Sam Taggart 00:06

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Sam Taggart:

What’s up everybody? Sam Taggart here with Oscar Luna in Dallas Fort Worth area right now. We just got done watching the Cowboys game they win.

Oscar Luna:

Yes, they freakin kicked ass

Sam Taggart 00:29

Smashed on the Falcons Oscars got a sweet at the frickin on the floor right in front of the Cowboys cowgirls cheerleaders and

00:38
whatever we call it. They’re in the way of the view. But yeah,

Sam Taggart 00:40

You can’t even like see the game because it’s so close cameramen everywhere but no, it was it was awesome. And I was just out here spending the weekend with these guys doing a training on recruiting for their leaders. And you know, I was like, why not get the go. He is by far one of the most golden doors ever and a year I’ll give him his quick little introduction and we’re going to dive in. We’re gonna dive into what he does on the doors selling how he runs his company and sales his philosophies there it’s gonna be really good podcast. So Oscar last year was a quadruple golden door winner so those that don’t know what that is a golden door installer it was 100 installs he did 382 Solar installs by himself and that’s the most anyone’s ever done in a year. But on top of that he did 416 Security accounts installed himself and my best year in alarms was 400 and that’s a golden door and so to do 382 or 86 solar and 416 alarms means that is the ultimate version of hustle that’s like the old like I don’t even know how to like fathom that like in in my mind so he would double up he would pitch an alarm and add solar that pitch a solar heat add alarm and he would do it all under 3040 minutes and you know to build that art of being able to do it in a quick way to be able to go in and just like make that happen is incredible so honored and privileged to have him come speaking and door to door con and it was a great weekend out here and just to get to know his team his people and the respect that they have for him in the hustle is is a is awesome so welcome

02:15
welcome out don’t thanks man. I know guys had a awesome time with you out here learned a lot

Sam Taggart 02:20
dude. And what’s crazy about Oscar is he’s like I’m learning still. Like he said I’ll tell I’ll give you this like when you got up and introduced me to training you were like dude, I was out with my guys one he’s still out there his team did he’s gonna do 1000 accounts this month if not more and he’s like when I was out knocking this week and I go first off owner out knocking leading from the front he goes I saw these guys training on this pitch. And I learned these two lines that they said that it was just fire and I was like okay, you literally sell more than anyone in the in the world. Yet he comes back learning from these first year reps second year reps and you learn some cool facts what are they? I’m curious i You had to be hot and bothered

“you got to learn every day, learn something new.”

03:01
like they were just the intro like the way they approached the the different way to approach their attention. The Senators had obviously go out set appointments and everything and the way they brought it up these new slicks were to start advertising for our teams. It’s it’s awesome like I was I was amazed and I was interested right away like man this guy’s they made us he was so monotone and how he basically pitched it and was trying to their group of news had like 44 centers in his on a blitz right now and here in North Dallas and and we were out there visiting them and man like we were impressed, like what how was training there guys? Their approach and I’m not sure if he wants me to be sharing or not. But while these new videos will always be released in first January, you’ll I’m sure a lot of you’ll be hearing about it. But no, it was amazed. I was I was telling Tanner hell, like Dude, that was awesome. Like, I want to start using that my pitch like it was amazing. My biggest thing is like I tell people like my motto is if you don’t learn your day, and you got to learn every day, learn something new.

Sam Taggart 03:58
That’s awesome. So what tell me so let’s kind of back up you got into door to door. You’ve been in order for a long time. And you started in alarms, or did you start? Yes.

04:08
So I originally started back in 2006. I was 18 years old, straight out of high school was recruited by my college, one of our college system coach. They’re like, Hey, dude, come on knocking doors. I’m like doors like yeah, like people do that. Yeah. People out a little bit. That was like a little pyramid scheme going on. To go Yeah, like you bring your friend and they bring their friend and they bring their friend. You’ll have like a big old team like, alright, well, we’ll see. But, but yeah, so basically I was 18 years old finishing high school high school, had a four year four out of Boise State. So I like you know, I have nothing to lose. I got college paid for from through my academics. And like it’s worse, it’s near. If I go out for the summer, I’ll just have a great experience and live in Seattle. And if I don’t make money, I like at least met new friends and so like hey, I have nothing to lose. So went out and that was actually probably called a PX line before when did it I was on a Brian Haney did quarantine his office and I crushed it like those two and a half months I was there I finished off with 220 126 alarms in two and a half months and I was 18 years old and literally like the money I made that summer loves the most ever mean obviously my age at the time and first thing I did and what got out of high school or got into college government back in and in Bama several Hummer

Sam Taggart 05:31
automatic film credit. Yep.

