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Alex (00:00) know, we are here with Leo Martinez, who went from nothing to, I would say millions of dollars in roofing sales. So can you tell us more about you? I mean, I don't know much about you. I read on your calendar application that you're, uh, Leo (00:09) Yeah. Alex (00:18) why you are the best roofing company and you said we fuck so I'm really interested. Why do you think that? Tell me more. I'm genuinely interested to know more about you and more about the company because you're not that much older than me, just a year older and you have a marketing agency and you have a roofing company so you are everything. I'm really interested to hear your story. So tell me more. Leo (00:21) Damn right we fucked. Of course, of course, of course. Yep. Yep. Correct. Yeah. Yeah, first and foremost, thank you Alex for having me on your podcast. I'm very happy that I'm able to help you start it and I'm glad that you're posting content. I'm glad you're adding value into the roofing community. I hope that you blow up your trend, you get all kinds of big figures in the industry on here and make it an amazing thing. So I'm very grateful to be on here. So yeah, so when I was 19, I was a mechanic, right? I was like doing the nine to five thing. Alex (01:00) Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. Leo (01:11) And I did that until about, you know, 21 or so. But I always knew I wanted to be like a business owner. Like I wanted to be an entrepreneur. And I knew that I needed to develop skills in order to get there. I had gotten recruited by like an MLM, you know, multi-level marketing, pyramid scheme, like insurance, life insurance thing. And I was like, man, this is just not it. And like I was doing the mechanic thing, like kind of stock trading on the side. And then I came across a Craigslist ad that was for roofing sales. So I interviewed with them It was you know, a lot of things went into place. I basically just like Left my job at the time. I was in Oklahoma went back to Southwest Kansas, went to interview this roofing company way in like Greeley, Colorado, which is like six hours away from my hometown. Just in the pursuit of like becoming some sort of business owner, right? The Craigslist ad said entrepreneur type wanted. So I was obviously called. And then it was roofing sales. So I went in and I was like, okay, so this is a new concept. There's no nine to five, I'm on commission only and I have to perform. So this is like blowing my mind, right? Alex (01:59) Mm-hmm. Leo (02:24) And it's like all you have to do is apply good business and do you know build your network? Put the doors in Yeah, do everything right? Now of course that company didn't work out for you know reasons. I won't get into it. Just you know Alex (02:31) Absolutely. Mm-hmm. Leo (02:43) the leadership was not there. So one of the sales guys that had become kind of like a personal mentor to me had gone to a different company. And it's the company I'm with right now, Soderbergh. So basically I went over to Soderbergh and I saw the way they were doing things. And it was, what was that? Alex (03:04) Can you hear me? Leo (03:10) I think we're having like some sort of server issues or something like that. Alex (03:16) I think it's your connection because it seems to be laggy. Can you hear me properly? Leo (03:20) Yeah, I can hear you. Are you are you getting everything? Alex (03:23) Yeah, yeah, so let me see. Yeah, technical difficulties. Uh, okay. You're lagging out, but can you hear me? Yeah. Can you hear me? Leo (03:23) technical difficulties. Innovating. I can't, I can't. I can hear you okay. Alex (03:36) Yeah. Okay. Good. So, uh, it could be the quality or it could be the connection. So seven 20 is live. So it should be good. It should be good. Leo (03:47) I think I'm good on the stream. Let me see. Alex (03:48) Yeah, you look good on camera. Okay, cool. Yeah, you can continue. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Yeah, yeah, it's fine. It's fine. Yeah. You look good, but you are bugging out a bit. Yeah, yeah. But your connection is a bit, you know? Leo (03:52) Yeah, I'm watching the stream. Okay, cool. Anyway, I came over to... Right, right. Yeah, definitely. So I came over to the Soderbergh and it was a world of a difference. Like this company was like straight out of a movie. It's like... the team, everything, it was crazy, man. They literally, it felt like Wolf of Wall Street. It literally felt like Wolf of Wall Street. So obviously I was hooked instantly. The way they were selling, they were just active every day. They were out hustling, they were making tons of money. There was guys with Rolexes on their wrist. Just money, money. People are moving, right? And I was like, me as a low-level business guy, going into this and witnessing this firsthand, Alex (04:28) Absolutely. Yeah. Leo (04:44) Holy shit, this is how it's done, right? So I'm obviously hooked. I'm obviously trying to figure out how to be operated at this level, right? just making sure that the stream's live. Yeah, this riverside thing is interesting. Alex (05:01) Mm-hmm. Leo (05:02) Um, anyway. Alex (05:04) Yeah, we're live, but your connection... Yeah, but your connection seems to be... Your connection is not stable. I think it's... I'm wondering how we can fix it. Maybe it's because it's live. Leo (05:23) Yeah, I'm not sure what's going on there. It's a good way to test out this Riverside thing. Alex (05:28) I don't think it's the reverse side, I think it's... Yeah. Yeah, I mean, but it works very well, usually, just that you have some lags, maybe, because my camera is at 4K. Maybe that's the reason. Leo (05:44) Yeah, I don't know. It says having issues connecting with servers. Alex (05:48) Should we maybe restart everything? Leo (05:51) Yeah, maybe. Is Zoom not working for you? Alex (05:55) Yeah, okay, let's see what applications do you have on your PC? Zoom works, but you should shut down everything besides this stream, okay? Leo (06:00) Um, I got Zoom. Yeah, everything shut down. Alex (06:08) So lucky. Yeah, just turn everything besides this tab. Everything shut down. Leo (06:16) Yeah, everything is shut down. Alex (06:20) Okay, can you hear me? Leo (06:22) Yes. Alex (06:25) Okay, so I had to shut down your camera. Are you... Speak... Say something. Can you hear me still? Leo (06:28) Okay. Test, test, yep, I can hear you. Alex (06:33) Good good. So now I had to turn off the cameras Okay, I'm gonna Get it back up. Let's see if it's gonna work for you because you know having the cameras is very weird Yeah, man. Sorry about this happens Okay, you can you can shut down your camera I think that's the best way to do it, you know Leo (06:37) Right. Yeah. Yeah, my camera's off. Alex (06:58) or turn it back up yeah I know turn it on again there we go now continue with the wolf of the wall street that's where we were at everybody in that roofing company is like wolf of the wall street Leo (07:04) on. Yes, yes, definitely. Yeah, they're killers. They're getting it, right? They have Rolexes on their wrist. They're doing millions in sales. So I'm like hooked. I'm rolling with them. I'm figuring out what they're saying to these people at the doors. I'm learning sales, right? Very slowly. And so I had made like from October to April with the first roofing company, I made probably like $4,000, $5,000 or something like that. So it was like literally nothing. I had made about like... Alex (07:17) Okay? Mm-hmm. Leo (07:44) Eight or nine grand the first month that I was with this new company. So they were they were crazy. They blew my mind, right? Um, and you know from that april to august To the end of the year. I was able to save up about like twenty thousand dollars And buy myself a truck with the commissions that I earned from door-to-door roofing sales, and of course paying for my expenses and all that. At the end of the month, at the end of the year, I had $20,000 left over. So that was, you know, it blew my mind. And then we opened up an office in Kansas City where I'm in for the adventure. So I came to the office, helped start it up, and that's where I ended up. I'm here now. I kind of liked the vibe around here, so I stuck around. Alex (08:01) Oh. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. Leo (08:31) Um, and yeah, it's been, it's been a great ride. So that's why I'm saying like of all, you know, of all roofers, we fuck like this company bucks. You know what I mean? Alex (08:31) Mm-hmm. I see. I see. So how much does your company make a month in revenue? Leo (08:48) We probably do anywhere from like 400 to like 700,000 per month. Yeah. Alex (08:52) I'm mad. That's insane. So how long do you have this company for? Leo (08:57) I'm not the owner, just so you know. I'm a roofing sales guy with Soderbergh. The company's been in business since 2013. I've been here since 2020. Alex (08:58) Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. And are you the top sales guy in there? Leo (09:12) No, not by any means. Alex (09:15) And if anybody is watching this podcast and needs some sales tips, what would you say is the most important few things that you need to know to close more roofing deals, more roofing jobs? Leo (09:31) Yeah, yeah, 100%. I think. The biggest thing, and we just hired a new guy on Monday, and I told him the same thing, and he's gotten success from this advice. The biggest thing that you need to understand is you need to put the doors in, and you need to talk to a lot of people. And if you're not prepared to talk to 2,000, 3,000, 5,000 people within the next few months, go get a job in McDonald's. You know what I mean? You need to talk to people, a lot of people. You need to get over the fact that you are lazy and don't wanna knock 20, 30, 40, 100 doors a day, Alex (09:46) Mm-hmm. Ha ha ha. Leo (10:03) and talk to a lot of people. It's very simple. It's like a dummy could do it. You don't need a good pitch. You don't need anything. You need to find the right, at first when you're starting out, you need to find the right person that's going to give you the chance. And that could take 40 doors, that could take 70. You know what I mean? But like the law of large numbers never fails. You will get a deal and it will go through for you as long as you put the work in. Now Alex (10:27) Got it, got it. Leo (10:29) when you're a little bit higher level, then you can take people's objections and handle them and overcome them. But at first, you need to get the confidence under your belt that you know what you're doing before you wanna dive into that higher level sales game. Alex (10:42) Mm-hmm. All right, so, uh, what do you think about, uh, these, uh, sales gurus? Do you have any guru that you like, that you don't like? Or you think, or you are all self-taught? Leo (10:55) Yeah, they're fine. I'm pretty much self-taught. I study a lot of business entrepreneurs that I look up to that are in a similar position to where I would like to be in, uh, in 10 years or whatever. Um, you know, I, I always. look at who's talking, and then I take a time to see where are they in life, how are they physically, how are they mentally, how are they spiritually, all that stuff, and then I take their advice for either face value or law, you know what I mean? So, Elon Musk says something, I'm basically gonna take it for law because