Scaling an HVAC or plumbing business gets difficult when systems, structure, and leadership can’t keep up with growth.

Brandon Saiz, owner of NCB Mechanical in Albuquerque, shares how he went from getting fired at 19 to building a multi-million dollar HVAC and plumbing company after starting during COVID with his own money.

In this episode, we break down the real challenges of growing a home service business. Brandon walks through costly mistakes that shaped his journey, including a $23,000 workers’ comp audit, a $50,000 CRM decision, and losing a $250,000 contract due to lack of structure and scheduling.

We also cover hiring, leadership, and team development... how Brandon shifted from hiring anyone available to building a more intentional team, and why understanding what motivates employees is key to scaling.

On the marketing side, we discuss how to think about spend across Google, Yelp, and other channels, why you need to test everything, and how tracking KPIs helps you make better decisions instead of relying on industry averages.

If you’re looking to grow, improve profitability, and avoid expensive mistakes, this episode delivers practical, real-world insights.

What You Will Learn in This Episode

• Why HVAC and plumbing businesses struggle when scaling too quickly
• How lack of structure leads to operational chaos and lost revenue
• What causes unexpected workers’ comp audits and how to avoid them
• The risks of implementing CRM systems before your business is ready
• Why losing a $250,000 contract became a turning point
• How to improve scheduling and operational efficiency in a service business
• The importance of accountability in business growth
• How to hire and retain the right technicians and team members
• Why leadership development is critical for scaling a home service company
• How to approach marketing spend across Google, Yelp, and other channels
• Why tracking KPIs and performance metrics drives better decisions
• The mindset required to grow a successful HVAC or plumbing business

More From Profit & Grit

Book your complimentary Financial Insight Session with Tyler Martin, fractional CFO for home services and the trades, here:

http://cfointrocall.com

Learn more at http://cfomadeeasy.com

Follow the show for weekly interviews with HVAC, plumbing, and home service owners and experts who share what it really takes to grow, scale, and profit in the trades.

If you listen to any of the following shows, we’re sure you’ll love ours too! To The Point Home Services Podcast, Toolbox for the Trades, Masters of Home Service, Home Service Business Coach With David Moerman, BlueCollar.CEO, The Home Service Expert Podcast, Next Level Pros, Blue Collar Business Podcast, Home Service Millionaire with Mike Andes, The Contractor Fight with Tom Reber, and Blue Collar Success Group.

🎙️ Profit & Grit by Tyler Martin
Real stories. Real strategy. Real results for service-based business owners.

🔗 Website: ProfitAndGrit.com
📍 LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/thinktyler
📸 Instagram & TikTok: @profitandgrit

Tyler Martin, a fractional CFO for home services and the trades

📅 Want to grow your business with smarter financial strategy?
Book a free intro meeting

Growth in a home service business doesn’t break because of a lack of leads. It breaks when communication, structure, and leadership can’t keep up.

Janeen Norquist joins me, president and co-owner of Just In Time Heating, Air Conditioning, and Plumbing, a growing HVAC and plumbing company based in Illinois. After spending 16 years at 3M, she stepped into the trades and helped build a business alongside her husband from the ground up.

In this episode, we get into what it actually looks like to grow a home service company beyond the early stages. Janeen shares the reality of leaving a stable career, the financial pressure in the early years, and how learning the numbers and building the right processes changed their trajectory.

We also break down how they use DISC personality profiles across their entire team to improve communication, reduce internal friction, and make better hiring decisions. Janeen explains how understanding how people are wired has led to stronger retention, better leadership, and a more aligned company culture.

We also cover role-playing, leadership development, and what it takes to move from around 3 million to over 5 million in revenue without losing control of the business.

If you want to scale with better systems, stronger people, and clearer direction, this episode will give you practical strategies you can apply right away.

