WEBVTT NOTE This file was generated by Descript 00:00:31.329 --> 00:00:31.779 Bryant Gillespie: All right, guys. 00:00:31.779 --> 00:00:35.109 Welcome to the next edition of the better sign shop podcast. 00:00:35.109 --> 00:00:40.449 I've got Peter Kourounis with me and Mike Riley, still searching for his nickname. 00:00:41.229 --> 00:00:42.249 What's new with you guys. 00:00:42.619 --> 00:00:43.459 Peter Kourounis: I'm on vacation. 00:00:43.459 --> 00:00:45.139 I'm enjoying a couple of days off. 00:00:45.199 --> 00:00:48.634 It's been a wonderful, week so far. 00:00:48.634 --> 00:00:52.458 I got two more days before I gotta get back into the grind, but being 00:00:52.458 --> 00:00:55.548 able to take some time away from the sign shop and from all the other 00:00:55.553 --> 00:00:57.053 things I've done is a blessing. 00:00:57.053 --> 00:00:58.882 And I've been enjoying it very much. 00:00:59.542 --> 00:01:01.042 I even got a nice tan going. 00:01:01.592 --> 00:01:02.002 Michael Riley: It's nice. 00:01:02.002 --> 00:01:02.482 Where are you? 00:01:02.482 --> 00:01:02.642 Peter? 00:01:04.752 --> 00:01:06.882 Peter Kourounis: I am doing a staycation. 00:01:07.332 --> 00:01:08.952 I did not leave my house. 00:01:10.302 --> 00:01:11.562 I did not leave my house. 00:01:11.592 --> 00:01:12.115 I had some 00:01:12.115 --> 00:01:13.075 plans to travel. 00:01:13.315 --> 00:01:17.244 COVID derailed those plans a little bit, but, it's been nice. 00:01:17.244 --> 00:01:20.402 I got to take my son for his first haircut today. 00:01:20.402 --> 00:01:22.814 I got to take him out for pizza and ice cream. 00:01:22.814 --> 00:01:26.198 The other day we went and be doing some pool days and we 00:01:26.203 --> 00:01:27.208 went to the beach yesterday. 00:01:28.268 --> 00:01:29.080 So it's been nice. 00:01:29.099 --> 00:01:32.982 I'm not, I think I wanna do some stays a little bit more often, to be honest, it's 00:01:32.987 --> 00:01:36.792 been really nice and doesn't really cost nearly as much as going on a vacation, 00:01:37.302 --> 00:01:42.132 but eh, I've got to coup I got to meet a couple of the local business owners. 00:01:42.132 --> 00:01:43.722 I'm shopping for a car. 00:01:44.112 --> 00:01:44.382 Huh? 00:01:44.832 --> 00:01:45.672 It's been nice. 00:01:46.002 --> 00:01:46.512 Not having 00:01:46.512 --> 00:01:47.382 to worry about work. 00:01:47.506 --> 00:01:48.046 Bryant Gillespie: I can't. 00:01:48.406 --> 00:01:48.766 Yeah. 00:01:48.766 --> 00:01:51.226 I don't think the shopping for a car thing is you. 00:01:51.256 --> 00:01:52.576 I think you're lying there, man. 00:01:52.996 --> 00:01:53.476 You're not being 00:01:53.614 --> 00:01:54.214 Peter Kourounis: no. 00:01:54.214 --> 00:01:57.994 I just went on a major Twitter rent earlier this morning against 00:01:57.994 --> 00:02:00.664 Tesla, and I'm a huge Tesla fan. 00:02:00.754 --> 00:02:05.768 I have a Tesla model three, and man, they really got you because I'm 00:02:05.798 --> 00:02:07.454 not allowed to buy out the lease. 00:02:07.459 --> 00:02:10.274 I'm not allowed to make the money off the car. 00:02:10.274 --> 00:02:11.054 It's their car. 00:02:11.294 --> 00:02:14.444 I've just been like renting the car for three years from Tesla. 00:02:14.864 --> 00:02:17.114 And now not my lease is over. 00:02:17.504 --> 00:02:20.444 I'm like, yeah, what are you gonna do to keep me as a customer with Tesla? 00:02:20.444 --> 00:02:23.114 And they basically said, you 00:02:23.114 --> 00:02:26.894 gotta give us like five or $6,000 to get you into another lease. 00:02:26.894 --> 00:02:30.854 And, you'll pay all the fees and all the stuff to transfer you into this lease. 00:02:30.854 --> 00:02:33.164 And I'm like, all right, I'm going back to Jeep. 00:02:33.169 --> 00:02:33.854 See you later. 00:02:34.394 --> 00:02:38.027 So now I'm looking at that electric, Jeep Wrangler four by E. 00:02:40.157 --> 00:02:42.628 but yeah, so I don't know. 00:02:42.628 --> 00:02:44.539 I enjoy, shopping for cars. 00:02:44.914 --> 00:02:46.094 Said nobody ever 00:02:46.664 --> 00:02:48.081 Michael Riley: That's the worst experience ever. 00:02:48.823 --> 00:02:49.453 Peter Kourounis: What about you? 00:02:49.783 --> 00:02:51.703 I'm sure you guys aren't on vacation. 00:02:51.703 --> 00:02:52.713 So how's your week been? 00:02:55.063 --> 00:02:55.363 Bryant Gillespie: Go ahead. 00:02:55.438 --> 00:02:56.998 Michael Riley: my week's been a nightmare. 00:02:57.238 --> 00:02:58.088 Bryant Gillespie: Sign burrito. 00:02:58.138 --> 00:02:59.604 Michael Riley: a wild week. 00:02:59.604 --> 00:03:04.014 I, my, my wife and I, had tickets to a concert on the other side of the state. 00:03:04.464 --> 00:03:10.535 And, we totally didn't realize that it was on a Tuesday night until Tuesday morning. 00:03:10.728 --> 00:03:12.988 Peter Kourounis: Hey, was that nineties concert? 00:03:13.350 --> 00:03:13.530 Michael Riley: yeah. 00:03:13.535 --> 00:03:14.160 That's where we were. 00:03:14.250 --> 00:03:14.880 And it was awesome. 00:03:14.880 --> 00:03:15.120 It was, 00:03:15.166 --> 00:03:15.746 Peter Kourounis: how was that? 00:03:15.945 --> 00:03:16.575 Michael Riley: in garbage. 00:03:17.205 --> 00:03:17.865 I was amazing. 00:03:17.895 --> 00:03:18.615 It was so good. 00:03:18.675 --> 00:03:18.915 Yeah. 00:03:18.915 --> 00:03:19.968 It was an amazing concert. 00:03:19.973 --> 00:03:22.467 It was actually, I'm a concert junkie. 00:03:22.467 --> 00:03:23.697 Like I go to concerts all the time. 00:03:23.697 --> 00:03:25.777 I made up in the hundreds of concert in my life and in Alan S. 00:03:25.777 --> 00:03:26.907 Morris, this is the second time I've seen her. 00:03:26.907 --> 00:03:30.557 And it's she stands like where she rises above everybody else I've ever seen. 00:03:30.599 --> 00:03:31.379 it's an amazing performance. 00:03:31.384 --> 00:03:34.439 I'm only like a huge fan of her music, but just it's crazy. 00:03:34.439 --> 00:03:35.249 And this was the. 00:03:36.959 --> 00:03:40.949 The rowdiest crowd I've ever seen at a concert too, which is saying 00:03:40.949 --> 00:03:46.483 something like there were so many drunk women reliving their nineties 00:03:46.483 --> 00:03:47.987 youth I felt really intimidated. 00:03:48.015 --> 00:03:50.196 I was a little outta place, but, yeah, it was a lot of fun. 00:03:50.196 --> 00:03:52.926 It was great, but it was just, it was stressful because we were like, 00:03:52.926 --> 00:03:55.806 oh shit, we've middle of the day. 00:03:55.806 --> 00:03:57.696 Like we have to drive four or five hours to get through this 00:03:57.696 --> 00:03:58.806 concert on a Tuesday night. 00:03:58.806 --> 00:04:01.506 So we get a little poor planning on our part. 00:04:01.511 --> 00:04:03.156 So my week's been in 00:04:03.218 --> 00:04:04.838 Peter Kourounis: what would you say was Alen Moore? 00:04:04.838 --> 00:04:09.698 Set's like biggest nineties hit and, 00:04:09.784 --> 00:04:12.268 Michael Riley: Oh, you oughta know that's her biggest song by far. 00:04:12.335 --> 00:04:12.815 Peter Kourounis: You ought to 00:04:12.815 --> 00:04:13.145 know. 00:04:13.385 --> 00:04:15.995 I've always been a handed, my pocket kind of fan. 00:04:16.295 --> 00:04:17.225 I love that song 00:04:17.233 --> 00:04:17.323 Michael Riley: good 00:04:17.328 --> 00:04:17.653 soccer. 00:04:17.908 --> 00:04:19.828 Peter Kourounis: for whatever reason that's been my favorite. 00:04:19.828 --> 00:04:23.640 But, at your concert, which one was like where the crowd erupted, the one 00:04:23.640 --> 00:04:24.989 that they enjoyed the most was it. 00:04:24.994 --> 00:04:25.719 You ought to know. 00:04:26.049 --> 00:04:26.829 Michael Riley: You ought know. 00:04:26.829 --> 00:04:26.949 Yeah. 00:04:26.949 --> 00:04:27.699 Yeah, absolutely. 00:04:27.699 --> 00:04:30.546 And actually, Bryan, I forgot, I got a video of that for your wife. 00:04:30.546 --> 00:04:30.805 Cuz you 00:04:30.850 --> 00:04:31.570 Bryant Gillespie: Oh, yeah. 00:04:32.050 --> 00:04:33.070 Yeah, no, definitely. 00:04:33.070 --> 00:04:36.850 My wife would be the one, like she would be in the middle of that, like tearing 00:04:36.850 --> 00:04:38.530 off the brawl and throwing it on stage. 00:04:38.530 --> 00:04:38.710 Like 00:04:38.990 --> 00:04:39.280 Peter Kourounis: What 00:04:39.405 --> 00:04:39.490 Michael Riley: it 00:04:39.490 --> 00:04:40.201 was like, it was 00:04:40.621 --> 00:04:42.061 Bryant Gillespie: smore set fan man. 00:04:42.241 --> 00:04:42.631 Huge fan. 00:04:44.251 --> 00:04:46.747 Michael Riley: yeah, it was a really very energetic, wild show. 00:04:46.770 --> 00:04:47.264 it was a good time. 00:04:47.414 --> 00:04:50.922 I recommend to anybody listening, even if you can't stand Alanis, morrisette it's 00:04:50.922 --> 00:04:52.392 just, it's an incredible performance. 00:04:52.392 --> 00:04:53.112 It's something to see. 00:04:53.143 --> 00:04:56.995 it's worth going to I, that, I don't know how she can sing the way she does. 00:04:57.000 --> 00:05:01.525 Like it's she's got a voice that's wild and so good times. 00:05:02.875 --> 00:05:03.535 What about you, Brent? 00:05:03.565 --> 00:05:04.135 What are you up to. 00:05:04.574 --> 00:05:05.894 Bryant Gillespie: It's the same old same all, man. 00:05:06.314 --> 00:05:08.024 I'm just trying to keep up with these three girls. 00:05:08.294 --> 00:05:13.434 We had the babysitter out last week, so we had the girls at home all week. 00:05:13.794 --> 00:05:17.004 Absolutely drove my wife and I crazy. 00:05:17.214 --> 00:05:20.216 And, I still was just trying to catch up on work from that. 00:05:20.306 --> 00:05:23.066 So we've been heads down this week. 00:05:23.069 --> 00:05:24.775 other than that, not, not much has changed 00:05:26.010 --> 00:05:27.260 Michael Riley: You need a vacation 00:05:27.740 --> 00:05:30.110 Bryant Gillespie: the staycation, listening to Peter talk. 00:05:30.440 --> 00:05:31.820 I'm gonna go shop for cars. 00:05:33.290 --> 00:05:35.540 I've got some of my old friends from high school that do that. 00:05:35.545 --> 00:05:40.280 So that could be like a reunion session while they tried to reach in my pockets. 00:05:41.690 --> 00:05:42.170 Michael Riley: isn't it sad. 00:05:42.175 --> 00:05:45.127 This is what COVID has reduced us to like now, instead of looking forward 00:05:45.127 --> 00:05:47.707 to going to Hawaii or something, we're like, yes, I'm gonna stay home for 00:05:47.707 --> 00:05:49.207 a week and shop for a car like this. 00:05:49.239 --> 00:05:50.049 this is my vacation. 00:05:50.049 --> 00:05:50.623 that's where we're at. 00:05:50.628 --> 00:05:52.123 As a society what's happened to us. 00:05:52.933 --> 00:05:53.563 It's sad. 00:05:53.959 --> 00:05:54.409 Peter Kourounis: Hey, 00:05:54.619 --> 00:05:55.899 Bryant Gillespie: I think that's an age and P. 00:05:56.494 --> 00:05:58.234 Age thing, kids thing, man. 00:05:58.729 --> 00:06:01.879 Michael Riley: Maybe that's what it, maybe we've just grown 00:06:02.014 --> 00:06:05.344 Bryant Gillespie: when you have a, when you have three girls and the 00:06:05.344 --> 00:06:08.887 youngest is a total Demonn seed, she was supposed to be the chill 00:06:08.887 --> 00:06:12.907 one, but she is a total Demonn man. 00:06:12.907 --> 00:06:17.377 Like she gets in her feelings and then she will hit you, kick you 00:06:17.767 --> 00:06:19.357 and totally tear your house down. 00:06:19.717 --> 00:06:25.717 She's like the big, bad Wolf in a, like two foot high package. 00:06:25.822 --> 00:06:26.792 that's my youngest 00:06:27.340 --> 00:06:29.110 Michael Riley: So the idea of going on vacation is just 00:06:29.215 --> 00:06:33.385 Bryant Gillespie: or taking her even to a restaurant is an adventure. 00:06:36.415 --> 00:06:39.565 I, I took the kids to CVS to pick up some medication the other day. 00:06:40.165 --> 00:06:44.005 And everybody in CVS was just looking at me and laughing. 00:06:44.215 --> 00:06:48.295 And some of them were also like, what the fuck, man? 00:06:48.745 --> 00:06:50.905 Like, why is your kid running all the aisles? 00:06:51.571 --> 00:06:54.931 this was at seven 30, their bedtime is seven 30 or eight. 00:06:55.411 --> 00:07:00.451 So she ran the aisles in CVS pharmacy made me chase her. 00:07:01.321 --> 00:07:06.751 At one point, I actually asked the cashier, if that was the only exit I 00:07:06.751 --> 00:07:08.221 was like, Hey, is that the only exit? 00:07:08.701 --> 00:07:10.261 Because she was just all over the place. 