AUSTIN BUILD EXPO
May 22-23, 2024 | Palmer Events Center
Exhibit Hours: 10:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. Classes Start at 9:30 a.m. Each Day
Carlotta Thompson
Founder | Tax Strategists of America
How to Legally Pay Zero Income Tax
Wednesday, May 22 | 10:15 a.m.-11:00 a.m.
Thursday, May 23 | 10:15 a.m.-11:00 a.m.
- Tax strategy and how it can save you thousands of dollars
- Hidden deductions you are missing
- Common red flags in the construction industry
- What the IRS is not telling you
Target Audience: Business owners
Scott will also talk about what the true home of the future will encompass looking forward, covering the newer ideas of lighting, home automation, and architecture.
Wednesday, May 22 | 1:15 p.m.-2:15p.m.
We’re seeing volatile pricing formats, supply chain interruption and rising interest rates. This usually ends in tough economic conditions, resulting in construction industry challenges. Knowing the best way to stay ahead of these changes and keep your business moving forward is difficult. We’ll look at the methods successful contractors use to weather shifting economic conditions. We’ll cover:
- Increasing your portion of the market pie
- Getting a competitive advantage
- Managing customer expectations
- Structuring your sales effort
- How to balance sales and marketing efforts
You’ll come away from this session with a better understanding of what it will take to grow in both revenue and profitability in these times. Sales is the most important aspect of your business. Everything else simply follows that lead.
Thursday, May 23 | 1:15 p.m.-2:15 p.m.
Scott will also talk about what the true home of the future will encompass looking forward, covering the newer ideas of lighting, home automation, and architecture.
Wednesday, May 22, 2024
Don't Kill your Golden Goose-Lawsuit Protection, Tax Reduction & Estate Planning Strategies to Protect & Perpetuate your Business
9:30 a.m.-10:30 a.m. | Room 5
Discover the tools you can use to become invincible to lawsuits, save thousands in taxes, and achieve financial peace of mind. By the end of the presentation you will know how to:
- Protect 100% of your assets from lawsuits. You will learn how to make yourself so unattractive to a plaintiff attorney that they will never pursue a lawsuit against you.
- Save thousands of dollars each year in taxes. You will learn five tax reduction strategies most people fail to utilize, which could save you more than $10,000 each year in taxes.
- Avoid probate and eliminate all estate taxes.
You will be taken through a checklist of items that are important to every estate and business succession plan. You will learn what you should be doing now to prepare for successful business and estate secession.
He has authored and co-authored several articles and books on the subject including The Asset Protection Bible and How to Achieve Financial Peace of Mind through Asset Protection. His career has been credited with helping thousands of people save millions of dollars. Larry Oxenham is a nationally recognized speaker who has trained thousands of professionals at hundreds of conventions, conferences and seminars across the country.
Senior Advisor, American Society for Asset Protection Aircraft Owners & Pilots Association
Google Partner and Chief Marketing Officer Teaching "The Google Demands Of Your Website"
9:30 a.m.-10:30 a.m. |
Logical strategies you can apply in minutes, during the session.
A proven SEO expert is teaching what he has done time and time again. Want proof? Google “Fractional CMO __(add your city name here)___" and see www.jrcmo.com rank on page 1 for your city. Joshua Ramsey will show you how to do it yourself as well.
• What is CRO and how to apply it
• Build Your USP (unique selling position) that will draw increased engagement
• Pre-register through build expo or at www.JRcmo.com for a website analysis providing pinpointed solutions for YOUR WEBSITE
A Google Certified Partner, Joshua's teaches interactive conferences based on material received from Google. Plus hear real life stories of success and failures that business owners have had. These powerful, interactive conferences are jammed packed with information that Joshua received during weekly meetings with Google. This is information every business owner needs to know.
Before becoming a Google Partner, Joshua was an outsourced CMO for several large U.S. based companies. As a CMO over the last 9 years, Joshua has managed over $2.5 million in AdWords and Digital Marketing Budgets and managed more than 2,800 campaigns. As a Bing Partner and Google Certified Partner, Joshua attends national conferences with some of the other great minds that influence SEO, digital marketing, and social media. Today, Joshua speaks all over the country helping businesses improve every element of their marketing.
Beating the Low Bid Process
9:30 a.m.-11:00 a.m. |
Sponsored by
This topic deals specifically with the pressure to always be low. Learn the sales tools necessary to get the inside track in the bidding process. The goal being to consistently win projects and raise profitability on those projects. The most common mis-takes made in bidding are revealed and countered.
Target Audience: Architects, General Contractors, Subcontractors, Builders, and Remodelers
His DVD series can literally be used as an individual or corporate training program. He's been featured on CNN and in USAToday as well as dozens of media outlets across the country. Tom is extremely entertaining in his approach and well studied in the dynamics that occur in bidding, quoting and developing customer brand loyalty. His high energy approach combined with practical applications can bring results immediately after his seminars.
