Lifestyle Tradie Magazine #63 January - June by Lifestyle Tradie

ISSUE #63 – JANUARY - JUNE 2022 EDITION

Subbies vs. Full Time WHICH IS BEST FOR MY BUSINESS?

The Great Resignation

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HOW TO KEEP YOUR STAFF IN THIS TURBULENT TIME

Angela’s tips FOR HANDLING NEGATIVE REVIEWS

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ASHLEY WOOLF

WOOLF PLUMBING — VIP DIAMOND MEMBER

HAVE YOU LISTENED TO

OUR PODCAST YET?

FROM THE DESK OF

ANDY SMITH

WHERE HAVE ALL THE GOOD TRADIES GONE?

ISSUE #63 – JANUARY – JUNE 2022 EDITION

CONTENTS 16

Tradie Viral Videos

Lifestyle Tradie Member Profile — Ashley Woolf Woolf Plumbing

Subbies or Full Time Staff: Which is better for business?

07 — We are proud to partner with Gotcha4Life! 12 — What a ripper! — The Gold Coast R&R was one of our best! 13 — The Tradie Show — Together In Trade Business Podcast 20 — AroFlo – Avoid these common pitfalls when digitising your trade business

Lifestyle Tradie Live BACK in 2022!

Great Aussie Resignation

The Air-Fryer Tradie 2

Angela’s tips for handling negative reviews L I F E S T Y L E T R A D I E .C O M . A U

FROM THE DESK OF

Hey Tradies! Here’s a tricky question: Where have all the good tradies gone? I think all trade business owners could agree, Australia and New Zealand wide, that there is a massive shortage of good tradies in the marketplace. What’s worse is that we are all hammered with so much work that we need topnotch staff NOW, but there’s just nobody available! There’s a simple explanation for why there are no young gun tradies in the industry right now: Kids aren’t being encouraged to take on a trade. I believe this shift has come from the technology sector over the last decade. The tech industry is championed as the front runner in the job market, as many cite these roles as having the highest level of job security and financial growth long-term.

Yes... it is true that technologybased jobs like coding and app development have exploded in the last decade. However, it’s also true that trade based work has also gone through the roof — we’re more in demand right now than ever before! That’s why it surprises me that teachers and parents don’t want to acknowledge that trade based jobs like plumbing, electrical and construction are also high on job security. As tradies, we live healthier, more active lives, earn more, and we don’t stare at a computer screen all day. Plus it’s one of the most accessible industries to be able to “go out on your own” to work for yourself or build a business and lifestyle you want! So, why is becoming a ‘tradie’ still seen as the ‘high school dropout’ option when there are so many avenues for success?

Start to celebrate being tradies, showing kids and teenagers the benefits that taking on a trade skill can have on their future. We need to change the way schools and parents talk to their kids about trades, and we need to be better about the way we talk about being a trade ourselves. By taking pride in our industry, showing kids the different avenues that becoming a tradie can give them, and encouraging intelligent kids into trades might mean going forward, we won’t have the mass trade staffing issues we’re currently facing. It really is that simple! Cheers,

Andy Smith

LIFEST YLE TRADIE MEMBER PROFILE – WOOLF PLUMBING

LIFESTYLE TRADIE

MEMBER PROFILE ASHLEY WOOLF

WOOLF PLUMBING

VIP DIAMOND MEMBER

1. Tell us a about your business, life and family. Woolf Plumbing was born after I met my now wife, Josie. I fell into plumbing after I was offered work experience as a plumber in year 10 at school when at the time I actually wanted to be an electrician. I worked for a local company in WA for two years on the tools and two years in the office running dispatch. I decided to go it alone and became a sole trader tubing new build homes in the 40ºC heat.

Things changed when I joined as a member of Lifestyle Tradie and started to get some clear processes into place. The business began to run more efficiently and with less effort from myself. I was taking on another two staff and getting off the tools. We struggled with marketing for about a year, waiting to gain traction with outsourced companies and then, once under control, we struggled with staff. We are now sitting at three techs on the road, myself in the office and an outsourced admin and marketing team.

The plan was to build a ‘construction team’ to do new build homes while I would go out and do maintenance jobs. This was against the advice of a more experienced site plumber. He told me the numbers didn’t work and I wouldn’t make enough money… PFFFT… what did he know?

Our main work is domestic and commercial maintenance, with a dash of commercial construction and domestic renovations thrown in the mix. We have had comments from bigger, more established businesses that we seemed to have just popped out of nowhere, having become well known locally by our customers and the community as a business that provided exceptional service.

