March 4, 2025 • 38 mins
What if embracing technology could revolutionize your trades business? In this episode, I sit down with Jess Krellman, the innovative founder and CEO of Titan Advising Gurus, to uncover how Service Titan can transform operations and fuel growth in the trades industry. Jess shares her compelling journey from hands-on trades experience to mastering Service Titan, offering insights on overcoming the hurdles of integrating such a powerful system. By leveraging available tools and resources, contractors can streamline processes, enhance customer experiences, and drive success without feeling overwhelmed by technological adoption.
We'll uncover the secrets to optimizing Service Titan for maximum impact. Jess and I discuss the importance of setting up systems like Marketing Pro correctly to avoid inefficiencies and frustrations. Through relatable examples, we underscore the value of trusting the process and being patient for substantial improvements. Learn how a seamless customer experience, powered by well-monitored CSR and marketing scorecards, can boost positive reviews and customer retention. This episode provides a roadmap for aligning marketing efforts with performance to ensure businesses not only meet but exceed customer expectations.
Join us as we explore the mindset shift required to perceive technology as an investment rather than a mere expense. Jess emphasizes adapting to change and the transformative potential of Service Titan in streamlining operations. We highlight the importance of seeking help, utilizing online communities, and embracing empowerment to confidently navigate the technological landscape. Jess’s journey from mastering Service Titan to founding her own consultancy is a testament to the impact of technology on business growth. This episode promises valuable insights for contractors determined to turn technological challenges into opportunities for long-term success.
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From the Yellow Chair is powered by Lemon Seed, a marketing strategy and branding company for the trades. Lemon Seed specializes in rebrands, creating unique, comprehensive, organized marketing plans, social media, and graphic design. Learn more at www.LemonSeedMarketing.com
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We'll see you next time, Lemon Heads!
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:09):
What's up, lemonheads ?
Welcome to another episode ofFrom the Yellow Chair.
I'm Crystal and today I'msitting down with the founder
and CEO of Titan Advising GurusY'all.
She has deep experience withService Titan.
She's turned that really intothis fantastic mission where she
is helping businesses likeyourself maximize their
(00:29):
potential through smarteroperations and streamlined
technology.
And I don't know about you guys, but that word streamlining
just resonates with my soultoday.
So she's based out of Missouribut reaches far across the
United States helpingcontractors.
So grab your lemonade, settledown, let's sip some lemonade,
perfect.
Well, guys, I am so excited tohave Jess Krellman in the
(00:54):
virtual lemonade stand todaysharing about Titan Advising
Gurus.
So, jess, you know I startevery podcast off with why
should anyone care with what youhave to say today?
Speaker 2 (01:06):
Well, I have a pretty vast background when it comes
to the trades and marketing andservice titan.
For me, this is not just a job,it's a way that I can help
people.
It's a way that I can helppeople and I started actually in
a trades business and westarted using Service Titan
(01:31):
right when I onboarded with them.
So, from what I've done, I'veworked the whole system from the
ground up.
I've had to work throughService Titan on onboarding,
through setting up memberships,through setting up pro products
and learning all of the nuancesand all of the steps that go
(01:53):
into that and growing a businesswith the help of Service Titan.
So because I've been able to dothat actually in a business
setting and then move away fromthat setting into helping others
, I've been able to reallyunderstand Service Titan and
take it to the people and helpthem with their own accounts and
(02:16):
with their own journey withService Titan.
Speaker 1 (02:19):
So I love this.
So you kind of came from aworld of like student housing
and hotels and then you moveover to managing this HVAC
office and then you realize, ohmy gosh, we've got to learn all
these products.
So you know, one of the biggestissues I hear from contractors
is like the overall setup ofservice titan feels very
daunting to them, and so you'veactually been through that right
(02:40):
Like you even told me what likesort of trial and error you
just gained enough understandingto be able to dominate it,
because service time is a beast.
It's one of those likenecessary evils, but it is a
beast to deal with.
Speaker 2 (02:52):
Right, you can't know the whole system.
It is too robust, it goes waytoo deep in every single area.
So to and and also tounderstand how things talk to
each other, you know, to reallyunderstand the system all
encompassing and how one thingaffects another, it is daunting
and it does take a lot of time.
Speaker 1 (03:15):
Well, I shared, I share with contractors all the
time.
Like we just had our limitedconference not that long ago and
this guy raises his hand.
He's like I'm really thinkingabout moving from this software
over to service Titan, and youcan hear this visible auditory
moan in the audience.
But I love what you said here.
It's invaluable lessons ofadaptability, perseverance and
the power of leveraging thosetools.
And so a lot of times I'll tella contractor do not battle this
(03:39):
integration of a new softwareon your own.
There are too many resourcesnow to help guide you through
that process.
Like most contractors, like mybrother, my dad, my grandpa,
they were never engineers, theywere never coders, right.
So the idea especially thosethat are over the age of
probably 40, we're like, oh mygosh, this technology is so
(04:01):
daunting.
But it's about just having astrategy and a plan and, like I
preach this all the timeunderstanding the chaos that
might come.
So I don't want to be surprisedby chaos, I don't mind being
prepared for a little chaos.
But, um, you know, my sisterand brother-in-law um operate a
pest control company and theyjust went live with field grouts
, which is service time toanswer the pest control side.
(04:23):
Yes, and my sister was in thesame boat.
Yeah, my sister was in the sameboat.
She was like oh my gosh, butshe just kind of owned it and
ran with it.
Um, and so what were some ofthe biggest lessons that you
think you learned from being aservice titan user that you now
have applied towards people thatyou're supporting in the
industry?
Speaker 2 (04:44):
To ask for help.
Speaker 1 (04:47):
From Service Titan or from other friends?
What is the?
Speaker 2 (04:50):
best bet From anybody .
There are so many people, likeyou said, that use this system,
that have been through the trialand error, that have gone
through all of these stepsalready, just ask for help.
There's different Facebookgroups, there's the community
pages, there's the training thatthey've put together, the
certifications, and then there'scompanies like ours.
(05:12):
There are just so many optionsthat you have available that
weren't available a couple ofyears ago.
Even so, just take advantage ofthem.
Speaker 1 (05:22):
Yeah, the other thing , when we were prepping for the
call and you were talkingthrough some things and you made
some notes, I looked at thesenotes and I was like you know,
you make a note here like manyaccounts have been set up, many
things are set up but not active.
So I met with a contractor notthat long ago and he's like I've
been on marketing pro productsfor two and a half years and I'm
like, oh my gosh great.
(05:43):
Well, how's that working?
He goes yeah, I've never sentan email and I'm like stop it
right now.
Like how are we doing this?
You know?
Same thing with like sending outthe simple things like what I
call like an elementary size ofservice time.
Like you don't send out.
You know the text messages.
Yeah, the text message is likethat a technician is on their
(06:04):
way and here's who it is andreview automation and things
like that.
And so I love this idea ofasking for help through any of
the pro products, through thebasic things.
Again, as contractors, we arenot expected we shouldn't expect
ourselves to know the ins andouts, and so asking for help
(06:26):
from people that really canprovide the services I think is
a very like pro tip here andwhen you're asking for help.
Speaker 2 (06:30):
It can also bring in new ideas that you would have
never even thought of, adifferent way to work your
membership, a different way toinput it into the system.
It also eventually going tolead you through a little bit of
trial and error and that on itsown is a very valuable learning
tool and you can keep expandingyour business with those tools
that you kind of gather asyou're going through that
process.
Speaker 1 (06:51):
Well, you know I love being a service titan partner.
I was actually exiting myfamily's heating and air
conditioning company about thetime that they were really
starting to fully utilizeservice titan as a platform.
But I did realize, like, are weutilizing it to its full
potential?
Are we really taking advantageof the complexity of the program
(07:12):
itself?
And you know, I tell people allthe time, if you're not going
to utilize Service Titan for thebeast, that it is at least the
majority of what theopportunities are.
I really don't recommendinvesting in service titan at
that point, because you're notready and you pay for a product
that is a very good product, butyou're paying for it, right.
(07:33):
So if you're not ready to havegood product, you know good
information put in so that youcan spit good information out.
So you know what was that ahamoment for you?
Well, like when you realizelike hey, I'm pretty good at
this, like I feel like Iunderstand service type and
pretty well, maybe this shouldbe a business.
Speaker 2 (07:49):
It actually was a couple years previous.
I was just on one of the pages,one of the Facebook pages, and
some guy made a post aboutneeding help with his marketing
pro and I needed some extramoney.
And so I jumped in and I said Ican help you set that up.
I can make some phone numbers,I can do some campaigns, I can
do whatever it is that you want.