His corporation, Seal the Deal, is sought after by trade associations, contractors, corporations, suppliers, construction expos and publications regularly. He currently writes for 4 publications, has 20 regular contractor clients and speaks to in excess of 10,000 construction industry individuals a year. Tom turned a Caterpillar rental territory from 2.5Mil to 10Mil in revenue in 18 months while raising margins by 2%! He also trained 325 sales reps for a 750 Mil nationwide equipment firm. In his first sales position at 19 yrs of age he took a 150K contractor sales territory to 2.5Mil in 1 year. His customized training programs hit areas targeted for improvement head on. He knows how to get people to buy and manage a sales effort to success!
Flooring Safety by Design | 1.0 AIA LU/HSW Credit
9:30 a.m.-10:30 a.m. | Room A
Flooring safety by design is offered by Altro throughout North America. The seminar is led by flooring experts experienced in helping architects, interior designers, and building owners select a wide variety of floor covering. Altro encourages participation and discussion during this interactive seminar.
Learning objectives
- Identify the legislative guidelines and legal tests relating to the specification of slip resistant flooring.
- Define the Static Coefficient of Friction as it relates to the specification of slip resistant flooring.
- Undertake a needs analysis to determine the slip resistant floor to suit your requirements.
Target Audience: Commercial Architects/Designers, Flooring Contractors, General Contractors, Business Owners.
Leveraging Tech to Improve Profitability
9:30 a.m.-10:30 a.m. | Room D
"Leveraging tech" doesn't need to mean a complete overhaul of systems. There are actionable technologies that you can likely leverage this week that streamline payroll, communication, automation strategies to enhance your billing processes to save time & more.
Target Audience: All building and construction professionals
Zaid is a serial entrepreneur and currently the Founder and CEO of Flexbase, a fintech company building a finance super app for small businesses, mainly supporting underbanked industries and regions. Flexbase partners with B2B merchants to enable their customers to pay via a one-click 60-day payment button during online checkout, as well as other financial products like a 60-day charge card, business banking, expense management software, and much more.
As an active builder, Zaid also invests in founders he comes across at 305 Ventures, an angel fund he cofounded. With over 100 investments, Zaid invests in fintech, Web3, DeFi, enterprise software, and frontier technologies.
Prior to Flexbase and 305 Ventures, Zaid founded two startups — Pilot Labs, a K12/University focused EdTech platform acquired by PE; and Volley, an AI startup that worked with Fortune 500 companies helping generate knowledge summaries from natural language content. He exited his first startup at 19.
Zaid dropped out of college to become a Fellow in Peter Thiel’s Fellowship.
10 Minute Marketing Strategy Plan
2:30 p.m.-3:30 p.m. |
A fractional CMO that ranks on page one in your city for the term, "Fractional CMO __(add your city name here)___" is coming to teach and tell you exactly how to rank on page one and also give you a 10 min action plan that will propel your business forward exponentially.
Get your own 10 minute action plan that will drastically improve your marketing. Then stay for the round table of other businesses similar to your industry on what they are doing and how they can improve through new techniques taught by Joshua Ramsey.
Target Audience: All building and construction professionals
A Google Certified Partner, Joshua's teaches interactive conferences based on material received from Google. Plus hear real life stories of success and failures that business owners have had. These powerful, interactive conferences are jammed packed with information that Joshua received during weekly meetings with Google. This is information every business owner needs to know.
Before becoming a Google Partner, Joshua was an outsourced CMO for several large U.S. based companies. As a CMO over the last 9 years, Joshua has managed over $2.5 million in AdWords and Digital Marketing Budgets and managed more than 2,800 campaigns. As a Bing Partner and Google Certified Partner, Joshua attends national conferences with some of the other great minds that influence SEO, digital marketing, and social media. Today, Joshua speaks all over the country helping businesses improve every element of their marketing.
Turn Google Reviews, Messaging and Social Media to Revenue
2:30 p.m.-3:30 p.m. | Room C
Amanda Walker
Business Growth Expert | Birdeye
If you're looking to improve your business' ranking on Google, you've come to the right place. John will share the Birdeye guide on using reviews, messaging and social media to grow your local reputation and SEO. You should expect to take away a page of notes on everything you need to know about attracting, converting and delighting your customers and prospects that interact with your business.
Target Audience: Owners, Management, Soloprenuers, Supporting Staff
Burning cash advertising online and struggling to find customers?
2:30 p.m.-3:30 p.m. | Room A
WARNING: I am not selling anything. Learn how to improve your digital marketing, find more customers, and generate more ROAS. Actual tips to build an inbound strategy, and the tactics to weave Facebook, PPC, SEO, and email into a comprehensive omnichannel sales machine. Heavy on Q&A.
