Every contractor wants a million-dollar sales month. Almost none are ready for what it does to their backlog.

Stephen Pisulak just booked his first million-dollar month at Lehigh Gap Exteriors, up from around $300,000 a month back in March. In this episode of Build to Win, Jonathan and John dig into how he turned it around, from the daily sales training that reset his team to the new sales manager he hired and trains two tasks at a time.

They also get into the part nobody warns you about. Sell a million and install $700,000, and you just handed yourself a $300,000 backlog that can choke your cash flow. Stephen and John walk through how to keep sales and production close enough to stay out of trouble.

If your sales have been flat and you want a real look at how one exterior contractor is scaling toward $10 million, this one is worth your time.

Key Takeaways: 

00:00 Intro

01:18 First Million-Dollar Sales Month

02:08 Mindset, Training, No Commiserating

04:00 Weekly Training Schedule and Siro

08:14 Assigning Appointments Like a Baseball Lineup

10:26 Repair Leads That Turn Into Replacements

16:36 Production Has to Match Sales

21:36 Top Three Lead Sources

35:34 The Rep Only Rents the Lead

43:18 Final Thoughts

Additional Resources:

🔥 Watch our FREE on-demand webinar: HERE

⚡ Learn more about us: https://www.builderprime.com/ 

📱 Connect with us on social media:

Facebook: / builderprime  

LinkedIn: / builderprime   

Jonathan’s LinkedIn: / jonathanweinberg   

John’s LinkedIn: / john-kolbaska-a271a757   

Instagram: / builderprimecrm     

#BuildToWinPodcast #ContractorPodcast #HomeImprovement #ContractorSales #OneCallClose #ScalingUp

Wait three minutes to call a new lead and you're 70% less likely to reach them. Your competitors already dialed. By the time you get to it, you're the fifth call, and the customer is gone.

We pulled the highlights from our speed-to-lead conversation, the parts that help you turn more leads into booked jobs.

In this episode of Build to Win, Jonathan and John walk through automated follow-ups across the whole sales and marketing funnel. They get into speed to lead, the text messages that actually get a reply, confirming appointments without any manual work, and what to do when a demo does not close.

You will hear real numbers from John's own business. You will also see how the follow-up runs in the background so nothing gets missed.

Here is what you will get from this episode:

• Why the first 60 seconds after a lead comes in decide whether you reach them
• The text templates that get replies, including the one that opens "I don't want to be a bother"
• The Builder Prime lead statuses that keep your team on the right message at the right time
• How a demo-no-sale follow-up pulls customers back in with a survey or a fresh rep
• The $100K to $150K a month John credits to his follow-up system

Give it a listen.

Key Takeaways: 

00:00 Intro

00:54 Speed to Lead: Why the First Minute Matters

02:26 70% Less Chance After Three Minutes

03:08 HomeAdvisor Days: A Lesson in Speed to Lead

04:46 How the Lead Sequence Works in Builder Prime

06:28 Text Message Templates: Short, Sweet, and Convert

08:10 Why Automated Follow-Up Beats Manual Every Time

10:20 Speed to Lead Stats: 391% Conversion Increase

12:46 Confirming the Appointment Before the Rep Goes Out

15:00 Warming Up the Customer Before the Demo

19:14 After the Proposal: Keeping Sold Jobs in the Loop

22:12 Demo No-Sell: Automated Rehash Sequences

25:28 Feedback Surveys and Inside Sales Follow-Up

28:00 Final Thoughts

Additional Resources:

Additional Resources:

🔥 Watch our FREE on-demand webinar: HERE

⚡ Learn more about us: https://www.builderprime.com/ 

📱 Connect with us on social media:

Facebook: / builderprime  

LinkedIn: / builderprime   

Jonathan’s LinkedIn: / jonathanweinberg   

John’s LinkedIn: / john-kolbaska-a271a757   

Instagram: / builderprimecrm   

Home improvement contractors are having a down year, but Stephen Pisulak is growing. He took his exterior contracting business from $4.2 million to a projected $7 million by fixing his production capacity and tightening his sales margins.

When Stephen first joined the show a year ago, he was the answer to every question in the building. He is back as the first returning guest, and his team now handles the day without him.

Stephen walks Jonathan and John through the changes one at a time. He stopped being the bottleneck and handed real ownership to his managers. He gave his production team a daily install number to schedule against, so revenue stopped riding on how the crews felt that morning. He found nearly $700,000 he was giving away in discounts and missed line items, then built checks to protect it. He rebuilt his call center for speed to lead and watched his best month climb to $796,000 on the same marketing spend.

If you are busy but not making the money you should, this one shows you where the profit is probably hiding.

Listen now to hear how Stephen turned a good business into an efficient one.