Apparently, a lot! It wasn’t long before I had two apprentices and wondered why I only just had enough money to make payroll, often at the sacrifice of my pay.

The journey has had its ups and downs, making a small net profit each year (nothing to rave about). On the down days, I often thought about jacking it in and getting a “job, job” but forever reminding myself of why I started a business in the first place is what puts me back on track, and that’s to get my dream of being a hands-on Dad.

L I F E S T Y L E T R A D I E .C O M . A U

LIFEST YLE TRADIE MEMBER PROFILE – WOOLF PLUMBING

For the time I have been working on the back end of the business, I have managed to pay myself a consistent wage, but even more than that, I get to be there in the morning when my little boy wakes up and be able to put him to bed each night. Ezra is now three, and Josie and I have another one on the way’ to ‘Ezra is now three, and Josie and I have just welcomed a little girl too. One boy and one girl! Bucket list… tick…tick! We love going on short trips and watching Ezra’s eyes light up as he experiences the world. We live a happy life and are forever grateful for all we have, not wanting anything more except maybe even more time to do things together. (And Josie wants a Range Rover…Life Goals!)

2. What do you love most about what you do? I have always loved doing a trade. When I was younger, I would work with my dad as an electrician and loved plumbing when I started straight after finishing school. More than anything, I loved the fault finding and fixing! I really enjoy being able to teach our employees not just about plumbing, but business too. Owning a business has introduced me to so many amazing people who have helped me in more ways than I could ever imagine and has also allowed me to guide others in similar situations to those that I was in years ago. Seeing someone else thrive or gain success from something I helped with is where I get my kicks these days. But again, I love what I do the most because it gives me the time and freedom to be there for all those critical moments and events in my family’s lives!

3. 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?) Before joining Lifestyle Tradie I was a little lost. I knew flat-rate pricing from my previous employer but couldn’t get anything to stick. Nothing was consistent, and I didn’t know where to start. Cash flow was always an issue because I never knew my numbers and didn’t even consider overheads. I was required to be there all the time and didn’t have any time to grow anything.

4. What specific results have you achieved since joining Lifestyle Tradie? Since joining Lifestyle Tradie, the first thing I got back was time. Getting onto my processes early on stopped my phone ringing and allowed me to then work on my flat rate book. These two things turned the business around as we were making more money than we ever had before. We weren’t making crazy profits because that’s when I came off the tools full time. Having two guys on the field paid for all our wages and an outsourced admin team. Since then, taking on new guys has allowed me to build the back end infrastructure of Woolf Plumbing to a position in which we are ready to scale. Each strategic step, aided by Lifestyle Tradie, has gotten us to where we are now, and I must say (most of the time) with very little stress. The business has made a consistent small net profit while providing a decent director salary, for the most part, doing an 8am - 4pm day.

I S S U E # 63 – J A N U A R Y – J U N E 2022 E D I T I O N

LIFEST YLE TRADIE MEMBER PROFILE – WOOLF PLUMBING

5. Where do you see your business in five years? In 5 years, I see the business running itself. The plan is to build the business in teams of 5 with a team leader running each team. I would love to have 10 - 15 techs on the road and maintain business relationships and take plenty of time off. We want to start giving back in the broader sense, working with local charities, helping the homeless and disadvantaged kids.

6. What are the top three things you have learnt about business that you would recommend to other tradies and why? Tip 1. Time is your biggest asset. Everyone has the same 168 hours in the week, but what are you doing with yours? So, in saying that - delegation is the key. Delegate anything worth less than your time! Tip 2. KNOW YOUR NUMBERS!!!! You can’t make any good decisions without knowing what’s going on in the business. Get familiar with GP and NP and read a P&L. How does increasing “leads in” by 1 or 2% affect the bottom line? What happens if you then grow your average $ sale? If you don’t track these things, you can’t know and you don’t know what’s working and what’s not. Tip 3. Be kind. Life and work are so much nicer when you spread kindness; when you do things for others, when you help, when you give back and when you give a smile. No one ever achieved anything by being mean, getting one up on someone else, winning an argument or belittling someone.

7. Tell us something quirky about yourself that your buddies don’t know? When I was little, I wanted to be a tree when I grew up. Since I don’t have a middle name, I told my mum to start calling me Ashley Tree Woolf. One night my family and I were playing a scary board game called Atmosphere where you would put a VHS in (yes, I’m old enough for VHS) the video player and the guy on the screen would change from a man to a skeleton as the timer run out on the board game. When it was my turn, the guy on the screen asked my name and I told him it was Ashley Tree Woolf and then he said, “WELL, THAT’S A STUPID NAME”. I thought it was real and ran out of the room crying. Please don’t ask how old I was. I either can’t remember or was old enough to block it from my memory.

