EPISODE 239: Too many home improvement business owners settle for a convenience: the convenience of hiring or keeping someone around who isn’t REALLY the talent they need.

Sometimes it's family or a friend. Sometimes it’s an employee who’s been around for a decade. Sometimes it’s whoever just feels “comfortable” to be around.

And that is a tragedy, because you could be 1 or 2 good hires away from completely transforming the trajectory of your business.

That’s the hard truth Justin Bartley faced after FINALLY doing what it took to get the right sales manager…after 10 years of settling.

Justin, owner of NEXT Door & Window and one of our new mastermind group facilitators for The Wealthy Contractor Success Society, shares what it really cost him to delay the tough people decisions—and how he was able to get the right help that changed everything for him and his business.

In this jam-packed episode, we cover:

• How tracking down the root cause of most of your issues typically leads to “people”
• Why loyalty can sometimes become deadly to your business
• What roles should you use recruiters for
• A method to hire your own in-house recruiter (even if you’re only at $5M/yr)
• The one bright spot in NEXT Door & Window’s 2025 lead gen channels
• The right frequency for direct mail
• Leveraging the rising value of homes in your marketing messaging
• The astonishing power of coaching and mastermind groups
• What completely shocked Justin and Brian at the recent Success Society meeting! (Only 5 people raised their hands when asked a pivotal question about their marketing.)

…and so much more! (Like I said, this one is JAM-PACKED!)

If you’re tired of doing it all yourself—and ready to STOP settling—this episode is your wake-up call with actionable steps you can take away and implement today.

Tune in now!

Key Takeaways:

Introduction (00:00)

Mastermind power revealed (03:13)

Importance of an org chart (06:08)

Coaching and EOS for clarity (14:08)

What’s holding contractors back? (18:43)

The hardest moves to make as a business owner (21:39)

Attract, coach, and train the right people (27:12)

Business is people, period (33:24)

The most important low-hanging fruit in your business (48:47)

Additional Resources:

⚡ Learn more about Discovery Day at The Wealthy Contractor Success Society: https://TheEntryDoor.info/

⚡ Learn more about increasing the profitability of your home improvement business: https://www.TheProfitMasters.com/

⚡ Brian’s book, The 7 Secrets To Becoming A Wealthy Contractor, is now available. Visit https://www.TheWealthyContractor.com/ for a free copy (just pay shipping).

⚡ Follow us on social media:

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TheWealthyContractor

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/TheWealthyContractor/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/TheWealthyContractor/

--

The Wealthy Contractor is a podcast for home improvement professionals who want to grow their business, work less, and make more money. Follow us for more!

EPISODE 238: Do your leads suddenly suck? It’s not just you!

Many home improvement business owners who have been running thriving businesses for years are now finding themselves with bad leads, declining lead volume, or both.

And yet SOME businesses are having their best months ever.

So, what exactly is going on with leads?

There’s no stopping the wheels of progress—the last few years have completely transformed our industry, including how we can find and convert good leads. So, knowing what works and what doesn’t when it comes to your lead generation strategy is A MUST if you want to compete in today’s market.

In this week’s episode of The Wealthy Contractor podcast, we aim to uncover exactly what’s happening. And to do so, I’ve invited two experts: Chris Behan and Natalie Russo.

Chris is the co-founder of Truvolv, a data-driven marketing company that specializes in helping home improvement contractors optimize their lead generation and marketing efforts, and Natalie is a digital marketing expert at Truvolv who specializes in paid media strategies, particularly Google PPC and social media marketing.

In this episode, the three of us dive into this problem contractors are facing—inconsistent lead quality and volume—and what they can do about it.

Listen in now and learn:

• Why it's becoming necessary to change your KPI from "cost per lead" to "cost of marketing"
• What is a "Super Lead" and how do you attract them?
• Google’s “creepy” knowledge about your leads (and how you can use it to your advantage)
• Why the technology most websites have been built on for the last two decades is now defunct
• How bad leads can be just as impactful as no leads
• Which level of the marketing funnel paid search should actually be targeting
• Why poor lead quality is often due to a lack of systems and not the leads themselves (but not all the time)
• How some technologies are leveling the lead gen playing field for smaller companies in the home improvement industry

… and a lot more!