(08:10):
And he had had marketing profor a bit and it hadn't been
activated yet.
So I went in and I seteverything up on my nights and
my weekends and got thingsrolling.
At that same time he needed afew other things.
That was kind of out of my realmbecause, as I mentioned and as
you mentioned, service height isso vast so you don't know
(08:32):
everything of the system andthere were some areas that I
didn't have the best knowledge.
So I had Kim, who's our otherowner, come in and she worked on
a few things for him on theside as well getting set up in
his account, like his ACP, thosekinds of things and then we
just kind of took it from there.
It just kind of grew on its own.
(08:54):
It was Kim's idea to actuallymake this into Titan Advising
Gurus, and that's kind of wherewe're at at this point.
And that company, yeah, andthat company's still with us.
He's had tremendous growth.
He actually just moved into abigger um office.
Speaker 1 (09:12):
I think we love yeah, yeah, that's, that's phenomenal
.
And you know, again I'll saythis lemon seeds not for
everyone, your company'sprobably not for everyone, but
what we are trying to do here ishelp contractors grow in
whatever way, whatever piece ofthat puzzle we play.
And so for you guys like makingthe most, like so many
(09:32):
contractors Jess, you know thisare sitting on a treasure trove
of existing customer bases and,like you, are not using it.
So Limit Seed has this threebucket approach to marketing,
like one is branding, one iscall to action and one is
cultivation.
And in that cultivation bucket,literally it's about making the
most of everybody that's inyour database and 50% of the
(09:53):
time at least clients have nottouched their database.
Yeah, and then I have the otherhalf of the world who is like
inundated their database but atthe end of the day, like
consistent and continuous.
There is no silver bullet tothis.
It's very much aboutconsistency and about just
really knowing niching down onthose audiences that you have so
(10:16):
that you can speak to themwholly, and the pro suite has
some really cool things.
You have to go in with your eyeswide open, that you know.
Marketing Pro also requires youknow massaging and manipulating
to get it to do what's rightfor you, but definitely, you
know, trusting these partners,like you guys, is a great step,
(10:40):
because sometimes the bestopportunities, really, though,
for you came from recognizingwhen your skills were solving
solving common problems and soit's a great example of that.
Well, ok, let's jump into alittle bit.
Oh yeah, go ahead.
Speaker 2 (10:52):
I was going to say in Marketing Pro if you're not on
it, you really should bechecking it out, because it's a
fantastic tool and every singleone of our clients, and even
people that ended up not signingup with us that tool has done
so much for them.
Just like you said, hitting thedatabase, talking to people and
getting them involved indifferent ways, Marketing Pro
(11:15):
makes it so easy once it's setup.
Speaker 1 (11:18):
Yeah, yes, that's true, and we see great success
from the consistency ofautomation set up through
Marketing Pro.
So I love that, I love that.
So let's dig a little bitdeeper into that.
So I'd like to break down howbusinesses can kind of set up
and really optimize service typeand to really help improve,
like, their operations and evenbeing able to scale long term.
(11:39):
I mean, I know it's powerful,but again back to that whole
overwhelming term that we usedearlier.
Speaker 2 (11:45):
So you know, what do you think are some of the most
common mistakes that businessesare making when they're setting
up their service Titan that theydon't understand that service
Titan operates like a chain ofdominoes, that each piece is
interacting with the next andit's creating this powerful
interconnected tool that, whenproperly set up, it allows you
(12:10):
to generate reports and targetaudiences and analyze data.
But improper configuration orrelying on workarounds because I
hear that word all the time Ihave this workaround I have a
workaround.
Yes, it disrupts that harmonyand that setup and that chain of
dominoes.
Speaker 1 (12:26):
It just it knocks it all over and and you can't have
those the important thing aboutthose dominoes is that one
faulty domino throws the wholething off to your point and all,
and so those things are messedup all.
Yes, yes, it's important thatyou utilize the service in the
(12:46):
intended way that it was built,if at all possible 100%.
I understand that service timeis not perfect.
It has all these little caveatsin there.
Always, when you can utilize aservice or a platform or a pro
product in the actual way it wasintended and designed and built
, you tend to have greatersuccess with it.
But still, I know that there'sall the.
I watch those groups all thetime and I'm like man.
(13:06):
There's one little caveat thatthey missed on that, but I love
the domino example, because itis.
It is exactly like that.
Speaker 2 (13:15):
And and what's great about Service Titan is if you do
catch something that's off, youcan always tell them and that's
why there's all these updatesthat come out and everything and
I know drives people nuts, butit's because they are listening
to us If you're able to, toidentify an issue and let them
know about it.
But these, going back toworkarounds, the they they seem
(13:37):
like quick fixes and and waysthat are going to help the
business, but in reality, theydo create long-term issues for
the business and for your data.
Um, so I forgot where I wasgoing there you're gonna have to
pause that.
Speaker 1 (13:52):
No, you're good, you're good.
Speaker 2 (13:54):
I finally I finally was able to like lay over my
notes over the screen, so nowI'm actually being able to read
them.
Before I was just kind oftrying to go off memory um no,
where was?
Speaker 1 (14:07):
I here, you're good.
Um, lupita, just make a note ofum about 14 minutes in, just to
kind of clean.
No, you're fine, you're fine,she'll go look at it and take it
.
Girl, listen, it's normally me.
So we're killing it right now.
You're doing great.
No, you're doing great.
I'm going to tee you up onanother key issue is the system
(14:28):
itself.
Might be the problem lying inthe setup, so I'm going to kind
of tee up the setup problemagain.
Be the problem lying in thesetup, so I'm going to kind of
tee up the setup problem again.
All right, here we go.
All right, jess.
So I know I hear what you'resaying about this dominoes.
It's great, it's a greatexample, a great analogy of that
.
So you know, like, when you'relearning to generate a new
report or target a specificaudience, I do know like
sometimes I heard you say likethose workarounds really will
(14:50):
hinder the overall functionality, and then then you learn a bad
practice and then it affectseverything else, right?
Isn't that one of the keyissues that you identified?
Speaker 2 (15:00):
Yeah, and another key issue is thinking that the
system itself is the problem,when the real issue often lies
in the setup.
So I'm going to give you a quicklittle example here.
The trades company I workedwith had like sorry, the company
that I worked with previously.
They had Marketing Pro and itwas set up by a different person
(15:21):
within the company it was theirmarketing director and the
product wasn't performing so weweren't seeing any return at all
.
It was double sendinginformation, it was disrupting
the office and the CSRs and thedispatchers and everything going
on in there and it was just, itwas a hot mess.
It was bad.
So we ended up cancelingMarketing Pro with them and then
(15:42):
we switched to a differentintegrated product.
I won't say its name, but theymade a lot of promises of how it
was just like Marketing Pro andhow it integrated into Titan
and it did all these wonderfulthings that we couldn't do right
.
So we switched to them and thenwe were with them for maybe two
weeks and things were notworking the way that it needed
(16:02):
to be.
Actually, things got worse, ifyou can believe it which I could
not believe it, but it did.
So we decided to go back toMarketing Pro and this time we
set it up correctly.
We set it up from the ground up, we redid everything.
We didn't do anything like wedid in the past, and at this
time when we set it up, wereally understood how everything
(16:23):
worked together and once welaunched it, it immediately took
off.
It had the right setup, itunderstood how the system fed
from the client information andit started functioning the way
that service Titan hadoriginally told us that it was
going to function, and within amonth or two we I had it on
autopilot and it was paying foritself over and over again and
(16:46):
it was delivering even morevalue every single month.
So I guess my point is if youare facing any issues, don't
jump ship.
Let's rework it, let's make itthat it should, and a proper
setup can make a hundred percentdifference for you and your
company.
Speaker 1 (17:03):
Well, is that trusting the process?
Yes, when you trust the processof how things are supposed to
go and you give yourself time,grace, patience to work through
those things, you're much betteroff.
Again, so many people are likeI hear it every day literally
like, well, this doesn't work.
You know, this doesn't work forme.
(17:23):
And I'm like man.
I have one client that I am 90%sure was just set up terribly,
horribly incorrect, and so youknow, let me see, we're all,
we're all up in their marketingdashboard looking for tracking
numbers and what's performingand all of that, and so
sometimes what is this.
Yeah, I can immediately identifylike, oh gosh, y'all did
(17:45):
something crazy here, um, whathappened here, um?
But for sure, like, don't justjump ship.
Make sure that you are reallyfocusing on that you're set up
properly and that things feelgood and that you are trusting
the process for sure.
Well, what about the customerexperience?
Because you know people haveheard me talk about this quite
(18:07):
often.
