Lifestyle Tradie Member Magazine Issue #65 - Jan-June 2023

FROM THE DESK OF

Hey tradies! I’ve been inspired… by Nedd Brockmann.

“Nedd has received a hero’s welcome at Sydney’s Bondi Beach after completing his mammoth run… from Cottesloe Beach in Perth to Bondi – a 3952km journey over 47 days…”

Like, WOW… This tradie does not do things in halves. He really said, “let’s bloody do this” and dove face first into the challenge.

The 23-year-old took on the challenge with the goal of raising money and awareness for homelessness and boy did he do it; raising a WHOPPING $1.5million for homelessness.

This is obviously one of the most inspirational things to come out of 2022 in Australia. Nedd ran in the hot sun and the cold rain. He lost a tonne of weight and sustained some serious injuries. Did he give up? No! He kept putting one foot in front of the other, persevering where others would cave. His sheer grit and determination really ignited a fire in my belly.

As our Lifestyle Tradie Members would know, a few years ago I committed on stage in front of 150+ trade business owners, to run a marathon. Low and behold, it never happened.

Excuses came up and I was very quick to validate them… “I’m tired,” “I’m too busy,” “what’s the point?” You name it, I thought it and believed it.

I quickly swept the commitment under the rug in the hopes that no one would remember. Funny thing is, our Lifestyle Tradie members do NOT forget. EVER! So when a current member invited me to run a marathon with him in 2023, I thought I would finally hold up my end of the bargain.

From there, I named 2023 the year of BEAST MODE. The year I would become an absolute BEAST in business, a BEAST in health and fitness, and a BEAST in my family life.

For those who weren’t at our November 2022 R&R, you probably won’t know what this means. Essentially, it’s a superhuman state of being, whether this is committing to bettering your trade business and driving your goals hard, starting a new fitness regime, or committing to be the best parent you can possibly be. And I did it! I trained hard week in, week out, and ran a 42km marathon on March 5th 2023! It was a serious challenge, and at times I thought I wouldn’t or couldn’t do it. But I went Beast Mode and did it.

So, I want to ask you, what are you taking on in 2023 that will ignite your inner BEAST?

Cheers, Andy Smith

Tell us a little about your business, life and family.

We are parents to two teenage girls, Year 9 & 12.

We are currently building a new home and it’s the first time we have built. We have been in our current 2-bedroom family home forever and we have well and truly grown out of it, so it’s a really exciting time!

Our business name is over 40 years old but the business framework is just over 5. Paul has grown the commercial side of the business over the last 30 years and has put us at the top of a specialty HVAC market. We specialise in HVAC systems for switchrooms, whether that be for a mining site, light rail or data centres.

MEMBER PROFILE

What do you love most about what you do?

The fact that we’re able to design and deliver top quality jobs for big projects all over Australia and make good money to be able to do the things we never could means we’re able to provide a future for our family we never thought was possible.

We love that we are showing our girls that hard work and dedication can result in success! Also showing them that success isn’t just money in the bank, it can mean holidays, a new home, and experiences together.

Additionally, giving stable permanent jobs to our team in an ever-changing world feels good too.

Tell us a little about your life before joining Lifestyle Tradie? (What wasn’t working, what was holding you back or was in your way?)

Being a company owned by Paul’s parents, we could not grow it the way we wanted it to grow.

Staffing has always been an issue too, and has been for decades, as our standards are high and so are our clients.

What specific results have you achieved since joining Lifestyle Tradie?

We are officially the business owners and have moved into our own purpose-built warehouse! We can run our business the way we want to and grow it the way we always envisioned.

We have implemented Profit First which has been a game changer. It has allowed us to build wealth in the business to potentially use for further investing, but also fall back on in times of financial pressure.

Systemising our workflows and procedures is also underway… a work in progress and we’re always updating to suit, but we’re getting there!

Also the ability to network and share and learn from others in the Lifestyle Tradie community has been amazing.

Where do you see your business in 5 years?

Angela - Hopefully with us not there as often. That may look like more holidays or a regular day off together. I would like to see the business able to run efficiently and smoothly without us needing to step in or be there.

