Roofing Podcast Roundup - Oct 31: 3 Moves to Add Profit This Week

Top 3 to Implement This Week:

• Fix the 27% leak (brand over aggregators): Stop treating “more leads” as the answer—your set rate is sinking because prospects don’t know you. Signature stat: one Atlanta roofer was setting only 27% of purchased leads; shift attention to brand‑search and neighborhood dominance, then track lead‑to‑appointment by source starting today.

• Make your books decision‑grade (ROAS on gross profit): Outsourced bookkeeping is blinding owners; you can’t hold marketing accountable if ad spend isn’t broken out and COGS is mixed. Signature stat: in seven recent reviews, 7/7 contractors had books so wrong they were pricing jobs to lose money—separate COGS and measure ROAS on gross profit, not revenue.

• Use the “because” close to justify your price: When you give buyers a clear reason, agreement rates jump—your job is to make the rationale explicit. Signature stat: adding one “because” sentence can lift agreement rates to 93%; update your proposal script today.

Sponsored: Design + Estimate in 1 Tool

Why now (≤60 words): Homeowners decide faster when they can see it. Renoworks Pro lets your rep show photorealistic designs and generate a ballpark estimate on the first visit—fewer callbacks, more premium options selected, and cleaner follow‑ups.

Proof & payoff: Contractors report 3× upsell attach rate and up to 60% better close rates with visualization in the workflow; homeowners prefer visualized options.

URGENT: Stop the 27% Lead‑to‑Appointment Leak (Brand > Aggregators)

Why now (≤60 words): If strangers meet you first through lead sellers, they shop you on price and ghost you. Joe Hughes shows the fix: become the obvious local brand and your set rate jumps from the 20s to the 60–80% range—without buying more leads.

Steps (6):

1. Stand up a scorecard that tracks by source: leads, set rate, show rate, close rate, revenue, gross profit.

2. Turn on $20–25/day Meta awareness to your 5–10‑mile radius; this is farming, not instant leads.

3. Retarget for $5/day to everyone who visits your site or watches ≥25% of your videos.

4. Name‑search capture: log every inbound that googled your company name.

5. Neighborhood saturation on every install: 50–100 door hangers pre‑job; yard sign; local FB/Nextdoor post.

6. Run a 30‑minute weekly “Marketing GC” huddle to coordinate all vendors and channels.

Copy/paste asset(s) - Marketing Scorecard (columns):
Week | Source | Leads | % Set | % Show | % Close | Avg Job $ | Gross Profit $ | Ad Spend $ | GP ROAS (GP$/Ad$) | Notes

Proof & payoff: Contractor Dynamics found a $5M roofer setting 27% on purchased leads; brand‑search and local dominance routinely deliver 60–80% set rates. A steady $20/day awareness campaign “reaches tens of thousands” locally each week; concentrating within five miles also recovers $50K–$100K+ in silent drive‑time waste annually. Expect the curve: month 1–3 groundwork → month 4–6 momentum → month 7–12 compounding.

Source: The Roofer Show — “How to Build an In‑House Marketing Machine” with Joe Hughes, [13:53–18:52; 24:14; 37:41–52:45; 43:34–49:30].

IMPORTANT: Make Your Books Drive Decisions (Gross‑Profit ROAS)

Why now (≤60 words): Andy Keys reviewed seven roofing P&Ls in two weeks: every one had misclassified costs, lumped “advertising,” and owners making calls off fantasy margins. If your numbers are wrong, your pricing, hiring, and marketing bets are wrong. Fix the chart of accounts and judge ads by gross profit, not clicks.

Steps (6):

1. Separate COGS cleanly: Roofing labor, primary suppliers (ABC/Beacon/SRS), misc materials, specialty subs (gutters, drywall).

2. Break out marketing by channel: LSA, PPC, Meta, TV/streaming, billboards, canvassing (no “Advertising – Other”).

3. Track “Qualified Appointments” (butts‑in‑seats) by source inside your CRM.

4. Match completed jobs back to source and export gross profit by job monthly.

5. Compute GP‑ROAS per channel: Gross Profit ÷ Ad Spend. Kill losers, double winners.

6. Owner review cadence: you, GM, and marketing lead meet monthly to rank channels by GP‑ROAS.

Copy/paste asset(s) - COA Starter (drop into your books):

• COGS – Labor (Roofing)

• COGS – Materials (Primary Suppliers)

• COGS – Materials (Misc.)

• COGS – Specialty Subcontractors

• Marketing – Google LSA | PPC | Meta | TV/Streaming | Brand/Billboards | Canvassing
  GP‑ROAS formula: = Gross_Profit_from_Channel / Ad_Spend_for_Channel

Proof & payoff: Keys reports 7/7 contractors had broken books (e.g., truck payments in the P&L, invoices two months behind), thinking overhead was 12% when it was ~30%. With clean data, a PPC line showing $15K spend against $180K gross profit is a 12× GP‑ROAS—clear guidance to scale. Expect 20–40% net profit lift by reallocating budget.