Key Takeaways: 

00:00 Intro

00:16 Steven Returns: $4.2M to $7.1M

02:18 Replacing Yourself

04:00 Call Center Rep to Production Coordinator

09:52 Revenue Per Crew Per Day

13:54 Before the KPI

20:04 Accountability Cleaned Out the C Players

23:10 Over-Discounting and Underselling

32:08 The Measure Tech Position

38:14 Remote Call Center and Speed to Lead

48:00 Final Thoughts

Additional Resources:

🔥 Watch our FREE on-demand webinar: HERE

⚡ Learn more about us: https://www.builderprime.com/ 

📱 Connect with us on social media:

Facebook: / builderprime  

LinkedIn: / builderprime   

Jonathan’s LinkedIn: / jonathanweinberg   

John’s LinkedIn: / john-kolbaska-a271a757   

Instagram: / builderprimecrm   

New leads are harder to come by, and the ones you do get cost more. Close rates are down five to six points from where they were. If business has felt tougher these past few months, you are not imagining it.

In this episode of Build to Win, Jonathan and John talk through the summer slowdown hitting home improvement right now and what it means for specialty contractors doing $10M and up. Material costs jumped close to 10% this year. John's own close rate slid from around 32% to 27%. The market is cooling, and nobody knows yet if a real recession is coming.

Here is the good news. The contractors who know their numbers and work the database they already have will come out the other side stronger, with less competition. John lays out the exact moves his company is making right now, from mining old leads that never bought to launching a repair division that feeds future replacements.

If your leads have slowed and you want to stay profitable while the market sorts itself out, this one is for you.

Key Takeaways: 

00:00 Intro

00:20 Summer Slowdown: What They're Seeing

01:10 COVID Boom Is Over

02:04 This Year vs. Last Year

03:26 Closing Rates Down and Costs Up

05:52 The Market Needs a Cleanse

07:30 How to Recession-Proof Your Business

09:00 Rehash: Mine Your Database

11:38 Adding a Repair Division

14:22 Repair Leads That Turn Into Replacements

17:50 Getting Back in the House

21:16 Market, Media, Message

24:16 Know Your Numbers

26:26 What If the Internet Went Away Tomorrow

28:34 Final Thoughts

Additional Resources:

🔥 Watch our FREE on-demand webinar: HERE

⚡ Learn more about us: https://www.builderprime.com/ 

📱 Connect with us on social media:

Facebook: / builderprime  

LinkedIn: / builderprime   

Jonathan’s LinkedIn: / jonathanweinberg   

John’s LinkedIn: / john-kolbaska-a271a757   

Instagram: / builderprimecrm   

You closed the job. The customer is excited. Then they hear nothing for weeks while the order sits with the manufacturer, and that cold stretch is where jobs cancel and referrals dry up.

In part two of their email and SMS series, Jonathan and John pull up John's live Men With Tools account inside Builder Prime and walk through every automated message it sends. You will see the exact emails and texts that fire from the moment a job is sold, through order updates, install day, the final walkthrough, and a one-year anniversary check-in.

John explains why the system pays off. Lead times run two to six weeks, so the account keeps customers informed at every step instead of leaving them guessing. It recovers canceled jobs and books installs faster. And it turns happy homeowners into repeat and referred clients, which now drive 30 to 40% of new opportunities.

Here is what you will learn:

• The "happy email" that goes out 24 hours after a job sells, and why early expectations prevent problems later
• How John recovers canceled jobs, and why he wants cancellations sitting at 8 to 10%
• The order-status emails that keep customers calm during a two to six week lead time
• What to tell customers before install day so there are no surprises about prep or payment
• The post-install walkthrough and one-year inspection that bring customers back for more work
• Why repeat and referral clients close at over 70% and cost almost nothing to reach

If your install calendar goes cold after the sale and your referrals feel like luck, this episode gives you the follow-up system that fixes both.

Key Takeaways: 

00:00 Intro

00:16 Part Two: Inside John's Builder Prime Account

01:26 The Happy Email: Setting Expectations After the Sale

03:00 Embedding Video in Emails: The Workaround

04:06 Internal SMS Notifications and Team Reminders

04:42 Sold Job Canceled: Rehash Emails and Recovery Texts

06:02 Canceled Job Recovery Rate: 8–10% Benchmark

07:48 Order Submitted and Acknowledged: The Communication Cadence

10:24 Order Shipped and Product Received at the Warehouse

13:08 Schedule Install: Email and Text Reminders

15:06 Keeping the Warehouse Empty to Drive Install Revenue

16:02 Job Scheduled Email: Scope, Payment, and Day-of Prep

19:00 Afternoon Install Email: Managing Arrival Windows

20:40 Install Complete and Walkthrough Scheduling

22:06 Warranty Registration and Manufacturer Coverage

23:22 One-Year Anniversary Inspection and 30–40% Repeat and Referral

25:40 Referral Program: 90-Day Email Cadence

28:00 Google Reviews, Bagels, and the Customer Experience

30:28 Final Thoughts

Additional Resources:

