Dennis Oz:

Welcome to Remodeler Success Podcast, where we dive into the world of remodeling and we talk about everything about remodeling. Today I have an amazing speaker that I’m so excited to introduce to you in a minute.

Let’s talk about what’s going on in our remodeling industry first, and I’m gonna, I don’t want to steal this storm, so, he’s gonna be here and giving you a lot of information, just tune in. But yes, this is January and February, pretty much like the exhibition trade show months in our industry, right?

KBIS is coming, so it’s really important for you to show up and go there and have a look at what’s going on in KBIS’s new trends, new vendors or new product launches is really important for you,in order to have a little bit of a better momentum for our businesses. Of course our business growth is really important.

We have to improve our operations and we have to put a great marketing plan to grow our businesses. It’s all part of it. So there will be a lot of different vendors right there. Our team marketing will be there in the South wall too and we will be exhibiting there. We will be so happy to meet you if you just wanted to come down.

But yeah, this is very important. Cavis is coming. Be prepared. If you ever need any kind of invitations, I will be here. You can email me. After this podcast, we can, we will be able to send you invitations. We have a lot of invitations that had already been given to us. So we’ll be so happy to give it to you.

But yes, today’s conversation. That’s what I’m really excited about. And today’s conversation is going to be all about remodeling. And I will be hosting an experienced remodeler here. When you hear his story, I’m sure that you cannot really leave this episode. Kyle Baptist here with me.

Kyle, welcome to the show. Dennis, how are you, sir? Good. Thank you so much. Could you please introduce yourself a little bit, Kyle? Sure, Dennis.

Kyle Baptiste:

So my name is Kyle Baptiste. I’m the owner and operator of Next Level Remodeling. We’re a residential design build firm out of Southern New Jersey. Doing this now, believe it or not, since I was 15 years old, right?

So, parents were developers. I was blessed to be able to work under very talented family members. And in a lot of stories like this, I worked from the ground up, right? Started in the field. Got a lot of interest in the administrative clerical aspect and from there, I was lucky enough to land myself a job as a draftsman for New Jersey licensed architect.

And that’s where my remodeling journey really started. Right?

Dennis Oz:

Right. I know there is also some big moments. It’s been so long. So, long time for you that you’re in. What was your journey like starting? In the kitchen and bathroom modeling, any kind of big moments that you would like to share with us?

Kyle Baptiste:

Yeah, so biggest moment, unfortunately came with a lot of heartache, but there’s a win and a happy story at the end of that. So step father and I ran a residential remodeling company together. Now he was a developer that focused primarily on new construction homes, but back in 2006, he kind of had a good sense that things were going in a different direction.

Right? So, from there, we started a company named Home Additions Plus, and our primary focus was on additions.

Dennis Oz:

Right? But that Additions. When you talk about additions, we are talking about sunrooms and like, maybe mudrooms, right? Uh, when you’re going to talk about additions, we are talking about extra stuff that we can add to our home layout.

Kyle Baptiste:

So that’s the thing, correct? Yeah. And at the time, a lot of in law suites where the parents were really bankrolling the projects, but from there, I mean, there’s an easy segue into, Hey, you’re doing this type of work. We’re interested in getting some bathrooms and kitchens redone. And a lot of visible interest there for me, I was able to quickly teach myself layout and I was lucky enough to be around it for years.

So space planning came pretty natural. I would say, for the most part, aside from working with the architect, a lot of this was my own desire and interest and doing research. As weird as it sounds when I was a young man, looking at floor plans and really studying them and getting a sense of how everything lays out.

Right? So you talk about proper clearances and things of that nature that you read and their specific guidelines. A lot of that was already kind of baked in just from being on site. Installing cabinetry, working with the millwork guys and having those conversations of how far to set countertop surfaces.

Right? So, a lot of infield experience here helped me out. Um, the problem was a stepfather and I had 2 different paths, right? He started this home additions. Plus, he was still building new construction homes and there was a little bit of a disconnect between the 2 because if anybody does it, they are 2 completely different businesses.

How you approach your client, the way you communicate with them, the interaction with a new home sale generally doesn’t happen until a lot of the hard stuff has already been done. Right? You already build a spec home. You have a kitchen design. You have some things. Kind of selected, and it’s an easier presentation at that point when you’re doing remodeling, you have to spend all the upfront work appeasing your homeowner and building some trust.

So back to the story of where things really changed for me, and it does come with a little heartache. So, stepfather passed away when I was in my early 20s, we were business partners at the time. And overnight I basically had to run both a new construction house building company and a remodeling company.

