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“Hire slow, fire fast” sounds smart, but it can become an excuse to skip the diagnosis. In this episode, Danielle Russell explains why hiring and developing people isn’t just an HR task. It’s a growth strategy. She covers the difference between building talent and buying it, why high standards only work alongside high support, and how the waterline model helps you figure out whether a problem lives with the person, the manager, the process, or the system. She also talks about why “nobody wants to work anymore” says more about the company than the generation, and makes the case that great mentorship ends with the people you develop becoming better than you.

“I need more leads.” Maybe, but how do you know? In this episode, Danielle Russell explains why some of the most expensive mistakes in business come from getting very good at solving the wrong problem. She shares how her own directors’ first diagnosis ended up one level downstream, breaks a $1M revenue goal into simple math, and walks through her six-step order for diagnosing any business problem: goal, formula, constraint, strategy, tactics, measure. Before you turn up the ad budget, hire another PM, or roll out a new system, learn to find what’s actually in the way.

Danielle Russell joined Builder Funnel in 2015 writing blogs. Today she’s president of a 40+ person company. In the first episode of Building Better Builders, she shares how she learned to run a business by getting things wrong, from a firing that came too late to a one-on-one that changed how she leads. She ends with three questions for every builder and remodeler trying to grow a better company, not just a bigger one.

Heading into 2027, Spencer shows how to reverse engineer your revenue goal into a marketing plan and budget. Using a sample $4M remodeler aiming for $5M, he walks through converting a revenue goal into the number of projects, leads, and website visits you need each month. He also explains why marketing should be treated like an investment with a measurable return, how the 3-5% of goal revenue guideline works, and how to decide which channels to scale, optimize, or cut. He also shares how he grew Builder Funnel’s own Google Ads spend step by step, plus an update on his new book, The Remodeler Growth Framework, launching January 22.

In this episode, Kai and Spencer explore the transformative power of AI coding tools, demonstrating how they can be used to generate graphics, videos, reports, and more, without requiring coding expertise. They discuss practical applications, benefits, and future potential, empowering listeners to leverage these tools for marketing and creative workflows.

Most remodelers and custom builders don’t have the data to know whether their revenue problem is marketing or sales, and that means they often end up fixing the wrong thing. Spencer walks through the full revenue funnel, from website traffic to signed contract, and shares the benchmark conversion rates for each stage so you can see where you stand. Using a real-world example of a design-build firm with just one weak stage, he shows how fixing a single step can increase signed contracts by 50% without spending more on marketing. He also announces his new book, The Remodeler Growth Framework, launching in January, with an early interest list at builderfunnel.com/book.

In this episode, Kai and Spencer explain why a CRM is the foundation for every AI workflow a remodeler runs. They cover how CRM data turns generic AI content and emails into something that sounds like you, ask Claude real pipeline questions live through HubSpot, and share the six fields every builder should track before AI is useful.

Spencer welcomes back Todd of Construction Leading Edge, who has coached 400+ construction business owners, to talk about what happens when the referral wave slows down and desperation sets in. Todd unpacks the “just enough to start” trap, why every shortcut carries a hidden price, and how “dead days” and other profit bleeds can quietly drain hundreds of thousands of dollars. They also dig into drawing a circle around your ideal projects, saying no to the rest, and why charging for pre-construction sets you apart. Plus, Todd’s advice for heading into the new year: build your marketing engine and your systems before you need them. A must-listen for remodelers and custom builders who want more profit and more freedom. Construction Leading Edge Website: https://constructionleadingedge.com/ Book a Business Evaluation Call: https://constructionleadingedge.com/apply JETS Trap Video: https://go.constructionleadingedge.com/jets-trap

Answering a listener question from Instagram, Spencer digs into the real trade-off behind delegation: it's not just handing off tasks, it's transferring judgment — and that takes time. He walks through his own hiring and training journey, from a part-time first hire to "sous chef" hires with built-in experience, and shares the coaching question he uses to build his team's decision-making muscle. A practical look at what it actually takes to get your hours back as an owner.

When a $20M design-build firm found they'd lost $8.5 million in deals that made it all the way to the presentation stage, the instinct was to blame marketing. Instead, Spencer breaks down why "we need more leads" isn't always the right diagnosis and shares the benchmark conversion rates at every stage of the revenue funnel, from traffic to close, so you can pinpoint exactly where your business is leaking opportunity. A practical framework for figuring out whether your real constraint is marketing, sales, or delivery capacity.

In this episode, Kai and Spencer analyze AI-generated websites for remodelers and builders, highlighting what works, what doesn't, and how to improve them for better SEO and user experience.

AI has made it faster than ever to spin up websites, blogs, and email sequences, but faster isn't the same as effective. Spencer breaks down the difference between quick-and-cheap marketing production and results that actually drive revenue, walking through Builder Funnel's attract-convert-nurture-close-measure framework to show where AI-generated content and automation fall short. A must-listen for remodelers and builders weighing DIY AI tools, a low-cost "AI shop," or a professional agency partner.

In this episode, Kai and Spencer explore the latest in AI search technology, comparing ChatGPT, Gemini, and other tools to understand how they source and cite local business information, especially for remodelers and builders.

After landing on the Inc. 5000 list for the third year running, Spencer Powell shares five hard-won lessons behind Builder Funnel's growth, from niching down and trusting scary data, to stepping out of sales and operations, and measuring every stage of the funnel. Practical takeaways for remodelers, builders, and agency owners ready to break through a growth plateau.

This week we're sharing a great conversation from our friends at Remodelers on the Rise, featuring our client Jimmy Moore of Petra Custom Builders. Jimmy gets real about leadership, core values, and what it actually took to shift his mindset on marketing, from something he tolerated as a cost to something he now sees as one of the best investments he's made in his business. There's a lot in here whether you're thinking about culture, growth, or your next marketing move.