that guy is a frickin' genius, you know what I mean, versus if a low level sales guru is out of shape and he's saying something, I'm gonna take it for face value, I'm gonna extract it, I'm gonna be like, okay, he said this, and this, Alex (11:38) Cough. Leo (11:39) I think I can make this part work. We'll run with this and see what's up, you know? Alex (11:45) I kind of agree with that, you know, a lot of people are trying to be gurus nowadays. And the issue is that everybody wants to be guru when they make their first money, you know, for example, for me, Jeff Bezos is a different breed. You know, that guy is something else like starting the company at 30 and making it the richest company ever. You know, this guy makes, I think I saw the information that he made somebody's entire life of salary in a day. Leo (11:56) Yeah. Mm-hmm. Alex (12:16) which is insane. It's like something crazy, right? And I agree with that on that point, you know, many people, you know, and something that I wish to talk and tell people is obviously the sales, right? Sales is by far the most important skill you can learn in life. Everything is sales. From friendships to business to, you know, getting a wife, you know, it's all about how much you can give. Leo (12:16) Yeah. Yeah, he does. 100%. Alex (12:46) and how much the other side can give and finding the middle ground. So I think it's definitely one of the most important thing. And it makes sense that it is actually something that turn your life around, because if you are skilled at sales, you're skilled in all other aspects of life. Leo (13:00) Yeah, 100%. I completely agree. Alex (13:03) Thank you. Leo (13:04) Persuasion is definitely a very valuable asset to have. Communication, being able to speak clearly. I'm working on that skill right now actively myself. I've rehearsed a bunch of lines. I tried to not do filler words like like, and then bullshit. When I record myself and listen to me say that, I actually get mad. I get angry at myself. I do it again. I'm like, stop saying stupid shit like that. Alex (13:12) Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. Yeah. Leo (13:33) English is your first language, how do you not know how to speak it properly? You know? Alex (13:37) Yeah, I mean, for me, it happens all the time, but I can cope, you know, that my first language is Serbian. So I can cope that, you know, that's the reason. And sometimes, a lot of times I actually get mad because English is not my first language, simply because accent and there is like issues with speaking and stuff like that. I meant all the BS, right? So you mentioned that you also own the marketing company for solar businesses. How come that... Leo (13:43) 100%. Right. Alex (14:05) Because you're in roofing, right? You've been in roofing for years now and you're actively selling in roofing. So why not a roofing company or why not roofing marketing company? Leo (14:15) Yeah, that's a fantastic question. So the way I see it is I believe in building assets. I believe wealth comes from asset creation and asset building. So the relationships you have with people is a type of asset. A business that you make is a type of asset, commodities, you know, currency, whatever you own can be assets, right? And so I have a 10 year, 15 year, 20 year plan. And I want the company that I'm with right now to be part of that plan and then be part of this greater vision that I want to be, you know, cultivate for my life. And so it was when deciding a niche, I was like, okay, I could be helping roofing companies and I could be just trying to get a quick buck that way. Or I could develop the skillset to market. at a very high level to where I'm bringing in infinite business for these companies and then use that skill set and install it into the company I'm with right now. in order to increase the value of that company, take it to the next level, right? And so I'm not worried about the competitors. I'm not trying to help the competitors, right? Cause all the competitors are at the end of the day, gonna be my competition. They're the people that I'm gonna have to choose as an enemy and either overcome or battle and we build each other up a little bit. So, you know, I built a good, Alex (15:41) Right. Leo (15:45) network and relationships with a bunch of different industries that are related to roofing, insurance, realtors, solar, all that. And I kind of did a little bit for everybody and I decided the highest value that I'm providing is solar. So the highest ROI to what people are charging me, I have identified is in the solar industry, solar niche. We can bring about 300,000 to 400,000 seamlessly every single month for somebody that's paying me about five to 10 grand, right? bottom line contract price, that's revenue. So that's not exactly profit, right? So, you know, their profit margins or whatever, but either way, my philosophy is that I want to bring 10x value to anybody that works with me, anybody that decides to, you know, get in business with me, like I better be bringing you a 10x return on whatever I'm asking you. And that way I can jump into any sales call and confidently tell them like, Hey, I'm like, we fuck, we're going to bring you money. What's up. Alex (16:43) I like the confidence. You know, many, many salesmen lack confidence. And I believe without confidence and confidence in what you say and do, there is no sales. If you're insecure in your own product, then how do you expect the customer to be insecure? You know, you are a full package right in a way simply because you don't give a shit what people think. You know, you came on this show, put some sunglasses, you don't give a shit. And that's what makes you