What You Will Learn in This Episode

• Why home service companies stall in the 3M to 6M growth stage
• How communication issues impact team performance and retention
• How DISC profiles help improve hiring and leadership decisions
• Why understanding personality types leads to better customer interactions
• How to build a culture that supports long term growth
• The importance of role playing in training technicians and office staff
• How to develop leaders instead of just promoting top performers
• Key financial metrics every HVAC and plumbing business owner should track
• How to improve efficiency and accountability as your business grows
• What it takes to scale a home service business without burning out your team

Connect with Janeen Norquist

Website: justintimeheroes.com
LinkedIn: Janeen Norquist

More From Profit & Grit

Book your complimentary Financial Insight Session with Tyler Martin, fractional CFO for home services and the trades, here:

http://cfointrocall.com

Learn more at http://cfomadeeasy.com

Follow the show for weekly interviews with HVAC, plumbing, and home service owners and experts who share what it really takes to grow, scale, and profit in the trades.

If you listen to any of the following shows, we’re sure you’ll love ours too! To The Point Home Services Podcast, Toolbox for the Trades, Masters of Home Service, Home Service Business Coach With David Moerman, BlueCollar.CEO, The Home Service Expert Podcast, Next Level Pros, Blue Collar Business Podcast, Home Service Millionaire with Mike Andes, The Contractor Fight with Tom Reber, a

🎙️ Profit & Grit by Tyler Martin
Real stories. Real strategy. Real results for service-based business owners.

🔗 Website: ProfitAndGrit.com
📍 LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/thinktyler
📸 Instagram & TikTok: @profitandgrit

Tyler Martin, a fractional CFO for home services and the trades

📅 Want to grow your business with smarter financial strategy?
Book a free intro meeting

You’re booking the job… and still losing it. A lot of home service companies think they need more leads. In reality, the leak is what happens after the phone call. The appointment gets set, but the customer keeps shopping, cancels, or never fully commits.

Brigham Dickinson joins me, founder of Power Selling Pros, a company that helps contractors improve how they handle calls, coach their teams, and convert more opportunities into revenue.

Brigham has spent over 17 years reviewing real customer calls and working with hundreds of HVAC, plumbing, and electrical companies. His focus is simple: get more out of the leads you already have.

In this episode, we break down why booked calls still fall apart, where CSRs lose control of the conversation, and how AI is changing call handling... for better and worse. Brigham explains why booking the appointment isn’t enough, and how the best companies create trust early so customers stop shopping.

We also talk through technician performance, dispatch decisions, and why matching the right tech to the right job plays a bigger role in revenue than most owners realize.

What You Will Learn in This Episode

• Why most contractors don’t have a lead problem, they have a conversion problem
• What leads to cancellations after a job is scheduled
• How CSR performance impacts booking rates and revenue
• Where AI fits into call handling and where it falls short
• Why the customer experience starts on the first call
• How better conversations reduce price shopping
• The role of technician matching in job success
• Why follow-up after booking matters more than you think
• How small gains in conversion can drive significant growth
• What top-performing companies do differently to win more jobs

More From Profit & Grit

Book your complimentary Financial Insight Session with Tyler Martin, fractional CFO for home services and the trades, here:

http://cfointrocall.com

Learn more at http://cfomadeeasy.com

Follow the show for weekly interviews with HVAC, plumbing, and home service owners and experts who share what it really takes to grow, scale, and profit in the trades.

If you listen to any of the following shows, we’re sure you’ll love ours too! To The Point Home Services Podcast, Toolbox for the Trades, Masters of Home Service, Home Service Business Coach With David Moerman, BlueCollar.CEO, The Home Service Expert Podcast, Next Level Pros, Blue Collar Business Podcast, Home Service Millionaire with Mike Andes, The Contractor Fight with Tom Reber, and Blue Collar Success Group.

Connect with Brigham Dickinson

Website: https://powersellingpros.com/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/brigham-dickinson/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/power.sellingpros/

🎙️ Profit & Grit by Tyler Martin
Real stories. Real strategy. Real results for service-based business owners.

🔗 Website: ProfitAndGrit.com
📍 LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/thinktyler
📸 Instagram & TikTok: @profitandgrit

Tyler Martin, a fractional CFO for home services and the trades

📅 Want to grow your business with smarter financial strategy?
Book a free intro meeting

The biggest missed opportunity in most home service businesses isn’t leads, it’s what happens after the lead comes in.

Ryan Fenn joins me, founder of Chirp, a platform built to help contractors improve follow-up, communication, and conversion without increasing ad spend.