05:33
Bomber, and it was it was back when Hummers. Were cool. That was the 2006 Yeah, got a Hummer and I thought was the coolest thing ever. It’s funny because Brian Haney had an h2 truck. Yeah. So I’m like, oh, I want a Hummer to you. I mean, like, I gotta get one. And so I bought one. And yeah, sure enough. This in December hit. And I’m like crap, I spent all my money. I made 50 over $50,000 in two and a half months and it’s all gone. So what did I do? Basically, that’s when I met with Brian Haney and Vic like, hey, you know what? You should manage it. So decide like, hey, yeah, this is the right thing. How a lot of people a lot of people my age at the Taiwan college like, Dude, what are you doing? You’re 18 years old. You go on the Hummer. And it’s not your passion to buy. You bought it yourself. Like what are you doing? So honestly, thinking back to this part was probably one of my best recruiting to for me in Boise out in Boise State. I recruited about 44 guys to go with me the next summer. I ended up managing a team in California. Yeah, so manage a team with California that year. We were doing great. Obviously, the whole summer sales you recruit 40 Guys 25 in Penang until the end of the year and but now we ended up killing I think we did shy of 1300 accounts 1400 accounts that summer. It’s once again two and a half months good love these guys came from Boys State. So we didn’t finish school till end of May. And then we started school in second week of August. So we only had about two and a half months of going hard. But yeah, so those actually those two years I learned a lot managing under under a running my own office under Vic Martinez and Brian Hani that following year in 2009. I decided to do pinnacle, the pinnacle of that year then after that year into dealership called Palmetto security and South Carolina. And they were trying to actually recruit me my guys go with them. So we’re using apex to get rid of the middleman, we’ll pay you directly you know, we’ll sell an account through monitronics That’s the the pay us and that can open them a whole window for me at that time. I was like you know what, I’m better off getting rid of apex at the time and or Pinnacle at the time, and just started my own dealership. And that’s why in the end of 2009 started my company called Xena. So ended up being the Xena, Xena security company dealership out of monitronics.

Sam Taggart 07:52
Wow. So 2009 And then you got into solar. And you guys were West Texas like your you just own that area. Yeah.

08:00
So we ended up doing alarms. So still we still use running alarms. We’ve been doing that for 12 years. We solar came in our neck of the woods in 2019. With net metering can open in West Texas over time, West Texas was our number one office and alarms. And yeah, so we basically in that meter will happen there. And that’s like you know what this is the opportunity for us to get on it ASAP. Is because I always wondered like why isn’t solar here? What’s Texas? Nothing but flat above another flatland dry area model solid. Yeah, lots of sun, no tree tall trees and then made sense among that net meter happened. I brought John bacon involved with me here and it’d be my partner open up the solar side. And we ended up crashing and like do like this. Let’s go open up together and dominant. And we started convincing half of our team from alarms to do solar. They’re still skeptic because they had people in the alarmists in the solar industry. We’re like, Yeah, solar is great, but they’ll take three or four months to get paid, because that’s how long it takes to get installed. And so we started off, we ended up being doing an EPC company with elevation. We used them for a while we ended up basically almost double dipping because we had we had all our mesh electrician license on with the insecurity that at the time with Texas. So we made a deal with elevation where we can use our own installer guys. And so we sell our own installation, but they had to pay us to use it on our own installers. Good. So that kind of basically opened the doors for us because at the time we were selling in this on our own our own installs. And that’s when we realize we got our permits in our hand, by elevation. Still, after two weeks of selling them, we got permits. They’re still wanting us to wait to install it which made no sense to us. That’s when we tried to we were figuring out the puzzle like you know what, why not do the same thing. Let’s get rid of the EPC company, do everything ourselves and sure enough beginning of 2020 we ended up doing everything in house so you can get quicker in installed. Yep. So that brought up from 45 installs with elevation down to, we will start doing ourselves. We’re down to 30 days, 14 days now West Texas, we’re doing two and three to five days. Our average install timeframe right now in Texas is 14