Paul - Grown to a level where I can hopefully not be here 12 hrs a day and be able to have staff step up into higher roles.

What are the top 3 things you have learnt about business that you would recommend to other tradies and WHY?

Tip 1: and why

Read ‘Profit First’ and implement it! Even if it’s a tweaked version. Having money put aside means that you have options. Options to invest or spend it on the business or use it if you have a rough month and cashflow is reduced.

Tip 2: and why

Back yourself in your ability – Don’t be afraid to say NO to jobs or big clients that don’t value your worth. Trust us, they need you more than you need them most of the time.

Tip 3: and why

Quality clients will pay top dollar for high class work – don’t be happy with just good enough – strive to be the best you possibly can and then go to a next level after that.

Tell us something quirky about yourself that your buddies don’t know?

Angela - We own a dingo! His name is Koda and he is a lunatic. We love him to bits, and he loves us right back although that can look like eating our undies or face creams, chewing shoes, and stealing anything he can grab in his mouth.

Paul - I am animal mad – fish, birds, chickens, ducks, you name it I’ll have it or have had it at some point. Oh, and bonsai and Cars – love my cars and other toys.

If we were sitting here one year from now celebrating what a great year it’s been, what have you achieved (together)?

In one year we’ll have moved into our new home, and have the profit account built back up to $500K – or MORE!

We’ll have also booked in another holiday or two for 2024.

Our first ReIgnite & ReUnite of 2023 was AMAZING!

Andy, Angela and the entire Lifestyle Tradie team want to say a huge thank you to every single member who joined us in Brisbane for a weekend jam-packed with heaps of learning, laughs and community building.

We know how jam-packed everyone’s personal and business lives are, so when we get to meet at each event, we are so aware how special it is. We hope you all walk away feeling refreshed, rejuvenated, motivated, supported and ready to SMASH it!

Our community was lucky enough to be joined by some of the best keynote speakers we have had in Lifestyle Tradie history – a comment we heard from quite a few members. So many inciteful and relevant conversations were started off the back of these presentations. Make sure if you couldn’t attend OR if you ever want to watch the replays, to head to the ‘Past Events’ section of MyLifestyleTradie, where recordings from all previous R&R’s are uploaded.

On Diamond Day, our Diamond Members were treated to a great presentation from Tony Wilson who talked us through high level performance and how improving your mindset essential to run a great business.

Then on Friday morning, Darren Hill kicked us off to discuss with everyone the science of leadership. Each of our members is a leader in their life, especially when it comes to their team, making this topic so crucial.

The remainder of Friday saw very timely topics presented by Andy and Ange including, artificial intelligence - what does it mean for your trade business, and how to unlock gross profit within your trade business. Our Mastermind session also saw tonnes of productive conversations started between members!

Saturday saw two superstar guests take the stage; marketing guru, Tim Reid and the inspiring founder of Kindness Factory, Kath Koschel. Tim Reid talked to us all about his marketing secrets, tips and tricks to build leads and market your business better. Then we finished off the conference with Kath Koschel, who completely mesmerised the entire room with her story of courage, resilience, and kindness. This is a presentation you are going to want to check out on MyLifestyleTradie to boost your mindset, gratitude and kindness to yourself and others everyday.

Lastly, we were treated to an awesome Member Hot Seat with long-time members of Lifestyle Tradie, Angela and Paul Bondini from Coolrite Air Conditioning. They talked to the crew all about the business journey and the most important things they’ve learnt along the way.

Once the learning was done, on both Friday and Saturday night we had such a blast letting our hair down, eating, drinking and chatting. Saturday night saw the crew rock some particularly daft Party Shirts whilst overlooking the Story Bridge and Brisbane River!

Each event gets harder and harder to beat! We love how involved everyone gets, how much closer we all become and how many great friendships and lessons are made. If you haven’t RSVP’d for our next R&R on the Gold Coast in July, make sure to scan the QR code now.

March 17th and 18th • Brisbane ABSORB. ADVANCE. ACHIEVE.

