From “Nope” to Mic Drop: How Sales Skills Powered a Multimillion-Dollar First Year | Podcast Ep. 238

Hello, contractors, and welcome to Toolbox for the Trades. My name is Jackie Aubel and today I chatted with Katie Higgins, who is the owner of True Pros in Layton, Utah. Katie and I discussed how she leveraged her 18 years of H Vac sales experience to create a business that generated 6 million in revenue in its first year. I hope you enjoy our conversation as much as I did. Katie Higgins, you are the owner of True Pros in Layton, Utah. Today we are going to be talking about your journey from sales to entrepreneurship. Welcome to the Toolbox for the Trades podcast.

Hi. Woohoo. Glad to be here today.

I am so excited to chat with you. You were a suggestion, a guest suggestion from the one, the only one of my favorite people in the world, Ellen Rohr. I can't wait to get into your story, Katie, because it's a great one. But before we kick that off, we are going to start off this conversation with an icebreaker like we always do. So I would love to know, if you could choose a song to be the soundtrack of your life, what would it be?

Ooh, my husband has. This is actually a good one. Revol by Blow. There's like, I know you're going to have to play it on the entry. It'll be awesome. You'll be like, I don't think we.

Have the budget for that. But I've never. We haven't. We haven't had that song. No one has shared that one before.

I don't know. You're going to have to go listen to it. Yeah.

Okay. I love it. I love it. So Katie, tell me, how did you get into the trades?

That's a great question. Because I don't think anybody starts out saying, hey, I want to work in heating and air, but I think they should. And I would love to change that trajectory a little bit. If I would have understood that it was a way that I could provide for my family right out the gate, I probably would have made this journey a little quicker. I started out as a telemarketer at a heating and air company and I was going to school in the afternoon so that I could work from home. But the telemarketing was at a heating and air company and I was selling furnace tune ups. And I was like, what in the heck is a furnace tune up? Once I finished school, my boss came to me and said, hey, you're really smart. What if we offered you a full time position? Dispatching? And then I went from dispatcher to lead generator to marketing director to service manager to out in the field. So that was like a four or five year journey. When I say out into the field, I think I was one of the very first females in Utah to do the in home estimates. And that was like 18 years ago. So that was a long time ago.

Wow. Wow. So you just ended up responding to a random ad in the paper that was looking for telemarketers or on the Internet and you were like, okay, this works for me. What were you originally going to do if not get into heating and air?

Oh, yeah, I wanted to be a vocal performance major. So the actual side note, the original name of this company was Noteworthy heating and air because I love music, but somebody told me that no one would type that into a URL, so I needed eight letters. I was like, ah, good point. The vocal performance major wasn't, you know, I wasn't going to make any money doing that. So. So now I just sing for fun.

Okay, so your boss clearly recognized some talent in you. You grew up from doing telemarketing to dispatching to actually going into the field and doing those in home estimates. Y to hear a little bit more about those early days and how you built your confidence in this very male dominated field because this was what you were saying. It was like 18 years ago.

