Do you remove your shoes when you visit a customer’s home?  How do I control others’ first impressions of me? Is it ever appropriate to begin eating before everyone is served?  Find the answers to these questions and more when Daniel Post Senning joins the show.   

Daniel is the great-great-grandson of Emily Post and discusses the importance of etiquette and how you can use it while interacting with affluent clients who expect a certain standard of conduct.  He explains that etiquette is really a combination of manners (language), plus principles (consideration, respect, and honesty), and how they guide behavior and how that behavior impacts others. 

Daniel Post Senning is from the Emily Post Institute, which is a fifth-generation family business that promotes etiquette tips and techniques based on consideration, respect, and honesty. Daniel is also an author and co-host of the Awesome Etiquette podcast. 

In this informative and fun podcast, Victoria, Mark, and Daniel talk more about: 

The post An Etiquette and Manners Guide for Remodelers with Daniel Post Senning – [PowerTips Unscripted S4 E12] appeared first on PowerTips Unscripted.

Have you ever heard of SCRUM?

SCRUM is a workflow management technique that accelerates projects, and while it is mostly used by software development teams, its principles and lessons can be applied to all kinds of industries. 

Guest Dean Tompkins is here to explain how SCRUM is useful in his remodeling business, and how it can benefit you as well.

Dean Tompkins is the owner and Vice President of Payne and Payne Renovations and Design, a firm that specializes in renovation and design projects in the Greater Cleveland area.  Dean was also named president of The Greater Cleveland Home Builders Association in 2019 and is dedicated to providing a full scope of services to his clients.

Victoria, Mark, and Dean talk more about:

The post How SCRUM Can Strengthen Your Design Process with Dean Tompkins – [Best of PowerTips Unscripted] appeared first on PowerTips Unscripted.

In this episode, we take a closer look at the sales process. We are always looking for fresh ideas and concepts that apply specifically to remodelers and those in the building community.

Our guest Jen Neige is adamant that you should be selling to design, NOT designing to sell, and she shares how you can improve your closing ratio, gain more control of the sales cycle and earn a design fee within two hours.

Jan Neiges is a National Kitchen and Bath certified Kitchen Designer and on the nine-member board for NKBA. Jan brings her 20 years of experience as a kitchen and bath designer and her 40 years of sales experience to share the selling process that she has developed.

Victoria, Mark and Jan talk more about:

The post Selling to Design, Not Designing to Sell with Jan Neiges – [Best of PowerTips Unscripted] appeared first on PowerTips Unscripted.

Are you looking for innovative tax strategies to reduce you or your clients’ tax burden? 

Or, simply sick of paying more than you need to in taxes? Then tune into this episode to hear vital information that you won’t want to miss! Guest Shauna Wekherlien, CPA provides proven, legal, effective, and easy strategies that any audience member can implement to keep more of their hard-earned money.  

Shauna is the founder and business owner of Tax Goddess, a company ranked in the top 1% of all tax strategists in the USA. The team at Tax Goddess is committed to helping clients reduce their tax burden to the bare legal minimum with proven strategies that are guaranteed to save thousands off of tax bills each year.

Victoria, Mark, and Shauna talk more about:

The post The Top 3 Deductions Your CPA Never Told You About with “The Tax Goddess” – [Best of PowerTips Unscripted] appeared first on PowerTips Unscripted.

Sales management can be one of the hardest jobs in a company, especially if you are both a player and coach.

Sales managers are constantly focusing on how to improve their business, their team and themselves, and could use some tips along the way. 

Guest David Mattson joins Victoria and Mark in this episode to share the best practices to incorporate into succeeding as a sales manager.

David Mattson is the CEO of Sandler Training and also a former speaker for the Remodelers Advantage Roundtables.  David has written 5 best selling books on sales management and is also releasing another called, “Scaling Sales Success -16 Principles for Sales Leaders.” 

As a distinguished author and CEO, David brings his knowledge of world-class sales, sales management tactics and actionable strategies into this episode.

Victoria, Mark and David talk more about:

Documents Mentioned During this Episode: 

Explore More Sandler Books

The post The Three Most Important Skills in Sales Management with David Mattson – [Best of PowerTips Unscripted] appeared first on PowerTips Unscripted.