If you want the insider scoop on how to become a lead generation powerhouse that completely crushes your competition, do not miss this episode!

Tune in now for more.

Key Takeaways:

Introduction (00:00)

Are lead generation fluctuations normal? (01:38)

Speed to lead (06:27)

Google PPC for home services? (16:00)

The technologies that are changing the game (29:48)

What contractors can do for better leads (37:31)

Additional Resources:

⚡ Learn more about Truvolv: https://www.truvolv.com/

--

⚡ Learn more about The Wealthy Contractor Success Society: https://www.TheWealthyContractor.com/SuccessSociety

⚡ Learn more about The Profit Masters: https://www.TheProfitMasters.com/

⚡ Brian’s book, The 7 Secrets To Becoming A Wealthy Contractor, is now available. Visit https://www.TheWealthyContractor.com/ for a free copy (just pay shipping).

⚡ Follow us on social media:

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TheWealthyContractor

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/TheWealthyContractor/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/TheWealthyContractor/

--

The Wealthy Contractor is a podcast for home improvement professionals who want to grow their business, work less, and make more money. Follow us for more!

EPISODE 237: You’ve poured everything you have into your home improvement business. You’re overwhelmed, stuck doing everything yourself... unable to grow beyond a certain point because you cannot find or attract the A-players you need.

Here’s the truth: true growth and freedom only come once you hire the right second-in-command. A trusted right-hand who can execute your vision and systematize what you’ve built.

I know, letting go isn’t easy—trusting someone else with your business is terrifying, and finding the right person who understands your vision (and is invested in it) is tough. But if you want a business that thrives without you, it’s a challenge you need to face head-on.

That's why I've invited Cameron Herold, the founder of the COO Alliance, to join us on the show this week!

Cameron is the author of Double Double and The Second in Command as well as the man behind the explosive growth of 1-800-GOT-JUNK?

In this episode, Cameron pulls back the curtain on what it really takes to build a business that runs without you—and why most contractors are sabotaging themselves with one simple mistake: they don’t have the right “Number 2” in place to help make their vision a reality.

Listen in now and learn all about:

• The yin and yang between a leader and their number two
• The Ones and the Threes—Which roles should be your second-in-command throughout your various stages of growth
• How our school system screwed up the type of thinking we need as business owners
• How to communicate the vision of your future company—not the chaos of today—to attract actual A-players
• That one time Cameron and his team “accidentally” faxed their own price list to competitors (and why)
• How your R&D should be less “research & development" and more "rip off and duplicate"
• Why you as a leader should spend more time on the "that's no big deal" stuff
• When Simon Sinek used to sleep on Cameron’s couch (AND helped him discover his “why”)

… and so much more!

If you want to build a business that works for you— and not BECAUSE of you—then tune in now.

Key Takeaways:

Introduction (00:00)

The most important relationship in your business (03:24)

When can you move to the next level? (08:10)

You need to learn to let go (11:24)

How to attract A-players (16:28)

The ONE question you need to answer (22:36)

What’s your “why”? (26:42)

What happens when you find the right second-in-command? (34:21)

Why you need to delegate more (41:14)

Additional Resources:

⚡ Get Cameron’s book, The Second in Command: http://amazon.com/Second-Command-Unleash-Power-Your/dp/1544537603

⚡ Get Cameron’s book, Double Double: https://www.amazon.com/Double-Your-Revenue-Profit-Years/dp/1608320995

⚡ Learn more about Cameron’s work: https://cameronherold.com/

--

⚡ Learn more about The Wealthy Contractor Success Society: https://www.TheWealthyContractor.com/SuccessSociety

⚡ Learn more about The Profit Masters: https://www.TheProfitMasters.com/

⚡ Brian’s book, The 7 Secrets To Becoming A Wealthy Contractor, is now available. Visit https://www.TheWealthyContractor.com/ for a free copy (just pay shipping).

