May 6, 2025 • 24 mins
Ever wonder what $150,000 in professional branding and business resources could do for a contracting company? The answer might surprise you—it could completely transform their trajectory.
When Lemon Seed Marketing dreamed up the Great American Brand Story initiative, they knew they needed powerful partners to make it truly impactful. Enter Service Nation, whose decade-long mission of helping contractors grow made them the perfect presenting sponsor. Together, they've assembled an extraordinary opportunity worth over $150,000 for one deserving contractor in the plumbing, HVAC, or electrical trades.
Nicole Norris from Service Nation joins Emily to unpack why this initiative matters so deeply. "We want to be instrumental in the lives of contractors," Nicole explains, highlighting how proper branding goes far beyond aesthetics. A thoughtfully crafted brand communicates trust and value to homeowners making significant investments in their properties. As both hosts agree—nobody wants the cheapest contractor handling their essential home systems.
The prize package is comprehensive by design: Lemon Seed's complete rebrand services, Service Nation's business coaching and membership benefits, plus contributions from multiple partners including website development, PR campaigns, direct mail marketing, digital analytics, and more. The transformation journey will culminate in a grand reveal at Service World Expo in Las Vegas this October, professionally documented from start to finish.
For contractors listening, this represents more than just a marketing opportunity—it's potentially life-changing. The initiative targets privately-owned businesses with $1-5M in revenue who are open to creative transformation. As Nicole powerfully states: "If you want to grow, you need to be open to change. If you're not going to change, you're going to die."
Ready to see if this transformation could be yours? Applications close May 15th at midnight. Visit greatamericanbrandstory.com to apply and join a movement that's elevating the trades one contractor at a time.
If you enjoyed this chat From the Yellow Chair, consider joining our newsletter, "Let's Sip Some Lemonade," where you can receive exclusive interviews, our bank of helpful downloadables, and updates on upcoming content.
Please consider following and drop a review below if you enjoyed this episode. Be sure to check out our social media pages on Facebook and Instagram.
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
Interested in being a guest on our show? Fill out this form!
We'll see you next time, Lemon Heads!
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
What's up, lemonheads ?
Welcome back to another episodeof From the Yellow Chair.
I'm so excited about today'sepisode, even though it might be
just a little bit different,because we're not talking about
marketing strategy or socialtrends.
We are talking about heart, weare talking about mission, and
I'm so thrilled that our specialguest is here on the podcast
with me today, because she isall about heart and mission.
(00:21):
So hopefully you have heardabout the great American brand
story that Lemon Seed is puttingon with the help of Service
Nation with me today, becauseshe is all about heart and
mission.
So hopefully you have heardabout the great American brand
story that Lemon Seed is puttingon with the help of Service
Nation and this transformationalrebrand campaign that we are
giving away to a deservingcontractor.
So today we're diving into whywe launched it, who it's really
for and how it can align to abigger mission to really elevate
(00:43):
the trades, elevate the hardworking men and women, these
contractors who are the unsungheroes of today's world.
And so who better to sip somelemonade than our powerhouse
partner and friend Nicole Norrisfrom Service Nation?
She's here to talk about thiscampaign, this initiative, and
what it means, not just for onelucky contractor, but for the
(01:05):
entire industry.
So, without further ado, let'ssip some lemonade.
Speaker 2 (01:17):
Thank you, Emily.
I am super excited to be onthis podcast and I don't know if
I'm more excited to be on thepodcast or more excited to be
part of this venture that youguys are doing.
I mean, we are about to changelives.
I'm super excited that we,Service Nation, were able to
partner with Lemon Seed on this.
Speaker 1 (01:36):
Absolutely.
You know, when Crystal and Idreamed up this kind of crazy
idea, like we wanted it to bebeyond just what we, as Lemon
Seed, could do and could offer,like we wanted to be something
that could truly, truly changelives.
While we believe that a powerof brand can do that, we also
know a brand is useless if youdon't have the right operations,
the right tools and things inyour back pocket to further
(01:57):
execute it out and to have thattraining and coaching.
So the first person we reachedout to or organization was
Service Nation, and you guyshave been a great partner to us
in many different things and youknow tons of our contractors.
Our own clients are fromService Nation.
So when we came to you guyswith this crazy idea that said
(02:19):
we want to do this giant prizepackage, we want to have all
these partners we want to makeit worth about one hundred and
fifty thousand dollars was goingthrough y'all's mind.
I want to know the inside scoopand you can be real with this.
Speaker 2 (02:30):
Yes, so honestly I was like, oh my goodness, this
is like TV.
I mean, we saw this on TV andwe can't do that.
But Lemon Seed is able to dothis so quickly and you guys had
a full blown plan on how youwere going to do it and it's a
no brainer to jump on board.
I mean, first of all, it's aprivilege to be asked and then
(02:53):
it's a second to be able to seethe alignment between the two of
us you know our company andyour company.
I mean, we want to beinstrumental in the lives of
contractors, want to beinstrumental in the lives of
contractors, and it's no betterway to do it than to show our
love for them by supporting themand supporting their customers
and their families.
Speaker 1 (03:11):
No, that's a hundred percent, and I know we at Lemon
say that we just have a heartand a passion for giving back
Like we've been blessed.
You know we're blessedSometimes.
You know it's hard when youthink of your own coming.
It's a blessing and a curse,but ultimately it is a blessing
and we have been able to seelives transformed through this.
And so we know Service Nationalso has a heart for giving back
(03:32):
and for investing in the livesof contractors.
Tell me a little bit about that.
The purpose behind it.
Speaker 2 (03:39):
Yes, I've been with Service Nation for over 10 years
.
I finally get to say a decadeService Nation for over 10 years
.
I finally get to say a decadeand it's very.
I mean to know that we aretruly impacting lives.
For people to come up and saythank you or for us to know that
their company grew from one totwo trucks to hundreds of trucks
or tens of trucks, whatever thenumber is.
It's just very humbling to knowthat we are changing people.
(04:05):
Our mission has always been tohelp contractors grow and over
the years, we've helped them indifferent ways, from our
different best practices to ournetworking groups to all these
other things.