I was 23 years old at the time. I thought I knew everything. And when you are. An operator of a company overnight, you quickly realize you don’t know everything. So I would say it was a little bit of a struggle, but a lot of learning and teachable moments there. My mother helped out immensely. She was an interior designer.

She also. Uh, was fully equipped to help me finish the project management of a handful of the new construction homes that we had going on. And after I’d say that 6 month stint of closing everything up, I decided to go work for another company. I wasn’t prepared at 23 years old to continue my remodeling and new construction journey because I realized that I wholeheartedly needed to learn a lot more.

So, I was lucky enough to land a job as a low man on the totem pole as a remodeling consultant for a design build firm. Um, I already had about 6, 7 years of experience in residential construction. Leading up, which was extremely helpful when I transitioned into a role that was primarily design and sales.

So, I’d say for the next decade to 15 years, my focus was just that and the beauty in this company is that. They weren’t really discriminating against any lead that came in the door, right? They weren’t taking budgets at the time. It was just a volume play. Whoever called, I was going out, and the benefit of that was to be able to sharpen and hone in on your sales skills.

But I also provided them with a concept drawn for every single project that I did. Now, as a business owner now doing this for years, I don’t recommend doing that. But if you’re looking to learn, there’s no better way to learn. Then meet with strangers, try to sell them a six figure project at 24 years old, right?

Luckily, I had a company that was already reputable and established to back me that. I think that’s where a lot of the trust came in.

Dennis Oz:

Great. Well, we are talking about a lot of changes. All of a sudden you became the CEO of these companies when you’re in your early 20s. And there are a lot of switches here, changes, I would say.

Adapting to change. Well, you’re just one person doing one particular task and also in a working position in one day and another day. It’s different. It’s a lot of you switch from construction to design to sales. You have some switches there. How did it? Change the way that you connect with your clients.

Is there any kind of particular things that you would like to share about that?

Kyle Baptiste:

I would say, and this is going to be a little controversial, I don’t think it did. Like, a good communicator is always going to develop a strong bond with their clients regardless of what position they’re in, right? So, I was always polite as a young man, engaging, interested in helping out when I met the homeowner.

And that’s a key to a great customer experience. People that are starting off, because I know a lot of your audience is watching, is just starting off in their career, they’re going to advance at a much faster rate if they connect with their clients, regardless if they’re just in the field doing sales or design.

And I would say like the more solid the relationships you develop, the more opportunities will follow. You just have to be genuine.

Dennis Oz:

Right. That uniqueness is really important, right? Yeah, that’s, that’s what I was also talking about, uh, the, when we just, since we know your, what you do right now about your business, I just wanted to take the conversation to the services and a little bit of client engagement.

So how do you describe your ideal customer? What do they look for in your services when they come to you?

Kyle Baptiste:

So that’s changed a lot, right? So the longer you’re in business, the landscape of your ideal customer changes because you only know what you know. So, to this day with decades in this business, I would say that our current ideal customer is super busy.

They’re hardworking. They’re reasonable individuals. Um, some would consider them the 1 percentages of the world. They realize contracting is not a commodity, but rather a service based industry filled with many moving parts. They most likely are going to be in their mid forties to mid sixties. They are often empty nesters.

Dennis Oz:

Yes, that is important.

Kyle Baptiste:

They often have already been through major renovations and understand what the other side of contracting looks like. And they value your expert opinion and are willing to pay a premium. So I would say that is our current. Ideal customer, um, what they look for in a service provider, because at this point with our name being out in a very small, um, geographical location, is you start to build a reputation for certain things, right?

Especially with the type of people that are outwardly seeking a specific type of service, and they’re looking at good reviews. Everybody is right. But there’s 1 step further to that, right? They want a simple yet structured process. That’s easy to follow. That’s not going to stress them out and know that what I say is how many next do you want to choke?

Right? When I 1st started off in the business, it was always everybody was so focused on as a customer. Do you offer free estimates? Um, if I did this, would it be cheaper? Can I use my cousin Vinnie to do the electric? I have a brother that does tile work. And when you’re just starting off, you feel that you have to be wildly flexible to consumer demands.

What most people starting off don’t realize is that if you drew a line in the sand early and focused your efforts more so on finding the type of clients that value the art of contracting, And having one person responsible and building that trust, you’d be way better off than if you were just completely flexible.

You have to have a process and you have to have a stopping point of where you continue to say yes to your customers.

