Big Roofs = BIG Commissions: The Difference Between Selling MONSTER Roofs vs. Small Roofs

What’s the difference between selling smaller roofs versus huge roofs?

Smaller roofs are like 20 to 40 square roofs while those BIG roofs are like 40, 50, 60, and even up to 80 square residential roofs with MONSTER commissions.

Well, I’m going to break that down here, answering the question, How can I start selling larger roofs better?

Now, I really want to focus on this because I know all of us see those big roofs and we want to go after them.

We WANT those big roof sales because they’re:

1. Bigger deals
2. Bigger commissions 
3. A more efficient use of our time

After all, who doesn’t love hunting whales?

So, I’m going to break all that down here shortly.

First, I want to say welcome or welcome back. My name is Adam Bensman, The Roof Strategist. My mission is to help you and your team smash your income goals and give every customer an amazing experience.

To kickstart that journey, I invite you to get your FREE copy of my Pitch Like a Pro roofing sales training video library (if you haven’t already done so). It includes every roofing sales video I’ve ever done, more than 300 videos total, organized by category for easy binging.

Now, let’s get to this difference between selling small versus big roofs — and we’ll get the worst part out of the way first.

Small vs. Big Roofs: The Same Sales Strategy

The truth is there’s NO difference in HOW you sell a big versus a small roof.

The sales system and sales process are all the SAME.

Whether using your own closing strategy or my Roofing Sales Success Formula & Complete Sales Strategy, you’ll notice that nothing is geared for just small roofs or just big roofs.

It’s all the SAME.

So, we’re going to get into the psychology of why it’s different and why you high-tier smash may have struggled.

First, though, I want to showcase this in a story.

The Psychology of Selling Small vs. Big Roofs: A Quick Story

A gentleman who used to sell for us — a blue-collar cowboy type — drove a maroon-colored, rusted-out truck. And he did really, REALLY well with certain homeowners.

One day, a tornado came through the area, and this multi-family property was destroyed. Well, this gentleman happened to be in the right place at the right time, and he signed this deal.

Again, he was the kind of guy who would show up in ranch clothes, with a lip full of dip. He was spitting on the sidewalk, and he signed the deal with the CFO of about 10 massive multifamily properties. We got the job, and the owner flew over in his private plane to take photos of the work in progress.

So, you can see the picture I’m painting of this type of salesperson and the way he carried himself while connecting with this CFO.

Now, here’s where it gets interesting. The CFO of this company, Rich, calls me and says, “Adam, I do not want to work with the gentleman who was out here. We had to pull ’em off the project because of professionalism.”

There was a mismatch. They weren’t a good fit for each other.

And that’s the perfect segue into the REAL difference between selling small versus huge roofs — it’s not what you do, and it’s in not the sales process. It’s DEEPER than that. It’s HOW you relate.

Small vs. Big Roofs: How to Find Your ‘Right-Fit’ Customer

As my wife, Sheena says there’s a pot for every lid. That just means that there are different types of people, and everyone has someone else who’s a good fit for them.

It’s the same in roofing sales. We have those customers who are just the right match for us.

Now, in my door-to-door roofing sales days, I did REALLY well with:

• The elderly
• Stay-at-home moms
• Folks in more upper-class communities

Other salespeople couldn’t close a deal with a stay-at-home mom to save their life. Or they didn’t do well with the elderly because they couldn’t establish trust or they came across as too young.

The point is you need to find that customer:

• Who is your match 
• Who you get along with the easiest

Now, the key word that I want you to think of here is the word RELATE. It’s all about relatability. How do you relate to that person?

In the story above, the blue-collar cowboy couldn’t relate to the CFO. He got the deal, but it quickly fell apart because:

• They couldn’t relate.
• The salesperson didn’t know his customer’s pains, what keeps him up at night, or what his properties needed.
• He didn’t know how to speak to what was truly important because they simply could not relate.

The Difference Between Selling Small vs. Big Roofs: Executive Rapport

Now, in these bigger projects, we need a high level of “executive rapport.”

That’s the ability to relate to an executive.

By the way, I got this phrase from Derek Gatehouse, the author of The Perfect Salesforce. That’s a really good book for any roofing sales manager or owner leading a sales team. I highly recommend it (and I believe it’s on my recommended reading list too).

So, the key difference between selling small and big roofs is this simple — you need to be able to relate to that person.

So, high-tier smash, my guess is the 40 square roof isn’t the issue. It’s the type of person who’s there, and there’s likely some sort of disconnect.

Selling Small vs. Big Roofs: How to Get to Know the Customer Better

Let’s think about the customers who are in the smaller versus the larger properties.

The folks in smaller properties — let’s say the 20 to 40 square — are generally in working-class or blue-collar communities. Think about it. These folks are likely:

• Do-it-yourselfers
• Doing their own lawn maintenance
• A little more financially conscious with their home improvement decisions

Meanwhile, folks in larger properties — the 40, 50, 60, 70, and 80 square homes — do you think they’re doing their own lawn maintenance? No, they have a guy for that. What about their own pool maintenance or pest control? No, they have guys for those things too.

So, this person with the huge roof cares about their garden, their custom landscaping, their home’s cosmetics, the pool, the pergola — all the expensive items.

Those are VERY different needs and desires that you need to just understand are important to them. Even if you aren’t at the same level, it does NOT matter. You just need to speak to them about:

1. What’s important to them
2. How you can protect their home
3. How you specialize in working with folks with higher-end homes

This is all about demonstrating how you provide the level of attention and care to keep their properties safe while hitting all their hot-button issues. That’s how you let them know, I’m the right match for you.

By doing that, I successfully developed this very high level of executive rapport that helped me:

• Land those larger residential properties
• Land larger commercial property deals with several decision-makers, HOAs, or strip centers

So, your key takeaway here — because everything I teach has an actionable strategy for you to implement in the very next sale you’re on — is for you to ask yourself:

1. Who do I relate to the easiest? 
2. Who’s my customer?

Now, I want you to focus on finding more of those customers. And if you wish to expand that group, your one mission is to learn, know, and get in the mind of that customer.

If you do, you’ll know what’s important, you can speak to that, and you’ll be much better equipped to close those big roof deals and earn those BIG commissions.

Get More Roofing Sales Strategies, Scripts, Tips & Videos

If you want more on any topic in roofing sales, you’ll find it in my all-in-one sales training, sales strategy, and sales system, the Roofing Sales Success Formula & Complete Sales Strategy.

This exclusive program covers everything from knock to close, with packages for individual roofing sales reps and entire teams. Many roofing sales companies LOVE this program because it’s a consistent process to train everybody on a relatable sales system that WORKS and that’s a lightning-fast way to get results.

If you have questions, just call or text (303) 222-7133 for more info or a private demo.

You can also subscribe for the latest roofing sales training videos and/or get a copy of my Pitch Like a Pro roofing sales training video library. It includes every roofing sales video I’ve ever done, organized by category, along with a bunch of tips, tricks, and more. It’s great for new people and seasoned veterans, and it’s updated all the time to help you and your team smash your income goals and give every customer an amazing experience.

And don’t forget to check out my Marketing Battle Pack for instant access to 70+ pieces of my proven, turnkey roofing sales and marketing materials. It’s an entire suite, specially designed for sales teams, managers, and owners, providing:

It’s affordably priced and comes with a 100% money-back guarantee. There’s also a playlist of instructional videos in there, explaining every single thing. So, you can watch the videos, and you’ll know exactly what to do.

Thanks for joining me, and I look forward to sharing more with you in the next blog.