Painter Marketing Mastermind Podcast

Jack Magee, founder and owner of Trailblaze Paints, shares how he has grown to doing over $2 million per year after only 2 years in business. At 23 years old, Jack is the youngest guest that the Painter Marketing Mastermind Podcast has ever had. Throughout the interview Jack shares his entrepreneurial mindset, and the power that mindset has had on growing his business. Jack is working hard to make Trailblaze Paints as closely resemble the McDonalds model as possible, and he outlines how he is systematizing his business to improve efficiencies while he grows.

Some topics include:

• Power of the entrepreneur's mindset
• Guerrilla marketing tactics that work
• How to generate 50+ 5-star Google reviews quickly
• Where to find painters, and a unique hack for vetting them on the spot

On this episode of the Painter Marketing Mastermind Podcast, we welcome back guest Matt Carlson. Matt is the owner of M. Carlson Painting, a residential repaint company based in Orono, MN that now does $5 million per year in annual revenue. Matt shares significant changes he has made in his business over the past two years that have propelled him to rapid recent growth, and he also discusses very recently opening his first satellite location in another state. Matt shares his secret sauce to hiring and retaining good talent, telling us how he has cracked the code to the labor force problem that so many painting company owners struggle with.

Some topics include:

• Labor force code CRACKED! How to hire and retain great painters.
• The 4 major changes Matt made to allow him to start opening painting locations in other states
• How to make networking part of your culture, and why you should
• Why Matt now runs a "sales and marketing company, that offers painting services"

Matt Kuyper, founder and co-owner with his wife Maggie of Harpeth Painting, discusses how he reached $1 million with his painting company in his first year working only part time. Harpeth Painting now does over $6.5 million in annual revenue, reaching that revenue in less than 6 years. Matt shares the advantages that early responsibility in his career gave him as a business owner, and why he thinks most painting company owners think way too small. Matt elaborates on the mindset needed for success, and how surrounding yourself with people who have an abundance mindset can transform your business. Matt now views his primary role at Harpeth Painting as leadership development. He deep dives into how he is building and improving his team on a daily basis, and provides actionable insights other painting company owners can benefit from.

Some topics include:

• Stop thinking small - your mindset makes or breaks your business
• How to surround yourself with the right people to help you grow
• The importance of networking and leading with value, and concrete steps to doing this right
• Why developing leaders is important and how to do it within your company

Return guest Jason Phillips, founder and owner of Phillips Home Improvements, discusses the importance of having good systems, and why you should borrow from others until your company runs like an Easy Bake Oven. He also discusses how to always be adding value for both your customers and your employees, and how this value first mindset has allowed him to grow his business to doing over $8 million in annual revenue. He outlines a 4-grid marketing matrix, including make it/take it and online/offline marketing, and how to use this grid to diversify and improve your marketing efforts.

Topics Discussed:

• The importance of the Easy Bake Oven mindset to growing your business
• How to lead with value first, and why that matters
• Why diversity in your marketing is important, and how to gauge your overall marketing efforts
• The importance of knowing yourself, and how that impacts your business' success

Tanner Mullen, founder and owner of Premium Painting, discusses how he has grown his business to doing over $1 million in annual revenue by focusing on the buyer's journey. Tanner shares his in-depth hiring process, including the many subtle but impactful nuances involved that ensure he hires only the most committed and detail-oriented employees. Tanner also discusses his software DripJobs, what it does, and how it has vastly improved the experience he is now able to deliver to his customers. At the end of the episode, Tanner shares a promo code that listeners can use to receive an in-depth hiring course as a thank you for listening.

Some topics include:

• Why the buyer's journey can make or break your painting business
• What Tanner is really selling his customers, and how he leverages software to sell it better than anyone else
• How to create a hiring system that fills your company with all star employees
• What DripJobs is, and why it can help vastly accelerate your painting company's growth

Greg Flaherty, founder and owner of Colorful Remedies, discusses how he built a painting business that can now fully run without him. He shares his process for vetting potentially bad clients right from the start, and why he views that as a critical component to his painting company's success. Greg elaborates on how strategic planning has been a primary focus for him, and how other painting company owners can create their own strategic plans if they are serious about long-term growth. 

Some topics include:

• How to make your painting business run without you
• Why bad clients will kill your growth, and how to vet them
• We are not in the business of doing favors, so structure your business accordingly
• The reasons strategic planning matters, and how to do it right

Doug Bates, founder and owner of Bates Painting Company, shares lessons from his incredible 42-year journey growing his business. An artist at heart, Doug shares why he only hires artists as his painters, and the impact he believes that has on the quality of their work and on his business. Doug discusses some of the biggest mistakes he has made in his 42-year journey, and how younger entrepreneurs can avoid some of these costly errors.

Some topics include:

• Mistakes to avoid, learned by Doug through the "School of hard knocks"
• How to leverage your current employees to grow your painting business
• The flywheel effect of growth, and why it's so powerful
• The difference between running a painting company, and being a painter

Eric Regan, founder and owner of Mission Painting, discusses his "why" for starting and growing his business, and how that impacts every decision he makes. He shares why he does not use commissions to motivate his employees, but instead pays them far above market rates, and the benefits he has seen in Mission Painting's culture and service as a result of doing so. Eric discusses the mindset he embraces when faced with disappointment, and how that mindset has been a huge catalyst for his growth and success.

Some topics include:

• A Players hire A Players. B Players hire C Players.
• The right behaviors create the right actions
• How to view mistakes as positive learning opportunities, and the massive benefits of doing so
• Eric's mission, and how that has driven his success

John MacFarland, Founder and Owner of MacFarland Painting, joins the Painter Marketing Mastermind Podcast for a second time to take a deeper dive into his unique compensation model. A very big advocate for open book reporting and transparency, John explains how other painting company owners can transition their employee compensation models to create a win-win. He also discusses how to keep a "small company" feel with customers while running a business that is currently generating approximately $8 million in annual revenue.

Some topics include:

• An employee compensation model that creates a win-win for the company and employees
• How to transition existing employees to this new payment system
• What customers value and why MacFarland Painting enjoys high referral rates
• The importance of honesty, and how John uses it to create trust and loyalty with both employees and customers

Nick Slavik, founder and owner of Nick Slavik Painting & Restoration, takes a deep dive into the fundamental components of business success. Nick discusses how to get your painting business in order both in terms of customer fulfillment and employee satisfaction. He shares a huge shift that he has seen recently in the mindset of potential employees, and what painting companies must now do to attract and retain great people. And he discusses his strong feelings against discounting work, and the proof he would need to see in order to have his mind changed.

Some topics include:

• How to get your business in order, so that your painting company can grow
• A massive employee mindset shift that has forever changed how painting companies must attract and retain talent
• How to maximize the impact of in-depth business books
• The ultimate recipe for business success, and it's not easy