Mar 31, 2021
Welcome to raise the rank digital marketing podcast, just for roofers, get marketing tips and strategies from Chuck McGee, digital marketer and roofing company owner. Let's start leveling up your roofing company with entrepreneurs that practice what they preach and live, what they teach.
Chuck: Okay. Today's podcast is going to be just a little bit different. Last week I was in Memphis, so I sat down with David Gross with my town roofing. I wanted to know exactly what he was doing with his review acquisition. So I went through his process and today it's a little bit long, but I'm just telling you guys.
Listen to this thing, a couple of times take some notes because David is absolutely crushing it, getting reviews right now. He's getting his name in there. He's getting my town roofing in there. He's getting what the project name is. All these things are really, really important to Google. Um, it helps in your rankings and for David, it is, it's just incredible reference sheet online referencing.
So listen to what David's got to say today, because was some really good stuff. And um, if anybody has any questions about. Google review acquisition, just get in touch with me and let's do some deep dives, but this podcast today, if you follow this point by point, I can promise you you'll gather up more reviews.
So y'all listen to it and tell me, and, um, send me a message and tell me which thing. Today we are in Collierville, Tennessee. I am at my town roofing and I am sitting with David Gross. One of the project managers salesmen at my town roofing. And today we are going to go over Google reviews. And let me tell you why.
Because David is absolutely crushing it. So David, introduce yourself right quick and tell us, how long have you been in roofing and how long have you been with my town? And let's, let's just get a little background right quick. And then we'll dive into some reviews. I'll, I'll ask you some questions about the reason, and I want you to just tell us what on earth you're doing to get all these reviews and get your name in so many.
Cause that's all these things are really important. And with the mock community, we talk about this all the time.
David: Yeah. I believe it's very important. Um, appreciate you having me just, uh, Bit of a background. I'll keep it short is before I got into roofing, I taught customer service and sales. Okay. So
Chuck: here we go.
That now we're getting down to the nitty gritty. So, all right. So you've got customer service background guy, right?
David: So I CA I taught customer experience, customer service and sales, and, um, I, I taught multiple different types of businesses here in Memphis. When I transitioned out of that, some people called me crazy.
I kind of called myself crazy, getting into roofing. And what I've done, Chuck is I've taken that experience. I've taken that knowledge and transferred it all into, into roofing. So I've only been in roofing less than a year. However, every job I'm not going to say every job, nine jobs out of 10. There'll be a five star review.
Chuck: Well, here's some of the things that I noticed about my town in particular and you in particular, you guys are way out pacing. The average company. I see some go months and months, not even get one weeks and not get one. And there's barely a week that goes by that you don't get at least one. So you're pulling down three to five a month.
Is that fair to say somewhere. Okay. Yep. Um, and yeah, plenty of times I'll say more than that. And I see my town as a company way outpaced an average company. So there are certain things that I'm know that have to be going on behind the scenes for that to happen. One, they're getting a good experience.
Right. And, uh, we had a quick pre-talk today and that's one of the things that we talked about me and you. And, but it's not just that the experience of getting, but they're putting these things in the review. So tell me how you set up. Your client, how you build the expectation and then earn the right to go in at the end of it.
Cause that's, that's what we always talk about earning the right for the conversation, whether it be for the contract when you're trying to present it, whether it be for the review or anything else that you're trying to do. So tell us how you set them up. How'd you get your name in so many how you get them to put the project in whether it's a repair or a new roof.
And, uh, I see them putting Owens Corning in there, the type shingles that they're getting, and then tell us how you wrap them up. Cause you were telling me some other things, some, uh, that other people are really not doing the touchpoints. So, so just tell me how you do it.
David: Well, I'll try to tell you in a couple minutes.
Okay. I believe it all starts on the front end. It was setting expectations. So when, when we're at a closing table, meaning that. They have chosen my town roofing and we've agreed on our budget, our timeline. And we've agreed on, on really us doing the project, I'll say, and this is what I say every time I say, Chuck, I appreciate your business.
And I'm looking forward to it now, opt to tell you that my role changes and people kind of sit back here, like I said, Oh, where are you going? I said, uh, I said, my role changes from sales. Two project manager. And what that means for me is I become your liaison between our installation crews, our home office, our distributors, or manufacturers.
I am the complaint and the compliment department. And what that means is my goal is now to provide you with a five-star experience and everything that we do, every conversation, every interaction from the first nail that comes off the roof to the last nail that comes off the driveway. I'm your guy. Yeah.
