The Home Service Expert Podcast

The Home Service Expert podcast is the No. 1 podcast for ambitious home service entrepreneurs, whether they are in plumbing, HVAC or another niche. In this show, Tommy Mello, a $200M business founder, will talk with the best entrepreneurs and experts in the home service industry and beyond, to share insights that have made them successful: from the newest marketing tools to the best scaling strategies. Previous podcast guests include Terry Nicholson (former national trainer of NYSE-listed home services company), Craig Smith (President of HomeAdvisor, a home services marketplace valued at $2B+), Cameron Herold (former COO of three $100M+ companies), etc.

The One Thing Nobody Can Take From Your Home Service Business | Jason Feifer 09/11/2026

The Man Who Took Tesla From $2B To $20B Shares The Exact Formula | Jon McNeill 09/10/2026

Doing Whatever You Want, Is Keeping Your Business Small (Here's Why) | Mark C Winters 09/03/2026

Own 15% Of Your Market Before You Even Think About A New One | Aaron & Zac 09/02/2026

Own 15% Of Your Market Before You Even Think About A New One | Aaron & Zac 🚀 FREEDOM 2026 Get your Tickets Today! https://freedomevent.com Tommy Mello sits down with two returning guests: Aaron Gaynor, founder of Eco Plumbers, Electricians, and HVAC Technicians, fresh off crossing $100 million and pacing $113M this year, and Zac Dearing, co-founder of Mantel, the AI-powered sales platform behind some of the sharpest shopping data in home services. No rehashed stories, just what is working right now: why recruiting beats leads, the new hire who sold $1M of HVAC in his first month, the labor burden number every tech should know, why 60 to 70% of deals are still alive after you leave the home, the 15% market share rule that tells you when to grow, and the marketing math that separates maintaining from grow-grow. Follow Aaron Gaynor and Eco: https://geteco.com Follow Zac Dearing and Mantel: https://usemantel.com -- 🕐 TIMESTAMPS 🕐 -- 00:00 - Introduction 01:03 - Aaron's $100M Milestone And The New Headquarters 06:23 - Where Homeowners Spend Their Decision Time 08:46 - Two Years On Mantel: Eco's Close Rate Now 10:37 - 69% Shop For Pricing Online And Most Find Nothing 12:23 - The Options Formula And The Sunday Effect 14:55 - Recruiting Beats Leads: Who Not How 17:09 - The New Hire Who Sold $1M In One Month 18:46 - Loyalty, Labor Burden, And The 24% Line 24:33 - The One Truck Exercise And What A Call Really Costs 29:01 - Private Equity, Labor, And Who Really Benefits 34:04 - What Contractors Actually Adopt In AI 35:43 - Charging More Than The Average Bear 42:27 - Sales Is Not A Dirty Word 44:53 - Shopping Beats Selling 49:33 - When Homeowners Actually Read Your Proposal 51:31 - Buy Or Build: The Greenfield Answer 56:30 - Marketing Math: Maintain, Grow, Or Grow Grow 01:00:21 - The 15% Rule: When To Enter A New Market 01:06:30 - Closer Hats, Next Missions, And Final Advice 01:12:40 - Stop Assuming The Deal Is Dead 01:16:09 - The Apollo 11 Close 🚀 FREEDOM 2026 Get your Tickets Today! https://freedomevent.com Check Out My Social Media: Tiktok ⟶ https://www.tiktok.com/@officialtommymello Instagram ⟶ https://www.instagram.com/officialtommymello/ Facebook ⟶ https://www.facebook.com/thomasmello/ /episode/index/show/homeservicemillionare/id/42676650

The "Day In Thirds" Schedule Burned-Out Owners Need To Steal | Danny Morel 08/27/2026

America's Top Sales Trainer Breaks Down The Perfect Service Call | Jeremy Miner 08/25/2026

She Predicted The AI Layoffs. Her Next Forecast Should Worry CEOs | Alexandra Levit 08/20/2026

She Watched A1 Go From One Bathroom To $200M | My Fiancé, Bre 08/19/2026

Inside Pace Morby's $1.7 Million RV Park Deal (And Why Beginners Can't Copy It) 08/13/2026