00:07:13.951 --> 00:07:14.341 So 00:07:15.370 --> 00:07:15.760 Michael Riley: Yeah, 00:07:15.835 --> 00:07:16.885 Bryant Gillespie: that's what I'm dealing with. 00:07:19.450 --> 00:07:20.740 Michael Riley: that's unfortunate. 00:07:22.825 --> 00:07:23.575 Bryant Gillespie: never dull. 00:07:23.635 --> 00:07:24.295 We'll say that. 00:07:25.390 --> 00:07:26.320 Michael Riley: I'm glad I don't have kids. 00:07:26.320 --> 00:07:26.530 It's 00:07:27.055 --> 00:07:30.755 Bryant Gillespie: Yeah, no, it's nice when you can give them back. 00:07:31.025 --> 00:07:34.142 Now, I say all these things, but I love my kids for anybody 00:07:34.142 --> 00:07:36.672 listening, just so you know, 00:07:37.109 --> 00:07:37.529 Michael Riley: he does. 00:07:38.123 --> 00:07:38.813 I've witnessed it. 00:07:38.947 --> 00:07:39.637 he's a great father. 00:07:39.642 --> 00:07:40.087 Despite 00:07:40.756 --> 00:07:41.236 Bryant Gillespie: Don't call 00:07:41.416 --> 00:07:45.386 Michael Riley: drugstore chasing, just ignore what they have to say. 00:07:45.946 --> 00:07:46.216 Bryant Gillespie: Yeah. 00:07:46.936 --> 00:07:47.266 All right. 00:07:47.316 --> 00:07:49.533 let's get into the topic today, guys. 00:07:49.563 --> 00:07:53.655 What I feel like maybe Peter or my, you guys should bring the topic today. 00:07:53.655 --> 00:07:55.365 I'm the guy that's always doing the topic. 00:07:56.685 --> 00:07:57.726 You guys introduce this. 00:07:58.274 --> 00:07:58.514 Michael Riley: Yeah. 00:07:58.519 --> 00:08:01.742 so this week, instead of picking on one topic, we're gonna actually 00:08:01.802 --> 00:08:04.844 just answer a few questions that we've received from, our listeners. 00:08:05.024 --> 00:08:08.733 So we appreciate you guys sending questions in and, if 00:08:08.738 --> 00:08:12.243 anybody listening has any other questions hit us up, let us know. 00:08:12.303 --> 00:08:14.352 And, we're gonna try and do a few more of these kind of listener 00:08:14.352 --> 00:08:15.780 Q and a, podcast episodes. 00:08:15.785 --> 00:08:18.893 So instead of, like I said, picking on just one topic, we'll try and cover 00:08:18.893 --> 00:08:22.041 three or four and answer some questions. 00:08:22.431 --> 00:08:22.716 So 00:08:22.794 --> 00:08:24.064 Bryant Gillespie: Give him the email address. 00:08:26.704 --> 00:08:28.084 He doesn't know it's. 00:08:28.784 --> 00:08:30.204 if you have questions. 00:08:30.924 --> 00:08:34.913 You would like us to answer on the air or, I guess this is recorded. 00:08:34.963 --> 00:08:38.113 On the podcast, if you want us to answer your questions, hit us up. 00:08:38.113 --> 00:08:40.633 Hey, H E Y. 00:08:40.993 --> 00:08:42.193 I had to think about that for a minute. 00:08:42.463 --> 00:08:44.443 Hey, at better sign, shop.com. 00:08:45.133 --> 00:08:45.943 Super simple. 00:08:46.093 --> 00:08:47.023 Send us your questions. 00:08:47.023 --> 00:08:47.743 We'll answer them. 00:08:48.246 --> 00:08:49.116 Michael Riley: I'm gonna write that down. 00:08:49.116 --> 00:08:49.866 So I don't forget it, 00:08:50.953 --> 00:08:53.348 Peter Kourounis: it would be a really cool idea if we, if in the 00:08:54.488 --> 00:08:58.058 platform that we're building, if we can make like a Q like a submit your 00:08:58.058 --> 00:09:00.207 question for the podcast, little form. 00:09:01.428 --> 00:09:01.728 Bryant Gillespie: yeah. 00:09:02.163 --> 00:09:02.673 Peter Kourounis: I'm pretty neat. 00:09:03.048 --> 00:09:03.288 Michael Riley: Yeah, 00:09:03.318 --> 00:09:05.418 Bryant Gillespie: Little plug for the platform there as well. 00:09:06.401 --> 00:09:06.753 Peter Kourounis: Hey, 00:09:06.812 --> 00:09:07.275 Michael Riley: that'd be cool. 00:09:07.275 --> 00:09:07.635 Good idea. 00:09:08.168 --> 00:09:08.258 Bryant Gillespie: All 00:09:08.438 --> 00:09:08.603 Michael Riley: Peter, 00:09:08.678 --> 00:09:09.068 take it away. 00:09:09.073 --> 00:09:10.358 What's our first question. 00:09:11.295 --> 00:09:11.625 Peter Kourounis: All right. 00:09:12.645 --> 00:09:13.005 All right. 00:09:13.005 --> 00:09:14.865 So we got our first question here. 00:09:14.865 --> 00:09:15.915 I'm gonna read this out here. 00:09:17.055 --> 00:09:21.255 I would love to hear an episode that addresses minimum orders and how 00:09:21.255 --> 00:09:27.645 to handle the walk-ins requesting $50 for lettering and or sign jobs. 00:09:28.645 --> 00:09:34.305 Also how minimums might apply to large accounts that frequently request small 00:09:34.305 --> 00:09:41.655 orders of two to three small PVC signs in between larger orders, for example. 00:09:44.145 --> 00:09:45.495 there's a couple of questions there. 00:09:45.525 --> 00:09:49.984 It MI mixed in between one major question and that's about minimum orders. 00:09:49.984 --> 00:09:52.204 So how do we handle minimum 00:09:52.204 --> 00:09:56.494 orders for walk-in customers that are requesting $50 jobs? 00:09:56.570 --> 00:09:57.140 I have a lot. 00:09:57.140 --> 00:09:59.570 I have a lot, I could say about this, but I'll let you guys, 00:09:59.870 --> 00:10:01.970 I'll let you guys go first. 00:10:02.041 --> 00:10:03.653 Brian, why don't you, why don't you 00:10:04.560 --> 00:10:06.180 Bryant Gillespie: Let's go with mayor MC cheese. 00:10:07.050 --> 00:10:08.040 Just trying that on. 00:10:08.100 --> 00:10:12.030 Do you like that one said, but I couldn't get that costume though. 00:10:12.150 --> 00:10:12.390 Really? 00:10:13.076 --> 00:10:15.270 Michael Riley: one will pop up on the, it's almost Halloween. 00:10:15.270 --> 00:10:17.940 One of those Halloween stores that show up in a closed down retail store will 00:10:18.030 --> 00:10:19.590 definitely have a mayor MC cheese outfit. 00:10:19.590 --> 00:10:21.553 And when it does, I will be wearing 00:10:21.613 --> 00:10:23.983 Bryant Gillespie: I think he's the forgotten McDonald's character. 00:10:25.183 --> 00:10:25.963 Michael Riley: was the best too. 00:10:26.833 --> 00:10:27.343 Peter Kourounis: All right. 00:10:30.463 --> 00:10:30.853 Okay. 00:10:30.853 --> 00:10:32.953 So Mike, let's come back to you. 00:10:33.283 --> 00:10:37.033 Let's start with you here for those walk-in customers. 00:10:37.123 --> 00:10:40.633 For those shop owners that get a lot of walk-in customers that are 00:10:40.633 --> 00:10:45.883 requesting $50 sign jobs, lettering, jobs, boat, lettering, car lettering, 00:10:45.883 --> 00:10:49.303 whatever it is, do you handle that? 00:10:49.541 --> 00:10:51.191 let's just take it one step at a time. 00:10:51.273 --> 00:10:54.063 how do you go about addressing those customers right now? 00:10:54.063 --> 00:10:55.453 When it comes to minimum orders? 00:10:56.608 --> 00:10:58.528 Michael Riley: I think first and foremost, you need to decide what kind 00:10:58.528 --> 00:11:02.398 of customer you want to service and what type of work that you want to do, and 00:11:02.488 --> 00:11:04.378 then set your minimum order accordingly. 00:11:04.621 --> 00:11:09.686 So if you don't really want to do boat numbers and boat names, and 00:11:09.784 --> 00:11:13.354 those little sticker jobs for the random guy walking off the street, 00:11:13.414 --> 00:11:16.084 then set your minimum order is something that they just can't afford. 00:11:16.084 --> 00:11:17.801 So they're just gonna naturally go someplace else. 00:11:19.016 --> 00:11:21.817 I've talked about this before too, but I also like, to have some place 00:11:21.817 --> 00:11:23.527 that I can refer those people to. 00:11:23.527 --> 00:11:27.314 So I'm not just sending 'em out on the street, saying, Hey, I can't do this, 00:11:27.314 --> 00:11:29.654 but XYZ sign, shop down the street. 00:11:29.714 --> 00:11:33.134 I won't say the name can handle this little job for you. 00:11:33.374 --> 00:11:35.830 I think is, is a, is an important thing to have. 00:11:35.830 --> 00:11:38.122 if you're getting a lot of people walking in the door for those types 00:11:38.122 --> 00:11:40.283 of orders, then you just don't wanna do, 'em just raise your minimum order 00:11:40.283 --> 00:11:41.483 and say, we don't do the type of work. 00:11:41.483 --> 00:11:43.484 I I it's, there's nothing wrong with saying, I'm sorry, 00:11:43.520 --> 00:11:45.770 we don't work for individuals. 00:11:45.770 --> 00:11:50.708 We only work for businesses or we don't do race car and boat graphics or whatever. 00:11:51.308 --> 00:11:55.070 So I think it's, stepping back from the immediate question and just determining 00:11:55.310 --> 00:11:58.190 the market and that you wanna serve and the type of work that you wanna 00:11:58.190 --> 00:11:59.886 do, has to drive that decision. 00:11:59.890 --> 00:12:01.840 and like I said, then set your minimum order accordingly. 00:12:01.889 --> 00:12:04.264 it's, it is a slippery slope because you know the question. 00:12:04.654 --> 00:12:08.764 Clearly says, like how do you apply minimum orders to larger accounts? 00:12:09.244 --> 00:12:12.177 And that's tough because, say you're working for a commercial realtor 00:12:12.537 --> 00:12:16.497 and normally they're doing big four by eight site signs or bigger ones. 00:12:16.497 --> 00:12:18.537 And they're a thousand dollars plus tickets every time. 00:12:18.537 --> 00:12:20.804 But then every once in a while, they're gonna have a, Hey, we need to change 00:12:20.818 --> 00:12:22.363 a single digit on one of these signs. 00:12:22.363 --> 00:12:25.993 I just need to cover up DEC out to change a phone number on one of these signs that 00:12:27.043 --> 00:12:28.513 would always fall under your minimum. 00:12:28.513 --> 00:12:32.734 You can't really get away with saying to your biggest customer, sorry. 00:12:32.734 --> 00:12:37.231 I gotta charge you my $150 minimum for that job that should be, $15 or whatever. 00:12:37.711 --> 00:12:41.851 So I think you, you have to recognize where you have to make exceptions to that 00:12:41.851 --> 00:12:44.880 as well, and be willing to accommodate. 00:12:45.975 --> 00:12:50.264 Clients small requests, in pursuit of the bigger picture there, which is keeping 00:12:50.264 --> 00:12:53.804 them happy and keeping them buying those thousand dollars jobs from you as well. 00:12:53.848 --> 00:12:57.258 but it is a slippery slope and it's really easy to fall off track with that 00:12:57.286 --> 00:12:59.344 and let customers walk all over you too. 00:12:59.344 --> 00:13:02.584 So you, part of, it's just, you gotta have a spine and stand 00:13:02.584 --> 00:13:03.574 up with people and say, no, 00:13:03.655 --> 00:13:03.865 But you 00:13:03.865 --> 00:13:04.765 gotta know when to do that. 00:13:05.170 --> 00:13:08.541 Bryant Gillespie: I think this problem comes like the root of this is when 00:13:08.541 --> 00:13:11.601 you first start out, those are the type of jobs that you cut your teeth on. 00:13:11.689 --> 00:13:13.629 especially if you started your own shop. 00:13:14.139 --> 00:13:17.599 Like those jobs are like the average small, tiny vinyl job. 00:13:17.599 --> 00:13:18.469 You do a lot of those. 00:13:18.469 --> 00:13:22.399 And, when it's just you in a garage or it's small retail space, those are, 00:13:22.729 --> 00:13:25.399 those are still profitable, certainly. 00:13:25.988 --> 00:13:29.608 but as you grow, obviously those are not profitable and you have 00:13:29.608 --> 00:13:31.210 to figure out the way out of it. 00:13:31.330 --> 00:13:35.428 So I think you've given some good tactics there as far as, have somebody 00:13:35.433 --> 00:13:38.098 to refer those people to just actually. 00:13:39.028 --> 00:13:42.116 Have a spine and say, no, Hey, we're not gonna do this type of work. 00:13:42.116 --> 00:13:48.584 I'm going to say something, from our friend, Dylan Martin, the sales manager 00:13:48.584 --> 00:13:52.395 of security signs that we had on our, one of our recent AMAs within the 00:13:52.400 --> 00:13:56.077 Facebook group is qualify, qualify. 