Jeremy O'Hara of Service Fusion joins the Blue Collar Nation podcast to talk about keeps track of your techs, your sales, your clients, and your fleet. Having tried many CRM's over the years, Eric and Larry are really impressed with Service Fusion. Give the episode a listen if you are thinking about taking your game to the next level. Full disclosure : Eric and Larry like this software so much they became partners with Service Fusion to provide it for the Blue Collar Nation listeners. If you wan...
Nov 05, 2020•52 min•Season 2Ep. 94
Landscaping, like many blue collar service businesses, is not for the faint of heart. Many landscapers start out as "technicians" and lack the general business and marketing skills to grow and scale their businesses. Ultimately, they have a "job" more than being a business owner. To make matters worse, it's a crummy job with lots of stress and tons of hours! Enter Scott and Kati Molchan, the Million Dollar Landscapers. Scott and Kati have started an academy to help their fellow landscapers get o...
Oct 29, 2020•51 min•Season 2Ep. 93
TITLE SPONSOR: MORNING TECH MEETING This episode it brought to you by www.morningtechmeeting.com . Don't lose money in the field because your service techs are not great at sales, customer service, and communicating with clients. Morning Tech Meeting has video lessons that can be sent directly to your tech's phones for training. TITLE SPONSOR: Super Tech University Dramatically improve your team's performance with a system of short daily video lessons training your team in soft skills. When you ...
Oct 27, 2020•18 min•Season 2Ep. 92
David and Raymond Bartolomucci of Roopairs grew up in the restaurant industry. Their father owns and operates several successful restaurants in the Bay area of San Francisco. Cutting their teeth in the industry working in the family business since they were young kids, Ray and David saw an opportunity to help both restaurants and the service companies that help them keep the hot and cold side equipment running. www.Roopairs.com Instagram, Facebook, Linked In: Roopairs HVACR, Roopairs Electrical,...
Oct 22, 2020•40 min•Season 2Ep. 91
TITLE SPONSOR: MORNING TECH MEETING This episode it brought to you by www.morningtechmeeting.com . Don't lose money in the field because your service techs are not great at sales, customer service, and communicating with clients. Morning Tech Meeting has video lessons that can be sent directly to your tech's phones for training. TITLE SPONSOR: Super Tech University Dramatically improve your team's performance with a system of short daily video lessons training your team in soft skills. When you ...
Oct 20, 2020•41 min•Season 2Ep. 90
In the water damage restoration world, like many trades, a large amount of money can be won or lost during the estimating process. Jon Isaacson has recently written a very important book about proper estimating with Xactimate for restorers and contractors. Larry and Eric know first hand what it is like to lose too much money to having poorly trained estimators in their company. The lessons in this book apply to any trade and are universal in their principles. Give it a listen and MAKE MORE MONEY...
Oct 15, 2020•1 hr 2 min•Season 2Ep. 89
Wayne joined Larry and Eric to talk about the traits it takes to "grow into" your business. Most people do not understand the hardships and sacrifices it takes to start a small business from scratch and actually grow it. Wayne is one the people who do. Wayne was the son of a coal miner in England, then did 3,100 jumps out of airplanes with the British military. Listen to Wayne's journey to get his business going. TITLE SPONSOR: MORNING TECH MEETING This episode it brought to you by www.morningte...
Oct 13, 2020•53 min•Season 2Ep. 88
Today we have on Ken Midgett, aka Coach, plumbing instructor extraordinaire with his star pupil, Paige Knowles. We talk about the scarcity of young women joining the skilled trades and what drove straight A student Paige to take a chance on trade school. Ken Midgett - Lehigh Career & Technical Institute lcti.org Linked In - masterplumber.01 Paige Knowles email - plumberpaige@gmail.com Instagram - Plumber-Paige This podcast was sponsored by Morning Tech Meeting . To create super technicians i...
Oct 08, 2020•48 min•Season 2Ep. 87
It's all about branding. If you build a great brand locally, it's the advertising money can buy. However, you do not need to break the bank to build a brand for your service business. Learn what Eric and Larry did well, and also about some of their regrets. TITLE SPONSOR: MORNING TECH MEETING This episode it brought to you by www.morningtechmeeting.com . Don't lose money in the field because your service techs are not great at sales, customer service, and communicating with clients. Morning Tech...
Oct 06, 2020•37 min•Season 2Ep. 86
Today was a treat. We had the pleasure to sit down and chat with RectorSeal's Stuart Oakner, inventor extraordinaire. Stuart has an amazing entrepreneurial story. Just a "regular" HVAC guy, Stuart started inventing float switch and clean-out products to make his job in the field easier. Once he realized how great they were working for him, he started a company to manufacture and distribute his inventions. This is a great episode and Stuart is a great storyteller. Having sold multiple inventions ...