You know, brand is veryimportant, but the customer
journey of a company trying todo business with you we should
not make it hard to do businesswith us, we should be accessible
, we should be up to date onjust local technology things,
and so how can optimizingservice type really impact not
just your operations but thatcustomer experience, the
(18:29):
customer journey?
Speaker 2 (18:30):
Yeah, with it, your CSRs will have instant, instant
access to everything related toa customer's account.
It'll be all in one platform,all in one place, and that
includes past appointments,upcoming appointments, marketing
communications All the otheressential data and details that
goes with that customer will beavailable at the click of a
(18:52):
button and it streamlineseverything, and that in itself
is a game changer for thecustomer experience, and with it
, customers will also havebetter and more reliable
communication because it'sautomated for the most part.
For example, they'd be informeddown to the day when their next
(19:13):
service is due, if they're on amaintenance plan and need their
AC or their furnace tuned up.
By enhancing that efficiency,the system directly translates
into a will help build trust andsatisfaction and it will create
a long-lasting positive impacton those customer relationships
(19:38):
that you have.
Speaker 1 (19:40):
Yeah.
So let me tell you ServiceTitan and CSRs again, there's
power in the connection.
There's power in a well, youknow, the communication being
reliable, being truthful, andthen good information into
service titan means goodinformation spit out of service
titan.
So when you really work to havegood efficiencies and good
(20:04):
processes, not only does thecustomer service experience
drastically increase, but youknow, like you mentioned,
everything becomes more accurateand more satisfactory to leave
a really good impact not only onthe customer, but also on your
own team being able to trustthat you know.
So I think the takeaway fromthis whole little section right
here is a well-setup servicetime account isn't just about
(20:26):
running your business as a whole.
It's about building a reallygood growth and a foundation for
growth and that customerloyalty.
So your csrs yeah, I meanthat's, it's kind of everything.
So, okay, let's talk a littlebit about something you
mentioned that link betweenoperations and marketing.
So we're going to drop somelike actual nuggets here.
(20:47):
You're going to tell us somegood, actual reports, but you
know, streamlining operationsthrough serviceTitan will
directly enhance your overallmarketing efforts for better
customer communication and alsobeing able to leverage the data
that we have learned already howwe can do it.
So I know you've talked aboutoperations and marketing being
closely tied, but what are someexamples of how ServiceTitan
(21:08):
really supports both ops andmarketing?
Speaker 2 (21:12):
Yeah, when it comes to reports, the campaign summary
report and the new customerreport are incredibly valuable
tools.
They'll allow you to see what'sworking and what isn't by
comparing the performance ofreturning customers versus new
ones.
So for a quick overview, themarketing scorecard is always
excellent and provides asnapshot of key metrics at a
(21:35):
glance.
I also make it a point tomonitor the CSR agent scorecards
.
Sometimes the marketing isperforming well, but the issue
lies in not closing the leads.
When that happens, Icollaborate with the office
manager to dig deeper into thedata and identify different
areas that we need someimprovement in.
Speaker 1 (22:00):
Well.
So when you identify thoseareas, do you see that sometimes
those tend to be the same areas, Like you start realizing that
a lot of these things are fromthe same place, right the same
place of inefficiencies and thesame issues.
So I don't know about you, butI mentioned this earlier.
Tracking phone numbers.
Yes, you know, I use the CSR.
So, from a marketing aspect, Ilove to look at the CSR
(22:21):
scorecards, mainly because if Ineed to identify, so you know,
marketing gets all the fault,all the blame for
underperforming businesses andnever any other credit for a top
performing business.
It's just the way that it is.
But sometimes, when I can getin there and try to navigate the
data, I can try to tell is thisa CSR problem or is this a lead
(22:42):
problem?
You know what is the realproblem here.
Speaker 2 (22:46):
Yeah, and that's why you need to look at everything
as a whole.
Speaker 1 (22:49):
Yes, yes, and so using those reports to really
get a good view and compareperformance and all of that is
really a great tool to use, andyou can automate those reports
to be in your inbox every otherday, every week, however you
want to look at those things.
But that marketing scorecard Itell everybody it is.
(23:10):
It is something that you willlove to hate because I don't
know about you, but likelistening to your own team's
calls is like torture.
I can't, I couldn't do it.
Oh my gosh.
Yeah, you're like, I've trainedon this.
They still do it wrong.
But the marketing scorecardreally is going to give you a
snapshot of some metrics quicklyand at a glance, and so even my
(23:31):
strategist at the lemon seedside when we're preparing our
monthly call for our clientsthey're going to go look at that
marketing scorecard and I'vehad people tell me I don't have
a marketing scorecard and I'mlike it's literally on your
dashboard.
You just got to scroll down alittle bit Scroll down, scroll
down.
But that marketing dashboard ittakes the tracking number, ties
it to the campaign and ties itto the revenue that was produced
(23:52):
.
So, again, it's not perfect.
You still need other insightinto the true customer journey
but what it does capture is thelast point of contact that a
customer has with your company,meaning they might have looked
at a paper PPC ad, they mighthave looked at your Facebook,
they might have gotten apostcard, but at the end of the
(24:12):
day they called off of yourGoogle business profile, they
called off your website,whatever that looks like, and so
that marketing scorecard givesyou the last point that made
them call.
And programs like Searchlightand things like that, they
actually give you the completedcustomer journey and it
complements that marketingscorecard really, really well.
But speaking of scorecards,that marketing scorecard really
really well.
But speaking of scorecards,managing that CSR agent's
(24:35):
scorecard one of the things thatI watched a client tell me last
year was like this is myhighest performing CSR and I was
like man, I've listened to heron the phone and she's not great
.
So what does he see that Idon't see.
Maybe I'm just missingsomething.
I don't live there.
And then I started realizinglike she's not answering the
phone, she's not booking calls.
(24:56):
Well, they were allowed toscore their own call.
Speaker 2 (24:58):
No.
Speaker 1 (25:01):
She's got a 97% booking rate and I'm like how
does this work?
Well, yeah, when you manage,everything is not a lead, then
you're going to have a greatscore, you're going to be a rock
star, yeah.
So really, like those of youthat are listening, that are
actual contractors that maybehave an office manager, I would
be very clear with my officemanager that what you're looking
(25:23):
for is the ability to take atire kicker and book the call,
take a marketing lead.
So we do it.
We spend a lot of money onmarketing right?
Lots of us do so.
Our goal is marketing's job isto get the phone to ring.
Operations goal is to get thework done correctly, and so
that's why we are where we arewith.
(25:43):
Like looking at thesescorecards is.
It is impactful and it willopen your eyes to a lot of
things that we're going, thatare going on well, and if
they're skewing those results,it's skewing the marketing.
Speaker 2 (25:54):
You're not.
You don't know where you'reputting the money.
Is it going in the right spot?
Is it going in the wrong spot?
I mean it goes deeper.
Speaker 1 (26:01):
Yes, I'm like we're making major decisions off of
trusting your CSRs.
Thousands of dollars a month.
Yes, yes, you have got to makesure that what I'm looking at is
correct.
So well, that kind of leadsinto how strong operations like
you think really translate intobetter reviews and referrals,
retention and things like that.
Speaker 2 (26:21):
Yeah, Strong operations are the foundation of
delivering exceptional customerexperiences, and that customer
experience is going to influenceyour reviews, your referrals,
your retention, and some of thereasons why is that consistency
and reliability.
You know when operations arewell-structured, services are
(26:44):
delivered consistently, on timeand as promised.
Customers always appreciatereliability and they're more
likely to leave a positivereview when that happens and
they're also going to recommendyour business to other people
family, friends.
Clear communication alsocreates strong operations that
(27:11):
customers are kept informed atevery step, with confirmations,
service updates, follow-up.
Clear, proactive communicationcontinues to build that trust
and that loyalty with yourcustomers and with your brand.
Yes, efficient problemresolution is another one.
With streamlined processes,issues are resolved quickly and
efficiently and it turnsnegative experiences into
(27:33):
positive ones and happycustomers are more often able to
leave more positive reviews.
Speaker 1 (27:38):
Well, just be solution-driven.
I just need you to besolution-driven and not focusing
on the problem.
Focus on the solution.
Speaker 2 (27:44):
Exactly, and an example of that is if you have
really clear guidelines and suchon how you're going to handle
these things.
You have a negative review thatgoes up, you immediately deal
with it, you put up a response.
If the customer turns out to behappy in the end from that
experience, they're going toturn around, they're going to
change that review for you,they're going to make it a
(28:04):
positive one, and there'snothing better out there than
seeing a negative review turnpositive, because that really
shows future potential customerswhat you as a business are
going to do and what you do foryour customers.
I think that that's very loudfor customers.