Sam Taggart 10:16
days. Wow. Guys like that. I mean, for anybody that’s in solar, that’s fast. I mean, obviously, if you’re in roofing past, that doesn’t make much sense. But it’s, it’s cool. And that’s kind of what you guys have been known for is like, hey, we don’t have to wait three months to get paid. Let’s try to get them out there quicker in three days, five days, 15 days, you know what I mean? And actually see you guys getting paid. So I want to know, I mean, I’ve been having these questions. It’s fun to get you on a podcast ask these questions. How do you juggle personal sales, recruiting? And like running a company? You know what I mean?

10:50
Yeah, so the beginning, obviously, in 2020. Yeah, we were. Yeah, we were I was wearing multiple hats at the time. I was a daytime had the office manager office, running the team. And then after an evening was reading and helping out with the permitting department installation team. So we ended up doing this it’s me and John, basically start delegating more a lot of our worship to more hiring more people to basically help us out well, like the installation side that we had an office guide permitting utility. So we started Matt maximizing our time of the rice on what would need us the most Yeah, so obviously, mornings, were there just to pump up the installations could be true to artists dollars. Like our sales teams, we kind of motivate them to install more. So we had incentives, the more and they installed, the more they got paid. And oh

Sam Taggart 11:40
my gosh, it was so funny. They showed up so one of me is jobs they like showed up to install just like at random and she was like yeah, my customer Clemente they’re here to install it’s like we still need to get the roof done. Oh shoot the roof guys are too slow. We’re already here. We’re ready to go. You can tell like they were like we just want to get this thing kept the same strategy.

“So we figured out hey, let’s focus on the fast installs”

11:59
I love it. Yeah, that we kept it like our our mentality was you know, either we come from alarm industry like put them on the wall put a hole in the wall. We start panicking when our technicians not the house within whether it’s calling techniques or Hey man, how long how long do you hear? Obviously we want to make sure that technician shows up punch the hole in the roof then ask question where they want sensors later. Yeah, the same intel we want to bring our technology our our installers be out there ASAP, because we noticed that the that was one of the the missing link with solar here Texas is that tamper and waiting a lot of customers that people will sell 100 accounts as a team. But only 40 to 50% of that will be going installed within 30 minutes later. So we don’t want to make sure we we want to figure what exactly what we didn’t want to make sure that happened was happening to us. So we figured out hey, let’s focus on the fast installs keep everything in house stock our inventory in our warehouses, you know for four to $5 million with equipment at all time every week. So every time we assume you got a permit our hand.

Sam Taggart 12:56
Glasgow’s pick up. Yeah. Throw him on.

12:59
But yeah, but yeah, it was hold delegating time and even 2020. That was the year obviously I was going out hard on the doors, is we were managing Office and everyday after five o’clock. What actually helped me succeed. And everyone’s like, dude, how in the heck did you get motivated to continue selling? Yeah, every day, is I held myself accountable with everyday I had a couple of restaurants knocking me as like, hey, just be my door everyday. Be a door at five o’clock today. We’ll go knocking with you and your buddy. So my accountability was knocking with someone else every

Sam Taggart 13:32
day. Yeah, cuz you need to show off. You don’t want to look bad. Yep, they’re gonna make you get out there, you’re not gonna beg. Now, let’s just hang out here and chat. So you know, I came here to get training, not sit in your couch. It’s a huge hack. And a lot of people that’s one of the reasons I tell them to recruit is it’s just to recruit themselves to the doors, even the guys. So it’s like, at least you got to get out there. And the money you made? Because you went out is much greater than even the override you might make on the guy that you’re taking.

14:00
Yes, sir. And no, that’s one of the things I tell my even all my managers right now is the best ways to lead from the front. Taking one or two guys with you every day on the doors. So that way as you’re closing, you’re teaching the new person. How to close like you.

