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The truth will set you free!
14 Plays1 month ago
It's certainly tempting but the best course of action is always being honest!!!
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Transcript
Introduction and Background
00:00:00
Baker Plbg
Okay, good morning, everybody. this is gonna be a quick follow up on that post that I put out yesterday. i have um dozens and dozens of comments and even more DMs on both sides of the fence, either um championing me for calling everybody out or or being a sellout.
00:00:25
Baker Plbg
are being ridiculous. ah ah Let me just give you ah some quick background.
Critique of Industry Practices
00:00:31
Baker Plbg
Like I actually did what was called Success Group International, SGI. And if I have my genealogy correct, they were the predecessors to this NextStar network.
00:00:43
Baker Plbg
And the purpose of... um next Next star is, and I'll read it right off their website, stop spinning your wheels and build a life and a business you want.
00:00:56
Baker Plbg
They have 40 plus coaches with residential plumbing, HVAC and electrical experience, 800 plus members with a 95% member retention rate. Let's see, it doesn't talk about customer retention rate.
00:01:09
Baker Plbg
Committed to helping our members achieve a minimum of 10% revenue growth 15% net profit. and fifteen percent net profit You know, if you would listen to me and the advice I give you all for free, that 10% revenue,
00:01:26
Baker Plbg
is easily achieved.
The Value of Honesty in Business
00:01:29
Baker Plbg
The problem with these type of sales ah focused ah plumbing companies, and there are several in my town, the most prominent would be Reliance, which is the big one.
00:01:41
Baker Plbg
um They, you know, post incredibly cheap ah initial fees, like we'll clean your drain for 59 bucks or hot water tank inspection for 70 bucks or a furnace a checkup for 99 bucks or whatever the case may be. And the the whole purpose of that, as everybody in the industry knows, is just to get your so get you in the door so that you can do the whole whole high pressure sales tactic and get and so you know walk out of there with a to the intent.
00:02:15
Baker Plbg
work order that's the that's the intent And that mentality, in my opinion, is is an effort to work for everybody in your location once.
00:02:27
Baker Plbg
And the only time that you go back, and this is a fact, is in between five and eight years, is to replace that equipment. And I think it's absolutely dishonest. And the thing that irked me the most about that ah ah little clip, first of all, it's endorsed by plumbing and heating contractors of California.
00:02:52
Baker Plbg
I mean, there's they're supposed to be ah legit. And I know people that are part of that um and promote that. i think that's ah I think that's a bad look, fellas. If you expect a first-year technician cram somebody in a van and you expect, I mean, that one guy, $1.8 million dollars in a year.
00:03:14
Baker Plbg
That's what you're supposed to sell. i don't know how you I don't know how you back that up with actually in installs, but ah ah it's, anyway. um It is my opinion that whether you like it or not, that honesty actually sells.
Personal Success Story
00:03:33
Baker Plbg
And that is absolutely prevalent in the call that we had yesterday, where um we showed up to quote out a new furnace because the there was another plumbing company in there um whose name is Plumbing ah but
00:03:56
Baker Plbg
ah Paramedics. um They were in there and whoever their tech was um told them that they needed a new furnace and that it was and inoperable and and shut it down.
00:04:11
Baker Plbg
Now, it wasn't a big deal. or They came in the the week prior. And they have two furnaces and in-floor heating, so the house wasn't in any danger of of freezing.
00:04:22
Baker Plbg
And this is a fairly well-to-do client, we since learned, that has a bit of a landlord um presence and and owns what appears to be four or five different properties around town.
00:04:36
Baker Plbg
And so unfortunately for my good friends at Plumbing and Paramerics, they have lost that customer. forever um and we have gained it.
00:04:47
Baker Plbg
um And only simply because ah we walked in there and actually troubleshot it and found out what was wrong with it and fixed it. I had a couple guys on here chirping, oh, if it's over 15 years, i'm like, dude, it wasn't over 15 years. It's a high efficient furnace. It's at whatever, I think it's a 92% efficient furnace. So it's under a decade old.
00:05:11
Baker Plbg
Everything works. and and And that does, it bugs me so much. Like my truck is 2009. I had somebody say the other day, oh, you got a new truck. I'm like, no, I just take care of it.
00:05:25
Baker Plbg
It takes some maintenance to keep it on the road. ah But so does buying a brand new vehicle. And if and if somebody tells you that ah brand new vehicles are less maintenance than older vehicles, they're full of shit.
00:05:39
Baker Plbg
Let me just tell you that right now. So I would be extremely careful on sort of your sales tactics. And if you're in it for nothing but the money,
00:05:52
Baker Plbg
um it's it's going to be a rough road
Reputation and Integrity
00:05:56
Baker Plbg
for you. I i think i think um with the internet and with the the level of information that's out there, that people are gonna start to become wise to these sort of guerrilla tactics, these dishonest actors that show up and fear monger you into purchasing ah product when you don't need to.
00:06:23
Baker Plbg
I was going to just sort of, you know, I was on i was on the train for a minute. here's my Here is my price book um that we gave to every single um individual.
00:06:43
Baker Plbg
Like we did, I did the whole nine yards, man. And I'm here to tell you that it's a crock of shit. And you have to leave some of your your integrity and some of your honesty at the door if you're going to follow that method. And I know there's going to be people that say, Bob, you're wrong.
00:07:02
Baker Plbg
And you know what? I'm not wrong. I'm rarely wrong. There have been a lot of people in my life that have tried to prove me wrong, tried to undermine me, tried to ah damage my reputation.
00:07:15
Baker Plbg
And unfortunately for them, and this is a bold statement to make, but I'm going to make it. ah My reputation is impenetrable and because we have oh carried, i have carried myself with honesty and integrity and have lived up to ah the values that I promote, despite what people may say about it.
Advice on Pricing and Success
00:07:43
Baker Plbg
um Anyway, You should have a hard look at what you're trying to do. And I would encourage you. to ah be honest and upfront. And just to that end, know, we've had, I've had ah three or four people in the last um two weeks, DM me, and they'll remain anonymous, unless they want to tell their stories, have said to me, you know what, Bob, I'm doing this quote, what should i what should my numbers be?
00:08:11
Baker Plbg
And they'll share what their, you know, what their costs are and how much labor is. And I tell them it needs to be a minimum of this. And um A couple of them have done those jobs and completed those jobs and frankly made anywhere from $30,000 to, or that was the high number, extra to $7,000 extra because they listened to my advice and and are honest and upfront. They're providing the materials, they're providing the the labor, and they're providing the expertise to get it done.
00:08:45
Baker Plbg
And that's what this thing takes. You did not go to school. to learn how to sell. You went to school to learn the code, to learn how the sequence of operations, to understand the equipment that you're working with.
00:09:01
Baker Plbg
And if you do that to the very best of your ability, then I'm convinced the rest of it will fall in place and that you do not need to subject yourself to these softwares, to these sales companies and and and debase yourself in quackery
00:09:25
Baker Plbg
to try and make a buck.
Conclusion and Call to Action
00:09:26
Baker Plbg
As usual, those are my thoughts, not yours. Everybody have a fabulous day. Good luck out there. Kill it. I hope it all goes well. If you're making those mistakes, ah it's never too late to repent.
00:09:37
Baker Plbg
Everybody have a fabulous, fabulous day. My thoughts, not yours.