00:13:56.107 --> 00:13:59.057 so when that person comes in, you'll qualify them. 00:13:59.417 --> 00:14:04.435 They take them through the process, and a very quickly, if it's just an individual, 00:14:04.435 --> 00:14:06.085 you should be able to qualify them out. 00:14:06.148 --> 00:14:11.627 but if it is, let's say it's just, somebody who's the could be like a 00:14:11.627 --> 00:14:15.377 vice president of some corporation, but maybe he does want boat letters, 00:14:15.438 --> 00:14:18.990 have a conversation with that person, suss that out and figure out if that 00:14:18.990 --> 00:14:20.670 warrant's doing that particular job. 00:14:21.130 --> 00:14:26.800 I really like what you said about having a guideline instead of a hard and fast. 00:14:27.905 --> 00:14:30.903 you gotta have some flexibility there because certainly those 00:14:30.903 --> 00:14:36.554 large clients do come in or call in and need just like a tiny job. 00:14:36.794 --> 00:14:43.424 So you gotta have a firm grasp of your customer base and understand who your 00:14:43.424 --> 00:14:46.472 best clients are and make sure you educate your team on that as well. 00:14:46.682 --> 00:14:50.093 If I've got person at the front counter who doesn't know that, John's 00:14:50.093 --> 00:14:56.146 electrical service is, one of our best customers, then that's a problem 00:14:56.236 --> 00:14:59.498 because they're going to, treat them the same way that they would, any random 00:14:59.528 --> 00:15:00.878 person that walks in off the street. 00:15:00.904 --> 00:15:04.727 one of the other ways that I really like to handle walk-ins is just lock 00:15:04.727 --> 00:15:06.377 the doors and go appointment only. 00:15:06.423 --> 00:15:10.333 I've talked to a lot of shops that were forced to go appointment only because of 00:15:10.333 --> 00:15:12.883 COVID and it worked out better for them. 00:15:12.943 --> 00:15:14.173 So they just stuck with that. 00:15:14.443 --> 00:15:16.217 So I really like that approach as well. 00:15:18.407 --> 00:15:20.441 Peter, you've got a book on this one, 00:15:21.011 --> 00:15:21.461 Peter Kourounis: I do. 00:15:21.521 --> 00:15:21.821 Bryant Gillespie: out 00:15:22.571 --> 00:15:23.441 Peter Kourounis: Yeah, no, not, 00:15:23.564 --> 00:15:27.104 no, I don't have a book on this, but I have a lot to say about this 00:15:27.180 --> 00:15:28.620 and I'm just gonna cut right to it. 00:15:28.620 --> 00:15:30.078 I'm gonna give you the short and sweet. 00:15:30.083 --> 00:15:33.318 You shouldn't be selling anything in your shop nowadays for $50. 00:15:33.381 --> 00:15:35.871 if you are a shop that's selling this for $50. 00:15:35.907 --> 00:15:37.106 I question. 00:15:37.826 --> 00:15:44.366 The level of that you have in your, as a business owner, you wanna make a quick 50 00:15:44.366 --> 00:15:48.488 bucks, but I don't, I'm begged to question how much profit you're actually making off 00:15:48.488 --> 00:15:53.258 of that to interrupt your operations, to interrupt what you're doing to handle a 00:15:53.263 --> 00:15:58.910 walk-in customer, to comes into your shop, to buy something for $50 is, much time are 00:15:58.910 --> 00:16:01.740 you preparing to put that order together? 00:16:01.746 --> 00:16:02.196 the end? 00:16:02.286 --> 00:16:04.326 How much time are you putting together to do the estimate, to 00:16:04.326 --> 00:16:06.126 do the order to take the money? 00:16:07.026 --> 00:16:10.506 I understand that you don't wanna say no to a customer that walked in a door, 00:16:10.956 --> 00:16:13.506 but that's why shops across the country. 00:16:14.376 --> 00:16:18.372 Shops in our mastermind shops in our Facebook group, they've 00:16:18.372 --> 00:16:19.662 all raised their prices. 00:16:19.722 --> 00:16:22.242 So you have to, and they've raised their prices for a reason. 00:16:22.782 --> 00:16:26.352 Inflation gas is damn near still $5 a gallon. 00:16:26.359 --> 00:16:28.738 there's no way you're making money on $50 anymore. 00:16:28.738 --> 00:16:32.188 even if it's a quick throw black vinyl into your plotter, cut some 00:16:32.188 --> 00:16:33.958 letters out, weed them, mask them. 00:16:34.038 --> 00:16:37.918 I be, I bet you, you made like five bucks on that job, Yeah. 00:16:37.918 --> 00:16:38.518 I get it. 00:16:38.668 --> 00:16:42.268 The shop owner right now is like, Ooh, a square foot of black vinyl 00:16:42.268 --> 00:16:44.038 is like pennies per square foot. 00:16:44.043 --> 00:16:45.178 It costs me pennies. 00:16:45.808 --> 00:16:49.738 But on the surface you still have an overhead expenses. 00:16:49.738 --> 00:16:54.711 You have your shop rate, you have labor, insurance, all of these other things 00:16:54.716 --> 00:16:58.701 that are gonna go into each and every order that you have to take into account. 00:16:58.701 --> 00:17:02.781 So walk-in customers that want something for $50. 00:17:02.781 --> 00:17:04.068 They get shown the door. 00:17:04.068 --> 00:17:06.138 I think that's the quickest and easiest way. 00:17:06.138 --> 00:17:07.758 I could say that they get shown the door. 00:17:07.758 --> 00:17:12.258 They walk in, they walk out, I'll put a giant sign in my lobby that 00:17:12.258 --> 00:17:15.468 says 200, $200 minimum order. 00:17:15.468 --> 00:17:21.288 Now I have talked to some shop owners that don't believe in putting a 00:17:21.288 --> 00:17:26.718 minimum order that high, that they would normally sell a job for $50. 00:17:27.078 --> 00:17:31.908 But if it is $50 and let's just for arguments sake, say it's some D O 00:17:31.913 --> 00:17:37.038 T numbers for a truck, they would immediately double their price. 00:17:37.428 --> 00:17:39.130 So I normally charge 50. 00:17:39.250 --> 00:17:43.042 I would charge them a hundred and I've been okay with that strategy from a few 00:17:43.042 --> 00:17:44.842 different perspectives, but then I wonder. 00:17:46.372 --> 00:17:49.882 those shop owners that are saying a hundred dollars, isn't worth their time. 00:17:49.882 --> 00:17:52.042 I guess that depends on the size of your shop. 00:17:52.462 --> 00:17:55.798 If you have 30 people working under your guidance there, a hundred 00:17:55.798 --> 00:17:56.998 dollars, doesn't push the needle. 00:17:57.298 --> 00:18:00.838 If you're a two or three man shop and you can take that a hundred dollars and then 00:18:00.838 --> 00:18:05.265 go buy lunch for your team, alright, you can, and you have some time available 00:18:05.265 --> 00:18:07.035 then maybe your plotter is not running. 00:18:07.515 --> 00:18:11.745 I can see that working for different size shops, but you 00:18:11.745 --> 00:18:13.515 have to double your normal price. 00:18:13.515 --> 00:18:18.361 And, in my shop for D O T letters, I didn't sell it for less than $150. 00:18:18.371 --> 00:18:20.591 one color cut vinyl, 150 bucks. 00:18:20.591 --> 00:18:22.721 I would interrupt my operations for that. 00:18:23.921 --> 00:18:26.171 But now I've raised that price as well. 00:18:26.441 --> 00:18:30.221 So for smaller shops, you could certainly do that strategy as well. 00:18:30.221 --> 00:18:34.331 If you didn't want to put in a minimum order amount. 00:18:34.331 --> 00:18:35.741 Now, the second question 00:18:35.746 --> 00:18:41.247 here from the same person is how does this apply with larger accounts 00:18:41.247 --> 00:18:46.537 that frequently request to three orders, in, in a short frequency. 00:18:48.039 --> 00:18:49.239 I think this is the wrench. 00:18:49.316 --> 00:18:52.796 this is the wrench in that equation there, Mike. 00:18:52.796 --> 00:18:54.909 So let's kind of circle back to you first. 00:18:54.920 --> 00:18:59.328 we talked about minimums and I stand that, $50 is not something, 00:18:59.328 --> 00:19:00.828 but if you have a, an account. 00:19:01.293 --> 00:19:01.923 First of all. 00:19:01.923 --> 00:19:06.543 I question how my, in my opinion, how large of an account are they, if 00:19:06.543 --> 00:19:10.563 they are buying $50 items from you, I wouldn't consider that a large 00:19:10.563 --> 00:19:15.625 account, but I'd like to hear from you guys first, what you would do here. 00:19:15.655 --> 00:19:18.445 If they're ordering in more frequency, do, are you a little 00:19:18.445 --> 00:19:21.259 bit more lenient on those minimums? 00:19:21.259 --> 00:19:23.218 Michael Riley: before I answer that, I want to back up and also 00:19:23.263 --> 00:19:26.413 talk about the idea of a minimum, a quote, unquote minimum order, just 00:19:26.413 --> 00:19:27.893 from more like an abstract level. 00:19:27.946 --> 00:19:32.366 I don't really like using the term minimum order. 00:19:33.596 --> 00:19:36.146 And if a client says, Hey, I need this. 00:19:36.146 --> 00:19:39.083 And you say, okay, well that's under our minimum, so I've gotta charge you this 00:19:39.743 --> 00:19:46.038 $200 or whatever it is that immediately puts kind of a negative feeling in that 00:19:46.038 --> 00:19:50.259 customer's mind, oh, I'm not big enough for them, or they're gonna charge me 00:19:50.259 --> 00:19:51.729 a lot more than this really should be. 00:19:51.729 --> 00:19:54.088 Just because they feel like it's too big of a convenient, like 00:19:54.088 --> 00:19:56.987 there's some negative feelings that are gonna be attached to that 00:19:56.992 --> 00:19:58.308 from the customer's, standpoint. 00:19:58.758 --> 00:20:01.813 So I'm on the fence on how I feel about even saying, Hey, we have 00:20:01.813 --> 00:20:03.583 this minimum charge and it's this. 00:20:04.513 --> 00:20:07.303 And putting that out there and hanging up a sign that says our minimum order 00:20:07.303 --> 00:20:10.593 is X dollars and telling customers, Hey, you're under our minimum. 00:20:11.013 --> 00:20:12.903 It just makes them feel small and insignificant. 00:20:14.283 --> 00:20:20.748 And really if you really wanna get down to it, The, I, you don't need 00:20:20.748 --> 00:20:23.928 a minimum if you're pricing things correctly anyway, because no matter 00:20:23.928 --> 00:20:26.568 what the size of that job is, even if it's really small, if you're really 00:20:26.568 --> 00:20:28.998 pricing it the way you should be pricing it and doing your math and making 00:20:28.998 --> 00:20:30.078 sure you're covering your overhead. 00:20:30.078 --> 00:20:33.198 And like you said, Peter, the time to sit there and talk to the customer and design 00:20:33.198 --> 00:20:37.098 it and write up the invoice and collect the check and take the check to the bank. 00:20:37.098 --> 00:20:37.863 I there's time in that. 00:20:37.863 --> 00:20:40.842 And if you're doing estimating and pricing correctly, you're accounting for all that. 00:20:41.712 --> 00:20:45.550 And just by, by accounting for all that, by default, you're charging what 00:20:45.555 --> 00:20:47.080 your minimum should be for that job. 00:20:47.410 --> 00:20:50.950 Anyway, you just gotta think about it a little bit and do the math correctly. 00:20:51.520 --> 00:20:55.030 And I, so I think it, I think a lot of shops could benefit from taking 00:20:55.030 --> 00:20:59.380 that approach by just saying, instead of you're under a minimum ceremony 00:20:59.380 --> 00:21:00.700 charge 200 bucks, but just saying. 00:21:01.555 --> 00:21:06.055 This job costs this much period, and you don't really, there's not really a need to 00:21:06.655 --> 00:21:10.405 explain why it costs that much, or whether it's under minimum or anything like that. 00:21:10.405 --> 00:21:11.876 Just tell em, this is what it's gonna cost you. 00:21:11.948 --> 00:21:16.249 I think there's a little psychological warfare there with this that I think 00:21:16.249 --> 00:21:20.449 you can overcome by just charging what you gotta charge for it, regardless 00:21:20.449 --> 00:21:23.659 of what the job is and that which is gonna make your minimum fluctuate, 00:21:23.659 --> 00:21:24.559 depending on what the job is. 00:21:24.559 --> 00:21:27.303 If it's a, it's a vinyl decal or something like that, it's probably 00:21:27.303 --> 00:21:30.546 gonna be less of a minimum than a, a real estate sign or something. 00:21:30.546 --> 00:21:34.225 But I think you can go a long way towards making the customer 00:21:34.225 --> 00:21:35.515 feel better about using you. 00:21:37.255 --> 00:21:40.352 If you don't immediately step onto this negative, you're under 00:21:40.352 --> 00:21:43.960 our minimum because your job is so insignificant kind of stance. 00:21:44.658 --> 00:21:48.005 Bryant Gillespie: Mayor MCee with the, the killer answer there. 00:21:48.005 --> 00:21:49.115 I like that a lot, man. 00:21:49.541 --> 00:21:52.493 Michael Riley: It's not something that I did in my shop and, you know, having 00:21:52.498 --> 00:21:55.941 sold my shop and look back, I think like it's kind of shitty of me in a 00:21:55.941 --> 00:21:58.971 way to like, you know, tell customers like, nah, you're just not important. 