Yeah, no, this was super tricky. So Utah and I don't know how many of our listeners are familiar with Utah. We're a super conservative state. So, you know, even when you go to Jiffy Lube and there's a female that's going to change the oil, like Utah's like, ah, you know, in Utah, I'm coming to your home for an estimate on heating and air. And when I started my career, yes, there were cell phones, but we had coordinate books. So I'm like using a coordinate book. It was before TomTom. I'm calling customers. Hi, Mrs. Homeowner, Mr. Homeowner, this is Katie with such and such. And I'm on my way. And customers would be like, honey, it's a woman. And I'm like, I'm still on the phone, I can hear you. But that was really hard because I was already shook before I got to the house. And so I started to just kind of make light of it. And then when I'd get to the door, I'd be like, ta da, I'm still a girl. Like letting them know that I had heard them. And they would be like, oh my gosh, I'm so sorry. Or I'm so sorry. I was expecting a man and there was a couple of times where they said, well, are you the man's secretary? And I'm like, no, I'm not. But I could absolutely. Like, I work with two male counterparts that I'm happy to go get them. Over the years, like, I just learned very quickly that I had to be the most knowledgeable person there. Oftentimes they were getting five quotes, and I wanted the quote that I gave to be the one that they remembered as the most knowledgeable or the most thoughtful. Not that it was a girl. Now, granted, if you type in woman heating and air, I'm probably the one that comes up in Utah, but this is like, really before Google. And so I had to remember at each home that that was the first time the customers were seeing me. So instead of heading straight to the furnace, I'd say, hey, do you mind if we visit for a few minutes? I'd like to know what prompted the call today. And really what I was doing in that first few minutes was just letting them know that I know what I'm talking about. I probably have more knowledge than anybody that they've ever had to their house. And so, like, thinking about my career, I. I oftentimes looked at, like, the placement of the air conditioner instead of just, like, leaving it where it was and more thoughtful about the noise in the bedroom or. Or the temperature. Especially with women, we seem to run warmer and, like, more sensitive to indoor air quality. Just some things that I think in the beginning, not everybody was thinking about. And so I had a wildly successful career in sales. But I think a lot of that attributed to learn. I had to build my confidence right out the gate. They're not going to choose me unless I have more knowledge than everybody else. And so I did. So I taught myself. I mean, I went to school for. To get my rmga, epa, learned how to do gas sizing and duct sizing, but really applying that knowledge. So oftentimes, like, as salespeople, we get out to the home, and sometimes we're just like, we've been doing this so long that it's easy to get caught in the, like, just doing the routine. Yep, yep, yep. I catch myself doing that a little bit. But Sales Pro has helped out a ton with that, by the way, so we'll get into that. But reminding me of the full process of why it's important to measure, why it's important to get the laser out, why do I need to know about the windows? So then I make sure that I'm getting. I'm offering the correct size so that Was a lot of fun, but I definitely think I was the first female in Utah that did then home estimates a long time ago.

I mean, I think just, honey, it's a woman. Such a funny sentence to overhear on the phone. It's like, yeah, I am. Did you ever come across a instance where someone was like, yes, I would actually prefer to visit with one of your male counterparts?

Yeah, one time. And I left sobbing, and it really had nothing to do with me, and it ended up being okay. My gosh, that was really hard. He was just like, I'm not comfortable with a woman coming into my home. And I was like, just. I left just sobbing. And then, like, my husband later explained it to me. He's like, you know, maybe he's got some kind of something going on in his personal life that maybe he's just not comfortable. And I'm like, maybe it, you know, spared me from. Who knows? So I'm very thankful for that. Yeah. So I left. Yeah.

Yeah. It definitely sounds like it wasn't necessarily about you. It was more about what was going on in that person's headspace and whatnot. Well, this is interesting how you said, you know, you wanted to make sure that when the people looked at the quotes they got when they were looking at your quote, they felt like you had the most knowledge, you were giving them the most attention. And this really developed your sales style as you came up in the trades, continuing to do this, Right?

Yep.

You. Your approach to sales involves building rapport and having an exploratory conversation rather than immediately like, stating your expertise. So can you elaborate on this method a bit and why you think it's so effective?

Oh, yeah, absolutely. So instead of just sitting down and saying, hey, I have all these license, like, we all use Service Titan, or at least we should if you're not, you should. We do the little. The dispatch notifications, but it's not so much about the licenses, but, like, who I am as a person or who the technicians are. They a dad, brother, uncle, what's their favorite color? And here's their licenses. So it's like an ongoing conversation. So, yes, they know that I do that I know what I'm talking about. They know who to expect, and then they know a little bit about me before I ever even get there. And then when I arrive, I, you know, ask what prompted the call today. If it's not a broken system, like, what problem am I trying to solve? Like, I'm not there to sell something. I'm trying to solve a problem. And Like, Jackie, you may not know what the problem is. You just know there is one. You may be like, well, it doesn't work sometimes, but in reality, what it is is mom can't sleep through the night because it's getting too hot and she has to get up and go sleep in the basement. Or there's an underlying issue. And so identifying with the customer like, hey, what, what am I here to help with today? And then talking about variable speed. Usually I'll be sitting under a ceiling fan and I'll say, do you have any ceiling fans in the home? And then I'll look up at the same time, but I'm just kind of making light and talking about a ceiling fan being very similar to a variable speed fan. And you notice. And then I'll usually say something like, I have a ceiling fan in my bedroom that I never shut off because if I don't have to shut it off, I don't have to look at it. And I don't know that it's dirty. And so people think that's so funny because everybody's ceiling fan is dirty. And so that ceiling fan is like picking up the dirt and particulates. Imagine if you had a whole house ceiling fan. That's kind of the idea of variable speed. And people can relate with that. They're like, oh, so I need to change filters more often. Oh, it's like moving air through the whole house, not just in my, my dining room or wherever I'm at. And so I'm explaining how the comfort could be so much better in their home, just with some, like, description of the way it could be like extending straws or running the fan. All of those things really help customers, like, visualize what's going on in their home.