So if there's anything in this process that is below a five-star experience, you let me know immediately and we'll take care of it. Is that fair? And I'll get buy in. Right. And at the end of it, uh, my goal is to, and I'm going to ask you for review. If I've lived up to those expectations, would you be comfortable with that?
And people say, of course in their mind, they've already, they've already understood what my pro what my goal is and what my role is. Well, you're getting them to
Chuck: commit
David: up front. Exactly. Yeah. So at the end of it, when they S when we're standing in the driveway and it happens like this every single time, I'm there when the project ends and we're both looking at the roof, I'll give you an example.
Richard's standing there looking at the roof and he says, it's just beautiful. And he said, I'm just so happy. And, uh, at that moment, when they, when they say they're so happy or they're so impressed, As I say, would you feel comfortable putting that in an online review? If I send you a couple links, just make it real easy for you and that, and they say,
Chuck: yeah, sure.
This is beautiful stuff.
David: Yeah. So, and then as soon as we, we parked I'm on my phone, I've got you can't see it on the podcast, but I've got review links in my, uh, in my text messages. And I'll say, Chuck, I appreciate your business. Thank you for thank you for your business. It would be very helpful for my town roofing.
If you left a five-star review, it would be very helpful for me. If you copied that review and pasted it in other places, some people like Yelp. Some people like LinkedIn, some people like Facebook and other people's other people like better business Bureau. Here are three links that may work for you and that's it.
And every time they will leave the review within hours. And if they don't, we use your system and I, I go in, click my button in. Um, and, and SSA, right. To send them a reminder the next day. And as soon as I get the job done, what I'll do is I'll write a handwritten note. And I say, Chuck, thank you for your business.
You made a great color selection. In fact, I'm showing pictures of your house to other people right now. Would you leave us a review? And that's a handwritten card in the mail, even if they've given us a review or not.
Chuck: So what I'm saying here is the first thing that you told me when I walked in and I found out who you were when you were sitting there, you know, because you know, in our community, there is nobody getting as many reviews as David is getting my town is outpacing everybody.
Right now. And David is getting, I don't know that you've gotten a review that I've responded to, that doesn't have your name in it. One, the project type repair roof, which these are important to Google is important. It's also your own line reference sheet. You know, there's nothing more important for you.
To go out and close the next deal, then for them to see your name and all these were all these other people, who've had an experience. So tell us about the word experience, because you're not talking about that too. That's a huge word with Google and that's what we're all after, because if they don't have good experience, you're not getting
David: anything.
Well, I believe the word experience for me comes into, into that, that initial conversation. For me to move into a sales to a project management role is to provide the best five-star experience.
Chuck: So you're saying the word, because there's, for me, I see the word in so many of your reviews, if I would say at least 80 plus percent of them, and there's no way that the individuals are putting that word experience in there without being led to do so.
Right. And, and everybody listen to this. It is perfectly fine to ask because the first thing David said, when I said, well, man, how are you getting all of these reasons I asked. Yeah. Cause when Google did a study in the first thing that came back with the number one reason for not getting a review is people said I was not asked.
Yeah. So he's asking he setting the expectation and then he can go in and expect the review when they do a good job. And if there's not, he's there to step in. Every job is not going to be there's a lot going on in roofing, jobless places. Yeah. So it is, this is just elbows going everywhere. Do you know it's a miracle, nobody gets a halfway house.
So we're getting the review. David is asking for the review. He's in is you're doing a really good job with what you're telling me. You're setting this up. So everybody listening to this, play this back again, because we all want and need more reviews. If you're a salesman. It's important for our online reference sheet, which Dave has got a deep one at this point for our company is important because it helps in your Google rankings, but it also helps close deals when you're up head to head with another good company.
Cause there's some good companies up here in the Memphis area. I mean, let's face it. This is a beast of a market up here. Right? So you guys are head to head with some real big guys and some real guys that have been around for decades. So how do you compete with that? And you compete on
David: Google's level.
That's right, because it doesn't matter what I say about the company. What matters is what other people say about the
Chuck: company. Yeah. And I'll tell you another thing. I do see David in my town getting more people to do a Google review and follow up with a Facebook. I think that happened three times last week where they did a Google and then turn around and did a Facebook immediately or the next day.
Yeah. So walk us through it one more time. You're you're asking, but then you're following up. You're following up with a handwritten note. Am I missing anything? Uh, your letters besides that the handwritten note you're talking about, basically
David: I try to, my goal close to is to have three to four touch points.