00:21:58.971 --> 00:22:01.251 So I gotta charge you a arm and a leg to make time for you. 00:22:01.251 --> 00:22:02.450 that's kind of how it comes across. 00:22:02.819 --> 00:22:07.559 and I've really started thinking about that now that I've dealt with other 00:22:07.559 --> 00:22:08.939 businesses and companies a lot more. 00:22:08.996 --> 00:22:11.760 and I've been the customer being told that that doesn't really feel 00:22:11.760 --> 00:22:13.080 that good from a customer standpoint. 00:22:13.860 --> 00:22:17.136 But if the price was the same, if I went to a garage and I, needed some 00:22:17.136 --> 00:22:19.296 work done on my vehicle and they said, ah, you're under a minimum. 00:22:19.296 --> 00:22:22.366 So I gotta charge you this versus I've gotta charge you this. 00:22:22.806 --> 00:22:23.646 Or this is the price. 00:22:23.686 --> 00:22:25.546 I would've thought a lot better if they just said, this is what it's gonna cost 00:22:25.546 --> 00:22:27.016 you versus you're under our minimum. 00:22:27.016 --> 00:22:28.076 So I've gotta charge you this. 00:22:28.346 --> 00:22:30.568 Peter Kourounis: So let me push back on that just a minute. 00:22:30.598 --> 00:22:36.720 Cuz I am a shop that uses the term order, minimum order a lot, but 00:22:36.725 --> 00:22:43.170 it often precedent before the next statement, which is, is there anything 00:22:43.175 --> 00:22:47.320 else that you can get or that you would want to get to that minimum? 00:22:48.455 --> 00:22:51.365 we use it as a upselling opportunity, right? 00:22:51.424 --> 00:22:53.044 we are pricing correctly. 00:22:53.044 --> 00:22:57.334 Our formulas are pretty concrete, but we have a $200 minimum. 00:22:57.694 --> 00:23:00.874 So if there's, if that A-frame sign is not what they're, I'm 00:23:00.879 --> 00:23:01.981 sorry, let me use another one. 00:23:02.034 --> 00:23:07.479 if that real estate sign for $80 is not hitting that minimum, then I might 00:23:07.479 --> 00:23:12.219 use that for maybe let's get two or three and let's maybe get you some 00:23:12.224 --> 00:23:13.869 business cards or some other things. 00:23:13.869 --> 00:23:15.099 Do you want it installed? 00:23:15.189 --> 00:23:19.479 I'll use that as a way to get there, right? 00:23:19.479 --> 00:23:25.299 Maybe it actually end up with a price that's over $200 in most cases, because I 00:23:25.299 --> 00:23:27.669 use it as an opportunity to present value. 00:23:27.669 --> 00:23:31.185 So what do you, what would you say to the shops that are doing it that way in 00:23:31.190 --> 00:23:34.025 terms of the terminology of minimum order? 00:23:35.010 --> 00:23:38.490 Michael Riley: That's the way I approached it at my shop too, was Hey, 00:23:38.490 --> 00:23:42.060 I got charge you $200 for this, but for that $200, instead of giving you 00:23:42.060 --> 00:23:43.370 one sticker, I'm gonna give you 15. 00:23:43.441 --> 00:23:46.944 And that, that usually helped put the customer's mind at ease a little bit. 00:23:46.944 --> 00:23:50.794 at least I'm getting more than one for that money, but I don't know. 00:23:50.794 --> 00:23:53.644 I still feel a little bit differently about it now than I did back then. 00:23:53.709 --> 00:23:55.779 just being on the other side of the equation a little bit 00:23:55.779 --> 00:23:57.173 more, And it's a tough one. 00:23:57.186 --> 00:23:59.350 I don't really know if there's a good answer to that because a 00:23:59.350 --> 00:24:01.601 lot of it's gonna depend on the exact, the type of sign it is. 00:24:01.667 --> 00:24:05.293 it's gonna change a lot depending on what it is, but I guess I would ask, 00:24:05.293 --> 00:24:07.932 like, why is your two, your minimum $200? 00:24:07.937 --> 00:24:08.892 Like where is that? 00:24:08.938 --> 00:24:10.345 and I'm not questioning that's a bad idea. 00:24:10.396 --> 00:24:13.813 I'm just curious how you came up with the number $200 or what justifies it to you. 00:24:14.143 --> 00:24:19.455 And then secondly, let's say your $80 real estate sign example, right? 00:24:19.455 --> 00:24:24.384 if you, minimum is $200, but you can manufacture this product for $80, 00:24:26.109 --> 00:24:27.322 one of those is the real number. 00:24:27.351 --> 00:24:31.851 Peter Kourounis: I think the reason why your minimums are probably 00:24:31.851 --> 00:24:35.271 elevated or your minimum order has now been installed is because of 00:24:35.271 --> 00:24:36.668 what's going on in the industry. 00:24:36.720 --> 00:24:39.180 our suppliers there's supply chain issues. 00:24:39.180 --> 00:24:42.540 There are people asking more money for payroll. 00:24:42.545 --> 00:24:46.860 I've brought in a salesperson which elevated my shop rate per hour. 00:24:47.370 --> 00:24:54.540 So when you really look at my 75 $80 an hour shop rate, and then you 00:24:54.540 --> 00:24:59.580 look at the materials and then the profit margins that you wish to make 00:24:59.640 --> 00:25:01.800 in order to be in this business. 00:25:02.670 --> 00:25:04.740 You're in that $200 threshold. 00:25:04.740 --> 00:25:07.063 That's what's gonna push the needle for us in my shop. 00:25:07.543 --> 00:25:09.823 It may not be your shop for the listeners out there. 00:25:09.823 --> 00:25:14.683 Not advising you to take $200, but I have a six or seven person shop. 00:25:15.283 --> 00:25:18.837 And my overhead, my shop rate is a little about 80 bucks. 00:25:18.837 --> 00:25:21.907 Now it used to be 45 when I first started. 00:25:21.907 --> 00:25:26.438 I'm in that area of I'm in that area of, having to pay a lot more money for 00:25:26.438 --> 00:25:31.418 good labor, have to pay for materials that are elevated in by the suppliers. 00:25:31.988 --> 00:25:35.048 And I'm not in this to make 10 bucks on a job. 00:25:36.368 --> 00:25:37.268 I don't that 00:25:37.268 --> 00:25:38.058 doesn't push the needle. 00:25:38.750 --> 00:25:41.025 Michael Riley: so you're basically, you're in a roundabout way. 00:25:41.030 --> 00:25:42.855 You're saying there's an economy of scale there manufacturing. 00:25:42.855 --> 00:25:46.245 So it costs you a lot more to manufacture one of those real estate signs. 00:25:46.245 --> 00:25:48.880 And it does manufacture for five of 'em because you're, you're compounding 00:25:48.880 --> 00:25:51.349 the labor to make it's the same labor to make one is it doesn't make five. 00:25:51.351 --> 00:25:53.361 Which goes back to what I'm saying is if somebody comes in and says they 00:25:53.361 --> 00:25:58.138 want a one, single real estate sign is $80, really like the cost of that, or 00:25:58.143 --> 00:26:01.010 shouldn't that really be priced on a sliding scale based on the quantity and 00:26:01.070 --> 00:26:04.346 manufacturing efficiencies, included in that if you want one of these, 00:26:04.438 --> 00:26:08.038 things being equal, this really is going to CU it's going, I gotta charge you $200. 00:26:08.038 --> 00:26:08.788 Not cause that's a minimum. 00:26:08.793 --> 00:26:11.248 It's just what it takes me to manufacture it and I'll make my margin on it. 00:26:12.478 --> 00:26:15.718 Peter Kourounis: there was once a day as a science job owner, where if a 00:26:15.718 --> 00:26:21.658 real estate agent came in and said, I needed one estate sign for my, for sale 00:26:21.658 --> 00:26:24.178 sign to put in a lawn, it would be $80. 00:26:24.238 --> 00:26:28.558 There was once a day where that was the case, but a little bit of education, a 00:26:28.558 --> 00:26:31.987 little bit of learning what it takes to be a successful business in this market. 00:26:32.467 --> 00:26:36.667 If that real estate agent came in and said, listen, I'm a new agent. 00:26:36.997 --> 00:26:38.923 I want, I need to get some signs. 00:26:38.923 --> 00:26:39.403 I'd tell 'em. 00:26:39.419 --> 00:26:42.329 how many listings do you have or how many listings do you want? 00:26:43.244 --> 00:26:46.460 Now that I'm talking to them about their business, providing the value and saying, 00:26:46.460 --> 00:26:47.703 you're gonna need open house signs. 00:26:47.703 --> 00:26:51.243 You're gonna need, if you're gonna have at least three listings, you're gonna 00:26:51.243 --> 00:26:54.093 need at least three, four sale signs. 00:26:54.093 --> 00:26:57.153 You're gonna need some business cards, some listing brochures and flyers. 00:26:57.633 --> 00:27:00.835 So I'm now getting them over that minimum. 00:27:01.780 --> 00:27:02.950 Where, okay. 00:27:02.950 --> 00:27:08.134 Yeah, there is the quantity scale or the volume scale of how much those signs 00:27:08.134 --> 00:27:12.034 should be, because I know now we're talking a little bit, I'm not talking to 00:27:12.034 --> 00:27:15.754 a customer that wants to buy for $200, talking to a customer that wants to buy 00:27:15.759 --> 00:27:20.364 maybe even $2,000 worth of signage to get their business going again, maybe. 00:27:20.424 --> 00:27:21.064 And that goes 00:27:21.064 --> 00:27:25.384 back to the very first thing that you said is what type of customer do you want? 00:27:25.774 --> 00:27:28.054 And that's the type of customer I, I work with. 00:27:28.054 --> 00:27:31.954 I don't work with agents that come in and say, I need one open house sign 00:27:32.434 --> 00:27:39.484 and tell 'em it's $200 or it, or, and, or there's the door, because it's 00:27:39.484 --> 00:27:40.354 gotta be that way. 00:27:40.624 --> 00:27:44.774 Doesn't push the needle for me in my shop to do an $80 job. 00:27:45.329 --> 00:27:47.579 Michael Riley: So what we're, so essentially we're saying the same 00:27:47.584 --> 00:27:49.769 thing, we're just presenting it to the customer two different ways. 00:27:49.769 --> 00:27:53.699 You're just saying my minimum's 200 bucks and that sign is under that minimum. 00:27:53.699 --> 00:27:56.519 So you've gotta buy a few to justify the cost of that. 00:27:56.524 --> 00:27:59.249 And I'm saying, instead of saying it's under the minimum, I'm just 00:27:59.249 --> 00:28:06.119 saying, why not present it as, Hey one costs $200, two costs, a hundred 00:28:06.119 --> 00:28:07.349 dollars, a piece, three costs. 00:28:07.709 --> 00:28:08.579 $80 a piece. 00:28:08.584 --> 00:28:14.969 And so in that way, they're, you're empowering that customer to, make 00:28:14.969 --> 00:28:17.793 the decision, to spend more money versus like trying to backdoor 00:28:17.793 --> 00:28:18.813 them in to spending more money. 00:28:18.822 --> 00:28:20.812 and I'm not saying that's a bad, I'm not trying to knock you 00:28:20.812 --> 00:28:22.492 when I say that, Peter, I hope you don't take offense of that. 00:28:22.492 --> 00:28:26.962 I'm just, I'm saying that's the perception from the customer sometimes I think, 00:28:27.292 --> 00:28:29.916 and I've felt that when I've been told, Hey, that's under the minimum, 00:28:30.366 --> 00:28:35.128 but if I were given, the choice of spending $200 on one or $250 on three, 00:28:35.205 --> 00:28:39.375 and a price breakdown accordingly, I feel like, Hey, I made a good decision 00:28:39.457 --> 00:28:40.312 Peter Kourounis: I hear what you're saying. 00:28:40.312 --> 00:28:42.292 I think the approach is just how you phrase it. 00:28:42.321 --> 00:28:43.047 I think you've been 00:28:43.071 --> 00:28:43.560 Michael Riley: That's what I'm saying. 00:28:43.615 --> 00:28:46.340 Peter Kourounis: been, you haven't been a big fan of saying my minimum order is, 00:28:46.345 --> 00:28:53.513 but if you're phrasing this in a way where one is 200, Two is $100, whatever it is. 00:28:54.393 --> 00:28:57.863 And you're giving the customer the connotation of being a positive 00:28:57.863 --> 00:29:01.373 customer experience, still allowing them to make a decision then yes, 00:29:01.373 --> 00:29:05.753 that's that consultative approach that I'm very much in love with, but 00:29:06.203 --> 00:29:07.943 let's get back to that question here. 00:29:07.948 --> 00:29:13.213 What if it's a big client, how are you handling the customer 00:29:13.213 --> 00:29:16.725 from a per perspective of $50 items being proposed there? 