So what you're doing is you're taking a complex concepts that people don't really know that much about, and instead of throwing your various qualifications at them, you're using your knowledge to create metaphors that explain the process and justify the service to them 100%.

Yeah, that's actually really great because I don't want to come out and be like, hey, let's talk about the CFM that's going to come through that supply bend over there and what degree temperature it's going to come out and the static pressure, because, yes, I can have those conversations. But in reality, who wants.

Who are they helping? Yeah, exactly. It's like, it's. It's almost like you're speaking another language to the client at that point. And that's not going to be very helpful. Well, this tactic that you developed, this really got you recognized by Service Nation when you were still on the sales side.

Yeah. You know, actually what was great. So in 2015, Lenox started this competition. It was called the Ultimate Comfort Advisor. And so they had four winners in the United States of who could sell the most high efficiency or the most product. And it was north, south, east, and west winners. And I remember competing that very first year, and there was 20 pages, so I'm guessing, like between four and 600 comfort advisors that I was competing against. I could find no other women on these sheets, but I won. And so that was so exciting because I'm from this little Salt Lake City, Utah area. And who is this Katie Higgins that's won? So when we went to go get the award, this was actually really cool. The original prizes were a man's class ring, a smoker, and like a gift card to Home Depot or something. And to Lennox's credit, they pivoted and they said, oh, and Katie Higgins, our ultimate comfort advisor, and we have got her a Borlino buffalo bag. And I'm like, I should be excited. I don't know what this is. I'm googling it like this. No, it's cool. But they stamped Lennox on it. That bag's not going anywhere. Like, any value it had, you know, Lennox got their stamp on it anyway. But I thought it was really cool that they tried. So that was really awesome. So the next year, what was awesome about that is on page one. There were three other women that next year. So I really felt like I had helped open the door just a little bit to other owners. Seeing that a female not only could lead the way, but win. It felt like there were several other owners in our area that went and got themselves a female comfort advisor. And but with that year two, I won, and then year three, I won. And so we call it like the original three peat. But that third year, I got a three peat class ring. And then after that, I just kind of decided to go start my own company. So.

So. Well, that's the thing. I mean, I feel like that's what you're doing right now with true pros. Like, if you opened up the door for female comfort advisors with this Lenox competition, then that's kind of what you're doing now. So I want to hear what was the impetus? What made you decide to start your own company? What was the turning point that's made you realize it was time to pursue ownership?

That's a great Question. And it's probably one particular crawl space. My mom used to say something like, we paid for you to go to college. Why do you crawl under people's houses? And at the time, I would say something like, mom, if I get stuck, I will call the fire department and then I'll quit my job, in that order. And there was one particular crawl space that I wasn't sure I was going to get out of. And I had just turned 40. And I just thought, you know, I'm not going to be able to crawl under houses forever. It's not as cute anymore if I'm crawling back or crawling through the attic if I fall through a ceiling, you know, and maybe it's time to consider a different path. And I had a lifestyle that I needed to maintain. My kids had just graduated, so I was a young mom, obviously, but I didn't have so much pressure on me to pay for their lives, so to speak, because I was a single mom for a long time and had to figure, like, the best lesson I learned in my life was be prepared to take care of your kids, because I just wasn't. And so hence the telemarketing in the morning and going to school in the afternoon is really trying to figure out, like, oh, my gosh, I've got these two littles. How am I going to provide for them? And heating and air is a wonderful way to provide for a family. So I had this great lifestyle in sales and had a wildly successful career. And I thought, well, gosh, I know everything about heating and air. I could just start a company. So I went and got my. And it's just not that easy. But I did go and get my contractor's license and. And that was super interesting. So you have to take some law courses and. But it's, it's looking back on the knowledge that they give you, it's just this teeny, teeny, teeny bit in this massive, massive, massive world of owning a business.