Dennis Oz:

Right. We will talk about this. Look, guys, it’s coming from a professional who has like 80 reviews, like great shining reviews on Google. And let me tell you this, uh, you. I know sometimes you see people like companies, let’s say more than hundreds of reviews, but average reviews that we have in the remodeling industry is 20.

So this 20 is, when you look at this average, having more than 20 reviews is not, not an easy job. Seriously. It’s not really easy. And you’re, you’re just listening, just doing it. Someone is giving you. From way ahead then that he has like 80 reviews over there. We’re going to talk about that. We’re going to come back to how to get the reviews and, you know, talk about that.

But I would like to continue with the services that you provide. I would like to ask your favorite service most popular. Let me make this question a little bit viral. What service, uh, do you think really helps you to make most money?

Kyle Baptiste:

Oh, most margins is going to be a boring roofing. So we have a sister company that does roofing that we don’t outwardly advertise for.

I’m not looking to compete with the giant big roofers in this area, but that’s another thing you have to understand is that when you do high end remodeling, oftentimes people only want to stick with you. They like you. They trust you. They know you have a good eye and you do good work. Guess what? A roof’s a major component to a house.

It’s not below me. I know it’s not fun, but when you’re talking margins, learn how to do roofs. Learn how to do it the right way. Because then from there, they’re going to recommend their neighbors, you’re going to have another roof, and they’re usually one to two day jobs. They’re the easiest thing in the world.

The second to that, I would say, in interior renovations, the design build realm of what a lot of your audience is going to be looking for is kitchens. Right. I mean, every single business out there should be marking up every single stick, brick, screw, labor hour at the same rate across the board. I know when I was starting off, I was like, oh, I’m only going to put a 10 percent markup on the cabinets.

They’re already expensive. I’m going to only do this and it over complicates the process. Pick your number, know your overhead, know what net profit your goal is going to be at the end of the day, how much money you want to put in your pocket. Don’t undersell yourself. Understand that we’re in 2024 spending more money on renovations than ever nationwide.

We have the highest direct cost than we ever have. And I don’t see anybody stopping. So, don’t don’t short yourself. And be the 1 struggling when you’re running a business kitchens, though, I mean, they generally make the biggest impact on a home. Right? Um, we rarely at our standpoint, do a kitchen without blowing out walls, reconfiguring the layouts completely.

And with that comes a technical aspect that most consumers know that not every single general contractor. Can do and pull off the body of your work. What you share with your potential clients is sometimes more important and sells the job more than anything, including yourself. Prove to me that you’ve done this type of work before.

I’m going to give you 150, 000 of my hard earned money. Show me what you can do.

Dennis Oz:

Right? And how are you going to spend that money?

Kyle Baptiste:

So, yeah, and what I can recommend for some people starting off and this also might be a little controversial, but a little bit of creative thinking is that. If you’re in a good position, financially, currently, you have other jobs running and you have the capacity to take on a major renovation that you haven’t done before.

And somebody’s on the fence. Maybe you have to pay to play. Maybe you have to structure a deal with your homeowner and say, Hey, listen, you’re right. I haven’t done a project this big before. But how about this? We’ll do the job at cost. I’ll share every single bill with you. I’ll invoice you weekly. You keep it going.

You won’t get this project done at a more competitive rate, but there’s something I want you to do for me when it’s all said and done. I want you to allow me to send my new potential customers to you. You’re going to upsell me assuming I did a great job for you and I want to be able to photograph and video your space.

And from that point on, you’ll have at least one under your belt and it will build trust. Um, in a perfect world, you wouldn’t have to do that, but the competition is pretty stuff out there right now. People that have money want to go with the expert. Remember that.

Dennis Oz:

Right. It’s very important. I mean, uh, here.

The people that we are talking about, especially when you’re talking about kitchen and bathroom remodeling, they are, well, you just said that it’s over like six figures, like they’re going to spend a lot of money on a project. So the first thing they really scared of, of just being ripped off with someone doesn’t really know what to do.

And here pricing, guess nobody has unlimited budget, but pricing. Just comes after the experience if people believe just like Kyle said if people believe that you are really experienced that you’re the expert Trust me even there if they have kind of like an allowance to just increase and play with that budget They will prefer to may prefer to work with you just because you are the expert in the field That’s that important because again, remember folks these people are investing.

It’s not like it like it’s not it’s not an expense. They’re remodeling their Kitchen or bathroom, right? Or maybe could be exterior remodeling as well, right? Could we talk about roofing? And, um, so it’s, it’s super important for these people to understand what you do, your expertise. And it’s also just like I said, it’s where you have to present yourself as the expert in that field, in that field.

