a duplex). The post Ep.66: How to Get Employees to Think and Act Like Owners with Steve Wheeler appeared first on PowerTips Unscripted.

There’s an overlooked opportunity for you to shine in your marketing. For some of you, this opportunity only comes once a year. For others (like many of our Roundtables members) it comes nine or 10 times a year. Regardless of how often the opportunity presents itself, odds are you’re squandering it. It’s your “out of office” email message. In this episode, Mark’s flying solo. Victoria’s taking a well-earned vacation and it prompted him to think about this often under-used touchpoint with clients, trade partners, and prospects. Take some time to make your message memorable in your rush to get out the door. Be human. Be creative. Be thorough so that if it’s a time-critical email, the person who contacted you has a means of getting through to someone else. Think of all the boring and canned out-of-office messages you accumulate in your in-box — and don’t do that. Mark’s tips for an awesome outgoing message include: How to write a great subject line Why you should pad your return date Setting up a custom email for urgent matters Giving a gift in the reply And more … Don’t miss out on this opportunity to make a connection — a human one — while you’re kicking back and out of the daily grind. The post Ep.65: How to Turn Your Travel into an Epic Marketing Opportunity appeared first on PowerTips Unscripted.

Toyota pioneered the LEAN manufacturing system, and we know — houses aren’t cars. But neither are people, and the LEAN concept of continuous improvement is used by hospitals too.  So even if remodeling isn’t brain surgery, we can learn a lot from how LEAN has been applied in healthcare. You can get some of the best help with your business by looking at how other industries use continuous improvement. In this episode, Liz Moisan talks to Victoria and Mark about using LEAN principles in healthcare and how it can be applied to remodeling. She says Kaizen or LEAN principles give you a common language for things we already know, creating a foundation to move forward. Liz is a product innovation specialist at Virginia Mason Medical Center in Seattle, and has been a practitioner of the Virginia Mason Production System since 2008. She teaches, facilitates, and works to continually evolve how Kaizen is applied in a health-care setting. She’s married to R/A Roundtables member Matt Moisan. The hospital employs daily Kaizen, so even the smallest roadblock can be eliminated, as well as  higher-level applications. She shares some real-world examples, including cutting down on waiting times for patients (yay!), working with vendors to get what the hospital needs when it needs it, The Five Ss, and how to look at a particular process to improve it, including: Where to start Staying true to the tools Identifying and eliminating waste in processes The evolution of continuous improvement Breaking the status quo and getting buy-in Understanding supply and demand for materials Onboarding new employees in LEAN principles Training at the management level Finding the “rock in your shoe” When and why to get help And more … Here are those two books Liz recommends for getting started understanding the Kaizen principles: The Toyota Way Transforming Healthcare: Virginia Mason Medical Center’s Pursuit of the Perfect Patient Experience If You Would Like to Learn More About LEAN For Remodeling… Consider attending our online course, “LEAN For Remodelers” where our “LEAN Guru” Doug Howard helps you improve your profits & grow your business by mastering continuous improvement through LEAN. This 6-session class, meets weekly & is a combination of online instruction and hands-on exercises, in a virtual classroom setting. Classes start on July 10th, so click here for more information & registration.     The post Ep.64: What Healthcare Can Teach Remodeling about LEAN with Liz Moisan appeared first on PowerTips Unscripted.

Research proves referred clients cost less to acquire, are easier to close, and are more valuable to your business over time. So why don’t more companies ask for them? In this episode, Tanya Bamford joins Victoria and Mark to share ways to help you fire up your referral engine, and get more business without spinning your wheels. And it’s backed by hard, verifiable research. Tanya Bamford is the managing director of R/A Marketing, a sister company to Remodelers Advantage. Prior to joining R/A Marketing, Tanya owned an award-winning marketing firm serving small and mid-size businesses. A sought-after speaker, Tanya has presented more than 20 seminars on marketing-related topics ranging from strategic planning to social-media marketing. You can’t take referrals for granted — you have to maintain regular communication with your past clients. You can take charge of it by nurturing your relationship with your clients over time. Tanya says you have to remind them, and give them the tools to spur those referrals, including: The power of endorsements from clients on others Starting with delivering a great customer experience Identifying who your promoters are Tracking you promotor segment How and where to ask for referrals Plotting out your communications strategy Why direct mail lives The channels that work Why awards should be announced Enabling your team to help you get those referrals Why referral rewards programs may not really work for remodelers And so much more … To take a deeper dive into referral marketing, here are two resources Tanya referenced: Referral Programs and Customer Value Referral Marketing: Acquiring and Retaining Ideal Customer Advocates through Best Practices The post Ep.63: How To Fire Up Your Referral Engine with Tanya Bamford appeared first on PowerTips Unscripted.