a good salesman. Leo (17:08) Correct. Alex (17:10) because you're not afraid of refusal. You're not afraid of what people will think about you. You just go in, you put the sunglasses, you don't give a shit realistically. So I really, I really like that. It shows definitely a confidence in yourself, in your ability to sell. So that's something you guys should learn, you know? You need to be certain of your product. You need to be confident of it. And you need to obviously make sure that the customer knows. Leo (17:11) Yeah. That's right. Alex (17:40) that your product is superior to anybody else in the industry. And that's how you win. Right. By having confidence in your product and in your systems. I mean, it was, it was same for me. I know you wanted to say something, but I want to go with the story. When I was selling Facebook ads to roofing companies and I wasn't sure about my back systems, I felt like shit. I felt like I'm scamming people. Right. And they couldn't even sell for anything. Like even doing stuff for free didn't work. But once I figured out my systems and once we moved to Google and we started generating results, I actually have confidence to charge people $3,000 a month. Why? Because it works. I know it works and I don't care if you want to buy it or not, but it's clear that you are going to be profitable if you buy it. So it's up to you if you wish to struggle with lead generation or you don't want to struggle with it. Is it over the phone now? Yeah. Yes. Leo (18:36) Let's see, can you hear me? Alex (18:39) but the quality is way better over the PC. Leo (18:40) I can't hear you. Alex (18:42) You should go back to the PC I think. Ah, okay, are you on laptop? Leo (18:42) Yeah, I'm not sure what happened. You're like super slow motion right now. Alex (18:49) Mm-hmm. It's because of the collection. Leo (18:53) I cannot hear you at all. Alex (18:55) Yep. Yeah, you have connection issues. Uh, where are you on the laptop before? It looks like we lost Leo, unfortunately. Leonardo DiCaprio from Wolf of the Wall Street decided to pop off. Hopefully he comes back. Oh, he's back! Yeah I cannot hear you. and you are also muted yeah, you pressed mute on uh yeah, you muted yourself Now you're not muted on the other screen. Leo (19:26) Okay, um... This is hilarious. Alex (19:28) That's good. Yeah, I know, I know, like so many technical difficulties. I mean, I think it's because they put the quality so high and your connection cannot survive it, you know. Leo (19:44) Yeah, yeah, definitely. Alex (19:46) We can just restart it in a minute if you wish, but I don't think there is a reason to do it. Leo (19:52) Yeah, definitely. Um, no, I couldn't, I couldn't hear you. My camera turned off. Let's see. I don't know if I can like hide this panel. Yeah, everything should be good. Alex (19:54) Yeah, so... Uh-huh. Now everything is works. Now everything is good. Mm-hmm. Perfect, perfect. So again, what I was saying, the confidence in your product and what you sell is a must. Otherwise it won't work. It will never work. So I believe if you're confident in yourself, in your product, you always succeed because there is nothing stopping you. The main issue in sales is insecurity and the ability to believe in what you speak. And if you have confidence in that, I think it's all good. So tell me what is the most. or your biggest advice for roofing companies in terms of marketing. What they need to do more of. Leo (20:45) Um, my best key, key advice for roofing companies with marketing is definitely going to be to private message you on Facebook and ask, how do I pay a hundred dollars and then you bring me in $150,000 of contracts? I think, I think I, I genuinely, I sit here and I think how could anybody possibly match a hundred dollars to $150,000 in return, you know what I mean? So. Alex (21:14) Yep. Leo (21:14) If any roofing company is watching this and they're like, how do I market better? I just told you what to do. So now the fact that you haven't done it yet, you were missing out. You were losing $150,000 every month because you're a dummy. So what am I gonna say? Like what? Alex (21:30) Yeah. I mean, it's true, but the way it's done is people sit on their databases for years, they have all these numbers, names, and they don't do it. And I messaged a contractor in Denver and said, let's do it. You have 1,700 people, let's blast it. We do it. And the guy comes to me and says, in the first six days, we did $120,000. Leo (21:46) Correct. Alex (22:03) One job was actually $40,000 and people are just sitting in their databases, allowing you to collect dust. So it's definitely a good advice because people, you know, people pay home advisor, they're ready to pay home advisor, 300 bucks per lead, and then fight with 10 different contractors, uh, to get the lowest price ever instead of paying a marketing company to do it for themselves, which makes no sense to me. Right. I mean, I don't understand you're scared, but Aren't you scared of getting scanned by home advisor all this time? You're muted again. You muted yourself. Leo (22:39) percent. I think there's uncertainty right now. You know, it's somewhat relatively new, the agency space, having these marketing agencies, figuring out the right person to work with. Alex (22:40) Now you're back. Mm-hmm. Yeah. Leo (22:52) as well as vetting them, understanding, like thinking of it as a business owner. You know what I mean? Like how do you get money on social media? It's like a relatively new concept most people have not like educated themselves in because for the most part they're running around, doing the day-to-day operation that running a roofing company requires. So finding