If we were sitting here one year from now celebrating what a great year it has been, what have you achieved together in both business and life? If we were celebrating one year from now, I would be a father of an amazing, inquisitive little boy and a beautiful little girl. I would have succeeded with my first 5 techs on the road, one being a team leader and myself not having anything to do with operations.

L I F E S T Y L E T R A D I E .C O M . A U

WE ARE PROUD TO PARTNER WITH GOTCHA4LIFE!

We are proud to partner with Australia’s leading mental fitness charity, GOTCHA4LIFE We are so proud to announce that Lifestyle Tradie is partnering with Australia’s leading mental fitness charity, Gotcha4Life! Gotcha4Life was founded in 2017 by well-known television and radio presenter, Gus Worland after close mentor and friend Angus, devastatingly took his life. Like we see too often, Angus seemed to have it all – he was a happy and respected man with a loving family, close friendships and great career. But he had inner worries and sadness, and he never told anyone about it. The stigma around masculinity stops way too many from reaching out to ask for help when they are struggling. The charity’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.

I S S U E # 63 – J A N U A R Y – J U N E 2022 E D I T I O N

To hear more about the Foundation, scan the QR code for our special edition podcast episode on ‘The Tradie Show Together In Trade Business’ with the wonderful Gus Worland. To find out more about Gotcha4Life workshops and training go to www.gotcha4life.org/ programs Plus, keep an eye out... we’ve got big things in the works with the Gotcha4Life Foundation, so stay tuned!

SUBBIES OR FULL TIME STAFF: WHICH IS BETTER FOR BUSINESS?

SUBBIES OR FULL TIME STAFF: WHICH IS BETTER FOR BUSINESS? Subbies or full-time staff… this is a question that every business owner has pondered. Getting your staffing mix right at the best of times is tricky! So to help out anybody currently ‘umm-ing’ and ‘aah-ing’ over which to choose, here’s our handy pro/con list!

Subbie Pro •

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Subbie Con

When you are JUST starting out, or in a growth stage of your business, then a subbie is a great way to ‘test the water’ without complete commitment.

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They’re AWESOME when you feel you are ready for a new tradesperson but don’t feel you have enough consistent work for full-time staff.

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Full Time Pro

Full Time Con

The big one is consistency! Subbies can let you down, so having your business depending on subbies labour, can get you in hot water!

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Certainty & control! They’re your staff so you can train them to work the way YOU want them to.

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For instance: If they get busy with their own work, they will prioritise theirs over yours and leave you high and dry!

They can grow with you as you scale the business.

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You can rely on them to be involved and committed.

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You have to hustle for new work to keep up with enough work to keep F/T staff busy. Feels like you can never take a breath or a day off.

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Finding good full-time staff is one of the biggest headaches for tradies at the moment, we have a HUGE shortage of good tradies.

L I F E S T Y L E T R A D I E .C O M . A U

SUBBIES OR FULL TIME STAFF: WHICH IS BETTER FOR BUSINESS?

Subbie Pro •

You have no commitment with them, for instance: if you don’t like them or work dries up, you’re not in any binding agreements to give them work. They just don’t work that week and you save BIG on wages!

Subbie Con •

Subbies often don’t follow your systems! They see themselves as their own business with their own processes, so the quality of work may differ.

For Andy’s FULL subbies or full time pros vs. cons breakdown, check out our dedicated episode of ‘The Tradie Show’ podcast - scan the QR code below to listen!

Full Time Pro •

You can build a relationship with them, and they can help you with the ‘big picture’ of your business and actually HELP your business to grow and succeed, feel like they are here for the long term.

Full Time Con •

Have to pay for sick leave, paid time off, personal days, deal with HR and flexible hours … and all of this must be done 100%! You can’t cut corners or you may end up in BIG legal issues, or a high turnover.

I think if subbies were excellent on the tools, gave you 100% loyalty AND followed your systems… we’d probably all have subbies instead of full-time staff! The reality is, you don’t get this level of control with subbies, but you DO with full-time staff. I’m a certified CONTROL FREAK, so I’ll always opt for control, even if it costs more. My advice is: Subbies are GREAT for when your workload suddenly increases, but full-times are better to build a sustainable business foundation!

