Tactics to Save Your Roofing Sales & Contingency Agreements From Getting Snaked by Competitors

Hey, guys. Adam here, the roof strategist, and I have another video for you that is going to protect your most coveted opportunities, which is your sales. Now, we've all dealt with it. We call them sign walkers. My sign got walked, My job got stolen. I signed a contingency. Someone else came in and snaked the deal. It happens. There are horror stories. They're frustrating. And I'm going to share with you a few tactical tips to help you avoid these circumstances in the future. But first, before I do, if you're watching this video, you like my stuff, and you follow this channel, I know that you would never do that to anyone else. Now, you have to practice what you preach. Do not walk other people's signs. Do not steal other jobs. There's enough work to go around. It is a snakey, slimy, and dirty way to do business that no one likes. So run your business on the up and up. Run your sales on the up and up, and kick some butt. And here's how to protect those jobs. So, first and foremost, communication is everything I had. And I'm going to tell you a quick story on this, too, before I get into communication and all that. So one of the first really large commercial jobs I sold was a networking opportunity referral on a. What was it? It was a four really large condo buildings. And I ended up seeing the same guy who I knew was kind of working in that same neighborhood. I saw him at ABC Supply all the time. Super nice guy. And he goes, you know, Adam, let's go grab a beer and shoot some pool one day. Because we kind of shot the breeze a little bit at the counter, picking up purchase orders and things like that. And I was like, you know, hey, he's a competitor. But I still say to this day, I don't really view competition as actual competition. Like, people are going to choose who they want to work with. It's who gets there first and who has the better presentation that is going to match what the customer wants. They're going to win the business, and there's enough work to go around, okay? So if you're good, you're going to win. It's that simple. There's, in my mind, there's no competition. So this guy invites me out. We're having a beer, shoot, pool. It's really nice. The next day, I get an email from the guy, the commercial project of the four buildings. And he sends it over. He goes, adam, so and so with this company, whose name I will withhold, was trying to. Was trying to steal this Deal away from you. Here's what he said. And he forwarded me the email. The guy knew me, so he felt comfortable with it. And I was like, you, you've got to be kidding. The guy that took me out for beers into Playpool, it was complete manipulation. I didn't see it. I was blind to it and it made me really upset. And I know I had a couple of guys out here recently for an on site consulting with me here in Colorado and we're sharing the same thing that they had, you know, signs getting walked. We used to say that your signs getting walked so and so walked my sign. And I remember a big storm that we worked. We would have this company come in and they just walk. All they would do is target our signs. They walk up and they'll say, hey, we'll do whatever they're doing, but better free upgrades, no deductible, whatever it was. So we ended up having to get on the phone with them and it was very, you know, were we frustrated? Of course. But we had to have a conversation about it and luckily we cleared the air and we kind of squashed things and they were okay. I know that's not always going to be the case. So I feel your pain and it sucks. So here's what you need to do. You need to communicate like a rock star to your customers so they don't get tempted to flip to the next guy. So here's what you do. Step one, after you sign the contingency agreement and you put the yard sign, you caution them. Hey, Mr. And Mrs. Homeowner, I know this may sound silly, but there's a lot of sneaky companies out there who all they do is they look for people who have a yard sign in their yard and think they're working with someone else. They come in and all they try to do is kind of steal jobs unethically. They make these big promises. These promises like eating deductibles and things like that are actually not allowed or legal. And they often do shoddy work or they'll pick up checks and you've heard the horror stories on the news. They'll pick up a deposit and they're out of town. So I just want you to be aware of it. If anyone does approach you, just let them know you're already working with someone and no harm, no foul. But I just want you to be aware that it could happen and I would obviously caution you to avoid such things. So if you educate people, then they think immediately, hey, they're coming up. They're trying to snake a job, they're doing things on the not so right way to do things. Right. So when you educate them, it makes a big difference on whether or not that customer will fall for it and end up signing with the new. The new guy who's walking your sign. Okay, step two, Sometimes I don't use yard signs for that specific reason because I don't want to get targeted. It is a balance because when you do use the yard sign, it's massive credibility in the neighborhood. Super strong presence. When you're staking 10, 15, 20 yard signs in a neighborhood, it looks great. So sometimes if I'm just cracking into a neighborhood or getting it opened up, I'll withhold on those yard signs until production and then I'll stake them after I know that that job can't be stolen. So that's just another little thing to think