I really really do.
Yeah, and once operations arerunning smoothly, staff can
(28:27):
focus on providing thatexceptional customer service to
its clients, and data-driveninsights, such as strong
operations, can leverage toolssuch as reporting and scorecards
to identify trends and areasfor improvement, and this helps
ensure that customers' needs arebeing met consistently, which
(28:50):
boosts customer satisfaction.
Speaker 1 (28:53):
Yeah, data doesn't lie.
Yes, yes, data doesn't lie.
Yes, yes, data doesn't lie.
And so you have to get in thereand figure out if your data is
correct and then utilize it,like you're saying, to leverage,
leverage good operations andstrong I call it operational
excellence.
You know, really making surethat you're doing everything you
can.
Yes, because you know, I think,again, the takeaway from this
(29:15):
little section would be like,you know, when your operations
roll smoother, it really willbenefit your marketing, which
you know is near and dear to myheart.
Just, I look all the time atcompanies that are spending a
lot of money on marketing andare not doing anything about
operationally growing, and it'sjust about that great experience
(29:36):
for the customer and thatjourney being very, very clean
from the get go.
So I mean, it's a lot to thinkof here, but that's why all of
us have to work together.
We all have to be focused onthe same structure here.
So you know also, I know, thatTitan Advising Gurus, y'all
focus on really empowering thebusiness themselves, right?
(30:04):
So you focus on training, in asense of they're getting more
knowledgeable all the time, soto confidently use service,
titan, right?
So your mission is aboutempowerment.
So how do you feel um?
How do you make sure that yourclients feel like confident and
like self-sufficient throughworking with you guys?
What are some of the tools use?
Speaker 2 (30:18):
So we do it a couple different ways.
When people come to us, someowners and businesses do not
have the time to set up ServiceTitan or to learn how it
functions and why it functionsthe way that it does.
So we'll go in and we'll setthe whole thing up for them.
So that's one option that we do.
Another one is that we'll trainthem on how to use it, and we
(30:39):
do that two different ways.
We will do one-on-one sessionsand we will go through setups
together and we'll stay on thatcall until it's completely set
up the way the customer wants.
And one question leads to 10more, because it's the domino
effect, right, but we'll gothrough all of that with them,
through those calls, and thenthey will help set up their full
(31:02):
system with us.
And then the third one, or thesecond option to the learning I
should say, is that we'll givethem kind of instruction.
They'll go in, they'll set it up, but then we'll have a call and
we'll go through their setupand we'll ask them why did you
do this, why did you do that?
Did you think of this, did youthink of that?
And it's kind of a more trialand error, but it has some
(31:22):
guardrails where we can helpcorrect it and function it the
way that it should before it iscompletely live.
So different tools fordifferent companies.
That way it's tailored to whatthey need and how they're going
to learn.
But that's kind of how we helppeople through the process of
(31:44):
learning the product if theywant to go that route.
I will say most customers thatwork with us they want to go the
route of you do it, tell mewhen it's done.
Oh yeah 100%, absolutely,because they just don't have a
whole lot of time.
You're doing everything whenyou're in the office.
You don't have time to learn anew system, but there are those
learning options that we offerfor them if they choose to go
that route.
Speaker 1 (32:03):
Yeah, yeah.
Well, so you know again, likeyou said, most contractors need
just some help, like somebody,get it done for me, right?
I think that we we're in thatsame boat with Living Seed, like
we love to provide, just likethe strategy and be like here
you go, like, go implement this.
But then they're like oh mygosh, you know I didn't have the
staff or the people to actuallyimplement it.
(32:24):
You know I also was thinkingthrough.
You're like what do you thinkthe biggest mindset shift
business owners really need whenit comes to adopting, you know,
into this game of service time?
What do you think that?
Speaker 2 (32:39):
looks like for them.
Biggest mind shift has to beand I've heard it time and time
again is to look at technologyas not as an expense, but an
investment.
It's a tool that's not only forthe company but for the team as
well and enhancing everythingacross the board for everybody,
(32:59):
because it does thatstreamlining, it streamlines
operations, it improves customerexperience, it drives growth.
It's not a quick fix.
You have to put the time intoit to get the results that
you're looking for.
But adapting technologyrequires embracing change, being
open to learning and trustingthe process as a whole, instead
(33:21):
of focusing on the short-termdisruption, which I think that's
kind of where everybody seemsto focus on.
Is that short-term disruption,or the cost even that it's
associated with?
But if we can focus on, asowners, the long-term benefits
and the scalability that itbrings to our businesses, that's
what we need to focus on.
(33:41):
That's what we need to bebehind?
Speaker 1 (33:45):
Absolutely, the scalability is a big thing.
Contractors, we're alwaysbattling this thing of am I
marketing too much and I don'thave the staff?
Am I marketing not enough and Ihave too much staff?
No-transcript and I have toomuch staff, Like you're
constantly doing that.
So when you adopt technologyand the tools that are out there
, again you're going to adoptsome technology that doesn't
work out the way you intended.
(34:06):
That isn't what you thought.
But again, instead of focusingon the short-term issues, focus
on, like you're saying, thatlong term benefit that it's
going to bring to your business.
So what advice would you giveto someone that's feeling very
stuck with service Titan rightnow?
Like man, I'm just stuck.
I can't get moving forward.
What could I do?
Speaker 2 (34:25):
Again, it goes back to asking for help.
Just ask for help.
I mean, I was emailing somebodyasking for help the other day
on marketing pro, becauseeverything is always changing.
Everything's always gettingmore and more advanced.
With Service Titan, you'regoing to need help.
It's inevitable.
You're going to need help, sojust ask for it.
And then there's all thosedifferent platforms.
You can join one of theFacebook groups.
(34:48):
What's the main one?
Masterminds is the main one.
You've got hiring platformsspecifically for service Titan
out there.
You have everything on Facebookas far as asking questions.
You can also get enrolled inone of the certified admin
programs, take Academy courses,or you can just explore one of
the certified providers and getsome help from them.
Speaker 1 (35:12):
Well, shout out to the certified providers.
Speaker 2 (35:17):
I mean, and I'll tell you, getting the certified
provider, that's a lot.
They put a lot of thought andeffort into that test.
Not everybody is going to get acertified provider, so if you
go with one of them, you'redefinitely getting somebody or a
team of people that really knowwhat they're doing.
As far as service tightnessconcerned, yeah, love it.
Speaker 1 (35:37):
Well, and I love.
One of the things you told meearlier was like I just believe
in the platform yes, and Ithought you know that's very
true.
Like that's the same thing,like I believe in the platform
as well.
Do I think Service Titan isready for every single
contractor in every single phaseof business?
No, but I do think those thatreally jump into Service Titan
and really learn what they'redoing it is a great option, and
(35:58):
neither one of us are paid tosay any of that for Service
Titan.
So we're both speaking fromexperience, both personally
through our own companies, butthen also like the clients that
we're working with right now.
So you know what Empowerment isthe real goal there.
Speaker 2 (36:12):
Don't give up.
Speaker 1 (36:14):
Yeah, don't give up, just stay focused, reach out for
resources, don't give up.
Yeah, don't give up.
Just stay focused, reach outfor resources and really lead
your service partner withconfidence.
I think that's really the key.
Speaker 2 (36:25):
It's not going to be overnight.
It's going to take a while andyou've got to put that time into
it and be patient.
Yes, 100%.
Speaker 1 (36:33):
Yes, yes.
Well, jess, this has been afantastic conversation.
I know, like mastering thoseearly days of service time to
founding Titan Advising Gurus.
I think you are really a wealthof knowledge of just utilizing
the right tools in the right wayand unlocking that really good
potential for businesses.
So, whether it was optimizingyour operations or even turning
(36:55):
data into some actionableinsights, I think that you
really reminded us thattechnology is really the game
changer to help you grow yourcompany.
So, thank you so much.
I appreciate you being here.
Yeah, I love your passion forhelping contractors and so it's
really good.
But, hey, those of you that arelistening, if you are ready to
unlock that full potential ofservice time or want to learn
(37:17):
more about Jess's work, I haveon here, jess, visit
titanadvisingguruscom.
Is that correct, or how wouldyou like people to reach out?
Speaker 2 (37:25):
Best way would be by email right now because we are
revamping our website and thatis info at titanadvisingguruscom
and that'll reach our mainoffice.
Speaker 1 (37:37):
Perfect, and we're going to put that in the show
notes as well.
And then are you guys on socialmedia.
Speaker 2 (37:43):
We are.
We have a Facebook account,We've got all the socials, so
you can reach out to us there aswell.
Speaker 1 (37:48):
All right.
Well, that is great.