Current events have created an environment of incredible stress for homeowners across the globe. Remodelers have an opportunity to tap into their dissatisfaction with their home environments by using an empathy-based marketing approach to make an emotional connection.

On this episode of Best of Powertips Unscripted, Tanya Bamford joins Victoria and Mark to share how using the right messaging, imagery, and delivery channels can allow remodelers to present themselves as conduits for creating retreats from stress at home.  These tips can help them fill their pipelines with homeowners who are hungry for a reprieve.  

Tanya Bamford is the Managing Director of R/A Marketing–a full-service agency providing creative, yet straightforward marketing solutions for remodeling companies across the United States.

This episode will cover:

The post Making powerful emotional connections using empathy-based marketing with Tanya Bamford – [Best of PowerTips Unscripted] appeared first on PowerTips Unscripted.

Today on PowerTips Unscripted, Lane Cooper joins the show to discuss the large project sales process. Price is a process like design. Setting our clients up for a successful pricing process is critical to large remodeling projects moving forward through design into construction. Lane walks us through his pricing process to manage clients’ price expectations.

Lane Cooper is the President and founder of COOPER Design Build in Portland, OR., and is a valued Roundtables member. COOPER Design Build specializes in large remodeling and addition projects.

Victoria, Mark, and Lane talk more about…

The post Exploring a Large Project Sales Process with Lane Cooper – [PowerTips Unscripted S4 E11] appeared first on PowerTips Unscripted.

As remodeling companies grow, owners face the challenges of deciding when leaders are needed, how to find them, and train them to be good leaders. In this episode of PowerTips Unscripted, Wayne Ottum discusses these challenges and provides tools and methodologies for facing these challenges head-on. In addition, he talks about how he helps owners create a business that works for them.

Wayne Ottum is a senior consultant at Remodelers Advantage. Wayne has over 30 years of experience, with 15 of those years specializing in the remodeling industry. He helps create clear and compelling paths for owners to meet their goals.

Wayne, Victoria, and Mark talk more about:

The post Solving the Challenges of Leadership Development in Remodeling Companies with Wayne Ottum – [PowerTips Unscripted] S4 E10 appeared first on PowerTips Unscripted.

Today on PowerTips Unscripted, Mark and Victoria are joined by Michael Hodgin to discuss using the financial review to pivot to profitability. A complete understanding and review of your company’s financials is a practice that requires a disciplined effort. However, with this practice in place, an owner will be able to use the information from these reviews to pivot when and where necessary to be more profitable year over year. Using his expertise as a former business owner and a business coach, Michael talks about how he examines a company’s financial statements, including what KPIs to review and whom to review the financials with.

Michael was an owner of a successful remodeling company for over 22 years. He has since left and is the owner of Maestro’s Toolbox, where he works with owners of design-build companies across the country to help them build better companies and, therefore, better lives. In addition, Michael has been part of the roundtables as an owner, a facilitator for roundtables meetings, and part of the Remodelers Advantage Business Coaching team.

Victoria, Mark, and Michael talk more about:

The post Using the Financial Review to Pivot to Profitability with Michael Hodgin – [PowerTips Unscripted S4 E9] appeared first on PowerTips Unscripted.

In this episode, Pete Blank shares customer-service strategies from Disney with Victoria and Mark, and discusses how to apply these lessons to your remodeling company to boost your own team’s customer-service performance. 

Pete has been developing leaders and improving service levels of organizations for the past 25 years — 13 of those with the Walt Disney Co. and the past 12 in local government. He loves inspiring others with ways to enhance their organizational culture. You can learn more about Pete Blank at his website: www.peteblank.com, or on his LinkedIn page. 

Growing up near Disney World in Orlando, FL., Pete says he knew he always wanted to work there. After a few years as a sportscaster in Alabama, Pete went to Florida and began working for Disney. After 13 years, he and his family moved back to Alabama so he could start working in the local government.

Blank said that the biggest challenges to providing outstanding customer service and experiences are speed and expectations. Technology has changed the speed and convenience with which goods and services can be delivered, so you have to align your client’s expectations with what you can actually deliver. 

Mark, Victoria, and Pete talk more about:

Listen Now

The post The Magic of Disney’s Customer-Service Strategies with Pete Blank – [Best of PowerTips Unscripted] appeared first on PowerTips Unscripted.