But our biggest point that weare bringing to Lemon Seed and
the American American BrandStory is we want to help them by
(04:27):
training them and giving themall of the next steps to not
only have this great brand thatyou'll provide but to, you know,
impact their bottom line, andthey're.
Impacting their bottom linestarts with understanding your
financials under having a groupof people that you can work with
and grow with, and that's ourmission is really just to get
(04:48):
contractors with othercontractors, help them grow and
provide them truly a process.
Speaker 1 (04:55):
And that's what we do .
So let's back up just a littlebit.
In case anyone isn't familiarwith Service Nation.
You kind of alluded towardswhat you guys are gonna be
offering in the prize package,but tell us why you're able to
offer this in the Great AmericanBrands, because this is what
you guys do every single day.
Tell us a little bit more aboutall your services to
contractors.
Speaker 2 (05:12):
Yes, what we do for service contractors is you pay,
you know, of course, amembership fee and that's going
to depend on what level ofmembership you want to engage
with.
We have members that start atmonthly memberships and then we
have our elite members that comein and they are really trying
(05:33):
to grow their company and wehave a whole other program for
them.
But what we provide is weprovide training, we provide
in-person events, we providenetworking and we provide them
tools to help them grow theirbusiness, regardless of what
those tools are, you know we itcan be anything from training we
(05:55):
do a little bit of marketing,but you know what?
We leave that to the experts.
You know we have some greatmarketing companies and, of
course, women's Seat is one ofthem.
So we don't go into that part.
We are just here really tosupport our vendors in marketing
.
But we also help with just, youknow, the day-to-day business.
(06:16):
You know holding themaccountable, making sure that
they have the tools they need tosucceed.
Speaker 1 (06:24):
No, that's awesome.
That's amazing.
We have been able to firsthandwitness the power and the impact
that Service Nation has made totons of contractors.
And you guys do have all thoseamazing vendor partners and
relationships to where, like,hey, you're struggling with this
contractor, here's threedifferent people that we can
refer to that are trusted andvetted, that we know can help
you grow in that area.
(06:45):
And then you know, running abusiness is not just one side.
It's not just about gettingyour marketing nailed and
getting that down like you'regood to go.
No, it's financially,operationally training, like
from leadership training down tolike skills training, and you
guys have a solution for all ofthose things through your
amazing network.
So it's fantastic and that'sone reason why we knew you guys
were going to be.
We needed you as part of ourpresenting sponsor for the great
(07:08):
American brand story.
So let's talk a minute, becauseI'm sure you've been able to
witness the power of a brand andwhat contractors with strong
brands can do.
So what does it do for acontract, Not just visually, but
emotionally, operationally, howthey impact their community.
Have you seen any of that inyou know the contracts that
(07:29):
you've worked with?
Speaker 2 (07:30):
Oh, of course.
I mean it's one thing to have alogo and then there's another
thing to make that logo work.
And when I say make that logowork, it means what are you
doing in your community, whatare you doing to your customers?
And you know, for me to see atruck go by, that's great At
least it's visual to me but thento see them in the community
(07:51):
doing great things, you know, Ithink that's the part that sets
an average contractor into anelevated contractor.
You know you have to be morethan your brand.
You have to be, you know,impacting lives, and that can be
customers that can be.
You know your community, butyou have to be more than your
brand.
You have to be, you know,impacting lives, and that can be
customers that can be.
You know your community, butyou have to stand for more than
just you know a logo on a pieceof paper or a logo on a shirt.
Speaker 1 (08:14):
Well, and a brand done right should be a visual
representation of what yourcompany actually stands for.
So do you have the good oldfashioned values family oriented
?
Are you super modern andinnovative?
Like we are cutting edge?
You know, beginning at theforefront before everyone else.
You know like the visualrepresentation should represent
(08:34):
what your company is.
Because, you're right, a brandis so much more than just a logo
.
But when you can have that logothat illustrates it and
represents what your companystands for, that helps consumers
know why they should go withyou versus the other competitors
that you have in your market.
And when people feel like theyknow you they see you everywhere
(08:57):
.
You're five mile famous, if youwill when they actually do have
that time of need for theirplumbing emergency or their air
conditioning unit just went out.
Like you don't want to be goingup and duking it out with every
other contractor on Google ads,like if they already know you
and they know, oh, I'm going tocall wise guys, I'm going to
call Bailey's heating and cool.
(09:18):
Like you don't have to duke itout, they're going to you
directly because they've alreadyknown you and experienced you.
Speaker 2 (09:24):
Exactly.
You know, in our world we donot want to have contractors
come in our house because weknow that it can be costly.
But we also want the ones thatcare to be in our homes because
I mean, we value our homes justlike we value our families.
So we want the best doing thosethings for us.
Oh absolutely.
Speaker 1 (09:42):
I mean, it's not fun money to spend Like we'd rather
spend 10 grand on a nicevacation or something.
But you're right, like we allcan appreciate that, like it is
a big deal, you know, and likeit has tremendous resale value.
Like if I was going to sell myhome when was the HVAC system
last up?
Like.
So I think we can know andappreciate that.
But that's why we are going tovalue who is going to actually
(10:03):
come into my home, who can Itrust?
Who's going to walk me throughthe process?
Not treat me like I'm a dummyIf I'm a woman, I'm not speaking
the right technical terms orthings like that, you know.
So building that trust can verymuch be done through your brand
and it is super important andconsumers are looking for that.
Sometimes contractors get intheir own way.
(10:26):
I think about well, I'm not thecheapest in town.
I'm like, well, I can't offerthese, you know these super low
offers that these private equitycompanies are doing.
No, it's not about that.
It's about building the trustand what makes you different,
you know, than these otherpeople.
Speaker 2 (10:37):
And it's funny that you talk about pricing, because
you know we're not going to talkprice and we're not being, you
know, honest.
I don't know if I want thecheapest person.
Will we be doing a surgery forme or the cheapest person maybe
doing a surgery for me or thecheapest person messing with my
eye?
