Selling, leading, and succeeding were the buzz words at the inaugural Extreme Sales Summit, held Sept. 25 and 26 in Chicago at the InterContinental Chicago O’Hare. More than 300 top home-improvement executives and sales professionals gathered to network, learn the latest in consumer buying trends, and simply elevate their game.
The summit was hosted by SGC Horizon’s Professional Remodeler, the media brand serving owners and executives of residential remodeling firms, and PRIME, the premier council of leading and high-volume remodeling professionals.
Summit sessions were led by successful entrepreneurs, sales legends, and business-growth strategists. Michael Gerber, author of the best-selling E-Myth books, delivered the keynote speech, “Selling E-Mythology—Selling is a System.” Gerber has been dubbed “The World’s No. 1 Small Business Guru” by Inc. magazine.
“No one in the remodeling business does it like you do,” Gerber told the audience. “To go to work everyday in your company without the dream, vision, purpose, and mission of becoming the one in your remodeling universe is like waking up everyday with the desire to be ordinary.”
Mark Richardson, author of “How Fit is Your Business” and the recently released “Fit to Grow,” explained the differences between an amateur salesperson and a professional salesperson. Richardson encouraged attendees to take his sales fitness check-up to see where they stood.
Brian Elias, principal of 1-800-HANSONS, shared his journey from canvasser and door-to-door salesperson to industry leader and CEO of a $50-million window business. In 2011, 1-800-HANSONS was named replacement contractor of the year and, in 2012, Elias was recognized with the Fred Case Remodeling Entrepreneur of the Year Award.
D.S. Berenson, one of the country’s preeminent experts in the field of home-improvement law and financing, showed how class actions, Attorney General investigations, BBB citations, and state license violations are on the rise due to the industry’s ongoing use of improper in-home sales practices. Berenson used numerous examples to help attendees understand what they can and cannot say in their sales presentations.
Mark LaLiberte, co-creator and partner of Construction Instruction Inc., encouraged remodelers to become a house doctor in their sales process and increase their sales while establishing themselves as an expert. LaLiberte advised learning how to sell building science in order to enhance the company’s bottom line while doing the right thing for the customer and the environment.
Slated to be held again in 2014, “The Extreme Sales Summit fills a void in the residential remodeling and home-improvement industry,” said Tony Mancini, group director and principal of SGC Horizon. “Along with PRIME, we decided to provide an annual venue that offers remodelers the opportunity to network, recharge, boost sales, and increase closing ratios.”