Mark Tipton [00:00:00]:
A lot of people just reject change for the sake of change. Could be better change. They could hate the way they're doing things, but they don't want to change.
Jack Jostes [00:00:07]:
The owner needs to be involved in it. I had somebody who's like, oh yeah, my assistant is going to do this. I'm like, no, no, no, no. You need to be involved.
Mark Tipton [00:00:15]:
What you really need to understand is how is it effectively going to run your business? And the best way to really understand that is to find a company that looks like you, that is using that product, having that leader that's committed, that has the vision, that can stand up and say, again, not just we're changing and you'll do as I say, but why is that important? Why is that meaningful to this organization? How is it gonna make us better?
00:41 - Is Aspire Right for You? Their Hell Yes Customer Explained
Jack Jostes [00:00:41]:
So, Mark, in my book, Tree of Good Fortune, I have a concept, Hell Yes Customer, right? And I help my clients get Hell Yes Customers. These are customers that are in your service area. They need what you have. You enjoy working with them. Who is your Hell Yes Customer? Who is a Hell Yes Customer for Aspire?
Mark Tipton [00:00:59]:
Yeah. Well, it's getting bigger. We talked about construction a lot today. Our ideal customer is somebody who's a million dollars or more typically in revenue, who's interested in growing, scaling their business. They could be running maintenance, they could be running construction, they could be doing a lot of enhancements, they could be doing commercial work, residential work, but somebody who's looking to take their business to the next level. Technology is something that is certainly a huge piece of our product. But I don't want people who are afraid of technology.
Mark Tipton [00:01:35]:
But at the same time, don't let the unknowns of technology get in your way. We've got an amazing team of people, many of whom are former contractors, who can help them get over their fears of technology and rolling out a system like that. But if you're a million dollar plus contractor and you do maintenance, you do construction, you do enhancements, you're a fit for us.
Jack Jostes [00:01:59]:
Cool. Well, I recommend that people have a conversation with Aspire. Right? So Ramblin Jackson is a partner of Aspire and it's because we've met your team. I have many clients who use it. And also Aspire isn't a fit for everyone. And I think people need to find software that is the right fit for them.
02:21 - Finding the Right Software: What Most Companies Get Wrong
Jack Jostes [00:02:21]:
What are some things that you would encourage people when they're evaluating you or maybe other software? Like how do you know when you found the right fit?
Mark Tipton [00:02:29]:
It can be a difficult thing to do. So a system like Aspire is big, it's comprehensive. And a lot of times people will focus on features, right? I need this feature, I need that feature. You can come up with a checklist of features and check those off. Most products are going to have them in some way, shape or form. But what you really need to understand is how is it effectively going to run your business? And the best way to really understand that is to find a company that looks like you that is using that product, find a reference and ask them about their experience and how is it working for them. And we are more than happy. We actually encourage our prospects that are going through the process with us of evaluating Aspire and saying, is it right for me? And we're evaluating them at the same time going, are we right for you? Is to introduce them to people that look like them, that are a similar size, similar geography, offer a similar set of services.
Mark Tipton [00:03:30]:
So you could say, hey, what is this going to be like? Because there's way too much complexity in a system to fully evaluate it just by looking at demonstrations. You just can't do it. And so ultimately, that's what it comes down to. And I think another huge piece of this is whoever the leader is of the organization that is driving this change. Right? Because bringing in a new software system is a significant change to an organization that they're committed to and that their team understands they're committed to it. Not everybody's going to want to embrace that. A lot of people just reject change for the sake of change. Could be better change.
Mark Tipton [00:04:06]:
They could hate the way they're doing things, but they don't want to change. But if you have a leader who can stand up and say, this is the direction of our business and with a good why, you know, this is why we're doing this, we're making a big investment, not just dollars here. We're changing what we do. It's going to take our time. Those are the people who are the most successful. And so we encourage that coach that we've got a team of people that have tremendous amount of experience. You know, we've done this now, I don't know, 1,300, 1,400 times. So we've established some good experience on our team that we work with customers.
Jack Jostes [00:04:43]:
I want to share that. When I rolled out HubSpot at my company initially, I did not participate in it. I had my operations person do it. I'm like, oh, you got this. And I was the problem. I created a big problem at my company. So I agree with you. The owner needs to be involved in it.
Jack Jostes [00:05:03]:
I had somebody who's like, oh, yeah, my assistant is going to do this. I'm like, no, no, no, no. You need to be involved. Because what if that person leaves or. And setting it up correctly out of the gate is so important. Whatever software you're using.
05:17 - Struggling with Employee Pushback? How to Get Team Buy-In
Jack Jostes [00:05:17]:
How do you handle, though, when the owner gets it. You know, because he or she has probably put a lot of time into this, a lot of research, and they've made the decision.
Jack Jostes [00:05:27]:
How do you coach employees who are resistant to getting on board with it? Because not only does the owner need to be on board with it, but the people working company, right? Otherwise you just have this big, expensive, fancy software. But if you're not putting the right data in, which comes from the people, and you can use the AI like you mentioned, but really you need the people to embrace it. How do you get team buy in?
Mark Tipton [00:05:50]:
Yeah. So I'll go back to what I was talking about before with that leader. We need commitment from that leader and we'll talk to them. We'll be like, look, we need you to stand up in front of your team and say, we are doing this. Because a lot of times what people feel like is, oh, this is going to be a flavor of the month. Right? We're going to try this. It's not going to work. We're going to go back.
Mark Tipton [00:06:11]:
Maybe they've got a history of that where they've tried other things and then went back to the old way. But having that leader that's committed, that has the vision, that can stand up and say, again, not just we're changing and you'll do as I say, but why is that important? Why is that meaningful to this organization? How is it going to make us better? How is it going to improve, you know, your experience at your job? And we're gonna go through some tough times, you know, getting it up and going, because that's the hardest part. But for us, it's working with the leadership of the organization to say, yeah, demonstrate that commitment. Show the team you're committed. We, we had a phrase we used to use back in the early days of burn the ships. Like, you know, back in ancient times when countries went to war, they would hit the beach of the country they were going to war with, and the general would instruct them to burn the ships. Like, guys, we're here. We're gonna win this battle.
Mark Tipton [00:07:11]:
And nobody's hopping in a ship and going back. Like, we're here until we're done. And that type of message is what the team needs to hear, even people that may be resistant to it when they understand, look, we're doing this no matter what. Like you need to get on board because this is the direction we're going. It makes a huge difference.
07:33 - Ready to Level Up? How to Get Aspire for Your Business
Jack Jostes [00:07:33]:
I agree. Well, Mark, thank you for clarifying who is your Hell Yes Customer and how to roll it out. And I'd just like to thank everybody. Thanks for listening to The Landscaper's Guide. If you're curious about Aspire, if you want to meet with them, we are a partner. Check out ramblinjackson.com/aspire we do have a special partner offer. I'm going to put that in the show notes and my name is Jack Jostes. Thanks for listening to The Landscaper's Guide Podcast and we'll look forward to talking to you on the next episode.
Jack Jostes [00:08:03]:
Like today's video and subscribe to our YouTube Channel to get upcoming videos to help you grow your snow and landscape company. My name is Jack Jostes and check out my free resources in the show notes and click the next video to grow your business.
Show Notes:
🎥 Watch the full episode + read the transcript: landscapersguide.com/podcast
🥩 Want free beef jerky? Get yours here: landscapersguide.com/toolbox
🛠️ See if Aspire is the right fit for your business: ramblinjackson.com/aspire
📊 Learn from Mark Tipton’s experience in the industry: linkedin.com/in/mark-t-tipton