The Level 10 Contractor Daily Podcast

Thanks for joining us on the Sunday podcast; the one time per week when Rich turns his attention to topics having to do with either personal development or spiritual topics. This episode is a little bit of both.

Every Saturday, we showcase a topic important to you by rounding up the greatest highlights and clips from Level 10 Contractor's ENTIRE podcast run. This week, we cover the topic of innovation. Let's face it: if you are not innovating your business, then you're stagnating. Worse, your competition might be doing the hard work you're avoiding which means they'll outshine you. Innovation has always been a big part of what Rich teaches and preaches about… and he's kind of cracked the code. We will hear a couple of Rich's 20 different innovation formulas–that's right, 20 tricks to stand above the rest. Plus Rich discusses two of the greatest innovators he's encountered.

As you can see from the title, Rich is going to be talking about advanced mailing strategies today. Think about it this way: What if you could identify the kind of people that have bought from you in the past, and then when you execute direct mail campaigns, ONLY send mail to the people that are most like your best customers? That's what PRIZM code mailing is all about, and Rich is going to tell you all about it on today's episode. If you do any volume of direct mail, this will be well worth your time to listen.

This TBT episode is a continuation of the series we started LAST week, which is part of the 5 Biggest Marketing Mistakes CD program. If you missed either of those two episodes, you can go back and listen to podcasts number 46 and 53, where we covered Mistake #1, Average Joe, and Mistake #2, The Platitude Trap, respectively. In this installment, we move on to Mistake #3, which is called "Right Message, Wrong Time." Rich is going to teach you a concept called The Educational Spectrum… and three categories of hot buttons. All of this to help you make sure you're saying the right things WHEN your prospects are ready to hear it.

Most contractors obsess over their competition. Rich argues that's a mistake. In this episode, he reveals why the top home service companies · like Service Champions · ignore their competitors entirely and focus 100% on the customer experience instead.

Building an outstanding company that promises a lot and delivers even more… and makes the jump to $10MM+, it all starts with mindset, and the mindset Rich wants to share with you today has to do with demanding excellence and casting out fear. Demanding excellence is something that Level 10 Leaders should be consciously baking into the culture of the company… and on the podcast, Rich will give you several examples of how that looks in practice. Then he shifts gears and talks about the biggest hindrance to excellence, which is almost always fear-based. This is a short message, but there is a ton packed in here.

We're talking about the lowly yard sign! Can it bring in sales and leads?

It's Sunday, and as you probably know, Rich likes to turn his attention away from Marketing and focus on topics relating to personal development and spirituality. On today's podcast Rich gets inspired by his friend Dave to work to make his marriage even better… and learns valuable lessons about how Agape love can make your family stronger. This is a great story… please listen all the way to the end.

Every Saturday, we showcase a topic important to you by rounding up the greatest highlights and clips from Level 10 Contractor's ENTIRE podcast run. This week, we cover a core tenet in the success of Level 10 marketing, namely Education. Customers want to make the best buying decision. If you help them do that–not just sell them on why to buy from you–but really help them understand the right questions to ask and everything they actually need to know before remodeling their kitchen of refitting the bath for example, they will see you as the font of knowledge and 9 times out of 10, they select your business. Let's dive in and learn how to become a go-to source for prospects and customers.

I'm telling you right up front, this is a really different episode of the podcast. First, I want you to know that this podcast is being aired with the permission of the person Rich is talking to on the call. She was hired by a roofing company to help them create structure in what has historically been a chaotic company… but as you'll hear, her real problem is battling a toxic corporate culture that's caused by one of the owners. This episode is super interesting all by itself...but wait until you hear Rich take off his marketing jacket and put on his psychiatrist's coat… and starts to correctly guess and anticipate the problems that are being caused. How does Rich know? Turns out he's lived this situation in his own company… years ago… and he tells some pretty personal stories. Then he gives some of the most direct, in-your-face, take-this-job-and-shove-it advice I think I've ever heard him give. This podcast is fascinating on 11 different levels.