So I know, I know there's so much to do. And actually, one of the reasons I wanted to talk to you, you started True Pros in from the garage in 2023, as you put it when we first spoke. And as of 2025, your second year in business, you're pacing to hit 12 million this year.

That's the plan. So in our first year, we did just under 6 million and we are trying to double that this year. Yeah, definitely. And people ask me how I did that. So back to the service nation question. On my first year of business, Jim Henshaw called and said this was last October. He was like, hey, are you coming to this meeting? And I'm like, who is this? And no, I'm not. And he said, well, did you know that you were nominated as Woman of the Year? And I'm like, no, I have no idea what that is. And he's like, well, are you going to come? And I'm like, no. And he's like, well, what if we paid for your ticket? So in my mind, I'm like, I won. I got to go. Of course I'll come. I didn't win at all. I wasn't even on the radar. But it was a really important meeting and I'm so, so glad that I went. It was at this meeting that I, I found this other, this group of other women. And they have like this whole, whole group that's women, actually. They've got different, what they call little round tables or different groups. And one of them is AB80, which is just women, which is awesome. But then they also put you in a group of like, revenue. And I was sitting in this class and the guy I was sitting next to, he leans over, he's like, I'm going to do five this year. And I was like, well, how long have you been in business? And he's like, 20 years. And I'm like, it was at that moment that I realized that what I had done was something special. But I had no idea up until then. So I ran out into the hallway and called my husband, who has nothing to do with heating and air. But I was like, this guy sitting next to me just said he was going to do the same amount that we've done in our first 10 months in 20 years. And so I was like, I think that what we've done is pretty special. So I think by not having any expectations or like putting any road, I guess, parameters.

You didn't know what? You didn't know.

Yeah, I didn't. It allowed me to fly. And so there was so much negativity and so much like so much going on that we just did not take time to stop and smell the roses, so to speak.

Okay, so a couple follow up questions. So, Service Nation, did they. Were you actually nominated for Women of the Year or did they.

Yeah, no, I totally.

Okay, so you were nominated?

Yep, I totally was. In fact, twice they had it as Katie Higgins and Katherine Higgins. So I really was on there. But then I wait, I was like, well, when will I find out? And on the last day they're like, oh, yeah, they already announced it. And I was like, okay, clearly I didn't win. But what an amazing opportunity and, like, experience for me to meet a whole bunch of other owners. Because I. I'm pretty much an open book. I. I go to my neighbors up here and knock on their door like, hey, can you guys tell me what you did this month? And nobody wanted to talk to me or tell me what they were doing. And so I was trying all of the marketing tactics. I'm like, social media, Yelp, Google, just every avenue that everybody home shows, parades that everybody's like, oh, don't do that. And I'm like, I'm going to try it all. I'm going to do it all. And thank goodness that I did. But I knew how to sell, so I knew if I could bring in the leads, I could sell the jobs and then I could get them installed. So that first year, we really didn't have a service department. Yeah.

You told me you focused mainly on installs, and that's why you were able to hit almost 6 million in your first year.

Yeah, it really was. And I think I had taken this class on. It's called, like, the chief of operations, or it's an accountability class. And in there, they said, okay, you should build that 30% service, 60% install, and 10% maintenance. And I'm like, I don't even know how to build service. So I'm just going to build what I know, which is sales and installation and maintenance. I can have a maintenance tech. But it was after about a year that I'm like, oh, we really do need service technicians. And that's allowing us to be on pace to try and double our efforts from last year. So now we have an entire service department. So we went from one truck to 20 trucks.

So that's. I would have whiplash from that kind of growth. That's insane in the best way. Insane in the best way.