Target Audience: Owners looking to find more customers by improving digital marketing campaigns
Marketing agency owner with clients like Adidas, Chevron, and quite a few small (and large) construction companies. Growth marketing exec for Flexbase, a VC backed fintech company solving construction cashflow using modern solutions.
Anthony builds strategies which turn separate marketing channels into a comprehensive integrated system that generates sales, improves average order value, extends lifetime value, and increases referrals.
Thursday, May 23, 2024
Common Construction Sales Mistakes
9:30 a.m.-11:00 a.m. |
Sponsored by
Many in the construction industry consistently make the same mistakes that kill their opportunity. There are many common errors and mentalities that hinder sales success. We'll put a light on these problems and give the behaviors that counter them. Make sure your approach to the customer base is the most effective possible. These errors are often made without the contractor even realizing they're making them. This cripples their chances of winning profitable projects.
Target Audience: Architects, General Contractors, Subcontractors, Builders, and Remodelers.
His DVD series can literally be used as an individual or corporate training program. He's been featured on CNN and in USAToday as well as dozens of media outlets across the country. Tom is extremely entertaining in his approach and well studied in the dynamics that occur in bidding, quoting and developing customer brand loyalty. His high energy approach combined with practical applications can bring results immediately after his seminars.
His corporation, Seal the Deal, is sought after by trade associations, contractors, corporations, suppliers, construction expos and publications regularly. He currently writes for 4 publications, has 20 regular contractor clients and speaks to in excess of 10,000 construction industry individuals a year. Tom turned a Caterpillar rental territory from 2.5Mil to 10Mil in revenue in 18 months while raising margins by 2%! He also trained 325 sales reps for a 750 Mil nationwide equipment firm. In his first sales position at 19 yrs of age he took a 150K contractor sales territory to 2.5Mil in 1 year. His customized training programs hit areas targeted for improvement head on. He knows how to get people to buy and manage a sales effort to success!
Sustainability and resiliency: How it applies within the Built World | 1 AIA Credit
9:30 a.m.-10:30 a.m. |
1 Hour and attendees will receive 1 LU credit from AIA, and the objectives are as follows:
- Learn about vinyl's resiliency
- Learn about cladding and facades’ roles in sustainability and resilience
- Learn about material sustainability - and the environmental impact
- Learn about environmental impact measures and how everything impacts the environment
Target Audience: Architects and Developers
A builder with 30 years of experience and an expert on how to trim costs and keep quality when building or remodeling, Pagés is the author of two books published by The Taunton Press: Building an Affordable House: A high-value, low-cost approach to building and Affordable Remodel: How to get custom results on any budget.
He has won numerous national awards, including the “Green Building Single Family House of the Year” and the “Workforce Housing Award” from the National Association of Home Builders. Most recently, he has been working with New Urbanist Andrés Duany on creating a new generation of manufactured homes.
Mr. Pages is a consultant to polymeric cladding manufacturers and has helped to lead the industry into greater acceptance by the architectural community. Those attending the mini workshops will receive complimentary copies of “Architectural Design for Traditional Neighborhoods” and “Architectural Polymers: an interactive architectural specification guide.”
Google Partner and Chief Marketing Officer Teaching "The Google Demands Of Your Website"
9:30 a.m.-10:30 a.m. |
Logical strategies you can apply in minutes, during the session.
A proven SEO expert is teaching what he has done time and time again. Want proof? Google “Fractional CMO __(add your city name here)___" and see www.jrcmo.com rank on page 1 for your city. Joshua Ramsey will show you how to do it yourself as well.
• What is CRO and how to apply it
• Build Your USP (unique selling position) that will draw increased engagement
• Pre-register through build expo or at www.JRcmo.com for a website analysis providing pinpointed solutions for YOUR WEBSITE
A Google Certified Partner, Joshua's teaches interactive conferences based on material received from Google. Plus hear real life stories of success and failures that business owners have had. These powerful, interactive conferences are jammed packed with information that Joshua received during weekly meetings with Google. This is information every business owner needs to know.
Before becoming a Google Partner, Joshua was an outsourced CMO for several large U.S. based companies. As a CMO over the last 9 years, Joshua has managed over $2.5 million in AdWords and Digital Marketing Budgets and managed more than 2,800 campaigns. As a Bing Partner and Google Certified Partner, Joshua attends national conferences with some of the other great minds that influence SEO, digital marketing, and social media. Today, Joshua speaks all over the country helping businesses improve every element of their marketing.
Simple finance tips for construction company that can make a big difference
9:30 a.m.-10:30 a.m. | Room 5
We're talking really simple things. Like understanding how your current company credit card(s) are either helping or hurting your business. How your bank account might be providing 0% interest earnings when another account could be making your business interest on your idle cash while you sleep. A couple of simple changes could yield ongoing financial improvements.