Ryan comes from a sales background and built Chirp out of his own frustration with inconsistent follow-up. Today, his team has analyzed hundreds of millions of text messages to understand what actually drives responses and closes deals.

In this episode, we break down why most follow-up fails before it even starts, and how small changes in wording can dramatically impact results. Ryan explains why sounding like a marketer kills conversion, how to communicate in a way that feels natural, and why timing plays a bigger role than most people realize.

We also get into AI, automation, and how to use both to improve consistency while still keeping the human connection that builds trust and wins jobs.

What You Will Learn in This Episode

• Why most contractors don’t have a lead problem, they have a follow-up problem
• How small changes in language can significantly increase response rates
• The difference between marketing messages and real conversations
• Why timing and cadence matter more than most people think
• How to structure follow-up beyond just one or two touchpoints
• The role of automation in creating consistency
• How AI can support communication without replacing the human element
• Why long-term follow-up can turn lost leads into closed jobs
• How better follow-up improves ROI without more marketing spend
• What separates average conversion from top-performing companies

More From Profit & Grit

Book your complimentary Financial Insight Session with Tyler Martin, fractional CFO for home services and the trades, here:

http://cfointrocall.com

Learn more at http://cfomadeeasy.com

Follow the show for weekly interviews with HVAC, plumbing, and home service owners and experts who share what it really takes to grow, scale, and profit in the trades.

If you listen to any of the following shows, we’re sure you’ll love ours too! To The Point Home Services Podcast, Toolbox for the Trades, Masters of Home Service, Home Service Business Coach With David Moerman, BlueCollar.CEO, The Home Service Expert Podcast, Next Level Pros, Blue Collar Business Podcast, Home Service Millionaire with Mike Andes, The Contractor Fight with Tom Reber, and Blue Collar Success Group.

🎙️ Profit & Grit by Tyler Martin
Real stories. Real strategy. Real results for service-based business owners.

🔗 Website: ProfitAndGrit.com
📍 LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/thinktyler
📸 Instagram & TikTok: @profitandgrit

Tyler Martin, a fractional CFO for home services and the trades

📅 Want to grow your business with smarter financial strategy?
Book a free intro meeting

Most contractors think they have a sales problem. In reality, it’s usually a process problem.

Drew Cameron joins me, a longtime trainer and consultant who has spent more than 25 years helping home service companies build better sales teams and stronger customer experiences.

Drew grew up in the trades, helped run and sell a family HVAC business, and now works with contractors across the country on how to improve performance through better structure, coaching, and accountability.

In this episode, we break down why sales calls fail before they even start, and how the best companies approach the in-home process differently. Drew explains why connection matters more than closing, how to guide homeowners through decisions, and what most contractors get wrong when they rush to quote.

We also get into hiring, training, and compensation, including how to structure pay around connection ratios and performance instead of just revenue.

What You Will Learn in This Episode

• Why most HVAC sales calls break down early
• The difference between closing and connecting with customers
• How to run a stronger in-home consultation
• Why rushing to quote hurts your results
• The role of process in improving sales performance
• How to coach and lead a sales team effectively
• Why connection ratio matters more than close rate
• How to structure compensation to drive better behavior
• The KPIs that actually measure sales success
• How better sales execution leads to higher tickets and stronger margins

More From Profit & Grit

Book your complimentary Financial Insight Session with Tyler Martin, fractional CFO for home services and the trades, here:

http://cfointrocall.com

Learn more at http://cfomadeeasy.com

Follow the show for weekly interviews with HVAC, plumbing, and home service owners and experts who share what it really takes to grow, scale, and profit in the trades.

If you listen to any of the following shows, we’re sure you’ll love ours too! To The Point Home Services Podcast, Toolbox for the Trades, Masters of Home Service, Home Service Business Coach With David Moerman, BlueCollar.CEO, The Home Service Expert Podcast, Next Level Pros, Blue Collar Business Podcast, Home Service Millionaire with Mike Andes, The Contractor Fight with Tom Reber, and Blue Collar Success Group.

🎙️ Profit & Grit by Tyler Martin
Real stories. Real strategy. Real results for service-based business owners.

