PressurePros

Education + application experience + succes rate For myself, it comes down to which came first, the teacher or the student? When I look to someone for training, whether it be a company or an individual, I want to know from where they got their information. I want to review how they processed their education and adopted it successfully. The criteria depends upon what I am seeking to be taught. If I want to improve my golf swing, I'd like to be taught by a PGA professional that shoots in the 80's with a consistent 300 yard drive. Wandering from player to player at a country club gathering information from a person that reads Golf Digest and has every training aid in existence is pointless if that guy has never parred a hole in his life. This person may not have had the right training from the start so all he will do is teach me his mistake ridden technique. This is what I think spawned Tony's other post and after thinking about it, he's right. Many people on here post that all of these schools are a waste of time. What is a waste of time is jumping in with both feet and taking five years to figure out you are not doing things as efficiently as you can be. I'll use Anthony from HotShot as an example. Some people may laugh and think what a waste it was for him to spend the high dollars on the schooling for KEC. I see and have heard from others what Anthony is doing. While he may be refining technique, he has a solid core and will be successful far quicker than others whom think getting certified is a waste of time. He is efficient, knows his job, has systems in place and he gets the job done. If Anthony gets his ducks lined up, has someone educate him on sales technique and how to handle multiple crews and time management, he will be on here posting about the addition of his 7th or 8th crew in no time. My point is, Anthony was taught correctly, has some field time under his belt and I think is qualified in certain venues to pass on his knowlege if he chose to do so. Right now I would pay $50 to sit at a round table and listen to Ant speak about how to clean a hood. In five years, I'd probably have to shell out 30 times that to attend his training. Jarrod is also right in mentioning integrity. If profit at any cost is my motivation then I seek training from a guy that runs clandestine boiler room operations. If I wanted training on fleets I know whom I would not ask though they are publicly traded and make a fortune. Ultimately it comes down to this. You look at a trainer or company and say to yourself, "I want what you have, show me how to get it". One final note: There is cross discussion on roundtables and formalized, paid training. Keep things in perspective. At a R/T You are paying $35 to meet peers in a comfortable setting, be fed and to exchange information. Take from it one good thing and you made your money back tenfold. These two things are very different. I am not being compensated for my time at St Louis though it cost me probably in the realm of a quarter million dollars in education and business experience to be qualified to speak. I think it is solely up to the decision of the event coordinator to determine whom he/she wants to speak. If Don would have asked for my credentials, the billing would have started at triple my PW'ing rate. I like Don and know he wants to do things right but at the same time, if I had to start qualifying myself, I would be building value and would expect to be compensated for it. Thats my hill of beans, thanks for reading.

I had the chance yesterday to speak with Tony (author of this thread). I will not paraphrase or speak for the man, but this thread probably got a bit more passionate than he had intended. (140 posts in three days, ya think?) This whole topic brought up some good points so I am going to go attack Alan's thread.

Barry (and Don), I appreciate the kind words, I really do but I am not a guru, I am not an expert. I had to be taught just like everyone. I don't even like reading this kind of stuff though because jealousy rears its ugly head and then I hear "that Fenner guy thinks he is some kind of talent.. what gives him the right?" When I give, I get in return. I make mistakes like all of you. I understand Tony's point and I agree, learn from those that have a bit more experience. What I don't agree with is thinking I am so smart that I have to go to the top of the food chain for advice. A guy with one year's experience has plenty to teach a guy that has one week's worth. You've been around, Tony. Many can learn from you but you choose to disparage what is a very successful exchange of information. What did you expect to hear in return? You have to understand, when you come here spouting tidbits and opinion with no credibitlity to back you up (ie no posts and most don't know you from Adam), you become one of the people you warn against. You've made 20 posts in three years. Other than ego and self proclaimation, who are you to advise on this topic? You say: "I prefer some times not to post as much because of what is Now happening here. Things are now geting out of text and things are now being said to form negative opinions about people. I'm not in need of the attention or drama that is what this post has become." Huh? What was the purpose of this thread then? You want to waltz in drop a comment and then expect everyone to say "Yeah that Tony, he nailed it. No need to rebutt his opinion" (??) C'mon man. I'm not trying to give you drama or however you phrased it, but do you think everyone here is such an idiot that they cannot figure out when they are getting bad info? That every business owner not part of some organization can't possibly figure things out on his or her own? That elitist BS is what gets certain crews into trouble. Don't believe the hype, brother.