Well, guys, I don't know aboutyou, but I love listening.
I love getting someencouragement from Jess here
about just hanging on learningthose full techniques that she
mentioned about reporting andthings like that to really help
clients grow their service time,because, at the end of the day,
(38:09):
if we can improve our servicetime and improve our CRM in
general, you can apply a lot ofwhat Jess said to any of your
CRMs.
Just doing these are just bestpractices for really dominating
that customer relationshipmanagement software that you're
using.
So, yes, service Titan, wethink, is the beast and the guru
in the space right now, butagain, these are great things
that you can apply to all ofthose that are out in the space.
(38:29):
So, thank you again, jess, somuch for being here, as always.
Don't forget to subscribe toFrom the Yellow Chair on all of
our social media platforms,download these episodes, share
this episode with people thatyou think it could really help.
Again, thanks for sippinglemonade with From the Yellow
Chair.
We'll see you next time.
What's up, lemonheads ?
Welcome to another episode ofFrom the Yellow Chair.
I'm Crystal and today I'msitting down with the founder
and CEO of Titan Advising GurusY'all.
She has deep experience withService Titan.
She's turned that really intothis fantastic mission where she
is helping businesses likeyourself maximize their
(00:29):
potential through smarteroperations and streamlined
technology.
And I don't know about you guys, but that word streamlining
just resonates with my soultoday.
So she's based out of Missouribut reaches far across the
United States helpingcontractors.
So grab your lemonade, settledown, let's sip some lemonade,
perfect.
Well, guys, I am so excited tohave Jess Krellman in the
(00:54):
virtual lemonade stand todaysharing about Titan Advising
Gurus.
So, jess, you know I startevery podcast off with why
should anyone care with what youhave to say today?
Speaker 2 (01:06):
Well, I have a pretty vast background when it comes
to the trades and marketing andservice titan.
For me, this is not just a job,it's a way that I can help
people.
It's a way that I can helppeople and I started actually in
a trades business and westarted using Service Titan
(01:31):
right when I onboarded with them.
So, from what I've done, I'veworked the whole system from the
ground up.
I've had to work throughService Titan on onboarding,
through setting up memberships,through setting up pro products
and learning all of the nuancesand all of the steps that go
(01:53):
into that and growing a businesswith the help of Service Titan.
So because I've been able to dothat actually in a business
setting and then move away fromthat setting into helping others
, I've been able to reallyunderstand Service Titan and
take it to the people and helpthem with their own accounts and
(02:16):
with their own journey withService Titan.
Speaker 1 (02:19):
So I love this.
So you kind of came from aworld of like student housing
and hotels and then you moveover to managing this HVAC
office and then you realize, ohmy gosh, we've got to learn all
these products.
So you know, one of the biggestissues I hear from contractors
is like the overall setup ofservice titan feels very
daunting to them, and so you'veactually been through that right
(02:40):
Like you even told me what likesort of trial and error you
just gained enough understandingto be able to dominate it,
because service time is a beast.
It's one of those likenecessary evils, but it is a
beast to deal with.
Speaker 2 (02:52):
Right, you can't know the whole system.
It is too robust, it goes waytoo deep in every single area.
So to and and also tounderstand how things talk to
each other, you know, to reallyunderstand the system all
encompassing and how one thingaffects another, it is daunting
and it does take a lot of time.
Speaker 1 (03:15):
Well, I shared, I share with contractors all the
time.
Like we just had our limitedconference not that long ago and
this guy raises his hand.
He's like I'm really thinkingabout moving from this software
over to service Titan, and youcan hear this visible auditory
moan in the audience.
But I love what you said here.
It's invaluable lessons ofadaptability, perseverance and
the power of leveraging thosetools.
And so a lot of times I'll tella contractor do not battle this
(03:39):
integration of a new softwareon your own.
There are too many resourcesnow to help guide you through
that process.
Like most contractors, like mybrother, my dad, my grandpa,
they were never engineers, theywere never coders, right.
So the idea especially thosethat are over the age of
probably 40, we're like, oh mygosh, this technology is so
(04:01):
daunting.
But it's about just having astrategy and a plan and, like I
preach this all the timeunderstanding the chaos that
might come.
So I don't want to be surprisedby chaos, I don't mind being
prepared for a little chaos.
But, um, you know, my sisterand brother-in-law um operate a
pest control company and theyjust went live with field grouts
, which is service time toanswer the pest control side.
(04:23):
Yes, and my sister was in thesame boat.
Yeah, my sister was in the sameboat.
She was like oh my gosh, butshe just kind of owned it and
ran with it.
Um, and so what were some ofthe biggest lessons that you
think you learned from being aservice titan user that you now
have applied towards people thatyou're supporting in the
industry?
Speaker 2 (04:44):
To ask for help.
Speaker 1 (04:47):
From Service Titan or from other friends?
What is the?
Speaker 2 (04:50):
best bet From anybody .
There are so many people, likeyou said, that use this system,
that have been through the trialand error, that have gone
through all of these stepsalready, just ask for help.
There's different Facebookgroups, there's the community
pages, there's the training thatthey've put together, the
certifications, and then there'scompanies like ours.
(05:12):
There are just so many optionsthat you have available that
weren't available a couple ofyears ago.
Even so, just take advantage ofthem.
Speaker 1 (05:22):
Yeah, the other thing , when we were prepping for the
call and you were talkingthrough some things and you made
some notes, I looked at thesenotes and I was like you know,
you make a note here like manyaccounts have been set up, many
things are set up but not active.
So I met with a contractor notthat long ago and he's like I've
been on marketing pro productsfor two and a half years and I'm
like, oh my gosh great.
(05:43):
Well, how's that working?
He goes yeah, I've never sentan email and I'm like stop it
right now.
Like how are we doing this?
You know?
Same thing with like sending outthe simple things like what I
call like an elementary size ofservice time.
Like you don't send out.
You know the text messages.
Yeah, the text message is likethat a technician is on their
(06:04):
way and here's who it is andreview automation and things
like that.
And so I love this idea ofasking for help through any of
the pro products, through thebasic things.
Again, as contractors, we arenot expected we shouldn't expect
ourselves to know the ins andouts, and so asking for help
(06:26):
from people that really canprovide the services I think is
a very like pro tip here andwhen you're asking for help.
Speaker 2 (06:30):
It can also bring in new ideas that you would have
never even thought of, adifferent way to work your
membership, a different way toinput it into the system.
It also eventually going tolead you through a little bit of
trial and error and that on itsown is a very valuable learning
tool and you can keep expandingyour business with those tools
that you kind of gather asyou're going through that
process.
Speaker 1 (06:51):
Well, you know I love being a service titan partner.
I was actually exiting myfamily's heating and air
conditioning company about thetime that they were really
starting to fully utilizeservice titan as a platform.
But I did realize, like, are weutilizing it to its full
potential?
Are we really taking advantageof the complexity of the program
(07:12):
itself?
And you know, I tell people allthe time, if you're not going
to utilize Service Titan for thebeast, that it is at least the
majority of what theopportunities are.
I really don't recommendinvesting in service titan at
that point, because you're notready and you pay for a product
that is a very good product, butyou're paying for it, right.
(07:33):
So if you're not ready to havegood product, you know good
information put in so that youcan spit good information out.
So you know what was that ahamoment for you?
Well, like when you realizelike hey, I'm pretty good at
this, like I feel like Iunderstand service type and
pretty well, maybe this shouldbe a business.
Speaker 2 (07:49):
It actually was a couple years previous.
I was just on one of the pages,one of the Facebook pages, and
some guy made a post aboutneeding help with his marketing
pro and I needed some extramoney.
And so I jumped in and I said Ican help you set that up.
I can make some phone numbers,I can do some campaigns, I can
do whatever it is that you want.
(08:10):
And he had had marketing profor a bit and it hadn't been
activated yet.
So I went in and I seteverything up on my nights and
my weekends and got thingsrolling.
At that same time he needed afew other things.
That was kind of out of my realmbecause, as I mentioned and as
you mentioned, service height isso vast so you don't know
(08:32):
everything of the system andthere were some areas that I
didn't have the best knowledge.
So I had Kim, who's our otherowner, come in and she worked on
a few things for him on theside as well getting set up in
his account, like his ACP, thosekinds of things and then we
just kind of took it from there.
It just kind of grew on its own.
(08:54):
It was Kim's idea to actuallymake this into Titan Advising
Gurus, and that's kind of wherewe're at at this point.
And that company, yeah, andthat company's still with us.
He's had tremendous growth.
He actually just moved into abigger um office.
Speaker 1 (09:12):
I think we love yeah, yeah, that's, that's phenomenal
.