Target Audience: All building and construction professionals
Zaid is a serial entrepreneur and currently the Founder and CEO of Flexbase, a fintech company building a finance super app for small businesses, mainly supporting underbanked industries and regions. Flexbase partners with B2B merchants to enable their customers to pay via a one-click 60-day payment button during online checkout, as well as other financial products like a 60-day charge card, business banking, expense management software, and much more.
As an active builder, Zaid also invests in founders he comes across at 305 Ventures, an angel fund he cofounded. With over 100 investments, Zaid invests in fintech, Web3, DeFi, enterprise software, and frontier technologies.
Prior to Flexbase and 305 Ventures, Zaid founded two startups — Pilot Labs, a K12/University focused EdTech platform acquired by PE; and Volley, an AI startup that worked with Fortune 500 companies helping generate knowledge summaries from natural language content. He exited his first startup at 19.
Zaid dropped out of college to become a Fellow in Peter Thiel’s Fellowship.
A Better Way to Manage Your Jobs From Start to Finish - JobTread Demo
9:30 a.m.-10:30 a.m. | Room 4
Hector Ponce
Director of Business Development | JobTread
Zac Spencer
Get organized, complete your projects on time, and increase your profits. JobTread is end- to-end construction management software that helps you manage all of your business processes, from sales and estimating through to project completion. Learn why contractors give JobTread a 5-star review and consider adding JobTread to your toolkit.
Target Audience: Builders, Contractors, Remodelers, Specialty Contractors, Business Owners
Rilee’s experience in both construction and software development fuels his passion for using technology to help people build and scale their businesses. He loves setting up contractors with the right tools to make their businesses more organized and profitable.
Holding a Bachelor of Science in Construction Management from Texas A&M University as well as a Certificate in Fullstack Web Development from Southern Methodist University, Rilee is well-versed in guiding contractors through streamlining processes while maximizing profits.
Hector Ponce is a first-generation Mexican-American with a strong passion for improving business operations in the construction industry. Having observed his family and friends struggle to expand their construction businesses due to their reliance on traditional methods such as pen and paper and spreadsheets, Hector developed a deep-rooted desire to challenge existing processes and seek innovative solutions to enhance efficiency and effectiveness.
As a forward-thinking advocate of next-generation technology, Hector recognizes the transformative power of technology in simplifying daily tasks and fostering better organization. He has witnessed firsthand the tremendous impact that software solutions can have on construction companies of all sizes, ranging from streamlining data entry processes to consolidating operations within a single system. With an unwavering commitment to helping businesses thrive, Hector is dedicated to assisting construction companies in their growth journey.
Hector Ponce holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Kinesiology from The University of North Texas. To explore how his expertise can contribute to your business's success, schedule a call with Hector today.
Zac Spencer is a highly experienced professional with a diverse background in the construction industry. Having grown up in the construction trades and actively participating in Skills USA during his youth, Zac possesses a deep understanding of the intricacies involved in the field. With years of experience in selling new construction homes and a comprehensive knowledge of remodeling, framing, HVAC, carpentry, and design-build homes, he is driven by a strong passion for helping contractors streamline and simplify their business workflows.
Zac holds an Associates degree in Business/Managerial Economics from Collin College, providing him with a solid foundation in business principles. Additionally, he is a Nationally Certified Fire Fighter and EMT, having successfully completed the Fire Academy at South Plains College. This diverse educational background, combined with his practical experience in the construction industry, equips Zac with a unique perspective and a holistic understanding of the challenges faced by contractors.
Motivated by a desire to assist small to mid-size construction companies in enhancing their operational efficiency, Zac strives to empower them with effective strategies to manage day-to-day tasks more efficiently. His expertise, coupled with his commitment to simplifying and streamlining business processes, positions Zac as a valuable resource for contractors seeking to scale their operations and optimize their performance.
Your Pathway to ZEROs - $2,500 or $5,000 Per Residence
9:30 a.m.-10:30 a.m. | Room B
Don’t leave money on the table!
From single-family, to multifamily high-rises, let us help you navigate The Federal Energy Efficiency Incentives.
Target Audience: Homebuilders, Retrofitters/Remodelers, and Residential Real Estate Investors.
Travis is the Chief Executive Officer for ICS Inspectors, LLC residing in Houston, Texas. Travis leads his teams of RESNET Raters across the country, building Energy Rating and Consulting programs for homebuilders, retrofitters, and residential real estate developers. For real estate investors, property owners, home builders, and professionals within the construction industry, his vast expertise in tax planning has massively reduced taxpayers’ bills. He has helped with cost segregation studies and fixed asset reviews for building owners in numerous industries. As an advisor, Travis has assisted real estate professionals across our country in every single state, and aided architects, engineers, and contractors with §179D Energy Efficient Commercial Building Deduction for their governmental and public projects.