🔥 Watch our FREE on-demand webinar: HERE

⚡ Learn more about us: https://www.builderprime.com/ 

📱 Connect with us on social media:

Facebook: / builderprime  

LinkedIn: / builderprime   

Jonathan’s LinkedIn: / jonathanweinberg   

John’s LinkedIn: / john-kolbaska-a271a757   

Instagram: / builderprimecrm   

Growing fast feels like winning. Then you check your profit and your cash.

Alosha Pederson built Endless Poxybilities from scratch into a $10.5 million concrete coating company in just four years, with five production offices and 65 people on the team. But hitting that number surfaced the problems most owners run into on the way up, from profit that stayed too thin to a sales team that could book more work than his crews could install.

On this episode of Build to Win, Jonathan Weinberg and John Kolbaska dig into the real numbers behind the climb. Alosha explains the year that working harder finally stopped paying off. He breaks down how he moved net profit from around 4% to 11%, and why John argues it should be higher still. There's also the cash flow crunch that hit even as sales kept climbing.

He also shares the fixes, from getting real visibility into his numbers to bringing in a director of operations so he could stop running every day himself.

This one is for owners in growth mode who can feel the cracks forming. If your top line is climbing but your profit and your cash are not, you will see a lot of your own business here.

Here is what you will get from this episode:

• Why "work harder and longer" stops working around $4M
• How to catch a production capacity problem before it turns into a backlog
• What hypergrowth really costs, and why 11% net profit isn't the win it looks like
• How to keep cash flowing when sales grow faster than collections
• The plan behind building to $100M and selling to investors



Follow Build to Win wherever you listen, and hit play to hear the full story.

Additional Resources:

🔥 Watch our FREE on-demand webinar: HERE

⚡ Learn more about us: https://www.builderprime.com/ 

📱 Connect with us on social media:

Facebook: / builderprime  

LinkedIn: / builderprime   

Jonathan’s LinkedIn: / jonathanweinberg   

John’s LinkedIn: / john-kolbaska-a271a757   

Instagram: / builderprimecrm  

Most contractors plan from the top down. They set a sales goal, run the marketing, and hope production figures itself out. John Kolbaska did it that way for years. This episode is about what changed.

In this episode of Build to Win, Jonathan and John break down the two most important numbers in your business: your break-even point and your production capacity. He breaks down how he uses his crews' install rate to set a production ceiling, works out exactly where his break-even lands each month, and plans every sales and marketing dollar around that math. Every dollar above his break-even converts to 55 to 60 cents of pure net profit. He plans his year from that number, not from a revenue target.

They also cover accrual accounting and why it gives you a clearer picture of your real margins, what a healthy backlog actually looks like on your P&L, and the installer recruiting process John built from scratch. He applies the same speed-to-lead logic from his call center directly to job applications. Get them on the phone within a minute. Interview scheduled within 72 hours.

Jonathan also walks through Bolt Insights inside Builder Prime, a business intelligence suite built directly into the platform. You ask your data where you're losing money and it shows you by lead source, by sales rep, by crew, by job type. No external tools needed.

If you run a specialty home improvement company and want to know what's actually driving your margins, this is a good place to start.

Key Takeaways: 

00:00 Intro

01:02 Why Most Contractors Plan Backwards

01:26 The Two Numbers That Run Your Business

02:18 How to Calculate Your Production Capacity

04:30 Break-Even Math. Where the Real Profit Starts

06:20 What Happens When You Oversell Your Capacity

08:56 When a Backlog Is Telling You to Hire

10:54 Accrual vs. Cash. Why It Changes Everything

12:38 Profit First. Why People and Process Come After

14:36 How to Recruit Installers Using Speed to Lead

20:00 Treat Recruiting Like Marketing. Short Bursts Win

23:02 Show Young Tradespeople a Career Path

27:22 Bolt Insights. Ask Your Data Where You're Losing Money

36:44 Final Thoughts

Additional Resources:

🔥 Watch our FREE on-demand webinar: HERE

⚡ Learn more about us: https://www.builderprime.com/ 

📱 Connect with us on social media:

Facebook:   / builderprime  

LinkedIn:   / builderprime   

Jonathan’s LinkedIn:   / jonathanweinberg   

John’s LinkedIn:   / john-kolbaska-a271a757   

Instagram:   / builderprimecrm  

Your pricing is right. The margin is built in. Your reps still give it all away.