00:29:17.908 --> 00:29:18.188 Michael Riley: no good 00:29:18.188 --> 00:29:18.828 answer for that. 00:29:19.578 --> 00:29:21.378 Bryant Gillespie: it's like Nike, baby, you just do 00:29:21.468 --> 00:29:22.168 Michael Riley: You just do it 00:29:22.428 --> 00:29:25.458 Bryant Gillespie: on you gotta qualify the account, obviously like a large 00:29:25.463 --> 00:29:31.978 account for shop a, maybe $25,000 a year, whereas, a large account for 00:29:32.338 --> 00:29:36.178 somebody else, maybe a hundred thousand dollars a year, $300,000 a year. 00:29:36.178 --> 00:29:38.908 So you obviously gotta qualify the account. 00:29:38.997 --> 00:29:41.967 and we don't have any hard numbers here in the question of what's a 00:29:41.967 --> 00:29:46.148 large account, but if it's a good account and they spend a lot of money 00:29:46.153 --> 00:29:50.948 with me, I'm gonna take care of them because that's that's business, baby. 00:29:51.668 --> 00:29:53.848 Michael Riley: You have to, you can't give those guys a reason to go 00:29:53.848 --> 00:29:56.938 someplace else for the cheap stuff, because that place is gonna try 00:29:56.938 --> 00:29:58.258 to get the rest of their work too. 00:29:58.498 --> 00:30:01.558 And if that place is willing to sell the cheap stuff, they're probably gonna 00:30:01.558 --> 00:30:02.878 undercut you in price everywhere else. 00:30:02.883 --> 00:30:05.230 So it's one of those situations where they've got you between a rock and a 00:30:05.230 --> 00:30:08.500 hard place, and you sorta, you gotta play ball with them a little bit, like 00:30:08.500 --> 00:30:14.624 you said, I it, you can't completely shoot yourself in the foot and, lose 00:30:14.624 --> 00:30:14.984 money, 00:30:15.084 --> 00:30:15.594 Bryant Gillespie: have to make. 00:30:15.594 --> 00:30:15.984 Yeah. 00:30:16.104 --> 00:30:16.254 Yeah. 00:30:16.254 --> 00:30:17.834 I still have to make money on the job 00:30:17.846 --> 00:30:17.982 Michael Riley: you've 00:30:17.982 --> 00:30:18.762 gotta treat them. 00:30:18.912 --> 00:30:21.282 You've gotta treat them fairly and yourself fairly, I think. 00:30:21.317 --> 00:30:25.627 and a lot of times that means not, letting them under your minimum or, 00:30:25.684 --> 00:30:29.379 I talked about this on a previous episode, two about the idea of. 00:30:29.408 --> 00:30:32.145 having a way to fast track jobs through your shop, whether it's setting up 00:30:32.145 --> 00:30:34.125 a assigned shop with an assigned shop, if you're larger and you've 00:30:34.130 --> 00:30:39.118 got a, a dedicated small production department with one person that's just 00:30:39.118 --> 00:30:42.106 there for rush jobs and, or running those small types of jobs through. 00:30:42.106 --> 00:30:46.261 I if you're bigger and you can justify doing that's a way to squeeze those 00:30:46.261 --> 00:30:49.951 jobs through for the good customers in a more efficient manner without 00:30:49.951 --> 00:30:51.571 completely losing money on the job. 00:30:51.571 --> 00:30:55.446 If you were to just, you don't have to insert that into your typical 00:30:55.446 --> 00:30:56.646 or your regular daily workflow. 00:30:57.096 --> 00:31:00.144 Not everybody can justify doing that, but if you can, it's a way to 00:31:00.594 --> 00:31:03.199 ease the pain on this and be able to service those clients better. 00:31:03.199 --> 00:31:03.518 but. 00:31:04.688 --> 00:31:07.988 But unfortunately the reality is if wanna keep those big customers happy and coming 00:31:07.988 --> 00:31:11.978 back to you, sometimes that means you've gotta break your own rules and essentially 00:31:11.978 --> 00:31:13.388 do them some favors here and there. 00:31:13.400 --> 00:31:15.968 and a smart shop owner is gonna figure out, what their needs are gonna be, and 00:31:15.968 --> 00:31:19.418 try to predict that as much as possible, and maybe have these things ready to 00:31:19.418 --> 00:31:22.389 go on the shelf, or maybe you work out a way if they're just buying, the same 00:31:22.389 --> 00:31:25.899 things over and over again, but they just need 'em on a as needed basis. 00:31:25.899 --> 00:31:28.202 Maybe maybe you inventory them for them and just pull 'em off a shelf. 00:31:28.229 --> 00:31:31.216 and that way you can take advantage of that, quantity, 00:31:32.356 --> 00:31:33.916 volume, manufacturing, efficiency. 00:31:34.028 --> 00:31:34.388 Bryant Gillespie: I like that. 00:31:34.388 --> 00:31:37.640 It goes back to Peter's consultative approach, Hey, why are they buying 00:31:37.640 --> 00:31:39.820 these two to three small PVC signs? 00:31:39.840 --> 00:31:42.061 is it like, are they doing that regularly? 00:31:42.061 --> 00:31:47.041 Or, yeah, maybe you could, like you said, sell them more warehouse 'em for 00:31:47.041 --> 00:31:49.081 them, provide some value somewhere else. 00:31:49.081 --> 00:31:50.761 So like they come in they're on the 00:31:50.941 --> 00:31:52.931 Michael Riley: Or even if it's a different phone number every time, 00:31:52.959 --> 00:31:56.425 maybe it's just a, you have the blanks precut and PREPA for them ready to go. 00:31:56.425 --> 00:31:56.515 And 00:31:56.590 --> 00:31:58.147 Peter Kourounis: that's a good, that's a good strategy. 00:31:58.147 --> 00:32:01.245 If this is something that they're ordering a lot of, you might wanna prepare some 00:32:01.245 --> 00:32:03.495 inventory to make it easier to produce. 00:32:03.495 --> 00:32:04.185 That's interesting. 00:32:04.485 --> 00:32:06.945 I have a small take on this, just a small take. 00:32:07.074 --> 00:32:08.244 I agree with everything. 00:32:08.244 --> 00:32:09.924 Brian said, you just gotta go ahead and do it. 00:32:09.924 --> 00:32:11.570 you signed up that account. 00:32:12.335 --> 00:32:16.613 There in my eyes, there is a difference between a customer and an account. 00:32:16.673 --> 00:32:20.093 I don't know how you guys feel about this, but in my shop, whenever I've 00:32:20.363 --> 00:32:24.683 trained some sign shop owners, they've always talked about getting the customer 00:32:24.863 --> 00:32:27.053 and nurturing them to become an account. 00:32:27.413 --> 00:32:32.093 The sign shop owners that make 10 to 12, 15 million out there, work 00:32:32.093 --> 00:32:36.653 their accounts and all, and get 80% of their business from their current 00:32:36.653 --> 00:32:38.063 accounts that they are working with. 00:32:38.393 --> 00:32:43.537 So nurturing people from an customer to an account is, is part of that strategy. 00:32:43.542 --> 00:32:47.317 Now, what is the difference in, what are the benefits of either when 00:32:47.317 --> 00:32:52.267 somebody becomes an account, maybe your it's your shop policy to install no 00:32:52.267 --> 00:32:54.847 minimums because they are in account. 00:32:54.877 --> 00:32:59.677 This is a value add to become an account with your customer or 00:32:59.677 --> 00:33:01.554 with your, with your business. 00:33:01.563 --> 00:33:02.516 if you're treating your. 00:33:02.590 --> 00:33:08.140 if this was phrased as a, how do I handle those everyday large customers? 00:33:08.560 --> 00:33:11.045 I would say, first you have to turn those customers into 00:33:11.050 --> 00:33:13.325 accounts and then nurture them. 00:33:13.325 --> 00:33:17.945 But if you are handling, if you're, there are no minimums with accounts, 00:33:18.035 --> 00:33:21.575 whatever they want is what you're going to give them because they are an account. 00:33:21.905 --> 00:33:26.225 Now, some shirt, some shops will still have their order minimums, and those 00:33:26.225 --> 00:33:28.175 accounts will know those minimums. 00:33:28.475 --> 00:33:32.645 But for tho for us everyday shops that are small, medium size. 00:33:32.945 --> 00:33:35.705 If you wanna take a customer and turn them into an account where they're 00:33:35.705 --> 00:33:40.324 gonna order from you all the time, and you're gonna enforce, volume discounts 00:33:40.324 --> 00:33:45.493 and maybe, some eCommerce way of buying products from you for ease of customer 00:33:45.493 --> 00:33:47.803 experience, take the minimums out. 00:33:48.043 --> 00:33:48.883 That's my advice. 00:33:48.883 --> 00:33:52.183 Take the minimums out because that's a value add to become an 00:33:52.183 --> 00:33:53.743 account, working with your shop. 00:33:53.811 --> 00:33:56.085 Bryant Gillespie: I'm gonna go on record here and say that I 00:33:56.085 --> 00:33:57.405 don't like the term large account. 00:33:57.405 --> 00:34:03.765 I like good account or great account instead of large, because to me, and 00:34:03.770 --> 00:34:10.089 especially at this stage of my career, I wanna work with people that I trust. 00:34:10.089 --> 00:34:11.589 I like doing business with. 00:34:11.682 --> 00:34:16.120 so I would qualify that as a good account, if it's a good account, that 00:34:16.120 --> 00:34:18.100 means there's mutual trust and respect. 00:34:18.580 --> 00:34:21.850 And these guys aren't gonna be taking advantage of you all the time. 00:34:21.902 --> 00:34:24.489 if they are, that could be a bad account. 00:34:24.502 --> 00:34:30.571 if they're constantly hoing me for Hey, let's say they spend $25,000 a year with 00:34:30.571 --> 00:34:34.311 me, but every week I've got rush jobs. 00:34:35.521 --> 00:34:39.391 And there are these tiny little PVC signs that we're talking about. 00:34:39.901 --> 00:34:42.474 To me, that's a, not a great account, because there's not 00:34:42.474 --> 00:34:44.194 that mutual respect there. 00:34:44.223 --> 00:34:50.913 I wanna work with people that are good accounts that like, Hey, shit happens. 00:34:50.936 --> 00:34:54.515 like the customers are gonna no different than in a, in our shop. 00:34:54.995 --> 00:34:57.545 The customers are gonna have some shit come up and they 00:34:57.545 --> 00:34:58.535 need somebody to help 'em out. 00:34:58.535 --> 00:34:59.435 And that's why we're here. 00:34:59.765 --> 00:35:03.755 So if it's a good relationship, there's naturally some give and take there. 00:35:04.218 --> 00:35:04.788 Peter Kourounis: Good point. 00:35:04.788 --> 00:35:05.388 Good point. 00:35:05.988 --> 00:35:06.468 Good point. 00:35:06.468 --> 00:35:07.158 Very good point. 00:35:07.158 --> 00:35:08.058 I like that a lot. 00:35:08.778 --> 00:35:11.358 All right, let's go to our second question here. 00:35:11.408 --> 00:35:14.068 that's a great, that was a great first topic or good question. 00:35:14.068 --> 00:35:15.058 I enjoyed that one. 00:35:15.136 --> 00:35:16.516 I hope our listeners did here too. 00:35:16.936 --> 00:35:22.786 How much should you be paying yourself as the owner of a sign shop? 00:35:24.406 --> 00:35:31.931 Bam, right in your face hits you with the most frequently asked question that 00:35:31.936 --> 00:35:33.851 I get with all my sign shop clients. 00:35:34.001 --> 00:35:35.471 How much should I be buying myself? 00:35:35.476 --> 00:35:37.211 If I'm a first time sign shop owner. 00:35:37.211 --> 00:35:40.901 If I'm a, if I've been in this business for five years, am I paying myself enough? 00:35:40.961 --> 00:35:42.311 I love this question. 00:35:42.401 --> 00:35:43.121 I think. 00:35:44.546 --> 00:35:47.276 on the mind of any sign shop owner. 00:35:48.236 --> 00:35:48.566 I see. 00:35:48.566 --> 00:35:49.586 Brian's raising his hand. 00:35:49.596 --> 00:35:51.838 Brian, what would you like to say here first? 00:35:52.146 --> 00:35:54.336 Bryant Gillespie: $1 million, 00:35:56.661 --> 00:35:58.791 Peter Kourounis: you should be paying yourself what Bryan. 00:36:00.876 --> 00:36:02.376 Bryant Gillespie: $1 million. 00:36:04.881 --> 00:36:06.923 Peter Kourounis: Yeah, I don't know about that, but, maybe if 00:36:06.923 --> 00:36:10.514 you had like a larger operation, you could be doing that, but no. 00:36:10.664 --> 00:36:12.526 How do, how do we tackle this here, Mike? 00:36:12.569 --> 00:36:17.616 how do we go about factoring in how much somebody should be paying themselves? 00:36:17.622 --> 00:36:19.948 where do we even start with that question? 00:36:19.963 --> 00:36:22.843 Michael Riley: it's, that is the million dollar question. 00:36:22.931 --> 00:36:27.048 the advice that I'm, I have been given time and time again, is to pay yourself 00:36:27.048 --> 00:36:30.258 a reasonable, small salary, whatever that may be something that's in line 00:36:30.258 --> 00:36:34.309 with, upper management at your business, whatever that looks like to your business, 00:36:34.819 --> 00:36:36.764 and then, take owner draws periodically. 