These are things that I value,so I want to have a reputable
person.
I want to have a person thatcares about not only me, but
(10:59):
about you know, doing the rightthing all the time, and I think
your brand should stand for thatAbsolutely.
Speaker 1 (11:05):
And I think this leads into a perfect segue of
you know you want to build thattrust and show the value, like,
hey, we're not the cheapest, butlike we are the most
experienced, we're the mosttrustworthy, like you're
building that value to yourconsumers.
So is your brand actuallytelling that?
Or have you yourself tried toskimp it, like I'm not even
gonna wrap my vehicle, I'm justgonna, like, put some decals on
here.
Or like, uh, my cousin'sbrother like you know, which I
(11:26):
guess would still be your cousin, but my cousin's brother's like
you know, which I guess wouldstill be your cousin, but my
cousin's brother's boyfriend,someone out like has the latest
version of Photoshop.
They can make me a logo.
Like, ok, you're skimping itthere.
And like consumers can tell, ok,so if you want to look like you
are the premium option, or likeyou have all the expertise, you
are the authority in thesespace and in that space, you
(11:48):
need to look like it.
And so that's why we've puttogether this giant prize
package for the Great AmericanBrand Story.
So, starting off, it's going tobe a complete rebrand giveaway
from Lemon Seed.
So we're going to give you atrue brand that tells a story
that has some meaning behind it,that represents your company.
We're going to give you a brandstory and a brand acronym and
(12:11):
all the logo and supportingfiles that you might need to
really kind of run with it, butthen also a prize package from
Service Nation.
So, nicole, tell us a littlebit about the exact specifics
that you guys are going to begiving us.
Speaker 2 (12:23):
Yes, we are.
We are going to be helping growyour business by giving you all
of the best practices that youneed.
So, if you're not already aService Nation Alliance member
because you can be a ServiceNation member or an Alliance
member we want to provide youwith a year's membership.
You know and that is very Idon't want to give the price
(12:44):
because we're going to say thatyour total package is way over
ten thousand dollars Wow, butyou're going to get the best
practices.
You're going to say that yourtotal package is way over
$10,000.
Wow, but you're going to getthe best practices.
You're going to get themembership.
We have events that are inperson, with the next one being
Service World Expo in Las Vegas.
So you definitely get a ticket,for that Does not include
(13:05):
traveling hotel, but you knowwhat Get to Vegas and everything
else is paid for there.
And then we also are providingtraining.
You know every company is alittle different, so you can
tell us how you want to use yourtraining dollars.
You know, maybe it's forculture, maybe it's for this
profile, maybe it is forfinances.
Whatever it is that you need,service Nation is there to help,
(13:28):
and you know training.
You know training is one ofthose things and I'm sorry to
get on this bandwagon buttraining is one of those things
where the ROI on it you may notsee immediately, but if you do
not put in time to train,someone else will later.
And then those are dollars thatare you can't recoup.
Speaker 1 (13:52):
So you know we want to start you out with the best
practices and the training youneed to grow well and you're
100% right, like usually, whenyou're like, uh, I need some
training, like you've alreadykind of missed the mark, like
you have a much more uphillbattle, but when you're more
proactive than reactive in it,um, you save yourself a lot of
heartache.
So, man, just from the brandpackage that Lemon Seed is
(14:13):
giving and from Service Nation,like that already would be a
fantastic prize package, I think, don't you think?
Speaker 2 (14:18):
Nicole, I think so too.
And then, when you partneredwith all of the other different
vendors that you guys are goingto have it would, I mean, I
can't imagine if everycontractor that's hearing this
is not going to take a momentand, you know, apply for this.
I mean, I to me it is one ofthe best things out there, and
(14:40):
if you're missing thisopportunity, then you're missing
the chance to grow your company.
Speaker 1 (14:46):
Also included is going to be a brand new website
from online access.
Um, we've got a partner locallymy husband and I, real graphics
who's going to be donating somesignage and wall wraps to build
your culture internally in yourteam.
We've got criscone brothers,who's going to be donating, um,
some branded products, whetheryou need that for apparel, hats,
um, swag items, they're goingto be donating that, plus some
(15:09):
outbound resources to reallylike help you.
If the phones aren't ringing,we're going to make the phones
ring on their end.
So giving you some outboundservices.
Ripley PR is another fantasticpartner of Lick and Seed.
They're going to do a five weekblitz for this new contractor
so not a new contractor, but forthe new brands, like in their
area.
How are they going to letpeople know about this
(15:30):
transformation?
Hey, same great company, justwith a new look and feel, giving
them lots of resources toreally push that.
Pink Callers is anotherfantastic partner.
They're going to be offeringsome call center resources from
building out some organization,but then also branded call
scripts and how can you outbounddial?
But also when you're internally, when you are receiving those
(15:52):
phone calls, how can it bebranded and extenuating further,
reiterating into the mind ofthe consumer about your brand,
searchlight, also providing tonsof digital analytics and
digital insights that you canpiece together all the marketing
pieces that you have.
They're coming from all thesedifferent paths and all these
different lead sources, tying itinto one unbiased so not just
(16:15):
your digital provider.
Being like this is everythingwe did.
They can kind of see a morefull picture and they have no
skin in the game to their ownperformance of hey, this was our
website, that we were in thesedigital ads, this is how well
it's performing Gives you anunbiased, truly amazing insight
to that Um, also to your success.
We know them for their amazingsmelling cookies, but they have
(16:36):
tons of consumer relationmarketing um resources that
they're going to be donating tothis contractor.
Mail shark is going to be doinga direct mail drop Um and Again
getting the word out about thisnew brand and what our company,
this contractor, can beoffering to their community.
We're going to be also havingsome resource from Chirp.
(16:57):
If you're not familiar withChirp, they do tons of
automations, speed to lead,following up on open invoices,
things like that.
They're going to be offeringtheir services for three months
for free and then, to top it alloff, we're just gonna be
documenting and filming theentire thing.
We've got some videographyresources from a local company
called From Bland to Grand.