about if you want to. Okay, so second thing. So first, again, just recap. First thing, educate them that it might happen and avoid them of the cautions and let them know that it's not right, ethical, legal, all that stuff. Number two, consider not doing it using a yard sign. Okay, now let's move on to number three. Number three is back to communication. Every time you're at a customer's house, it is so important for you to set the expectation on the next time they're going to hear from you. This is a very, very, very subtle but very powerful psychological motivator because there's a commitment. Now imagine this scenario for a minute. Let's say I'm your personal trainer and you're coming to me. We're working out at the gym. And I said, awesome, Jim, I'm going to see you next Tuesday at 3, right, for a workout. And you're like, yep. Now, what are the chances that you're going to show up to that workout? They're pretty high. Yeah. Once in a million, you're going to get blown off. But now you're accountable to me, I'm accountable to you. We're both on the same page, and there's a level of commitment, okay? It is a commitment that people have made. If they don't have a commitment from you and there's not a mutual commitment from them, there's a temptation for them to walk with someone else. But if I leave that house every time and say, hey, hey, let's walk through it, right? Sign the deal, everything's inked and they didn't file the claim yet. So say, hey, call your insurance company and file that Claim, remember, tell them it's storm damage, not hail or wind, just storm damage is an overarching language. And as soon as you do, write down the insurance adjusters name and info and email or call me. Okay? Now I'm going to give you a friendly follow up call to see if you've heard anything because sometimes they won't give you that information but they'll call after. So I'm just going to make it easy. When's a good time for me to call you in the next two, three days? Okay, great. Six o'. Clock. Perfect. I'm going to call you at six o', clock, talk about the claim and get that information. Got it? Good. So when you do that now there's a commitment on the next time. Right now let's say the adjuster comes out, the roof's approved. What happens next? Now they know they have a check coming. That's another opportunity for a job to get stolen. So I want to make sure that they know right out of the gate, hey, when the adjuster, excuse me, we got the job approved. The next steps are this. I'm going to come back when you get the paperwork, we're going to walk through it and then we're going to do the fun stuff which is picking the colors and getting the date done. All right? So sometimes the adjuster will finish that scope and deliver the check right there on the spot, sometimes the next day. But I want to have that follow up set. I'm going to call you in a couple of days, see if you've heard anything. If they have that deal handed off right, then you can set the follow up already or you call and check in with them. So it's super, super, super important that you have those commitments in place as you go. All right, let's start again. Step one, let them know that their sign can get walked and to avoid it. Step two, maybe consider not using a yard sign until you're into production so you don't kind of spread the news that you've already penetrated that neighborhood or a little honeyhole. Again, optional. There's pros and cons to it. Three is to always have the next communication, the next contact, the next follow up, every single thing, every time you talk to them or leave you have that follow up set. Now the fourth one is the most important and this is the biggest mistake that rookies make in the industry. By the way, when I say rookies, no harm, no foul. We're all rookies. You come in, you don't have that experience yet. You're a little timid around the contingency agreement. You want to make sure that people understand everything that's in there. And I got an email from a gal named Sabrina not too long ago and she was saying, hey Adam, like I have this deal signed, but then people will say, hey, well, I didn't realize you were the roofer. I just thought you were helping me with the process. And I've heard that too by the way. When I was new and I'm like, who works for free? Who goes door to door saying I'll help you get your claim filed. I'm wearing the name of a roofing company, but then I'm allowing you to go to someone like, come on now. But it happens and it's a communication thing and it's your own fault. It was my own fault. I'm going to help you fix it right now. But that's one issue or two is I decided to go with someone else. People don't realize the magnitude of the contingency agreement. They don't understand that they're committing to something based on a contingency of getting that job approved. So it boils down to clearly communicating a contingency. I'll touch on that now. But I highly recommend you watch my video on how to use the contingency agreement as a sales tool. Okay, now also as just a quick plug inside my marketing battle pack, there's a link in the description. You will find a sample contingency. Again, run it by your lawyer. This is a sample not considered legal advice or legal guidance. Every state law is different so you'll need to modify it. But you'll also have access to the how to use a contingency agreement as a sales tool cheat sheet as well as links to those videos. And my 12 step process from inspection. My 12 step sales process from inspection to the sale and asking for the business. So all that's inside there, you can take a