Thanks for posting that, Ant. Very inspiring. This is your year to take off and make some mad loot. Best in '07

Good morning and Happy New Year. Now I have to take offense that someone makes assumptions based on what some group of jokers deems gospel. I have my feathers ruffled now. How dare someone judge my skills and earning capability based upon where I spend my time. Lets get some things straight. I have owned businesses from live sound production companies to beer distributors over the last 19 years. Every single one of them sold for nice profit. My ladies gym franchise reached its 1000th member in December. Our ice cream parlor has customer counts of 200 people per day in December. Our Ocean City, NJ rental property goes for $4000 per week during peak season and is always booked during that time. Pressure Pros, Inc while falling well short of my gross projection, is on the rise.. '07 will see a new business manager and some outsourcing of HR duties. Restore-A-Deck will be distributed in retailers in the United States and Canada for '07 and by '08 will be worldwide. Am I successful enough for you? I have a degree in economics, I taught sales at a very high profile corporate based retailer. I've managed teams from 2-20. I have read every book, attended a ton of seminars and applied most of the techniques in real life. Am I qualified to teach? to offer advise? I've done exhaust cleaning, house washing, deck restoration, and written articles for publication. I first picked up a wand 20 years ago (though I put it back down again quickly). Am I qualified to open my mouth about cleaning techniques? Now, do I need to assess myself and get away from business for a few hours every day? You betcha. During peak season I am reading emails by 5:30 am and coming back from doing estimates at 9 pm. In between and after I come to TGS because I love to write and it is therapeutic. Business is my relaxation as disturbing as that sounds. I live for it. I really dislike being on the defensive and having to make an egotistical tirade but this is what it is. Some people need to climb down off of a high horse and quit making judgements. I could stand here and judge all days and point fingers. "You, over there, you are an equipment junky", "you, over there, you have the IRS attaching your earnings", "you, over there, I've seen pictures of your work and its nothing special", and "you, over there, if you didn't have the internet you would not have had the werewithall to distribute your product lines". The hypocritical, fence walking, gossipy nature of a few in this business is what it is. Human beings are what they are..not perfect. My goal is to make profit, share some laughs, and give back what had been given to me. If a minority of self proclaimed experts wants to judge me for my liesure time activity, thats on them.

Here is what I have seen of the "experts" Tony speaks of.. • One company sends emails about wood restoration filled with at least 5 mistakes most newbies are aware of. I have also heard a ton of complaints about fraudulent claims, false promises and out and out lies. Don't know if those accusations are true but I have heard them enough to not even consider doing business. • The last I heard about a certain franchiser, one of his branches had their equipment up for sale. This in and of itself is meaningless.. or is it? • See, the internet is a dangerous thing. I have seen outstanding tax liens, criminal prosecution mug shots, missing licenses, and a whole bunch of other misnomers I would consider things NOT to do. These were all on the list of "experts". • In talking to another contractor I come to find out one of those "experts" has his family out helping him wash. I missed that one in the book of professionalism. I have heard things about myself through the vine. Most of the gossip is rooted in jealousy. I'm guilty of it too. I'm jealous that I missed the ball and didn't formalize a company to teach marketing. My primal instinct is to say, "oh that guy doesn't know what he is talking about". Don't believe the hype, Tony. I went to your website and saw something that explained a lot. I know there is a lot of us and them division right now, just be your own mind and decide from whom you learn. "Every man is my superior in that I may learn from him"

Valid points, all of them. Its a fine line. This industry is taking off. There are going to be pioneers, copycats and hacks as the ventures tied to washing are explored and exploited. Cujo with his new venture, the PWNA with their new deck builders alliance, and other "schools" have introduced experts from outside of the industry. Many of these guys have never picked up a wand or have any clue how to clean. In my opinion, they don't need to. Business is business. The service offered may change, the color on the box may change but there is still a core way of making anything profitable. The cleaning end of the business is not rocket science. That is not meant as an insult to anyone and what they offer. It is what it is. I am far from the best deck guy, housewasher or otherwise in the industry. In fact, I venture to say I suck at it compared to some. I am a business person, thats what I am good at. I'm sure there are plenty of guys that have been around for three years part time that can teach me a thing or two about cleaning. Keep your mind open, Tony. You may be surprised as to what shakes out.