(17:18):
They've been fantastic to workwith and so they're gonna be
documenting this whole journey.
But then they're gonna give ussome deliverables but also to
the contractors so some videoresources you can use on social
media, on OTT ads, things likethat, to use and to launch this
brand.
And the exciting part isthey're going to document this
(17:40):
whole journey.
But then we're going to showthis video.
We're going to show the entireprocess at Service World Expo
hosted by Service Nation in LasVegas this year in October,
where this will be the grandreveal.
We will show off the entireprocess, the before and then, of
course, the after, and we'regoing to bring up that lucky
contractor on stage.
We're going to bring up all ofour partners and we are going to
(18:01):
celebrate and make it one heckof a party, aren't we?
Speaker 2 (18:04):
Nicole, oh my goodness party.
We're going to come up with awhole nother word, because party
just doesn't do it justice.
Speaker 1 (18:10):
Oh, I love that.
Speaker 2 (18:11):
Yes, I mean just from you saying all of the different
resources that this luckycontractor is going to receive,
I mean it kind of warms my heartknowing that this is not just
about Lemon Seed.
Lemon Seed has partnered withothers to make this event and
(18:31):
this journey for some contractorreally life-changing for them,
and I am so excited to be onthis journey with you Right now.
If you are listening to us, youshould be going online and
registering to be part of theAmerican Brand Story.
I mean you will benefit someway, your community will benefit
(18:54):
some way by, you know, justseeing if you are that lucky
contractor.
Speaker 1 (19:00):
Oh, 100%.
So this total price package isworth over $150,000.
You've heard, nicole, and I sayI know all our partners along
with us.
We truly believe that this canchange someone's life, this can
change the trajectory of yourcompany, and sometimes we just
understand that people just needa hand up.
You know that running andowning a business is very
(19:20):
challenging.
You've overcome a lot andsometimes this can just be the
next little catapult to help youreach that next level for your
company.
So, like Nicole said, go to ourwebsite,
greatamericanbrandstorycom, andyou can apply.
You can see who can apply.
You've got to be in the homeservice industry okay, between a
$1 to $5 million revenuecompany is what we're looking
(19:42):
for there.
You've got to be privatelyowned.
So we want this for theindividual privately owned
contract.
We don't want this to go to aprivate equity group okay.
And we want you to be in thehome service industry plumbing,
hvac or electrical and you'vegot to be open to the creative
process OK.
So, like, we might ask you tochange your name OK, you've got
to be willing to do that.
We might determine that yourname is great.
(20:03):
But you've got to trust theexperts here, trust what we know
can do the proven method.
You got to be open to that.
So if that's, you, go to thegreatamericanbrandstorycom.
You can also go to any of theLemonsies social medias.
I know Service Nation has beensharing it a ton.
All of our partners are sharingit, so please make sure to go.
(20:23):
The application process willclose on May 15th.
Okay, so we've got just alittle bit over a week.
So if you're hearing this andlistening to it, midnight on May
15th or 1159 on May 15th iswhen the application process is
going to close.
So we've already gotten severalgreat applicants, some good
stories, but we know there'smore out there.
(20:44):
So if this is you, do nothesitate to apply and then we
will be sharing the amazingreveal in October at Service
World Expo.
Speaker 2 (20:52):
Can't wait and once again, thank you, lemonsie, for
partnering, letting ServiceNation partner with you.
This is going to be epic, ifthat's the word I want to use.
So I cannot wait and we lookforward to seeing everyone in
Las Vegas for the big reveal?
Speaker 1 (21:10):
Absolutely.
So we talked a lot about theGreat American Brand story, but
I got a lightning round withjust some fun about Nicole,
because we didn't get to talkmuch about you and you were
definitely worth talking about.
But real quick, let's gothrough a few questions.
So what is one word that youwould use to describe the trades
?
Fun, fun, that's a good one.
(21:31):
I halfway expected you to sayepic, but fun.
Speaker 2 (21:35):
If I hadn't already said that word, I would.
My son says it all the time, soit's like embrained in my head.
Speaker 1 (21:42):
But fun is an appropriate word and, like
Nicole said, all those in-personevents.
Service Nation does have somefun in-person events, for sure
you know what.
Speaker 2 (21:51):
To start with, fun.
I mean I get the chance toactually talk to vendors every
day, all day, and that is what'sfun.
It's knowing that thecontractors are getting some of
the best-in-class vendors andthese vendors, you know, are
easy to work with.
They have great products andservices, Makes my job fun and,
you know, it's just a niceindustry to be in.
They have great products andservices, makes my job fun and,
(22:11):
you know, it's just, it's just anice.
It's just a nice industry to bein For sure what's your
favorite core value at ServiceNation.
Oh, my favorite core value, Iwould say it is treating
treating contractors like youwant to be treated.
So one of our core values isyou know what.
(22:32):
You can't treat employeesdifferent than you would treat
contractors or your customer.
And our customers are, ofcourse, you know, contractors.
In my case, my customers are myvendors.
Speaker 1 (22:44):
For sure.
Okay, one thing you wish morecontractors would embrace Change
.
Speaker 2 (22:50):
Oh, fantastic.
Yes, yes, yes, it's becausethey say no one likes change
besides babies.
Well, you know what?
If you want to grow, you needto be able to be open to change.
Speaker 1 (23:00):
If you're not going to change, you're going to die
Exactly.
And then, last one what'ssomething you would shout from
the rooftops about this campaign, about the Great American Brand
Story campaign?
Speaker 2 (23:09):
You do not want to miss it.
It is going to be life-changing.
And even if it's not you, itshould be someone you know.
So make sure that you tune in,make sure that you apply and
make sure you're at ServiceWorld Expo, october 26th through
the 30th in Las Vegas.
Linden C will be there.
Speaker 1 (23:28):
Will be there.
Well, nicole, thank you so muchfor being such a fierce
advocate, not just for thiscampaign but for the trades and
the entire industry as a whole.
Thank you so much.
And, like we said, the GreatAmerican Brand Story is more
than just a brand makeover.