I S S U E # 63 – J A N U A R Y – J U N E 2022 E D I T I O N

GREAT AUSSIE RESIGNATION

How to keep your staff through this turbulent time

“The Great Resignation” was coined in early 2021 in the USA. There was a significant spike in job leavers during the COVID-19 pandemic, with the American workforce leaving their roles in record numbers, putting the economy in turmoil. Australia soon followed suit, also seeing a shift in much of the workforce leaving their jobs. LinkedIn cites a 26 per cent jump in Australian workers moving from one company to another in October 2021, compared with the same time in 2019, before the pandemic. While this ‘grass is greener’ phenomenon has somewhat been contained in the high rise business world, we are not immune as trade business owners. It’s like a domino effect, people start to see others chopping and changing jobs, and your staff get that same itch. Trade business owners and their staff have been pushed to the limits over the last few years. We’ve battled against surging workflow, material shortages, work-stand down notices, and border closures. Combined with the chopping and changing regulations, uncertainty, and the strain businesses have been put under, many trade staff have been denied pay raises or the flexibility their roles previously offered, causing understandable tensions between staff and workers.

So whilst we’ve fared well as an industry, and many of us business owners have still turned a profit this year, we must consider the compounding impact the last few years has had on our staff and consider what steps we as business owners can take to lessen the blow. According to Sydney Morning Herald:

“Employees with in-demand skills have more bargaining power than they’ve had in decades.”

— Caitlin Fitzsimmons “Australia’s version of the ‘great resignation’ revealed as staff swap jobs”, November 14, 2021

L I F E S T Y L E T R A D I E .C O M . A U

GREAT AUSSIE RESIGNATION

National statistics have been released noting that: 48 per cent of Australian workers planned to look for a new job in the next six months, and 15 per cent were already looking for a new job. Nearly half said a pay rise would entice them to stay.

Scan the QR code below to listen to our podcast now!

So the advice is: make sure your staff are satisfied within their current role, or you might find your staffing turnover goes through the roof! The Great Australian Resignation is absolutely upon us, and its looming impact on the trade industry must be taken seriously. We’re not saying hand money over fist to your workers, but there’s no harm in having frank conversations about their happiness at work and what you as a boss could do to make it better. Sit down with your workers and outline a working progress plan — what career trajectory they are aiming for, and how your business can assist them. If they are keen on a pay rise, check out our podcast episode, “I want a pay raise” how to use KPI data to measure staff performance” and get some handy tips on how to introduce KPI’s into your team to measure their performance, to allow them to aim towards pay increases.

Overall, sta–ng shortages are plaguing our industry. This Great Resignation must be looked at with sincerity, and action plans must be formulated to keep our trade businesses ahead of the curve or we too will be faced with high turnover rates and lost income as a result.

I S S U E # 63 – J A N U A R Y – J U N E 2022 E D I T I O N

LIFESTYLE TRADIE MEMBER EVENT

18th & 19th March 2022 • Gold Coast What an absolute RIPPER of an event. One of the best things about being a Lifestyle Tradie member is our community. It’s what we are the proudest of because we are STRONGER TOGETHER! Our R&R events, which happen three times a year in a different city around Australia, are a chance for all our members, new and old, to share in some awesome trade business learnings, to connect AND have some fun! March’s ReIgnite & ReUnite event was no exception; we saw so many members leaning on one another for advice, support or just to have a chin wag about the various challenges that come with owning a trade business. Sometimes it is just nice to know someone else has been through what you’re going through and has come out the other side better for it! Our guest speakers stole the show! We kicked off Friday with chuckles thanks to Tom Potter - founder of Eagle Boys Pizza. His fantastic journey in business stunned us all, with so many foundational takeaways, from not trying to please everyone to being a zebra amongst horses. You can hear more of his trade business insights in the upcoming new season of our podcast ‘The Tradie Show - Together In Trade Business!’ We were blown away by the razzle-dazzle of magician and sales expert, Josh Norbido. His card tricks and business teachings were mesmerizing... and we are all still wondering how he pulled those cards out of thin air?! That’s the magic of business though! Not to mention the groundbreaking insights from Dr Gina Cleo around our how to break old habits and create new ones, and Chris Gray talking all things wealth creation through property for our Diamond Members.