Travis studied Business Management at St. Andrews University in Laurinburg, North Carolina. While there, he competed in the NCAA Cross Country National Championships. In his free time, Travis fosters pets for animal rescues. Over the years, he’s personally helped more than 500 animals find their forever families.
Internet 101 for Contractors
9:30 a.m.-10:30 a.m. | Room C
Not sure what to do about your online presence? The Internet has changed consumer behavior. Your potential customers are looking for you online. (Yes, even your referrals!) Can they easily find you? If they can, are they getting a current and professional image of your business? In this informative and casual session, you will learn what matters today and how to use the Internet to build your business - bring your questions!
- How much do websites cost?
- The basics of an effective website
- Why you need a website even if you’re busy
- How Google works and what's new in search
- SEO - Search Engine Optimization made simple
- Q&A: Ask what you want. Learn from an industry veteran
Target Audience: Contractors, Home Builders, Architects, and Small Business Owners
Steve got into the website business in the early days of the Internet and in 1998, he started his first web development company - Z57 Internet Solutions. The company received national recognition including being in Inc. Magazine, Forbes, and Entrepreneur Magazine. Z57 made the Inc. 5000 several times as one of the fastest growing companies in the country. Steve led the growth of the company from start up to over 225 employees. The company was one of the largest web design firms in the nation and built over 40,000 websites in the 14 years Steve was the owner.
After selling the company and taking some time off, Steve started ZDigital. ZDigital offers websites and Internet marketing services to contractors, architects and designers across the US. ZDigital helps business owners with new website design, website redesigns and other Internet marketing services including Google and Facebook ads, social media management, SEO and more. To contact Steve or to learn more about ZDigital, visit www.ZDigital.com
Flooring Safety by Design | 1.0 AIA LU/HSW Credit
9:30 a.m.-10:30 a.m. | Room A
Flooring safety by design is offered by Altro throughout North America. The seminar is led by flooring experts experienced in helping architects, interior designers, and building owners select a wide variety of floor covering. Altro encourages participation and discussion during this interactive seminar.
Learning objectives
- Identify the legislative guidelines and legal tests relating to the specification of slip resistant flooring.
- Define the Static Coefficient of Friction as it relates to the specification of slip resistant flooring.
- Undertake a needs analysis to determine the slip resistant floor to suit your requirements.
Target Audience: Commercial Architects/Designers, Flooring Contractors, General Contractors, Business Owners.
10 Minute Marketing Strategy Plan
2:30 p.m.-3:30 p.m. |
A fractional CMO that ranks on page one in your city for the term, "Fractional CMO __(add your city name here)___" is coming to teach and tell you exactly how to rank on page one and also give you a 10 min action plan that will propel your business forward exponentially.
Get your own 10 minute action plan that will drastically improve your marketing. Then stay for the round table of other businesses similar to your industry on what they are doing and how they can improve through new techniques taught by Joshua Ramsey.
Target Audience: All building and construction professionals
A Google Certified Partner, Joshua's teaches interactive conferences based on material received from Google. Plus hear real life stories of success and failures that business owners have had. These powerful, interactive conferences are jammed packed with information that Joshua received during weekly meetings with Google. This is information every business owner needs to know.
Before becoming a Google Partner, Joshua was an outsourced CMO for several large U.S. based companies. As a CMO over the last 9 years, Joshua has managed over $2.5 million in AdWords and Digital Marketing Budgets and managed more than 2,800 campaigns. As a Bing Partner and Google Certified Partner, Joshua attends national conferences with some of the other great minds that influence SEO, digital marketing, and social media. Today, Joshua speaks all over the country helping businesses improve every element of their marketing.
Tree to Table | 1.0 AIA LU/HSW Credit
9:30 a.m.-10:30 a.m. | Room C
This course serves as a guide to selecting quality, sustainable hardwoods for bespoke furniture and design products by explaining the process of sourcing, harvesting, milling, drying, surfacing, and finishing hardwood materials.
At the end of this course attendees will be able to:
- Understand the origins, importance, and reward of utilizing sustainable resources. Committing to environmentally conscious hardwoods increases the welfare of future generations.
- Identify properly milled and dried hardwoods. Safety risks are minimized when properly dried wood is selected for projects.
- Recognize best practices, treatments, and finishes to maximize longevity of hardwood furnishings. Durable and harmless treatments are important to the health of the clients.
- Ask knowledgeable questions and recognize hardwoods that incorporate sustainability into design.
Target Audience: Builders, Contractors and Architects in Commercial and Residential applications
Brandon Berdoll and his wife Brandi established Berdoll Sawmill in 2009. The business focuses on supplying high quality hardwood slabs and lumber. Brandon works closely with local architects, furniture makers, interior designs, and homeowners alike, to meet their specialized needs.
Brandon has spent the last 13 years and thousands of hours perfecting the art and science of milling, drying, and flattening hardwood slabs. Many of the machines that he uses are either heavily modified or are machines that he designed and built, including a 100” wide jointer/planer.