somebody that you can trust to do this high level work, I understand, like I understand the speculation and like the... Alex (23:12) Absolutely. Leo (23:21) Just why, because most of the time, a lot of roofing companies will burn their business owners as well. They'll get no results and they'll charge them X amount per month. And it's like, why would anybody want to work with a marketing agency after that again? Alex (23:41) I mean, it's understandable, you know, but that's why there is chargebacks. And if they don't really have a contact with you and you're confident that the results they have gave you to charge back, you know, but then again, it's not the way to do it, you know, I mean, me personally, I would hate to be charged back on, but you know, there should be a contact between the sides and if the results are not good enough, then you just charge back. Leo (23:46) Yeah, yeah, 100%. Alex (24:10) But again, people get burned and that's the main problem currently with the people. You know, they get burned and they don't trust anybody ever again. And that in return hurts the whole industry. Leo (24:22) it happens. However, the good part about it is that people that trust an agency to work with and do it and the agency is honorable and get some good results are going to be very, very far ahead of the competition in multiple sectors. Alex (24:33) Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. Yeah. So you know when it came to trust and stuff what I would suggest to the roofer, just check what the content this marketing guy has. Check his facebook, check his website, check what he does before you talk to them. I mean many people will be in your DMs pitching you 50 roofer replacements but does he have any proof that he did it before? If there is no proof that he got somebody 50 roof replacements, then why would you waste your time to get on the call? And why would you pay him $3,000 upfront? I mean, I can charge $3,000 upfront because we have a proof of concept. We actually do have a proof of concept and people think that we are just in there trying to take their money like the other company that screwed them over, but we actually have a proof of concept. And I'll show you right now live. Leo (25:19) Correct. Alex (25:41) the proof that we have, you know, and I have no problem pitching that and saying that these services are worth that much because they are. And ultimately hiring somebody that has the company like I do, it's going to be way cheaper than hiring somebody in the United States to do it for you. So to pay somebody in the United States, you need to cover their salaries, you need to cover their pension funds. They're like healthcare all this kind of stuff. It's more expensive than actually hiring a marketing company for $3,000 a month because you're actually not getting one person You're getting the whole team for that money Leo (26:23) Correct. Alex (26:24) So let me show you now. So this is the proof of concept, you know, that they like to show people right here. You know, this is the leads that we actually get for our clients right here. So active, let me see. Okay, you see? And there is no lie, no nothing, right? So this is this, all from January. You see? 20 first 20 leads and we are 29th of January. Look at this. This company, Kahaba Roofing and Remodeling that we work for. Leo (26:37) Yeah. Alex (26:53) generated over 90 leads in January, which is insane. And this is why I think, you know, companies should trust me because I can actually show them, you know, I'm not saying this will be working on your company 100%, but I'll do my best for it to work and the most definitely won't run away with their money. Right? So that's the main thing, you know, that people need to show you. Leo (26:58) Mm-hmm. Alex (27:21) If they want to charge you, you know, if there's no proof of concept, then how can you charge him? Uh, 3000, right? Or 2000, 500, right? It doesn't matter. And many people think I'll go in there and then I'll just be like, oh, pay me 3000. And many people fall for that and they're blaming all the marketing agencies after that. So why are you blaming other marketing agencies or anyone if you're dumb enough to trust a person with zero proof of concept? Like why would you trust him? Leo (27:50) Think at the end of the day all salespeople will have a bad rep because we're salespeople because our job requires us to Go out and sell something like the product that we have requires a person to persuade another person into giving money to the business in order to acquire the product and Alex (27:59) Yeah. Mm-hmm. Absolutely. Leo (28:15) For the end of for all time and even a thousand years from now even fifty thousand years from now I believe that's going to ring true because It's just a fundamental thing that just if you're a roofing owner. You're not gonna sit there and think Let me go get a marketing agency, right? You're gonna think let me do marketing How do I do marketing by billboard? Whatever if you're a homeowner, you're not gonna be like, you know what? Let me let me call somebody to inspect my roof You might every now and then, right? But the people that are actually showing interest is not gonna sustain the business. The business will not be sustained just on the people that are warm, are showing interest, right? So that's where the salespeople come in. Same with solar, same with insurance. Alex (29:01) I see. I mean, yeah, I mean, it's true, but ultimately, I'm just wondering this is up to you, but would you yourself sell a product you don't know, you think doesn't work? Leo (29:18) Yeah, a thousand percent no. And I don't think any sales guy would be able to sell a product that they