Inside Pace Morby's $1.7 Million RV Park Deal (And Why Beginners Can't Copy It) 🚀 FREEDOM 2026 Get your Tickets Today! https://freedomevent.com Pace Morby went from bagging groceries and building 700 homes for hedge funds to controlling hundreds of properties without banks, credit, or his own money. In this one, he and Tommy trade playbooks: how seller financing actually works and why terms beat price, the capital gains conversation that gets retiring sellers to yes, the expired listing niche feeding him a house a day, the four KPIs that fix any company, and why the worst agent market in 35 years is handing buyers the opportunity of a decade. Connect with Pace ⟶ https://www.instagram.com/pacemorby/ -- 🕐 TIMESTAMPS 🕐 -- 00:00 - Introduction 01:47 - Number Three Of Twelve Kids 04:55 - The Secret-Sharing Culture That Built Home Service 06:53 - AI Is Coming For Jobs, But Not These 09:11 - The Expired Listing Niche Nobody Wants 10:03 - The $5 Million RV Park Phone Call 11:06 - No Money Down At $20 Million 13:04 - Why You'd Better Be Greedy 15:26 - How A Technician Actually Makes More 17:41 - The Boomer Buyout Wave (And Who Shouldn't Ride It) 19:57 - The $500 An Hour Meeting At Starbucks 20:42 - Hedge Fund Flipper: 700 Homes For The Big Funds 23:32 - Bethany's Genius: The Bird Dog Move 25:16 - The Lead Geeks Full Circle Moment 30:44 - What Keeps Tommy Hungry 35:15 - Four KPIs That Fix Any Company 38:52 - Live Teardown: Pace's Lending Business 53:47 - Who's Gonna Compete With You? 56:20 - PE's Hard Lesson: Keep The Founder 59:59 - Speed Round: Three Tips For Beginners 1:02:28 - Why He Buys One RV Park A Month 1:06:04 - The Kermit, Texas Deal 1:06:39 - The Capital Gains Play That Closes Sellers 1:10:23 - The Slowest Market In 35 Years 1:15:14 - How To Work With Tommy 1:17:16 - The Best Add-On In Home Service 🚀 FREEDOM 2026 Get your Tickets Today! https://freedomevent.com Check Out My Social Media: Tiktok ⟶ https://www.tiktok.com/@officialtommymello Instagram ⟶ https://www.instagram.com/officialtommymello/ Facebook ⟶ https://www.facebook.com/thomasmello/ /episode/index/show/homeservicemillionare/id/42432285

He Beat Cancer And Says Most Owners Are Selling For The Wrong Reasons | Michael Werner 08/11/2026

Jason Wild | Every "No" He Heard Was Worth $12 Million 08/06/2026

Lauren Kingsley | Meet the $5.1B Operator Home Service CEOs Keep Calling 08/04/2026

