Essentials - Home Front Success

When You Hire Employees, Feelings Matter

Growing businesses require quality works. The challenge is to hire employees that will stay AND connect with customers. It all starts with feelings.

Clearly Defining Your Home Service Client’s Expectations

by Steve Toburen

KickStart: ‘Clearly defined expectations’ are the basis for all successful relationships.(Including with your homeowner clients.)

This KickStart quote above is a one-size-fits-all principle to guide your business and just maybe… your life!💖 (After all, you have a myriad of ‘ongoing relationships’.) But today, let’s focus on molding your business relationship with each residential customer…

I know. You’re thinking, “Steve, I’m not marrying my homeowner clients! I don’t care about a ‘relationship’. Honestly? All I want is to a) do the job, b) get paid and c) get on to the next job!”

I get it but SORRY! It just doesn’t work that way!👎 To be truly successful in any Home Services business you MUST focus on each homeowner’s relationship with you AND your workers! Here’s why:

Celebrate the New Service Employee’s First Day!

by Steve Toburen

How can you effectively “sell” your company to a new tech? By creating a positive first impression on your employee’s first day. Boost their sense of belonging and commitment with these steps.

How to Spread Your Load with ‘Shared Accountability’ in Residential Services

by Steve Toburen

KickStart: Reduce your personal pressure by sharing the accountability (and rewards) with your employees.

24-7 PRESSURE… 365 days a year!😲 Sound familiar? If you own or manage a residential services business… very likely this is your life!

True- we all have to deal with pressure and now more than ever. But for you the pressure is non-stop with workers in the emotionally perilous residential environment! Why? Because there are so many moving parts to your Home Services business!

The Why and How of Sincerely Thanking Your Service Employees!!

by Steve Toburen

KickStart: Bonus your people ’emotionally’ when you warmly express sincere (and specific) gratitude for their hard work.

Owning a home services business is not for the “faint of heart”! It can be a very lonely entrepreneurial journey.😥 In fact, many residential services business owners become isolated, suspicious and even cynical. I get it- I too spent far too many years on this negative path.

But then I realized needed help. And who knew better the pressures and struggles of working for homeowners than… my employees? So I started delegating authority AND sharing accountability with my workers. Amazingly…

3 Steps to New Hire Retention

by Steve Toburen

Struggling to keep your top talent in today’s competitive market? These 3 simple steps will streamline your new hire retention process, saving you time and energy in the long run.

Why your ‘Comfort Zone’ May Doom You- and How to Escape!

by Steve Toburen

KickStart: Develop EASY, step-by-step written systems for all workers to help your company run smoothly without… YOU!

How many of you A) have more ‘toys’, B) make more money, and C) are more ‘comfortable’ than you could have ever imagined? Yep- the Home Services industry truly can provide a ‘comfort zone’ for you!👍👍 And yet, I’ll gently remind you…

Can you Use a Complaint to ‘Tune Up’ your Home Services Company?

by Steve Toburen

KickStart: Analyze WHY a complaint/problem occurred and HOW to prevent the issue from happening again.

Normally when I train on my ‘Complaint Conversion’ techniques folks assume we’ll focus on ‘Converting Complainers into Cheerleaders‘. I call this the ‘Triple C’ and it IS very important!

However, when a homeowner complains (hopefully not very often) I suggest a much more important question to ask yourself…

What is the ‘Primary Purpose’ of your Home Services Business?

by Steve Toburen

KickStart: Examine building a Critical Mass Business to bring you the elusive ‘Personal Freedom’!

We’ve recently discussed the why and how of creating a work atmosphere that is 1) safe, 2) sane, and 3) stable. (More important than ever in these CRAZY TIMES!) However…

While happy, engaged and committed workers are incredibly important they shouldn’t be the Primary Purpose of your business. NOTE: Please don’t focus ONLY on ‘getting big’. After all, I’ve consulted with Home Service entrepreneurs who have 100’s of employees and are totally enslaved by their business!

Of course, I (of all people) am a big fan of money! After all, I tell every class, “All things being equal… it is better to have more money than no money!” Why? Because financial success is a tool- to help others and bring you (and your family) freedom! (More on this in a bit.) But first, a warning…

Stop your “Nobody Wants to Work in Service Any More” Grumbling- NOW!

by Steve Toburen

KickStart: Don’t fool yourself with the “Nobody wants to do service work any more?” complaint. Instead, ask the more productive question: “Why doesn’t anyone want to work for… ME?”

Everyone from Fortune 500 CEO’s to your local competitors slamming down boilermakers at lunch are all desperate to hire more home service employees. And they’re all moaning the same complaint…

“Nobody wants to work any more!”😫

Seriously? Nobody? As in, “Not one single person?” Come on, people! As I write this the U.S. has a 3.6% unemployment rate. So a bit of simple math tells us that…