Toolbox Talk

Are you doing enough marketing? I see most tradies only rely on relationships and word-of-mouth. They only do a bit and end up lacking confidence when faced by somebody who's being unreasonable especially when they do price negotiaton. This is why marketing is so important.

How do you treat your people in your business? I want to share a true story. This is from an infographic I received last week comparing 2 well-known chicken restaurants in the US. As I was reading it, I was amazed at how the smaller company beat the other in terms of revenue. Wanna know what they did? Let me show you.

I saw a post on Capenter's Talk Group from a guy who asked where he could borrow money to grow his business. Lots of people gave some funny ideas, but there were others who made a fair point too. So I thought of sharing some options where you can get the funds you need for your business. Each of these options have their own pros and cons so let me run you through them.

When you make a mistake do you apologise immediately? It can feel quite confronting, can't it? Sometimes we make excuses so as to not put the blame on us. But this could make things worse. Here's a story I have about a referral I gave to my client. There's an important lesson here...

As the owner of your trades business, you're most likely doing more work at the office than in the field. What does your office environment look like? Do you have a desk and proper chair to make you feel comfortable while working on your laptop or computer? I know it sounds a bit silly to ask but it's important. If you wear safety gear on site, you also need to make sure you take the necessary pre...

I like to use the analogy of: "fit your mask first". We've heard this a couple of times when we fly on airplanes at the start of safety check to fit our mask first before we help somebody else. Let's take it across business. Our business is dependent on us. We work so hard to make sure it's working properly. Often, we end up neglecting our self. We forget that our self needs some attention to. Are...

Let's continue the talk on how to look after yourself better. I'm sure you'll love the topic because today it's all about utes. There's a buzz going on around about this new Mercedes X class ute. It's big muscular-looking ute but it costs $80,000 too. Do you think it's worth it? Here's what I think about it.

You need to look after yourself because you don't want to get sick of running your business. There's more to life than work and we know that. So let's start at the bottom... Your work boots.

I saw an interesting post on Facebook about a tradie who sent an invoice for work he did over a year and a half ago. And so, he asked this question: Is there an expiry date for an invoice? What do you think? Does he have a chance to be paid? Let me tell you in this week's video.

How's your company's culture? Did you do a Christmas party in the office? If you did, you've already made a small investment in having a great business culture. But it's not enough. There are two things you need to consider to have a good culture in your business.

How's your holiday? Are you ready to get back to business? Here's an interesting article I read from @hubspot about the flywheel in business. I'm sure most of you in trades business know what a flywheel is. But how is it related to a trades business?

Merry Christmas! I know it's Christmas, so this will be short, but I want to share some stories of my client's wins this year. They made it by being confident to stand for what's best for their business. Hope this encourages you to do the same.

The news is on again about rogue tradies roaming around the country, knocking on people's doors and ripping people off. This is not a new story after all. I know I've mentioned this stuff before, but it bears mentioning again. Not all trades business owners are good and decent people like you and your tradespeople.

Today, let's talk about having a business structure and how it gives you an edge from other trades business. Let me share with you a good example from the experience I had with this plumber.

I saw this post on a Facebook group for tradies the other day about a guy who unintentionally damaged a luxury car while working on site. You bet it was not his lucky day. Bentley SUV worth a £150,000 and the damage to be fixed to the paintwork and the bodywork was £30,000. If that was you, what would you do? Here's a lesson you can learn from this guy.

Today's topic is about the mistake of not charging enough. It's easy to make it, particularly if you're new, small and don't have any costs. But... It's the wrong thing to do and let me tell you why.

It's tradie mistake # 3 - not being true to your word. And this habit damages 2 things: - Business opportunities; and - Your reputation However, this is a common human behaviour. Almost everyone does this from time to time. And here's the reason why people do it.

In last week's episode, I talked about tradies not showing up to their pre-arranged appointments when they said they would. Or promising to prepare quotes for their customers but then they don't. It's a bit disappointing and I blame it on how they manage their time. They're very disorganised. There's only one solution to this.

Who likes unreliable people? Of couse, no one does! The first mistake tradies commit is failing to show up. I know that not only tradies do this thing, but most of us who are in business are guilty too. But you can stop this from happening again, here's how.

One of the strategies to increase your work capacity is to hire people. I understand that you all have lots to do in your trades business and you can't wait to hire more people to do the work for you in order to grow and scale.  This leaves you vulnerable to making poor decisions and rush decisions. I'll give you a warning and I know I've said this before: if you hire without discipline, you'...

Trades Business Growth Strategies - How To Increase Your Work Capacity

I'd like to talk today about 'Sh*tty Email Marketing -- Don't do this!' People seem to think it works but don't do it! Email is not a good way to start a relationship. It's a great way to maintain a relationship.  For my business, email is useful because the service I'm selling is about teaching you stuff that you want to learn: marketing, and sales, and how to grow and scale your business. B...

As you know, from last week's Toolbox Talk, I'm in Spain at the moment because of my dad's heart surgery. And I'm glad he's doing okay now 🙂 But, before my trip, sh*t things happened. I have to deal with my cold that I got from my holiday.  My poor dog was dying. I had to go and euthanise my dog, which was very distressing, bury him in the garden, drive to Brisbane, fly to Spain. And I start...

I'm sorry if I made you think about the song from Oasis but that's not what I'm pointing out here. I'm talking about your business :) If you're like me and you're trying to grow and scale your business, looking forward to the future, then you're already taking steps on how to get there.  The journey is a bit difficult and I understand that. There can be some discouraging moments along the way...

How many of you heard this line from McDonald's saying, “Would you like fries with that?” I bet most of us say yes to this simple upsell question, right? I think this strategy is good for your business and using it is a powerful revenue increaser for you. Now, I know there's a little bit of discomfort here but I'll help you overcome it in this short video.