This TBT episode is a continuation of the series we started LAST week, which is part of the 5 Biggest Marketing Mistakes CD program. Our installment today will cover Mistake #2, which is The Platitude Trap. Some of what you're going to learn today is AWESOME stuff that, quite frankly, just isn't talked about that much any more at Level 10 Contractor anymore--but maybe it should be. You're going to hear about Alpha, Beta, and Reticular Activator--all brain functions that will help you understand how to get people's attention in marketing. You'll hear about headlines--which ones work, and which ones are guaranteed to drain your savings, jeopardize your retirement, and squash your quest for financial independence.

Okay, so this is kind of a weird podcast. Rich took a phone call from a contractor who was "looking for some marketing help," and started working through the guy's situation. Here's the funny thing… the guy didn't realize that all he had to do to get more results was to pour more gasoline on the fire! Rich walks him through a couple of analogies and helps him get some perspective on his situation. The podcast is weird because halfway through the conversation, Rich realized that this was podcast gold, and pushed the record button on his phone so the Level 10 Listening audience could hear and share this experience. You're gonna love what you hear on this one.

This podcast might make your head explode. Rich saw an ad for a residential real estate company who was offering to pay homeowners cash money RIGHT NOW… in exchange for an agreement to let that company list their home whenever they decide to sell in the future… with no other strings attached. Just "Here's a check, let us know when you're ready to sell, whether that's in a year, 10 years, or 30 years." And that got Rich to thinking… and you know sometimes you just can't get an idea out of your head? Rich figured out some creative ways to utilize similar concepts for remodeling and home services companies. The real question is: How much would it be worth to you right now to lock in guaranteed future buyers. Let's join Rich as he explores answers to that question.

Rich reframes failure as a feature, not a flaw. Drawing on 30+ years in contractor marketing, he outlines five strategies for building failure tolerance into your system — from pricing for experimentation to post-mortems and execution discipline — so you can outlast competitors and find what actually works.

Happy Easter! It's Sunday, and as you probably know, Rich likes to turn his attention away from Marketing and focus on topics relating to personal development and spirituality. And with today being Easter and all… well, you're going to get a 45 minute dose of spirituality today. The message just might change the way you feel about, well, God… and Easter.  

Every Saturday, we showcase a topic important to you by rounding up the greatest highlights and clips from Level 10 Contractor's ENTIRE podcast run. This week, we cover branding. What's that you say? You already are the master of branding? Or you're too small for branding? Nonsense, on both accounts! Branding is more than your name or your logo or the bright color you wrap your service trucks in. Your brand is your promise. In Level 10 parlance, it is your Identity. It's what sets you apart and makes your company superior to the competition… and you better be sharing it in every piece of your marketing.

In this session from the GAF WealthBuilder event, Rich breaks down how roofers can win in 2026 using websites and SEO. Using a fishing analogy, Rich explains that failed SEO isn't proof the strategy doesn't work—it's proof you had the wrong setup. He walks through what a winning website looks like: a 40-page core site with identity content, geo keyword architecture, and AI-optimized pages, backed by ongoing SEO that compounds over time. Rich also shares how AI has cut his agency's website pricing from $15–20K down to $5K while doubling the speed of results. If you're doing $2M or more and not building a permanent lead faucet, Rich has some thoughts on that too.

It's Throwback Thursday, and today kicks off a five-part series featuring an audio CD program Rich published called "The 5 Biggest Marketing Mistakes… And How To Overcome Them All." Originally 2½ hours, it's broken into smaller segments over the next 5 Thursdays. Today covers the Introduction—where Rich teaches that marketing fundamentals never change, but tactics must evolve to break from the status quo—featuring lessons from Vince Lombardi and Dick Fosbury on how their sports legacies apply to marketing. Then it's on to Marketing Mistake #1: Average Joe, diving into INNOVATION with a thought-provoking question: What if you had to market a brand new Toyota Camry that gets 300 miles per gallon?