So I'd like to ask them three to four times, meaning that before we start the relationship, before I start the job, I'm going to set it up to where I live up and, and Chuck don't get me wrong. You can't just ask for a five star review and get a review. You have to do the work as well. All right. You have to deliver.
And once you, once you deliver on exactly what they were looking for out of a roofing experience and project, once you meet their expectations and exceed their expectations, remember we, we under promise and over deliver all the time. Right? So once they, once you find somebody and they say, once they have that wow moment, and you can tell when somebody is just captivated, it's almost the body language has taken a back.
It's like. This was the most impressive thing I've ever seen, right. When you've taken my top, the top of my house off and put it back together. And such a short of time and so neat of a job. And like you said, they're not all like that. I hope I wish they were all a hundred percent, but it is roofing. It is roofing.
But the thing is, as you said, you set expectations and then afterwards you're, it's the direct and immediate ask and follow up when you're sitting in, when you're standing in the driveway. As soon as we leave, uh, as soon as we parked, I send them the text message to the Google link, the Facebook link and better business Bureau link.
So it's right in their text messages. Most of them do it that night. And if they don't do it that night, I'll send them an SSA, the link to remind them, um, that quick link for review us. And then immediately after the job, I'll write them a handwritten note and that's their third touch. Now I have had people that have been unresponsive through the entire process and I could count them on one hand.
And this is what I'll do in those cases, our office manager, I get hurt to send them a third and a fourth email and call them and ask them, Hey, how was your experience? I want to make sure that we did everything that we could possibly do for you. Would you mind leaving us a review? And that is another touch point, a third party.
Chuck: Okay, guys and gals are y'all here in all of this because you can't wait till the job is over and let that be your first time to ask for it. He is setting the expectation on the front end. Which needs to be done. You're putting pressure on yourself to perform, but if we don't perform, we're not going to get it anyway.
And, you know, I don't work with anybody that does not want to have a great company, does not want to be a great salesman and do a great job for their clients. So, uh, we're, we're only talking to the upper echelon here. So, you know, David could put a class on right now on how to do this and I'm listening to it.
And th this is just really good stuff. So you should all listen to this multiple times and take notes here because a lot of people are gonna do the job. Never talk about a Google review until it's all over and they're standing in the yard or trying to pick up the check, get a referral and a review.
Okay. And then you're wondering why you're not getting very many. So David is basically every time he's meeting that client, he sat in the stage to get that review and ask. And set the expectation at the end. This is great stuff, David. I mean, I, I, of course been working with you guys for a long time and I see your name and all of these reviews and I'm going Mach, which, you know, my talent in particular is getting a lot and it's not, it's not just you you're, there's other guys getting some, but you're, you're just outpacing everybody with the
David: reviews.
It's just, yeah. Right. And that's where I came into this from a non-construction background. Literally on LinkedIn. My name, my tagline is your unconventional roofer. Okay. My goal is to provide an experience that no one else is going to provide. I would rather do a quality 100 houses a year than a quantity 500.
No
Chuck: man. I'm waiting. Right? Absolutely less headache and everything, your eyes
David: you're right. I I've designed it around the lifestyle that I'd like to live. And also for your listeners here for any incentive, most of the, most of the time you hear a podcast and you get fired up and pumped up for it. And you say, or I've said in the past, man, I'm going to do this and it's going to be great information.
And I never do what has, this has helped me. And I've been in for, I've been in roofing for less in a year. And did y'all hear
Chuck: that too?
David: Right? And been in roofing for less than a year. However, I have people call the office. I have people call me when I show up to appointments, people ask me, David, do you pay people to do your reviews?
Or they ask for me specifically. Because of the online
Chuck: reviews, it is power. It is power. You can go head to head with Goliath, with you can build a business, you can build your own. You're a bit, you've got a business inside of my town roofing. So you're working your own business and that's what you're doing.
You're getting your own online reviews for that. So it's all in my town roofing, but what you're doing is you're building your business and your name and your reputation. So yes, I can absolutely see it. So guys. Gals. Y'all listen to this a couple of times. Take note. The biggest thing that I see is, and I've said this to my own guys, you have got to start this process upfront.
You can absolutely not wait to the end of the job. You've got to, once you get a commitment, you've got to put the expectation out there with the pressure on yourself, because our goal and our job is to put the pressure on us, take the pressure off of our homeowners and our clients. Exactly. So. Again, if anybody's got any questions, we, I talked to a lot of you guys about reviews all the time.
Cause it is so important, but anyway, you heard it from somebody that has right this minute. Got it mastered. But David, I appreciate your time. And it was good seeing you on group me a million times, but it's good following me. Yeah. Thank you.