So that’s, that’s really important that you have to note this down. That’s, that’s perfectly, that’s, I believe this really important, especially when you’re growing your business in the early stages. That would, that wouldn’t be much of a problem when you have your own customer client database.

Kyle, correct me if I’m wrong, because over the years, you also build a reputation there, right? You, your expertise will speak on behalf of yourself and you will, people will come to you pretty much like pre positioned to buy instead of you are going there to tell about yourself. Is that. Is this what is happening over the years?

Kyle Baptiste:

Yeah, that’s accurate. So I would say because of the access to information and how, um, an established company should be presenting it to the general public that job somewhat already sold before we walk in the door. The reviews are key. Thank you for touching on that. There is a post job closeout procedure.

I’d love to share at the end of this of how somebody could. Earn more positive reviews. I say that very strongly. The key is to earn it. Um, it’s not a pay to place scenario. We’re not paying off these people to give us positive reviews. Right? But back to your initial question. Um, I do feel like it’s a much, much easier sell.

When you put the reviews out in the world, when you have nice photos of finished products, when you share some videos, when you have a professional website, people don’t, don’t rely on Google business page. If you’re going to be a professional, uh, builder and or contractor, the modeler spend some time, learn how to develop your own WordPress site.

That’s what I did initially. It took me. 10 years before I could afford to outsource that to somebody else to tweak it. So don’t spend so much money on certain things. Unfortunately, when you’re starting a business, if you want to go into it, you’re gonna have to do a lot of things yourself in the beginning, but don’t get stuck there.

yes, we get stuck there, but you’re gonna have to learn some things or call on some favors of your own network and resources to make things happen. But there are some very. Key core fundamental things that you should be focusing in on early on in your business That I think a lot of people truly miss and they’re very simple, right?

Dennis Oz:

We will again folks just uh Still be here with us because we will talk about marketing Uh, I know most of you guys really want to learn more about marketing but I still would like to continue on a little bit of services questions because again here carl has a Is, he has a lot of experience here, so whatever we can get out of, like he, he can share, that’s gonna be, I’m sure that’s gonna be awesome and it’s gonna be really helpful for you.

So just wanna talk about the, the, the details, because we are talking about a lot of details here, right? Um, attention to. The detail is pretty much like real is the key in another work. It could be hearing remodeling could be any type of work. But how do you make sure your clients notice these details and you, they notice that you pay attention to these details and feel comfortable.

Kyle Baptiste:

Yeah. I mean, the key is opening your mouth and pointing them out, right? People don’t care about how much, you know, they care about how much you care. Right? So. Point them out through the design presentation, the final walkthrough, while you’re doing the construction. Say, hey, listen, like I saw this awesome Instagram video of this insert.

I didn’t even know it existed. Would you be interested? I would love to do this in your house, right? You have upsell opportunities as long as the product is something that you believe in and would really add value to their life. If you get excited about it, they most likely will be excited about it too, because they trust you as the expert pointed out.

If you learned a new carpentry technique of how you do some trim work, say, hey, listen, check this out. Mr homeowner. I learned this. Like, it is amazing how these mitered ends look. Now. I learned how to cope something as simple as going back 200 years ago. Right? But whatever it is, just make sure that you’re enthusiastic.

Fantastic. You share the information and you just don’t keep it to yourself. Um, 1 of the most important things where I see a huge difference and good, great designers and good and great contractors is how much work do they do after hours? How interested are they in their field? How many videos are they watching?

How many photos are they exploring for inspiration? I will say that even to this day. Every single night when I scroll Instagram, the people that I follow are 90 percent industry related. I don’t mess around. I look and I’m inspired every single day. I’ve been more inspired in the past 2 years just by scrolling Instagram of profiles of people that I aspire to be like, than ever.

In the history of my career, and that’s exciting to me, I see that there’s room to grow and as long as you continue to level up, hence the name next level remodeling, you will continue to grow as a business as an individual, and you’ll see great things happen.

Dennis Oz:

Great to share. Thank you so much. Um, this. Talk. Now I’d like to take the conversation to the, uh, to the trends talk. I mean, yeah, this is, this is a little bit of, uh, controversial in our podcast as well. Some of my guests, they say that we don’t even go with the trends. Sometimes they are really, they Trends oriented, like they really follow and, you know, kind of try to give advice to the clients, especially in the kitchen design or bathroom design part.