Death of paperwork

How many times can something let you down before you finally make the commitment to move on? In the case of manual paperwork, it seems like many tradespeople across Australia aren’t quite ready to say goodbye just yet. Make no mistake, though; forward-thinking trade business owners are jumping ship to digital options in their droves. However, the push to digitise isn’t an industry-wide phenomenon, and plenty of professionals are happy keeping physical records and running their business on paper.

BUT WHY?

Computers and other digital devices have completely transformed how we record and access information in just a few decades. To the point where on-paper methods we used just a few decades ago feel antiquated by comparison. Nobody doubts the influence of digital business operations anymore, just like nobody called the steam engine or the television a fad once they became an inseparable part of everyday life.

As customers, we interact with paper replacements nearly every day. We pay our rent, phone bills and other utilities online, then receive a digital invoice as a record of the transaction. We even buy clothing, pet food and other essentials using digital shopping platforms, all backed by an extensive digital paper trail, but without a single A4 sheet ever changing hands.

It’s not a matter of tradespeople being left out either. The digital door is wide open to trade professionals, and there are digital options for every type of trade business administration and record-keeping process, tailored to your industry and available in the marketplace right now. Most industry-standard software options include digital job management, cloud storage, mobile payment methods, and CRMs, which require no physical paperwork once fully enabled across a business.

Yet even in the face of an overwhelmingly superior option, paper persists.

Many tradespeople still choose to keep their business on paper, and to understand why we need to look at how entrenched in our lives paper has been up until very recently. Two thousand years of use has enforced paper as standard practice, and when there’s money involved (namely business profitability), we stick to what we know.

Paper is a simple medium compared to its digital peers, and its simplicity is its ultimate strength. Paper performs the tasks we require without training or further understanding outside of how to read and write. Digital tools, on the other hand, require a deeper level of knowledge to even begin the task at hand . This is why when you ask a trade business owner why they haven’t moved from manual paperwork to digital, they’ll likely tell you it’s “Because it does the job, everyone understands the processes, and it’s not worth the time learning something new”.

Changing such a mindset can be difficult, and it’s often tricky to put forward the right benefits to convince a stubborn paper user that the opportunities offered by a digital replacement far outweigh the cost of change. But like most things trade business-related, the battle for digitisation is won by showcasing to a resistant tradesperson the wealth of efficiencies that digital has over paper.

An end to lost or damaged paperwork, a filing system that doesn’t take up half the office, and no more dealing with illegible handwriting. Thousands of years ago, we shifted to paper because the alternatives offered by cave paintings and carving our shopping lists on stone weren’t great. Now it’s time for paper to become the lesser alternative, and resistant trade businesses need to look at what’s replacing paper and adapt to stay competitive in their market. Luckily, the options afforded by digital record keeping have covered virtually every need a trade business once had for paper. If you dream of streamlined workflows, faster payment for services rendered, improved operational efficiency and a clear business strategy, then digital holds far better prospects for your business than paper ever will.

But don’t hesitate. As more trade businesses make the jump, those who remain on paper will increasingly risk being left behind.

APPRENTICE VS FULLY QUALIFIED TRADIE

You’re ready to hire your next tradesperson but you’re not sure WHO you want to hire.

Do you hire an apprentice? Typically, they’re young and fresh and eager to please.

Or do you hire a fully qualified tradie? Typically, they’re more experienced and can work independently.

But which option suits YOUR business best? Read on to check out our pros and cons list of each.

APPRENTICES

They’re eager to learn

Majority of the time, hiring an apprentice is the same as adopting a new puppy who is eager to learn new tricks.

They’re a fresh slate, they haven’t come into your care with old habits that are hard to break, that don’t suit your way of working. You can train them how YOU want to train them.

BUT the training does take a lot of work, time, and patience (not to mention the time you will take enrolling them and speaking to the apprenticeship board). So, this is something you need to be prepared to undertake, and have the time to undertake, before hiring an apprentice.

Your investment could potentially lead to loyalty

The time you give up to train and mentor your apprentice, could potentially result in their loyalty to the business.

On average, Dr.DRiP’s apprentices stayed with the business for five years; the longest one stuck around for eleven!

Unfortunately, this might not always be the case, with some believing “the grass is greener on the other side” and moving on quicker than you might’ve liked.

You can attempt to negate this with a great culture, great benefits, and above award wages.