Well, thank you. Like I said, it wasn't until that meeting that I was like, okay. This allowed me to give myself a little bit of grace for everything that had gone on it. It's not easy. I mean, it takes a lot of tough skin, and it takes a lot of effort. And not everybody's built for entrepreneurship or even to be at that ground level, because it takes a lot. Like, there's something that we have around here is the bell that we ring the bell. Because last year when something happened, like the first time that a tire blew out, the first time a transmission went out, the first time we fell through a Ceiling. Every time that something happened last year, it was the first time that it happened. And those hard things overshadowed all of the amazing things that we were doing. And there were 5 million amazing things that we were doing. But we just didn't stop to smell the roses or ring the bell. And so now we have a bell that sits in the hallway and a scrapbook out front. Every week something happens. It's not great. Just does. But there's so many things that happen. Like a great sale, the best sales day that we've ever had, because those happen all the time because we're so new. So we ring the bell and we print it on a sheet and hang it on the wall. Right now we have goat rings that we're going after and. And then we have a scrapbook that we keep by the front of the office for that week. All of the things that hired. We hired Carissa, we hired Maggie, we hire all the new hires or the new trainees. They all go into this scrapbook so that when we're having the really hard times that we can go and say, oh, but this week we had all of these other amazing things that happen. And yeah, that other thing happened, but it doesn't overshadow all the great things that happen. And so I think that was so important.

I think that's so important to have that kind of tactile, like, mini celebration whenever something good happens. Because like you said, like your first year in business, even something like blowing out a tire or falling through a ceiling, it's never happened to you before. So of course it's all hands on deck. And it's so easy. I think as humans, it's so easy for us to focus on what's going wrong and what we can fix instead of appreciating what's going well. And I have to imagine that it increases morale amongst your team too, whenever someone gets to write something new in this scrapbook or never they hear the bell ringing and all that good stuff.

Yeah, no, it's been incredible. Like, some of the things that I've been able to pick up from other shops, like meeting Ellen and Carrie, Carrie Kelsh, that owns A plus garage doors. That. That one meeting I went to a masterminds meeting, and they were both there just kind of being in the presence of other women entrepreneurs or other women leaders. Like, I've been to Carrie shop a few times and they've got like a weight belt that's like. So we have a weight belt that's for the true pro of the month. And so each week, we nominate the true professional of the week, and then we have to say what core value that went with it. Like, Jake installed this system by himself, and that's growth and opportunity. Or Sherry helped this customer, and that's the customer approach. And so they get their name in the bucket. And then at the end of the month, we draw a true professional of the month. And then there's a big prize, but also you get the weight belt for the month. And that totally came from Carrie's shop. But, like, surrounding myself with other really strong. Not just women, but other business owners that I want to be like has been really important to, like, stay around those other women and entrepreneurs. So, anyway, so Ellen has been such a. Such. She has been so great for me. When I first met her, I was telling her a sad story, and she's like, are you done with that story? Cause nobody cares about the girl that got past 5 million in year one and wants to hear a sob story. Cause are you done? Are you done? I'm like, I'm done. She's like, because guess what? You're great. I'm like, that's the part of the sentence that I needed to hear. Because she was like, are you done? I'm like, she doesn't want to hear my story. No. She's like, who cares? You're awesome. You're a badass. Like, that's what. That's what she was getting at. And so, like, I knew immediately. I'm like, I need to be in her circle, and I need to be around her all the time.

Yeah. She is a powerful force that Ellen Rohr. I. She is the best. I'm so happy that your paths crossed. I am curious. I know we're going to get in to a couple other technical things, but I want to hear how you closed the knowledge gap on the service side of things. So you mentioned before that you were expert at sales. You were an expert at install. That's why you guys were able to grow. Able to hit almost 5 million, almost 6 million your first year in business. Yeah. And I'm curious how you close the knowledge gap on the service side.

That's great, because I actually didn't. I hired a general manager about Christmas, I got an inkling that somebody might be leaving. And so I started putting feelers out for another salesperson or a general manager. Because I was just assuming that I was gonna have to go back out into the field. Cause I was kind of the manager, but I am a great salesperson, and I could still Crawl in the crawl spaces. I don't want to. I knew that would hinder our growth a little bit. But I started putting feelers out for a salesperson and a general manager. Well, I ended up getting both, which allowed me to help this new general manager. But he was also the service manager from a very large group. And so he was like, where's the service techs? I'm like, yeah, I don't know.

