The TradeMarke

Hosted by The TradeMarke

Business Entrepreneurship

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Episodes

245

Latest episode

Nov 2026

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About the show

Step into ’The TradeMarke,’ your go-to podcast for everything marketing in the trades. Hosted by Award Winning Industry Marketing Experts, Sarah Ghirardo from ReMarketable and Eric Thomas from Rival Digital. Together, we’re here to unite the worlds of trades and marketing, bringing you insights, stories, and strategies from the heart of the home service industry. Whether you’re a trade professional, a marketing expert, or somewhere in between, this is the place for you. Listen in as we’re here for the BIG ideas, the game-changers, and the everyday successes. Because at ’The TradeMarke,’ we’re with the trades and for the trades.

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60 recent

November 10, 2026Episode 24832 min

50 Years, 143 Employees, and Zero Plans to Sell

Will Degroat of Miller’s Heating & Air Conditioning in Chesapeake, Virginia , returns to The Trademarke Podcast, and a lot has changed since the last time he was on the show. Will started in the trades in 10th grade and worked as an installer, service tech, salesperson and operations manager before he took over leadership at Miller’s. He walks through how the company grew from a fuel oil delivery business into a $35 million home services company with 143 employees, and why it’s still locally and privately owned as it approaches its 50th anniversary next year. In this episode: Why Miller’s keeps dollar signs off the walls and focuses on process and customer care instead of revenue talk How radio ads double as brand building and technician recruiting Why leaders who have done the work earn more trust from their teams The in-house apprenticeship program, which has graduated everyone from 19-year-olds to a 46-year-old former truck driver How the trades compare to college when it comes to cost, debt and job security The economic ripple effect a healthy trades business has on its community The lessons Will has learned about hiring, growth and holding the reins Miller’s plans for growth, new facilities and expansion by 2030 If you work in the trades or market to them, this one is a good look at what building a business around the customer looks like in practice.

November 2, 2026Episode 24735 min

How to Make the Customer the Hero of Your Brand (with Brian Sooy, Aespire)

🎙️ The TradeMarke — the podcast for the home-service trades. How to build a brand customers actually talk about — through the experience you deliver, not the ads you buy. Topics: customer experience, branding for contractors, storytelling, marketing AI. New episodes weekly — subscribe for HVAC, plumbing, electrical & roofing business growth, AI in the trades, and contractor marketing. #TheTradeMarke Brian Sooy — founder of Aespire and author of Blue Collar Branding — joins Sarah to talk about why your brand isn't your logo or your billboard: it's the story customers tell themselves after working with you. And why fixing operations beats buying more advertising, every time. What we cover: • Why customer experience IS your brand • Make the customer the hero, not your company • Stop wasting money on billboards — fix operations first • What contractors misunderstand about customer experience • Why AI can dilute your brand (and what to do about it) • Building a single source of truth for your marketing About Brian: Founder, Aespire · Marketing Director, Gorjanc Home Services · Explore faith and work at EntreWorship.com · New book: Blue Collar Branding More episodes: https://open.spotify.com/show/1aggVfIOhDDRxYGTQGq4CJ Subscribe for weekly conversations with the people running and growing home-service businesses. #TheTradeMarke #CustomerExperience #Branding #HomeServiceBusiness #TradesBusiness keywords: customer experience, branding for contractors, blue collar branding, brian sooy, aespire, home service marketing, trades business