Don’t have massive upfront costs to the business

In fact, there are great apprenticeship incentives for employers.

As of July of 2022, employers who fall into a certain category can get a wage subsidy of around 10% of wages for first and second year apprentices up to $1500 a quarter, and 5% of wages for third year apprentices up to $750 a quarter.

Alternatively if you don’t fall into the first category, you’ll get paid $3500 in two equal six-monthly installments for full-time apprentices.

It’s best to perform some quick research to understand which category you fall into, before hiring.

QUALIFIED TRADESPERSON

You can make profit on them immediately

Unlike an apprentice who might not have the skills to work alone, a qualified tradie can immediately work independently. Meaning they can instantly lighten your load and make you profit.

This however does come with a price tag. Gun tradespeople can cost top dollar to attract and retain, so keep this in mind when you look at your pricing and how much profit they’re actually making you on each job.

Most have developed communication skills

Because they’re a little older, and have previous work and life experience, qualified tradespersons tend to have better communication skills.

This means they’re better equipped to walk into a customer’s house and confidently take them through your sales process, and they can contribute to your team culture in a positive way.

On the other hand, the younger generation (you can negate this by hiring a mature aged apprentice) these days have their eyes glued to their phones, and rarely communicate face-to-face.

They require minimal training

Because they have the technical skills already, (majority of the time) all you need to do is train them on your processes (admin, invoicing, etc.) and off they go.

This removes the time investment from you and is a great option for those that are time poor and just need to offload their work instantly.

Keep in mind that not all tradies are willing to learn and adopt new processes, some can be stubborn and stuck in their ways!

Knowing all this, take a step back, and think about what will suit you and your business. Consider your current business structure, where you want to go in the future, your cashflow, and how much time you as the business owner have BEFORE jumping the gun and making a decision.

If you want to listen to Andy and Angela discuss the pros and cons and give you THEIR experience, scan the QR code to listen to The Tradie Show episode, ‘Your next hire: Qualified tradie or apprentice’.

HOW TO SPREAD RISK AND PREPARE FOR ANYTHING IN YOUR BUSINESS

If the last few years have taught us anything, it’s that the only thing certain, is change. Changes in the business environment, laws, and economy both globally and locally, can cause shockwaves within your trade business.

So the question needs to be asked — have you spread risk across your trade business to withstand tough times?

We outline how you can do that with The Power of 3 vs 1™ below…

Industry

What industry are you in? Plumbing, electrical, building or other? Most of you will just have one answer for this, however dual trade businesses will have a couple. There is no real risk here and therefore no action, but it needs to be said as each trade business will belong to a particular industry.

Market

This is who you work with… strata, real-estate, residential, commercial, or other. Lots of trade businesses only work in one market segment which is super risky. Imagine work from that segment completely drops off, then what? To spread your risk, you want to work with three different market segments for example 50% residential, 30% builders, and 20% real-estate.

Customers

Who are your specific customers within your market segments? You’re in risk if for example, a large portion of your work is in real-estate but you only have one real-estate branch on your books. You must have minimum three customers per market segment to spread your risk. The only instance this doesn’t apply, because you’ll want a lot more than three customers in this case, is if you do residential work.

Contacts

Again, this is a flow on from customers and markets. We’re going one step further and naming specific contacts you have at each real-estate, strata, builder etc. For example, if you work with strata, what is the strata managers name and contact details? What is their colleagues name and contact details incase (example) Sarah who you’ve only been in contact with, leaves? Ensure you have three contacts.

Products & Services

Do you understand your three most profitable products and services? I’m not talking about the low dollar jobs like taps and toilets for all you plumbers out there. It’s the BIG items like blocked drains, or switchboard replacements for electricians. Whatever it is, you need to make sure that you understand the three most profitable products and services that are required by your market segments, because that’s the work they will be asking you to complete.

Skill set

Your products and services will then dictate what skill set your team requires to complete the work. It might take some training for your staff to master the services you provide, but it is risky to not have everyone trained in these processes in case someone leaves the business, is sick, or is already busy on that particular day.