In Episode 34, Jonathan Weinberg and John Kolbaska sit down to break down a $4M home improvement company that was losing $600K to $700K a year. The fix took two weeks and one set of controls most owners never run.

John also walks through the launch of Core Ignite, his new remote marketing team and call center installed inside a contracting business. A trained marketing manager handles Facebook, Google Ads, and Google LSA spend. Remote reps apply speed to lead at a 50 to 60 percent target set rate on raw opportunities. It's the playbook he ran to scale Windows and Doors by the Men with Tools, now packaged for contractors trying to break $10M to $15M.

Here is what you will get from this episode:

• How a $4M contractor lost $600K a year to over-discounting and missing post-install job costing checks
• What 3 remote call center reps can produce: 50 to 100 booked appointments per week
• Why profit has to come before people and process
• The hiring profile of a roofing production manager who came in with his own crews and SOPs
• Who Core Ignite is built for and how it pushes contractors toward $10M+

If the leads are coming in but the bottom line isn't, this one names what's eating your margin and what to install next.

Key Takeaways: 

00:00 Intro

00:42 Introducing Core Services and Core Ignite

03:56 Ideal Client: $2M–$5M Companies Looking to Scale

05:16 AI Agents, Graphic Designer, and Videographer

07:06 Future of the Call Center and AI Regulation

09:28 Sales Capacity and Remote Recruiting

13:44 KPI Tracking, Guarantees, and Replacing Underperformers

16:18 Lead Aggregator Strategy and Weekly Client Meetings

18:24 10–20 Set Appointments Per Day: What to Expect

20:46 Why John Started Core Services

23:50 Consulting Case: $600K–$700K Lost to Over-Discounting

27:06 Running Multiple Companies: Profit, People, Process

29:22 Adding Roofing: Hiring a Production Manager with His Own Crews

33:00 Final Thoughts

Additional Resources:

🔥 Watch our FREE on-demand webinar: HERE

⚡ Learn more about us: https://www.builderprime.com/ 

📱 Connect with us on social media:

Facebook: / builderprime  

LinkedIn: / builderprime   

Jonathan’s LinkedIn: / jonathanweinberg   

John’s LinkedIn: / john-kolbaska-a271a757   

Instagram: / builderprimecrm  

—

Build to Win is a podcast for contractors where we give you the tools to grow your home improvement business. Follow us wherever you listen to your podcasts!

Eight to ten percent of sold contractor jobs cancel, and most go silent before they do.

In this highlights episode, Jonathan Weinberg and John Kolbaska open up John's live Builder Prime account and walk through the customer follow-up system running behind every Men With Tools project. John runs three locations doing eight figures in windows and doors, with over 1,000 five-star reviews and 30 to 40% of new opportunities coming from repeat and referred clients. The system you'll see inside is what makes that math work.

Inside this episode:

• The happy email that fires 24 hours after the contract is signed
• How to fill the 4 to 6 week production window without ever going silent
• The rehash recovery process that pulls back roughly 10% of canceled jobs
• The install day email that pre-handles payment, alarms, and weather
• The 14-day walkthrough that surfaces repeat door and window projects
• The 365-day anniversary inspection that drives referrals years later

If your sold board has jobs going quiet on you, this episode shows you where the leak is.

Key Takeaways:

00:00 Intro

00:48 The Happy Email: Setting Expectations After the Sale

02:32 Internal SMS Notifications and Referral Touchpoints

03:06 Sold Job Canceled: Rehash and Recovery

05:00 Order Submitted, Acknowledged, and In Process

08:12 Order Shipped and Product Received at the Warehouse

10:06 Schedule Install: Email and Text Cadence

12:08 Install Revenue and Keeping the Warehouse Empty

13:44 Job Scheduled Email: Scope, Payment, and Day-of Prep 1

6:56 Install Complete and Walkthrough Scheduling

18:48 Warranty Registration and Manufacturer Coverage

19:44 One-Year Anniversary Inspection

20:16 Referral Program: 90-Day Email Cadence

21:44 30–40% of New Opportunities from Repeat and Referral

22:08 Five-Star Reviews and the Customer Experience

23:56 Final Thoughts

Additional Resources:

🔥 Watch our FREE on-demand webinar: HERE

⚡ Learn more about us: https://www.builderprime.com/ 

📱 Connect with us on social media:

Facebook: / builderprime  

LinkedIn: / builderprime   

Jonathan’s LinkedIn: / jonathanweinberg   

John’s LinkedIn: / john-kolbaska-a271a757   

Instagram: / builderprimecrm  

—

Build to Win is a podcast for contractors where we give you the tools to grow your home improvement business. Follow us wherever you listen to your podcasts!

