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Guides and stories for small business owners

Plain-language help for owners of small businesses and start-ups, including door-to-door and field sales teams. Every post ends with something you can do this week.

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Guides

Make a reply promise your team can keep (and how to check it)

Big companies set a time limit for answering customers. A small business can do the same in one page. Here is a simple way to set it and check it.

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Guides

Who actually does the work? How JG fixes things with a team of specialists

You hire JG, but the work may need more than one skill. Here is how JG leads the fix and brings in specialists, so you only deal with one company.

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Guides

HVAC installs go wrong before install day: a four-phase fix for mechanical contractors

Most HVAC install problems start at the sales visit, not on install day. Here is a simple way to carry what you learn through to the crew.

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Door-to-door and field sales

A 30-day plan for new door-to-door reps, week by week

New door-to-door reps often leave because nobody gave them a path. Here is a simple 30-day plan, week by week.

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Guides

Your first office hire: what to hand off first, and what to keep

Before you hire your first office person, write down what to hand off. Here is a simple way to pick the work and set them up to win.

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Tools and templates

How to write a one-page job standard your crew will actually use

A one-page standard shows your crew how a job is done right. Here is how to write one they will actually use.

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Guides

Five numbers to look at every Friday, and what to do when each one moves

You do not need a big report. Look at five numbers every Friday, and know what to do when one moves.

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Tools and templates

The five-touch quote follow-up schedule, with messages to copy

A five-message plan for following up on quotes, with the words to copy.

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Guides

How fast should you answer a new lead? A response rule you can keep

The first company to answer wins more jobs. Here is what one study found, and a simple rule to answer fast.

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Guides

Customers ask for a quote, then go quiet. Here is what owners do about it

Customers ask for a quote and then go quiet. Here is why it happens, and a simple way to follow up so you win more jobs.

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Guides

"I do everything myself." How owners get out of the middle

If every decision runs through you, the business cannot grow past you. Here is a simple way to hand work off and still sleep at night.

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Guides

The sale closes, then the crew is missing half the details

The sale closes, then the crew has to call and ask what was promised. A one-page handoff fixes that.

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Guides

Maybe you do not have a people problem. Maybe you have a process problem

The same mistakes keep happening. Maybe the people are fine and the steps are missing. Here is how to tell.

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Guides

Why your business gets harder to run as it grows

Your business used to feel easy. Now it feels heavy. Here is why that happens, and what to do about it.

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Door-to-door and field sales

Door-to-door reps keep quitting: what to check first

Reps keep quitting. Before you blame them, check these four things in how you set them up.

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Tools and templates

A simple follow-up tracker you can start using today

A simple tracker for quotes and follow-ups that you can set up in one afternoon.

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