home services

For this first-time attendee, I was super impressed with this year’s Nexstar Network’s Super Meeting. The member event was well-organized, well-attended, and some really compelling keynote speakers, which included Gary Vee speaking on the importance of social media, Rocky Ozaki touched on AI, and the Governator, Arnold Schwarzenegger.

The always engaging CEO Julian Scadded kicks off the Super Meeting.

More than 900 members and vendor partners attended Nexstar Network’s annual Super Meeting, held September 24–27, 2024, at the extraordinary Walt Disney World Dolphin Resort in Lake Buena Vista, Fla. Over the course of four days, the event featured dedicated spaces and times for members to meet with their business coaches, as well as multiple social and networking events. Every day the event was designed to help owners in the trades make connections, learn how to take their businesses to the next level, and harness emerging technologies in the industry.

Mother Nature can be a … well you know the rest. Hurricane Helene prevented Arnold from actually being there in person, but it didn’t stop him from giving the keynote remotely.

Mike Cottle of Cole Services – a Nexstar member in Garden Grove, CA ­– attended the event. He said, “My favorite part of Super Meeting is connecting with other members and finding out the latest trends. When I met with my coaches the other day, I asked, ‘What is someone doing well with in their business? And can you introduce me to them?’ AI is something that I’m a late bloomer in – I’m super excited about it, and it’s a new thing for my business.”

The trade show floor had some unique and fun events, including this Hold ‘Em table.

As he reaffirmed relationships and helped members discover new ways to grow their businesses, Nexstar President and CEO Julian Scadden said, “We’re excited about the content of this year’s meeting, which has a renewed focus on fundamentals and operational basics for organic and controlled growth. We also introduced new technology applications and frameworks to our members’ businesses this year, which provide new perspectives and action items to help them grow and increase their community impact.”

The after-events were fantastic!

The theme of the event was Built to Scale, and members were buzzing and excited to learn from notable keynote speakers. The lineup included world champion bodybuilder, actor, and former Governor of California Arnold Schwarzenegger; Rocky Ozaki, the founder and CEO of the NoW of Work; serial entrepreneur Gary Vaynerchuk; and economist Brian Beaulieu.

The Hub’s John Mesenbrink (l) with Julian Scadden (c) and Mike Prencavage Jr., owner of The Family Plumber.

Breakout sessions taught by Nexstar coaches focused on AI and other new technologies, operational marketing, creating efficiencies, and working to improve business practices. Participants at Super Meeting also attended a jam-packed, two-day Strategic Partner trade show, Strategic Partner-sponsored social activities, speed-networking events, a Women of Nexstar reception, a nonprofit fundraising fireworks and dessert party for Explore The Trades, and other networking functions. Those who attended Super Meeting 2024 left with new ideas, new solutions to business challenges, and a new dedication to reimagining their day-to-day operations. They also left with new industry friendships, forged under the Florida sun at Walt Disney World.

CMM Platform Driving Increased Revenues for Home Service Brands, Double Revenue at Camp Digital Annually

Founded just four years ago in the expansive Home Services category valued at over $650 billion, the women-led Twin Cities-based digital marketing company formerly known as Home and Local Services has rebranded as “CAMP Digital.” The official announcement was made in Austin, Texas, at a special event hosted by CAMP Digital during the annual Super Meeting of the Nextstar Network. Last week, CAMP Digital also announced its expansion to the West coast after a new office recently opened in Portland.

The rebrand reflects how the fast-growth company is changing the way HVAC technicians, plumbers and electricians, roofers and others do business by offering them its proprietary software tools and process to better manage their marketing messages, ad spend online and service capacity more effectively and economically – in real time.

CAMP Digital offers its customers a Capacity Managed Marketing (CMM) platform, driven by its proven Capacity Protocol Optimization (CPOP) software, which gives companies a strategic edge in managing their marketing dollars and workflow. The innovative and disruptive B2B technology is heating up revenues for many North American brands/customers and experiencing its own electrifying growth.

Revenue has doubled every year since its inception by twin sisters and serial entrepreneurs, CEO Katie Donovan (nee Stapleton), COO Meg Stapleton and Chief Strategic Officer, and fellow co-founder Thom Johnson, a veteran marketing guru and the creator of CAMP Digital’s CMM platform. CAMP Digital’s CMM expertise also has made it a coveted Google Premier Partner, based in part on CAMP’s $70 million annual ad spend and its outstanding performance in home services. It was recently named to Inc. magazine’s “Inc 5000” for 2022 – placing at position 365 in its first year of eligibility.

“The dedicated customers we work with daily like Southern Trust Home Services, a family run and operated Plumbing, Electrical and HVAC business in Roanoke, VA., understand how CAMP Digital can positively impact their business,” notes Donovan. “We helped Increase their average customer tickets with better leads and overall lead volume/conversions to 43.72%. Most importantly, we helped them maximize the return on ad spend: Overall conversions across the entire account yielded an amazing increase of 176.98%! – and resulted in a 60.19% increase in revenue to the business for Q1 of 2022 vs Q1 of the previous year.”