don't think works. Well, I mean, there's some douche bags out there. So whatever. Alex (29:26) Yeah, exactly. I mean, that's why they have the bad rap, right? And ultimately, that's why sales guys, you know, fall in trouble, right? I mean, me personally, I wouldn't be selling any product that I think doesn't work, you know. And, you know, I know we are both marketers in a way, just different niches. What does your marketing company do for all these solar presences? Leo (29:40) Right. We specifically run paid ads for Facebook and Google accounts. Correct. Alex (29:56) So together. Leo (29:59) It just depends on where they are in their solar business. If they're just starting out, we recommend that they do Facebook ads to get a few deals and then we operate on a pay per deal basis. So it's a very lean model that makes sense to them. And then if they are well established and have a marketing budget, then we will recommend a combination of Facebook ads with SEO, with Google ads as well in order to maximize how much they're getting. But we're only really charging for Google ad management and we're just consulting for the rest of it. Alex (30:03) Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. Leo (30:31) So. Alex (30:32) How much do you charge per day? Leo (30:35) We have a flat 750 when they're starting out. Yeah, like if a solar owner were to get a deal We would charge them 750 besides that they're not really paying us Um, that's why our offer is so good because most of these people will join us to get like 20 leads the first Week that they're with us then they start running appointments about you know, three weeks into being with us. They're starting to pay some 750s Alex (30:37) 750. Mm-hmm. Leo (30:56) And they're walking around away with like four grand in profit. So again, that's, that's part of my philosophy. Um, of just anybody that's associated with me and my brand should be making dumb amount of money. Um, you know, it's, it's not necessarily about the bottom dollar for me. It's more about bringing value exponentially and building an empire. Alex (31:17) How much would you say is an average solar deal? Leo (31:20) I would say an average solar deal is about $17,000 to $27,000, $30,000. And that just depends on kilowatts as well and red line, how much they're actually making. Without boring you with the details, their commission on that or the business should be profiting anywhere from $3,000 to $7,000 for the solar deal up to $12,000 on an average deal that's worth about $17,000 to $30,000. Alex (31:26) Mm-hmm. got it. What's the... if you had to choose one industry that is going to dominate in 2030, so 2030, right? Year 2030. Would that be roofing or solar in your opinion? Which industry will be more dominant? Do you think the... Yeah. Leo (31:52) Thanks. Mm-hmm. Just to be honest with you, it's 100% gonna be solar. There's no doubt in my mind that the solar industry is going to be far. So right now the roofing industry is probably about a $3 billion thing versus the solar industry in America alone is about a $70 billion thing. They're in two different brackets. We're talking about energy and we're talking about construction. This is two different ballparks here. Especially the way things are going now, I mean, without getting too political, tons of people are worried about like our... Alex (32:22) Mm-hmm. Leo (32:43) global thumbprint. So a lot of people are wanting to switch solar because they don't want these coal factories to be generating energy, which I mean, the sun is warm, everybody. The sun is hot. You know what I mean? But I digress. It doesn't matter to me. I like it that a lot of people are thinking that way because obviously it makes more money for the solar industry. I think. Alex (32:57) Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. Leo (33:10) Roofing companies that transition into solar as well end up becoming the billion dollar companies. Lee Haight, a popular guy in the roofing industry talks about it as well. So, yeah, it's just a no brainer. Roofing has no competition. If you're bounding up against solar, it's just the two different monsters. Alex (33:31) So how I see it, you know, with the industries and marketing in general, I honestly don't think someone will ever be beating or anything unless there is some government initiative to go green, which there is currently, I agree, but it doesn't matter. Doesn't mean it will be in the future. My vision of this is the industries who are needed to a population of people will always survive. simply because you... so let's say people will be always born, people will always need to eat, people will always get sick, people will always die, people will always need a home, right? And roofing is part of it. So maybe everybody needs a roof but not everybody needs a solar energy. I know there is a move to it and it's the woke movement at the moment, right? Solar is great and everything. But many people don't agree with that. You know, they're used to the old way of doing things. Leo (34:32) Yeah, 100%. Thousand percent and I'm there with you with that speculation. You're right people do need a roof over the head But people do not need solar panels necessarily However, we're looking at it on a micro scale here. We're not actually looking at The economy here. So I actually pulled up the numbers because I was a bit skewed my data was off So the roofing industry last year was valued at twenty three point three five billion Alex (34:56) Okay. Mm hmm. Leo (35:04) By 2030, it's gonna be worth about 41 billion. So there's tons of money in the roofing industry, right? So last year solar was worth 167 billion. Alex (35:12) Yes. Mm-hmm. Leo (35:21) By 