Sam Taggart 14:14
Yeah. So what let’s let’s talk about the sell itself, like when you pitch one? Well, we get into cross selling because I think a lot of people are trying that they’re like I do pest and solar. I do alarms and roofs and solar right. And they’re, they’re trying to couple products and things like that. So we’ll get into that. But the other one is just like what is yeah, when you when you can condense it down to 30 minutes. And this is the thing I learned from Adam chance. It’s like he did 1000 alarms in a year. Another probably. Oscar and Adam are probably the two best ever. And his sell was 10 to 10 minutes and you’re just like how do you talk about something that quick? Be that efficient? Like how do you how do you how do you how did you slow that or speed that sales process?

14:57
I’m honest is keeping it simple like My even with alarms back when I was training our guys how to sell like is the less information to give out that you think you know, the less and less important information give out? The better because that way, you’re obviously going straight to what the customer cares about what’s the monthly rate? What’s the contract term? And what am I getting with all this cost. So when you’re ready to get everything all in one presentation at the door, you’re basically able to, at that point, just assume the sale and continue on what they want. So you

Sam Taggart 15:28
get it you you, because a lot of people they think, hold price until the very, very end end. And then and then it’s like Alright, now let’s talk about price. Now you’re going to do another boxing match in the sales conversation, where some people are you wanting to be like, hey, there’s a monthly monitoring system, this and this, as long as the numbers make sense, there’s value, we’re going to do this kind of like so.

15:47
Especially the mark, we were at a lot of our competition, we’re charging 120 bucks a month, or 130 bucks a month. So for us, we weren’t charged our max we can charge was 64 Nine. So we right away, we knew our price was half the cost of our competition. So when we’ve patient regards, like, Hey, this is what this package comes with, for this price. Or you can add two more cameras for $3 more a month, sub to you what’s more important to you. More cameras or less cameras for the rate? So we basically it was a yes, yes, question to what they wanted to hear. Okay, so we made it straight to the point and then going into solar, once I went in the house, pitch them security, cultural security, when Hey, by the way, since you’re one of our elite customers from alarms, you also qualify for a year for your home security. That’s one of our how we base I basically attach the solar to the security. So you

Sam Taggart 16:37
qualify for your free of security, because that’s 600 bucks, and you can wrap that into the solar loan, or you could eat it in a commission, whatever. And they’re like, Oh, you’re free? And then would you sell them right then in there and build a proposal? Or would you set up another

16:52
domain then in there, because that was one my technician all was an alarm where the technician is on his route within 2030 minutes. So once again, showing up or on or in already in the house? I’m already pitching them solar. Okay, so I’m showing the transition how what the bill is right now, what Bill is going to be, you know, going solar, in building the emotion, why everyone’s doing it, and tell them why it’s important to do it now with the bundle deal. They’re doing it later,

Sam Taggart 17:16
because you save the 600 bucks. Exactly. So brilliant. So you would start an alarm. So today, if you’re not selling an alarm, what would you pitch selling solar? Like? Do you have like a pitch, obviously, it’s just more of a

“But when you break it up into small pieces for longer months, that sounds more appealing to the customer.”

17:31
solar pitch, it’s more of a solar pitch basically just created urgency, you know, hey, the best part because one of the things we have a good relationship with guli, where we’re allowed to give 1000 customer $1,000 without affecting the reps commission. So I like to do when we were out the door pitching to customers like, Hey, by the way, we got this Black Friday special, where the laundry sounded before the Sunday wire company is gonna pay for your entire bill till July of next year. So when their payments are 150 bucks a month and the $1,000 were given them is covering Exactly. But when you break it up into small pieces for longer months, that sounds more appealing to the customer.

Sam Taggart 18:08
Okay, so you’re like you’re gonna get it for your power. Yeah. And so you’re selling them on that short term. I want to save money now. Yeah, instead of like, oh over 25 years, you’re gonna save $30,000 Because sometimes it’s hard to conceptualize that for homeowner and they’re like, correct,

18:21
somewhat homeowner. So we always we like to pitch them both, like, you know, this is what you build will be in five years. This way. You build it in 10 years, but they understand it. But what’s still just like the alarms like we have a technician Hey, my texts in the area already. If I can have my attention in the next 10 minutes to get your system started. I’ll give you I’ll waive your activation fee. Yeah, Zack same mentality, where we train our reps the same way where Hey, since our reps art install is already doing the other neighbors. We’ll put it we’ll set it up for you where y’all refer each other so we’ll get it up where yes get no payment till July of next year.