Most contractors are running their sales reps into the ground and wondering why their closing rate keeps dropping. In this episode of Build to Win, Jonathan Weinberg and John Kolbaska break down the lead distribution change that lifted John's net closing rate from 27% to 37% in 60 days.

John caps his reps at 5 to 7 leads a week instead of the usual 10 to 15. Every appointment gets full effort, fewer leads get burned, and commissions stay the same because reps are closing a higher percentage. He walks through how to route leads by project type, lead source, and zip code, why hometown and showroom-area appointments close highest, and the day-of-week sit rate data most contractors are missing.

The episode also covers a closing move John picked up at the Wealthy Contractor Success Society, where the owner gets pulled into the deal before the rep can leave the home. Plus a real story about how one discounting control fix is worth more than $500,000 a year to a contractor John has been consulting with.

If your closing rate is stuck and your reps are burning out, this is the playbook.

Key Takeaways: 

00:00 Intro

01:32 Recruiting Like an Inbound Lead

03:56 How John Went from 27% to 37% Closing Rate

05:44 Lead Distribution and Creating Scarcity

08:00 Why Overworked Reps Burn Leads

11:48 Weekend vs. Weekday Closing Rates

13:44 All-Party Sit Rate by Day of the Week

17:54 Routing Leads by Zip Code and Lead Source

19:06 High, Medium, and Low Intent Buyers

22:06 Scarcity Creates Leverage

24:28 Ticket Size and Adjusting Lead Volume

26:04 The "Burn It to the Ground" Drop Strategy

30:04 Consulting Case: $500K–$600K Lost to Unreviewed Discounts

32:06 Final Thoughts

Additional Resources:

🔥 Watch our FREE on-demand webinar: HERE

⚡ Learn more about us: https://www.builderprime.com/ 

📱 Connect with us on social media:

Facebook: / builderprime  

LinkedIn: / builderprime   

Jonathan’s LinkedIn: / jonathanweinberg   

John’s LinkedIn: / john-kolbaska-a271a757   

Instagram: / builderprimecrm  

—

Build to Win is a podcast for contractors where we give you the tools to grow your home improvement business. Follow us wherever you listen to your podcasts!

A lead aggregator rep told John straight up: send you 100 leads at $75 each, you'll close one job. That's $7,500 in marketing spend for a single $14,000 sale. Fifty percent cost of marketing. She said it with a smile.

That conversation kicked off the playbook Jonathan Weinberg and John Kolbaska break down in this episode. John walks through the exact terms his team puts in front of every aggregator now: pay per issued lead at his real cost, pay per demo, or a flat percentage of the closed sale. About 40 percent of providers sign. The other 60 percent walk, and that filter is the whole point.

Then John gets into a contact rate problem most owners haven't caught yet. Carriers are flagging outbound numbers as spam likely after roughly 50 calls in a day, and once a number gets flagged it stays flagged.

In this episode:

• The three pay structures John uses with lead aggregators
• Why 60 percent of providers walk away and why that's a good thing
• The spam-likely flag killing your contact rate
• The area code trick that lifted pickup rates 10 percent
• The exact call cadence his team runs every day

If you're a specialty contractor spending real money on leads, this episode hands you a system you can put in place this week.

Key Takeaways: 

00:00 Intro

01:28 Why I Stopped Playing by Their Rules

04:06 How a Great Lead Source Got Ruined

06:24 The Strategy Meeting That Changed Everything

08:00 Here's Exactly What We Pay Lead Aggregators Now

10:04 Why 60% of Aggregators Walk Away

15:08 She Said 1% Close Rate Like It Was Normal

23:28 The Hidden Reason Your Contact Rates Are Tanking

26:00 What We Found After Counting Every Call

29:52 Two Small Changes That Are Adding Thousands Per Day

31:06 The Three Call Windows That Actually Work

36:00 Final Thoughts

Additional Resources:

🔥 Watch our FREE on-demand webinar: HERE

⚡ Learn more about us: https://www.builderprime.com/ 

📱 Connect with us on social media:

Facebook: / builderprime  

LinkedIn: / builderprime   

Jonathan’s LinkedIn: / jonathanweinberg   

John’s LinkedIn: / john-kolbaska-a271a757   

Instagram: / builderprimecrm  

Most contractors know they should be offering financing. In this episode, Jonathan and John break down why it's the most powerful tool in your sales process, and exactly how to use it.

The average home improvement job is $14,000. The median household savings account has $8,000. They walk through the math, the mindset, and the exact three-option pricing structure that makes payment options the default, not a backup plan. They also cover why offering cash discounts is one of the fastest ways to tank your close rate, and what to do instead.

