Most owners want the same thing: to build a business that doesn’t rely on them to be everywhere at once — one that runs profitably, grows consistently, and creates a lasting legacy without constant firefighting.
But getting there isn’t easy. As three of the industry’s most accomplished operators shared — Brian Gottlieb, Vince Nardo, and Dave Azer — the difference between companies that stay stuck in survival mode and those that scale into market leaders comes down to a handful of critical disciplines: how you plan, how you lead, how you operationalize, and how you build a culture that lasts.
This article pulls together field-tested strategies from three of the industry’s most accomplished operators from a recent live panel discussion — leaders who’ve proven what it really takes to build a powerhouse business.
What follows isn’t theory — it’s a blueprint built on decades of actually doing it.
Most owners can easily rattle off their daily or monthly sales goals. But if that’s all you ever focus on, your business stays reactive — stuck in what Vince called operational survival, never breaking through to strategic scaling.
“Anyone can set daily sales or issued lead targets. That’s operational survival. But if you don’t lay out exactly where you want the business to be in three, five, ten years, you’ll always be stuck chasing yesterday’s problems.”
At Reborn Cabinets, everything changed when they mapped out a multi-year plan, literally posted milestones on the walls, and got their whole executive team rowing in the same direction.
“Once we all committed to that goal, we hit it — maybe a few months off, but we got there. Without it, we’d still be stuck firefighting.”
But vision alone isn’t enough. Brian said the real difference-maker is building the discipline to actually hit the goals you set.
Most owners hold back on hiring or investing in bigger infrastructure because they’re not sure they’ll consistently hit the targets that justify it.
“Most people know they need to hire, but they’re terrified of the overhead. Why? Because they’re not sure they’ll hit the future targets they’ve set. The single most important discipline is not just setting goals — it’s hitting them consistently. That’s what gives you the confidence to keep reinvesting.”
It creates a confidence loop: each time you reliably hit your target, it becomes easier to take the next step — and that’s how real growth compounds.
That’s also why Brian pushes owners to run each department like its own business inside the business. It turns growth from a risky bet into something predictable, with accountability and systems that make success repeatable.
Vince made it clear: growth doesn’t eliminate problems — it just replaces old ones with new, often bigger challenges. Early on, he said, it’s almost always the owners themselves who slow things down.
“My brother and I were the blockers. We were buried in fixing jobs, handling day-to-day. Once we stepped back and focused on leading strategy, things took off.”
But after scaling past 600 employees, they ran into a different wall. Departments started protecting their own turf, drifting away from the company’s most important goals.
“We had to intentionally break that down and make sure everyone stayed focused on the most important things together.”
It’s a big reason why so many companies plateau — they never adjust how they lead or how teams coordinate as the business grows.
Many owners resist scripting because they worry it will make their teams sound fake or robotic. But Brian said that mindset is exactly why their quality stays inconsistent — and why growth turns chaotic.
“Your installers might be the best in the industry, but do they know how to ask for a check, or explain the warranty? That has to be scripted.”
Vince shared how they learned this through painful trial and error. Early on, rigid word-for-word scripts backfired. But they didn’t give up on scripting — they simply evolved it into a set of safety nets that let even brand-new employees handle tough moments without freezing.
“Especially after the sale. We used to just hope the crew knew how to knock, lay a drop cloth, or handle final payment. As we grew, we realized you can’t hope for that — you have to train it, script it, and inspect it.”
Dave’s approach at Jacuzzi drives the same principle, just applied to different parts of the process. They literally listen to every single appointment-setting call. If it doesn’t meet standards, it doesn’t even make it to sales. Early on, 40% of calls failed QA — now it’s just 5%, because every rep knows the expectations and gets coached to stay on script.
It’s the same core discipline whether you’re scripting how to ask for a check, or rigorously QA’ing thousands of appointment calls. And nowhere is that more obvious than inside Jacuzzi’s machine.
Dave pulled back the curtain on how Jacuzzi manages nearly 1 million inbound leads a year while still keeping demo rates sky-high — all by enforcing the same fundamentals of scripting, training, and pay-driven performance.
“We have nearshore reps in Belize, staffed 8am-8pm plus weekends. But they get the same leadership, same training, same coaching. That’s where dealers fail — they treat offshore differently. It’s also 40 cents on the dollar.”
