#PROUDTOBEBLUECOLLAR® Show
#PROUDTOBEBLUECOLLAR® Show
#ProudToBeBlueCollar® Show is a podcast about the people who build careers in the blue collar trades. Hosted by Chris Crew and Jeremy Self of The Blue Collar Success Group®, each episode features a guest from the home service industry sharing how they got into the trades, what it took to succeed, and the tips and skills they use in their role every day. Who this podcast is for This show is for anyone working in or curious about the home service trades, including HVAC, plumbing, and electrical. That means business owners and managers, but it also means salespeople, service technicians, installers, CSRs, and dispatchers. If you are considering a career in the trades and want to hear what the path actually looks like from people who walked it, start here. What you will hear in each episode Every episode centers on one guest and one story. We cover how they found the industry, most of them did not plan on it, what the early years demanded, the turning points that moved them forward, and the practical tips of the trade they use in their specific role. Guests come from every seat in the business, not just the corner office.
Sept. 22, 2026

Finding the Gold: How Kristian Hall Recovered $5.5 Million in Lost Sales

Finding the Gold: How Kristian Hall Recovered $5.5 Million in Lost Sales
#PROUDTOBEBLUECOLLAR® Show
Finding the Gold: How Kristian Hall Recovered $5.5 Million in Lost Sales

What would happen if your team stopped treating unclosed estimates as dead leads? Kristian Hall shares how she recovered about $5.5 million last year entirely by phone—and why she is on pace to clear $6 million this year—by slowing down, doing the research, and serving the customer before trying to sell.

Kristian walks Chris Crew and Jeremy Self through her path from restaurant work and loan officer to 11 years in HVAC, plumbing, and electrical. She breaks down her five-step approach: Find the Gold; READ the room (Review, Assess, Evaluate, Develop); make the Happy Call; listen intentionally; and check every box. The conversation also covers managing summer chaos, building a referral pipeline, learning the trades step by step, and the three-month relationship that helped her close a 17-system, roughly $200,000 opportunity.

Above all, this episode is a reminder that sales recovery is not a volume game. It is patient, curious, service-driven work that helps customers make the right decision and helps home-service businesses capture revenue they have already earned the opportunity to win.

• Managing peak-season pressure through scheduling, delegation, and focus

• Recovering approximately $5.5 million in revenue entirely by phone

• Kristian’s path from restaurant work and lending into the skilled trades

• Why service, trust, and curiosity matter more than a hard sell

• The five-step sales-recovery process: Find, READ, Happy Call, Listen, Check

• Using ServiceTitan notes and history to prepare before calling

• Following up when a customer does not answer

• Intentional listening and the five boxes behind a confident decision

• Building a referral pipeline for slower seasons

• How patience helped close a 17-system, roughly $200,000 opportunity

• Learning HVAC, plumbing, and electrical one step at a time

• Why home-service businesses should work existing leads before demanding more

00:00 — Cold Open: Finding the Gold in Sales Recovery

00:34 — Kristian Hall’s Production Management Role

02:17 — Managing Peak-Season Chaos

05:31 — Recovering $5.5 Million by Phone

08:12 — Kristian’s Path from Wyoming to the Trades

16:05 — Why Service-First Sales Wins

18:05 — The Five-Step “Find the Gold” Process

22:22 — The Happy Call and Intentional Listening

25:45 — Checking the Boxes and Building Grit

29:09 — Doing the Work Through Slow Seasons

33:03 — A Three-Month, 17-System Sales Story

40:38 — Stop Chasing Volume and Work Every Lead