We ensure that every single presentation at our R&R is of the highest quality! Our goal is that every member walks away with a suitcase full of new information and ways of managing their trade business, and get a one-up on the competition! It’s not all learning, after each day we let our hair loose and P.A.R.T.Y! This year our members WOWED in their retro gear, turning heads as they strutted through the QT hotel, our awesome location for the weekend. We busted a few moves (and maybe a few hips) on the dance floor and everyone showed what tradies are truly made of! We would love for you to be a part of the Lifestyle Tradie community! Book in a FREE strategy session with Andy TODAY to discover what is holding you back and how we can help! What are you waiting for? Head to www.lifestyletradie.com.au/strategy-session to book now

THE TRADIE SHOW — TOGETHER IN TRADE BUSINESS PODCAST

The Tradie Show: Together In Trade Business

5 MUST-LISTEN EPISODES Listen on

Season 4: Hourly rate or flat rate - which is RIGHT for your business? Implementing the WRONG pricing structure might be holding you and your business back from making big profits and costing you big time. Instead of relying on your past boss did, weigh up the facts to find out what is best for you and your business.

Season 4: Inspiring a generation of kids to take on a trade - Guest starring Logan & Jesse from Trade Collective Two tradies, Logan Dodds and Jesse James, are inspiring a generation of kids across Australia and New Zealand to consider the trade industry as their career of choice. They share their plan for future-proofing our economy & trade industry by proudly encouraging school leavers to take on a trade apprenticeship.

Season 1: How to put profit first in your trade business - Guest starring best selling author, Mike Michalowicz “If something is important we put it first, so why in business do we put profit last?” Mike Michalowicz, author of best-seller ‘Profit First’ joins The Tradie Show to share his profit-making methodology and insights into how to pocket big $$$ in your trade business.

Season 2: Andy’s tips to cut 50k out of your business! Andy shares his tried and tested tips for cutting 50k out of your business overheads, so you can STOP wasting money and instead start making AWESOME profit!

Season 1: Mental fitness and supporting a mate can save a life - Guest starring Gotcha4Life founder, Gus Worland Gus Worland, Triple MMM heavyweight and founder of mental fitness charity Gotcha4Life joins the show to chat about the rising number of suicides in Australia, and how each of us can help to prevent them. Content warning: some listeners may find this topic distressing. I S S U E # 63 – J A N U A R Y – J U N E 2022 E D I T I O N

THE AIR-FRYER TRADIE

Take a moment to imagine... It’s a brisk cold winter morning on the job site, your coffee cup is almost empty, and the long stretch of the day ahead is beginning to unfurl before you. Rubbing your dry, hazy eyes, feeling somewhat uninspired for the day ahead, you begin to daydream about the warm, crispy familiar smell of hot chippies and nuggets. The whisper of the fried food makes your mouth water, and suddenly, you find yourself overcome by the impossible dizzying smell. As the crackling aroma becomes stronger and stronger with the passing moments, you realise this cannot possibly be contained to your imagination. Confused and somewhat dazed, you whip your head around to locate the source of the tantalising smell, concerned perhaps this might be the first sign of a “burnt toast stroke” smell. In the corner of your eye, you spy the source of the mysterious but alluring morning scent.

L I F E S T Y L E T R A D I E .C O M . A U

THE AIR-FRYER TRADIE

It’s coming from your apprentice, he’s crouched over an outlet, cradling a bloody Kmart AIR-FRYER, cooking up his greedy morning feast. Torn between yelling at the lazy sod for not working and desperately wanting him to share, you pull out your phone and film the lazy-geniuses crazy idea and post it to your social media. That’s precisely what happened to one young Aussie bloke - who was soon dubbed by The Daily Mail as “Apprentice of the Year” for his daring yet ingenious lunch hack. The tradie became an overnight sensation for his worksite food, inspiring hundreds of other tradies to nick their mums air-fryer and lead Kmart shelves to be stockless suddenly. In it’s own right, air-fryer’s have become an internet sensation for it’s ability to cook delicious food on the go. The appliance is loved by all, so much that one USA Dad-to-be bringing an air-fryer to the hospital to “cook chicken tenders” whilst his wife was in labour. Interesting priorities?

The compact and efficient cooking appliance has now stolen the hearts and minds of tradies nationwide, and it’s #1 on our list and coming soon to a job site near you!

I S S U E # 63 – J A N U A R Y – J U N E 2022 E D I T I O N

TRADIE VIRAL VIDEOS

In the age of Instagram, TikTok, YouTube and Facebook, viral videos still reign supreme. These platforms have been perfectly formatted to support posting, sharing and liking of video content in a way that would have made us dizzy just a few short years ago. Long gone are the days of the hit TV show “Australia’s Funniest Home Video” in which humorous video watching was contained to a halfhour weekly television installation. We are now bombarded with endless, targeted, 1-minute max video content to mindlessly watch (possibly during work hours) to what seems like no end.

