Roofing Success

The roofing market is down about 10%. So why are some roofing companies losing 50% to 75% of their sales? It's not the market. It's the business model.

In this episode, Jim Ahlin breaks down the 4 biggest threats hurting roofing companies and shares 5 moves to protect your cash, keep your best people, and stay profitable when leads dry up.

You'll learn:
- Why relying on storm work puts your roofing business at risk and how to build more retail sales
- How to keep your best sales reps, improve your sales process, and close more jobs with fewer leads
- How to track the right numbers, protect your profit margins, and build cash reserves before a downturn hits

Listen to the episode on Spotify & Apple Podcasts (331) 👇
🎧 https://roofingpod.com/spotify
🍏 https://roofingpod.com/apple-podcasts

PODCAST SPONSORS:

- Your Business Guide: https://yourbusinessguide.com
- JobNimbus Marketing: https://roofingpod.com/jobnimbus-marketing-get-started
- Day 41 Thrive: https://roofingpod.com/day-41-thrive

IG: https://www.instagram.com/roofingsuccess/
FB: https://www.facebook.com/groups/roofingsuccess
Join Our Facebook Group: https://roofingpod.com/facebook

📱 Text Jim @ (612) 512-1812 – Say Hi!
💬 Leave Us a Review: https://roofingpod.com/review

Chapters:
00:00 Why Are Roofing Companies Struggling in 2026?
02:30 Why Are Roofing Leads Dropping?
04:30 How Do Interest Rates Affect Roofing Sales?
06:30 Why Are Roofing Companies Going Bankrupt?
12:00 How Can You Prepare Your Roofing Business for a Downturn?
17:00 How Can Roofing Companies Generate Sales Without Storms?
20:00 How Should Roofing Companies Manage Employees During a Downturn?
23:00 How Can Roofers Improve Sales and Financing Approval Rates?
28:00 How Do You Protect Roofing Profit Margins and Cash Flow?

More leads won’t fix a roofing business that’s losing profit on every job. In this episode, Jim Ahlin draws on interviews with 300+ roofing business owners to answer 10 questions contractors ask most about marketing, pricing, building a stronger team, and preparing to sell.

You’ll learn:

- How to improve your roofing SEO, show up in AI search, and hold your marketing agency accountable
- Why confusing markup with margin costs you profit—and how to price your jobs correctly
- How to build clear processes, keep your best people, and prepare your business for a future sale

Listen to the episode on Spotify & Apple Podcasts (330) 👇
🎧 https://roofingpod.com/spotify
🍏 https://roofingpod.com/apple-podcasts

PODCAST SPONSORS:

- Your Business Guide: https://yourbusinessguide.com
- JobNimbus Marketing: https://roofingpod.com/jobnimbus-marketing-get-started
- Day 41 Thrive: https://roofingpod.com/day-41-thrive

IG: https://www.instagram.com/roofingsuccess/
FB: https://www.facebook.com/groups/roofingsuccess
Join Our Facebook Group: https://roofingpod.com/facebook

📱 Text Jim @ (612) 512-1812 – Say Hi!
💬 Leave Us a Review: https://roofingpod.com/review

Chapters:
00:00 – 10 Questions Every Roofing Business Owner Asks
01:31 – What Actually Works for Roofing SEO?
07:00 – How Do Roofers Get Recommended by ChatGPT and AI?
11:01 – How to Choose the Right Roofing Marketing Agency
17:10 – Should You Hire an In-House Marketer or an Agency?
20:59 – How to Set Up Your Roofing CRM and Sales Pipeline
28:50 – Markup vs. Margin: Are You Pricing Jobs Correctly?
32:55 – How to Document and Improve Your Roofing Processes
38:26 – How to Run Employee Performance Reviews That Work

Bad hires cost your roofing company time, money, and growth. In this episode, Brian Alexander, founder of Ready Aim Climb, shares how to hire the right people, put them in the right roles, and build a team that can grow without you.