2030, it's going to be estimated about 373 billion. So again, it's two different ballparks. Fundamentally, if we're thinking about it, people need a roof over their head, but also everybody has a roof over their head. And as a roofer, I can speak and say, it's very rare that they leak. And if they leak, you don't need to spend $10,000 to fix it most of the time. However, the game that we play, Alex (35:46) Mm-hmm. Leo (35:49) is hey, we're gonna bring you a $10,000 product for $1,000. That's the value we're bringing. And it's a, but at the end of the day, a new roof is really not life-changing. So it doesn't bring the value, versus a solar install saves people on their lifetime value of their homes. So they could be spending about $250 a month and then cut that down to about $90 a month. Over the lifetime. that's estimated about $45,000 a month. So the value is a bit different there. However, I'm biased towards roofing. I like roofing better than I like solar. But if the question is which is more valuable, it's very obvious and like, I'm not speaking from an emotional perspective, I'm not speaking towards a bias perspective. I'm speaking towards here are the numbers, here's what the economy says. There it is, you know? Alex (36:22) Yeah. Yeah, I see. Yeah, I mean, I agree. Like, the thing is like with solar. Yeah, you mentioned like it increases the value of the home, but doesn't solar also break? Won't solar also progress further? So once you place the current solar thing, that means that you actually need to spend again to get more efficient systems. You know? Leo (37:07) So with that same logic, aren't you gonna get hit with a hailstorm next year, so you're gonna have to buy another roof. Alex (37:14) True. Yeah, I mean, true, true. Okay, yeah, that's true. But in a way, the roofing technology, I think, will evolve slower than the solar, because solar is newer, you know? So it's going to be a jump from iPhone 6 to iPhone 12 in solar. But in roofing, it's going to be from 6 to 7, because you cannot change many things. I mean... Leo (37:25) It's true. Very true. Yup. Alex (37:40) I saw that there is like a restore master thing where a roof max where you actually restore the roof. That kind of technology that doesn't happen often, you know, but then again, I think both industries are very prevalent and I believe that the world will continue to push towards the green energy to renewable resources, blah, you know, that kind of awoke stuff. So I think solar will definitely be especially in the United States. Leo (37:49) Yep. Alex (38:09) a thing that will be pushed towards and by the government. You know, you'll be rewarded for pushing for solar. And I believe by 2030, no matter what I say, solar is going to be dominating United States. And especially because until then, some people might, you know, go and leave us. So you know, things will change. No. Leo (38:14) Yeah. Yeah, it's true. And I'm not even in love with solar. I barely see the value in it, to be honest with you. I probably wouldn't put solar panels on my house. Maybe I would just to hook up my homie. You know, let's say I got my boy and he's in solar, right? And I just happen to have a house. I'm like, bro, just go ahead, put the panels on. What, you want 20 grand here? Just take it, I don't care. Like it's not anything. You're not really achieving anything, but cool. Thank you for saving me a little bit of money on my electricity. Alex (38:38) Why? Leo (38:59) Same deal with Lucy, right? Alex (39:00) Yeah, but I'm interested like what do you guys let's say is theoretically solar and there is no electricity. What do you do in winter? Does it work normally in winter as well? Leo (39:11) Yeah, it works. It works great in winter. Cloud coverage, everything. The sun still is hitting. Photons are still reaching the Earth's surface, or else every plant on Earth would be dead. We are harvesting the energy of the photons, converting it into electricity. It's just a transfer of energy. My philosophy with the whole thing is, OK, obviously, it's a... What even is that? So that's like... Alex (39:13) Mm. Mm-hmm. Of course, but... See you. Leo (39:37) 10, 11, 12. It's a 12 figure industry versus roofing being an 11 figure industry. I'm just positioning myself where the money is. That's all I'm doing. I'm just, I don't care about solar, but I am positioning myself and my company where there's a shitload of money flowing. And energy sectors are a huge discussion in politics. You know, it's up there with oil and all that stuff. So it's going to get more and more attention. I've already positioned myself and I already built the systems in order to harvest this, but I could give a shit about solar, right? Like I want to do construction. Like I want to be building. to be building things. Solar is just a great vehicle with my business model right now, the agency business model, you know, to get a little seed money for large scale developments. Alex (40:22) I see. Give me a second, sorry about that. Leo (40:24) No, no problem. Alex (40:28) All right, so I do agree with that. I mean, solar is definitely the future and what I plan to do with my company, uh, currently we do home improvement, roofing construction, but I definitely plan to open a solar branch as soon as possible, simply because, uh, there is a lot of money to be made and this woke thing will continue, you know, I mean, you can see Apple there, there is literally an option where, uh, you can charge your phone only when there is a new energy, you know, this kind of woke. Leo (40:41) Yeah. Yeah, 100%. Alex (40:57) agenda, I mean, woke, call it whatever, you know, but woke doesn't need to be always bad. It just