Tag: LBM Sales
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What Hudson’s Dad Got Wrong About AI (and Writing)
It was one of those perfect Thursday evenings in late May when Texans congratulate themselves for choosing to live in the greatest country in the U.S. A purple sky hung over the baseball diamonds at Oak Grove, a slight breeze drifting off the lake as the kids fielded grounders. I glanced at my watch. Thirty…
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How to Goose Sales in 30 Days—No Excuses, No Cold Calling
Q: I’ve got a young sales rep who’s struggling. Corporate leadership hinted he may not be flying with the flock much longer, but I believe in him. He’s proven he can sell but he doesn’t have much time. Any tactical ways to goose sales in the next 30 days and get him off the radar? A: Geese are obnoxious and arrogant creatures on the…
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The Only Three Words That Matter in Sales
Three days ago, episode #464 of The Construction Leadership Podcast went live: “The Only Three Words That Matter in Sales.” It tells the story of a painful early sales loss—one that nearly brought down our company. The upside is that it also taught me a lesson I think about every day. Enjoy your weekend.I’ll be back next Thursday. Subscribe here to get the next edition of The Craft of LBM…
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Stopping the Sales SKID: A 4-Step Playbook to Regain Deal Momentum
It was late April, and construction season was clanging away in the Southwest. On a Zoom call, the frustration of the 48-year-old sales manager named Dan was unmistakable. With just six selling days left, missing this month’s goal wouldn’t just be four in a row—it would trigger a renewed discussion about layoffs. Dan had been in the LBM industry for 25 years and…
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This One Moment at Our Workshop Blew the Room Away
The Sales Fundamentals Workshop is our Super Bowl. Every April in Fort Worth, Hartmann & Co. hosts two days of the most engaging, interactive, and entertaining LBM sales training on the planet. (Yes—it’s included in our 12-month OSR Academy.) What makes it truly different? Real builders join us on stage. Attendees hear unfiltered feedback from the…
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A Critical Insight Before We All Move On From Shedeur Sanders…
Even the most casual of sports fan has likely heard the recent headlines about Shedeur Sanders. For much of the 2024 football season, the Colorado quarterback—son of Deion “Coach Prime” Sanders—was considered a top NFL prospect. As the 2025 NFL Draft approached, rumors circulated that Shedeur might slide out of the top ten picks, but…
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What Warren Buffett and Gregg Popovich Tell Us About Leadership
After more than six decades at the helm of Berkshire Hathaway, Warren Buffett has officially named his successor. That Buffett took so long to do it (he was born in 1930) is understandable; he was pretty good at his job. From 1965 to 2023, Berkshire’s overall gain was 4,384,748 percent. (Yeah, read that again. It’s…
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What a Plane Ride Can Teach You About Hunting Like an Expert
An airplane is a surprisingly effective place to study how poorly people introduce themselves. If you’re hunting for what not to do in sales, air travel is like a Serengeti safari where half-blind, three-legged lions stumble after gazelles. It’s a live-action documentary of missed opportunities—and, considering nearly 600,000 businesses die each year—more than a few starving creatures.…
The Craft of LBM Sales 