Lauren Kingsley | Meet the $5.1B Operator Home Service CEOs Keep Calling 🚀 FREEDOM 2026 Get your Tickets Today! https://freedomevent.com Most home service companies think they have a lead problem. Lauren Kingsley says they have a friction problem, and she has the receipts: $5.1 billion in revenue managed across multiple organizations, a call center scaled from 25 people to 800-plus, and the playbook she wrote for Renuity after telecom ran this exact consolidation a decade ago. In this episode: the client who dropped raw volume 20% and watched net sales jump 36% in one month, the 48-hour scheduling window that decides 85% of your jobs, why 1 to 5% of your EBITDA disappears into data silos every year, zip-code-level marketing strategy, the greenfield playbook (canvass first, digital last), building Sovereign Command as a Layer 2 over your tech stack, and the "don't trust, verify" mindset she brought from Bitcoin into business. Learn more about Lauren: https://laurenkingsley.now Contact Lauren: lauren@laurenkingsley.now -- 🕐 TIMESTAMPS 🕐 -- 00:00 - Introduction 0:30 - Welcome: a friction problem, not a lead problem 1:45 - Hopping fences and selling art: Lauren's path to telecom 3:30 - Writing the Renuity playbook 5:30 - Sovereign Command: a Layer 2 over your tech stack 8:25 - One source of truth: don't trust, verify 10:40 - Time: the only asset you can't create 11:00 - Inside Tommy's daily pacing report 12:30 - Dynamic lead assignment: propensity to net close 13:55 - 400,000 calls analyzed: let the machine pick the questions 15:10 - Frictionless journeys and omnichannel nurture 17:20 - AI search jumped from 6% to 60% of homeowners 19:00 - Brand vs direct response: the 80/20 flip 20:50 - Zip code strategy: where spend goes to die 22:30 - The case study: 20% fewer raw leads, 36% more net sales 25:00 - Speed to lead: 48 hours or lose 85% 25:50 - Aggregators, bots, and where the ROI really is 29:15 - The numbers: 1 to 5% of EBITDA lost, 27% missed callbacks 30:35 - Attribution: billboards, Yelp, and 7,000 tracking numbers 34:45 - Blue Sky Jets and the Wall Street stepdad 36:25 - 2008: "something's wrong with the money" 38:50 - The $100M question: Bitcoin as a long-term savings plan 43:00 - Legislation, cold storage, and 21 million coins 46:25 - Grow wide or grow deep? The hybrid answer 48:50 - Pre-approval financing and the whole-home sell-in 51:20 - Greenfield playbook: canvass first, digital last 54:40 - Retail from Costco to Ace, by zip code 57:50 - Your people are the lifeblood 1:00:45 - Dream Manager and DreamStride 1:06:00 - Bench strength and performance-pay training 1:09:55 - How to reach Lauren 1:10:15 - What keeps Tommy up at night 1:14:00 - Very few winners, massive winners 🚀 FREEDOM 2026 Get your Tickets Today! https://freedomevent.com Check Out My Social Media: Tiktok ⟶ https://www.tiktok.com/@officialtommymello Instagram ⟶ https://www.instagram.com/officialtommymello/ Facebook ⟶ https://www.facebook.com/thomasmello/ /episode/index/show/homeservicemillionare/id/42317095

Kevin O'Leary | Why the Busiest Home Service Owners Get the Least Done 07/30/2026

Kevin O'Leary | Why the Busiest Home Service Owners Get the Least Done 🚀 FREEDOM 2026 Get your Tickets Today! https://freedomevent.com Recorded live at the Freedom event — Kevin O'Leary sat down with Tommy minutes after walking off stage. Mr. Wonderful built and sold The Learning Company in one of the largest tech deals of all time, runs a portfolio of more than 50 companies, and spent years selling to Steve Jobs — who taught him the rule he still runs his life by: pick the three things that matter, and block out 70% of everything else. In this episode: why home service is one of the best businesses on earth, the contractor-first deal he now makes with every new CEO, why unhappy customers are your most valuable asset, the 70/30 listening rule, and what money actually buys once you have enough of it. As Kevin put it about Freedom: "if you ever get a chance to come to one of these sessions, you should." Follow Kevin O'Leary: https://www.instagram.com/kevinolearytv/ -- 🕐 TIMESTAMPS 🕐 -- 00:00 - Introduction 00:40 - Mr. Wonderful, live at the Freedom event 01:25 - Why Kevin still shows up for entrepreneurs 02:15 - "One of the best times ever" for home service 03:45 - What Kevin pays up for: recurring revenue 05:00 - The AI doom question: buggies & burger robots 07:25 - Private equity's biggest mistake: losing the founder 09:50 - The $6,000 earpiece productivity stack 11:50 - $3.75M/month in marketing and a 10X ROAS 13:05 - Wonder Ads: how TV attribution finally works 15:20 - The 4 KPIs that build any company's budget 16:20 - Running 54 companies at once 17:40 - Quit making transactional ads — tell stories 19:35 - "Always tell the truth" — the lesson from Kevin's mom 22:15 - Kevin's rule: contract first, hire second 24:15 - Ideas are cheap, execution is everything 25:25 - Steve Jobs stories: brutal meetings & 70/30 28:15 - Equity done right: 70/30 deals and dilution 31:00 - Unhappy customers are your most valuable asset 34:25 - Listen 70%, talk 30% 36:20 - The $10M restart plan & 31% in real estate 38:25 - "I don't need more money" 39:10 - Your first $5M is a safety net 41:00 - Who inspires Kevin: Musk at 100% signal 42:15 - Own your failures or he won't invest 43:10 - The book that changed him: Keith Richards 45:05 - Close: "come to one of these sessions" 🚀 FREEDOM 2026 Get your Tickets Today! https://freedomevent.com Check Out My Social Media: Tiktok ⟶ https://www.tiktok.com/@officialtommymello Instagram ⟶ https://www.instagram.com/officialtommymello/ Facebook ⟶ https://www.facebook.com/thomasmello/ /episode/index/show/homeservicemillionare/id/42261245