September 24, 2026Episode 24640 min

The Hallway Is the Real Conference: Networking Tips That Actually Work

Conference season is here, and if you're heading to an event this fall, this one's for you. Jennifer from Evolve AC & Heating, Shauna Brown, and Katy Higgins from True Pros join Sarah to talk about how to actually make conferences worth the time and money — especially if networking doesn't come naturally to you. What we cover: - How to network at a conference when you're an introvert (you don't have to work the room) - Picking three weekly "rocks" — the few things that actually move the needle - The shiny-object trap: why most people come home with twenty ideas and implement zero - Why the most important session happens in the hallway, not the keynote - Beating change fatigue by bringing a teammate with you - Real connections beat business cards — use LinkedIn while you're there - How to pick the right conference for where your business is right now Quotable moments (real, from the episode): "Sometimes the most important session is the one that occurs in the hallway between the classrooms... that is how we all built this sense of community." "If you don't think about what you're going to the conference for, every presentation will seem like they're solving a problem for you — but it might not even be one that you have." "You can make five meaningful connections or you can collect 50 business cards. Which one's going to do you more good?" Connect with the guests: - Shauna Brown — lifelong trades operator; helped build a heating & cooling company in West Texas - Jennifer — co-owner of Evolve Air Conditioning, Heating & Plumbing, Las Vegas NV (family-owned, 9th year) - Katy Higgins — owner & founder of True Pros Plumbing, Heating & Air, Utah If this episode helped you, share it with someone who's heading to a conference this season — and tag @thetrademarke so we can say thanks. Subscribe to The TradeMarke wherever you listen: - Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/1aggVfIOhDDRxYGTQGq4CJ - Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/id1542842220 - YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@TheTradeMarkePodcast-hl8qj

August 21, 2026Episode 24533 min

The Sound Layer: How Erica Leonor Trains CSRs to Actually Connect

Erica Leonor joins Sarah and Eric for a wide-ranging conversation on the power of voice, especially for CSRs and sales teams who don't have body language or facial expressions to lean on. Erica breaks down what she calls "the sound layer," why people process tone before words, and how monotone delivery quietly kills engagement, trust, and closed deals. The conversation moves into pitching (why nobody needs a 10-minute origin story), the value of vulnerable, ordinary storytelling as a connection tool, and choosing authenticity over "faking it till you make it." Erica also talks about her work with the Influential Women Organization and the women's groups shaping the trades, plus what her husband Geovanny is building with Voxa to modernize CSR and sales training.

July 24, 2026Episode 24433 min

AI, Data Centers, and the Future of the Trades with Eddie McFarlane

Eddie McFarlane returns to The TradeMarke Podcast for a wide-ranging conversation on the forces reshaping the trades right now: tariffs, refrigerant transitions, and an administration that keeps everyone guessing. But the real focus is what's next. Sarah and Eric dig into the AI data center boom, why it matters for HVAC and electrical contractors specifically, and why most people are using AI like a search engine instead of a thinking partner. Eddie shares why clean data beats more dashboards, how to actually get value out of tools like Claude, and why the fundamentals of good business still decide who wins. Plus: the Fosbury Flop, dirty data confessions, and a challenge to rethink data centers as a trades opportunity, not just a headline.

June 25, 2026Episode 24325 min

The Future of Referrals in the Trades with Chelsea Fusselbaugh

In this episode of The TradeMarke Podcast, hosts Sarah Ghirardo and Eric Thomas sit down with Chelsea Fusselbaugh, Co-Founder of TradeEngage , to explore how referral marketing is transforming the home services industry. Chelsea shares how TradeEngage helps contractors turn word-of-mouth referrals into a scalable growth engine by connecting businesses, customers, and communities through a modern referral platform. The conversation dives into reducing customer acquisition costs, creating trusted referral networks, owning the customer relationship, and why referrals remain one of the most powerful growth channels available. The trio also discusses the role of AI in building smarter business systems, the future of community-driven marketing, and how contractors can leverage partnerships to grow without becoming overly dependent on paid advertising. Whether you're an HVAC, plumbing, electrical, or home service business owner, this episode will challenge the way you think about referrals, marketing spend, and long-term growth. Topics Covered: Building a referral flywheel that compounds over time Reducing customer acquisition costs Creating strategic partnerships with complementary trades Turning customers into brand advocates AI's impact on home service businesses Why trust and community still win in a digital world Listen now and discover how to turn your best customers and partners into your most valuable growth channel.

