Today we’re jumping across the pond to Ontario, Canada, to chat with someone who really knows the definition of hard work – Brandon, CEO of Brave Top Construction and Clean Er Up Bin Rentals. Let’s dive in!
Tell us a little bit about yourself and your professional background.
I’m 26 years old from Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. I started Gutter Cleaning as a side job while running a bin rental business.
I spent around 10 years doing roofing working for my father so it came naturally to me, watching him and my mother sell to people either on the phone or in person.
That, combined with reading, and the fact that friends my friends were concerned about money during Covid 19 motivated me to start a side hustle on top of an already busy business. I wanted to show that you can juggle two businesses at the same time.
Lots of my friends were complaining about how difficult it was to make money. I also wanted to prove them wrong – that it was actually achievable if you took the time to educate yourself about an industry by reading books, learning from YouTube, and applying that into action!
When did you join Bark, and why did you join?
I joined Bark in June 2020. I wanted to challenge myself, and Bark seemed like the perfect platform to grow my second gutter cleaning business.
I started off with a goal to reach $10,000 in gross income in 1 month, and I knew I could do it as there were so many leads coming through on Bark – I just had to plan it accordingly.
Did you experience any setbacks in the early stages of your business?
Absolutely! When I first started I failed on every single lead. I was in a brand new role and industry, so I didn’t know what I was doing wrong. It was only through trial and error that I started to see some success.
Within a few months, the business started to grow from strength to strength. My income was $200 in June 2020, and six months later I’d crossed my personal goal of $100,000 gross income.
After that, the business just blew up. My favourite moment was when a major rainstorm happened – I got 52 Leads in one day and I had to turn off my business phone, it was going crazy!
What do you owe your success to?
I focused on customer service, not money. The money will always come when you offer great service and care about the customers.
Before launching my business, I also read a lot on sales, stocks, economics, business and decision-making skills. This gave me the foundation to deal with the everyday challenges of business.
What’s the best thing about owning your own business?
My favourite thing about having this business is being able to meet new people, which has also led to opportunities for business partnerships.
For example, I’ve created a partnership with Alu-Rex where I upsell Leaf Guard to customers who are tired of having their gutters cleaned.
Working with Alu-Rex has shown me different ways to approach customers, as well as teaching me how to educate customers on how Leaf Guards work. It’s a win-win scenario.
Tell us about your experience with Bark
It’s been absolutely amazing. The customer support team respond to my queries on the same day. I owe a lot of my success to the team at Bark – 90% of success comes from Bark, the other 10% comes from me doing the job. Bark is there for you all the way.
What’s the best thing about Bark?
The customer support is like having free employees so why not leverage their amazing team?! They’re with you all the way, from teaching you how to be successful, to providing tips on how to sell to customers. You’ll have instant success if you understand how to engage with customers, Bark gives you all the tools to succeed.
Do you have any tips for success for professionals new to Bark? Or for new business owners in general?
- Respond instantly to every lead you know you can complete right away or you know you can book it in for the next day or so.
- Make sure you have good credit so you can leverage your borrowing power for tools/materials.
- Customer Service first, money ALWAYS last.
- Be prepared to reinvest your money and buy a bigger credit package, as this will give you a better discount per credit.
- Ask the Bark team for help when needed. Let them know what they can do better to make your experience better.
- Be honest to customers & don’t do poor work. Follow this and your life will change positively.
- You can still do business on Bark if you don’t have a work vehicle. Just book your jobs in for the weekend and rent a van/truck for the weekend so you can complete the jobs. No excuses to not work for yourself.
How helpful have you found the Customer Success team?
Extremely helpful. Occasionally I’ll send over suggestions on how to improve Bark. They scratch my back so I scratch theirs.
Anything else you’d like us to include?
Bark has changed my life forever and they will change yours as well.
I want to say thank you Bark for the opportunity to change my life and inspire the friends and family that are closest to me. I always tell customers to go onto Bark if they need help finding any other services. Bark is the present and the future and I recommend it to everyone – customer OR professional.
Wow – it’s pretty impressive to get your side hustle off the ground in the middle of a global pandemic, while holding down a busy full-time job – serious props to Brandon!
If you’re looking for Gutter cleaning, demolition services, skip hire or waste management check out Brave Top Construction’s Bark Profile. Read their 5-star reviews, view photos of their work and request contact!
Want to get to know more professionals? Head over to the professional spotlight section of our blog, where you’ll plenty of inspiration from people who built flourishing careers despite Covid-19.
Could the next success story be yours? Join as a professional on Bark today.
