The Home Service Expert Podcast

🚀 FREEDOM 2026 Get your Tickets Today! https://homeservicefreedom.com/
Jim Leslie is the CEO of Home Service Freedom and former CMO/CTO at A1 Garage Door — where he helped build the company to over $400 million. Today he breaks down exactly what's killing revenue inside most home service companies (hint: it's not your marketing), walks through real HSF member success stories with real numbers, and explains how the right systems, community, and coaching can take any home service company further, faster.
In this episode:
▸ The #1 reason home service marketing doesn't work (it's your booking rate)
▸ How a $22M multi-trade company was losing money without knowing why — and turned it around
▸ The speed-of-implementation principle that separates companies that grow from those that stay stuck
▸ How AI is flipping the labor equation — and what it means for your team right now
▸ Why going deeper beats going wider — every time
▸ What smart investors actually look for in a home service company
▸ Inside HSF: membership, coaching, training, and the 90-day money-back guarantee
▸ Freedom Event: October 26–28, Mandalay Bay, Las Vegas
-- 🕐 TIMESTAMPS 🕐 --
00:00 — Jim Leslie / HSF
08:11 — HSF Membership Overview
16:00 — Member Turnaround Story
23:52 — Speed of Implementation
29:05 — AI Productivity Shift
36:28 — Smart Investor Criteria
44:15 — Freedom Event Details
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🚀 FREEDOM 2026 Get your Tickets Today! https://homeservicefreedom.com/
Senja Spellman is a fractional CMO who has spent over a decade inside the marketing departments of companies like Tundra Land ($100M), Leaf Home, Bath Works, and Home Genius Exteriors. She took Bath Works from $12M to $25M in one year — now pacing $52M. Today she shares exactly how home service companies can build brand trust, track TV attribution, grow with zero ad spend, and disrupt in a market where everyone looks the same.
In this episode:
▸ Why 66% of customers pick by trust — and only 7% by price
▸ The TV attribution model that ties every spot to a lead
▸ How to use ChatGPT, Claude, and Gemini to audit your brand visibility right now
▸ Brand vs. direct response — which one your business actually needs
▸ The 97% rule: why branding matters more than most owners think
▸ Omnichannel data strategy: how to hit the right person across mail and CTV
▸ Marketing budget benchmarks: growth (20–22%) vs. maintenance (15–18%)
▸ How cause marketing builds internal culture and external brand
▸ Why marketing is meant to disrupt — and how to stop blending in
-- 🕐 TIMESTAMPS 🕐 --
00:00 — Senja's Background
07:06 — TV Attribution Model
15:31 — LLM Brand Visibility
22:48 — Home Service Differences
30:25 — Marketing Budget Benchmarks
36:10 — The 97% Rule
41:30 — Omni-Channel Data Strategy
49:50 — Private Equity Risks
57:07 — Brand Story Process
01:03:55 — Lead Gen Quick Wins
01:12:05 — Disruption in Marketing
01:17:55 — Senja's Contact Info
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🚀 FREEDOM 2026 Get your Tickets Today! https://homeservicefreedom.com/
Tony Hoty filed bankruptcy at 29. Spent 10 years on the road training companies 
across the country because he had no choice. Then rebuilt to $10M+ in retail 
remodeling with Window Expo and Bath Expo.
His message is simple: stop throwing money at digital ads and start building a 
system that creates demand. Tommy and Tony break down door-to-door canvassing, 
home shows, events, call center follow-up, and the lead handling mistakes costing 
most remodelers thousands every month.
-- 🕐 TIMESTAMPS 🕐 --
00:00 Intro & Origin Story
05:40 Hunting vs. Farming
08:42 Door-to-Door Playbook
13:13 Creating Infinite Demand
17:10 Capacity Planning
19:42 Culture & Hiring
23:33 Event Profiling
29:54 Lead Handling & Leakage
33:03 Lead Follow-Up Mistakes
38:53 Process & Discipline
43:11 Ride-Alongs vs. Technology
46:45 Vision & Self-Improvement
49:28 Lead Gen Expo
🚀 FREEDOM 2026 Get your Tickets Today! https://homeservicefreedom.com/
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🚀 FREEDOM 2026 Get your Tickets Today! https://homeservicefreedom.com/
Justin Feichter started Providence Roofing just over a year ago — after getting pushed out of his last company as a minority partner. In his first eight months he realized his pricing was completely wrong, rebuilt his systems on the fly, and crossed $1.2M in revenue.

He's still in the field every day. This is a real-time look at what it actually takes to build a blue-collar business from the ground up — the pricing mistakes, the social media strategy that's working without a budget, and what happens when you refuse to quit.

-- 🕐 TIMESTAMPS 🕐 --
00:00 Intro & Background
06:00 Year One Pricing Mistakes
12:00 Hiring for Your Weaknesses
18:00 Trades as the New Goldmine
24:00 Competing on Price
30:00 Retention & Relationships
36:00 Technology & Systems
42:00 Tax Strategy
48:00 Sales Process & First Contact
54:00 Vendor Strategy
01:00:00 Close Rate & Lead Sources
01:06:00 Social Media & Content
01:12:00 Goals for 2026
01:17:00 Lead Gen & AI

— Tommy's final word 🚀 FREEDOM 2026 Get your Tickets Today!
https://homeservicefreedom.com/
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🚀 FREEDOM 2026 Get your Tickets Today! https://homeservicefreedom.com/
Peter Thomas built $8 billion in real estate — then lost $70 million when his silent partner went bankrupt. At 87 years old, he's sharp, happy, and still building.
Tommy gets the real story: how Peter faced 18 creditors with nothing, negotiated every single one, and rebuilt from zero. The lesson? Your skill set and your network are the two things no collapse can ever take from you.
-- 🕐 TIMESTAMPS 🕐 --
00:00 Peter Thomas introduction
01:15 Century 21 Canada 1974
01:34 Built $8 billion
02:13 Biggest failures discussed
03:39 Living well at 87
04:31 What are your values?
04:45 Health and freedom aligned
06:05 Choose your life partner
06:19 Give everything away
07:09 Tommy grew up alone
07:40 Partner went bankrupt
07:58 Down $70 million
08:41 Skill set always survives
09:16 What was next move?
09:42 Negotiating 18 creditors
10:20 Worked all 18 deals
11:00 How to find Peter
11:29 Happiness is a choice
11:48 Tommy's life at 45
12:26 Manifesting your future
🚀 FREEDOM 2026 Get your Tickets Today! https://homeservicefreedom.com/
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My other podcast:
Tommy Mello Millionaire ⟶ https://www.youtube.com/@officialtommymello
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