Oct 01, 2020•36 min•Season 2Ep. 85
Eric met Dr. Nicole Rankine when they were becoming John Maxwell Certified. Eric was just trying to learn how to be a better leader to his team, "Dr. Nic" was on a mission to become a leading expert in the world on millennials in the workplace. Lots of blue collar service business owners love to complain about their millennial staff "not getting it", but they are the new work force, so we must all adapt. Learn how to engage and best manage your millennials and Gen Z team members. Nicole's - Adul...
Sep 24, 2020•1 hr 3 min•Season 2Ep. 84
This is a special edition of the Blue Collar Nation Podcast, and one that is very close to Eric and Larry's heart. Howard Partridge's Inner Circle. Reaching out to Howard when Eric and Larry's company was struggling to make it, they were about to throw in the towel and go work for the man. The Inner Circle changed all of that and helped Eric and Larry build a great business that was turn-key, fun to work at, and in the end was able to be sold so they could go on to help other blue collar busines...
Sep 17, 2020•1 hr 5 min•Season 2Ep. 83
The Blue Collar Nation is excited to have Brandon Donatelli of Matterport Software on the show today. If you have never seen a Matterport digital survey of a building, you are missing out. They are an amazing tool for contractors. With Matterport software you can create incredible, accurate 3D virtual tours of buildings and spaces. You can share easily on social media sites, such as Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube. Publish to Google Street View, VRBO, and Realtor.com. Create detailed floor plan...
Sep 10, 2020•48 min•Season 2Ep. 82
We had the pleasure of having Chris Yano on this week to talk digital marketing. Chris is old school. Just results, no fluff. Now that's "blue collar"! In fact, Chris has 54 employees that just listen to phone calls to customer service reps all day long to make sure his clients are converting on the marketing work his company is doing. To get the most out of marketing your service business, listen to Chris break down what is most important. RYNO STRATEGIC SOLUTIONS www.rynoss.com email: info@ryn...
Sep 03, 2020•57 min•Season 2Ep. 81
Larry and Eric realized early on in their business career that they would benefit from having a business coach. In fact, they took a lot of heat from both peers and family members of thir "wasting money" on coaching. Well, nothing could have been further from the truth. Coaching allowed the guys to grow, scale, and ultimately sell their service business. Learn the trials and tribulations they went through to finally find a coach and mentor that was a good fit for them. Also, Howard Partridge, th...
Aug 27, 2020•42 min•Season 2Ep. 80
RectorSeal was founded in the oil fields of Texas in the 1930's, now it's a publicly traded company providing amazing products for members of the plumbing, HVAC, and electrical trades. Listen in as we discuss Rectorseal's amazing company history, their innovative products, and the FREE training program they have to help members of the trades. Contact: For On Demand Classes visit the website: www.rectorseal.com This podcast has been sponsored by morningtechmeeting.com . Soft skill training for yo...
Aug 20, 2020•41 min•Season 2Ep. 79
Tommy Mello is a service business juggernaut. Tommy built A1 Garage Door Service from just himself on the truck to over $40 million a year in revenue. He has a great podcast, The Home Service Expert Podcast . He is the author of Home Service Millionaire, and amazing book that serves as a master class on service business ownership. Tommy is doing it all! In this episode, we sit down and talk about what it takes to scale a service business. The skills and mindset required to get "off the truck" an...
Aug 13, 2020•56 min•Season 2Ep. 78
Erica Leonor is a hoot! She is so fun to talk to. However, don't be fooled; she is all business. Erica has such a great feel for how to get your CSR's to book appointments and jobs. In this wide ranging interview we talk workplace culture, phone skills, who makes a good CSR, and how to keep your team accountable to get the results you desire from your reps. In service companies, much money is made and lost on the initial phone to your office. Don't be on the losing end of this transaction, liste...
Aug 06, 2020•53 min•Season 2Ep. 77
If you follow the blue collar world on social media, you know Angel Quiroz's work. Angel and Rich Malachy of Malachy Parts and Service created one of the best social media followings online. Creative, informative, artistically done videos and audio to build a large following and creating brand awareness. That is what Angel does. Listen in to learn how Angel develops awesome "marketing art" that gets attention and leads to making more money. To contact Angel via Instagram: Angel Media_ To contact...
Jul 30, 2020•54 min•Season 2Ep. 76
Mike Michalowicz is a business icon. The author of Profit First, The Pumpkin Plan, Clock Work, The Toilet Paper Entrepreneur, and now Fix This Next. Mike joined us to talk about his new book and the blind spot that most entrepreneurs have when trying to decide on what to fix next in their businesses. Mike is a wealth of knowledge and was kind enough to grace us with his presence on the show. SPONSOR: This episode is sponsored by MorningTechMeeting.com . Give them 5 minutes a day and they will tr...
