Are you unknowingly missing pre-construction opportunities that could win you more of your builder’s business?

In this episode, Kent Strawderman, Project Manager at Harborview Custom Builders, shares what builders actually want from LBM sales professionals — and where most reps fall short. After years on the supply side and now managing high-end custom projects, Kent has seen both sides. His message is clear: if you're just turning around bids and hoping to win on price, you're leaving margin and wallet share on the table.

Builders don’t need faster quotes. They need proactive partners in pre-construction.

In this episode, you’ll learn how to:

1. Shift from commodity quoting to becoming a true pre-construction partner
2. Use lead times, product knowledge, and scheduling awareness to protect builder timelines and margins
3. Ask better questions that turn experienced builders into mentors — and advocates for your growth
4. Build long-term trust through emotional intelligence, empathy, and proactive communication
5. Position yourself to earn more wallet share instead of being “fine with half the business”

Hit play now if you want a builder to tell you exactly how to close more profitable deals and become indispensable before the job even breaks ground.

If you’re ready to stop competing on price and start having the right sales conversations that win business, send us a note at info@bradleyhartmanandco.com or visit our website and click on Increase Sales.

In The Craft of LBM Sales, we tackle real-world sales challenges in the lumber and building materials industry, including handling sales objections, improving phone sales, and what to do when you can’t close deals. Learn how to land new business, strengthen your negotiation skills, and build a reliable sales pipeline—even if you currently have no sales process in place. We also explore proven sales techniques, value selling strategies, overcoming sales rejection, hitting your sales goals, and navigating tough conversations around discounting.

New podcasts are dropped every Monday and Wednesday.

Are you losing sales and talent simply because people don’t know all that you actually do?

If you’re in the lumber and building materials industry, you’ve probably heard it before: “Oh, I didn’t know you did that.”

That one sentence reveals a painful truth.

You may be the best kept secret in your market.

In this episode, Bradley Hartmann sits down with Stefanie Couch, founder of Grit Blueprint, to unpack how LBM dealers can stop blending in and start becoming the first choice.

From attracting younger talent to building real brand visibility, Stefanie shares practical strategies to help you focus your efforts, tell better stories, and escape the dangerous “land of indifference” that keeps too many businesses stuck.

In this episode you will:

1. Learn how to use focused visibility and storytelling to attract younger talent, even if you’re starting from zero on social media.
2. Discover why indifference is the biggest threat to your growth—and how to become unmistakable in your market.
3. Understand how building reputation intentionally leads to stronger revenue, better talent, and more profitable deals.

Hit play now to learn how to stop being the best kept secret in your market and start becoming the obvious first choice.

If you’re ready to stop competing on price and start having the right sales conversations that win business, send us a note at info@bradleyhartmanandco.com or visit our website and click on Increase Sales.

In The Craft of LBM Sales, we tackle real-world sales challenges in the lumber and building materials industry, including handling sales objections, improving phone sales, and what to do when you can't close deals. Learn how to land new business, strengthen your negotiation skills, and build a reliable sales pipeline—even if you currently have no sales process in place. We also explore proven sales techniques, value selling strategies, overcoming sales rejection, hitting your sales goals, and navigating tough conversations around discounting.

New podcasts are dropped every Monday and Wednesday.

What if you could see exactly what a $1.7 million LBM sales month actually looks like—down to every call, email, text, mile driven, and customer interaction?

Most sales professionals only see the lag measures—revenue, orders, compliments from customers. But the real drivers of elite performance—the daily behaviors, communication rhythms, and strategic decisions—stay hidden.

If you’ve ever wondered:

1. Am I focusing on the right accounts?
2. Should I prospect more or go deeper?
3. How much communication is too much?
4. When should I get in the truck—and when should I stay put?

This episode gives you something almost no sales rep gets: a 30-day inside look at the exact behaviors of a top-performing LBM sales hunter.

In this episode you will:

1. Discover the five measurable patterns that drove a $1.7M month—including communication strategy, account concentration, and referral momentum.
2. Learn how focusing on just 17 accounts created deeper wallet share, stronger loyalty, and zero race-to-the-bottom pricing.
3. Understand how elite responsiveness and operational alignment build long-term trust that competitors can’t undercut.