Here is what you will get from this episode:

•Why the median household can't comfortably write a $14,000 check

•How to present payment options without ever leading with the total price

•The three-option pricing structure that closes more deals

•What happens to your close rate the moment you allow cash discounts

•How to get started with financing today if you're not offering it yet

Stop leading with price. Start leading with payment options.

Key Takeaways: 

00:00 Intro

01:12 The One Thing Every $100M Home Improvement Company Has in Common

03:56 Never Say the Word "Financing" in Front of a Customer — Here's Why 

08:22 The Real Reason Customers Say "I Need to Think About It" 

11:52 How to Turn a $14,000 Price Tag Into an Easy Monthly Yes 

14:46 Present These 3 Options and Watch Your Close Rate Climb 

18:44 Why Giving Cash Discounts Is Slowly Killing Your Business 

23:24 How to Handle the Customer Who Asks for the Total Price 

25:28 The Hidden Remarketing Strategy Hiding Inside Your Finance Reports

 30:50 How to Get Started With Financing This Week — Step by Step 

35:10 Why Removing Cash Discounts Jumped Their Finance Rate From 35% to 78% 

40:00 Final Thoughts

Additional Links & Resources:

Presentation Link: Why Financing is the Most Important Tool in Our Sales Process

🔥 Watch our FREE on-demand webinar: HERE

⚡ Learn more about us: https://www.builderprime.com/ 

📱 Connect with us on social media:

• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/builderprime/
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/builderprime/ 
• Jonathan’s LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jonathanweinberg/ 
• John’s LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/john-kolbaska-a271a757/ 
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/builderprimecrm/ 

—

Build to Win is a podcast for contractors where we give you the tools to grow your home improvement business. Follow us wherever you listen to your podcasts!

Hiring sales reps from your competitors feels like a shortcut. It's not.

In this episode of Build to Win, John Kolbaska breaks down how he grew his sales team from 7 to 12 reps — and why the best candidates aren't coming from inside your industry. You'll hear how he built a full-time training program, what it actually costs to onboard a bad rep, and the two things he tests in the first three days to weed out the wrong hires fast.

If you're trying to scale a sales team and keep burning through recruits, this one's for you.

🎧 Listen now.

Key Takeaways

00:00 Intro

01:36 Why you need a full-time sales trainer

03:50 Recruiting is a marketing funnel

07:52 The real cost of a failed rep: $15,000+

13:42 Early role-play and tech screening

17:38 Never hire your competitor’s failed reps

19:24 Recruit from lower-ticket industries

26:18 Always lead with financing

Additional Links & Resources:

🔥 Watch our FREE on-demand webinar: HERE

⚡ Learn more about us: https://www.builderprime.com/ 

📱 Connect with us on social media:

• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/builderprime/
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/builderprime/ 
• Jonathan’s LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jonathanweinberg/ 
• John’s LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/john-kolbaska-a271a757/ 
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/builderprimecrm/ 

—

Build to Win is a podcast for contractors where we give you the tools to grow your home improvement business. Follow us wherever you listen to your podcasts!

Most contractors trust their reports. But if the data going into your CRM is wrong, every decision you make from it is wrong too.

In this episode, Jonathan and John break down what bad CRM data is actually costing you. John found that 64 of his 300 zip codes drove 90% of his business. He also cut his speed to lead from 44 minutes to under a minute — and his appointment set rate doubled.

If you're flying blind on your numbers, this episode will show you what to track and how to get it right.

Key Takeaways:

00:00 Intro

00:42 Garbage in, garbage out

03:23 Leads stuck in the wrong funnel stage

07:00 Hiring a data scientist

12:38 The zip code discovery

18:30 Speed to lead: 44 minutes to 40 seconds

21:33 Speed to issue and the 36-hour sweet spot

25:13 Booking rate and sales capacity

40:30 Bolt Insights overview

Additional Links & Resources:

🔥 Watch our **FREE** on-demand webinar: https://www.builderprime.com/webinars/on-demand-webinar-drive-20-net-profit-with-systems-processes?utm_source=RedCircle&utm_medium=Audio&utm_campaign=28

⚡ Learn more about us: https://www.builderprime.com/ 

📱 Connect with us on social media:

• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/builderprime/
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/builderprime/ 
• Jonathan’s LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jonathanweinberg/ 
• John’s LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/john-kolbaska-a271a757/ 
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/builderprimecrm/ 

—

Build to Win is a podcast for contractors where we give you the tools to grow your home improvement business. Follow us wherever you listen to your podcasts!

Some builders scale to millions fast while others stay stuck for years. The difference is not luck.