00:36:36.773 --> 00:36:38.820 but don't think you should go into it trying to pay yourself 00:36:38.820 --> 00:36:41.741 some humongous and, exorbitant paycheck cuz they're, you're just. 00:36:43.141 --> 00:36:43.981 too much in taxes. 00:36:44.034 --> 00:36:47.174 so yeah, small base salary plus draws as needed outta the profit. 00:36:47.174 --> 00:36:50.185 I obviously a lot of that's gonna depend on what, how much money your business 00:36:50.185 --> 00:36:51.765 makes and how healthy it is financially. 00:36:52.275 --> 00:36:56.710 And that's only, only, you know that, but, it should be at the end 00:36:56.710 --> 00:36:59.474 of the day or at the end of the year, it should be more than you would, 00:36:59.522 --> 00:37:01.232 make working for somebody else. 00:37:01.292 --> 00:37:01.832 That's for sure. 00:37:01.858 --> 00:37:03.826 so I'll say that, there's a lot of perks owning a business 00:37:03.831 --> 00:37:06.845 that, that become, de facto pay. 00:37:06.920 --> 00:37:11.886 I used to Bartter and trade everything that I could, and that's a great way to 00:37:11.886 --> 00:37:15.051 save tax money and still get a lot of stuff that you'd otherwise pay cash for. 00:37:15.081 --> 00:37:16.291 And that becomes income as well. 00:37:16.291 --> 00:37:18.165 but I don't know, beyond that. 00:37:19.179 --> 00:37:20.359 Peter Kourounis: All right, Brian, I'll come 00:37:20.359 --> 00:37:20.679 to you. 00:37:20.752 --> 00:37:22.822 Bryant Gillespie: first and foremost, it definitely depends on 00:37:22.827 --> 00:37:24.142 the stage that you're at, right? 00:37:24.142 --> 00:37:27.742 If you're a one man operation, you're doing a hundred thousand dollars in 00:37:27.747 --> 00:37:32.482 sales, that's totally different than if you've got $2 million in revenue and 00:37:32.482 --> 00:37:34.252 you've got 20 people working for you. 00:37:34.282 --> 00:37:40.492 So it is very difficult for us to say, Hey, the number is 50,000 or 75,000 as a 00:37:40.497 --> 00:37:44.584 salary or a hundred thousand or 200,000, it's not gonna be possible for us to 00:37:44.644 --> 00:37:46.437 throw out a number that's gonna work here. 00:37:46.466 --> 00:37:49.706 but I'm in favor of what Mike says that you gotta pay 00:37:49.706 --> 00:37:51.318 yourself a reasonable salary. 00:37:52.308 --> 00:37:56.584 And all too often, I talk to owners and they forget this, that and especially 00:37:56.584 --> 00:38:00.389 if you're not just an owner, If you're involved in the day to day operations, 00:38:00.418 --> 00:38:04.162 you've gotta pay pay yourself, a salary there, but as an owner, you should 00:38:04.167 --> 00:38:06.082 be able to make profit on that as 00:38:06.122 --> 00:38:07.732 Peter Kourounis: that's the answer I was looking for. 00:38:07.732 --> 00:38:08.272 Yes. 00:38:08.392 --> 00:38:14.302 I, 100% agree with that while we can't tell you how much you should be paying, 00:38:15.142 --> 00:38:17.152 you have to factor in the first question. 00:38:17.182 --> 00:38:20.872 Are you a key employee for your operation? 00:38:20.902 --> 00:38:25.072 If you are, if you do all the design work for your business, because 00:38:25.072 --> 00:38:29.512 you might be a graphic designer, if you do all the installs for your 00:38:29.517 --> 00:38:33.562 wraps, because you were certified as your wrap shops, wrap installer. 00:38:34.327 --> 00:38:39.787 If you do all the installs for your sign shop, because you enjoy being in 00:38:39.787 --> 00:38:45.127 the bucket and installing those big exterior signs, you have to consider 00:38:45.127 --> 00:38:48.787 yourself a paid employee for those tasks. 00:38:49.022 --> 00:38:53.072 you have to, you can't do that work for free and just live off 00:38:53.072 --> 00:38:54.272 the profits of your business. 00:38:54.272 --> 00:38:59.612 You have to pay yourself a salary for the, what that role is that could be, you can 00:38:59.612 --> 00:39:04.142 reduce your salary if you'd like to be, to make a little bit more on the profit side, 00:39:04.712 --> 00:39:06.542 but you have to be, it has to be fair. 00:39:06.581 --> 00:39:11.681 and just as the words that I would use in terms of that, now, if you 00:39:11.681 --> 00:39:16.811 are an owner and that's all you do is own the business and you layered in a 00:39:16.811 --> 00:39:19.841 general manager to run the operations. 00:39:20.171 --> 00:39:27.146 That's a different conversation because as an owner, You can make just the profits, 00:39:27.146 --> 00:39:32.486 the returns on the business each year and consider the owner discretionary, 00:39:32.486 --> 00:39:37.886 the owner, discretionary expenses of the benefits of being a business owner. 00:39:37.946 --> 00:39:41.114 And I think Mike was alluding to some of that with the bartering and 00:39:41.119 --> 00:39:45.224 things of that nature, but you can expense almost anything you want for 00:39:45.664 --> 00:39:47.744 personal expenses through the business. 00:39:47.769 --> 00:39:49.719 you, your gas and being one of them. 00:39:50.169 --> 00:39:53.703 You'll if your car payment, if you use your car for your business, 00:39:53.703 --> 00:39:55.143 you can expense that as well. 00:39:55.593 --> 00:39:59.733 All of those pieces are the owner benefits to. 00:40:01.278 --> 00:40:02.118 To your business. 00:40:02.177 --> 00:40:05.443 And I think that's something to be going into this as well, is that you 00:40:05.443 --> 00:40:09.223 could take into all the benefits of business ownership when accounting for 00:40:09.228 --> 00:40:12.163 what that salary should be coming in. 00:40:12.163 --> 00:40:16.138 If you're age, if you're a passive owner, semi passive like myself, 00:40:16.165 --> 00:40:18.261 I don't take a salary, in my shop. 00:40:18.261 --> 00:40:23.623 I don't because I live, I'm happy just making the return on the investment, the 00:40:23.623 --> 00:40:28.180 return to net profits and distributing that between me and my business partner. 00:40:29.020 --> 00:40:32.740 I don't find it to be anything more because I'm not a key employee. 00:40:32.950 --> 00:40:34.780 I'm not sitting in the shop every day. 00:40:34.960 --> 00:40:38.350 I'm not in the shop doing installs or design work every day, putting 00:40:38.350 --> 00:40:41.050 in 50, 40 hours a week, any longer. 00:40:41.320 --> 00:40:43.210 That was what I was doing before. 00:40:43.360 --> 00:40:46.630 So if you're like me, if you're a sign shop owner like myself, listening 00:40:46.630 --> 00:40:49.870 to this, that might be your answer. 00:40:49.870 --> 00:40:53.440 But if you are a qualified employee, Doing anything in the 00:40:53.440 --> 00:40:55.060 shop that makes your shop run. 00:40:55.480 --> 00:40:59.680 You have to consider yourself an employee as well and pay yourself a 00:40:59.680 --> 00:41:03.293 fair and just, wage for that role. 00:41:04.345 --> 00:41:04.585 Bryant Gillespie: Yeah. 00:41:05.035 --> 00:41:09.445 O otherwise, when you go to sell or exit the business, you 00:41:09.445 --> 00:41:10.645 just shoot yourself in the foot. 00:41:10.705 --> 00:41:14.934 Because if you try to sell to somebody who's gonna be a passive owner or, or 00:41:14.934 --> 00:41:18.317 a semi passive owner, as you mentioned, they've gotta find somebody to replace 00:41:18.317 --> 00:41:21.587 you, presumably, unless you're gonna continue to work in the business. 00:41:21.621 --> 00:41:21.911 Peter Kourounis: Yeah. 00:41:21.911 --> 00:41:22.584 And think about that. 00:41:22.584 --> 00:41:26.904 How many shop owners do we talk to every week that are in very 00:41:26.904 --> 00:41:28.524 infused in their operation? 00:41:28.524 --> 00:41:31.314 If you took them out, their business doesn't exist. 00:41:31.914 --> 00:41:36.204 So you have to be paying yourself because if you ever wanted to talk about an exit 00:41:36.209 --> 00:41:40.854 strategy, selling your business or selling it to your partner or whatever the case 00:41:40.854 --> 00:41:45.219 is, When you look at your profit and loss, if there's a zero next to your labor. 00:41:45.231 --> 00:41:47.511 I, one of my first questions is how much are you paying? 00:41:47.541 --> 00:41:48.321 How much are you getting? 00:41:48.891 --> 00:41:53.267 And if that number is not reflected well, then your business numbers 00:41:53.267 --> 00:41:56.387 are a little skewed and that might make it a little bit more of a 00:41:56.387 --> 00:41:58.217 challenge to, to exit your business. 00:41:58.217 --> 00:42:00.857 So you definitely want to include what you're paying 00:42:00.857 --> 00:42:02.657 yourself on your books as well. 00:42:03.137 --> 00:42:05.957 That's just a little helpful tip, little factoid there as 00:42:05.957 --> 00:42:07.257 part of that second question. 00:42:07.507 --> 00:42:10.997 Bryant Gillespie: I'm gonna give the, I'm gonna give the end all be all on this one. 00:42:11.387 --> 00:42:11.567 Peter Kourounis: ahead. 00:42:12.068 --> 00:42:17.978 Bryant Gillespie: get an expert accountant and potentially a financial advisor and 00:42:17.978 --> 00:42:21.018 work with them to go over your numbers and 00:42:21.093 --> 00:42:21.333 Michael Riley: Yeah. 00:42:21.333 --> 00:42:23.853 I a hundred percent agree with that. 00:42:24.363 --> 00:42:26.613 Do not try to figure this out for yourself. 00:42:26.893 --> 00:42:30.622 if you own a business act like it hire a financial planner. 00:42:30.705 --> 00:42:32.074 you just, you need to do that. 00:42:32.104 --> 00:42:39.514 You, any business owner, who's more than minimum wage working in their business. 00:42:39.604 --> 00:42:43.324 They've got assets that they need to protect and take care of. 00:42:43.324 --> 00:42:46.586 And they've got tax burdens that they need to minimize and 00:42:46.591 --> 00:42:47.546 you can't do that on your own. 00:42:47.551 --> 00:42:49.346 I don't care how smart you think you are. 00:42:49.586 --> 00:42:53.396 You're not a, you're not a financial expert signed guys. 00:42:53.846 --> 00:42:58.729 So don't try to be one, hire a financial planner, hire, a good CPA 00:42:59.179 --> 00:43:02.599 and pay them well to do what they do, cuz they're gonna make you money. 00:43:03.439 --> 00:43:04.579 And they're gonna make sure you don't get audited. 00:43:04.693 --> 00:43:07.573 Bryant Gillespie: we're gonna get flamed on the Facebook groups now, because you 00:43:07.573 --> 00:43:09.583 said you can't be a financial expert and 00:43:09.718 --> 00:43:09.958 Michael Riley: yeah. 00:43:09.958 --> 00:43:13.498 I'm I'm sure we'll get somebody who disagrees with, but. 00:43:16.513 --> 00:43:16.633 Good. 00:43:16.638 --> 00:43:16.903 Good luck. 00:43:17.503 --> 00:43:17.683 Bryant Gillespie: Okay. 00:43:18.133 --> 00:43:18.463 All right. 00:43:18.463 --> 00:43:20.628 I'm gonna do the intro on this next question. 00:43:20.628 --> 00:43:25.086 This is from one of the Facebook groups, the sign shop 00:43:25.091 --> 00:43:26.946 talk, or sign industry groups. 00:43:27.906 --> 00:43:31.056 How can I get new leads for my sign company? 00:43:31.806 --> 00:43:33.308 I feel like this is a huge one. 00:43:33.308 --> 00:43:35.498 We could probably do a whole episode on this one. 00:43:35.550 --> 00:43:38.720 the second question is what has worked well for you all. 00:43:39.340 --> 00:43:43.150 so this is one of those ones that just man, people throw this out there 00:43:43.150 --> 00:43:48.280 and you see like people just blasting the shotgun approach on this one. 00:43:48.580 --> 00:43:50.950 So I'm curious to hear your guys' take 00:43:50.950 --> 00:43:53.200 Peter Kourounis: Hey, man, I gotta tell you, these are these three questions. 00:43:53.200 --> 00:43:54.550 These are amazing questions. 00:43:54.550 --> 00:43:58.640 I think that they are very heavily talked about and 00:43:58.640 --> 00:44:00.920 discussed topics in this industry. 00:44:00.920 --> 00:44:04.622 So we recently did an episode about marketing and we talked a 00:44:04.622 --> 00:44:07.712 little bit about how do you get your leads and things like that. 00:44:07.742 --> 00:44:10.442 So we definitely encourage you to watch that episode. 