Why are your deals falling apart after a great sales visit? Rich reveals the real culprit — it's not bad timing or budget, it's expectation gaps. When homeowners are blindsided by a price they never saw coming, they're mentally checked out before you finish the pitch. Rich breaks down seven proven strategies to precondition price, build identity, and eliminate sticker shock before your salesperson ever knocks on the door.

Really great stuff… the Psychology or Marketing, Part 2. If you missed LAST Thursday, by all means, go back and look it up… it was the Psychology of Marketing, Part 1. This time around, Rich covers the topics of  Accelerated Discontentment… which is 100% an absolute must listen. Then he'll talk about frame of reference conditioning, logic vs. emotion, something he calls "don't talk to strangers," and finally "Anticipated reaction." Five principles in all… you're going to love this episode!

Rich is going to talk about credibility–not how to get it, but how to project it to the marketplace at large, and to your prospects in particular. He'll cover things like writing a book, hosting a podcast, participating on radio and TV shows–and more. If you're ready to LEVEL UP, this will be good information for you!

Thanks for joining us for the Sunday podcast, where RIch turns his attention to topics of personal development and spirituality… and today, we're staying in the territory of personal development. Rich is going to share a fun story about a time when he lost a 6-mile footrace against a teenager… and learned a lesson that your conscious brain is not nearly in charge of things as you think it is. Nope--that subconscious has quite a bit to say when it comes to how well you actually perform… and just realizing this fact can be very helpful.

Every Saturday, we showcase a topic important to you by rounding up the greatest highlights and clips from Level 10 Contractor's ENTIRE podcast run. Marketing is like building a case in court. Your product or service is on trial… your customers are the jury… and you're the attorney in charge… and it's a life or death sentence on the line. You can't just throw out a bunch of platitudes, you have to build the case. And that's what this week's showcase is all about.

Friday's topic is one of those things that seems little and unimportant… but can have a major impact on your business depending on how well you execute. I'm talking about how you handle prospects on the phone when the first call in… and specifically how you handle their objections. Rich talks with person-to-person marketing expert Tony Hoty about how to overcome lazy phone habits and set more appointments.

It's Throwback Thursday. You know how Rich is always talking about communicating with Power, Precision, and Passion? Well this episode is called "100 Power Statements" and it's pretty much exactly what the title would suggest. Rich has written 100 headlines that are, well, powerful… and he's going to read through them and give some commentary on HOW and WHY they are powerful. If you're a serious student of writing copy… creating an identity… or just killer marketing, this one's going to be a lot of fun for you!

Okay, so you know your website is an important part of your marketing plan. A really, really important part. And you want to make sure you do EVERYTHING right, so that it makes your prospects want to do business with you. So you listen to all the "experts" out there and do what they say… because, you know, they're, well… experts. Right? Well on this podcast you're going to hear Rich talk about a company who gave an enormous amount of money to one of those "expert" companies… and saw their search engine rankings go UP… Yay!... but their lead flow went DOWN. What? How's that possible? Oh… it's possible alright. In fact, it's likely--if you do some things on your site that people HATE. And yes, some of the things that people HATE are the exact things that the experts are telling you to do. Confused? You should be--but don't worry, Rich is going to sort it all out for you.

Tuesday's podcast episode is all about the MIND… and the psychology of marketing. Just about every marketing principle that matters can be traced to a principle of psychology; in other words, if you can find out how the mind works, you can crack the code of marketing. In this episode, Rich is going to talk about SEVEN different principles: thin slicing, trusted advisor, confirmation bias, scarcity, authority, low risk, and something for nothing.

If your contracting business is generating $5M–$15M a year but netting 10% or less, you don't have a lead problem — you have a math problem. In this episode, Rich breaks down 6 proven strategies to engineer your net profit to 15% or better: raise prices, pursue higher-end work, cut wasteful expenses, build a repeat and referral system, invest in brand farming, and leverage financing as a price support tool.

This week's Sunday podcast is a "throwback Sunday" so to speak, because it's a recording of a webinar Rich did a few years back as a part of a "Personal Edge" series he used to do. This is an all-time great message… as he talks about belief from both a secular and spiritual perspective… and uses the Parable of the Talents from Matthew 25 to help you understand how to multiply your talents. This is really good stuff… and, as always, Rich has plenty of fun stories to make the concepts come alive.