You’ll learn:
- Why most roofing companies hire the wrong people
- How to find the right fit before you make a hire
- How to use a 30, 60, 90-day plan to know if you hired the right person

Connect with Brian:
https://readyaimclimb.com
https://www.linkedin.com/in/thebrianalexander

Listen to the episode on Spotify & Apple Podcasts (329) 👇
🎧 https://roofingpod.com/spotify
🍏 https://roofingpod.com/apple-podcasts

PODCAST SPONSORS: 

- Your Business Guide: https://yourbusinessguide.com
- JobNimbus Marketing: https://roofingpod.com/jobnimbus-marketing-get-started
- Day 41 Thrive: https://roofingpod.com/day-41-thrive

IG: https://www.instagram.com/roofingsuccess/
FB: https://www.facebook.com/groups/roofingsuccess
Join Our Facebook Group: https://roofingpod.com/facebook

📱 Text Jim @ (612) 512-1812 – Say Hi!
💬 Leave Us a Review: https://roofingpod.com/review

Chapters:
0:00 Why Roofing Business Problems Come Down to People or Processes
1:04 How to Build a Team That Grows Without You
10:18 Why Your Leadership Might Be Holding Your Team Back
14:54 How to Define Success Before Hiring Someone
16:53 Which KPIs Should You Track to Measure Employee Performance?
22:37 How to Hire the Right Person for the Right Role
32:01 How Behavioral Assessments Improve Hiring Decisions
37:11 How to Build an Effective 30-60-90 Day Onboarding Plan
57:19 How to Retain Great Employees and Prevent Unexpected Turnover

Your roofing team knows what needs to get done, but nothing seems to change. You set goals, build processes, train your people, and still struggle to get everyone moving in the same direction. The problem may not be effort or training. It may be the people you hire, what they believe, and whether your team truly knows where the company is going.

In this episode, Jim Ahlin sits down with Greg Cleary of Pinnacle Business Guides to unpack what keeps good roofing companies stuck. They discuss why roofing owners are really in the people business, why shared beliefs matter more than trying to change behavior, and how clear goals give great people the freedom to execute without being micromanaged. 

In this episode, we talk about:

• How to identify and hire true A Players who fit your core values 
• Why your company goals fail when your team isn’t aligned around the same destination 
• How stronger leadership, purpose, and clarity create better execution

Connect with Greg:
https://pinnaclebusinessguides.com

Listen to the episode on Spotify & Apple Podcasts (328) 👇
🎧 https://roofingpod.com/spotify
🍏 https://roofingpod.com/apple-podcasts

PODCAST SPONSORS: 

- Your Business Guide: https://yourbusinessguide.com
- JobNimbus Marketing: https://roofingpod.com/jobnimbus-marketing-get-started
- Day 41 Thrive: https://roofingpod.com/day-41-thrive

IG: https://www.instagram.com/roofingsuccess/
FB: https://www.facebook.com/groups/roofingsuccess
Join Our Facebook Group: https://roofingpod.com/facebook

📱 Text Jim @ (612) 512-1812 – Say Hi!
💬 Leave Us a Review: https://roofingpod.com/review

Chapters: 
00:00 Why Your Roofing Team Struggles to Execute
02:05 Business Guide vs. Business Coach
05:45 Why Growing Roofing Teams Break Down
08:20 You’re in the People Business
11:30 How to Find and Hire A Players
15:30 Building Core Values That Actually Matter
20:10 Change the People or Change the Person?
22:15 Getting Your Team Aligned Around Purpose
27:00 Why Clear Goals Stop Micromanagement

Legacy Roofing went from just over $3 million in its first year to a projected $30+ million. In this episode, Lucas Poole shares how they built the people, leadership, and culture needed to grow that fast.