Press play to see what elite LBM sales performance actually looks like—and walk away with behaviors you can apply immediately to close more profitable deals.

Register HERE to receive the complete Tagging a Shark case study when it publishes in March 2026.

If you’re ready to stop competing on price and start having the right sales conversations that win business, send us a note at info@bradleyhartmanandco.com or visit our website and click on Increase Sales.

In The Craft of LBM Sales, we tackle real-world sales challenges in the lumber and building materials industry, including handling sales objections, improving phone sales, and what to do when you can't close deals. Learn how to land new business, strengthen your negotiation skills, and build a reliable sales pipeline—even if you currently have no sales process in place. We also explore proven sales techniques, value selling strategies, overcoming sales rejection, hitting your sales goals, and navigating tough conversations around discounting.

New podcasts are dropped every Monday and Wednesday.

What happens to your sales strategy when a $50 billion ambition moves into your backyard?

The QXO acquisition of Kodiak isn’t just another headline—it’s a signal that consolidation, AI, and aggressive growth strategies are accelerating in LBM.

If you’re a sales leader, owner, or sales rep, this shift should impact how you compete, protect margin, and win new builder business.

Jon Vaughan joins Bradley Hartmann and indicates that sitting back and assuming “we’ve seen this before” may not cut it this time.

In this episode, you’ll discover:

1. The best-case and worst-case scenarios of the QXO–Kodiak merger—and how each could affect your market
2. How AI, centralized procurement, and scale could reshape pricing, operations, and competitive pressure
3. Practical strategies sales leaders can use right now to go on offense and take market share instead of defending it

Press play now to learn how to respond strategically to industry consolidation and position your sales team to win—no matter how this acquisition unfolds.

If you’re ready to stop competing on price and start having the right sales conversations that win business, send us a note at info@bradleyhartmanandco.com or visit our website and click on Increase Sales.

In The Craft of LBM Sales, we tackle real-world sales challenges in the lumber and building materials industry, including handling sales objections, improving phone sales, and what to do when you can't close deals. Learn how to land new business, strengthen your negotiation skills, and build a reliable sales pipeline—even if you currently have no sales process in place. We also explore proven sales techniques, value selling strategies, overcoming sales rejection, hitting your sales goals, and navigating tough conversations around discounting.

New podcasts are dropped every Monday and Wednesday.

Does any energy and momentum dissipate as soon as you hear, “I’m too busy” or “I’m happy with my current supplier”?

If you’re in lumber and building materials sales, you hear these objections constantly.

And chances are, your instinctive response is actually reinforcing the shutdown. In today’s market—where builders need ideas, pricing clarity, and innovation more than ever—accepting these objections at face value is shrinking your pipeline and limiting your face-to-face opportunities.

In this episode you will:

1. Learn why the most common objection responses actually strengthen the status quo
2. Discover The CD2nd Framework (Change → Drift → Second Opinion) and how it breaks the pattern instantly
3. Get practical, word-for-word examples you can use to book more nine-minute meetings this week

Press play now to learn the simple second-opinion approach that can immediately increase your face-to-face meetings and unlock more profitable builder conversations.

If you’re ready to stop competing on price and start having the right sales conversations that win business, send us a note at info@bradleyhartmanandco.com or visit our website and click on Increase Sales.

In The Craft of LBM Sales, we tackle real-world sales challenges in the lumber and building materials industry, including handling sales objections, improving phone sales, and what to do when you can't close deals. Learn how to land new business, strengthen your negotiation skills, and build a reliable sales pipeline—even if you currently have no sales process in place. We also explore proven sales techniques, value selling strategies, overcoming sales rejection, hitting your sales goals, and navigating tough conversations around discounting.

New podcasts are dropped every Monday and Wednesday.

Are you quoting plenty of jobs but still losing deals—and blaming price when the real problem is momentum?

If you’re in LBM sales, you know the frustration of fast takeoffs, detailed proposals, and responsive service — only to get ghosted when it’s time for the builder to decide.