And you know, again I'll saythis lemon seeds not for
everyone, your company'sprobably not for everyone, but
what we are trying to do here ishelp contractors grow in
whatever way, whatever piece ofthat puzzle we play.
And so for you guys like makingthe most, like so many
(09:32):
contractors Jess, you know thisare sitting on a treasure trove
of existing customer bases and,like you, are not using it.
So Limit Seed has this threebucket approach to marketing,
like one is branding, one iscall to action and one is
cultivation.
And in that cultivation bucket,literally it's about making the
most of everybody that's inyour database and 50% of the
(09:53):
time at least clients have nottouched their database.
Yeah, and then I have the otherhalf of the world who is like
inundated their database but atthe end of the day, like
consistent and continuous.
There is no silver bullet tothis.
It's very much aboutconsistency and about just
really knowing niching down onthose audiences that you have so
(10:16):
that you can speak to themwholly, and the pro suite has
some really cool things.
You have to go in with your eyeswide open, that you know.
Marketing Pro also requires youknow massaging and manipulating
to get it to do what's rightfor you, but definitely, you
know, trusting these partners,like you guys, is a great step,
(10:40):
because sometimes the bestopportunities, really, though,
for you came from recognizingwhen your skills were solving
solving common problems and soit's a great example of that.
Well, ok, let's jump into alittle bit.
Oh yeah, go ahead.
Speaker 2 (10:52):
I was going to say in Marketing Pro if you're not on
it, you really should bechecking it out, because it's a
fantastic tool and every singleone of our clients, and even
people that ended up not signingup with us that tool has done
so much for them.
Just like you said, hitting thedatabase, talking to people and
getting them involved indifferent ways, Marketing Pro
(11:15):
makes it so easy once it's setup.
Speaker 1 (11:18):
Yeah, yes, that's true, and we see great success
from the consistency ofautomation set up through
Marketing Pro.
So I love that, I love that.
So let's dig a little bitdeeper into that.
So I'd like to break down howbusinesses can kind of set up
and really optimize service typeand to really help improve,
like, their operations and evenbeing able to scale long term.
(11:39):
I mean, I know it's powerful,but again back to that whole
overwhelming term that we usedearlier.
Speaker 2 (11:45):
So you know, what do you think are some of the most
common mistakes that businessesare making when they're setting
up their service Titan that theydon't understand that service
Titan operates like a chain ofdominoes, that each piece is
interacting with the next andit's creating this powerful
interconnected tool that, whenproperly set up, it allows you
(12:10):
to generate reports and targetaudiences and analyze data.
But improper configuration orrelying on workarounds because I
hear that word all the time Ihave this workaround I have a
workaround.
Yes, it disrupts that harmonyand that setup and that chain of
dominoes.
Speaker 1 (12:26):
It just it knocks it all over and and you can't have
those the important thing aboutthose dominoes is that one
faulty domino throws the wholething off to your point and all,
and so those things are messedup all.
Yes, yes, it's important thatyou utilize the service in the
(12:46):
intended way that it was built,if at all possible 100%.
I understand that service timeis not perfect.
It has all these little caveatsin there.
Always, when you can utilize aservice or a platform or a pro
product in the actual way it wasintended and designed and built
, you tend to have greatersuccess with it.
But still, I know that there'sall the.
I watch those groups all thetime and I'm like man.
(13:06):
There's one little caveat thatthey missed on that, but I love
the domino example, because itis.
It is exactly like that.
Speaker 2 (13:15):
And and what's great about Service Titan is if you do
catch something that's off, youcan always tell them and that's
why there's all these updatesthat come out and everything and
I know drives people nuts, butit's because they are listening
to us If you're able to, toidentify an issue and let them
know about it.
But these, going back toworkarounds, the they they seem
(13:37):
like quick fixes and and waysthat are going to help the
business, but in reality, theydo create long-term issues for
the business and for your data.
Um, so I forgot where I wasgoing there you're gonna have to
pause that.
Speaker 1 (13:52):
No, you're good, you're good.
Speaker 2 (13:54):
I finally I finally was able to like lay over my
notes over the screen, so nowI'm actually being able to read
them.
Before I was just kind oftrying to go off memory um no,
where was?
Speaker 1 (14:07):
I here, you're good.
Um, lupita, just make a note ofum about 14 minutes in, just to
kind of clean.
No, you're fine, you're fine,she'll go look at it and take it
.
Girl, listen, it's normally me.
So we're killing it right now.
You're doing great.
No, you're doing great.
I'm going to tee you up onanother key issue is the system
(14:28):
itself.
Might be the problem lying inthe setup, so I'm going to kind
of tee up the setup problemagain.
Be the problem lying in thesetup, so I'm going to kind of
tee up the setup problem again.
All right, here we go.
All right, jess.
So I know I hear what you'resaying about this dominoes.
It's great, it's a greatexample, a great analogy of that
.
So you know, like, when you'relearning to generate a new
report or target a specificaudience, I do know like
sometimes I heard you say likethose workarounds really will
(14:50):
hinder the overall functionality, and then then you learn a bad
practice and then it affectseverything else, right?
Isn't that one of the keyissues that you identified?
Speaker 2 (15:00):
Yeah, and another key issue is thinking that the
system itself is the problem,when the real issue often lies
in the setup.
So I'm going to give you a quicklittle example here.
The trades company I workedwith had like sorry, the company
that I worked with previously.
They had Marketing Pro and itwas set up by a different person
(15:21):
within the company it was theirmarketing director and the
product wasn't performing so weweren't seeing any return at all
.
It was double sendinginformation, it was disrupting
the office and the CSRs and thedispatchers and everything going
on in there and it was just, itwas a hot mess.
It was bad.
So we ended up cancelingMarketing Pro with them and then
(15:42):
we switched to a differentintegrated product.
I won't say its name, but theymade a lot of promises of how it
was just like Marketing Pro andhow it integrated into Titan
and it did all these wonderfulthings that we couldn't do right
.
So we switched to them and thenwe were with them for maybe two
weeks and things were notworking the way that it needed
(16:02):
to be.
Actually, things got worse, ifyou can believe it which I could
not believe it, but it did.
So we decided to go back toMarketing Pro and this time we
set it up correctly.
We set it up from the ground up, we redid everything.
We didn't do anything like wedid in the past, and at this
time when we set it up, wereally understood how everything
(16:23):
worked together and once welaunched it, it immediately took
off.
It had the right setup, itunderstood how the system fed
from the client information andit started functioning the way
that service Titan hadoriginally told us that it was
going to function, and within amonth or two we I had it on
autopilot and it was paying foritself over and over again and
(16:46):
it was delivering even morevalue every single month.
So I guess my point is if youare facing any issues, don't
jump ship.
Let's rework it, let's make itthat it should, and a proper
setup can make a hundred percentdifference for you and your
company.
Speaker 1 (17:03):
Well, is that trusting the process?
Yes, when you trust the processof how things are supposed to
go and you give yourself time,grace, patience to work through
those things, you're much betteroff.
Again, so many people are likeI hear it every day literally
like, well, this doesn't work.
You know, this doesn't work forme.
(17:23):
And I'm like man.
I have one client that I am 90%sure was just set up terribly,
horribly incorrect, and so youknow, let me see, we're all,
we're all up in their marketingdashboard looking for tracking
numbers and what's performingand all of that, and so
sometimes what is this.
Yeah, I can immediately identifylike, oh gosh, y'all did
(17:45):
something crazy here, um, whathappened here, um?
But for sure, like, don't justjump ship.
Make sure that you are reallyfocusing on that you're set up
properly and that things feelgood and that you are trusting
the process for sure.
Well, what about the customerexperience?
Because you know people haveheard me talk about this quite
(18:07):
often.
You know, brand is veryimportant, but the customer
journey of a company trying todo business with you we should
not make it hard to do businesswith us, we should be accessible
, we should be up to date onjust local technology things,
and so how can optimizingservice type really impact not
just your operations but thatcustomer experience, the
(18:29):
customer journey?
Speaker 2 (18:30):
Yeah, with it, your CSRs will have instant, instant
access to everything related toa customer's account.
It'll be all in one platform,all in one place, and that
includes past appointments,upcoming appointments, marketing
communications All the otheressential data and details that
goes with that customer will beavailable at the click of a
(18:52):
button and it streamlineseverything, and that in itself
is a game changer for thecustomer experience, and with it
, customers will also havebetter and more reliable
communication because it'sautomated for the most part.
For example, they'd be informeddown to the day when their next
(19:13):
service is due, if they're on amaintenance plan and need their
AC or their furnace tuned up.