May 22, 2026Episode 24229 min

Why Integrity Beats Price in the World's Biggest AC Market

Houston, TX is the number one air conditioning city in the entire world. That means it's also one of the most cutthroat HVAC markets on the planet, dominated by private equity rollups, aggressive pricing games, and technicians who are taught to sell first and serve second. Donnivin Brown isn't playing that game. In this episode of The TradeMarke Podcast, Eric sits down with Donnivin, founder of Southern Comfort Heating and Air in Houston, TX, to talk about what it actually takes to build a values-driven trades business in a market stacked against the little guy. Donnivin's story starts in a small town outside Georgetown, South Carolina, where his grandfather spent 21 years in the military before starting a community-first HVAC business around 1999. That foundation of integrity and perseverance shaped everything Donnivin would later build. But the road to Houston wasn't easy. Donnivin and his wife sold their two-year-old home, packed up their newborn son, and drove a U-Haul across the country with a van full of tools and a whole lot of faith. On day one in Houston, someone broke into that van and cleaned it out completely. He filed a police report. They told him it was gone. He reinvested, rebranded, and got back to work. Today, Southern Comfort Heating and Air is carving out a real footprint in one of the most competitive HVAC markets in the country, and Donnivin isn't doing it by undercutting on price or chasing every trend in the industry. He's doing it the same way his grandfather taught him: with integrity, transparency, and a genuine commitment to the people he serves. In this episode, you'll hear: Why Houston became Donnivin's target market and what surprised him when he arrived How private equity is quietly eroding service quality by pushing out experienced techs and replacing them with new grads who don't know what they don't know The simple standard Donnivin holds every technician to before they leave a job site Why his $10M goal has nothing to do with chasing Tommy Mello's numbers What Donovan says he would tell every Houston homeowner if he had five minutes on the local news How a hate crime shaped his purpose and became the fuel behind Southern Comfort's mission Donnivin's vision for Southern Comfort isn't just about building a company. It's about building a gym, a place where everyone who walks through the door leaves as a better technician, a better spouse, a better leader, and a better person. If you're in the trades and you're trying to figure out how to stay true to who you are while the big money players try to squeeze you out, this one's for you.

May 22, 2026Episode 24045 min

The Supply Chain, the Consumer Shift, and Why Your Brand Isn't Your OEM

Max Benbrook, founder of Winsupply in Austin, Texas, joins Sarah and Eric to break down what five years of supply chain disruption has really taught the HVAC industry. From the just-in-time collapse during COVID to the slow death of OEM brand loyalty, Max pulls no punches on where contractors are leaving money on the table and what it takes to actually win in today's market. The conversation goes deep on procurement inefficiency, why 80% of contractors still won't show pricing online, and how the shift toward younger homeowners is changing everything about the sales conversation. Max also shares why he'd rather buy more trucks than open more stores, how direct-to-jobsite delivery is saving his contractors real time and money, and why training from your distributor matters more than price negotiations. If you're a contractor, a distributor, or anyone trying to understand where the trades are headed, this one is worth your time.

May 22, 2026Episode 24134 min

AI, SEO & Trust: What Actually Matters for Home Service Marketing with Gabe Bustos

In this episode of The TradeMarke Podcast, hosts Sarah Ghirado sits down with Gabe Bustos to talk about what’s really working in home service marketing heading into 2026. From the realities of SEO and AI-generated content to building trust, earning reviews, and creating authentic customer experiences, Gabe shares a grounded perspective on how small and family-owned trade businesses can still compete and grow in an increasingly noisy digital world. The conversation dives into: Why SEO fundamentals still matter The biggest misconceptions contractors have about marketing How AI is changing content creation and workflows The importance of reputation, reviews, and customer trust Why most businesses fail by trying to do too much at once What trade companies should focus on right now to prepare for 2026 If you’re a contractor, agency owner, or marketer in the trades, this episode is packed with practical insights on scaling sustainably, staying authentic, and adapting without falling for the hype.

April 16, 2026Episode 23930 min

Trades, AI & Sunglasses: Automate, Scale, and Stay Cool with Chris Carter

Hosts Sarah Ghirardo and Eric Thomas chat with technologist and book author Chris Carter about using AI and automation in trade businesses, practical tools that save time, and how to adopt technology without getting overwhelmed. They cover real-world examples, common operational gaps, and why trades need to start experimenting with AI to stay competitive.