Private equity is aggressively buying home service companies but most contractors will never be able to sell their business.

In this episode, I sit down with Stephen Martinez, founder of the American Dream Event, to break down why so many contracting businesses are unsellable and what actually makes a company attractive to buyers.

Stephen works closely with private equity groups, M&A professionals, and operators who have successfully exited. He also built his own roofing company from day one with the intention to sell, applying the same principles investors look for long before a deal ever happens.

This conversation goes far beyond surface-level PE talk. We get into the real mechanics of building a business that’s scalable, profitable, and resilient—whether you plan to sell or not.

In this episode, we cover:

Why there’s more private equity money than sellable contractor businesses

The #1 reason PE disqualifies most companies during due diligence

Revenue and EBITDA ranges that start getting serious buyer attention

Why lack of financial transparency kills deals

What “building with an exit in mind” actually changes in day-to-day decisions

How marketing, technology, and systems directly impact valuation

Why home services are considered recession-resistant

The shift toward virtual sales, AI, and tech-driven operations

Why minority and immigrant contractors often have underutilized advantages

Why PE focused events and owner-only rooms accelerate growth—even if you never sell

Stephen also shares how the American Dream Event evolved from a mission-driven conference into one of the few spaces where blue-collar operators and white-collar capital meet, helping contractors understand what it really takes to build an asset not just a job.

If you’re a contractor doing $3–10M, thinking about scale, or simply want to build a business that’s valuable, transferable, and future-proof, this episode will give you a completely different lens on growth.

📌 If your service is urgent (roof leaks, burst pipes, no AC)… Google and LSA will feed your crew.

📌 If your service is visual, emotional, or aspirational (remodeling, painting, windows, flooring)… Meta and YouTube are your goldmine.

📌 And if you don’t know which category you fall into?

You’re probably burning money right now without even knowing it.

🎯 Want a marketing system built specifically for your trade that actually gets results?

👉 Book a Free Demo Call: contractormarketingpros.net/calendar

We help contractors get found online, generate quality leads, and dominate their local markets.

Let’s build your machine.

🔔 Subscribe for more no-fluff contractor marketing content every week.

📞 Questions? Drop them in the comments or reach out directly.

Thanks for watching. Now let’s go get some leads. 💥

Links & Resources:

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/stephen_martinez/

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/stephen-martinez-724b8016b/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/stephen.martinez.7739814

Website: https://americandreamevent.com/

What if the reason most sales reps fail has nothing to do with talent, scripts, or systems?

In this episode, I sit down with Adam Tronnier, National Sales Director at One Solutions, to unpack one of the most raw and instructive stories in the home services industry.

Adam went from:

- Multiple prison sentences

- Living out of a PT Cruiser

- Knocking doors for five months without getting paid

…to helping build $100M+ in roofing sales, leading 100+ reps across multiple states, and creating a culture where people most companies overlook become top producers.

This is not a motivational episode.

It’s a real conversation about execution, discipline, leadership, and culture—especially in door-to-door and sales-driven contracting businesses.

In this episode, we cover:

- Why discipline beats systems in sales (and when systems actually hurt performance)

- The real reason most reps quit right before they would’ve broken through

- How Adam built elite producers without micromanaging or over-engineering

- Why door knocking and reps in the field matter more than CRMs and dashboards

- How to recruit, train, and retain second-chance talent others ignore

- What private equity got right in scaling sales without destroying culture

- Why leadership must be built in the field, not behind a desk

Adam also shares how his platform Redemption Blueprint is documenting real second-chance success stories—showing what’s possible when people are given structure, belief, and accountability.

If you’re a contractor, sales leader, or owner trying to scale without losing your soul, this episode will challenge how you think about:

- Sales training

- Recruiting

- Culture

And what actually creates long-term performance

🎧 Listen now—and decide whether you’ve been over-complicating growth when execution was the real answer all along.

📌 If your service is urgent (roof leaks, burst pipes, no AC)… Google and LSA will feed your crew.

📌 If your service is visual, emotional, or aspirational (remodeling, painting, windows, flooring)… Meta and YouTube are your goldmine.

📌 And if you don’t know which category you fall into?

You’re probably burning money right now without even knowing it.

🎯 Want a marketing system built specifically for your trade that actually gets results?

👉 Book a Free Demo Call: contractormarketingpros.net/calendar

We help contractors get found online, generate quality leads, and dominate their local markets.

Let’s build your machine.