“We listen to every call. If it passes, it goes straight to sales. If not, we confirm and coach. When westarted, 40% failed QA. Now it’s 5% — because reps know we’re listening.”
“Same-day or two-day demos drive your P&L more than anything. That’s why we pay $40 for same-day, $20 for two-day, $10 for three-day, $5 after that. The comp plan drives the right behavior.”
“I like to see call centers at 3.25–3.5% of revenue. When I coach dealers on that, six months later they say it was the most impactful thing they did, because it lowers marketing costs by getting more out of every lead.”
And the payoff for all that discipline?
“We have a 90% demo rate. The key is the call center reps knowing every single call is gonna be reviewed. It totally changes the game.”
Vince pulled it all together by underscoring something most owners completely overlook: what happens after the sale.
Too often, he said, companies pour everything into generating leads and closing deals — but forget that the real leverage is in how you operate that lead after it’s sold. It’s about delivering such a strong experience that it naturally drives referrals and repeat business — exactly the kind of post-sale system gFour specializes in.
That’s why he emphasized truly mapping the entire customer journey — identifying every critical touchpoint from the time you win the job through installation and beyond. According to Vince, it’s not enough to be great at selling; you also have to know exactly when to notify the homeowner, when to reach out proactively, and how to keep communication flowing through automation or personal follow-ups.
Because at the end of the day:
“Marketing costs keep climbing — 15, 18, 20% in some markets. The second you bring in a repeat or referral client, you’re 20% ahead on profit right off the bat.”
Or put even more simply:
“The cheapest customer is the one you already sold — if you keep them connected to your brand.”
Let’s Talk About Repeat and Referral Leads
Brian pressed on the wave of new AI tools flooding the industry. Dave didn’t dismiss their power — in fact, he uses AI every day to flag calls that need a listen or to spot trends in price objections. But he made it clear that too many companies let the software take over entirely, and that’s where things start to fall apart.
“The mistake is over-relying on AI — that’s when performance drops. There’s still nothing like a supervisor actually listening and coaching.”
The real magic, he said, is using AI to surface the issues faster — so your humans can step in, solve problems, and keep performance climbing.
So many owners get caught up in reviewing weekly KPIs that they lose sight of what really drives long-term success: the people in the room, and the customers they serve. Dave and Brian offered two deceptively simple ideas that make a huge difference.
They also broke down why so many top sales reps fail when promoted to managers. Brian was blunt: loving the act of selling doesn’t always translate to loving the process of coaching a team.
“They have to love the process — the team, the metrics, the accountability. Love fuels excellence. Look at any top athlete. They love the sport. It’s hard to be great without that.”
Vince added that sales is often a solo sport, while leadership is a team sport.
“Some top reps become ball hogs when you make them managers. You have to pick people who’ll serve their team first.”
In the end, it’s about building a culture where everyone knows exactly what’s expected, where customers are kept at the heart of decisions, and where managers see their real job as growing the team — not just chasing their own numbers. That’s what creates a company that scales cleanly, serves customers better, and doesn’t depend on you to fix every problem.
Whether you’re at $2 million or $20 million:
✅ Set bold long-term targets — then build the habits to hit them.
✅ Break down silos and celebrate core values to keep everyone rowing the same way.
✅ Script every step so quality stays rock solid, from first call to final payment.
✅ Pay and QA to drive what actually moves your bottom line.
✅ Use AI to surface problems, but rely on humans to solve them.
✅ And above all — maximize repeat and referral business, because it’s pure profit.
Because when your team is aligned, your processes are tight, and customers keep coming back on autopilot — that’s when you finally run a business instead of it running you.
Stay updated with our latest Blog Posts
Insights from industry giants who’ve actually done it Most owners want the same thing: to build a business that doesn’t rely on them to be everywhere at once — one
Read More
The chances are, when you first began dreaming about opening your contracting business, you didn’t think much about email marketing for contractors, or how you were going to take advantage
Read More
Direct mail vs email marketing, which strategy is really going to help you capture, engage, and retain the most customers? The simple answer: it depends. There’s no single way to
Read MoreSchedule an appointment or consultation with us today to get started.
Book an Appointment