In this episode of Build to Win, Jonathan and John share the biggest lessons from Accelerate LIVE! 2026 and reveal why certain contractors grow from zero to five million and beyond in just a few years while others never break through.

They break down the real playbook top operators use including profit first thinking, hiring great people before obsessing over process, and implementing what most attendees never do after events.

If you have ever wondered why some companies explode with growth while others stay busy but small, this episode will show you what actually separates them.

Key Takeaways:

00:00 Accelerate LIVE! Recap  

05:16 Only 2% Will Implement These Lessons 

09:29 From 0 to $5M

17:58 The Three P Framework for Scaling

29:55 Building Generational Wealth

38:41 Outro

Additional Links & Resources:

🔥 Watch our **FREE** on-demand webinar: https://www.builderprime.com/webinars/on-demand-webinar-drive-20-net-profit-with-systems-processes?utm_source=RedCircle&utm_medium=Audio&utm_campaign=27

⚡ Learn more about us: https://www.builderprime.com/ 

📱 Connect with us on social media:

• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/builderprime/
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/builderprime/ 
• Jonathan’s LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jonathanweinberg/ 
• John’s LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/john-kolbaska-a271a757/ 
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/builderprimecrm/ 

—

Build to Win is a podcast for contractors where we give you the tools to grow your home improvement business. Follow us wherever you listen to your podcasts!

Most home improvement businesses are missing out on what AI can actually do for them.

In this episode of Build to Win, Jonathan and John break down how contractors can use AI the right way to save time, close more leads, and run a smarter business.

From using AI for content, emails, and texts, to designing lead follow-up sequences and analyzing your data, this episode shows how to treat AI like a junior-level employee instead of expecting magic.

If you’re just copying and pasting AI content or relying on it blindly, this conversation will change how you think about AI in your business.

Key Takeaways:

00:00 Intro 

00:45 Moltbook drama

02:35 LLMs and their uses

08:31 Context windows and AI hallucinations

14:45 The proliferation of AI slop

25:04 The social network for AI agents

28:03 How home improvement companies can leverage AI

32:00 Builder Prime’s AI features

41:53 Outro

Additional Links & Resources:

🔥 Watch our **FREE** on-demand webinar: https://www.builderprime.com/webinars/on-demand-webinar-drive-20-net-profit-with-systems-processes?utm_source=RedCircle&utm_medium=Audio&utm_campaign=26

⚡ Learn more about us: https://www.builderprime.com/ 

📱 Connect with us on social media:

• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/builderprime/
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/builderprime/ 
• Jonathan’s LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jonathanweinberg/ 
• John’s LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/john-kolbaska-a271a757/ 
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/builderprimecrm/ 

—

Build to Win is a podcast for contractors where we give you the tools to grow your home improvement business. Follow us wherever you listen to your podcasts!

Most business owners are already behind on their 2026 plan, even if they don’t realize it yet.

In this high-value snippet of Build to Win, John walks through exactly how he builds a data-backed business plan for the year ahead, using real CRM numbers instead of gut instinct.

From forecasting revenue, to planning marketing spend and headcount, this episode breaks down how to reverse-engineer a 2026 plan that actually holds up under pressure.

If you’re still dividing your revenue goal evenly across 12 months or waiting until Q4 to get serious about planning, this conversation will challenge how you think about growth in 2026.

Key Takeaways: 

Intro (00:00)

The $5M Planning Moment (01:14)

Building a Data-Driven Forecast (02:19)

Using AI to Identify True Seasonality (02:59)

Why Even Monthly Budgets Break Forecasting (05:05)

Demos Are the KPI That Matters Most (06:51)

Headcount Planning for Sales & Production (09:11)

When to Build Your Business Plan (10:19)

Additional Links & Resources:

🔥 Watch our **FREE** on-demand webinar and learn how to drive 20% net profit with systems and processes: https://www.builderprime.com/webinars/on-demand-webinar-drive-20-net-profit-with-systems-processes?utm_source=RedCircle&utm_medium=Audio&utm_campaign=23

⚡ Learn more about us: https://www.builderprime.com/ 

📱 Connect with us on social media:

• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/builderprime/
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/builderprime/ 
• Jonathan’s LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jonathanweinberg/ 
• John’s LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/john-kolbaska-a271a757/ 
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/builderprimecrm/ 

—

Build to Win is a podcast for contractors where we give you the tools to grow your home improvement business. Follow us wherever you listen to your podcasts!

What if the one thing holding your contracting business back was sitting right in front of you, but you just weren’t tracking it?

John Kolbaska reveals the huge impact of overhauling his call center, slashing speed to lead from 43 minutes to under 60 seconds.

The result was a 50% increase in appointment set rate and the company's best December ever.