🔔 Subscribe for more no-fluff contractor marketing content every week.

📞 Questions? Drop them in the comments or reach out directly.

Thanks for watching. Now let’s go get some leads. 💥

Links & Resources:

Instagam: https://www.instagram.com/adamtronnier/

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/adam-tronnier-b69312301/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/adam.tronnier.58/

Website: https://redemptionblueprint.com/

Prowest LLC: https://www.linkedin.com/company/prowest-roofing-restoration/

Today’s episode is one of my favorites because it cuts through a lot of the noise happening right now around AI, marketing, and growth in the home services industry.

My guest is Dmitry Lipinskiy founder of Roofing Insights.

Dmitry is a former roofing contractor, a long-time content creator, and one of the most consistent voices in our industry when it comes to calling out what actually works — and what’s just hype.

We first met years ago when he was still running his roofing company and just starting his YouTube channel, and watching how far he’s taken that platform since then has been incredible.

In this conversation, we don’t treat AI like a magic solution. Dmitry has a very clear stance: AI doesn’t make you smarter — it makes you dumber if you don’t know how to think.

We talk about why so many contractors chase tools instead of fundamentals, why discipline beats technology every time, and how most people already know what they need to do… they just don’t do it.

We get into how Dmitry actually uses AI in real life — not to replace thinking, but to proofread, structure ideas, improve content, and save time when he hits a wall. We talk about why content marketing works better than ads long-term, how trust compounds, and why consistency matters more than talent.

We also dive into branding, referrals, and the emotional side of the customer journey — why two contractors can do the same quality work, but one gets all the referrals. Dmitry explains why memorability, communication, and experience matter more than craftsmanship alone.

This episode is for contractors who are tired of chasing shortcuts and want to build something real — whether that’s a brand, an audience, or a business that lasts. It’s about thinking clearly, simplifying instead of overcomplicating, and doing the unsexy work consistently.

If you’re trying to figure out how AI, content, branding, and discipline actually fit together — and what not to waste your time on — this conversation will give you a lot to think about.

Let’s get into it.

👉 Want to see how your business compares or where you may be leaking leads?

Book a free strategy call here: https://contractormarketingpros.net/calendar

We help contractors build scalable marketing systems, protect local visibility, and grow without losing control of the basics.

🔔 Subscribe for more real-world contractor growth breakdowns.

Links & resources:

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/dmitry-lipinskiy-aa5b948a/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/dmitrylipinskiy

Website: https://www.roofinginsights.com/

The Math Behind Marketing: How Contractors Should Actually Measure ROI

Most contractors don’t have a marketing problem.

They have a visibility problem.

In this episode, Mauricio sits down with Corey Combs, owner of South Shore Roofing & Exteriors in Tampa, Florida, for an honest conversation about the math behind marketing — and why so many contractors feel burned, confused, or disappointed by their results.

Corey isn’t a marketer. He’s a contractor who got tired of guessing.

After years of trying to reconcile agency reports with what was actually happening inside his CRM, he realized the real issue wasn’t lead quality or ad platforms — it was the lack of clear, end-to-end tracking from first contact to closed job.

This episode breaks down what most contractors never see:

- The difference between a contact, a lead, a booked appointment, and a customer

- Why cost per lead is a misleading metric if you don’t know your cost per booked appointment and cost per acquisition

- How CRM discipline (or lack of it) quietly destroys attribution and trust

- Why “bad leads” are often really process or follow-up problems

- How existing customers, spam, and mis-tagged leads distort marketing reports

- Why booked appointments don’t matter if they don’t show up or convert

- How funnel math exposes sales issues without turning into a blame game

- Why no attribution system is perfect — and why directionally correct data still wins

- How understanding your numbers changes the relationship between contractors and agencies

Instead of hype, tools, or tactics, this conversation focuses on something far more important: replacing emotion with data.

If you’ve ever felt unsure whether your marketing is actually working, struggled to trust reports, or made decisions based on frustration instead of facts, this episode will give you the clarity you’ve been missing.

It’s not about spending more.

It’s about understanding what you’re already spending — and why.

👉 Want to see how your business compares or where you may be leaking leads?

Book a free strategy call here: https://contractormarketingpros.net/calendar

We help contractors build scalable marketing systems, protect local visibility, and grow without losing control of the basics.

🔔 Subscribe for more real-world contractor growth breakdowns.