🔗 Website: ProfitAndGrit.com
📍 LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/thinktyler
📸 Instagram & TikTok: @profitandgrit

Tyler Martin, a fractional CFO for home services and the trades

📅 Want to grow your business with smarter financial strategy?
Book a free intro meeting

Building a $20M HVAC company didn’t start with investors or private equity. It started with a family taking a chance.

Cody Martinez joins me from Cowboys Air Conditioning and Heating in San Antonio, a family-owned business that has grown to more than $20 million in revenue.

The company began after Cody’s father was laid off on Thanksgiving. Cody’s mom and uncle started the business with his mom cold-calling from the kitchen table while his uncle ran installs. Cody’s father later joined and became the leader who shaped the company’s culture and direction.

In this episode, we unpack the decisions that helped Cowboys break through the $4M–$10M ceiling. Cody explains how “call-by-call management” transformed the way they dispatch service calls and why matching the right technician to the right customer can dramatically improve results.

We also discuss recruiting competitors’ top technicians and the tough leadership decision to let go of the company’s top four producers in order to protect the culture.

Cody credits his father with setting the mission of the company: change people’s lives, create opportunities for employees and their families, and build something that lasts for generations.

What You Will Learn in This Episode

• How Cowboys Air Conditioning and Heating started from a kitchen-table operation
• The role Cody’s father played in shaping the company’s leadership and mission
• How the company scaled past $20M while staying family owned
• Why call-by-call management can dramatically increase revenue
• How dispatching the right technician to the right customer improves outcomes
• The leadership decision to let go of the company’s top producers
• Why protecting culture can unlock faster long-term growth
• How proactive recruiting attracts stronger technicians
• Why margins matter more than simply chasing top-line revenue
• How family-owned companies can compete against private equity-backed firms
• The leadership habits that reinforce culture every day
• Why building a legacy can be more powerful than chasing an exit

More From Profit & Grit

Book your complimentary Financial Insight Session with Tyler Martin, fractional CFO for home services and the trades, here:

http://cfointrocall.com

Learn more at http://cfomadeeasy.com

Follow the show for weekly interviews with HVAC, plumbing, and home service owners and experts who share what it really takes to grow, scale, and profit in the trades.

If you listen to any of the following shows, we’re sure you’ll love ours too! To The Point Home Services Podcast, Toolbox for the Trades, Masters of Home Service, Home Service Business Coach With David Moerman, BlueCollar.CEO, The Home Service Expert Podcast, Next Level Pros, Blue Collar Business Podcast, Home Service Millionaire with Mike Andes, The Contractor Fight with Tom Reber, and Blue Collar Success Group.

🎙️ Profit & Grit by Tyler Martin
Real stories. Real strategy. Real results for service-based business owners.

🔗 Website: ProfitAndGrit.com
📍 LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/thinktyler
📸 Instagram & TikTok: @profitandgrit

Tyler Martin, a fractional CFO for home services and the trades

📅 Want to grow your business with smarter financial strategy?
Book a free intro meeting

Going from rock bottom to revenue growth isn’t a marketing tactic. It’s a mindset shift.

Justin Judd is the VP of Partnerships at Chirp and one of the most respected voices in lead conversion inside the home services space. But before sitting in rooms with industry leaders and speaking on big stages, Justin was a recovered heroin addict who hit absolute rock bottom, including a stroke that left half his face paralyzed.

In this episode, we unpack the revenue levers most owners ignore. Why more leads isn’t usually the real answer. How speed to lead can increase conversion by 391%. Why open estimates are a hidden bank account. How automation can enhance human connection instead of replace it. And what recruiting A-players actually looks like in the real world.

Justin shares tactical strategies around follow-up, missed calls, AI implementation, and scorecards, but he also makes a deeper point: everything starts with mindset. The shops that win aren’t always the ones with the biggest budgets. They’re the ones that execute faster, measure better, and take ownership.

This conversation is for home service owners who feel stuck at $2M–$10M, frustrated with lead quality, or wondering why revenue isn’t translating into profit.

