Powertips Unscripted

Most people would consider a company jumping from $1.5 million to $3 million in revenue a growing organization. However, when we look beyond gross sales, those numbers don’t necessarily mean it grew. It could even mean the company is less profitable — and ultimately less successful — than it was before.  Michael Hodgin says planning... The post Ep.96: Tiered Growth: Understanding Metrics and Recognizing Signs to Set Profitable Sales Goals with Michael Hodgin appeared first on PowerTips Unscripted.

Honesty is truly the best policy when it comes to your website and social media presence. In a sharing economy, your prospects want to know everything about your company before they even pick up the phone.  We’re breaking down why transparency online is important, and how it can lead to more jobs. In this episode,... The post Ep.95: Being Honest Online with Taylor Rennick appeared first on PowerTips Unscripted.

Many of your customers will pay more for items that improve the health, comfort, and efficiency of their homes. As one of the few things that pay for themselves over time, green upgrades can also boost your average project revenue and make you stand out in your market. In this episode, Doug Selby talks to... The post Ep.94: Improving Your Bottom Line with Green Upgrades with Doug Selby appeared first on PowerTips Unscripted.

No matter how well your remodeling company is doing, how well organized you are, life can get hectic at times. You work through it all, but this can leave you vulnerable to burnout. Which can lead to an avalanche of problems. In this episode, Marian Faller discusses burnout with Victoria and Mark, sharing its causes,... The post Ep.92: The Dangers of Burnout and How To Promote Individual Resiliency with Marian Faller appeared first on PowerTips Unscripted.

You may have thought that the design-build business model is a recent phenomenon. But years ago, all builders practiced design-build, but something happened along the way to create separate industries. In this episode, David Supple takes Victoria and Mark on a deep dive into the history of the design-build model, the truths about it, and... The post Ep.90: Inside the Design-Build Movement with David Supple appeared first on PowerTips Unscripted.

We’re under an almost-constant barrage of information from every angle. As leaders in our business, it’s imperative that our messages are clearly understood. But it’s equally important, if not more so, that we get messages clearly.  Looking ahead to 2020, Jeremy Steinruck is focusing on clarity in communication and cutting through the white noise.   In... The post Ep.89: Focusing on Clarity in Communication with Jeremy Steinruck appeared first on PowerTips Unscripted.

As a seasoned business professional, you’ve probably been on both sides of the equation when it comes to giving and getting help. Get advice, give consultation. Gain a mentor, bestow some wisdom. While in these essential moments, we want to help and be helped, that doesn’t always happen.  It helps to know there are differences... The post Ep.88: All Help Is the Same, Isn’t it? with Allison Iantosca appeared first on PowerTips Unscripted.

Having a business partner can be an enormous advantage if you approach it correctly. Most people underestimate the commitment and work that goes into a partnership. Ensuring that you’re on the same page and share the same vision goes far beyond having a plan on paper. In this episode, Matt Carlson shares his story with... The post Ep.87: Partnership — Creating a Unified Vision for your Company’s Future with Matt Carlson appeared first on PowerTips Unscripted.

Working with just a few Realtors can bring additional jobs to your remodeling company. It’s not about appealing to the masses, but about developing relationships with several realtors who appreciate how you work, your quality, attention to detail, and exceptional client experience.  In this episode, Kathi Fleck discusses working with Realtors with Victoria and Mark,... The post Ep.86: Connecting with a Few Good Realtors with Kathi Fleck appeared first on PowerTips Unscripted.

Our Roundtables members share their financial metrics at every meeting, in what we call the composite report. But there’s one field that’s almost always reported as zero. It’s the proactive outbound sales call metric. It’s confusing to many, not just as a field on a spreadsheet, but as an activity. Abe Degnan says this metric... The post Ep.85: Unraveling the Undervalued “Proactive Outbound Sales Call” Metric with Abe Degnan appeared first on PowerTips Unscripted.

It’s that time of year — it’s time to put together your company’s marketing plan for next year. If you don’t know where to start or what your plan should include, Mark’s here to help. In this episode, Mark is on a one-man mission to get your strategic marketing plan into shape. First thing to... The post Ep.84: Crafting a Strategic Marketing Plan with Mark Harari appeared first on PowerTips Unscripted.

There’s not much that’s more frustrating than missing out on business opportunities close to home. Understanding the numbers that surround your business’s trade area is critical to determining what may be flying under your radar. Through analytics, you can interpret those numbers and take advantage of what they tell you. In this episode, Nick Ogle... The post Ep.83: Using Trade Area Analytics to Grow Your Business with Nick Ogle appeared first on PowerTips Unscripted.

All remodelers have a sales department. All remodelers have a production department. But few officially recognize a human resources department.  Alex Raisanan used her experience to build an HR department for TraVek, a remodeling company in Scottsdale, AZ. Through skill and creativity, the department was able to build its team by 123 percent in a... The post Ep.81: The Department Your Company Doesn’t Have, but Should with Alex Raisanen appeared first on PowerTips Unscripted.

An aging skilled workforce is retiring, and there’s a shortage of younger people taking their place. It’s a hot topic among remodeling companies, who are still searching for the right answers to solving their labor shortage. In  this episode, Mischa Fisher, Victoria, and Mark discuss what you can do to bridge the skills gap, and... The post Ep.80: Bridging the Skills Gap from an Economist’s Perspective with Mischa Fisher appeared first on PowerTips Unscripted.

Caring for our veterans should be a national priority when they come back home. The Specially Adapted Housing (SAH) program offers grants to service members and veterans who have certain severe service-connected disabilities. The grants assist with building, remodeling, or purchasing an adapted home, but the program needs remodelers and builders to make it work.... The post Ep.79: Helping Veterans Remodel with SAH Grants with Jay Latona appeared first on PowerTips Unscripted.

In a low-unemployment economy, recruiting and retaining the best talent is a continuous effort. You need a powerful competitive advantage — one that’s nearly impossible for anyone else to copy.  It’s your company culture. In this episode, Steve Anderson tells Victoria and Mark why that is, and how you can develop a successful culture —... The post Ep.78: The Most Powerful Competitive Advantage with Steve Anderson appeared first on PowerTips Unscripted.

It’s easy to be successful in a great economy. You can get away with a lot of bad habits, lack of systems, and high overhead when jobs are large and margins high. But when the economy contracts, job sizes shrink, and margins erode, those bad habits can have a huge affect on the health of... The post Ep.77: Recession-Proofing Your Company with Dave Edwards appeared first on PowerTips Unscripted.

It’s time for another 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. This is one of our most popular episodes, and digs in to a... The post Ep.76: [Unscripted Back-Up] Managing Your Customers with Chip Doyle appeared first on PowerTips Unscripted.

It’s incredibly busy in the remodeling world at the moment — leads are pouring in, proposals are flying out, and jobs are being scheduled like crazy. We’re seeing businesses with 30 percent growth, year over year. Yet there’s a silent killer lurking beneath all the fevered growth: insufficient cash flow. In this episode, Mark’s flying... The post Ep.75: Cash Flow: The Silent Killer appeared first on PowerTips Unscripted.