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#ProudToBeBlueCollar® Show

#ProudToBeBlueCollar® Show

Written by: Chris Crew and Jeremy Self
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#ProudToBeBlueCollar® Show is a podcast about the people who build careers in the blue collar trades and are Proud To Be Blue Collar. Hosted by Chris Crew and Jeremy Self of The Blue Collar Success Group®, each episode features a guest from the home service industry sharing how they got into the trades, what it took to succeed, and the tips and skills they use in their role every day. Who this podcast is for This show is for anyone working in or curious about the home service trades, including HVAC, plumbing, and electrical. That means business owners and managers, but it also means salespeople, service technicians, installers, CSRs, and dispatchers. If you are considering a career in the trades and want to hear what the path actually looks like from people who walked it, start here. What you will hear in each episode Every episode centers on one guest and one story. We cover how they found the industry, most of them did not plan on it, what the early years demanded, the turning points that moved them forward, and the practical tips of the trade they use in their specific role. Guests come from every seat in the business, not just the corner office.Copyright Blue Collar Success Group Economics Leadership Management & Leadership Self-Help Success
Episodes
  • No Silver Bullet: Corey Fore on Trust, Options, and HVAC Sales
    Oct 7 2026
    48 mins
  • Recovering $5.5 Million in Lost Sales Revisited: Kristian Hall ICYMI
    Sep 30 2026

    In this ICYMI cut, Kristian Hall shares the service-first sales-recovery process behind millions in recovered home-service revenue. Learn why the best follow-up starts with research, a Happy Call that gets the customer talking, intentional listening, and checking every box before trying to close.

    How much revenue is already sitting inside estimates your team did not close the first time? In this ICYMI highlight, Kristian Hall revisits the phone-based sales-recovery process that helped her recover millions in home-service revenue without stepping inside the home.

    Kristian explains the progression of the process: find the gold already inside the opportunity, review and assess the customer before calling, make a Happy Call instead of jumping into a sales pitch, listen long enough to understand what the customer actually needs, and check every box before moving toward a recommendation.

    The larger lesson is simple: sales recovery is not about having every answer or pushing harder. It is about doing the research, staying curious, letting the customer talk, and working the opportunities the business has already earned.

    • Recovering millions in home-service revenue by phone

    • Why existing unclosed estimates deserve another look

    • Finding the “gold” left behind in the original sales process

    • Reviewing customer history before making the follow-up call

    • The purpose of the Happy Call

    • Getting the customer talking instead of immediately selling

    • Why intentional listening beats trying to have every answer

    • Checking every decision box before moving toward a recommendation

    • Staying curious and becoming a better people person

    00:00 — Kristian Hall and the Sales-Recovery Opportunity

    01:34 — Millions Recovered by Phone

    02:03 — Find the Gold and READ the Customer

    03:02 — The Happy Call: Get the Customer Talking

    03:59 — Listen Instead of Having Every Answer

    04:56 — Check Every Box Before You Sell

    05:23 — Stay Curious

    Next:

    Pull 10 unclosed estimates from the last 30 days. Review the notes and customer history before calling, then make each follow-up a Happy Call: ask what changed, let the customer talk, listen for what is really holding up the decision, and do not move to a recommendation until you have checked the important boxes.

    Show More Show Less
    6 mins
  • Finding the Gold: How Kristian Hall Recovered $5.5 Million in Lost Sales
    Sep 23 2026

    What would happen if your team stopped treating unclosed estimates as dead leads? Kristian Hall shares how she recovered about $5.5 million last year entirely by phone—and why she is on pace to clear $6 million this year—by slowing down, doing the research, and serving the customer before trying to sell.

    Kristian walks Chris Crew and Jeremy Self through her path from restaurant work and loan officer to 11 years in HVAC, plumbing, and electrical. She breaks down her five-step approach: Find the Gold; READ the room (Review, Assess, Evaluate, Develop); make the Happy Call; listen intentionally; and check every box. The conversation also covers managing summer chaos, building a referral pipeline, learning the trades step by step, and the three-month relationship that helped her close a 17-system, roughly $200,000 opportunity.

    Above all, this episode is a reminder that sales recovery is not a volume game. It is patient, curious, service-driven work that helps customers make the right decision and helps home-service businesses capture revenue they have already earned the opportunity to win.

    • Managing peak-season pressure through scheduling, delegation, and focus

    • Recovering approximately $5.5 million in revenue entirely by phone

    • Kristian’s path from restaurant work and lending into the skilled trades

    • Why service, trust, and curiosity matter more than a hard sell

    • The five-step sales-recovery process: Find, READ, Happy Call, Listen, Check

    • Using ServiceTitan notes and history to prepare before calling

    • Following up when a customer does not answer

    • Intentional listening and the five boxes behind a confident decision

    • Building a referral pipeline for slower seasons

    • How patience helped close a 17-system, roughly $200,000 opportunity

    • Learning HVAC, plumbing, and electrical one step at a time

    • Why home-service businesses should work existing leads before demanding more

    00:00 — Cold Open: Finding the Gold in Sales Recovery

    00:34 — Kristian Hall’s Production Management Role

    02:17 — Managing Peak-Season Chaos

    05:31 — Recovering $5.5 Million by Phone

    08:12 — Kristian’s Path from Wyoming to the Trades

    16:05 — Why Service-First Sales Wins

    18:05 — The Five-Step “Find the Gold” Process

    22:22 — The Happy Call and Intentional Listening

    25:45 — Checking the Boxes and Building Grit

    29:09 — Doing the Work Through Slow Seasons

    33:03 — A Three-Month, 17-System Sales Story

    40:38 — Stop Chasing Volume and Work Every Lead

    Show More Show Less
    46 mins
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