It is a movement and, whetheryou've applied or not, we hope
this inspires every contractorlistening to think bigger about
(23:49):
who they are and what your brandstands for.
So thank you for listening toanother episode of From the
Yellow Chair.
Follow us on all of our socialmedias.
We are a full service marketingagency.
From the Yellow Chair ispowered by Lemon Seed Marketing
and we are so proud to presentthe Great American Brand Story
where you can apply, atgreatamericanbrandstorycom.
So thank you so much.
(24:09):
Thank you, nicole, and we willtalk later.
Thank you.
What's up, lemonheads ?
Welcome back to another episodeof From the Yellow Chair.
I'm so excited about today'sepisode, even though it might be
just a little bit different,because we're not talking about
marketing strategy or socialtrends.
We are talking about heart, weare talking about mission, and
I'm so thrilled that our specialguest is here on the podcast
with me today, because she isall about heart and mission.
(00:21):
So hopefully you have heardabout the great American brand
story that Lemon Seed is puttingon with the help of Service
Nation with me today, becauseshe is all about heart and
mission.
So hopefully you have heardabout the great American brand
story that Lemon Seed is puttingon with the help of Service
Nation and this transformationalrebrand campaign that we are
giving away to a deservingcontractor.
So today we're diving into whywe launched it, who it's really
for and how it can align to abigger mission to really elevate
(00:43):
the trades, elevate the hardworking men and women, these
contractors who are the unsungheroes of today's world.
And so who better to sip somelemonade than our powerhouse
partner and friend Nicole Norrisfrom Service Nation?
She's here to talk about thiscampaign, this initiative, and
what it means, not just for onelucky contractor, but for the
(01:05):
entire industry.
So, without further ado, let'ssip some lemonade.
Speaker 2 (01:17):
Thank you, Emily.
I am super excited to be onthis podcast and I don't know if
I'm more excited to be on thepodcast or more excited to be
part of this venture that youguys are doing.
I mean, we are about to changelives.
I'm super excited that we,Service Nation, were able to
partner with Lemon Seed on this.
Speaker 1 (01:36):
Absolutely.
You know, when Crystal and Idreamed up this kind of crazy
idea, like we wanted it to bebeyond just what we, as Lemon
Seed, could do and could offer,like we wanted to be something
that could truly, truly changelives.
While we believe that a powerof brand can do that, we also
know a brand is useless if youdon't have the right operations,
the right tools and things inyour back pocket to further
(01:57):
execute it out and to have thattraining and coaching.
So the first person we reachedout to or organization was
Service Nation, and you guyshave been a great partner to us
in many different things and youknow tons of our contractors.
Our own clients are fromService Nation.
So when we came to you guyswith this crazy idea that said
(02:19):
we want to do this giant prizepackage, we want to have all
these partners we want to makeit worth about one hundred and
fifty thousand dollars was goingthrough y'all's mind.
I want to know the inside scoopand you can be real with this.
Speaker 2 (02:30):
Yes, so honestly I was like, oh my goodness, this
is like TV.
I mean, we saw this on TV andwe can't do that.
But Lemon Seed is able to dothis so quickly and you guys had
a full blown plan on how youwere going to do it and it's a
no brainer to jump on board.
I mean, first of all, it's aprivilege to be asked and then
(02:53):
it's a second to be able to seethe alignment between the two of
us you know our company andyour company.
I mean, we want to beinstrumental in the lives of
contractors, want to beinstrumental in the lives of
contractors, and it's no betterway to do it than to show our
love for them by supporting themand supporting their customers
and their families.
Speaker 1 (03:11):
No, that's a hundred percent, and I know we at Lemon
say that we just have a heartand a passion for giving back
Like we've been blessed.
You know we're blessedSometimes.
You know it's hard when youthink of your own coming.
It's a blessing and a curse,but ultimately it is a blessing
and we have been able to seelives transformed through this.
And so we know Service Nationalso has a heart for giving back
(03:32):
and for investing in the livesof contractors.
Tell me a little bit about that.
The purpose behind it.
Speaker 2 (03:39):
Yes, I've been with Service Nation for over 10 years
.
I finally get to say a decadeService Nation for over 10 years
.
I finally get to say a decadeand it's very.
I mean to know that we aretruly impacting lives.
For people to come up and saythank you or for us to know that
their company grew from one totwo trucks to hundreds of trucks
or tens of trucks, whatever thenumber is.
It's just very humbling to knowthat we are changing people.
(04:05):
Our mission has always been tohelp contractors grow and over
the years, we've helped them indifferent ways, from our
different best practices to ournetworking groups to all these
other things.
But our biggest point that weare bringing to Lemon Seed and
the American American BrandStory is we want to help them by
(04:27):
training them and giving themall of the next steps to not
only have this great brand thatyou'll provide but to, you know,
impact their bottom line, andthey're.
Impacting their bottom linestarts with understanding your
financials under having a groupof people that you can work with
and grow with, and that's ourmission is really just to get
(04:48):
contractors with othercontractors, help them grow and
provide them truly a process.
Speaker 1 (04:55):
And that's what we do .
So let's back up just a littlebit.
In case anyone isn't familiarwith Service Nation.
You kind of alluded towardswhat you guys are gonna be
offering in the prize package,but tell us why you're able to
offer this in the Great AmericanBrands, because this is what
you guys do every single day.
Tell us a little bit more aboutall your services to
contractors.
Speaker 2 (05:12):
Yes, what we do for service contractors is you pay,
you know, of course, amembership fee and that's going
to depend on what level ofmembership you want to engage
with.
We have members that start atmonthly memberships and then we
have our elite members that comein and they are really trying
(05:33):
to grow their company and wehave a whole other program for
them.
But what we provide is weprovide training, we provide
in-person events, we providenetworking and we provide them
tools to help them grow theirbusiness, regardless of what
those tools are, you know we itcan be anything from training we
(05:55):
do a little bit of marketing,but you know what?
We leave that to the experts.
You know we have some greatmarketing companies and, of
course, women's Seat is one ofthem.
So we don't go into that part.
