KickStart: “TIME is the only resource you can’t buy more of.” Sam Walton
“Make MORE profit by doing FEWER jobs? You’re an idiot, Steve!” You might think I’ve lost a few screws, but “Patience, Grasshopper”! Stick with me here…
Want to skyrocket your profits?👏🏼 Give your onsite employees a step-by-step Service System that will create an ecstatic “Cheerleader” (and 5-star reviews!) out of each residential client. (I call this “Service Engineering”.) Remember…
KickStart: Only offer additional home services (and products) that are VERY profitable.
NEWS FLASH! Some dollars are MUCH more profitable than others! That’s right, folks, not all revenue is created equal!
Some residential services are like a gold mine,💲 while others… are a frivolous, money-losing waste of time!😥
So, you ask, “How can I make more dough without baking more bread?” Steve’s secret sauce? Be picky about what services you offer. Focus on the Additional Service Options that give you the most bang for your buck. This means…
KickStart: Don’t waste precious business time on non-important busy work.
Maybe Fyodor Dostoevsky said it best 143 years ago, “Above all, don’t lie to yourself.” And yes, our Home Services industry is full of hard-working entrepreneurs who are lying to themselves.😥
“Say what, Steve?” Here’s the deal. Everyone “fritters away” time. This isn’t necessarily a bad thing- we all need down time to relax and recharge.😎 But when we fool (lie to) ourselves we may fall into what I call…
KickStart: man·age ˈma-nij To direct with a degree of skill.
Finding a balance in business (and life) is an ongoing, moving target for most of us. Our shared Home Service Pro entrepreneurial challenge? Managing our OCD tendencies to not get distracted off into Displacement Activities!🙄 Instead, you must focus ONLY on the high-profit, “important stuff”.
True Confession Time: I still find myself going down obsessive rat holes while wasting enormous time on pursuits that add nothing to my happiness, relationships or even my financial net worth!🤔 (You’d think I would have learned by now!)😲
Remember, your residential services company is an incredibly fragile creature. This means as a service business owner or manager you must…
KickStart: “If everyone is moving forward together, then success takes care of itself.” – Henry Ford
If only for the sake of your aching back (not to mention your own Personal Freedom) I sincerely hope your Home Services Business (HSB) is more than a “group of one”! If so, you need to meditate on Mr. Ford’s sage observation above!
By far the biggest challenge you will ever face as a residential services entrepreneur will be recruiting, hiring, onboarding, training, motivating and managing employees. Am I “preaching to the choir” here?🤔 However…
KickStart: Humility is not thinking less of yourself, it’s thinking of yourself less. C. S. Lewis
I’ll admit it. When I started my first Home Services business I was a cocky, proud and yet insecure jerk!😲 (My dear wife is saying right now, “So Steve, you think you’ve changed over the last 50 years?”)🤔 Hmmmmm…
KickStart: “Success breeds complacency. Complacency breeds failure…” Andrew Grove, CEO of Intel
During his eleven years(1987-1998) as CEO at Intel, Andy Grove used his absolute hatred of “business complacency” to rocket Intel’s value by 4,500%! (From $4 billion to $197 billion!) But now let’s talk about you and your residential services business…
Keep your best employees from quitting with the power of employee recognition. These 4 tips will guide you to build emotional bonds and keep your team happy.
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:
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!