I'm like, we should ask that because that's what I want you to do.

Exactly. But I didn't know that's what I wanted him to do. I just wanted him to manage the 20 people that are here. And now there's 30 people and it's a big service department. So you helped me put together the price book for service and really understand there's this whole set of work that comes from service. And this year in particular with the refrigerant change, it is like I ran a company through Covid. This is wild. Like with the 454 canister, that's been such a struggle because we are a Lennox premier dealer and an Amana dealer, so thank goodness for that. But this has been wild. So there's been a lot more request and demand for service this year than ever in my 20 plus years in heating and air. So holy crap. I'm thankful that Brandon's here and running that department while he's running the whole show so that I can do marketing and work on the sales department.

Awesome. And I'm glad that you pointed out, like, yeah, I could go into the crawl space, but that would hinder the growth of the business, which is true. Because even though you're really good at crawling and crawl spaces or writing up sales estimates, your focus right now is being at the helm of the business and leading it in the way that you. That you believe is going to grow its best. And so taking you out of that position is going to slow the business down a bit.

Yeah, well, last year we had some really hard lessons like how do you forecast or project what you don't know. We had never had an October before or a November or December or January. So all of that was. We were in our garage the year before, so we moved out of the garage last January and so we had this full year of in a shop, but every month was so scary. And when, when it came down to slow time, like we had a very. It was a sad meeting. It was like an important meeting together. But I wanted them to all hear it from me that I just I let the team know that I didn't know what was going to happen, and I didn't know how much work I was going to be able to provide. And so if any of them had questions or concerns, I wanted them to come talk to me, because I just did. When I look at the people that are there, I know that they're counting on me for their. To provide for their families. And I know that our industry is seasonal, but I really. I mean, I bear the weight of the install board or the now the service board, because it feels like I just wanted to be completely upfront with the entire team that I just wasn't sure, and I wasn't sure how much work I'd be able to provide. Now I can say with confidence, I can. At least I know what I can do from last year. So that. That feels less scary. But that was a tough meeting as a group. I think it was very important that they saw that. The humility from me and that I don't always have the answers. But we've got this amazing team. People talk about the culture here, and I'm like, gosh, we have been through it. We really have. So at first we had trucks and trailers, and it's not because that's what I wanted. It's because I owned a truck. So I sold it to the company, and then I could afford a trailer. So that was the first vehicle, truck and trailer. And people like, gosh, that's really smart. And I'm like, well, it's all I had. I didn't have anything else.

Didn't really have another option.

That's right. Yeah. When we started, I was short $800 for workers comp. Like, it's this silly amount, but I had. I had. I wanted to buy truprose.com and the guy selling truprose.com said, It's $15,000, and I think I had $13,000 left in my name. And I told him that, and he's like, okay, I'll take 13. I'm like, dude, I should have said 11. But anyway, I bought truprose.com and I had just given up. I was like, I can't do it. And there was a bunch of people that just had more faith in me than I had in myself to start a company and to really get behind me. So my husband started calling the neighbors, like, hey, do you. Do you guys. Do you have some money you want to loan my wife? I'm like, what are you doing? And one neighbor started making cookies for my customers. One Neighbor helped me buy a van. One neighbor helped me with the logo. One neighbor helped me with the books. Like, it was this really cool effort of just to get the things going. Now I'm laughing about the trajectory and now where we're at, because it wasn't that long ago. So definitely thankful for my neighborhood and my husband.

I know it's real. I mean, 2023, really, like, that is not a long time ago. That was. That was just a few seconds ago, it feels like. So I'm glad that you're taking time to reflect and to think about how far you've come and where you want to go next. I think that's so awesome.

You know, people ask, like, how much money do you need to start a company? And the answer is, a lot. My husband came to me and said, I'll go get a regular W2 job so that I could pay our bills so you could just focus on the business. And I'm so thankful that he's been doing that now for a year and a half. And so I think it'll be a minute before I tell him that he doesn't have to keep doing that. But I'd love for him to come work in the warehouse or something later on, but.

Oh, that would be great, wouldn't it?