⚡ Follow us on social media:

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TheWealthyContractor

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/TheWealthyContractor/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/TheWealthyContractor/

--

The Wealthy Contractor is a podcast for home improvement professionals who want to grow their business, work less, and make more money. Follow us for more!

EPISODE 236: When you look at incredibly successful 9-figure home improvement businesses—the kind that have absolutely exploded and are raking in gobs of cash (and notoriety), you may wonder how what THEY do applies to what YOU could do in your own business

Well, if you think your business is too small and their methods won’t apply, then I strongly encourage you to catch this week’s episode of The Wealthy Contractor podcast.

In it, I sit down with Tommy Mello, the founder and CEO of A1 Garage Door Service, the largest non-franchise residential garage door company in the US, operating in 43 markets across the country.

Tommy is also the author of Home Service Millionaire and Elevate, and host of The Home Service Expert podcast.

Tommy isn’t just running a $250 million business—he’s doing it with nearly 25% net profit! In this powerful episode, he unpacks the exact systems, compensation methods, and mental frameworks that helped him create his behemoth.

Together, he and I talk about why it's actually not hard to double, triple, or quadruple your business when you're still small.

We also share how to hire smarter, the best ways to manage your time as an owner, and how to create equity incentives that drive next-level loyalty.

Additionally, we discuss:

• Why most contractors lose money without realizing it
• The equation that predicts revenue, capacity, and ROI
• What holds owners back from “just doing it” when they finally get the advice they need
• Why the phrase "I buy how I want to be bought from" might reveal a lot about you
• Why MC Hammer went broke

If you’re ready to leave the grind behind, then don’t miss this episode.

Tune in now for more!

Key Takeaways:

Introduction (00:00)

Meet Tommy (00:48)

Why you need to plan for the end (06:10)

Why some people work fast and some don’t (12:43)

Why you need to fail forward (19:38)

The five Fs (27:03)

How to be a people’s leader (35:44)

How to make $10 million (43:31)

The numbers don’t matter, the strategy does (55:52)

Additional Resources:

⚡ Learn more about Tommy’s work: https://www.tommymello.com/

⚡ Get your copy of Tommy’s book, Elevate: https://angels.homeservicemillionaire.com/order-537068861647523872885

--

⚡ Learn more about The Wealthy Contractor Success Society: https://www.TheWealthyContractor.com/SuccessSociety

⚡ Learn more about The Profit Masters: https://www.TheProfitMasters.com/

⚡ Brian’s book, The 7 Secrets To Becoming A Wealthy Contractor, is now available. Visit https://www.TheWealthyContractor.com/ for a free copy (just pay shipping).

⚡ Follow us on social media:

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TheWealthyContractor

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/TheWealthyContractor/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/TheWealthyContractor/

--

The Wealthy Contractor is a podcast for home improvement professionals who want to grow their business, work less, and make more money. Follow us for more!

EPISODE 235: Most people, entrepreneurs and home improvement business owners included, believe that success is the secret to happiness.

But what if it was the other way around?

What if cultivating a positive mindset and a happy outlook is the key to achieving everything you want in life?

This is exactly what I discuss in this week’s episode of The Wealthy Contractor alongside my guest Briana Hetherington.

Briana is the founder of Altruistic Advisory and a mindset and business consultant who specializes in home improvement companies. She is a certified life coach and an Orange Frog workshop trainer, helping entrepreneurs develop positive psychology principles in business and leadership.

In this episode, Briana and I delve into the psychology of success and the Orange Frog concept, which teaches how positivity and mindset shape business outcomes in very pragmatic ways.

Together, we’ll be discussing:

• The key psychological factors that determine success (and how)
• Harvard studies on the advantages of positive mindset and its effects on performance
• The role gratitude actually plays in financial growth
• Shifting through different phases of leadership as your business grows
• Practical ways business owners can reprogram their brains

… and so much more!