HOWEVER, TRADIES ARE THE BIGGEST PLOT TWIST BECAUSE WE ARE SURPRISINGLY NOW AT THE PEAK OF THIS SENSORY CONTENT RISE. Liam Palumbo Teenage tradie goes viral walking Parafield Gardens streets for work

Cats were once the trending video of choice, but with the rising stress, insecurity and uncertainty over the last few years, the humorous cat has been replaced with ASMR content (autonomous sensory meridian response.) If you’re not familiar with the term, ASMR basically means quiet and relaxing videos. These videos are mesmerising as a viewer and brainmeltingly good. They have no real purpose other than releasing some serotonin and being calming to watch.

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TRADIE VIRAL VIDEOS

That’s correct; tradie viral videos are currently trending across all platforms under this ‘ASMR’ banner and are multiplying in popularity. For instance, there is one account, who films himself cutting grass in perfectly straight lines, repeatedly on loops, and currently has got over 500 million views. Yes, 500 million views of a landscaper cutting grass! Sounds crazy, right? But the numbers don’t lie. Another mind-boggling account is a plumber who like all other plumbers, unclogs drains. He posts daily unclogging videos and is named as one of the mostwatched content creators on the internet. FOR. UNCLOGGING. DRAINS. Mindblown. If you are sitting there scratching your head, totally confused, then we promise, you are not alone.

Putting the absurdity of WHY these videos are so popular aside, we should focus on unlocking the potential opportunities and where we as business owners can piggyback on the trend. The takeaway from this totally confusing trend is if these platforms are where your avatar is consuming content, you also need to consider if creating these types of videos should become a part of your marketing strategy. The ‘satisfying’ video content isn’t studio production, with high-quality lighting, sound and editing; it’s simply a bloke with a phone and a social media account. So you don’t need to be a tech-guru to start producing these videos, and if you head online, you’re not short on inspiration!

Why not show yourself doing something you do everyday and gain more followers to your social media accounts? Ride this weird wave until the next ‘internet sensation’ takes over but for now, let’s celebrate that tradies are at the forefront of the digital landscape! Abe Simpson is hitting home, and even the millennials are struggling to explain what exactly it is about these ASMR tradie videos that are so enticing to watch and where the source of their magic lies. Don’t believe us? Open any social media account now and search for your trade, and we guarantee you’ll find hundreds of thousands of videos. If you search ‘plumbing’ on TikTok, there are 341.2 million related plumbing videos, and similarly, ‘carpentry’ has over 590 million eye-watering views. Instagram holds similar unbelievable stats with endless reels available for consumption.

I S S U E # 63 – J A N U A R Y – J U N E 2022 E D I T I O N

Scan the QR code to see some truly strange tradie ASMR videos and get your business on the bandwagon.

LIFEST YLE TRADIE LIVE BACK IN 2022!

LIFESTYLE TRADIE LIVE BACK IN 2022! THE BEST TRADE BUSINESS TRAINING!

What is Lifestyle Tradie Live? It’s not your fault you’re feeling stuck. You’ve never been taught how to be a business owner, have you? Lifestyle Tradie Live is a series of educational events for tradies in business who want to Start Up, Scale Up, Sell up! Presented by Andy and Angela Smith, fellow trade business owners and award-winning educators. This FREE five-hour intensive training day is packed with practical takeaways for every trade business owner.

Those who attend, get the insider rundown on: SYSTEMS The only way to break the crazy cycle you’re in is through systemising your trade business. Through systemising, your trade business will reap many benefits, from productivity to profitability. Without systems, you’ll never be able to scale and have control. You’ll learn:

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How to set up and better utilise your job management systems.

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The four types of key data you should be tracking to keep your business thriving.

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How to change course and make decisions based on your data, the cold hard facts.

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LIFEST YLE TRADIE LIVE BACK IN 2022!

PROFIT

TECH

As trade business owners, the aim is to get the most profit we possibly can from our business, the question now is, do you know if you’re making money on each job? Interested in learning more about your businesses profits and how to increase them?

There is power in data, but you need the right tech set up to get the right data. We’re here to teach you the easy way to collect, decipher and implement a dashboard into your trade business, easy as!

We’ll take you through:

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How to know the right hourly rate for your business. What are the key financial mistakes every tradie makes. PLUS a sneak-peek into OUR profitable financial dashboard.