By enhancing that efficiency,the system directly translates
into a will help build trust andsatisfaction and it will create
a long-lasting positive impacton those customer relationships
(19:38):
that you have.
Speaker 1 (19:40):
Yeah.
So let me tell you ServiceTitan and CSRs again, there's
power in the connection.
There's power in a well, youknow, the communication being
reliable, being truthful, andthen good information into
service titan means goodinformation spit out of service
titan.
So when you really work to havegood efficiencies and good
(20:04):
processes, not only does thecustomer service experience
drastically increase, but youknow, like you mentioned,
everything becomes more accurateand more satisfactory to leave
a really good impact not only onthe customer, but also on your
own team being able to trustthat you know.
So I think the takeaway fromthis whole little section right
here is a well-setup servicetime account isn't just about
(20:26):
running your business as a whole.
It's about building a reallygood growth and a foundation for
growth and that customerloyalty.
So your csrs yeah, I meanthat's, it's kind of everything.
So, okay, let's talk a littlebit about something you
mentioned that link betweenoperations and marketing.
So we're going to drop somelike actual nuggets here.
(20:47):
You're going to tell us somegood, actual reports, but you
know, streamlining operationsthrough serviceTitan will
directly enhance your overallmarketing efforts for better
customer communication and alsobeing able to leverage the data
that we have learned already howwe can do it.
So I know you've talked aboutoperations and marketing being
closely tied, but what are someexamples of how ServiceTitan
(21:08):
really supports both ops andmarketing?
Speaker 2 (21:12):
Yeah, when it comes to reports, the campaign summary
report and the new customerreport are incredibly valuable
tools.
They'll allow you to see what'sworking and what isn't by
comparing the performance ofreturning customers versus new
ones.
So for a quick overview, themarketing scorecard is always
excellent and provides asnapshot of key metrics at a
(21:35):
glance.
I also make it a point tomonitor the CSR agent scorecards
.
Sometimes the marketing isperforming well, but the issue
lies in not closing the leads.
When that happens, Icollaborate with the office
manager to dig deeper into thedata and identify different
areas that we need someimprovement in.
Speaker 1 (22:00):
Well.
So when you identify thoseareas, do you see that sometimes
those tend to be the same areas, Like you start realizing that
a lot of these things are fromthe same place, right the same
place of inefficiencies and thesame issues.
So I don't know about you, butI mentioned this earlier.
Tracking phone numbers.
Yes, you know, I use the CSR.
So, from a marketing aspect, Ilove to look at the CSR
(22:21):
scorecards, mainly because if Ineed to identify, so you know,
marketing gets all the fault,all the blame for
underperforming businesses andnever any other credit for a top
performing business.
It's just the way that it is.
But sometimes, when I can getin there and try to navigate the
data, I can try to tell is thisa CSR problem or is this a lead
(22:42):
problem?
You know what is the realproblem here.
Speaker 2 (22:46):
Yeah, and that's why you need to look at everything
as a whole.
Speaker 1 (22:49):
Yes, yes, and so using those reports to really
get a good view and compareperformance and all of that is
really a great tool to use, andyou can automate those reports
to be in your inbox every otherday, every week, however you
want to look at those things.
But that marketing scorecard Itell everybody it is.
(23:10):
It is something that you willlove to hate because I don't
know about you, but likelistening to your own team's
calls is like torture.
I can't, I couldn't do it.
Oh my gosh.
Yeah, you're like, I've trainedon this.
They still do it wrong.
But the marketing scorecardreally is going to give you a
snapshot of some metrics quicklyand at a glance, and so even my
(23:31):
strategist at the lemon seedside when we're preparing our
monthly call for our clientsthey're going to go look at that
marketing scorecard and I'vehad people tell me I don't have
a marketing scorecard and I'mlike it's literally on your
dashboard.
You just got to scroll down alittle bit Scroll down, scroll
down.
But that marketing dashboard ittakes the tracking number, ties
it to the campaign and ties itto the revenue that was produced
(23:52):
.
So, again, it's not perfect.
You still need other insightinto the true customer journey
but what it does capture is thelast point of contact that a
customer has with your company,meaning they might have looked
at a paper PPC ad, they mighthave looked at your Facebook,
they might have gotten apostcard, but at the end of the
(24:12):
day they called off of yourGoogle business profile, they
called off your website,whatever that looks like, and so
that marketing scorecard givesyou the last point that made
them call.
And programs like Searchlightand things like that, they
actually give you the completedcustomer journey and it
complements that marketingscorecard really, really well.
But speaking of scorecards,that marketing scorecard really
really well.
But speaking of scorecards,managing that CSR agent's
(24:35):
scorecard one of the things thatI watched a client tell me last
year was like this is myhighest performing CSR and I was
like man, I've listened to heron the phone and she's not great
.
So what does he see that Idon't see.
Maybe I'm just missingsomething.
I don't live there.
And then I started realizinglike she's not answering the
phone, she's not booking calls.
(24:56):
Well, they were allowed toscore their own call.
Speaker 2 (24:58):
No.
Speaker 1 (25:01):
She's got a 97% booking rate and I'm like how
does this work?
Well, yeah, when you manage,everything is not a lead, then
you're going to have a greatscore, you're going to be a rock
star, yeah.
So really, like those of youthat are listening, that are
actual contractors that maybehave an office manager, I would
be very clear with my officemanager that what you're looking
(25:23):
for is the ability to take atire kicker and book the call,
take a marketing lead.
So we do it.
We spend a lot of money onmarketing right?
Lots of us do so.
Our goal is marketing's job isto get the phone to ring.
Operations goal is to get thework done correctly, and so
that's why we are where we arewith.
(25:43):
Like looking at thesescorecards is.
It is impactful and it willopen your eyes to a lot of
things that we're going, thatare going on well, and if
they're skewing those results,it's skewing the marketing.
Speaker 2 (25:54):
You're not.
You don't know where you'reputting the money.
Is it going in the right spot?
Is it going in the wrong spot?
I mean it goes deeper.
Speaker 1 (26:01):
Yes, I'm like we're making major decisions off of
trusting your CSRs.
Thousands of dollars a month.
Yes, yes, you have got to makesure that what I'm looking at is
correct.
So well, that kind of leadsinto how strong operations like
you think really translate intobetter reviews and referrals,
retention and things like that.
Speaker 2 (26:21):
Yeah, Strong operations are the foundation of
delivering exceptional customerexperiences, and that customer
experience is going to influenceyour reviews, your referrals,
your retention, and some of thereasons why is that consistency
and reliability.
You know when operations arewell-structured, services are
(26:44):
delivered consistently, on timeand as promised.
Customers always appreciatereliability and they're more
likely to leave a positivereview when that happens and
they're also going to recommendyour business to other people
family, friends.
Clear communication alsocreates strong operations that
(27:11):
customers are kept informed atevery step, with confirmations,
service updates, follow-up.
Clear, proactive communicationcontinues to build that trust
and that loyalty with yourcustomers and with your brand.
Yes, efficient problemresolution is another one.
With streamlined processes,issues are resolved quickly and
efficiently and it turnsnegative experiences into
(27:33):
positive ones and happycustomers are more often able to
leave more positive reviews.
Speaker 1 (27:38):
Well, just be solution-driven.
I just need you to besolution-driven and not focusing
on the problem.
Focus on the solution.
Speaker 2 (27:44):
Exactly, and an example of that is if you have
really clear guidelines and suchon how you're going to handle
these things.
You have a negative review thatgoes up, you immediately deal
with it, you put up a response.
If the customer turns out to behappy in the end from that
experience, they're going toturn around, they're going to
change that review for you,they're going to make it a
(28:04):
positive one, and there'snothing better out there than
seeing a negative review turnpositive, because that really
shows future potential customerswhat you as a business are
going to do and what you do foryour customers.
I think that that's very loudfor customers.
I really really do.
Yeah, and once operations arerunning smoothly, staff can
(28:27):
focus on providing thatexceptional customer service to
its clients, and data-driveninsights, such as strong
operations, can leverage toolssuch as reporting and scorecards
to identify trends and areasfor improvement, and this helps
ensure that customers' needs arebeing met consistently, which
(28:50):
boosts customer satisfaction.
Speaker 1 (28:53):
Yeah, data doesn't lie.
Yes, yes, data doesn't lie.
Yes, yes, data doesn't lie.
And so you have to get in thereand figure out if your data is
correct and then utilize it,like you're saying, to leverage,
leverage good operations andstrong I call it operational
excellence.
You know, really making surethat you're doing everything you
can.
Yes, because you know, I think,again, the takeaway from this
(29:15):
little section would be like,you know, when your operations
roll smoother, it really willbenefit your marketing, which
you know is near and dear to myheart.