woke essentially means looking into future and focusing on new technologies. You know, it doesn't need to always to be bad, you know, woke is not bad. It just, you know, it has a bad stigma thanks to, you know, I prefer not to speak otherwise, I'm going to be in big Leo (41:26) I'm willing to get canceled right now and say that if you're part of low culture, you're a dummy and you need to meet me in the cage. And if you disagree with me, meet me in the cage and we can have an in depth conversation about why you're a dummy. Alex (41:39) I don't think roofers are woke. I think they are fri- like, I work with some roofers, I'm not gonna name them But these guys, they don't give a shit. They just go off Leo (41:41) No, no, 100% no. Yeah, no. Very, roofers are hilarious, bro. Like of all industries I've ever been in, roofers are so fucking funny. Because most of them are just like getting drunk or like high and just partying and just like it's like Wolf of Wall Street shit, you know what I mean? Like you're just like a bunch of degenerates doing blue collar work, right? But I love it. Like I'm here for it. Because yeah, like I'm just here for it. You know, I love, I love it. I don't like, like. Alex (42:02) Hmm. Leo (42:14) I will indulge in degeneracy when it's appropriate, however I don't seek it out. I don't constantly indulge in degeneracy. But I do like a good party every now and then. Alex (42:26) Hmm, I see. So what is the biggest Degen roofing story you lived through or heard up to you? I mean you don't need to name names Leo (42:34) I got you bro, yeah, 100%. I'll tell you a few. So, we're gonna make some imaginary situations here, but these are all real things that happen. I'm just avoiding the details in order to make sure that we're all. We're all compliant here. So imagine a bunch of roofers fly to Las Vegas and we got a hotel and we have a party. And you know, we're giving awards and all that stuff and it's all nice and dandy and we got cocktails, you know, we're starting the cocktails. Well, actually, the party starts at seven, right? Behind the scenes at about seven, 730, you're gonna have about half of the guys meeting in the bathroom, doing some cocaine and then going to the award ceremony. So then you got half the guys that are coked out, Alex (42:54) Mm-hmm. Leo (43:18) the about 80 to 90 percent of the party they're drinking alcohol so getting crunk about 20 of them 20% of them are gonna get blacked out it's just they're gonna party hard about a good I would say good 50% are gonna get pretty drunk so you got 70% that are drunk about 30% that is you know hanging on maybe 20% of those people are gonna be pretty buzz and you're gonna have the 10% which is stone cold sober for that time. So the majority are at least drunk, right? You're gonna have about 80% of them smoking some pop, you're gonna have about 50% of them on some cocaine. And we're just getting started. Like we're just starting the awards ceremony. So, you know, everything ends, it's all fine. 10 PM comes around, we're now hopping bar to bar to bar. There's more drugs involved. Yeah, so 10 PM. Alex (44:11) 10pm? Leo (44:14) We're in Vegas, more drugs, more bars, like let's keep going. Let's see how hot we can run this bitch. And we're just squatted up at this point. Bunch of just high drunk roofers just made a shitload of money, don't know what to do with it. Hopping bar to bar to bar, macking on girls, doing all kinds of wild shit, right? Am I married now? Alex (44:38) they married? No, no, not you, the Ruffus that were in your group Leo (44:43) Some of them are married and then some of their wives are there and then some of their wives aren't there and It's just it's a you know, it's a degenerate show Alex (44:54) Interesting. I think this is a good way to end the episode with some crazy roofing stories. So if somebody wants to work with your solar marketing company or wants to recruit you to do roofing sales for them, where can they find you? Leo (44:57) Very interesting. It makes me... You 100% will not be able to recruit me for roofing sales if I'm roofing it's going to be for Soderbergh if I'm not roofing That I'm making billions of dollars If you want to work with my agency and you want me to bring you a shitload of deals You can find me at Empire development agency comm my Instagram is a great way to reach out and follow my social media Presents it's at ZZ Leo underscore Martinez Z Alex (45:21) Oh. Ha ha ha. Mm hmm. Mm-hmm. Leo (45:40) Obviously my Facebook is linked on here so you know you can friend me on Facebook if you'd like I might respond or might not Alex (45:43) Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. Okay, okay. Yeah, I see. Okay, perfect. Thank you. Oh, you're so much for being part of it There have been some technical issues, but you know, we are just starting out this podcasting So there we might have you on for another episode later on and I'm also getting into yeah I'm also getting into this podcasting thing, you know, I'm trying to grow this thing I stream games before but you know, sorry about the mess technical difficulties If you watch this if you haven't the next one Leo (46:04) Yeah, we gotta run it back, man. Alex (46:18) We'll be better, the next one is tomorrow and we have another scheduled for Monday and another one in a week. So people are interested to be guests, so why not run it? You know, Joe Rogan started on Scaff as well, but look at him now, he makes millions. So who knows, maybe, maybe Ruffer sponsors me or something like that. Leo (46:40) That's funny. All right, thank you so much, Alex. Alex (46:41) Anyway, thank you for watching guys and yeah, I'll see you around. Leo (46:48) Yep.