00:44:10.495 --> 00:44:14.335 on our marketing efforts, but what's worked well for me being that I'm a sign 00:44:14.335 --> 00:44:17.777 shop owner and these other guys are not, one of those really interesting things is 00:44:17.777 --> 00:44:24.977 that I really enjoy creating a strategy around the product that I want to sell. 00:44:25.054 --> 00:44:30.172 so that includes like landing pages, press releases, articles, testimonials 00:44:30.172 --> 00:44:34.522 from customers where we'll talk, like if I wanted to do something on, 00:44:35.272 --> 00:44:36.572 I don't know, let's just call it. 00:44:36.640 --> 00:44:37.358 let's see. 00:44:37.358 --> 00:44:38.175 let me think of one. 00:44:38.175 --> 00:44:39.015 I've done recently. 00:44:39.195 --> 00:44:39.995 Sign service. 00:44:40.635 --> 00:44:40.935 Okay. 00:44:40.935 --> 00:44:41.755 Sign service. 00:44:41.765 --> 00:44:43.655 you're fixing broken signs. 00:44:43.655 --> 00:44:44.045 Okay. 00:44:44.585 --> 00:44:47.555 That is a profitable service for my business. 00:44:47.560 --> 00:44:49.175 I got a couple of bucket trucks. 00:44:49.175 --> 00:44:51.275 I got a couple of tech missions. 00:44:51.455 --> 00:44:56.615 I need to fix the signs that are looking decrepit in my local market. 00:44:57.065 --> 00:44:57.725 You like that word? 00:44:57.725 --> 00:44:58.295 Decrepit? 00:44:58.397 --> 00:44:59.237 I like that word. 00:44:59.280 --> 00:44:59.730 anyway. 00:45:00.105 --> 00:45:02.895 So I created a whole strategy around. 00:45:03.540 --> 00:45:09.030 This particular case, so to attract new business, so that included Facebook ads, 00:45:09.045 --> 00:45:12.801 directing them to my landing page for them to fill out a form, to upload the picture 00:45:12.801 --> 00:45:19.345 of their sign for instant quotes, paper, click ads, also, competition ads as well. 00:45:19.345 --> 00:45:23.515 Like I'd like to piggyback off the keywords of what my competitors are 00:45:23.515 --> 00:45:28.855 doing in this space, but it's all directing them into the funnel for which. 00:45:29.960 --> 00:45:32.960 New leads are coming in for people that are saying, Hey, my sign's 00:45:32.960 --> 00:45:35.330 broken and I need to get it fixed. 00:45:35.330 --> 00:45:36.848 And how much is it to get fixed? 00:45:36.849 --> 00:45:40.719 that's the question that you have to answer on those landing pages, but 00:45:40.724 --> 00:45:45.819 I'm directing now in influx of new customers based off of sign service. 00:45:45.819 --> 00:45:50.049 So I'm showing pictures of like really funny looking signs when letters are out. 00:45:50.077 --> 00:45:53.063 I'm, I'll post up a couple in the Facebook group here. 00:45:53.273 --> 00:45:56.243 So you could see a couple of funny ones that really make those ads 00:45:56.243 --> 00:46:00.773 engaging, but that's been working for me to get new leads in the company. 00:46:00.790 --> 00:46:04.535 and you could do that with almost any service, if you want to, if 00:46:04.535 --> 00:46:08.675 you wanna specialize in real estate signs, make real estate landing pages. 00:46:08.675 --> 00:46:13.609 If you wanna specialize in, color conversions on cars or paint correction, 00:46:13.639 --> 00:46:17.921 or, Paint protection, whatever it is that you wanna do, you can do those as well. 00:46:17.921 --> 00:46:22.127 Channel letters, monument signs, way finding signage, you could do 00:46:22.127 --> 00:46:26.417 all sorts of really creative ad strategies based around directing that 00:46:26.897 --> 00:46:31.577 to specific built out landing pages and a nice funnel into your system. 00:46:31.817 --> 00:46:34.544 At least that's my advice on what's worked well for me lately. 00:46:34.638 --> 00:46:37.828 Bryant Gillespie: the key for me and what you said there, Peter is you narrowed 00:46:37.828 --> 00:46:44.398 down your focus on signed service in this instance, too many people don't qualify 00:46:44.398 --> 00:46:46.273 that Hey, I just wanna grow my shop. 00:46:46.278 --> 00:46:47.383 I want more customers. 00:46:47.683 --> 00:46:50.833 And my first question is always, what kind of customers do you want? 00:46:50.838 --> 00:46:53.803 And they're like the kind that pay the kind that have money. 00:46:53.833 --> 00:46:54.823 I value money. 00:46:55.063 --> 00:46:56.233 That was one of the responses. 00:46:56.233 --> 00:46:56.713 The other day. 00:46:56.718 --> 00:46:59.263 Other Facebook group was I value money. 00:46:59.353 --> 00:47:00.763 I was like, well, me too. 00:47:00.763 --> 00:47:02.473 And I want more customers. 00:47:02.473 --> 00:47:07.574 But, when you narrow that focus down, it becomes way easier to give you something. 00:47:07.574 --> 00:47:07.904 Action. 00:47:08.384 --> 00:47:12.358 So just like you said, Hey, I wanna promote sign service, but 00:47:12.358 --> 00:47:13.918 we haven't done enough of that. 00:47:13.918 --> 00:47:18.016 Or, Hey, that's actual really profitable for us because we, make connections 00:47:18.021 --> 00:47:21.556 with other customers that, that may have not purchased the sign from us before. 00:47:21.647 --> 00:47:25.397 so once you narrow down that focus, it becomes really a lot easier. 00:47:25.427 --> 00:47:29.656 So you could do that based on the service that you're trying to pitch or sell like 00:47:30.136 --> 00:47:35.019 service or channel letters or exterior signs or, vehicle wraps, whatever that is. 00:47:35.019 --> 00:47:37.569 You could also do that based on customers as well. 00:47:37.615 --> 00:47:42.931 Hey, I want to work with commercial real estate agents, or I wanna work with 00:47:42.931 --> 00:47:45.121 developers that are building condos. 00:47:45.190 --> 00:47:49.796 I wanted to work with marketing managers at larger corporations. 00:47:49.822 --> 00:47:53.691 and once you do that, getting those SI those leads that you want, that's the 00:47:53.696 --> 00:47:57.291 first step, it becomes a lot easier when you know what it is you're trying to 00:47:57.291 --> 00:47:58.867 sell or who you're trying to sell it to. 00:47:58.867 --> 00:48:02.488 because then you can do some more research, find out you where 00:48:02.488 --> 00:48:07.100 those marketing managers hang out, what they do, how they, how did 00:48:07.100 --> 00:48:08.510 they go about purchasing signs? 00:48:08.538 --> 00:48:11.928 what is that purchasing process like for that particular type of customer? 00:48:11.957 --> 00:48:14.447 and Hey, that really informs your marketing efforts. 00:48:14.807 --> 00:48:18.977 So then you could go after that group of people specifically, like either in 00:48:18.977 --> 00:48:23.282 Facebook ads, as you mentioned, cold emailing, some of those people with, just 00:48:23.287 --> 00:48:28.315 like a quick little email about, Hey, here's what we could help you guys with. 00:48:28.315 --> 00:48:30.265 Here's some other company that we helped with. 00:48:30.348 --> 00:48:35.695 so yeah, I think that's the first step in, in this process is narrow your focus 00:48:35.695 --> 00:48:40.263 on what clients you wanna serve or, or what you're actually, what type of leads 00:48:40.324 --> 00:48:41.623 Michael Riley: Yeah, that's really good advice. 00:48:41.983 --> 00:48:42.343 Bryant. 00:48:42.567 --> 00:48:47.186 Peter Kourounis: Yeah, let me ask you this, Brian, since you're like the 00:48:47.186 --> 00:48:50.732 marketing guru out of the three of us, I consider you more of a marketing 00:48:50.732 --> 00:48:52.195 expert than myself. 00:48:52.200 --> 00:48:52.495 Maybe. 00:48:52.705 --> 00:48:56.247 I don't know how Mike feels, but wanna make sure I give you the accolades there 00:48:56.367 --> 00:48:57.987 Bryant Gillespie: tell my wife that I'm a guru? 00:48:58.807 --> 00:49:00.029 I feel like she would be very 00:49:00.126 --> 00:49:00.666 Peter Kourounis: Oh yeah. 00:49:01.401 --> 00:49:02.061 Bryant Gillespie: to a guru. 00:49:04.022 --> 00:49:07.232 Peter Kourounis: let me ask you this because I get the sense that we have a 00:49:07.232 --> 00:49:13.052 ton of sign shop owners, both small and large that are doing paper, click ads. 00:49:13.082 --> 00:49:18.212 Google ads and bunching up all their services into one ad. 00:49:18.212 --> 00:49:20.222 Like we're a sign shop for signs. 00:49:20.432 --> 00:49:24.030 We do interior exterior trade show, real estate. 00:49:24.060 --> 00:49:27.660 We do car wraps, vehicle wraps, awnings channel letters, monuments, 00:49:27.665 --> 00:49:28.898 and everything else in between. 00:49:28.898 --> 00:49:31.258 How do you think that strategy works? 00:49:33.040 --> 00:49:35.650 Bryant Gillespie: I, I think on some levels it probably does. 00:49:35.650 --> 00:49:36.670 Or people wouldn't do it. 00:49:37.430 --> 00:49:37.745 yeah. 00:49:37.799 --> 00:49:38.814 something is better. 00:49:39.084 --> 00:49:40.614 Something is better than nothing. 00:49:40.707 --> 00:49:41.637 I'll start with that. 00:49:41.708 --> 00:49:46.568 I think if you're, if you haven't, if you're not running any ads, as we talked 00:49:46.568 --> 00:49:50.310 about, and one of the first episodes that we did, you gotta keep the faucet running. 00:49:50.315 --> 00:49:53.135 if you're not running ads now and you start running ads, that's 00:49:53.165 --> 00:49:54.455 better than not running ads. 00:49:55.025 --> 00:49:56.345 Assuming you've got the budget for it. 00:49:58.040 --> 00:50:01.721 but, I certainly think there's better approaches where, like we 00:50:01.721 --> 00:50:05.381 just talked about that you, you should be just blanketing, Hey, 00:50:05.381 --> 00:50:08.141 we're the most amazing sign shop. 00:50:08.226 --> 00:50:09.258 Hey, we do everything. 00:50:09.286 --> 00:50:13.233 we I'm of the mindset that when you, this might have been a quote from, 00:50:13.252 --> 00:50:15.061 maybe Seth Goden or something like that. 00:50:15.061 --> 00:50:18.511 And maybe I'm still in this from Mike, I'm not sure, but like when you 00:50:18.511 --> 00:50:22.861 speak to everyone, you're talking to no one, that's the that's like the, 00:50:22.951 --> 00:50:26.881 my take on marketing in a nutshell is if you're saying everybody is our, 00:50:29.101 --> 00:50:35.030 you're gonna have a really hard time versus the shop that has narrowed down 00:50:35.030 --> 00:50:38.930 and said, okay, we serve developers. 00:50:39.260 --> 00:50:44.690 We make the process of selling your condo or your apartment building 00:50:45.500 --> 00:50:47.030 twice as easy as the next guy. 00:50:47.074 --> 00:50:47.914 and that's huge. 00:50:47.914 --> 00:50:51.053 and then, certainly you could run ads on that you could do specific 00:50:51.058 --> 00:50:54.675 targeting on Facebook is really good for that type of targeting. 00:50:54.727 --> 00:51:01.151 if you are doing Google ads, you could set up those ads around those keywords. 00:51:01.811 --> 00:51:04.374 It goes back to what your customer is actually searching for. 00:51:05.244 --> 00:51:10.146 But, yeah, I think that's the way to approach it instead of just shotgun 00:51:10.146 --> 00:51:13.126 blasting, random ads for we do everything, 00:51:13.628 --> 00:51:16.661 Michael Riley: And let's not forget too, like the value of just like human face to 00:51:16.666 --> 00:51:23.450 face networking as well, which I think is ignored a lot with, the rise of internet 00:51:23.450 --> 00:51:27.740 marketing and click per pay or pay per click ads and everything like that. 00:51:28.160 --> 00:51:28.455 But. 00:51:28.555 --> 00:51:32.005 just go interface with people that are, are your market. 00:51:32.245 --> 00:51:36.655 And I'm, I have mixed emotions about most networking groups, like BNI type 00:51:36.655 --> 00:51:40.135 groups and stuff like that, where you've got, 15 people sitting around a 00:51:40.135 --> 00:51:42.745 table in the morning and one of 'em is a dentist and one of 'em is a realtor. 00:51:42.745 --> 00:51:46.855 And one of they're gonna generate some leads for you, but they're 00:51:46.855 --> 00:51:48.115 not gonna be very targeted leads. 00:51:48.115 --> 00:51:50.282 And like Brian said, I it's you're putting yourself in those groups and 00:51:50.282 --> 00:51:53.336 telling 'em that you're everything to everybody all the time, which really 00:51:53.362 --> 00:51:54.779 just makes you nothing and nobody. 00:51:54.779 --> 00:52:01.661 but there are much more targeted ways to network with people that you can really 00:52:01.661 --> 00:52:04.637 get in the door with the industries and clients that you wanna serve. 