Links & Resources:

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/southshoreroofingandexteriors/

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/southshore-roofing-exteriors/

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCuSTqyiihxDvtgmwiv9iP-g

Website: https://southshorecontractorstampa.com/

Trust Is the New Algorithm: How Contractors Get Recommended by AI with Marcus Sheridan

Search is changing faster than most contractors realize.

In this episode, Mauricio sits down with Marcus Sheridan, author of They Ask, You Answer and Endless Customers, for a candid, wide-ranging conversation about what happens when Google’s blue links disappear, AI starts answering homeowner questions directly, and businesses are either recommended… or rejected.

Marcus explains why the old playbook—SEO tricks, hiding pricing, relying on ads alone—no longer works in an AI-first world. Instead, contractors must build trust signals so strong that both humans and AI confidently choose them.

This conversation goes deep into what that actually means for roofing, HVAC, plumbing, and home service companies.

You’ll learn:

• Why trust is now the algorithm, and how AI decides who gets recommended
• Why contractors who avoid talking about pricing are making themselves invisible
• How pricing estimators are becoming table stakes—and why Google is already prioritizing companies that have them
• The real reason pricing transparency increases leads instead of scaring customers away
• How AI-driven leads are converting 10–15x higher than traditional Google leads
• Why speed-to-lead is more important than ever—and how a 5-minute response window can decide 78% of deals
• What content AI actually rewards (and what content it ignores)
• Why “unscalable” actions like personal video follow-ups can beat massive competitors
• How contractors should think about AI in the back office, sales, content, and data analysis
• Why the future belongs to companies that teach instead of sell

Marcus also shares hard truths contractors don’t often hear:

Most companies already know what they should do—they just don’t act. And in an AI-driven market, inaction is the fastest way to disappear.

If you’re wondering why lead costs are rising, why ads don’t perform like they used to, or how to position your company to win over the next 2–5 years, this episode will give you clarity—and a clear direction forward.

This isn’t a hype conversation.

It’s a wake-up call.

Links & resources:

https://www.aitrustsignals.com/about

https://priceguide.ai/

https://questionfirstgroup.com/

Homeowners aren’t just “searching” anymore — they’re asking AI tools like ChatGPT who to hire.

In this episode, Mauricio Cardenal (Contractor Marketing Pros) sits down with Dennis Yu (former Yahoo! Search Engineer, CEO of BlitzMetrics) to break down — live, on screen — how ChatGPT and other AI systems decide which contractors they recommend.

This conversation is not theoretical.

Throughout the session, Mauricio and Dennis run real-time audits of contractor websites, Google Business Profiles, reviews, and content to show exactly how trust is built (or lost) in AI-driven search.

You’ll see how AI evaluates:

- Experience, Expertise, Authoritativeness, and Trust (E-E-A-T)

- Reviews across multiple platforms (not just Google)

- Real photos vs. stock images

- Local content and unanswered homeowner questions

- Brand mentions, citations, and community signals

- Website structure and AI-detectable “fluff” content

The episode also covers major shifts impacting contractors right now, including:

- Why ChatGPT already has 800M+ users and why it may surpass 1 billion soon

- How 49% of people now ask AI tools for company recommendations

- Why Google is no longer the only gatekeeper for local discovery

- How Bing powers ChatGPT, and why Bing Places suddenly matters

- The rise of Google AI Overviews and how they summarize reviews and businesses

- The zero-click crisis (60%+ of searches ending without a website visit)

- Why AI prefers the safest, most defensible recommendation — not the loudest brand

- Dennis also demonstrates how contractors can use ChatGPT itself to:

Identify gaps in trust and authority

- Discover the exact questions homeowners are asking

- Replace keyword-stuffed pages with genuinely helpful content

- Turn real job photos, videos, and FAQs into AI-friendly trust signals

- Stop “gaming SEO” and start building credibility AI can recognize

If you’re a contractor, marketer, or business owner trying to understand how AI is changing local lead generation, this episode gives you a clear, practical framework — without hype — for staying visible and trusted in the age of AI recommendations.

Who This Episode Is For:

- Home service contractors (roofing, HVAC, plumbing, remodeling, etc.)

- Business owners concerned about declining leads or visibility

- Marketers trying to adapt to AI search and zero-click results

- Anyone confused about how EEAT actually applies in real life

Links & Resources:

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/dennis.yu/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/dennisyu/

Website: https://dennisyu.com/

Blitzmetrics: https://blitzmetrics.com/

What It Really Takes to Win With a Marketing Agency: The Rooftastic Deep Dive

Most contractors have had at least one bad experience with a marketing agency. Some have had several.