Source: Roofing Success — Andy Keys, [57:35; 30:45; 19:37]

IMPORTANT: Master the “Because” Close (Backed by Compliance Research)

Why now (≤60 words): Homeowners say “yes” faster when your price comes with a clear because. Adam Bensman shows that one word reframes resistance into acceptance. The move: attach a concise reason to every premium—labor, components, warranty, process—and watch agreement rates jump.

Steps (6):

1. Pick your reason library: workmanship warranty, full system replacement, code‑plus installs, daily photo updates, post‑job QA.

2. Thread one reason into every price line: “We’re at $X because we replace every component to manufacturer spec.”

3. Embed it in proposals: add a “Because we…” line under the total.

4. Train the team (30 min): each rep rewrites their top three objections using the “because” format; role‑play twice.

5. Track agreement rate for 14 days (offers accepted ÷ offers presented).

6. Tune & templatize: keep the top two “because” lines that move the needle.

Copy/paste asset(s) - “Because” Script Mini‑Pack:

• Price anchor: “We’re higher because we replace every component and warranty workmanship.”

• Insurance upgrade: “Many homeowners choose impact‑resistant shingles because deductibles are now a percent of home value.”

• Process risk‑reversal: “We finish faster because we stage materials and run a three‑gate QA.”

Proof & payoff: Research‑backed compliance jumps to ~93% when a clear “because” is added; in roofing, Bensman reports 30–35% higher agreement when reps consistently justify the premium with a single reason. Expect lift within 1–2 weeks as scripts standardize.

Source: The Roof Strategist — “This 1 Word Will Close More Sales,” [04:30–06:18; 06:22]

Quick Wins (Do Before Next Friday)

• Call your bank to up your line of credit (before you need it): If cash is strong today, increase your LOC now; it’s the worst time to ask when you’re desperate. (The Contractor Fight — cashflow survival story, [27:30–28:32].)

• Offer paid inspections: $189 deliverable (EagleView + 100+ photos + findings) for real‑estate, second‑opinions, or multi‑property owners; credit it if they hire you. (The Lamborghini Roofer w/ Dmitry, [22:39–28:53].)

• Run a 70% pursuit filter: Score margin potential, terms, relationship, risk, strategic value—pursue only ≥70%. (Construction Genius — Eric Anderton, [09:07–10:02].)

• Do a 15‑minute “atmosphere” walk: Is your team intense or tense? Fix silos and visual clutter that signal toxicity. (Construction Brothers — “Atmosphere,” [03:08–05:25].)

• Redo one outdated training video during a weather delay: Use downtime to bring early content up to today’s standards. (BuildWitt Update #24, [02:01–03:14].)

Benchmarks to Screenshot

• Forecast discipline: Actual vs. budget within ±5% monthly; flag variances 90 days ahead. (BuildWitt — “Predictability & consistency,” [11:02–12:26].)

• Field structure: Core crews ≥80% W‑2 to reduce buyer risk and increase valuation. (Hook Better Leads — John Bartlett, [09:10–10:34].)

• Customer visibility: 1 photo update/day for every active job sent to homeowner/owner rep. (Design‑Build Delivers — co‑creation/visuals, [09:34–12:18; 16:29–18:10].)

• Operational radius: Keep average crew drive time ≤45 minutes per job day. (The Roofer Show — five‑mile efficiency, [43:34–49:30].)

Watchlist — Market Shifts You Can Monetize

• Deductibles have shifted to % of home value. Homeowners now face $6K+ out‑of‑pocket on a $300K home at 2%—they’re newly motivated to upgrade to impact‑resistant systems.
  

  Try this next: Add a one‑pager and calculator to proposals (“2% of your home value vs. $X upgrade now”) and train reps to open with, “Do you know how your deductible is calculated?” (The Roof Strategist, [06:35].)

Finish Line Checklist

Stop the 27% Leak — we’re done when…
▢ Scorecard is live and shows set rates by source for the last 4 weeks.
▢ $20–25/day brand awareness and $5/day retargeting are running to your 5–10‑mile radius.
▢ Each active job had door hangers + yard sign + neighborhood post executed this week.

Decision‑Grade Books — we’re done when…
▢ COGS and marketing are broken out exactly as listed; no lumped “Advertising.”
▢ GP‑ROAS is calculated for each channel for the current month.
▢ A one‑page channel ranking (by GP‑ROAS) is reviewed with owner/GM.

“Because” Close Standard — we’re done when…
▢ Every proposal template includes a one‑line “Because we…” justification under price.
▢ Each rep has recorded 3 objection responses using the “because” format.
▢ Agreement rate is tracked for 2 weeks and shows lift vs. last period.
▢ The best two “because” lines are locked into the sales playbook.

One Last Nudge

Pick one play and get exceptional at it before adding another.

Want help implementing? We’ll pick one person who replies in the first 24 hours with a 30 minute advisory session helping to implement one of the items listed above. Just reply with the play you want help with.