You’ll learn:

- Why Legacy builds a championship team instead of a “family”
- What Lucas looks for when hiring and developing roofing sales reps
- How developing more leaders helped Legacy scale into new markets

Connect with Lucas:
https://www.legacyroofinggc.com
https://www.instagram.com/thelegacyroofing
https://www.instagram.com/thelegacyroofing

Listen to the episode on Spotify & Apple Podcasts (327) 👇
🎧 https://roofingpod.com/spotify
🍏 https://roofingpod.com/apple-podcasts

PODCAST SPONSORS: 
- JobNimbus Marketing: https://roofingpod.com/jobnimbus-marketing-get-started
- Day 41 Thrive: https://roofingpod.com/day-41-thrive

IG: https://www.instagram.com/roofingsuccess/
FB: https://www.facebook.com/groups/roofingsuccess
Join Our Facebook Group: https://roofingpod.com/facebook

📱 Text Jim @ (612) 512-1812 – Say Hi!
💬 Leave Us a Review: https://roofingpod.com/review

Chapters:
00:00 – How Do You Build a Roofing Company Where Everyone Can Win?
01:14 – How Do You Get Started in Roofing Sales With No Experience?
09:33 – How Do You Choose the Right Roofing Company to Work For?
16:12 – How Do You Give Sales Reps a Reason to Stay?
18:36 – Should You Run Your Roofing Company Like a Family or a Team?
26:26 – How Do You Build a Commission Structure That Rewards Sales Reps?
35:11 – What Makes a Roofing Sales Rep Successful?
42:48 – How Do You Recruit and Train the Right Roofing Salespeople?
54:06 – How Do You Scale a Roofing Company From $3M to $30M?

The roofing business has ups and downs. John Famularo has survived them for 39 years.

He’s watched prices rise, markets slow down, and roofing companies disappear. Through it all, ABC Roofing has kept moving forward. John says the key is knowing your numbers, taking care of your people, and being willing to change when the market changes.

In this conversation, John shares:

- How to protect your company when business slows down
- Why keeping cash in the business matters
- How great employees, service, and warranties create long-term growth

The good years won’t last forever. Neither will the bad ones. Build your company to survive both.

Connect with John:
https://www.instagram.com/abcroofingcorp
https://www.abcroofingcorp.com/about-abc-roofing-corp
https://www.facebook.com/abcroofing


Listen to the episode on Spotify & Apple Podcasts (326) 👇
🎧 https://roofingpod.com/spotify
🍏 https://roofingpod.com/apple-podcasts

PODCAST SPONSORS: 
- JobNimbus Marketing: https://roofingpod.com/jobnimbus-marketing-get-started
- Day 41 Thrive: https://roofingpod.com/day-41-thrive

IG: https://www.instagram.com/roofingsuccess/
FB: https://www.facebook.com/groups/roofingsuccess
Join Our Facebook Group: https://roofingpod.com/facebook

📱 Text Jim @ (612) 512-1812 – Say Hi!
💬 Leave Us a Review: https://roofingpod.com/review

Chapters:
00:00 How to Build a Roofing Company That Survives Tough Times
01:58 How John Famularo Built ABC Roofing Over 39 Years
03:18 How to Keep a Roofing Company Profitable in a Down Market
10:23 How to Manage Cash Flow During Slow Roofing Seasons
13:34 How to Price Roofing Jobs Without Racing to the Bottom
18:22 How Referrals and Local Branding Drive Roofing Leads
20:48 How ABC Roofing Grew From One Truck to 50 Employees
28:12 How to Choose the Right Roofing Technology and Marketing Channels
40:36 How Service Work and New Services Protect Roofing Revenue
49:06 How to Build and Retain a Strong Roofing Team
56:01 Advice for Building a Roofing Business That Lasts

More revenue doesn’t always mean more profit. Duncan McClung learned this while growing Almost Heaven Roofing.

His company started in general contracting and took on all kinds of work. But spreading the team too thin came with expensive lessons. Duncan eventually narrowed the company’s focus to roofing. Revenue dropped at first, but the bottom line improved substantially.