Just, I look all the time atcompanies that are spending a
lot of money on marketing andare not doing anything about
operationally growing, and it'sjust about that great experience
(29:36):
for the customer and thatjourney being very, very clean
from the get go.
So I mean, it's a lot to thinkof here, but that's why all of
us have to work together.
We all have to be focused onthe same structure here.
So you know also, I know, thatTitan Advising Gurus, y'all
focus on really empowering thebusiness themselves, right?
(30:04):
So you focus on training, in asense of they're getting more
knowledgeable all the time, soto confidently use service,
titan, right?
So your mission is aboutempowerment.
So how do you feel um?
How do you make sure that yourclients feel like confident and
like self-sufficient throughworking with you guys?
What are some of the tools use?
Speaker 2 (30:18):
So we do it a couple different ways.
When people come to us, someowners and businesses do not
have the time to set up ServiceTitan or to learn how it
functions and why it functionsthe way that it does.
So we'll go in and we'll setthe whole thing up for them.
So that's one option that we do.
Another one is that we'll trainthem on how to use it, and we
(30:39):
do that two different ways.
We will do one-on-one sessionsand we will go through setups
together and we'll stay on thatcall until it's completely set
up the way the customer wants.
And one question leads to 10more, because it's the domino
effect, right, but we'll gothrough all of that with them,
through those calls, and thenthey will help set up their full
(31:02):
system with us.
And then the third one, or thesecond option to the learning I
should say, is that we'll givethem kind of instruction.
They'll go in, they'll set it up, but then we'll have a call and
we'll go through their setupand we'll ask them why did you
do this, why did you do that?
Did you think of this, did youthink of that?
And it's kind of a more trialand error, but it has some
(31:22):
guardrails where we can helpcorrect it and function it the
way that it should before it iscompletely live.
So different tools fordifferent companies.
That way it's tailored to whatthey need and how they're going
to learn.
But that's kind of how we helppeople through the process of
(31:44):
learning the product if theywant to go that route.
I will say most customers thatwork with us they want to go the
route of you do it, tell mewhen it's done.
Oh yeah 100%, absolutely,because they just don't have a
whole lot of time.
You're doing everything whenyou're in the office.
You don't have time to learn anew system, but there are those
learning options that we offerfor them if they choose to go
that route.
Speaker 1 (32:03):
Yeah, yeah.
Well, so you know again, likeyou said, most contractors need
just some help, like somebody,get it done for me, right?
I think that we we're in thatsame boat with Living Seed, like
we love to provide, just likethe strategy and be like here
you go, like, go implement this.
But then they're like oh mygosh, you know I didn't have the
staff or the people to actuallyimplement it.
(32:24):
You know I also was thinkingthrough.
You're like what do you thinkthe biggest mindset shift
business owners really need whenit comes to adopting, you know,
into this game of service time?
What do you think that?
Speaker 2 (32:39):
looks like for them.
Biggest mind shift has to beand I've heard it time and time
again is to look at technologyas not as an expense, but an
investment.
It's a tool that's not only forthe company but for the team as
well and enhancing everythingacross the board for everybody,
(32:59):
because it does thatstreamlining, it streamlines
operations, it improves customerexperience, it drives growth.
It's not a quick fix.
You have to put the time intoit to get the results that
you're looking for.
But adapting technologyrequires embracing change, being
open to learning and trustingthe process as a whole, instead
(33:21):
of focusing on the short-termdisruption, which I think that's
kind of where everybody seemsto focus on.
Is that short-term disruption,or the cost even that it's
associated with?
But if we can focus on, asowners, the long-term benefits
and the scalability that itbrings to our businesses, that's
what we need to focus on.
(33:41):
That's what we need to bebehind?
Speaker 1 (33:45):
Absolutely, the scalability is a big thing.
Contractors, we're alwaysbattling this thing of am I
marketing too much and I don'thave the staff?
Am I marketing not enough and Ihave too much staff?
No-transcript and I have toomuch staff, Like you're
constantly doing that.
So when you adopt technologyand the tools that are out there
, again you're going to adoptsome technology that doesn't
work out the way you intended.
(34:06):
That isn't what you thought.
But again, instead of focusingon the short-term issues, focus
on, like you're saying, thatlong term benefit that it's
going to bring to your business.
So what advice would you giveto someone that's feeling very
stuck with service Titan rightnow?
Like man, I'm just stuck.
I can't get moving forward.
What could I do?
Speaker 2 (34:25):
Again, it goes back to asking for help.
Just ask for help.
I mean, I was emailing somebodyasking for help the other day
on marketing pro, becauseeverything is always changing.
Everything's always gettingmore and more advanced.
With Service Titan, you'regoing to need help.
It's inevitable.
You're going to need help, sojust ask for it.
And then there's all thosedifferent platforms.
You can join one of theFacebook groups.
(34:48):
What's the main one?
Masterminds is the main one.
You've got hiring platformsspecifically for service Titan
out there.
You have everything on Facebookas far as asking questions.
You can also get enrolled inone of the certified admin
programs, take Academy courses,or you can just explore one of
the certified providers and getsome help from them.
Speaker 1 (35:12):
Well, shout out to the certified providers.
Speaker 2 (35:17):
I mean, and I'll tell you, getting the certified
provider, that's a lot.
They put a lot of thought andeffort into that test.
Not everybody is going to get acertified provider, so if you
go with one of them, you'redefinitely getting somebody or a
team of people that really knowwhat they're doing.
As far as service tightnessconcerned, yeah, love it.
Speaker 1 (35:37):
Well, and I love.
One of the things you told meearlier was like I just believe
in the platform yes, and Ithought you know that's very
true.
Like that's the same thing,like I believe in the platform
as well.
Do I think Service Titan isready for every single
contractor in every single phaseof business?
No, but I do think those thatreally jump into Service Titan
and really learn what they'redoing it is a great option, and
(35:58):
neither one of us are paid tosay any of that for Service
Titan.
So we're both speaking fromexperience, both personally
through our own companies, butthen also like the clients that
we're working with right now.
So you know what Empowerment isthe real goal there.
Speaker 2 (36:12):
Don't give up.
Speaker 1 (36:14):
Yeah, don't give up, just stay focused, reach out for
resources, don't give up.
Yeah, don't give up.
Just stay focused, reach outfor resources and really lead
your service partner withconfidence.
I think that's really the key.
Speaker 2 (36:25):
It's not going to be overnight.
It's going to take a while andyou've got to put that time into
it and be patient.
Yes, 100%.
Speaker 1 (36:33):
Yes, yes.
Well, jess, this has been afantastic conversation.
I know, like mastering thoseearly days of service time to
founding Titan Advising Gurus.
I think you are really a wealthof knowledge of just utilizing
the right tools in the right wayand unlocking that really good
potential for businesses.
So, whether it was optimizingyour operations or even turning
(36:55):
data into some actionableinsights, I think that you
really reminded us thattechnology is really the game
changer to help you grow yourcompany.
So, thank you so much.
I appreciate you being here.
Yeah, I love your passion forhelping contractors and so it's
really good.
But, hey, those of you that arelistening, if you are ready to
unlock that full potential ofservice time or want to learn
(37:17):
more about Jess's work, I haveon here, jess, visit
titanadvisingguruscom.
Is that correct, or how wouldyou like people to reach out?
Speaker 2 (37:25):
Best way would be by email right now because we are
revamping our website and thatis info at titanadvisingguruscom
and that'll reach our mainoffice.
Speaker 1 (37:37):
Perfect, and we're going to put that in the show
notes as well.
And then are you guys on socialmedia.
Speaker 2 (37:43):
We are.
We have a Facebook account,We've got all the socials, so
you can reach out to us there aswell.
Speaker 1 (37:48):
All right.
Well, that is great.
Well, guys, I don't know aboutyou, but I love listening.
I love getting someencouragement from Jess here
about just hanging on learningthose full techniques that she
mentioned about reporting andthings like that to really help
clients grow their service time,because, at the end of the day,
(38:09):
if we can improve our servicetime and improve our CRM in
general, you can apply a lot ofwhat Jess said to any of your
CRMs.
Just doing these are just bestpractices for really dominating
that customer relationshipmanagement software that you're
using.
So, yes, service Titan, wethink, is the beast and the guru
in the space right now, butagain, these are great things
that you can apply to all ofthose that are out in the space.
(38:29):
So, thank you again, jess, somuch for being here, as always.
Don't forget to subscribe toFrom the Yellow Chair on all of
our social media platforms,download these episodes, share
this episode with people thatyou think it could really help.
Again, thanks for sippinglemonade with From the Yellow
Chair.
We'll see you next time.
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