If you’ve ever felt stuck or unhappy in your business, struggled with self-doubt, or been crippled by stress, this is THE episode for you, so make sure not to miss it.

Are you ready?

Let’s dive in.

Key Takeaways:

Introduction (00:00)

Meet Briana (01:48)

Orange Frog theory? (02:52)

The power of perspective (07:04)

How our belief systems shape our world (16:08)

A quick exercise for you (19:42)

How happiness fuels success (23:10)

Five healthy habits for happiness (26:56)

The importance of social investment (37:53)

Additional Resources:

⚡ Connect with Briana on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/briana-hetherington-b417077b/

⚡ Learn more about Altruistic Advisory: https://www.altruisticadvisory.com/

--

⚡ Learn more about The Wealthy Contractor Success Society: https://www.TheWealthyContractor.com/SuccessSociety

⚡ Learn more about The Profit Masters: https://www.TheProfitMasters.com/

⚡ Brian’s book, The 7 Secrets To Becoming A Wealthy Contractor, is now available. Visit https://www.TheWealthyContractor.com/ for a free copy (just pay shipping).

⚡ Follow us on social media:

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TheWealthyContractor

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/TheWealthyContractor/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/TheWealthyContractor/

--

The Wealthy Contractor is a podcast for home improvement professionals who want to grow their business, work less, and make more money. Follow us for more!

EPISODE 234: If you’re not using EOS yet, then chances are you’re missing out on a proven system to gain traction towards real results across many areas of your home improvement business.

Implementing the Entrepreneurial Operating System (EOS) is such a surprisingly simple way to break through team, process, and prioritization issues and take your business to the next level. It’s a great way to bring clarity and accountability to your team, from management all the way down to every member of your staff.

To discuss this in more detail, I’ve invited the amazing Bill Burkhardt Jr. to sit down with me on this week’s episode of The Wealthy Contractor podcast.

Bill is the co-owner of Four Seasons Kanga Roof, a family-owned roofing business in Detroit. Bill has a background in marketing, recruitment, and admissions from his career in private college prep school administration before joining the family business.

In this episode, Bill and I discuss:

• How implementing EOS transformed the business operations inside Four Seasons Kanga Roof
• The specific strategy that drives them to do service and repair work on top of replacement roofs
• Why creating a cheap maintenance program for your clients can ensure consistent business across the board, even during hard times
• Emotionally detaching yourself from pricing
• Why they play the "penny game" with their team once a year

… and so much more!

If you're looking to recession-proof your business, build lasting client relationships, and drive profitability, then this is the episode for you.

Tune in now.

Key Takeaways:

Introduction (00:00)

Meet Bill (01:25)

How EOS can transform your company (06:29)

Why you need an EOS implementer (15:15)

Are you pricing yourself right? (22:11)

Why do roofers do repairs? (26:17)

Netflix for your roof? (30:39)

The importance of keeping your business recession-proof (35:07)

One last question (36:26)

Additional Resources:

⚡ Learn more about The Wealthy Contractor Success Society: https://www.TheWealthyContractor.com/SuccessSociety

⚡ Learn more about The Profit Masters: https://www.TheProfitMasters.com/

⚡ Brian’s book, The 7 Secrets To Becoming A Wealthy Contractor, is now available. Visit https://www.TheWealthyContractor.com/ for a free copy (just pay shipping).

⚡ Follow us on social media:

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TheWealthyContractor

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/TheWealthyContractor/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/TheWealthyContractor/

--

The Wealthy Contractor is a podcast for home improvement professionals who want to grow their business, work less, and make more money. Follow us for more!

EPISODE 233: Being willing to learn and adapt to emerging trends isn’t just a great way to differentiate yourself from your competition today—it's necessary to avoid the slow death of being left behind as customers and the market change.

It’s time to consider the new strategies that are shaping the future of the industry! But don’t take my word for it; hear it straight from my guest this week, Benji Carlson.