Why This 22-Year-Old Selling AI Just Warned Every Home Service Owner 07/28/2026

Why This 22-Year-Old Selling AI Just Warned Every Home Service Owner 🚀 FREEDOM 2026 Get your Tickets Today! https://mellomedia.s.gy/promo3-freedom2026 George Paladichuk built a million-dollar AI company at 22 — and he's the first person selling AI who will tell you NOT to hand it your phones. His platform, NaiL, sits behind 100+ franchise locations and catches nearly 1,000 calls a day for Superior Fence & Rail alone — recovering $2.5 million a month in revenue from calls that would have hit voicemail. In this episode, Tommy sits down with George to break down where AI actually belongs in your call flow, the businesses that should never use it, the disclosure test that quadrupled hang-ups, what it really costs, and the three pitfalls that kill AI rollouts. Tommy even calls George's AI live on air — see if you can tell. 💎 Top 5 Takes for this Episode! AI is your safety net, not your first touch. Booking rates AND customer satisfaction go up when AI backs up an A-player on the phones — not when it replaces them. Missed calls are a hidden metric. No dashboard reports them — and for one franchise they were worth $2.5M a month. Some calls should never go to a machine. Restoration, funeral homes — nobody in a moment of distress wants to hear a robot. Don't lead with "this is an AI." Announcing it up front 4X'd hang-ups in 30 seconds. Solve the caller's problem first — 80% never notice. Solve the problem before you build the product. That one shift took George from $4K to $50K a month in 90 days. ⏱️ Chapters 0:00 — "The last thing they want to hear is a robot" 0:40 — Who is George: 22, CU Boulder, founder of NaiL 2:15 — Wholesale real estate at 18 → digital marketing → a $1M AI company 7:45 — Superior Fence & Rail: recovering $2.5M/month in missed calls 10:15 — The hidden metric: ~1,000 missed calls a day 12:45 — Don't fire your CSRs: AI as the safety net, not the first touch 17:25 — When AI is the WRONG answer: restoration & funeral homes 20:30 — Overseas agents vs AI: cost, coverage, and one-call-at-a-time 23:30 — "The worst AI will ever be": how fast the voices got good 25:55 — Outbound calling, TCPA compliance, and why SMS wins 30:35 — The next 2–3 years of AI receptionists 32:40 — Should you disclose it's AI? The 4X hang-up test 36:15 — LIVE DEMO: Tommy calls the AI 38:45 — Where to start + pitfall #1: solve the problem, not the technology 43:00 — Pilot programs: 30–60 days, build to launch 46:00 — Why young female voices win 47:40 — What it costs: $10–20K pilots, ~$997/location/month 50:00 — Advice to young builders: find the problem first, then market the hell out of it 54:15 — What's next for NaiL + how to reach George 57:20 — Why rollouts fail: vision, results, and a spokesperson 🚀 FREEDOM 2026 Get your Tickets Today! https://mellomedia.s.gy/promo3-freedom2026 Learn more about NaiL here: https://usenail.com Contact George: george@usenail.com George Paladichuk is the founder of NaiL, an AI voice receptionist platform for home service franchises. A 22-year-old CU Boulder graduate, he went from wholesale real estate at 18 to running a digital marketing agency through college to building NaiL, which now serves 100+ franchise locations. His biggest client, Superior Fence & Rail, recovers $2.5 million a month in revenue from missed calls handled by the platform. Check Out My Social Media: Tiktok ⟶ https://www.tiktok.com/@officialtommymello Instagram ⟶ https://www.instagram.com/officialtommymello/ Facebook ⟶ https://www.facebook.com/thomasmello/ My other podcast: Tommy Mello Millionaire ⟶ https://www.youtube.com/@officialtommymello Live Q&A submission form: https://homeserviceexpert.com/questions /episode/index/show/homeservicemillionare/id/42244550