Sam Taggart 18:56
Oh, cuz you’re already on this referral game. Exactly. Love that. Love that. Okay, so what are some common tips or maybe common pitfalls you see among sales guys, because you’ve trained sales guys for decades. What? What common things do you see sales reps falling into why are they all not doing 400 alarms or doing 300? Something? Solar deals like what what are they running into what’s

19:20
um, it’s also the same thing we’re running to to still to this day, we have a lot of reps that get too complacent with where they’re at, like, Hey, I’m happy making eight grand a week or 10 grand a week. And so there’s even there’s times we were doing big incentives in our company just to motivate them. But we changed it around where we’re basically now it’s almost like bragging rights. We brought brought the whole alarm mob mentality like hey, the atmosphere like hey, basically Whoever sells this, so basically is the ball rolling guide in the office. Yeah. And so we changed it up this last few months and it’s been helping a lot. Bring out the small competition throughout the summer throughout the Months weeks and then obviously now we have a big competition for end of the year we have the top four we have the top two sellers of top two closer in the company from now to December have a free trip to the Super Bowl. That’s awesome yeah so so

Sam Taggart 20:13
more so about cloud than it is about commission because the common pitfall people get into as they look at their bank account their bank accounts bigger than what they’re used to. And then they stop working current all the sudden it goes down and then I better start working again and that’s just this you know, roller coaster of commissions that we keep running into so it’s cool

20:31
yeah, that and also we have some investors we brought into our own company so we were helping these young guys that 2122 making 30 to 40 grand a week we’re showing them how to invest like dude he will own two houses by the time this year is over we do it the right way. So that’s been helped a lot

Sam Taggart 20:49
yeah cuz Chuck’s their money away that’s helped me a ton is because when all sudden I was putting all my money in real estate, I still was broke and it still had that like, Where’s all my money, but it’s like it’s in an equitable asset, you can access keep going and making more money and that’s been my biggest tip to keep myself hungry.

21:08
No, that’s what that’s what’s been helping a lot a lot of our company this last second third quarter is basically showing the reps where to put their money the right way because I don’t like doing robberies to have reps like go out. Blow it out on the weekends, which you know, you play hard, work hard, play hard, but still we want to make sure they don’t do that every weekend that hey, it’s fun to go splurge yourself once in a while.

Sam Taggart 21:29
I want to talk to that because I mean guys, Oscar drives a Lamborghini a Bentley a Rolls Royce and has a jet. So you know, they see they see his 15,000 square foot house they see this that and this Gucci shoes and Gucci sweater and Nightwatch you know, and it’s like, they think oh, I should have that stuff too. But what they didn’t see is you started in 2000 Fuckin freakin six Right? Like, like, I can’t stress this enough guys like I don’t care much but like I’m, I’m with you like all these sales guys today, like it the Superbowl or the Cowboys game? And I was like, Can I wake some of you guys up like, invest like they’re all talking about? I’m going to get this new Tesla and I’m going to get this and they’re like, oh, and I’m gonna in granted you got a Hummer in 2006 But you’re broke is a joke and use it for recruiting. But I’m like, if people realize that this has been 12 years of owning a company and beating your head against the wall and it wasn’t always jets and nice cars, right? Like

22:29
is one of the base Well, I tell the guys right now like so what I did is I learned my mistakes from our first year so the second year when a management team manager I think it was Brian Haney given the book called Rich Dad Poor Dad. And that changed my mentality is so silly. Come back that thing that second summer making over 130 grand that summer. I put 80 grand into a duplex. They go and that’s when I help us they start training my guys the same way like hey, let’s just start investing. Yeah, yeah, no, it’s true. I have a little rose like oh, what? Why don’t you think I should buy a car like the dude, why buy yourself a house first and then buy the toys?

Sam Taggart 23:04
Yeah, it’s crazy. Because that house is gonna appreciate and it’s funny even like the stuff that they don’t see too is the conversation we had in a Rolls Royce. You’re like, I bought her the Bentley, you’re like I bought this Bentley, there’s only 38 of them. And I bought it for 350. And it’s now worth 470. I could sell it today. Like you bought it as like a like almost like a sports card and kind of buy or a gun by is it’s like, I know, this thing’s gonna appreciate in a smart way. I’m gonna get it at a discount so that if I had to resell it, I know there’s some equitable value in that. But I think a lot of people, they don’t see the strategy there too. They’re just going for the look. Yeah. Now, investing is such an important game that we all need to understand and learn because even just this weekend, you probably spent 50 grand just on your team as far as the box sweets, me coming out. You had dinners we ate at Nick and Sam’s and it’s like culturally investing to get a return there. Like what are some of your pro tips for owners, managers out there that you found good investments in your people to pay back dividends as far as their work and stuff like that?