SALES Consider the sales strategies you currently employ — How are they working out for you? What’s important is creating the right circumstances for buying to take place. As tradies in business, it’s up to you to equip our team with effective sales stills like these:

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9-step call conversion strategy. How cross-selling and upselling drives sales. The art of communication with customers.

COME AND JOIN US

We’ll take you through:

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How to set up and better utilise your job management systems. The four types of key data you should be tracking to keep your business thriving. How to change course and make decisions based on your data, the cold hard facts.

MARKETING You don’t need to spend big to get results, there’s value in low-cost marketing if you know how to do it right! We’ll give you 100+ marketing ideas for your trade business to ensure your marketing:

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Attracts new customers. Delivers results. Retains current customers.

REMEMBER

You were set up to fail. Nobody ever taught you how to run a business, so you should be expected to walk the road alone! We’ve been there, done that so you don’t have to waste your time AND MONEY on implementing the WRONG business strategies. We’re here to help you succeed! We can’t wait to see you at the event.

24th May

PERTH

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I S S U E # 63 – J A N U A R Y – J U N E 2022 E D I T I O N

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AROFLO – AVOID THESE COMMON PITFALLS WHEN DIGITISING YOUR TRADE BUSINESS

PARTNER SPOTLIGHT

Avoid these common pitfalls when digitising your trade business Article by AroFlo Let’s not beat around the bush; changing core parts of your business can be tricky, especially if you run a trade or service outfit that operates five or even seven days a week. After all, you’re busy solving problems for clients all day, and even finding time to sit down and learn the ins and outs of something new can feel almost impossible. Maybe you’ve seen what other businesses have managed to achieve by moving over to a digital system, though, and you want a piece of that success too. But just like the reservations you have about learning something new, you worry that things won’t go right, or worse, will cost your business money.

After all, when you decide to digitise your trade or service business, you want to get it right the first time. Pitfall 1: Letting tech resistant employees rule your business Without a doubt, the biggest pitfall your business will face when digitising is whether the people who work for you are willing to take on the task of learning something new. Both you and your team need to be fully committed to incorporating a digital system into your everyday work, or the process just won’t work.

Be aware, though, that tech resistance comes in many forms and sometimes it’s not as easy to spot as you might think. Many people assume that technology resistance is the outright refusal to adopt new tech, but that isn’t always the case in the workplace. Take these two examples, neither of which are outright refusals to adopt a system and note how different they are while still being cases of employees resisting technology. For example; One of your field technicians appears very excited to start using your new digital system. However, even after repeated attempts to get them to sit down and start learning how to use it, they always have an excuse that gets them off the hook.

Pitfall 2: Thinking you have no time for a change As we mentioned at the start of this article, working five, six, or even seven days a week likely leaves you with very little time to make big changes to the way you run your business. But digitising your business is possible even on an extremely tight schedule. All it takes is the right attitude and careful research. In fact, getting caught in a mindset dominated by the belief that you can’t fit digitisation into your schedule might be losing you more time than actually digitising your business.

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AROFLO – AVOID THESE COMMON PITFALLS WHEN DIGITISING YOUR TRADE BUSINESS

Ask yourself, are you as time-poor as you think, or have you just not found a solution that fits your schedule? Many digital system providers who specialise in working with trade and service businesses will understand that their clients work hard for a living. Take what we do at AroFlo as an example. We know that job management software can be daunting to learn when you work all week, so our training is delivered remotely at a time of your choosing. We also split our training up into segments to allow users time to learn at their own pace before moving on. But that’s just how we do things, and many other providers deliver their digitisation services in ways that suit even the most time-poor business owners. Our advice is to shop around to see what’s available to fit your tight schedule because changes are there’s a provider who will fit your needs perfectly.

Pitfall 3: Considering costs over potential gains Another common mindset that many trade or service businesses have is that digital systems are expensive, and compared to pen and paper methods, the costs just don’t add up. This is understandable, as technology can be quite costly to set up and maintain. But what many people stuck in this pitfall don’t consider is how much efficiency they can gain by digitising their business.

Consider how your employees work in the field, likely handling large amounts of paperwork, including job cards, safety documentation and other crucial business records every day. Now imagine if instead of carting bags of paperwork home every day, they not only completed but also lodged their records while they were in the field. Field automation can have incredible effects on your business success and should never be forgotten when digitising your trade or service operation.