We are just here really tosupport our vendors in marketing
.
But we also help with just, youknow, the day-to-day business.
(06:16):
You know holding themaccountable, making sure that
they have the tools they need tosucceed.
Speaker 1 (06:24):
No, that's awesome.
That's amazing.
We have been able to firsthandwitness the power and the impact
that Service Nation has made totons of contractors.
And you guys do have all thoseamazing vendor partners and
relationships to where, like,hey, you're struggling with this
contractor, here's threedifferent people that we can
refer to that are trusted andvetted, that we know can help
you grow in that area.
(06:45):
And then you know, running abusiness is not just one side.
It's not just about gettingyour marketing nailed and
getting that down like you'regood to go.
No, it's financially,operationally training, like
from leadership training down tolike skills training, and you
guys have a solution for all ofthose things through your
amazing network.
So it's fantastic and that'sone reason why we knew you guys
were going to be.
We needed you as part of ourpresenting sponsor for the great
(07:08):
American brand story.
So let's talk a minute, becauseI'm sure you've been able to
witness the power of a brand andwhat contractors with strong
brands can do.
So what does it do for acontract, Not just visually, but
emotionally, operationally, howthey impact their community.
Have you seen any of that inyou know the contracts that
(07:29):
you've worked with?
Speaker 2 (07:30):
Oh, of course.
I mean it's one thing to have alogo and then there's another
thing to make that logo work.
And when I say make that logowork, it means what are you
doing in your community, whatare you doing to your customers?
And you know, for me to see atruck go by, that's great At
least it's visual to me but thento see them in the community
(07:51):
doing great things, you know, Ithink that's the part that sets
an average contractor into anelevated contractor.
You know you have to be morethan your brand.
You have to be, you know,impacting lives, and that can be
customers that can be.
You know your community, butyou have to be more than your
brand.
You have to be, you know,impacting lives, and that can be
customers that can be.
You know your community, butyou have to stand for more than
just you know a logo on a pieceof paper or a logo on a shirt.
Speaker 1 (08:14):
Well, and a brand done right should be a visual
representation of what yourcompany actually stands for.
So do you have the good oldfashioned values family oriented
?
Are you super modern andinnovative?
Like we are cutting edge?
You know, beginning at theforefront before everyone else.
You know like the visualrepresentation should represent
(08:34):
what your company is.
Because, you're right, a brandis so much more than just a logo
.
But when you can have that logothat illustrates it and
represents what your companystands for, that helps consumers
know why they should go withyou versus the other competitors
that you have in your market.
And when people feel like theyknow you they see you everywhere
(08:57):
.
You're five mile famous, if youwill when they actually do have
that time of need for theirplumbing emergency or their air
conditioning unit just went out.
Like you don't want to be goingup and duking it out with every
other contractor on Google ads,like if they already know you
and they know, oh, I'm going tocall wise guys, I'm going to
call Bailey's heating and cool.
(09:18):
Like you don't have to duke itout, they're going to you
directly because they've alreadyknown you and experienced you.
Speaker 2 (09:24):
Exactly.
You know, in our world we donot want to have contractors
come in our house because weknow that it can be costly.
But we also want the ones thatcare to be in our homes because
I mean, we value our homes justlike we value our families.
So we want the best doing thosethings for us.
Oh absolutely.
Speaker 1 (09:42):
I mean, it's not fun money to spend Like we'd rather
spend 10 grand on a nicevacation or something.
But you're right, like we allcan appreciate that, like it is
a big deal, you know, and likeit has tremendous resale value.
Like if I was going to sell myhome when was the HVAC system
last up?
Like.
So I think we can know andappreciate that.
But that's why we are going tovalue who is going to actually
(10:03):
come into my home, who can Itrust?
Who's going to walk me throughthe process?
Not treat me like I'm a dummyIf I'm a woman, I'm not speaking
the right technical terms orthings like that, you know.
So building that trust can verymuch be done through your brand
and it is super important andconsumers are looking for that.
Sometimes contractors get intheir own way.
(10:26):
I think about well, I'm not thecheapest in town.
I'm like, well, I can't offerthese, you know these super low
offers that these private equitycompanies are doing.
No, it's not about that.
It's about building the trustand what makes you different,
you know, than these otherpeople.
Speaker 2 (10:37):
And it's funny that you talk about pricing, because
you know we're not going to talkprice and we're not being, you
know, honest.
I don't know if I want thecheapest person.
Will we be doing a surgery forme or the cheapest person maybe
doing a surgery for me or thecheapest person messing with my
eye?
These are things that I value,so I want to have a reputable
person.
I want to have a person thatcares about not only me, but
(10:59):
about you know, doing the rightthing all the time, and I think
your brand should stand for thatAbsolutely.
Speaker 1 (11:05):
And I think this leads into a perfect segue of
you know you want to build thattrust and show the value, like,
hey, we're not the cheapest, butlike we are the most
experienced, we're the mosttrustworthy, like you're
building that value to yourconsumers.
So is your brand actuallytelling that?
Or have you yourself tried toskimp it, like I'm not even
gonna wrap my vehicle, I'm justgonna, like, put some decals on
here.
Or like, uh, my cousin'sbrother like you know, which I
(11:26):
guess would still be your cousin, but my cousin's brother's like
you know, which I guess wouldstill be your cousin, but my
cousin's brother's boyfriend,someone out like has the latest
version of Photoshop.
They can make me a logo.
Like, ok, you're skimping itthere.
And like consumers can tell, ok,so if you want to look like you
are the premium option, or likeyou have all the expertise, you
are the authority in thesespace and in that space, you
(11:48):
need to look like it.
And so that's why we've puttogether this giant prize
package for the Great AmericanBrand Story.
So, starting off, it's going tobe a complete rebrand giveaway
from Lemon Seed.
So we're going to give you atrue brand that tells a story
that has some meaning behind it,that represents your company.
We're going to give you a brandstory and a brand acronym and
(12:11):
all the logo and supportingfiles that you might need to
really kind of run with it, butthen also a prize package from
Service Nation.