In this conversation, Duncan shares:

- Why learning to say “no” protects your profit
- How to get sales and production working together
- How to build a company that can run without you

Sometimes scaling isn’t about doing more. It’s about getting focused, setting standards, and trusting the right people to do their jobs.

Connect with Duncan:
https://www.almostheavenroofing.com
https://www.facebook.com/AlmostHeavenRoofing

Listen to the episode on Spotify & Apple Podcasts (325) 👇
🎧 https://roofingpod.com/spotify
🍏 https://roofingpod.com/apple-podcasts

PODCAST SPONSORS: 
- JobNimbus Marketing: https://roofingpod.com/jobnimbus-marketing-get-started
- Day 41 Thrive: https://roofingpod.com/day-41-thrive

IG: https://www.instagram.com/roofingsuccess/
FB: https://www.facebook.com/groups/roofingsuccess
Join Our Facebook Group: https://roofingpod.com/facebook

📱 Text Jim @ (612) 512-1812 – Say Hi!
💬 Leave Us a Review: https://roofingpod.com/review

Chapters:
00:00 Why Communication Matters in Roofing
00:48 From General Contracting to Roofing
03:53 Why Roofing Companies Need to Say No
08:23 How Specializing in Roofing Improved Profitability
11:56 Building a Production-First Roofing Company
14:46 Aligning Roofing Sales and Production
22:18 Hiring the Right People and Setting Standards
29:02 How Roofing Owners Can Stop Micromanaging
34:51 Improving the Roofing Customer Experience

What happens when your roofing company no longer has to wait for the next big storm to stay busy?

In this episode of the Roofing Success Podcast, Jim Ahlin sits down with Daniel Cloteaux, founder of Cloteaux Roofing & Construction and a third-generation roofer, to talk about building a business that can succeed with or without a hurricane. Daniel shares how combining retail and insurance roofing changed his approach to growth, along with the leadership, hiring, and financial lessons he learned along the way.

In this episode:

• Building a roofing business that doesn’t depend on storms
• Balancing retail and insurance roofing
• Hiring, leadership, and building the right culture
• Lessons from workers’ comp, taxes, and scaling

Connect with John: 
https://cloteauxroofing.com
https://www.facebook.com/CloteauxRoofingandConstruction
https://www.instagram.com/cloteauxroofing

Listen to the episode on Spotify & Apple Podcasts (324) 👇
🎧 https://roofingpod.com/spotify
🍏 https://roofingpod.com/apple-podcasts

PODCAST SPONSORS: 
- JobNimbus Marketing: https://roofingpod.com/jobnimbus-marketing-get-started
- Day 41 Thrive: https://roofingpod.com/day-41-thrive

IG: https://www.instagram.com/roofingsuccess/
FB: https://www.facebook.com/groups/roofingsuccess
Join Our Facebook Group: https://roofingpod.com/facebook

📱 Text Jim @ (612) 512-1812 – Say Hi!
💬 Leave Us a Review: https://roofingpod.com/review

Chapters:
00:00 How to Present Roofing Estimates to Homeowners
01:39 How Daniel Cloteaux Got Started in Roofing
07:33 How to Train Roofing Sales Reps to Inspect Roofs
09:46 How to Build a Better Roofing Sales Process
15:58 What Successful Roofing Sales Reps Do Differently
22:32 Why Rebranding Can Help a Roofing Company Grow
29:03 How to Hire and Lead a Roofing Sales Team
38:04 How to Grow a Roofing Company Without Storms
47:59 Expensive Roofing Business Mistakes to Avoid

What separates an average roofing company from an elite one? John Eggen, COO of Big League Roofers, believes it comes down to understanding. Listen before you speak. Inspect before you recommend. Educate instead of just sell. And make “above and beyond” the standard. In this episode, John and Jim Ahlin talk about building better salespeople, stronger leaders, and processes that help a roofing company grow without losing quality.