“Our new name readily reflects who we are and what we can do to streamline our customers digital marketing investments and maximize their ROI,” adds Meg Stapleton. “CAMP communicates directly with our advertising engine to dynamically distribute compelling offers through digital channels that align with their current business needs in real time. This is particularly important in the industry we support, since home services is a very low interest, high intent category. The average consumer is in the market for less than 72 hours and expects / requires resolution quickly. So, when our customers like Southern Trust and others widely succeed, we do too.”

“Home Service companies everywhere live and die by calls coming into their call centers. But how consumers find them – and how fast service providers can respond – often determine whose trucks are on the road to revenue versus those idling on the street,” notes Johnson. “Our Capacity Managed Marketing (CMM) bundles dynamic lead generation, scalable website creation and marketing messaging. And it allows service providers to minimize ad spend, in a strategic package –hence the name CAMP — Capacity And Marketing Platform.”

“CMM simply delivers HVAC technicians, plumbers and electricians, roofers and others the flexibility to price higher – when demand is high – and to price lower when demand is down – in real time. The system also helps better control ad spend: If a company is at capacity, spending is dialed back, saving decision-makers money, time, and reputation.”

Home Service category shows strong resilience to economic uncertainty, reaching 20 months of positive revenue growth

Jobber, the leading provider of home service management software, today released its latest Home Service Economic Report: 2021 Review. The report features expert insights and proprietary data aggregated from more than 160,000 residential cleaners, landscapers, HVAC technicians, window washers, plumbers, and more, who use Jobber.

“The performance of the Home Service category has made the trades an attractive option for entrepreneurs, those seeking a career change, and young adults entering the workforce,” said Sam Pillar, CEO & co-founder of Jobber. “2021 was a notable year as it demonstrated just how essential the Home Service category is with its high growth and unprecedented consumer demand.”

Raking in the Green: Home Service Outperforms Most Other Categories

Spending on Home Service outperformed most major categories, such as Food and Beverage Stores, Clothing Stores, and Restaurants, throughout 2021, with growth exceeding pre-pandemic levels. Home Service revenue growth has been steadily growing since June 2020. Year-over-year median revenue grew at a faster rate in Q4 2021, even while new work scheduled during Q4 2021 slowed, showing companies were able to make more per job.

• Contracting Segment Prices Climb: Contracting businesses benefited from increasing prices with 12% revenue growth in Q4 2021.
• Contract Jobs Grow Cleaning Segment: Recent growth in the Cleaning segment’s new work scheduled was driven by a 16% year-over-year increase in contract jobs.
• New Work for Green Segment Stands Out: The Green segment, which includes outdoor services such as pressure washing, lawn care, and landscaping, experienced high growth in new work scheduled during 2021, while other segments slowed down.

Housing Dynamics

The active real estate market, further heightened by the desire to purchase homes before mortgage rates increase, continued to create momentum and demand for home services.

• New Homes Can’t Bridge the Gap: The U.S. housing market is nearly four million homes short of buyer demand; the supply of newly built units has been unable to satisfy this ever-increasing demand.
• Shoppers Turning to Older Homes: With limited supply, homebuyers are turning to older homes or choosing to invest in their current home; as such, home improvement and maintenance expenditures are tracking toward double-digit growth in 2022.

Payments Tech: Pay Now or Later?

Home Service businesses have their own unique dynamics related to payment collection. Some businesses like the immediate liquidity of cash, while others prefer to take checks for a large job so they don’t have to pay credit card transaction fees. That said, Jobber’s data does indicate that adoption of payment technology is on the rise.

• Growth of Online Payments: Online payments grew to 39% of all payments processed across all Home Service segments.

• Green Segment Catching Up: Green businesses, which showed the lowest percentage of online payments prior to the pandemic, has seen rapid adoption, climbing over 35%.

Skilled Worker Trends: Retirements Open More Opportunities For Those Starting Their Careers

The challenge to hire skilled trade workers remains widespread, despite a significant opportunity in earning potential for those who choose to enter Home Service.

• Retirement’s Impact: Half of the people who exited the labor market in 2021 were 55+, accelerating the rate of retirement—a macro trend that also impacted Home Service.
• Job Openings Remain Unfilled: The ratio of hires to job openings continued to grow, such that job openings widely outnumbered positions being filled.

“It’s a testament to the resilience of the Home Service category that revenue growth can be sustained even when there’s a drastic shortage of talent,” said Abheek Dhawan, VP, Business Operations at Jobber. “With Home Service demand at a record high, the category remains ripe with opportunity for those willing to enter it.”

To download the Jobber Home Service Economic Report: 2021 Review, visit: https://getjobber.com/home-service-reports/february-2022/