So, nicole, tell us a littlebit about the exact specifics
that you guys are going to begiving us.
Speaker 2 (12:23):
Yes, we are.
We are going to be helping growyour business by giving you all
of the best practices that youneed.
So, if you're not already aService Nation Alliance member
because you can be a ServiceNation member or an Alliance
member we want to provide youwith a year's membership.
You know and that is very Idon't want to give the price
(12:44):
because we're going to say thatyour total package is way over
ten thousand dollars Wow, butyou're going to get the best
practices.
You're going to say that yourtotal package is way over
$10,000.
Wow, but you're going to getthe best practices.
You're going to get themembership.
We have events that are inperson, with the next one being
Service World Expo in Las Vegas.
So you definitely get a ticket,for that Does not include
(13:05):
traveling hotel, but you knowwhat Get to Vegas and everything
else is paid for there.
And then we also are providingtraining.
You know every company is alittle different, so you can
tell us how you want to use yourtraining dollars.
You know, maybe it's forculture, maybe it's for this
profile, maybe it is forfinances.
Whatever it is that you need,service Nation is there to help,
(13:28):
and you know training.
You know training is one ofthose things and I'm sorry to
get on this bandwagon buttraining is one of those things
where the ROI on it you may notsee immediately, but if you do
not put in time to train,someone else will later.
And then those are dollars thatare you can't recoup.
Speaker 1 (13:52):
So you know we want to start you out with the best
practices and the training youneed to grow well and you're
100% right, like usually, whenyou're like, uh, I need some
training, like you've alreadykind of missed the mark, like
you have a much more uphillbattle, but when you're more
proactive than reactive in it,um, you save yourself a lot of
heartache.
So, man, just from the brandpackage that Lemon Seed is
(14:13):
giving and from Service Nation,like that already would be a
fantastic prize package, I think, don't you think?
Speaker 2 (14:18):
Nicole, I think so too.
And then, when you partneredwith all of the other different
vendors that you guys are goingto have it would, I mean, I
can't imagine if everycontractor that's hearing this
is not going to take a momentand, you know, apply for this.
I mean, I to me it is one ofthe best things out there, and
(14:40):
if you're missing thisopportunity, then you're missing
the chance to grow your company.
Speaker 1 (14:46):
Also included is going to be a brand new website
from online access.
Um, we've got a partner locallymy husband and I, real graphics
who's going to be donating somesignage and wall wraps to build
your culture internally in yourteam.
We've got criscone brothers,who's going to be donating, um,
some branded products, whetheryou need that for apparel, hats,
um, swag items, they're goingto be donating that, plus some
(15:09):
outbound resources to reallylike help you.
If the phones aren't ringing,we're going to make the phones
ring on their end.
So giving you some outboundservices.
Ripley PR is another fantasticpartner of Lick and Seed.
They're going to do a five weekblitz for this new contractor
so not a new contractor, but forthe new brands, like in their
area.
How are they going to letpeople know about this
(15:30):
transformation?
Hey, same great company, justwith a new look and feel, giving
them lots of resources toreally push that.
Pink Callers is anotherfantastic partner.
They're going to be offeringsome call center resources from
building out some organization,but then also branded call
scripts and how can you outbounddial?
But also when you're internally, when you are receiving those
(15:52):
phone calls, how can it bebranded and extenuating further,
reiterating into the mind ofthe consumer about your brand,
searchlight, also providing tonsof digital analytics and
digital insights that you canpiece together all the marketing
pieces that you have.
They're coming from all thesedifferent paths and all these
different lead sources, tying itinto one unbiased so not just
(16:15):
your digital provider.
Being like this is everythingwe did.
They can kind of see a morefull picture and they have no
skin in the game to their ownperformance of hey, this was our
website, that we were in thesedigital ads, this is how well
it's performing Gives you anunbiased, truly amazing insight
to that Um, also to your success.
We know them for their amazingsmelling cookies, but they have
(16:36):
tons of consumer relationmarketing um resources that
they're going to be donating tothis contractor.
Mail shark is going to be doinga direct mail drop Um and Again
getting the word out about thisnew brand and what our company,
this contractor, can beoffering to their community.
We're going to be also havingsome resource from Chirp.
(16:57):
If you're not familiar withChirp, they do tons of
automations, speed to lead,following up on open invoices,
things like that.
They're going to be offeringtheir services for three months
for free and then, to top it alloff, we're just gonna be
documenting and filming theentire thing.
We've got some videographyresources from a local company
called From Bland to Grand.
(17:18):
They've been fantastic to workwith and so they're gonna be
documenting this whole journey.
But then they're gonna give ussome deliverables but also to
the contractors so some videoresources you can use on social
media, on OTT ads, things likethat, to use and to launch this
brand.
And the exciting part isthey're going to document this
(17:40):
whole journey.
But then we're going to showthis video.
We're going to show the entireprocess at Service World Expo
hosted by Service Nation in LasVegas this year in October,
where this will be the grandreveal.
We will show off the entireprocess, the before and then, of
course, the after, and we'regoing to bring up that lucky
contractor on stage.
We're going to bring up all ofour partners and we are going to
(18:01):
celebrate and make it one heckof a party, aren't we?
Speaker 2 (18:04):
Nicole, oh my goodness party.
We're going to come up with awhole nother word, because party
just doesn't do it justice.
Speaker 1 (18:10):
Oh, I love that.
Speaker 2 (18:11):
Yes, I mean just from you saying all of the different
resources that this luckycontractor is going to receive,
I mean it kind of warms my heartknowing that this is not just
about Lemon Seed.
Lemon Seed has partnered withothers to make this event and
(18:31):
this journey for some contractorreally life-changing for them,
and I am so excited to be onthis journey with you Right now.
If you are listening to us, youshould be going online and
registering to be part of theAmerican Brand Story.
I mean you will benefit someway, your community will benefit
(18:54):
some way by, you know, justseeing if you are that lucky
contractor.
Speaker 1 (19:00):
Oh, 100%.
So this total price package isworth over $150,000.