You’ll also get a behind-the-scenes look at how separating new and veteran reps in training avoided confusion and burnout, and why his rehash strategy now closes 50% of lost sales.

This is the tactical episode you don’t want to miss. 🎧 Listen now.

Key Takeaways: 

Introduction (00:00)

Call center metrics and improvements (4:58)

Sales department strategies and training (25:26)

Rehash appointment setting and script (34:08)

Marketing and lead generation (49:52)

Sales revenue and growth projections (50:47)

Additional Links & Resources:

🔥 Watch our **FREE** on-demand webinar and learn how to drive 20% net profit with systems and processes: https://www.builderprime.com/webinars/on-demand-webinar-drive-20-net-profit-with-systems-processes?utm_source=RedCircle&utm_medium=Audio&utm_campaign=23

⚡ Learn more about us: https://www.builderprime.com/ 

📱 Connect with us on social media:

• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/builderprime/
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/builderprime/ 
• Jonathan’s LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jonathanweinberg/ 
• John’s LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/john-kolbaska-a271a757/ 
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/builderprimecrm/ 

—

Build to Win is a podcast for contractors where we give you the tools to grow your home improvement business. Follow us wherever you listen to your podcasts!

Josh Blickley launched BathWorks of Michigan just before the pandemic. Fast forward, and he's built on pace for $44.8 million in 2026. Part of the reason for his huge success is his forecasting, budgeting, and hiring strategies.

In this episode, he reveals exactly how he plans his year, starting in Q3 of the previous one.

You’ll learn how he builds alignment across departments, sets aggressive yet realistic goals, and plans staffing well in advance. Plus, his “money-is-no-object” marketing method might just change how you budget forever.

👉 Listen now to learn how to forecast smarter, scale faster, and stop letting slow months crush your growth.

Key Takeaways: 

Introduction (00:00)

Forecasting and budgeting for business growth (04:56)

Good rate of growth per year (18:41)

Seasonality and market trends in contracting business (26:34)

Key performance indicators (KPIs) and daily monitoring (34:54)

44.8M sales target for 2026 (42:43)

Additional Links & Resources:

🔥 Watch our **FREE** on-demand webinar and learn how to drive 20% net profit with systems and processes: https://www.builderprime.com/webinars/on-demand-webinar-drive-20-net-profit-with-systems-processes?utm_source=RedCircle&utm_medium=Audio&utm_campaign=23

⚡ Learn more about us: https://www.builderprime.com/ 

📱 Connect with us on social media:

• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/builderprime/
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/builderprime/ 
• Jonathan’s LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jonathanweinberg/ 
• John’s LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/john-kolbaska-a271a757/ 
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/builderprimecrm/ 

—

Build to Win is a podcast for contractors where we give you the tools to grow your home improvement business. Follow us wherever you listen to your podcasts!

Stop me if this sounds familiar. You run a home improvement business. You know your busy season, it’s spring. March, April, May. The weather is warming up, and people are thinking about home projects.

That’s what John thought, too. However, his assumption was based on gut feeling, as it has always been.

Then he looked at three years of his CRM data. He fed it into a simple spreadsheet tool from the Wealthy Contractor Success Society and let ChatGPT analyze it all.

The results blew up his entire business model. It turned out that his assumption about spring was completely off.

If you’re still budgeting like most contractors, you take your annual revenue goal and split it evenly across 12 months.

But your business doesn’t work like that. It has peaks and valleys. When you budget evenly, you end up overspending on marketing in slow months, and you're dramatically understaffed during your real busy season.

Tune in now to hear the full conversation about using AI, managing sales reps, and building a data-backed plan for the year ahead.

Key Takeaways: 

Introduction (00:00)

Business compass planning tool (01:16)

John shares his $1.9m to $5m growth story (03:12)

Using ChatGPT to identify sales seasonality (06:31)

Marketing spend adjusted based on slow months (17:52)

Demo count is marketing’s most important KPI (24:44)

Headcount planning for sales and production (33:52)

Business plan timing advice (42:26)

Additional Links & Resources:

🔥 Watch our **FREE** on-demand webinar and learn how to drive 20% net profit with systems and processes: https://www.builderprime.com/webinars/on-demand-webinar-drive-20-net-profit-with-systems-processes?utm_source=RedCircle&utm_medium=Audio&utm_campaign=22

⚡ Learn more about us: https://www.builderprime.com/ 

📱 Connect with us on social media:

• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/builderprime/
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/builderprime/ 
• Jonathan’s LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jonathanweinberg/ 
• John’s LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/john-kolbaska-a271a757/ 
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/builderprimecrm/ 

—

Build to Win is a podcast for contractors where we give you the tools to grow your home improvement business. Follow us wherever you listen to your podcasts!