Team

As you start to grow in your business, it is important to have a minimum of three tradespeople employed in the business; because if one is sick, or one on holidays, you’ve still got two others to get the work done and keep money flowing into the business.

Pricing

What is your pricing model, hourly rate or flat rate? And do you charge all customers across all market segments the same pricing? Reducing risk here means understanding your hourly rate and how to profitably price for your business.

The important thing to remember here, is understanding how to reduce your RISK EXPOSURE across the business, so that you feel confident about every decision you make and can survive ANYTHING!

To get strategies around

The Power of 3 vs 1™, scan the QR code or head to MyLifestyleTradie to watch Angela’s presentation

‘Design A Profitable Business Model’.

Boost Your Mindset with Dr. Jodie Lowinger

Our partnership with Gotcha4Life is going STRONG! Just like your mental fitness should be.

But the reality for a lot of people is that their mental fitness is still in progress, which is why Gus Worland founded Gotcha4Life in the first place; and why we brought special guest, founder of Mind Strength, Doctor of Clinical Psychology, and Ambassador for Gotcha4Life Dr. Jodie Lowinger onto the stage at R&R!

In her presentation, Dr. Jodie talks about her Mind Strength method; how to conquer fear and anxiety, boost mental strength and resilience, improve mindset, and skills you can use to enhance your performance.

Do you have a Gotcha4Life mate?

Scan the QR code, or head to MyLifestyleTradie

to recap what she had to say!

Gotcha4Life’s mission is for everyone to have a Gotcha4Life mate – a go-to person you can rely on and talk to when times are tough, so no one has to worry alone. With a core vision of zero suicides, the Gotcha4Life Foundation is doing AMAZING work and we are so proud to be a part of the movement. Working in the trade industry, we understand the stress and isolation that comes with running a business, and how hard it can be to ask for help, or even recognise that you need it in the first place. That is why Lifestyle Tradie is so happy to support Gotcha4Life in their zero suicides goal, promoting mental fitness and the important message that no one should suffer alone.

LIFESTYLE TRADIE TEAM PROFILE

ALEXIS HOY

Member Experience Manager at Lifestyle Tradie

This magazine we are hearing from the one, the only, Alexis! She’s here to give you an insight into her background, and what she loves about Lifestyle Tradie.

For those who don’t know, Alexis originally started at Dr.DRiP Plumbing in the customer service and dispatch role. When Lifestyle Tradie was born, she moved into the Marketing (role at LT) position. Because of her INSANE knowledge of trade business, she has finally settled in as the Member Experience Manager, to help our members fasttrack their profits and freedom.

Let’s dive into a little more about what makes her tick…

What’s your favourite part of working for Lifestyle Tradie?

The community is so incredibly powerful. Unlike other companies that are traditionally transactional, Lifestyle Tradie is more than that, which is so rewarding. Watching everyone’s success (whatever that means to them!) has to be my favourite part. The help, support and relationships the community provides is so unique.

You’re known as ‘The Guru’ around the office, how do you always keep your finger on the pulse when it comes to trade business?

Honestly I really don’t know where this name has come from!!

I started at Dr. DRiP when I was 19 years old, so over the last 13 years I have seen a lot!

A lot of what I know is from learned experiences and conversations with others – not just through Dr. DRiP, but I have quite a few tradies in my circle of family and friends all of various trades, business sizes and stages in business. Between those conversations and being immersed in trade – you pick up a thing or two!

If you had to be a tradie, what industry would you choose?

Definitely not plumbing!! I think it would be landscaping. I quite like the design aspect of creating a vision from a blank canvas and watching it come to fruition –plus they have some pretty cool toys to play with in the process!

What’s something you like to do for fun?

Honestly as corny as it is –anything involving hanging out with the family! We love to go to the beach for a swim or to the park to play. Watching Harley and Hudson explore and seeing the joy it brings them is the best. I will also never pass up a good hang out with friends, sitting around a fire in one of our backyards with a glass of wine in hand!

We hear it all the time, the trade business owner is running around like a chicken with their head cut off, working day and night, and because they’re so busy they think “I’M KILLING IT!”

Then, at the end of the month, quarter, or year, they check in on their back account and find it’s EMPTY and there’s nothing to show for their hard work.