look. It'll tell you everything on that page for the marketing battle pack. Alright, back to it. So with that communication and setting those clear expectations, when you go through the contingency agreement, you have to say it states three things. One, it allows me to go to bat for you with your insurance company because as you know, your information is protected by law. And that just lets the insurance company know that I am actually working with you, right? So they can chat with me on things that come up if needed. Number two, it states that if this project becomes approved by the insurance company, then we work together. If not, this Is dust in the wind. I pretend to rip it up and you don't know what's the thing. Okay? Now, which means, by the way, Mr. And Mrs. Homeowner, you have everything to gain and nothing to lose. This is zero risk. Literally, like I go to bat, we get the thing done for you. We get it handled the way you want it done. Easy, right? If not, we don't charge for our services. By the way, I'm going to go on a slight tangent. I often tell people for which most roofing sales folks and storm restoration sales folks overlook. I tell people we do not charge for our consulting time. It is time intensive for us to come out, meet with the insurance adjuster, negotiate if we need to, supplement if we need to. We do not get paid for that. The way we get compensated is by actually doing the work. And you can see there's a tremendous amount of value involved on the front end to get you your home assessed properly and then identify what needs to get done and put back together the right way. So what? We don't charge for any of that. We only get compensated when we do the work. So that brings me to the third point of the contingency agreement is if this job gets approved, we become the contractor of choice to do the work. You have to say it, guys. I know it might say it in the contingency, but people don't read or they'll forget. So you just boil it down to those three points. Okay? And we become the contractor of choice to do the work. Does that make sense? Yes. Great. So I frame it first, then I go through the contingency, then I read all the lines, then I get them to execute, not sign. Execute. Right? So when you do that and you communicate clearly and accurately, you will not have an issue. Now, some markets are really cutthroat. You have a lot of people that are walking signs or eating deductibles or whatever it is. At that point, it may be worth flipping to the backside of your contingency and reading those terms. On cancellation, we had a. I forget if it was 10 or 15% off the top of my head, I'd have to look cancellation clause. So if they back out, we collect 10% of the claim. Again, whether or not that can or cannot be enforced. After I sat down with multiple attorneys, I heard multiple different rounds of feedback. The point is, by the way, this is my viewpoint of the world. I would rather just move on to the next customer if they're going to walk, then spend the money and time on an Attorney to try to get 10% of a claim. If it's a $10,000 roof and you're going to get $1,000, like yeah, try to invoice, try to save it, try to remedy it, try to get the job back. Most importantly, the billing side know has it come up? Yes. Have we billed people? Yes. Have we gotten paid from it? Yes. But it is a balance of your brain power, your emotional power. And again, attorneys are expensive. You pay the attorney to go after them, it just, it becomes a nightmare. It's just not how I choose to business. You may choose to do differently, but for me, I give it my best shot. And then other than that, I'm just like, hey, they're not my customer. It's life. I'm on to the next one. I'd rather put my time into landing another deal and then giving them great service and getting more referrals and chasing it. So I hope that helps. Let's do a quick recap on how to not have signwalkers steal your sign out from underneath you. Excuse me? Steal your job and your customer out from underneath you. Number one, let them know that it might happen after you sign them up and educate them on the consequences. Number two, consider not placing a yard sign again, pros and cons of that but just an option if you're in a cutthroat neighborhood. Number three, communicate clearly every time you meet with them to have that follow up set every time so there is a commitment. The deeper that commitment, the less likely they are of breaking that commitment. And then fourth is to again communicate clearly the terms of the contingency agreement. For other references, you can watch my video on using the contingency agreement as a sales tool. Now if you like this video, click thumbs up and subscribe. I got new videos coming out every Tuesday. And if you want to take this learning to the next level, click the link in the description below. There's an ebook, a free eBook, 3 Tricks to get to the kitchen table. There's my roofing, excuse me, my marketing battle pack that's in the link. That's a whole library of plug and go marketing material that you can download, literally have access to instantly plug in your information and you will have a marketing piece and sales piece for literally everything you could ever imagine. Boom. Done right to you. And there's a 30 day sales challenge as well that's going to you can download it, opt in and you'll get access to a playlist that will show you, walk you step by step over 30 days. Into developing a plan to bring to life to make your income goal or sales goal come to life. Hey, thanks for being here, and I look forward to seeing you on the next one.