Jul 23, 2020•22 min•Season 2Ep. 75
Skylar Lewis joins us again to talk about mindset. Skylar has had a lot of ups and downs in his business career. However, one thing has been constant-a belief in himself and a commitment to being a success. Skylar is the owner of Superior Restoration . He also created an amazing development program for business men called Rise Up Kings , check it out. This podcast has been sponsored by Morning Tech Meeting . Have amazing technicians at your service company. TITLE SPONSOR: Super Tech University D...
Jul 16, 2020•54 min•Season 2Ep. 74
Dan Udy keeps rising up from failure. This man will not stay down. His indomitable spirit keeps him coming back for more and more success. Dan has had some troubles in his life, and that is what makes him so real and so authentic. Dan has overcome alcohiolism and mental health struggles to build an amazing carpet cleaning business on his terms and now is an administrator on Cleaners Connect and one of the upcoming names is the cleaning industry. Larry and Eric sat down to have an open and honest...
Jul 09, 2020•1 hr 1 min•Season 2Ep. 73
William Harmon, founder of HVAC-Hacks , started what is now a massively followed social media site, on a bar bet with a professional wrestler. From bar bet to hobby to business, William shows passion and great care in all that he does. Boasting a targeted email list and socially media following exceeding 40,000 contractors HVAC-Hacks is a major player in the blue collar space. In this episode, William tells us his story of becoming a marketer after working so many years in the field as a technic...
Jul 02, 2020•42 min•Season 2Ep. 72
Scorpion is the Goliath in the home services marketing space. We were honored to have Josh Smith and Cheryl McRae on the show to talk about how these big players help service business companies grow. The most interesting take-away of this podcast episode is how often Josh and Cheryl talk about company culture, brand, and message not strategies. Larry and Eric imagined a conversation filled with data points and "marketing speak" from this very tech savvy company. They were pleasantly surprised to...
Jun 25, 2020•1 hr 16 min•Season 2Ep. 71
We had a great time talking with Kelly Schols . Kelly has an amazing story that has many ups and downs in his life. Kelly tells us the story of how he rose up from aimless youth who loved to party a bit too much to millionaire plumber committed to self improvement and being the best he can be. This podcast has been sponsored by Morning Tech Meeting . TITLE SPONSOR: Super Tech University Dramatically improve your team's performance with a system of short daily video lessons training your team in ...
Jun 18, 2020•54 min•Season 2Ep. 70
Lesly was the office manager at Shamrock Cleaning and Restoration. Lesly came to our company as a shy, timid young woman with lots of potential. Through Eric and Larry's dedication to personal growth and development of the team, Lesly came into her own and surpassed many of her peers and became Shamrock's office manager. Upon the sale of Shamrock, Lesly went on her own entrepreneurial journey and has used many of the lessons that Eric taught the team in their daily morning meetings. If you are e...
Jun 11, 2020•49 min•Season 2Ep. 69
We are delighted to have Jason Burrows from Flood Digital SEO based in Orlando, Florida. Jason is a wealth of knowledge on all things digital marketing for blue collar service companies. We did a deep dive with Jason on what local service businesses of varying sizes and budgets should do to get the phone ringing and increasing revenue. If you want to increase your revenue, you should be listening to this episode. EPISODE SPONSOR: This episode is brought to you by Morning Tech Meeting: If you wan...
Jun 04, 2020•51 min•Season 2Ep. 68
We are stoked to have the King of the Dyojo Podcast on the show. Jon is a "culture guy", just like we are. We sit down and talk about how to grow a great culture and, subsequently, a great business in the trades. Jon is a hoot and this may have been the most fun Larry and I have recorded so far. Even though we are fooling around a bunch, this episode is chock full of practical advice to grow any company. This podcast was sponsored by Morning Tech Meeting . TITLE SPONSOR: Super Tech University Dr...
May 28, 2020•1 hr 3 min•Season 2Ep. 67
Owning a blue collar service business is not for the faint of heart. Larry and Eric discuss the pain and challenges faced by entrepreneurs. They guys tell stories about all the pain and suffering they went through to be a success. TITLE SPONSOR: Super Tech University Dramatically improve your team's performance with a system of short daily video lessons training your team in soft skills. When you invest in your team and teach them soft skills, your team can make you more profit. Go to https://su...
May 21, 2020•1 hr 2 min•Season 2Ep. 66
Join us for a fascinating hour with John Braun, The Hitman . John is a wealth of information on how to market a local service business without breaking the bank. This podcast was sponsored by Morning Tech Meeting . TITLE SPONSOR: Super Tech University Dramatically improve your team's performance with a system of short daily video lessons training your team in soft skills. When you invest in your team and teach them soft skills, your team can make you more profit. Go to https://supertechu.com/ fo...
May 14, 2020•1 hr 15 min•Season 2Ep. 65