Every Saturday, we showcase a topic important to you by rounding up the greatest highlights and clips from Level 10 Contractor's ENTIRE podcast run. Rich reminds time and again that effective marketing is good storytelling. That is what we are focusing on this week: how and why it is crucial to tell your company's story in a way that explains–without a doubt–why you are the absolute best buying decision for your prospects.

Alright podcast listeners, we're going to kill two birds with one stone; Rich is going to help you understand how to write better copy for sales letters.. AND at the same time, he's going to give you a killer letter for rehash.// To make this happen, he's going to take a really bad rehash letter that was written by a closet organizer company, and he's going to give it an extreme makeover. As he does, he'll walk you step by step how and why he changes the letter… and when it's all over, BOOM, there's a great rehash letter you can use for your company.

It's Throwback Thursday. In this episode, Rich tackles the classic question: Can David beat Goliath? The answer is yes—when you wield the power of Identity. Rich explains how smaller contractors can outmaneuver giant competitors by clearly defining who they are, what makes them different, and why customers should choose them.

Pop quiz: If a prospect won't answer or return your phone calls despite multiple attempts… Does that mean they don't want to talk to you? Well, yes, in some cases… but also, surprisingly, in other cases, it does NOT. That might be shocking information, but it's actually quite possible that ignoring you has a lot less to do with YOU than it does with…. well, life.

Tuesday's podcast is one of the more important ones we've published in a while… we talk a lot on here about making the jump to $10MM in sales, and that's a worthy goal, obviously. But how do you make sure your company won't collapse under its own weight if and when you DO get to that level? That's what the manager of a $4MM restoration and exterior remodeling company wanted to know--so he emailed Rich and asked to discuss it on this podcast. As usual, Rich asks him a thousand questions to make sure he understands the particulars of the situation…. Then he gets in a really nice groove with some GREAT advice on planning ahead so you grow with your eyes wide open. You'll want to make sure to listen to this one all the way to the end.

Did you know that you can actually take advantage of the momentum that your competitors have in the market… based on their reputation, their advertising spend, their general awareness… and use it to your advantage? Yep, you can… and today, Rich is going to give you 5 ideas of how to do it.

Welcome to the Sunday podcast, where Rich takes a break from marketing and instead focuses on topics more in the realm of self improvement and spirituality. This week's podcast is about overcoming temptation–how do you actually do it? As you might expect, Rich has a different take than most. Take a listen and see what you think!

Every Saturday, we showcase a topic important to you by rounding up the greatest highlights and clips from Level 10 Contractor's ENTIRE podcast run. This week, we focus on joint ventures. What's a joint venture? It's when you work with other companies to leverage either their brand or their customer list to generate leads and sales. Rich covers three instances of joint ventures in this episode. First, becoming a content provider… second, what he calls "left field endorsements," and third "when you have something to sell no one has ever heard of." Sit back and take notes. The answer to your question about where to locate more leads might just be your neighboring businesses.

What do Calloway Big Bertha Drivers and Victoria's Secret Bras have in common with a local painting company? Well…. Nothing, potentially… unless that local painter takes a little bit of time, thought, and effort to take some of the mundane things that he does as a matter of standard operating procedures and figures out a way to make them truly extraordinary… so they stand out from the crowd. I mean, any golf company could have made the head of their driver massively huge and stuck a name on it like "Big Bertha," right? And any underwear company could have made their collection a little fancier, then stuck it on gorgeous models and mailed 100 catalogs a week to every home in America all throughout the 90's… right? So what could the painter do? What could YOU do?... you know, to stand out from the crowd? Rich is about to tell you, and it all starts with… of all things… a chicken fajita from a taco stand in a soccer shop.

It's Throwback Thursday, and today's episode is all about customer service, and creating "Raving Fans." Six main points will be covered: educating your customers, communications, how you look, doing something unexpected and memorable, dealing with problems, and getting your team to buy in. And trust me… you're going to love the story in the middle about Joe The Installer. This is hard-core Level 10 Stuff from early days!