After I wrote that, FedEx knocked on my door. Inside the box marked 'fragile' was my solid platinum chalice adorned with the Crown jewels. (Rod slipped in a certificate of authenticity so I know its worth $$) They told me the Hope diamond had to be shipped separately for insurance reasons. I thought this was good but inside were tickets to this year's Super Bowl with a little note from Beth saying "Enjoy the penthouse suite we reserved for you and six friends" The best $25 bucks I ever spent! Oops goota run someone with a (310) area code is calling.. I can't imagine whom that could be?

where's my trophy? Oh you mean the one up by your screen name. LOL. Thanks B&R

VERY nice.

Let me elaborate. I did one deck with it at the insistance of the homeowner. I made them sign a waiver. I cleaned and prepped the deck. I wet the deck prior to application. Applied two coats. In one year recoated again because it started to peel. Came back at the end of this season and its failing again. The homeowner now has a $3000 strip job scheduled for spring. In addition to what I do professionally in the field, I deal literally with thousands of homeowners with my other DIY company. About 20 reports have come in from dissatisfied homeowners. Same issues. Acrylics suck. After talking to Cabot's they blamed my prep work. Yeah okay. I should have used their bleach and soap mix I guess. Others that have talked to Cabots have had similar blame shifts. On guy was told he was supposed to sand his deck first. It does not say that on any website, label or brochure. They are touting this product for hardwoods? In my opinion, steer clear.

J-u-n-k

Here is a flyer for my part of the event

Wet the stucco first

Question: How do you half teach someone how to do something. <cough> bullcrap<cough>

Why is that, Dustin? It should take it should work well for you. The black from the grout on the other hand...

This service is fun and fantasy but worthless. www.microsoft.com. You know, the company that beats Johnson and Johnson and Walmart in profits? Are you telling me their domain name is worth less than $5000 ? http://leapfish.com/domain_name_appraisal.php?url=www.microsoft.com

Schwinggg.. the Stainless Deal empire has just grown by one. Congrats! A very merry Christmas.

LOL I know. I should just offer him the $20 it will cost more to pursue legal action aginst him for squatting.

do microsoft.com LOL

Holy Cow. Beth are you available for SEO. I'd have to make change on a $20 to sell RAD. Now I am hellbent on figuring out how to improve ranking. I have good Google ratings and my website had 128,000 hits this year. I would think that would make it worth something? If anyone is in the know, give me a hint. Is it possibly because my URL is a redirect? Edit: Had a chance to read more. Its not rated upon what I thought it was rated. The longer your site (info-wise thus creating more non-ranked search engine hits) and the longer its been around (and archived) is what affects the score the most. Dashes are penalized as well. A live person hass to nalyze the true value. With all due respect to you, Beth there is no way anyone would pay that kind of money for SDR's domain. In every possible think keyowrd combination I could think of Henry's website ranked number one on Google and his value was listed as far less. Interesting stuff though. Phew, I can breathe easier.

I wonder how accurate they are.. I guess it depends on link backs and search engine page hits primarily. The reason I ask is. it actuallly came in at one fourth the price of a domain I am thinking of purchasing. If it isa ccurate, this may be the best post for me.. Thanks FC

Alphabet soup, Jim

LMAO, you racist redneck (before anyone starts writing hate mail our there in TGS land, I am just breaking Scott's stones from a topic on another board)

Roger, best wishes to you, my friend. Thank you again for your input per our discussion. Health and happiness in the new year!