So, uh, do you have any kind of trends that you are currently kind of feel little more excited in the kitchen and bath design?

Kyle Baptiste:

Well, trends are interesting in the sense that they become trends when they were already past their prime. Great designers that are out there. They’re the ones that developed it.

Somebody took a look at something and say, wow, I really love that aesthetic. I love that idea. I’m going to do that on my project. And then before, you know, it, the masses are doing it, but they’re a little bit late to the game. It’s helped a little bit more in current years, because the access to the information again is a little bit more immediate and there are specific designers that I’m sure we can all agree.

Do a very, very good job of reinventing these trends. Um, I know, at least personally, and I had a zoom call prior to this 1 with a client and I did actually use the term. Hey, listen, let’s not do that. I feel like you’re on the 1 side of a trend. That’s not the good side. Right? And I’ll give you an example in the kitchen, like.

Warm tones are definitely coming back. Thank God. I was so tired of doing gray. Everything custom inserts are also becoming more of a norm as more manufacturers offer them. And then as more people post their tick tock videos and Instagram of how to do carpentry things. We’re offering that as almost like a standard now, uh, Rubio Monaco, which I’m sure you’re aware of is becoming a popular finish instead of Pre finished cabinets.

We’re doing like this hand applied oil based product that has more of a handcrafted look. Um, and then there’s white oak, right? So white oak is still so heavily requested. Um, and I think that’s here to stay for a minute, but I would say that that’s definitely trending. It will be something that we’re going to transition into something else again in the next 5 years.

Dennis Oz:

That’s what I also think that is, uh, some trends that they, they become trans, just like you said, after they, they go, they go viral, seriously, then you’d realize it’s a, it’s a trend. And it’s always controversial here, uh, it’s great to see people who are just saying, you know what, trends are not for me, I’m just going like, you know, understanding the client’s needs and then I will offer some solutions.

Or, uh, just like you said, sometimes you just have to step up and just say, hey, look, this is the thing. We have this and that, like trends right now. Those are options right now. This is another angle when we look at these, uh, controversial trend topic. Uh, but there is another thing that is connected with that.

Since you have a background about this topic, I would like to talk about a little bit of eco friendly practices, and it’s getting more and more, uh, you know, attention, I would say. And how do you incorporate these eco friendly practices into your projects currently?

Kyle Baptiste:

Sure, so, I mean, this is definitely an area of interest for me.

I have a certified green designation through the. Um, I’ve been interested in this for over a decade. Um, most of our site protection is more than 1 time use. I think that’s a real easy 1. Every single job site needs to be protected. You could simply just buy four by eight Masonite sheets, cut them into two by four panels, keep them clean, stack them nicely.

You could lay those out on the job site and reuse them. Basically, up into the point where they’re going to actually harm the jobs that you’re trying to protect. Right? They’re easily transported. You can even get some of the floor protection materials that are self stick that don’t affect the polyurethane on hardwood floors and or steps and you can reuse that product as well.

Uh, we donate a number of our building materials and or appliances when we’re doing kitchens. Um, that would be a shame to see that go to the landfill. Um, when it comes to new building products and materials, I see a very small subset of human beings that have any interest in even furthering that conversation.

Unless it’s going to be an equivalent dollar for dollar swap out. With it’s less eco friendly counterpart. Or the product performs so much better. I think that’s a little bit of a hard sell. You don’t really find that many people. Um, and that’s where education is key, right? So you as a contractor, if you’re interested in that, you should really be leading by presenting some of these as options because your homeowners are not going to know they’re even available.

Dennis Oz:

Right, right. This is, uh, this is very important to know. Thank you so much for this one. Yes, we have a variety of topics here, folks. I’m sure that you’re enjoying the conversation now. Some, well, we, when we have some, I will say listeners notes that we are getting some thank you notes. And, uh, this is a, this, I would say this is the most interesting, uh, topics or areas that we can discuss on this podcast because marketing is a big, I would say, mystery for most of the business owners out there for anyone out there.

But since we have you here, we’re going to ask you, uh, remodeling marketing questions right now. So. How do you, let, let me start with this one, uh, you’re, you have to reach out new customers and, uh, what do you think, like, do these kinds, there are different, different approaches when you’re getting to these new customers, right?

What approaches have you found the most helpful?

Kyle Baptiste:

Most helpful, regardless if you’re just starting off or if you’ve been in the business for years, is never lose contact with your customers, right? You’ve developed a fairly good relationship with them. In the beginning, and hopefully if you did your job well, you have an even better relationship at the end of it.