They’ve connected the fact that they’re busy with being profitable, but just because they’re working hard doesn’t mean they’re working smart and making any profit. The problem lies in the fact that TURNOVER (busy with MANY jobs) does not equate to PROFIT.

To truly earn profit, you need to… Check your hourly rate

WORKING YOUR A** OFF BUT NOT MAKING ANY MONEY?

Discover how to price for profit once and for all

How did you choose your hourly rate at the very beginning? For most, they look at what their old boss charged, or what their mates and competitors are charging, and pull a number out of thin air.

The reality is, this is rubbish. If you didn’t calculate your hourly rate based off a few things like overheads, wages, and other expenses, PLUS add a profit margin on top of that, you’re NEVER going to make money.

To take it back to basics, think about how you build a quote.

TIME

MATERIALS ADDITIONAL SERVICES MARGIN PRICE

If we unpack what this actually means…

Time is literally what it costs the business for a tradesperson/s to be on site to complete the work. If it takes 1 trades 8 hours to complete the work, times this by the rate you charge per tradesperson, NOT the tradespersons hourly rate because you still need to cover superannuation, insurances, sick leave, annual leave, and more. Not to mention the overhead costs of the business like marketing, rent, bookkeeping fees etc.

Materials is the RRP of everything the business supplies to complete the work plus a margin. Additional services includes things like skip bins, any equipment you need to hire, council fees, or any external contractors like traffic controllers. Margin is the profit you will make on TOP of the costs of the job. You aren’t in the business to break-even, so don’t.

… you will probably discover that you’ve been undercharging your customers for WAY TOO LONG!

SO DO YOU WANT TO CONTINUE TO DO UNPROFITABLE WORK?

If your answer is NO, scan the QR code or head to MyLifestyle Tradie to check out Lifestyle Tradie’s NEW Hourly Rate Calculator to ensure you’re charging the right price!

The phone ringing whilst you’re on the tools, under a house, in the roof, working your a** off… can be SUPER ANNOYING!

If you’re in the start-up phase of your trade or contracting business, answering customer phone calls is something that you look forward to. You’re HUNGRY for work and fall over yourself answering it with a big smile on your face and your best phone voice on.

But, the calls keep coming, and coming, and coming. Over time, you become sick of it, and think “ARGH! Not the phone AGAIN!”

Your interest in chasing the lead is gone, and you perhaps become complacent in how you answer the phone, or if you even do answer it. The result? You’ve lost the lead.

9 SIMPLE STEPS TO CONVERT MORE LEADS

Customers are not going to be impressed if you answer the phone with a gruff “hello” and don’t give a toss about the conversation you’re having with them; or if you don’t answer and then never call them back.

If you’re feeling this way about your phone calls, OR simply want to ensure you and your team have set processes to increase conversion on your incoming leads, then check out our easy to follow 9-Step Call Converter.

To go more in depth about what exactly goes into each step, scan the QR code below to check out ‘Master the Call Converter’ in MyLifestyleTradie.

Build Immediate Rapport

An update to one of our most popular templates, the Hourly Rate Calculator has dropped in MyLifestyleTradie recently! It is time to understand how important this number is and find out what your business’ hourly rate is, whether it needs to increase and the strategies to get it done!

The demands on a growing business impacts both those on the tools and in the office and hence there will come a time that you will be faced with a decision– to stay on the tools or move into the office. What would you choose? Discover who to hire next and how to hire them in the ‘Attract Rockstars’ section of the portal.

Phone: 1800 704 822

Email: info@lifestyletradie.com.au

Web: www.lifestyletradie.com.au

Tradie Magazine is published by and © copyright by Andrew & Angela Smith, Lifestyle Tradie Group Pty Ltd 2023. All Rights Reserved. This newsletter and any accompanying material are for general information purposes only. It is the responsibility of the reader to comply with any local, state or federal laws. The Publisher has taken all reasonable measures to ensure that the material contained within this newsletter is correct. The Publisher provides no representation and gives no warranty as to the accuracy of the information and does not accept any responsibility for errors or inaccuracies in the information contained herein and shall not be liable for any loss or damage arising as a result of any person acting in reliance on information contained herein.