It feels like a pricing issue or a soft market. But what if the real problem is that your sales energy peaks too early and disappears when decisions are actually made?

In this episode you will:

1. Learn how to diagnose “Sales Kinetics Inversion Disorder” and spot where your deals are truly stalling
2. Discover a simple four-step playbook to rebuild late-stage momentum and increase visibility at decision time
3. Gain practical scripts and tactics you can use immediately in discovery meetings, proposal delivery, and follow-up

Press play now to learn how to apply force at the right moment and start finishing deals instead of watching them skid away.

View the Sales Kinetics Chart: part 1 and part 2

If you’re ready to stop competing on price and start having the right sales conversations that win business, send us a note at info@bradleyhartmanandco.com or visit our website and click on Increase Sales.

In The Craft of LBM Sales, we tackle real-world sales challenges in the lumber and building materials industry, including handling sales objections, improving phone sales, and what to do when you can't close deals. Learn how to land new business, strengthen your negotiation skills, and build a reliable sales pipeline—even if you currently have no sales process in place. We also explore proven sales techniques, value selling strategies, overcoming sales rejection, hitting your sales goals, and navigating tough conversations around discounting.

New podcasts are dropped every Monday and Wednesday.

Do you ever feel like you’re working harder than ever—putting in more time and energy—without seeing better results?

If so, it’s probable that wasted time, rework, and slow processes are quietly draining your effectiveness and your commissions. In this episode, LBM industry lean expert Scott Morrison of Do it Best reveals how waste shows up in LBM sales every day—and why most sales pros don’t even see it happening.

After listening, you’ll:

1. See your sales process through a new lens that exposes hidden waste
2. Learn the three most damaging forms of waste in LBM sales and how to eliminate them
3. Discover how lean principles help you deliver more builder value without working more hours

Press play now to learn how eliminating waste—not working harder—can help you sell smarter, serve builders better, and close more profitable deals with confidence.

You can download Scott’s lean LBM sales cheatsheet HERE.

If you’re ready to stop competing on price and start having the right sales conversations that win business, send us a note at info@bradleyhartmanandco.com or visit our website and click on Increase Sales.

In The Craft of LBM Sales, we tackle real-world sales challenges in the lumber and building materials industry, including handling sales objections, improving phone sales, and what to do when you can't close deals. Learn how to land new business, strengthen your negotiation skills, and build a reliable sales pipeline—even if you currently have no sales process in place. We also explore proven sales techniques, value selling strategies, overcoming sales rejection, hitting your sales goals, and navigating tough conversations around discounting.

New podcasts are dropped every Monday and Wednesday.

What if the reason you’re losing key accounts has nothing to do with price—and everything to do with how you made people feel when you had the power?

In today’s shifting LBM market, builders are regaining leverage—and many are quietly remembering how they were treated during COVID. This episode connects Bill Belichick’s Hall of Fame snub to a universal law of human behavior that directly impacts your sales results, relationships, and long-term success.

By listening to this episode, you’ll learn:

1. Why reciprocity governs every business and personal relationship
2. How likability and respect quietly influence buying decisions
3. The hidden cost of ego, power, and short-term thinking in sales

Press play to discover the simple principle that determines whether builders reward you with loyalty—or wait patiently for their turn to vote.

Here’s a link to The Knowledge Project episode Hartmann refers to:

https://fs.blog/knowledge-project-podcast/outliers-peter-d-kaufman/

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bbHZoNj2ogI

If you’re ready to stop competing on price and start having the right sales conversations that win business, send us a note at info@bradleyhartmanandco.com or visit our website and click on Increase Sales.

In The Craft of LBM Sales, we tackle real-world sales challenges in the lumber and building materials industry, including handling sales objections, improving phone sales, and what to do when you can't close deals. Learn how to land new business, strengthen your negotiation skills, and build a reliable sales pipeline—even if you currently have no sales process in place. We also explore proven sales techniques, value selling strategies, overcoming sales rejection, hitting your sales goals, and navigating tough conversations around discounting.

New podcasts are dropped every Monday and Wednesday.