When deciding to digitise your business, we recommend looking closely at what you can gain from adding technology to your office and field teams. With both parts of your business running on the same system, both your employees and your business can take full advantage of what digital automation can offer.

Take digital invoicing versus traditional methods as an example. With an online invoicing system, you can dispatch invoices the moment your work is complete; just have the system make up the documents and click send. This process takes only a few seconds with modern technology versus the hours it takes to do your daily invoices by hand. So not only are you saving time in your workday that directly translates to more billable hours, but it also means you’re getting paid faster for your work. Although this is just a single example, it highlights how the concept of ‘cost’ is dwarfed by the potential gains that come with digitising your trade or service business. When researching solutions, try to take price out of the equation and look strictly at the benefits. If they are too good to pass up, then it’s likely worth spending the money.

Pitfall 4: Digitising your administration but ignoring your field operations A problem that many trade or service businesses run into when beginning to digitise their operations is assuming that digitising their administration is enough. But the reality is that significant increases in business efficiency (and profitability) are gained by digitising your field operations.

I S S U E # 63 – J A N U A R Y – J U N E 2022 E D I T I O N

ANGEL A’S TIPS FOR HANDLING NEGATIVE REVIEWS

ANGELA’S TIPS FOR HANDLING NEGATIVE REVIEWS When researching a new business or product, as customers we often look to see what the one-star, or lowest-rated review said. It’s human nature to want to know what the worst experience was, and how the company responded. It allows us to form a much better overview of how the business truly operates and how satisfied customers have been with the service. Therefore, it doesn’t matter if you’ve got 60 five stars and only 3 one stars; we guarantee every customer will read those three one-star reviews!

2. DON’T DELETE BAD REVIEWS! It’s tempting to delete the bad reviews, turn off comments, or remove negative comments - especially when on your social media pages. Doing so is a poor business practice, and customers may catch on and think twice about using your services. You should always respond and always allow comments and feedback to be seen.

As business owners, we must be mindful of this psychology (even though it can hurt to see!) So, here are my top tips for dealing with these not-so-great reviews in a manner that will help your business not be knocked down by it!! 1. Respond (quickly) to the complaint! Address the problem with sensitivity and empathy. Your response should either ask the disgruntled customer to contact you directly (and provide contact information) or potentially outline the situation and how your business tried to rectify it. That will show people that you’re actively trying to amend the situation and have taken tangible action.

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ANGEL A’S TIPS FOR HANDLING NEGATIVE REVIEWS

3. Don’t get angry or defensive! Not everyone can be reasoned with. If you stoop to their level, it will reflect poorly on your business, and potential customers likely won’t see both sides of the story. They’ll just see you, the business owner, attacking a previous customer (very uncool!) So, stay calm, cool and collected!

4. Report any FAKE reviews! Yes, sometimes competitors will leave FAKE bad reviews. It’s deplorable business practices, but not everybody operates ethically. If you can, call out that you don’t have a record of them interacting with your business (this shows potential clients that this review is fake), then report the fake review quickly, and where possible, block them from being able to re-comment or rate again.

Customer reviews will not be going away, as we digitalise our world more and more, having a formulated plan for dealing with reviews will become a necessary facet of your business!

Scan the QR code below to listen!

For more tips on how to deal with difficult customers, check out the podcast episode; Tricks to manage difficult customers & turn them into lifelong clients. Guest-starring Australia’s leading People-Skills Expert, Judeth Wilson.

I S S U E # 63 – J A N U A R Y – J U N E 2022 E D I T I O N

BRAND NEW PODCAST NOW AVAILABLE FROM LIFESTYLE TRADIE! If you LOVE ‘The Tradie Show’ podcast, then why not check out our NEW podcast “Lifestyle Tradie Audio Books”. Find all the chapters of our popular book, ‘Start Up. Scale Up. Sell Up.’ to listen to in the car or the office! The purpose of ‘Start Up. Scale Up. Sell Up.’. is straightforward: to provide you with the exact steps to build a profitable trade business by addressing the problems you’re facing — keeping up with technology, charging the right hourly rate, managing your cash flow, marketing, customer retention, and chasing debt. Written by Andy and Angela Smith, fellow trade business owners and co-founders of Lifestyle Tradie, this must-have book captures trade-specific strategies that work.

Search for “LIFESTYLE TRADIE AUDIOBOOKS” wherever you get your podcasts!

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Lifestyle Tradie Magazine is published by and © copyright by Andrew & Angela Smith, Lifestyle Tradie Group Pty Ltd 2022. 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.