24:06
Um, my biggest thing is taking care of people they’ll take care of you. If you talk to them a lot of my employees are with me they’ve been with me for for eight or nine years they’re still with me today is the fact that i No matter what I’ll take a bullet for them. If there’s like even when it comes to customers battling with other companies will still help them when it is basically taking care of your people in front of you.

Sam Taggart 24:29
I had a great compliment for you last night. So Oscar gets a lot of crap in this industry cuz you take bullets and you’re not willing to like you don’t back down and you’re like, I’m gonna take bullets for my people. Like I defend my turf. I defend my team. And a lot of times people don’t like they that comes off to competitors is aggressive. And I’m like, and okay, isn’t that how businesses sometimes like I look it wasn’t Walmart pretty aggressive but putting Walmart right next to Kmart. Like I’m sure Kmart it’s like Well, we’re already here. No, Walmart was like, I’m gonna plant a Walmart right across the street. And you guys are gonna be out of business in a few years and wasn’t Netflix aggressive when they went after Redbox that you know what I mean? Like I’m like, That’s business guys. So here’s what’s interesting is I’m with this guy last night. And he’s said one of your competitors was, you know, coming into the turf and it was like annoying because you kept taking the deals back like you were swapping out all the deals. And he was like, Dude, it was so annoying. So I had to go to Oscar and ask for truce. And you respectively you created that. And then another competitor came in, and wanted the truce. And he’s like, No, we’re gonna run these guys out. And I’ve got your back and me and you are gonna go dominate. And he’s like, the fact that he like, had my back and went to bat for us. Now we’re working together, you know what I mean? Like, he just had like mad word before he hated you. Now he’s like, mad respect, I’m in the gang. And it was just a cool compliment. I was like, I see that. And I see that your people would go to bat and bullets for you, too. Because you’re like, in the trenches with them, you show that you care, you invest in them. And that’s a huge compliment, like not many leaders have that. I’m giving everything to you. And I got your back.

26:14
So good. Yeah, no, thanks. Appreciate that. But that’s one biggest things I tell my, my reps, my managers VPS. And regionals is generally it’s in the front. The best way to win respect for me, they don’t want, they don’t want to Hiller behind them. They want to Gandhi in front of them leading off in the front. Yeah, showing them you know, how to how to do it.

Sam Taggart 26:31
So what are some of the big struggles that you weren’t expecting? Like, let’s say, I’m running a solar company, I’m new, or I’m running an alarm company, or I’m, I don’t know, like, things that you’re like, Man, I wish I would have told my, you know, 10 years ago self these roadblocks are going to come navigate this, like, what are some of those that you’ve had to go through?

26:51
Um, honestly, is is your investment. As far as your the company was, like I was in my first three years, I was making good money to do my whole alarm money almost at the time, and I was putting my money in the wrong in the wrong spot, instead of my reps. Now, I obviously changed around like to this day, going back to like what we do this weekend, as we have this manager achieve with all the VPS managers, the golf event is investing more of them, obviously like to help them grow. But we have speakers like you and

Sam Taggart 27:22
Joe Jordan,

27:24
and my let all these guys because we want our guys to continue growing and learning themselves. Because a lot of these guys have a lot of potential, they don’t realize how much potential they have. Until they see themselves or

Sam Taggart 27:34
hear themselves. Yeah, no, it’s so true. What about as far as business partnerships or business moves? Or? I don’t know, like, is there any kind of like, well, back in 2011, I got my face kicked in here. Like, I don’t know, anything like that, then you’ve had kind of weather?

“we’re just a small fish in a pond with a big shark”

27:54
Um, yeah, obviously, like, don’t try to my biggest thing is don’t try to go big all at once like this. For example, when we first started doing solar, or email alarms, I was trying to compete against vivit, which there’s no way in hell is going to be good at the time. And I mean, like, we’re just a small fish in a pond with a big shark is a little bit helped me on the alarm industry is if I just focus on my company and not worried about my competition, you will work out first bets.