Although he has a passion for his trade, his true love is spending quality time with his family. Brandi and Brandon have been married for 14 years and have 3 children. Clay (11), Emily (7), and Luke (4). Around the sawmill, it is common to see him with the kids working on projects together and teaching them valuable life lessons. The kids enjoy driving golf carts, four wheelers, skid steers, welding, building jumps, hunting, fishing, and raising chickens.
PoE Lighting and Automation - Next Gen Control
9:30 a.m.-10:30 a.m. | Room E
Tyler Andrews
CEO | PoE Texas
Top subject matter experts with experience in designing and constructing Power Over Ethernet intelligent buildings share their best practices and lessons learned. The session will help Builders and Integrators interested in Smart Home and Smart Building Technology gain crucial skills and knowledge essential to delivering intelligent buildings and lighting for developers and owners.
Target Audience: Builders and Integrators interested in Smart Home and Smart Building Technology
Tyler is an influencer for Intelligent Buildings and Power Over Ethernet. He currently leads PoE Texas making technology accessible to facility owners with his unique mix of technical expertise, construction experience, and project management knowledge. He currently hosts the most popular YouTube and Facebook channel and live stream about Power Over Ethernet and Intelligent Buildings, Converge PoE. Tyler speaks and trains about his project management experience and the importance of Power Over Ethernet in the new Intelligent Building.
How to be #1 and stay #1 on Every GC’s Bid List
9:30 a.m.-10:30 a.m. | Room A
Dave Knowles
Founder & President | TopBuilder
1. Understand what GC’s look for in a specialty contractor
2. Learn techniques to ensure you are on their bid list
3. Build and maintain a lasting relationship
4. Always impress them with
Target Audience: Subcontractors
In 2008, when a builder friend shared his frustration with the lack of cohesiveness in preconstruction technology, I realized exactly how to use my knowledge as the owner of several construction businesses, my experience as a mechanical engineer on construction related projects, and my deep knowledge and experience as a software engineer and CRM consultant. The result –TopBuilder -a solution that bridges the gaps in technology for construction companies. TopBuilder was developed in 2008 and went live in early 2011. Today, with hundreds of builders across the US and Canada using our solution, we consider ourselves much more than just another CRM provider, we are a Collaboration Tool, proven to increase profits, effectiveness & efficiencies that help businesses reach their goals.
I'm blessed with a wonderful wife, two beautiful daughters and a dog. I'm a competitive cyclist who loves to travel, race my bike and spend time with my family. I volunteer as the President of the Dads’ Club at my daughters’ school.
Get Visible, Get Credible : Get More Customers
9:30 a.m.-10:30 a.m. | Room A
Word of mouth has always been the foundation for the acquisition of new customers for businesses but in our internet age, word of mouth is transformed because of reviews sites like Google, Yelp, and Facebook. Online reviews are now one of the biggest ranking factors in a local search.
Being credible is only one piece of the puzzle though. Your business also needs to be found online when people are searching for a specific business near them. Are you at the top of the Google Map Pack? If not you are invisible and all of those great reviews are not doing you much good.
In this seminar, we share numerous tips and best practices to not only become credible but visible online. We will also discuss the system that has been tried and tested in many businesses to help take their company to the next level.
Learning objectives:
- Understand the importance of taking control of your online presence
- Learn software programs that help manage your reputation
- See why your business may not be ranking as high as it could be
- Discuss ways in which reviews can manifest online
- Develop strategies for garnering positive reviews
Target Audience: All Building and Construction Professionals
After studying Leadership and Development at Texas A&M University, Javier founded, ran, and sold his own successful valet parking company. This sparked his desire to help start-ups achieve their goals. He has helped dozens of small businesses reach success from launching new items & patents to creating demand for their products. He has an affinity for the construction industry
and helping business owners find new customers through their review management. He now works at Birdeye as an account manager involved in the construction segment. During his free time, he loves playing soccer, traveling, and firing up the BBQ pit.
Manage Your Jobs More Profitably - From Estimating to Job Costing and Invoicing
9:30 a.m.-10:30 a.m. | Room 3
In today’s highly competitive market, it’s more important than ever to be on top of your numbers. If you can’t price your jobs accurately and don’t have a great process for managing your costs throughout the job, you’re setting yourself up for failure. During this presentation, we’ll discuss common pitfalls, cover lessons learned from real-world experiences, and provide actionable takeaways to improve your processes for everything from estimating to bidding, job costing, purchase orders, vendor bills, customer invoicing, and more.