John also shares how Big League Roofers is making the shift from insurance to retail, why losing on price isn’t always a loss, and why trust will beat being the cheapest contractor. As John puts it, “Roofs are what we build, but understanding is what we leave behind.”

Connect with John: 
https://bigleagueroofers.com
https://www.facebook.com/bigleagueroofers
https://instagram.com/bigleagueroofers
https://www.youtube.com/@bigleagueroofers

Listen to the episode on Spotify & Apple Podcasts (323) 👇
🎧 https://roofingpod.com/spotify
🍏 https://roofingpod.com/apple-podcasts

PODCAST SPONSORS: 
- JobNimbus Marketing: https://roofingpod.com/jobnimbus-marketing-get-started
- Day 41 Thrive: https://roofingpod.com/day-41-thrive

IG: https://www.instagram.com/roofingsuccess/
FB: https://www.facebook.com/groups/roofingsuccess
Join Our Facebook Group: https://roofingpod.com/facebook

📱 Text Jim @ (612) 512-1812 – Say Hi!
💬 Leave Us a Review: https://roofingpod.com/review

Chapters:
02:18 From Roofing Supplier to Roofing Contractor
03:32 The Biggest Gaps in the Roofing Industry
07:39 If Your Customer Is Wondering, You’re Losing
09:29 Making “Above and Beyond” the Standard
11:59 How to Build High Standards Across Your Team
15:38 What Average Roofing Companies Get Wrong
17:11 Training Roofing Sales Reps to Be Professionals
19:31 Stop Measuring Only the Sale
23:15 The Leadership “Helicopter” View
27:21 How to Lead Without Becoming the Bottleneck
29:28 Turning Field Experience Into Better Processes
32:46 Building a Healthy Owner-COO Relationship
35:58 Making the Shift From Insurance to Retail Roofing
40:03 Building Trust Instead of Selling on Price
43:36 What to Do When You Lose on Price
48:29 A Leadership Lesson Learned the Hard Way
50:58 What the Roofing Industry Needs Right Now

Every roofing company wants to grow, but scaling without standards can turn small problems into big ones.

Jonathan Baldivino started in roofing doing cleanup, worked his way up to installer, and eventually built Roofscapes Northwest. As the company grew, he learned that hard work alone wasn’t enough. He needed clear standards, better systems, the right numbers, and great people.

In this episode, Jonathan and Jim Ahlin talk about building standards your team can actually follow, using data instead of gut feelings, hiring the right people, and knowing when your company is truly ready to scale.

Learn more about Roofscapes Northwest: 
https://www.roofscapesnw.com
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCCtAlgA8Htp_ugQPZ7OCxeA
https://www.instagram.com/roofscapes_nw/
https://www.facebook.com/Roofscapesnw

Listen to the episode on Spotify & Apple Podcasts (322) 👇
🎧 https://roofingpod.com/spotify
🍏 https://roofingpod.com/apple-podcasts

PODCAST SPONSORS: 
- JobNimbus Marketing: https://roofingpod.com/jobnimbus-marketing-get-started
- Day 41 Thrive: https://roofingpod.com/day-41-thrive

IG: https://www.instagram.com/roofingsuccess/
FB: https://www.facebook.com/groups/roofingsuccess
Join Our Facebook Group: https://roofingpod.com/facebook

📱 Text Jim @ (612) 512-1812 – Say Hi!
💬 Leave Us a Review: https://roofingpod.com/review

Chapters:
00:00 From Homeless to Roofing Business Owner
07:50 Turning a Roofing Career Into a Business
12:09 The Early Struggles of Running a Roofing Company
17:30 Building the Right Roofing Team
22:18 Why Roofing Companies Need Clear Standards
30:32 Building Systems to Grow a Roofing Business
37:41 The Marketing Metrics Roofing Companies Should Track
42:19 Why You Need to Say No to the Wrong Customers
47:32 Using Data and KPIs to Make Better Business Decisions
53:10 Systems, Hiring, and Scaling a Roofing Company