Sam Taggart 28:22
Yeah. Cuz I think a lot of people play to the hand of their competitor instead of their own hand. Yep. And I think one thing you’ve done well is, you know, I’m sure even when I got to socius, I kept telling Kelly, I was like, Hey, we could open up this market opened up this market open up this market, and I’m sure everybody’s like, what are you gonna go to New Mexico, your neighbor state? When are you going to go to Oklahoma, and you’re just like, there’s so many homes in Texas, let’s just do what we do best. And it was really centralized in West Texas at first. And now you’ve just recently started to really go all over. Right. But it’s like, you did a very good job at saying I don’t care if people are making tons of money in California doesn’t mean I need to be a California solar company. Right?

28:59
Yes. So that’s one of the biggest things that we have a lot of managers that live in California or New Mexico, for example, or even Oklahoma, our biggest thing like there’s so many opportunity here in Texas, like we obviously have four main offices here in Texas. Now. Our goal is once we were doing over 1000 installs a month, and yeah, we can start talking about the markets. But till then, let’s just start focusing what we have in our own backyard.

Sam Taggart 29:21
Yeah, no, I think that’s a pro tip. Because if you chase somebody else and play their game, they will always beat you at their game is that’s why you’re chasing them. It’s like, there’s a reason they’re there. And, you know, and they also found a niche. They said, What are we known for? What are we good at? What do we want to be seen as? And I think it came down to we want to be known for fast installs. We want to be known for this. We want to be you know what I mean? And I think a lot of companies they struggle because they try to they say I want to be known for all of the things but then it’s like I’ve there’s probably 5000 solar companies I don’t know the name of our I don’t know what they’re known for. I’m like you’re just another dealer of tight and you’re just another dude that was pices manager and left and now that you got your six guys congratulations. So yeah, we got to kind of wrap up but like any other advice that you’d give the door to door space,

30:19
um, honestly just time management has filled like, especially like right now with the holidays around the corner, you’ll be surprised like one of our biggest time of knocking is right now is a lot of these summer sales guys that go home for the summer, or go back to school. This is like, from from October to March, we’re always our biggest sales numbers because we have less competition in the doors. So just utilizing your time correctly like right now a lot of people are thinking the opposite Hey, it’s winter times we’ll do holidays, the trips like going wrong you know, work hard play hard still take your your trips, but maximize the time that were a lot of your competition whether you know, like that they say like whether dreaming of dreaming, you’re obviously you’re making that dream come true. So take advantage of the time and opportunity that we have right now especially with the whole market the way it is and the tax credit we have special guests by the handle the tax

Sam Taggart 31:14
credit to huge, huge, huge guys my biggest advice to the space would be exactly that. I think so many people I caught death by business cards or over analyzing creating this paralysis by analysis. It’s, there’s this element of like I have to have all these things in a row before I actually go to work, when to just go to work. I’m sure you’ve broken things on the way I’m sure you’ve had to be like whoops, my wake is pretty big because you’re just over producing you’re over you know, you can figure out some of the backend logistical things as you just do. And I think so many people are wasting this like harvest and harvest the crops are going bad because they’re all sitting out there and other companies other reps everybody else’s you’re gonna go harvest your own harvest. And

32:03
it’s and that’s one of the things like obviously, like being wrong, we learned it ourselves, you know, years ago was served on companies. We were on the same path like hey, let’s take the winter office focus on summer and our own competition with our own backyard.

Sam Taggart 32:16
I blitzed West Texas all winter all the time. I was in San that was you I love it. Hey, thanks for having me out here. This has been a blast this you’ve taken care of me and it’s been really fun to work with you guys like big shout out like in the university you guys are the number one most hours watched. They’re the most wanting to get trained. They’re the most investing in themselves. Like guys, that’s a that’s a big thing. And I don’t say that lightly. So proud of you guys.

32:46
That’s awesome. Thanks, man. Appreciate it. Oh my gosh, love to hear. We learned a lot from you.

Sam Taggart 32:50
Thank you. Okay, share this like this. send some love peace. See you guys in January.