Make sure you thank them, come up with something that you can afford to give them a little gift at the end of things. Um, that goes a long way. It’s an honest gesture. You enjoyed working with either that individual or a couple, and you want to make sure, and you’re very satisfied with the end product and you’re proud of it.

People can pick up on whether or not you are proud of the product that you’re pumping out. And I will tell you until you get to a point that you are proud of it. Don’t even worry about marketing. You’re not going to go very far in this business, right? Pass that point. Um, ask for the referral do it in a very tactful, polite, respectable manner.

If that homeowner that you just currently close the job up with and wrapped is so happy, you can say something as simply as I am so grateful for being able to work with you. I had such a fun time on your project. This really challenged me. Do you have any family, friends, coworkers that would benefit from our service?

I would love to meet with them if they don’t have it now, they will have it eventually, but this is where it’s important to stay top of mind in your past customers lives, send them a check in text message. Periodically quarterly, whatever, depending on your relationship, it could even be monthly. Take them out to lunch, right?

Um, continue to get in front of them, send them photos of a project you’re working on and say, oh, my gosh, I just remembered your kitchen. We just implemented the same exact thing that we loved on your project into this newest 1. what do you think that time invested with your past customers will yield the greatest return on referrals?

Then really any other type of marketing, right? Focus in on that, become a master at that, and there is a time component to it that costs real money. But when it comes to monetary compensation, I think you’re going to make that back and then some.

Dennis Oz:

Right. Um, so the, the, I, your, your reputation is super important having the.

Like for this warm conversation with the clients are super important. Then it’s going to bring us to a question where we need to like look at the customer base. So I’m sure there should be some challenges when you’re growing your customer, uh, customer base, like the whole, like, uh, your fundamental customer base.

How do you address this, uh, the, these kind of challenges?

Kyle Baptiste:

Um, so you have to look at what those challenges are. I feel like when you are first starting off, there’s a lot of focus in on the wrong things. If you’re just starting off and you’re not getting a lot of business and you decide to outwardly spend thousands of dollars a month in Google and Facebook ads to get your name out there, you really have to have a come to Jesus moment and figure out whether or not you’re really prepared for that influx of leads anyway.

Do you have a sales process? Do you have something that you know you’re going to say to every client in a very similar manner? Do you have the proper paperwork and documentation in the form of a contract that will make you look professional? Do you have a design process? Do you have a production process in the calendar that you use?

You got to be careful. I feel like if you hone your skills in on those core fundamentals and you put together an actual business organically, the customers are going to come. You have to be attractive. You got to remember that and not just a physical form of what type of projects you do. That is important, but also at your core, how you operate and run your business is 1 of the most important things if you’re having challenges with that, there is infinite amount of resources floating around.

And YouTube land, if you’re going to spend any money, go spend it in one of those seminars of people that actually have grown and built seven, eight, nine figure remodeling businesses. And they actually know what they’re talking about because there is a formula and you don’t want to miss out on that formula because the reality is it’s pretty simple, right?

Dennis Oz:

Because it’s a blueprint. Because they already, uh, made the mistakes that we already made. And also, like, they already, Oh, like, sometimes I feel like most of the business owners, just like us, sometimes we are overthinking some of the problems. That’s the main thing. And with a blueprint, especially as someone who’s really successful in the field, May, first thing I think that you’re going to learn from is not to overthink anything.

And, uh, not to be a perfectionist, just the progressing is even, More important than, uh, kind of being a perfectionist and trying to make it a hundred percent. And that’s, that’s exactly what I believe that you, what you are also saying that is we have to, um, you know, when we look at this, uh, growing customer base, we have to blend it with the.

With that, like, we also talk about that. I’m going to ask you this follow up question, like the reviews and everything, right? We have to, people need to kind of show us kind of some sort of an appreciation for the featured customers. So this is actually what I’m going to bring the conversation. How do you get that reviews?

What’s the best way? What is working? Are you sending like postcards or are you, uh, kind of sending an email text message? Are you calling them? What is the best way to collect these reviews?

Kyle Baptiste:

Yeah, so the most effective response we found has been with text messaging. The emails, um, go unnoticed. Um, the text message is a little bit more personable, I’d say, because they know that there’s somebody at the other end of that.

Like, telephone that’s there. Um, I think the opening needs to be very genuine. Um, it could be somewhat of a repeat model, but just hitting home certain key points as why it’s so important to you to get the review. I think that’s what you really have to clarify for your business and what that looks like.