What You Will Learn in This Episode

• Why “we need more leads” is often the wrong diagnosis
• How contacting a lead within one minute can increase conversion by 391%
• The power of automating speed to lead across every channel
• Why open estimates should be tracked like cash in the bank
• How a 9% lift in conversion produced $752,000 in two months
• The right way to use automation without losing the human touch
• Why personalized video follow-up creates long-term stickiness
• How AI is reshaping follow-up, booking, and messaging strategy
• Why A-players rarely come from the unemployment line
• How scorecards remove emotion and create accountability
• Why mindset is the ultimate revenue lever

If you’re serious about scaling, this episode reinforces a simple truth: growth doesn’t just come from more marketing. It comes from better execution, stronger leadership, and knowing exactly where your revenue is leaking.

More From Profit & Grit

Book your complimentary Financial Insight Session with Tyler Martin, fractional CFO for home services and the trades, here:

http://cfointrocall.com

Learn more at http://cfomadeeasy.com

Follow the show for weekly interviews with HVAC, plumbing, and home service owners and experts who share what it really takes to grow, scale, and profit in the trades.

If you listen to any of the following shows, we’re sure you’ll love ours too! To The Point Home Services Podcast, Toolbox for the Trades, Masters of Home Service, Home Service Business Coach With David Moerman, BlueCollar.CEO, The Home Service Expert Podcast, Next Level Pros, Blue Collar Business Podcast, Home Service Millionaire with Mike Andes, The Contractor Fight with Tom Reber, and Blue Collar Success Group.

🎙️ Profit & Grit by Tyler Martin
Real stories. Real strategy. Real results for service-based business owners.

🔗 Website: ProfitAndGrit.com
📍 LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/thinktyler
📸 Instagram & TikTok: @profitandgrit

Tyler Martin, a fractional CFO for home services and the trades

📅 Want to grow your business with smarter financial strategy?
Book a free intro meeting

Going from $600K to $10M didn’t require moving cities. It required changing how they led.

Alyssa Rogers is the Vice President of Rogers Heating and Cooling in South Boston, Virginia, a town of under 10,000 people. When she and her husband took over the family business in 2018, it was doing about $600,000 in revenue. Today, it’s an eight-figure company with multiple locations and a clear path toward a $100 million vision.

In this episode, we unpack what really happens between $1M and $10M in a home service business. The messy early years. Hiring without structure. Learning leadership in real time. Bringing in coaching. Installing a true GM layer. And turning down a life-changing private equity offer because it didn’t fit their long-term plan.

Alyssa shares what scaling in a small market actually looks like, why technician retention is always a leadership issue, how aligning team goals changes culture, and why financial discipline matters as growth accelerates.

This conversation is for home service owners who feel capped by geography, stuck between $2M and $5M, or unsure what the next phase requires.

What You Will Learn in This Episode

• What it looks like to take over a $600K HVAC company
• Why the first $1M to $2M is grit and figuring it out
• The leadership shift required to move beyond “truck and a shop”
• How the right peer group changed their trajectory
• What happens at the $3M–$5M bottleneck
• How reverse-engineering a 10-year vision clarifies decisions
• Why hiring for character beats industry experience
• What changes when you bring in a true GM
• Why they turned down a private equity offer
• The importance of clean financials, margin targets, and forecasting

If you’re pushing toward eight figures or building something durable enough to sell one day, this episode reinforces a simple truth: growth only works when leadership, structure, and financial clarity grow with it.

More From Profit & Grit

Book your complimentary Financial Insight Session with Tyler Martin, fractional CFO for home services and the trades, here:

http://cfointrocall.com

Learn more at http://cfomadeeasy.com

Follow the show for weekly interviews with HVAC, plumbing, and home service owners and experts who share what it really takes to grow, scale, and profit in the trades.

If you listen to any of the following shows, we’re sure you’ll love ours too! To The Point Home Services Podcast, Toolbox for the Trades, Masters of Home Service, Home Service Business Coach With David Moerman, BlueCollar.CEO, The Home Service Expert Podcast, Next Level Pros, Blue Collar Business Podcast, Home Service Millionaire with Mike Andes, The Contractor Fight with Tom Reber, and Blue Collar Success Group.

🎙️ Profit & Grit by Tyler Martin
Real stories. Real strategy. Real results for service-based business owners.

🔗 Website: ProfitAndGrit.com
📍 LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/thinktyler
📸 Instagram & TikTok: @profitandgrit

Tyler Martin, a fractional CFO for home services and the trades

📅 Want to grow your business with smarter financial strategy?
Book a free intro meeting