He Walked Away From 2 Shark Tank Offers (Sales 40x'd After) 07/23/2026

Why 2 Employees Beat 6 (The $400K Hiring Math) 07/22/2026

The Content Excuse Keeping Home Service Owners Invisible | Gary Vee 07/17/2026

He Built Five Companies Then Admitted He Should Have Built One Better (LIVE) 07/15/2026

He Built Five Companies Then Admitted He Should Have Built One Better (LIVE) 🚀 FREEDOM 2026 Get your Tickets Today! https://homeservicefreedom.com/ Adam Shampaine went from Capitol Hill to CEO of HomeFix, a $68 million home improvement company, and then built his own supply company, finance company, and window brand. In this episode, Tommy Mello and Adam break down how vertical integration creates a moat competitors can't copy, why company DNA decides which growth channels actually work, how a door-to-door canvasser can earn $300K a year, and the one lesson Adam learned from building five companies: he would be richer if he had built one better. If you run a home service or home improvement business, this is the conversation on canvassing, financing, and focus. 🕐 TIMESTAMPS 00:00 Episode Open 01:52 Capitol Hill Origin 07:20 Part-Time to Sales 12:20 Always The People 18:00 Solar and Supply Stack 23:20 Pure Finance Origin 30:30 Finance Platform Growth 37:20 Company DNA Canvas 43:50 Canvassing As Math 48:50 Canvas vs Demand Leads 54:12 Brand Power vs Canvas 1:02:02 One Thing Regret Questions this episode answers: 01:52 How did a Capitol Hill staffer end up in home improvement sales? 12:20 Is it the market or the salespeople when a sales territory fails? 18:00 Why would a home improvement company build its own supply chain? 23:20 Should contractors start their own consumer finance company? 30:30 How does in-house customer financing actually make money? 37:20 Can you change your company's culture and business model? 40:50 Why do canvassing consultants fail at most companies? 43:50 How much can a door-to-door canvasser make per year? 48:50 What is the difference between canvas leads and demand leads? 54:12 Does brand marketing beat door-to-door canvassing? 🚀 FREEDOM 2026 Get your Tickets Today! https://homeservicefreedom.com/ TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@officialtommymello Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/officialtommymello Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/officialtommymello /episode/index/show/homeservicemillionare/id/42096695

Extraordinary People Waste Their Lives Waiting for Approval From People Who Never Notice Them 07/15/2026

Extraordinary People Waste Their Lives Waiting for Approval From People Who Never Notice Them 🚀 FREEDOM 2026 Get your Tickets Today! https://homeservicefreedom.com/ Sahil Bloom spent seven years "winning" in private equity — while living 3,000 miles from his parents, drinking seven nights a week, and 50 lbs heavier than today. Then one sentence from a friend changed everything: "You're going to see your parents 15 more times before they die." In this episode, Tommy Mello sits down with the author of The 5 Types of Wealth to break down the 85-year Harvard study that found the #1 predictor of your health at 80 isn't blood pressure, smoking, or cholesterol — it's how you feel about your relationships at 50. They cover the Life Razor, why "nobody cares" is the most freeing advice you'll ever get, the phone rule that reclaimed 68 days a year, delegation without dumping, and what AI means for the next decade of work. 🕐 TIMESTAMPS 00:00 The #1 Predictor of Health at 80 (Cold Open) 00:48 Who Is Sahil Bloom? The 5 Types of Wealth 02:22 Winning in Private Equity While Losing Everything Else 03:18 "You'll See Your Parents 15 More Times Before They Die" 04:26 The 5 Types of Wealth Explained 05:43 Sahil's Daily Routine & Business Ecosystem 08:29 How Success Gets Redefined After 30 12:57 Phones, Presence & the People You Love 17:19 Why Entrepreneurs Can't Enjoy the Journey 19:01 A Violent Bias for Action 19:45 What Is a Life Razor? (The Apollo 13 Story) 24:11 Game-Changing Advice You Wish You Knew in Your 20s 24:32 "Nobody Cares" & the Spotlight Effect 26:10 The Science of Slow, Steady Progress 27:59 Starting Over With $10 Million 28:56 The Goal: Positively Impact a Billion Lives 31:19 The 5 Types of Wealth in Your 20s vs Your 50s 34:21 What Makes Happy Couples Stay Happy 35:38 Keeping the Fire Alive After Kids 39:26 The Harvard Study: Health at 80, Predicted at 50 40:36 Counseling, Being Right & Changing Your Mind 44:28 Relationship Advice for Young People + The Phone Rule 49:31 Your Quest Has to Be Yours 50:51 Speed Round: Time Blocking & Work Smart vs Hard 53:38 How to Delegate Without Dumping 55:32 Design Your Perfect Day 56:12 Sahil's Viral Ideas: Proximity Is Wealth 58:03 Kids, Priorities & Adaptability 1:00:37 Be Unapologetically Yourself 1:02:49 AI, Jobs & the Next 10 Years 1:06:24 How They Actually Use AI 1:07:09 Robots, Blue Collar & What's Coming 1:14:38 The Book That Changed His Life 1:15:58 Final Advice: Invest in Your Relationships 🚀 FREEDOM 2026 Get your Tickets Today! https://homeservicefreedom.com/ Check Out My Social Media: Tiktok ⟶ https://www.tiktok.com/@officialtommymello Instagram ⟶ https://www.instagram.com/officialtommymello/ Facebook ⟶ https://www.facebook.com/thomasmello/ /episode/index/show/homeservicemillionare/id/42096685