We’re introducing a new feature — the Unscripted Back-Up. It’s a chance to revisit some of our best and most informative episodes. They’re jam-packed with information you can use — so if you missed it the first time around, here’s your chance to catch up. In this episode, we revisit the good, bad, and downright scary elements hidden in employment law. If you’re like most business owners, you don’t think about employment law until you’re faced with a complaint or potential lawsuit from a current or former employee. It’s inevitable …  as you add employees and grow your company, the likelihood of facing a legal employment issue will increase as well. When it comes to hiring, terminating, and disciplining members of your team, there’ s so much to know and keep track of. You not only have state or territory regulations, but federal as well. Our guest this week will tell you that any time you run into a legal situation regarding an employee, the best course of action is to consult an expert — and that’s just what we did for Episode 11. Guest Jen Cornell is an attorney who represents companies in litigation involving employees, including lawsuits, charges brought to government agencies, and investigations from government auditors. Jen also specializes in preventive workplace audits and policy implementation, such as preparing employee handbooks, wage and hour audits, and immigration compliance. Victoria, Mark and Jen uncovered so many different aspects of employment law in this episode, including: Protecting your company from hourly disputes, lawsuits Timeframes to consider (2-3 years of records), and penalties applied Dealing with independent contractors transitioning to employees How laws apply to locations (job-site, company location, and residency) Payment of employees, pay periods, minimum wages How to handle discrimination complaints from current or ex-employees Responding to charges from government agencies and document storage Handling terminations and disciplinary issues the proper way Importance of Employee handbooks and policies in place Don’t wait until you get that notice in the mail — listen to this episode and get familiar with some of the issues that may arise and derail the success you worked so hard for. The post Ep.62: [Unscripted Back-Up] Employment Law: The Good, Bad and Downright Scary, with Jen Cornell appeared first on PowerTips Unscripted.

Systems and processes rarely scale when your business grows. So you have to go back and create new ones that will — at least for now. Your design process is no different. When hiring a new or additional designer, it may be time to revamp your process in preparation for that new team member. In this episode, Chris Fox talks to Victoria and Mark about what he found when he dove deep into his company’s design process. He learned so much from his examination that he created a new self-guided training plan for designers that doesn’t require constant oversight and management by supervisors. Chris is the founder of Fox Home Innovations in Manhattan, KS. Chris started this company during his junior year of college and ran multiple projects and crews while completing his degree in entrepreneurship from Kansas State University. In school, he met Matt Carlson, who later bought into the company. Today, they both run the organization with Chris focusing on sales and design, while Matt is the general manager. The old design process was often on the fly and not totally repeatable at all times. They had nothing to train to or repeat when it came time to hire another designer. There was no time to train, either, because everyone was so busy. Chris details what they did and how they did it, including: Evaluating the process you’ve got Creating a trainable, repeatable process Building in the details How to create a training document The time it takes, and why to take the time Involving your whole team The significant changes it made What the onboarding and training looks like Creating teachable moments How to boost competence and confidence And more … The process is working well, so Chris plans to use it as a model for onboarding and training new hires for other roles throughout the organization as it grows. The post Ep.61: How I Revamped My Design Process with Chris Fox appeared first on PowerTips Unscripted.

Your reputation is your most valuable business asset — but don’t think for a minute that doing high-quality work and providing top-notch service is enough to make and keep it spotless. The Internet has made it all too easy for people to publicly tarnish your good name — quickly. Take the initiative, and manage your reputation proactively. It doesn’t matter what you do, as long as you do it. In this episode, Victoria and Mark talk online reviews with Russell Fuller. Russell concentrates on the power of Google reviews, discusses how to get great ones, and what it all means to his business. Russell owns Fuller Living Construction in Seattle, WA. He’s passionate about small business and marketing. Fuller Living Construction is Google’s highest-rated construction company in Seattle. Russell starts laying the foundation for reviews during the Sales process, sends a mid-project survey to head off problems that may have cropped up, and systematically follows up after the job is finished to get consistent five-star Google reviews. He explains how he settled on Google, what it means to his business, and how he does it, including: Getting your message out How Yelp chooses to show reviews Strategies to make it automatic and easy for clients to leave reviews How to handle bad reviews online The ripple effect of good and bad reviews The power of a good lawyer Speaking honestly with clients — and listening Following up with past clients Being specific in your review requests The “review insurance account” Soliciting reviews from Trade Partners and team members Where reviews are going next And more … Building and managing your online reputation is more important than ever. Planting the seeds early for great reviews and making the most of them will lay the foundation for a successful business for years to come. The post Ep.60: How to Manage Your Online Reputation Using Google Reviews with Russell Fuller appeared first on PowerTips Unscripted.

If you’re going to build something — a building, a company, a team — you owe it to the world to build something great. Identify what makes you exceptional and empower your team to help you build a great business. In this episode, Jason Blenker tells Victoria and Mark about how and why he put his organization on the path to greatness, how he defines the term, and inspiring your team to carry out that mission. Jason is the president of Blenker Companies Inc., a Midwest provider of housing solutions designed to make the building process easier, faster, and better with one mission — to Build Something Great® — great buildings, great communities, great companies, great leaders, and great team members. About five years ago, he set out to grow his business and build a leadership team around him to make it happen. Jason looked at what world-class companies do, reached out to mentors and coaches, and got to work. A great organization is one that people want to work with and for, and is active in the communities it serves, he says. Getting everyone on the same page is the first step, and he talks about how he did that, including: Creating your roadmap Planning for success Communicating to get employee buy-in Breaking down what it means to individuals Evaluating who does what best and letting them Overcoming the fear of change The changes coming to the industry Why profit isn’t the only driver for success The time you need to take to work on the organization How to let go and  trust others to make great decisions Getting past analysis paralysis And more … Taking the time to invest in yourself may mean taking time away from working in your business, Jason says, but it’s the only way to propel your organization forward.   We are now on Spotify! As you can see by the logo on the right, PowerTips Unscripted is now available on Spotify for those of you who might be using that app on your mobile device. Enjoy!     The post Ep.59: Empower Your Team to Help You Build a Great Business with Jason Blenker appeared first on PowerTips Unscripted.