And for me. Luckily, since I was in the field, I was doing the sales. I was doing the design work and I had that. Personal attachment with many of my homeowners, it was actually much easier to get reviews in the beginning than it is now, where I am not the 1 that’s in the field, selling the jobs every single time and doing the work.

So, that’s where a process isn’t pretty pretty important where your sales rep remodeling, consultant, designer, what have you. They’re going to be the point man now that are going to be asking for the review in the same manner. And it really comes down to that personal relationship you develop with your customer.

If you don’t have that, and it’s not genuine, I wouldn’t expect a Google review. So back to the core fundamental values of what it takes to grow a business, like be real with your customer. Like if you don’t care about them, they’re not going to care about writing you a review. And we do have 80 positive reviews.

I would say the easiest way to open into how to obtain that is catch them at a very happy moment. Um, whether that’s the job wrap up, you’re presenting them with the job close out gift. You’re doing some after photos. Um, we do multiple gifts throughout the process. If somebody allows us to document. Their project for final photos, we oftentimes will.

Preemptively go out to different stores, and we’ll basically buy some products for staging. And at the very end, I surprise them and say, hey, listen, do you like any of this stuff that we picked out for you? And they’ll say, yeah, I like a handful of things. I’ll be like, okay, pick out 2 or 3 things that you’d like to keep this gifts on me.

And it’s really no skin off my back because the reality of it is they picked you. To do the work, they develop the relationship with you. They’re extremely pleased. They allowed you back into the house when it was wrapped up and believe me. No matter how good your relationship is with these consumers, they can’t wait for you to get out of the house.

Um, and I don’t blame them. Um, so to be able to allow us back in to now share a very proud moment. Um, not only for us, but also for them, because this is their hard work coming to light as well. And it’s just in a very different way. And they have a lot of pride in the finished product as do we, and we want to thank them for that.

That’s a great moment to ask for a review guys, right? I’m so happy that you’re happy guys. Listen, this would help me out immensely. Like, real quick. I got this pulled up. Can you just real quickly, please just leave a positive review. It can be short and sweet and to the point. And oftentimes you get somebody to do it right there or they’ll say, hey, listen, Kyle, that’s awesome.

I’m going to do that later on tonight. Thank you so much. And they really do honor it. Very rarely do I have a verbal commitment of somebody going to leave us a reveal and they don’t do it.

Dennis Oz:

That moment is super important because, uh, we are, folks, I know you, you are not an e commerce business here. So you have to, you need a process to sell things.

You need to, you’re selling a service. And the products at the same time. So it’s just not like here, this is a transaction. Let’s check out. Is my credit card information? No, it’s a process. And trust me, everybody has some like really kind of hard moments when, for example, that glass cabinet is being broken during the transportation.

And when you just arise there, your customer, your client sees that broken the glass over there, or some cabinets would be scratched. This is, this is just a part of the process, right? Uh, going back to my kitchen designer days, I got, I always like sometimes I remember I talked about that in another episode.

I got just one star review just because the delivery truck arrived 15 or 20 minutes late. Just because customer was pretty, client was pretty much like prepared the day truck arrives. It’s going to be unloaded and it’s going to be go right there. It’s going to be installed this and that. That she just thought that I ruined the day and I got the one star review on, on the spot.

So this is, I would be, if I would be asking the review. It was not the great, a great time and people are also like, sometimes feel really overreacted for the problems that you may encounter during the process, but the idea here is to make them kind of feel satisfied and feel, make them feel happy. Even the problems will happen, but the most important thing is how you’re handling the problem is the most important thing.

When they, when clients are looking at the process and everything you have to, you know, show them how professional the, uh, professional you’re handling this problem is super important. Just like Kyle said, the time timing is the key. If you go there with their happy moment. Then you will get that five stars.

So that’s what we are talking about here. Thank you so much This is this maybe the key of getting the best for you. So this is like the correct moment being in the correct place at the correct time.That’s the key. So that’s uh, that’s simple as that So, um, thank you so much. I’m just adding like, uh, the things that you Said is just triggering the memories from my showroom day, so I just wanted to add up about what you say over here.

But again, folks, what we’re talking about here is pretty pure knowledge. So I’m sure you’re enjoying the conversation. We’re gonna wrap up, but I have a final question. I’m sure that most of you guys are really kind of really wondering how you can. I would say, um, like it’s from the start. It’s always the most, I would say the hardest part is the starting the business, of course, but I’m going to ask Kyle cut.

What advice would you give someone in the modeling field that they say they would like to expand their business, right? And they would like to reach more and more, uh, clients. What advice do you give these people to expand this reach?