He Went From a Window Tint Shop to a $400M Company (His One Hiring Rule) 07/07/2026

The Accountability System That Makes Poor Performance Impossible to Hide 07/02/2026

The Operating System Behind America's Biggest Garage Door Company 06/30/2026

The Belief That Separates the People Who Win From Everyone Else | Evan Carmichael 06/30/2026

Your Hiring Strategy Is Setting You Up to Fail Before Day One | Mike Matalone 06/24/2026

He Grew A Company To $220M | His Warning To Every Home Service Owner 06/19/2026

What Every Contractor Brags About, That's Actually Proving Their Brand's Working Against Them 06/19/2026

The Smartest Home Service Owners in the Country Are All Doing This One Thing 06/11/2026

Why Home Service Owners Lose Customers Before They Ever Pick Up the Phone 06/10/2026

Why Home Service Owners Lose Customers Before They Ever Pick Up the Phone 🚀 FREEDOM 2026 Get your Tickets Today! https://homeservicefreedom.com/ Senja Spellman is a fractional CMO who has spent over a decade inside the marketing departments of companies like Tundra Land ($100M), Leaf Home, Bath Works, and Home Genius Exteriors. She took Bath Works from $12M to $25M in one year — now pacing $52M. Today she shares exactly how home service companies can build brand trust, track TV attribution, grow with zero ad spend, and disrupt in a market where everyone looks the same. In this episode: ▸ Why 66% of customers pick by trust — and only 7% by price ▸ The TV attribution model that ties every spot to a lead ▸ How to use ChatGPT, Claude, and Gemini to audit your brand visibility right now ▸ Brand vs. direct response — which one your business actually needs ▸ The 97% rule: why branding matters more than most owners think ▸ Omnichannel data strategy: how to hit the right person across mail and CTV ▸ Marketing budget benchmarks: growth (20–22%) vs. maintenance (15–18%) ▸ How cause marketing builds internal culture and external brand ▸ Why marketing is meant to disrupt — and how to stop blending in -- 🕐 TIMESTAMPS 🕐 -- 00:00 — Senja's Background 07:06 — TV Attribution Model 15:31 — LLM Brand Visibility 22:48 — Home Service Differences 30:25 — Marketing Budget Benchmarks 36:10 — The 97% Rule 41:30 — Omni-Channel Data Strategy 49:50 — Private Equity Risks 57:07 — Brand Story Process 01:03:55 — Lead Gen Quick Wins 01:12:05 — Disruption in Marketing 01:17:55 — Senja's Contact Info 🚀 FREEDOM 2026 Get your Tickets Today! https://homeservicefreedom.com/ Check Out My Social Media: Tiktok ⟶ https://www.tiktok.com/@officialtommymello Instagram ⟶ https://www.instagram.com/officialtommymello/ Facebook ⟶ https://www.facebook.com/thomasmello/ /episode/index/show/homeservicemillionare/id/41592720

Why Most Remodelers Keep Paying for Demand They Could Be Creating for Free 06/05/2026

He Lost His Company as a Minority Partner. Then Built It Back From Zero. 06/03/2026

The Home Service Expert Podcast

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