You've heard, nicole, and I sayI know all our partners along
with us.
We truly believe that this canchange someone's life, this can
change the trajectory of yourcompany, and sometimes we just
understand that people just needa hand up.
You know that running andowning a business is very
(19:20):
challenging.
You've overcome a lot andsometimes this can just be the
next little catapult to help youreach that next level for your
company.
So, like Nicole said, go to ourwebsite,
greatamericanbrandstorycom, andyou can apply.
You can see who can apply.
You've got to be in the homeservice industry okay, between a
$1 to $5 million revenuecompany is what we're looking
(19:42):
for there.
You've got to be privatelyowned.
So we want this for theindividual privately owned
contract.
We don't want this to go to aprivate equity group okay.
And we want you to be in thehome service industry plumbing,
hvac or electrical and you'vegot to be open to the creative
process OK.
So, like, we might ask you tochange your name OK, you've got
to be willing to do that.
We might determine that yourname is great.
(20:03):
But you've got to trust theexperts here, trust what we know
can do the proven method.
You got to be open to that.
So if that's, you, go to thegreatamericanbrandstorycom.
You can also go to any of theLemonsies social medias.
I know Service Nation has beensharing it a ton.
All of our partners are sharingit, so please make sure to go.
(20:23):
The application process willclose on May 15th.
Okay, so we've got just alittle bit over a week.
So if you're hearing this andlistening to it, midnight on May
15th or 1159 on May 15th iswhen the application process is
going to close.
So we've already gotten severalgreat applicants, some good
stories, but we know there'smore out there.
(20:44):
So if this is you, do nothesitate to apply and then we
will be sharing the amazingreveal in October at Service
World Expo.
Speaker 2 (20:52):
Can't wait and once again, thank you, lemonsie, for
partnering, letting ServiceNation partner with you.
This is going to be epic, ifthat's the word I want to use.
So I cannot wait and we lookforward to seeing everyone in
Las Vegas for the big reveal?
Speaker 1 (21:10):
Absolutely.
So we talked a lot about theGreat American Brand story, but
I got a lightning round withjust some fun about Nicole,
because we didn't get to talkmuch about you and you were
definitely worth talking about.
But real quick, let's gothrough a few questions.
So what is one word that youwould use to describe the trades
?
Fun, fun, that's a good one.
(21:31):
I halfway expected you to sayepic, but fun.
Speaker 2 (21:35):
If I hadn't already said that word, I would.
My son says it all the time, soit's like embrained in my head.
Speaker 1 (21:42):
But fun is an appropriate word and, like
Nicole said, all those in-personevents.
Service Nation does have somefun in-person events, for sure
you know what.
Speaker 2 (21:51):
To start with, fun.
I mean I get the chance toactually talk to vendors every
day, all day, and that is what'sfun.
It's knowing that thecontractors are getting some of
the best-in-class vendors andthese vendors, you know, are
easy to work with.
They have great products andservices, Makes my job fun and,
you know, it's just a niceindustry to be in.
They have great products andservices, makes my job fun and,
(22:11):
you know, it's just, it's just anice.
It's just a nice industry to bein For sure what's your
favorite core value at ServiceNation.
Oh, my favorite core value, Iwould say it is treating
treating contractors like youwant to be treated.
So one of our core values isyou know what.
(22:32):
You can't treat employeesdifferent than you would treat
contractors or your customer.
And our customers are, ofcourse, you know, contractors.
In my case, my customers are myvendors.
Speaker 1 (22:44):
For sure.
Okay, one thing you wish morecontractors would embrace Change
.
Speaker 2 (22:50):
Oh, fantastic.
Yes, yes, yes, it's becausethey say no one likes change
besides babies.
Well, you know what?
If you want to grow, you needto be able to be open to change.
Speaker 1 (23:00):
If you're not going to change, you're going to die
Exactly.
And then, last one what'ssomething you would shout from
the rooftops about this campaign, about the Great American Brand
Story campaign?
Speaker 2 (23:09):
You do not want to miss it.
It is going to be life-changing.
And even if it's not you, itshould be someone you know.
So make sure that you tune in,make sure that you apply and
make sure you're at ServiceWorld Expo, october 26th through
the 30th in Las Vegas.
Linden C will be there.
Speaker 1 (23:28):
Will be there.
Well, nicole, thank you so muchfor being such a fierce
advocate, not just for thiscampaign but for the trades and
the entire industry as a whole.
Thank you so much.
And, like we said, the GreatAmerican Brand Story is more
than just a brand makeover.
It is a movement and, whetheryou've applied or not, we hope
this inspires every contractorlistening to think bigger about
(23:49):
who they are and what your brandstands for.
So thank you for listening toanother episode of From the
Yellow Chair.
Follow us on all of our socialmedias.
We are a full service marketingagency.
From the Yellow Chair ispowered by Lemon Seed Marketing
and we are so proud to presentthe Great American Brand Story
where you can apply, atgreatamericanbrandstorycom.
So thank you so much.
(24:09):
Thank you, nicole, and we willtalk later.
Thank you.
Popular Podcasts
Crime Junkie
Does hearing about a true crime case always leave you scouring the internet for the truth behind the story? Dive into your next mystery with Crime Junkie. Every Monday, join your host Ashley Flowers as she unravels all the details of infamous and underreported true crime cases with her best friend Brit Prawat. From cold cases to missing persons and heroes in our community who seek justice, Crime Junkie is your destination for theories and stories you won’t hear anywhere else. Whether you're a seasoned true crime enthusiast or new to the genre, you'll find yourself on the edge of your seat awaiting a new episode every Monday. If you can never get enough true crime... Congratulations, you’ve found your people. Follow to join a community of Crime Junkies! Crime Junkie is presented by audiochuck Media Company.
24/7 News: The Latest
The latest news in 4 minutes updated every hour, every day.
Stuff You Should Know
If you've ever wanted to know about champagne, satanism, the Stonewall Uprising, chaos theory, LSD, El Nino, true crime and Rosa Parks, then look no further. Josh and Chuck have you covered.