Benji is the Director of Content Marketing at Breakthrough Academy and the host of the Contractor Evolution podcast. He has worked with hundreds of trades and home service businesses and has a unique insight into new trends that are starting to propel some companies way ahead of the pack.

In this episode, Benji and I will be diving into THREE emerging trends for home improvement businesses in 2025 and beyond.

We look at:

• The emergence of the self-serve sales processes and its impact on our industry
• Clever performance-based pay structures for your entire team that motivate employees and control costs
• What modern brand building really means and whether Benji and I agree on its importance for contractors

We also touch on the changes in customer behavior we’ve been seeing lately, why some customers hate talking on the phone (and how they want to communicate instead), and why someone who is "team human" still uses AI.

Are you ready to position your company for success over the next decade and take it to the next level TODAY?

Then tune in now!

Key Takeaways:

Introduction (00:00)

Why modern brand building matters (05:47)

Self-serve sales processes explained (07:09)

Customer experience as a competitive advantage (18:50)

Why you need performance pay (22:55)

How technology can help grow your business (47:47)

Additional Resources:

⚡ Stop wasting time on tire kickers and start attracting A-players today with our HIRING RESOURCES, free to listeners of The Wealthy Contractor Podcast: https://trybta.com/wealthy-contractor/

⚡ Learn more about The Wealthy Contractor Success Society: https://www.TheWealthyContractor.com/SuccessSociety

⚡ Brian’s book, The 7 Secrets To Becoming A Wealthy Contractor, is now available. Visit https://www.TheWealthyContractor.com/ for a free copy (just pay shipping).

⚡ Follow us on social media:

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TheWealthyContractor

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/TheWealthyContractor/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/TheWealthyContractor/

--

The Wealthy Contractor is a podcast for home improvement professionals who want to grow their business, work less, and make more money. Follow us for more!

EPISODE 232: 2024 was a tough market for the home improvement industry. Economic uncertainties and rising costs threw a wrench in many contractors' plans, but not for my guest today, Kirk Koskiniemi.

Kirk took his roofing business from $10.4M to $16.7M over the past year AND raised profits at the same time. He and his team achieved this with a single mantra: "Do fewer things better".

In this episode, Kirk lays out the areas they worked on to achieve this amazing feat during a year other home improvement companies were stumbling.

We talk about how he optimized his sales funnel’s various conversion points, increasing average ticket size to drive down marketing costs (even on small repair jobs), what a typical week looks like for his sales reps, and the magic behind “handing out leads like they are diamonds”.

You’ll also find out why their average NSLI (Net Sales Per Lead Issued) went from $5,600 to $10,500 in December when they were low on leads—and why they are thinking of switching sales goals from overall revenue to the highest NSLI.

We finally chatted about how our Accelerate LIVE! event played a major role in his growth with its big learning and networking opportunities.

Hit play now to hear how Kirk simplified his way to success and how you can too.

Key Takeaways:

Introduction (00:00)

Kirk’s 2024 business performance (00:20)

Challenges and benefits of remote management (14:52)

Business growth and sales team focus (15:10)

Sales funnel optimization and marketing strategies (15:52)

Sales rep performance and training (21:12)

Rehash and lead management (30:39)

Accelerate LIVE! event and networking (34:42)

Additional Resources:

⚡ Save your seats for Accelerate LIVE! 2025: https://www.AccelerateEvent.com/

⚡ Learn more about The Wealthy Contractor Success Society: https://www.TheWealthyContractor.com/SuccessSociety

⚡ Brian’s book, The 7 Secrets To Becoming A Wealthy Contractor, is now available. Visit https://www.TheWealthyContractor.com/ for a free copy (just pay shipping).

⚡ Follow us on social media:

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TheWealthyContractor

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/TheWealthyContractor/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/TheWealthyContractor/

--

The Wealthy Contractor is a podcast for home improvement professionals who want to grow their business, work less, and make more money. Follow us for more!