Three Key Takeaways:
- Learn the common pitfalls for why businesses don’t hit their target profits
- Get better insights on pricing your jobs and the difference between markup and margin
- Identify new business processes you can incorporate into your business
Target Audience: Builders, Contractors, Remodelers, Specialty Contractors, Business Owners
Eric Fortenberry is a passionate entrepreneur who founded JobTread, a construction management software company, in 2019 after serving as interim CEO for a General Contracting company where he built the first version of JobTread to help streamline and remedy their broken processes.
After successfully implementing the platform and increasing their gross profit by 43%, Eric knew he was on to something great! He spent the last two years rehiring many of his former employees, building out the platform, and making it ready for the broader market.
Prior to JobTread, Eric founded OrgSync, a SaaS student engagement platform, in 2007 after quitting his investment banking job where he focused on high growth middle market, web-based technology companies. In 2015, after selling OrgSync to approximately 650 universities and serving nearly 20 million users across 13 countries, the Company was acquired by Leeds Equity.
Eric has been named to Inc. Magazine’s 30 Under 30 List of the World’s Coolest Young Entrepreneurs under the age of 30 and received awards at the White House and United Nations after being named to the Empact 100 List showcasing the Best Companies Started and Run by Young Entrepreneurs. OrgSync was also recognized multiple times as a Best Place to Work and a fastest growing company for its company culture, rapid growth, and innovative solutions.
Eric is an Eagle Scout and holds a BBA in Finance and Accounting from the University of Texas at Austin and a Masters in Software Engineering from the University of Texas at Dallas.
Materials Mgmt./ Procurement and Meets Your Pathway to Zeros
9:30 a.m.-10:30 a.m | Room D
Chief Customer Officer/COO and Co-founder | DigiBuild Software
This session format is a round table discussion that specifically tackles Supply Chain Management and addresses a wide range of topics:
- What are the main material issues affecting projects right now?
- How has Covid impacted Supply Chains?
- What are companies currently doing to manage this process?
- What can they do to manage this process more effectively?
- What stakeholders are being affected and how are they reacting?
- What challenges come with introducing new technology? How to manage?
- What are some of the ROI of Material Management & Procurement software? What about software in general?
- What is an ideal material management & procurement process?
- What is the future Supply Chain outlook?
Don’t leave money on the table!
From single-family, to multifamily high-rises, let us help you navigate The Federal Energy Efficiency Incentives.
Target Audience: Architects, General Contractors, Subcontractors, Builders, Homebuilders, Retrofitters/Remodelers, and Residential Real Estate Investors.
April Moss is a market and retail strategy expert with more than 20 years of experience developing sales teams with some of the largest global companies, including Procter & Gamble and Starbucks. It was at Procter & Gamble where April and Rob met.
Prior to starting her career with P&G, she worked for the Construction Specification Institute in Washington D.C., fueling her interest in real estate development.
Like Rob, Founder/CEO, April watched her father struggle as a sub-contractor. Those struggles were one of the reasons her father ended his own life when she was nine. Construction has 4-5x more suicides than any other industry. One of April’s passions is to make sure that as DigiBuild works to improve the construction process that it helps to relieve the burden on construction people and their families along the way.
Travis is the Chief Executive Officer for ICS Inspectors, LLC residing in Houston, Texas. Travis leads his teams of RESNET Raters across the country, building Energy Rating and Consulting programs for homebuilders, retrofitters, and residential real estate developers. For real estate investors, property owners, home builders, and professionals within the construction industry, his vast expertise in tax planning has massively reduced taxpayers’ bills. He has helped with cost segregation studies and fixed asset reviews for building owners in numerous industries. As an advisor, Travis has assisted real estate professionals across our country in every single state, and aided architects, engineers, and contractors with §179D Energy Efficient Commercial Building Deduction for their governmental and public projects.
Travis studied Business Management at St. Andrews University in Laurinburg, North Carolina. While there, he competed in the NCAA Cross Country National Championships. In his free time, Travis fosters pets for animal rescues. Over the years, he’s personally helped more than 500 animals find their forever families.
10 Minute Marketing Strategy Plan
2:30 p.m.-3:30 p.m. | Room 3
A fractional CMO that ranks on page one in your city for the term, "Fractional CMO __(add your city name here)___" is coming to teach and tell you exactly how to rank on page one and also give you a 10 min action plan that will propel your business forward exponentially.
Get your own 10 minute action plan that will drastically improve your marketing. Then stay for the round table of other businesses similar to your industry on what they are doing and how they can improve through new techniques taught by Joshua Ramsey.
Target Audience: All building and construction professionals
A Google Certified Partner, Joshua's teaches interactive conferences based on material received from Google. Plus hear real life stories of success and failures that business owners have had. These powerful, interactive conferences are jammed packed with information that Joshua received during weekly meetings with Google. This is information every business owner needs to know.