Wednesday's podcast proves that just knowing a lot about your business doesn't mean that you necessarily have any idea how to talk intelligently about your business in your marketing. The tendency, for most business owners, is to start spewing platitudes instead of really getting down to telling their story. Rich is going to share with you a letter from the owner of a roofing company that got basically NO results… and you'll quickly hear why. Rich takes and completely resurrects the letter and makes it so it actually WORKS.

Rich delivers one of his best live performances at the GAF Northeast Summit, breaking down what actually makes SEO work for contractors—and why most company websites fail miserably. He explains geo-keyword targeting, identity-driven content, and the need for a properly structured site with core pages, service-area pages, and blog content. Rich also covers Google review thresholds, AI-driven optimization, and why companies doing $2M+ should treat SEO as a long-term engine for generating steady, quotable leads.

Stop losing your best employees. Rich reveals 5 proven strategies to motivate your remodeling or home services team without breaking the bank. Learn why growth can outpace culture, the power of random appreciation, and how a $60 cash gift created legendary loyalty. Perfect for contractors struggling with burnout and retention issues.

Welcome to the Sunday podcast, where Rich takes a break from marketing and instead focuses on topics more in the realm of self improvement and spirituality. This week he's going to tackle the tricky issue of poverty and income inequality. We can all agree that this is a major issue… and that the solutions being doled out by government, well, they just don't work. Who needs government thought when we have Rich to guide us… let's see what he has to say!

Every Saturday, we showcase a topic important to you by rounding up the greatest highlights and clips from Level 10 Contractor's ENTIRE podcast run. This week, we talk about offers. From discounts to educational material to running contests, offers can be a great way to move a prospect along in the buying cycle. People ready to buy will be incentivized to act immediately or pass up a juicy discount, while shoppers less far along in their decision-making process will gladly fork over their contact details to gain a helpful guide. Contests and sweepstakes too can spur a buyer into action. Rich will discuss each and why they are crucial to your marketing success.

 In this episode, Rich breaks down the nuts and bolts of launching a podcast for your business. From equipment and format to messaging, positioning, and promotion, you'll learn how to turn a simple show into a powerful authority-building, lead-generating marketing machine.

It·s Throwback Thursday, and today we are getting in the wayback machine and traveling to 2015 to a webinar Rich did on the topic of Pay Per Click advertising. As you listen, keep in mind that this is about 11 years old, and some of the specifics about h

Wednesday's podcast is based on a question that Rich gets ALL THE TIME from clients… which is… Should I star in my own TV and radio commercials? It's a good question, and to be sure, there are pros and cons either way.

 Ever wonder what advice Rich would give you if you asked him, "Hey Rich, what marketing activities should we engage in?" Well, that's exactly what one of Level 10's clients asked him, and you know Rich–the man likes to talk. Lucky for us, he always has something worth listening to. We're going to pick this conversation up when they're talking about targeted direct mail, then they're going to cover, well, not EVERYTHING… but pretty darn close.

Direct mail isn't dead—you're just doing it wrong. Learn the 5 proven strategies that helped contractors generate millions, including past customer campaigns, radius marketing, and the Wall Drug frequency principle that crushes digital-only competitors in 2025.

It's Sunday, and RIch is going to continue his conversation about Grace. Last week he talked about it in quite a bit of detail… and today he's going to focus on the practical, real-world application. This is where the rubber hits the road, so to speak.

Every Saturday, we showcase a topic important to you by rounding up the greatest highlights and clips from Level 10 Contractor's ENTIRE podcast run. This week, we showcase clips that will help you create engaging and diggable content, both for your website in the form of blogs and case studies as well as for social media using videos and testimonials. Google loves a website that grows so if you want to win the SEO war, you are going to have to put in the time and effort to add pages of relevant content. This may seem like a headache until you realize you have all the material you need running your successful business as is to satisfy Google's algorithm and shopping prospects.