Kyle Baptiste:

Yeah. So again, the three P’s of the core fundamentals would be perfect your process, your product, and your people.

Remember that as you’re growing, you’re not going to be able to do it all your own. If you’re bringing people within the organization that don’t align with your core values and share. Ultimately, where you want to go with everything as a smaller outfit, it’s going to be extremely detrimental and I’m sharing that with you because I have had to do it the hard way and learn the hard way of bringing the wrong people in the door and seeing the severe both financial and mental impact that that brings to a small organization makes you learn real quick how important people really are, but also perfect your process.

If you don’t have that, you’re not going to be able to grow. I’m not going to say who it is, obviously, but I know somebody who is stuck. They do great work. They can’t get out of the field. And every time I talk to them and try to give them some notable advice, I ask the same questions. Hey man, did you get your contracts together yet?

Nah, I haven’t done that yet. Hey man, did you start writing down your process yet? Nah, we’ll get to that. It’s no, and it’s a little tough love. It’s no shock to me that you’re not growing your business. You’re not going to be able to. Just organically make that happen. You have to be proactive in your approach, a pen to paper.

All this information is available online. It’s not a secret to anybody. There’s plenty of remodeling books out there. That was written 20 years ago that a lot of those basic concepts still hold true to this day. Now, if you’re past that point, and you’re at a steady pace, and you’re growing. Simple things in marketing would be to start pay to play, run some Google ads, some Facebook ads, know your target audience.

People don’t have Google and Instagram start just defining that for you. If a 12 year old finds your Instagram page, they don’t have the money to buy the 6 figure kitchen, expand your horizons a little bit and really sit down and float. Some ideas past other people that have done it in the past that could be a worldly advisor learn and become a master of how to post regularly.

Consistency is key. Like, if you’re going to post once a year, people aren’t going to know about you. If you have a great product, you want to make sure that the general masses understands that you’re there. We are a very small area here in South Jersey, but. I will say there’s still so many people that don’t know of next level remodelings brand and that is a problem, right?

We’re at a point right now where I need. Everyone in this area that’s willing and able and capable of working with us to know our name and know that we are a great option for them to talk to starting off. You could also knock on doors people. I mean, if you’re in a nice neighborhood, if you were blessed.

With doing work in a nice neighborhood, and you’re starting off in your career, go 5 doors to the right, 5 doors to the left, 10 doors across the street, um, at an appropriate time, look presentable, don’t have mud on your boots and spackle on your face, go introduce yourself to those homeowners. Hi, I’m Kyle with Next Level Remodeling, just wanted to introduce myself.

I’m doing work for the Joneses across the street. They’re doing a kitchen renovation, beautiful family. If you don’t know of them, I like to link you up. They’d be more than happy to speak with you about their overall experience with us by the end of all this. But in the meantime. I’m going to have a lot of my in house employees and subcontractors coming down your street.

If the noise is too loud, if it’s too dusty, if the parking’s an issue, please here’s my business card. Give me a call directly. You can reach me at any time and I make sure to make sure that everything is a good experience for you as well. And also, since we’re in the neighborhood, if you have anything you’d like me to take a look at, we’re a full service provider, and I’d love to give you a price and do some of your work.

Yeah, you wouldn’t believe how easy that is to get your next job. You do that on 20 jobs on every single project. I guarantee you, you get at least 1 more job in that and then it’s compounded effect. There’s 100 plus houses in that neighborhood. You could be in that neighborhood for X amount of years doing work.

Dennis Oz:

Great. Thank you so much. You see how it like you have to be proactive here folks. You just not cannot sit down in your office and you can’t wait people to come to you. You have to go to them in the beginning, especially in the beginning phases. So it’s really important, right? Well, that was, uh, that was a really fun conversation, uh, here, uh, right now.

Kyle. Sometimes our audience may have some sort of, I would say, follow up questions about the things that you have mentioned here. How do they reach out to you or what’s the best way to get back to you if they have any kind of questions in the future?

Kyle Baptiste:

Yeah, so our Instagram handle for direct messages at next level remodeling, uh, that simple.

Um, and I would say start there and, uh, we’ll go from there. I’d be happy to help people.

Dennis Oz:

Thank you. Thank you so much. That was also helpful. Uh, we have a great episode already here and I’m so excited to kind of bring it all together and, uh, kind of see the reactions from the community. Thank you so much, Kyle, folks.

That was another episode of remodeler success podcast. We’re going to see you next time. Goodbye.