Before becoming a Google Partner, Joshua was an outsourced CMO for several large U.S. based companies. As a CMO over the last 9 years, Joshua has managed over $2.5 million in AdWords and Digital Marketing Budgets and managed more than 2,800 campaigns. As a Bing Partner and Google Certified Partner, Joshua attends national conferences with some of the other great minds that influence SEO, digital marketing, and social media. Today, Joshua speaks all over the country helping businesses improve every element of their marketing.
Creative Solutions for Internet Problems in Construction Trailers and Sales Offices
2:30 p.m.-3:30 p.m. | Room 4
Jon and his teammate, Bryan Gifford will take attendees through challenges with internet connectivity that almost every single home builder face at sales office and construction trailers.
Target Audience: All building and construction professionals
Safety Training Techniques
2:30 p.m.-3:30 p.m. | Room 1
Focuses on the knowledge and skills required to assess your training needs, as well as plan, organize, create, and deliver performance-based safety and health training programs. While emphasis is on developing and delivering instructor-lead/classroom training, you’ll become acquainted with other instructional methods and media used to effectively train employees on safety and health issues. This presentation will primarily focus on an instructional design method called (ADDIE) Analysis, Design, Develpment , implementation, and evaluation with emphasis on adult learning principles.
Target Audience: Safety Trainers
Bradford K. Holman is an Occupational Health & Safety Professional with over 25 years of national/international experience in the various construction environments in the following industries: Telecommunications (fiber optics, Rail (commuter/Freight), Petro-chemical (expansion for facilities), Maritime/shipyard, Electrical Power Transmission and Distribution. He has a bachelor's degree in Occupational Safety Science from Indiana University of PA (IUP) and is an adjunct professor with the National Safety Council. Brad has earned his MSP, OHST, and CHST certifications and is also an authorized OSHA trainer.
As CEO of his company, Brad's responsibilities have included managing staff in the development and implementation of safety and security management programs, safety training/orientations, permit confine space entry programs, JSA, behavior based safety programs, mock OSHA audits, incident/accident investigations, industrial hygiene monitoring (i.e. H2S, benzene, Silica, noise, O2, LEL, THC, system safety, emergency preparedness, hazardous material management, lock out/tag out and fire life safety programs.
QuickBooks for Contractors - Advanced
2:30 p.m.-3:30 p.m. | Room 2
This class is an overview of how contractors can utilize the QuickBooks functionality to facilitate job costing, payroll, receivables and the overall benefits of either the online or desktop applications.
Target Audience: Contractors, Subcontractors, and anyone curious about the features & benefits of QuickBooks.
Transparent Pricing and Why You Need it
1:30 p.m.-2:30 p.m. | Room 5
We have nothing to hide, so we pulled back the curtain to show it all. Surprisingly, this has allowed us to close more sales, with higher margins, and happier clients to boot!
Eliminating the mystery of what might be in the black box behind a "package price" has been refreshing and life altering. Now our clients know what they are getting for their money at each step along the way, any sense of discomfort about whether they’re being charged fairly has been eliminated. It allows us to work amicably together with them to make value based decisions that optimize their investments and keep them smiling every step of the way.
Leave this session with actionable information that will transform your business, increase your clients’ trust and allow you to close more sales!
Target Audience: Business Owners, Operations, Financial Managers, Design-Build Companies, General contractors
Ross Clark is a serial entrepreneur with over a decade of experience in the residential construction and cabinetry industry. The puzzle and challenge of creating and building businesses is what he lives and loves every day.
He recently opened Maldon Cabinetry, Inc. in Cedar Park. Maldon Cabinetry proudly manufactures and distributes US made semi-custom and custom cabinets and aims to make the cabinet buying experience as enjoyable as possible for its clients.
As CEO of Clark Construction of Ridgefield, Inc, Ross reimagined the company; creating a seamless client experience, strong brand, and rich corporate culture. Under his management, revenue increased from 1.8 million in 2018 to a projected 5+ million in 2022. He was able to move across the country transitioning to a remote management role, while maintaining and growing operations.
His quiver of companies also includes Deliberate Media, Inc., a marketing agency and Variegated Personnel, Inc., a business consulting company specializing in systems development and backend business support such as HR and Bookkeeping.
He enjoys giving back as well. Ross founded the nonprofit organization, Clean Our Lands, which is focused on cleaning our public lands and working to create a future where littering is unheard of and socially unacceptable!
Sponsored by
We’re seeing volatile pricing formats, supply chain interruption and rising interest rates. This usually ends in tough economic conditions, resulting in construction industry challenges. Knowing the best way to stay ahead of these changes and keep your business moving forward is difficult. We’ll look at the methods successful contractors use to weather shifting economic conditions. We’ll cover:
- Increasing your portion of the market pie
- Getting a competitive advantage
- Managing customer expectations
- Structuring your sales effort
- How to balance sales and marketing efforts
You’ll come away from this session with a better understanding of what it will take to grow in both revenue and profitability in these times. Sales is the most important aspect of your business. Everything else simply follows that lead.