00:52:04.639 --> 00:52:08.878 if you do a lot of say hospital signage and ADA sign packages for large 00:52:09.358 --> 00:52:11.938 commercial buildings or office buildings, things like that, like there are. 00:52:13.048 --> 00:52:17.112 There are groups specifically for building owners and, property managers and 00:52:17.112 --> 00:52:18.312 building managers and things like that. 00:52:18.732 --> 00:52:23.142 And if you cultivate relationships in groups like that, you, that becomes a 00:52:23.142 --> 00:52:25.932 really great referral network for you for the type of work that you wanna do. 00:52:26.051 --> 00:52:27.191 it takes a long time though. 00:52:27.196 --> 00:52:31.781 I think that's the problem with a lot of that face to face type networking is it's, 00:52:31.811 --> 00:52:35.831 there's not a, not an immediate return on it, cuz you're building a relationship 00:52:35.831 --> 00:52:38.381 with somebody you need to prove to these people that they can trust you and that 00:52:38.381 --> 00:52:41.186 you can live up to, their expectations. 00:52:41.190 --> 00:52:44.421 and when you've proven yourself, then they become an amazing source of leads. 00:52:44.421 --> 00:52:45.681 They become a lead generator for you. 00:52:45.681 --> 00:52:50.994 They're happy client is a better salesperson than, your own salesperson, 00:52:51.084 --> 00:52:52.104 a hundred percent of the time. 00:52:52.108 --> 00:52:55.183 approaching your clients like that and your networking efforts like that? 00:52:55.253 --> 00:52:58.322 I think really goes a long way towards, creating a built in lead 00:52:58.327 --> 00:53:02.372 generator without having to do a whole lot of work outside of be present. 00:53:02.439 --> 00:53:03.639 Bryant Gillespie: Oh, sorry. 00:53:04.299 --> 00:53:04.719 I missed what 00:53:04.784 --> 00:53:06.054 Michael Riley: look like a deer in headlights. 00:53:06.729 --> 00:53:07.209 Bryant Gillespie: Oh yeah. 00:53:07.209 --> 00:53:07.869 My wife came in. 00:53:09.609 --> 00:53:13.149 Peter Kourounis: heard that we called you a guru and was like, who are these idiots? 00:53:16.087 --> 00:53:17.647 Bryant Gillespie: I think something else that Mike said 00:53:17.647 --> 00:53:18.937 there is really key as well. 00:53:18.937 --> 00:53:24.173 Is there whether you're running ads or, doing face to face networking, 00:53:24.190 --> 00:53:26.560 making cold calls, cold, whatever. 00:53:28.210 --> 00:53:32.577 there are no shortcuts to doing, to being successful at generating new leads. 00:53:32.583 --> 00:53:37.175 there's some things have a quicker return than others, but to do it well 00:53:37.175 --> 00:53:39.395 and be successful with it, it takes time. 00:53:39.425 --> 00:53:43.565 don't go into any of these strategies thinking you're gonna turn around 00:53:43.570 --> 00:53:48.367 and get a hundred leads by spending a hundred dollars on Facebook ads 00:53:48.442 --> 00:53:52.882 or that you're gonna go to one networking event and come away with a 00:53:52.887 --> 00:53:54.337 hundred thousand dollars in business. 00:53:54.340 --> 00:53:55.330 it's just not how it works. 00:53:55.682 --> 00:53:56.972 Peter Kourounis: Yeah, you gotta keep at it. 00:53:56.972 --> 00:53:58.472 You have to keep pushing. 00:53:58.472 --> 00:54:00.482 It's gotta be part of your everyday routine. 00:54:00.482 --> 00:54:05.585 It's gotta be part of your monthly strategy bus, hiring a business 00:54:05.585 --> 00:54:09.185 development managers and other opportunity that's worked really 00:54:09.190 --> 00:54:12.755 well for us is somebody that's being the face of your business. 00:54:12.755 --> 00:54:12.995 And. 00:54:13.380 --> 00:54:17.093 Going out and introducing some introducing yourself to some 00:54:17.093 --> 00:54:18.293 companies and things of that nature. 00:54:18.353 --> 00:54:21.563 But one thing that's actually really well done well with us with that 00:54:21.563 --> 00:54:25.043 service angle is that it really does get you in front of business owners 00:54:25.043 --> 00:54:27.983 with a, in a warm lead kind of way. 00:54:27.983 --> 00:54:29.093 Like their sign is broken. 00:54:29.123 --> 00:54:32.633 They know it is and where they're, we're coming there to help them fix it. 00:54:32.633 --> 00:54:38.243 And then that often leads to conversations about new signage or valuing the 00:54:38.243 --> 00:54:40.493 repair versus getting something new. 00:54:40.823 --> 00:54:45.135 And also the other services that we can then, sell this customer. 00:54:45.135 --> 00:54:48.645 So if you're not doing service, I find it to be very lucrative. 00:54:48.645 --> 00:54:56.037 If that's something that also, you guys want to jump into there, this was 00:54:56.107 --> 00:54:57.607 Bryant Gillespie: don't wanna jump into science service. 00:54:57.812 --> 00:55:00.032 Peter Kourounis: I don't wanna jump into, I didn't wanna jump into it either 00:55:00.037 --> 00:55:01.592 until I found out how profitable it was. 00:55:02.593 --> 00:55:02.863 Bryant Gillespie: Yeah. 00:55:03.394 --> 00:55:05.524 one tactic that I've got for that. 00:55:05.524 --> 00:55:08.374 Now, maybe I've said this on one of the other episodes. 00:55:08.374 --> 00:55:11.644 I'm not sure where I picked this up, but if you wanna do service. 00:55:12.394 --> 00:55:16.306 and you're looking for more leads, find somebody's kid that's 16 that 00:55:16.306 --> 00:55:22.276 just got a license offer to pay them X amount per lead that they generate. 00:55:22.276 --> 00:55:25.216 They drive around, go find signs that are broken. 00:55:25.216 --> 00:55:26.116 Take a picture of it. 00:55:26.121 --> 00:55:31.386 Note the address, try to get contact info, set them up like a simple 00:55:31.486 --> 00:55:32.776 job form or something like that. 00:55:33.025 --> 00:55:36.375 Peter Kourounis: Yeah, we call those people night Watchers and, 00:55:36.375 --> 00:55:40.616 and we pay them and we pay them a dollar, a photo, a dollar of 00:55:40.678 --> 00:55:41.938 Bryant Gillespie: a dollar of photo. 00:55:42.088 --> 00:55:43.018 Peter Kourounis: of submiss submission. 00:55:43.018 --> 00:55:46.148 They can, if they go around often enough, believe it or. 00:55:46.618 --> 00:55:49.798 The people that are also doing night watch for me are also Uber 00:55:49.798 --> 00:55:52.468 drivers, Uber, each drivers, or Uber 00:55:52.748 --> 00:55:52.968 Bryant Gillespie: Ah, 00:55:53.238 --> 00:55:54.058 yeah, there you go. 00:55:54.236 --> 00:55:57.686 Peter Kourounis: so we, some of them, I pay them $2 if they're not doing them 00:55:57.686 --> 00:56:02.769 as frequently, but if they drove five miles, they might find 20 signs that 00:56:02.769 --> 00:56:06.069 are broken and get paid $20 or $40. 00:56:06.369 --> 00:56:10.278 It's really great little, side hustle that we've created with our night watch team. 00:56:11.028 --> 00:56:14.309 And yes, they're often very young, new drivers, just looking 00:56:14.309 --> 00:56:15.421 to make a good, whatever. 00:56:15.481 --> 00:56:17.526 However many they submit is how much they make. 00:56:17.529 --> 00:56:21.489 then we call them in the morning we schedule appointments and we're 00:56:21.494 --> 00:56:22.839 out doing service the next day. 00:56:23.949 --> 00:56:24.999 Little great tip there. 00:56:25.179 --> 00:56:25.599 Bryant Gillespie: Love it. 00:56:26.589 --> 00:56:26.949 Love it. 00:56:27.289 --> 00:56:28.459 I like this format guys. 00:56:28.459 --> 00:56:30.079 I think it was a great episode. 00:56:30.079 --> 00:56:31.699 Great questions. 00:56:31.699 --> 00:56:32.059 Peter Kourounis: me too. 00:56:32.224 --> 00:56:33.474 Keep those questions coming. 00:56:33.619 --> 00:56:35.959 Bryant Gillespie: If you have questions for us, you'd like them to 00:56:35.959 --> 00:56:38.809 be answered on the podcast by a guru. 00:56:38.879 --> 00:56:40.169 everybody wants to be a guru. 00:56:40.199 --> 00:56:42.419 Honestly, I don't call me a guru. 00:56:42.449 --> 00:56:42.809 I don't. 00:56:43.289 --> 00:56:44.069 I take that back. 00:56:44.459 --> 00:56:46.019 You could tell my wife I'm a guru though. 00:56:46.041 --> 00:56:46.775 that looks good for me. 00:56:46.842 --> 00:56:50.248 Uh, but, uh, if, if you've got questions, you'd like the three of 00:56:50.248 --> 00:56:57.358 us to answer on the podcast, email us at Hey, better sign, shop.com again. 00:56:57.358 --> 00:56:59.248 That's Hey, better sign. 00:56:59.248 --> 00:57:00.658 shop.com. 00:57:02.578 --> 00:57:05.326 Shall we get into, rapid takeaways? 00:57:05.361 --> 00:57:06.321 Peter Kourounis: There's three questions. 00:57:06.321 --> 00:57:06.951 There's three of us. 00:57:06.951 --> 00:57:10.431 We'll take one of us for each takeaway for each question. 00:57:10.821 --> 00:57:11.271 Okay. 00:57:12.051 --> 00:57:12.681 How's that sound? 00:57:12.763 --> 00:57:13.783 Bryant Gillespie: Mayor MC cheese 00:57:14.398 --> 00:57:15.238 Michael Riley: minimums. 00:57:15.778 --> 00:57:18.958 Think about how you present your minimums to your customer and consider just 00:57:19.378 --> 00:57:21.598 charging what you should for a sign. 00:57:21.598 --> 00:57:25.318 Instead of telling a customer you've gotta charge 'em a minimum and see if it. 00:57:26.908 --> 00:57:31.948 Presents an opportunity to make a happy customer and sell more signs. 00:57:36.088 --> 00:57:36.208 All 00:57:36.208 --> 00:57:36.748 right. 00:57:36.830 --> 00:57:39.440 how much should you be paying yourself as the owner of a sign shop? 00:57:39.458 --> 00:57:40.019 Peter. 00:57:42.577 --> 00:57:43.897 Peter Kourounis: 1 million? 00:57:44.872 --> 00:57:45.732 Michael Riley: That's why I chose 00:57:45.897 --> 00:57:47.822 Peter Kourounis: No, no, no, no. 00:57:48.496 --> 00:57:48.616 Michael Riley: you. 00:57:48.616 --> 00:57:48.896 Did it 00:57:49.006 --> 00:57:49.636 Peter Kourounis: I had to do it. 00:57:49.636 --> 00:57:50.446 I had to throw it in there. 00:57:50.477 --> 00:57:53.427 Give him my, give him my, give him my impression, how 00:57:53.427 --> 00:57:54.387 much you be charging yourself. 00:57:54.387 --> 00:57:58.137 Listen, you guys gotta look at what you're doing in your jobs and make a just and 00:57:58.142 --> 00:58:03.327 fair assessment of what that is valued at as your business take into account. 00:58:03.327 --> 00:58:06.147 Some of the other pieces, how much you're able to expense. 00:58:06.152 --> 00:58:10.977 And some of the other benefits of being an owner like Mike said, consider the 00:58:10.977 --> 00:58:15.770 draw a low salary, a draw each week as a really great opportunity there. 00:58:15.770 --> 00:58:21.260 But also like we all said here consult with a CPA, a financial advisor, 00:58:21.265 --> 00:58:25.361 financial planner on having you help or helping you make those, those 00:58:25.361 --> 00:58:27.288 final decisions there Bryant the 00:58:27.288 --> 00:58:28.158 marketing guy. 00:58:28.638 --> 00:58:29.268 I didn't call you a 00:58:29.268 --> 00:58:29.628 guru. 00:58:29.628 --> 00:58:30.588 The marketing guy, 00:58:30.893 --> 00:58:31.709 Bryant Gillespie: I appreciate that. 00:58:31.754 --> 00:58:34.154 How can I get new leads for my signed company? 00:58:35.534 --> 00:58:42.164 Narrow down your focus, narrow down your focus, pick the customers you 00:58:42.164 --> 00:58:47.954 wanna serve that will inform how you go about getting those new leads. 00:58:48.144 --> 00:58:49.104 It is as simple as that. 00:58:50.164 --> 00:58:50.884 Peter Kourounis: Very good. 00:58:51.042 --> 00:58:54.912 Bryant Gillespie: If you like the podcast, definitely check out our mastermind group. 00:58:55.032 --> 00:58:59.832 You could find that on the website, better sign, shop.com, poke around. 00:58:59.862 --> 00:59:00.672 You'll find it. 00:59:00.727 --> 00:59:04.701 we've also got a Facebook group for shop owners. 00:59:04.701 --> 00:59:07.071 It's exclusively for shop owners. 00:59:07.133 --> 00:59:09.593 we've gotta answer some questions before we let you in. 00:59:10.043 --> 00:59:12.683 We do AMAs there with experts. 00:59:12.683 --> 00:59:15.173 We've got a group chat with all the owners. 00:59:15.173 --> 00:59:20.223 There, there are no topics that are off limits pricing is allowed. 00:59:20.223 --> 00:59:23.162 and there's some other deep discussions that we go into that 00:59:23.432 --> 00:59:25.802 obviously I cannot talk about here. 00:59:25.802 --> 00:59:27.302 It's all top secret stuff. 00:59:27.962 --> 00:59:28.592 Check us out.