Yeah. Yeah. Because I get home every day and he's like, the only way I find out what was going on is listen to you on the phone. And I'm like, well, pretty busy.

One other thing I want to talk to you about, Katie, and you've been so generous with your time. You mentioned already that you have been enjoying Sales Pro on Service Titan. And part of the reason is that it's encouraging you as a salesperson to not skip steps. And you mentioned something that I thought was so good is like, when we are experts at something, when we've done something a thousand times, it's so easy to just like, go into fix it mode and forget some of these really integral steps into having a successful sale. So tell me a bit about how you've used Sales Pro and what. What it's been like at the company.

So I'm going to be completely honest. Like, I was like, nope, not doing it. Not for me. Nope.

Yeah.

And then one of the somebody presented, and I think it was Alicia, I don't know, she said to me, katie, you record your CSRs every day and you're listening to their calls and you're coaching them. Why wouldn't you want the same for yourself? And I'm like, I Guess that's true. You're right. Well, I have an opportunity to train another salesperson. So when I got to the company I was at for, I stayed at the Same company for 18 years. When I got there, I knew everything about sales, but I didn't know the technical side. And they had me go back and get my other licenses to learn the more technical information. So I just hired a salesperson that has that same background in sales, but not the technical stuff that I really want because that's part of being a true professional. I want you to it be your job from beginning to end. So I had this idea that I was going to train him, and I thought, well, if I'm going to train him, I want to know that I know how to train. So I started using Sales Pro. And I'm not even joking. I sent Sarah a text. I think that week I was at 100% closure rate. Like, not even. Not even a joke. All of a sudden I was just hyper aware of being recorded and like, oh, I got to remember to ask for the sale. Oh, I got to remember to do this. Oh, I got it. Like, asking the questions that I knew that as an expert, I know to ask Timeline. How soon can we move forward? Is there anything holding you back? Like, if we put this together today, if it's in the budget, is there any reason we can't move forward? Like, the questions you know to ask, you're just like, you forget. But when you're being recorded, you're like, hyper aware. So then I came back and told my team. I'm like, okay, guys, my closure rate has quadrupled. I want you to put it on. And my other sales guy was like, I don't need it. And he put it on and literally went out and closed three out of four jobs that day. And I was like, mic drop. He's like, why? I wasn't really recording. I'm like, you totally were. So it's like we get in our head about being recorded, but my gosh, I am like a believer. And it has been an amazing. It's just changed the way I think about Sales Pro and it's changed the way I think about, like, our CSRs because they're always being recorded. And realizing, like, gosh, that is. Is kind of invasive, but it's there to help coach. And then, like, from the customer standpoint, we can go back and say, you were told it would be $89. Here's the recording. Or I did ask your. I did tell you. You had a four Ton. And we needed to do a three ton. Not that I would ever use that, but it's my own peace of mind and training material. And what I really loved about SalesPro is that it's all positive feedback. It's never like giving me negative stuff. I'm like, I don't know if that is by design, but because I was like, I already feel bad enough about myself. I don't need somebody picking out my faults for me, like, AI. Yeah, man, that AI is my biggest cheerleader, I'll just tell you that. Right.

There you go.

I know. So anybody that's like on the fence about it, I understand because I was that person. And I brought every person from my team and talked to them one at a time and said, I won't. I have this opportunity. I would really like to use Sales Pro. Will I lose you? Because some people had come from another company and they had used some software that they were like, we're never going to do it and I want it. And every single person got behind me and said they'd do it. But I talked to them individually about it before we, before we signed up.

That's. I think that's good. Especially being cognizant of any sensitivities in your team about using software like that and doing a one on one approach, opposed to just, you know, going into their morning meetings and saying like, hey, we're using this, no questions. Yeah, I think that's a pretty good approach that you took and trying it out yourself and seeing, you know, and so you were able to speak to its efficacy versus just assuming that it would work.

Yeah, well, I didn't. I was like, oh, okay, whatever, we're going to try this. And I am saying I'm taking it all back. It's really great.

Katie, you have been so great with your time. I appreciate you just sharing your story. I can't wait to see where you guys guys end up. And thank you again for taking time out of your day to join me on Toolbox for the trades.