And almost all of them walk away believing the same thing: “Agencies don’t work.”

This episode challenges that belief.

In this conversation, Mauricio sits down with Ed Rollins, owner of Rooftastic, to give contractors a real, unfiltered look at what a successful agency partnership actually requires and why most companies never experience it.

Instead of talking about campaigns, ad tactics, or shiny platforms, this episode focuses on the parts of marketing that contractors never hear about, including:

– Why you cannot outsource the thinking

Ed explains why owners must fill the Marketing Manager role internally — because no agency can make decisions for you or understand your business better than you do.

– Why education comes before execution: Ed shares how learning the fundamentals; funnels, CAC, conversion rate, cost per lead, follow-up, changed the way he hired, evaluated, and collaborated with his agency.

Books like DotCom Secrets and No B.S. Direct Marketing helped him understand what marketing should actually look like in a contracting company.

– What Rooftastic built inside their company that made marketing work

This episode reveals the internal systems most contractors don’t have but desperately need: a real marketing manager, weekly accountability calls, fast response times, CRM tracking, follow-up sequences, content creation, proper review strategy, sales team alignment.

– Why tracking your numbers is non-negotiable: Ed walks through how Rooftastic tracks cost per acquisition, not just leads — and how knowing their CPA by channel allowed them to scale confidently instead of guessing.

This is the part most contractors miss entirely.

– The truth about agency partnerships: Good marketing requires collaboration.

Rooftastic shows what happens when the contractor and the agency share responsibility, communicate weekly, and hold each other accountable.

By the end of this episode, contractors will understand: What an agency can do for you, what an agency cannot do for you, what responsibilities sit on the contractor’s side, how to evaluate agencies the right way and how to prepare your business to actually get results.

This isn’t a theory conversation.

It’s a practical blueprint showing exactly how one contractor built the foundation, systems, and mindset required to make marketing profitable.

If you’ve ever struggled with agencies, wondered why your marketing “didn’t work,” or want to understand the real path to sustainable growth, this episode will give you clarity you’ve never had before.

Links & Resources:

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/rooftasticexteriors

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/RooftasticExteriors

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/edward-rollins-2ab78a23/

Website: https://rooftastic.com/

What AI, Marketing Shifts, and 40 Years in Roofing Taught Mike Feazel About Surviving the Next Decade.

Most contractors are feeling it right now: leads are getting more expensive, Google is changing the rules, and the old ways of marketing aren’t producing the same results.

But very few people in the roofing industry have the history, perspective, and data to explain why — and what comes next.

That’s why this episode with Mike Feazel, CEO and founder of RoofMaxx, is so important.

Mike has been in roofing for over 40 years. He built one of the top residential roofing companies in the country, went through the chaos of insurance-driven work, saw the margins collapse, and instead of giving up — he invented an entirely new category: roof restoration, now with over 380 dealers nationally.

In this conversation, Mike breaks down the massive shifts happening right now in home services, including:

– The “Zero-Click” Crisis: How Google’s AI Overviews are stealing traffic, rewriting search results, and reshaping how homeowners find contractors.

Why even high-review companies are being summarized as “mixed reviews,” and what that means for your reputation.

– Why Lead Costs Are Exploding: How paid traffic is drying up, why SEO is becoming unpredictable, and why diversification is now mandatory — not optional.

– AI’s Immediate Impact on the Trades: How Mike is already using AI for: call centers, training, content, KPI dashboards, sales workflows, assistant agents for scheduling and estimating, and why AI won’t replace contractors — but it will replace any company that ignores efficiency.

– The Financial Reality Contractors Must Face: Why most roofing companies get stuck at $2–3M in revenue.

– The importance of knowing your CAC, gross margin, and lead-to-sale math

– How Mike almost lost his business by focusing on revenue instead of economics

– Why Roof Restoration Is Now Its Own Category: How RoofMaxx gives homeowners a third option, not repair or replace, but restore and how that solves a pain point in today’s economy.

– Where the Industry Is Going: The next 5 years of roofing and home services

– Why brand trust and education matter more than ever

– Why contractors must become students of AI, not spectators

This episode is for the contractor who wants clarity: climate change in marketing, rising costs, AI disruption, operational efficiency, and the financial discipline required to thrive in the coming decade.

If you're serious about staying relevant and profitable in this changing landscape, you’ll want to hear every minute of this conversation with Mike Feazel.