Branden Sewell (00:01.549)
Hi everybody, my name is Branden Sewell. I am the owner of Seal Pro Painting and now also Seal Pro Seal and Wash, located in central Florida and the host of the Off the Ladder podcast. We exist to help home service business owners learn so that they can lead well and ultimately live life off of the ladder. I'm excited about today's guest. I've got Rebecca here from Jobber and she is the community
programs manager and we're specifically going to talk about an awesome opportunity for the home service community. We're going to talk about job or brand. So welcome to the show Rebecca. It's a pleasure to have you and I'm excited to dig into this topic.
Rebecca (00:48.942)
Thank you so much for having me here, Brandon. So very excited.
Branden Sewell (00:52.909)
Yeah, so a little bit of my history with Jobber Grants. Obviously, I was a recipient back in 2021, which to my understanding was the first year of Jobber Grants, isn't that correct?
Rebecca (01:09.294)
That is right. That was our very first year. And I'm sorry, Brandon, I just want to tell you, your video is pretty pixelated. So OK, sorry. That might be just on my side. Awesome. OK, yes, you were a recipient in the first year of the program back in 2021. So it's been this year is our fourth year of running the program since then.
Branden Sewell (01:17.933)
Okay, yeah, don't worry about that.
Branden Sewell (01:35.373)
That's amazing. So as far as the program goes, you know, let's give some information to those home service business owners. What is jobber grants and who is it, you know, best for, you know, who could apply for this?
Rebecca (01:54.958)
Yeah, so Jobber Grants is an annual grants program. We run it every year. It was designed and built for home service businesses. So if you are a landscaper, a painter, a cleaner, any home service business going to people's houses or businesses to perform services, you can apply for a Jobber Grant. This year we're giving away 15 $10 ,000 grants.
So think of how that could transform your business. Really we created this program because there wasn't a lot of funding, there wasn't any funding opportunities really available for home service businesses. So we wanted to change that. We also strongly believe and we support this community who's out there every day making our homes and offices, keeping them safe and running, making them beautiful spaces, providing meaningful careers.
and just doing great things for where we live and work. So we wanted to recognize that work, put the spotlight on it and invest and help accelerate it.
Branden Sewell (03:02.445)
That's amazing. You know, I've told a lot of the jobber team that, you know, just from being a, you know, I know as you guys like to say, we are partners with jobber. You know, we're not just users and really the attitude of jobber is felt on RN, like as the one using the service that you provide. I know that I have felt that.
I felt that concern of like the home service space and you know, my life has been directly affected and touched by what jobber is doing to get back to the home services community. And I do, I truly feel like part of the jobber family and I truly feel that like what you guys are doing is making a difference and it can definitely be felt. So it's not like.
You guys are doing all this hard work and putting all of this time and energy into something that isn't making a difference. I can speak firsthand that it definitely is. And I love, you know, the team at Jobber. You guys do a fantastic job just in every area. So, you know, I think you guys having this program to give back to the home services is just such.
a reflection, I'm sure of like your leadership's attitude towards the home services and, and even like, you know, trickles down to everybody there who's on the team, because it is certainly felt. So really quick, could you for those who are listening, could you go into the process for putting in an application, where somebody would apply how that how they're going to apply and how that kind of
works through the entire process so they can understand what they're going to do and what their commitment is for the process.
Rebecca (05:01.134)
Yes, great question. So first piece is very low commitment. We understand that business owners like you are very busy, so it only takes five minutes to apply. You can go to jobber .com slash grants or Brandon might have a, I believe Brandon will have a link to click here. So you can click on that link, go to hit apply now, apply in five minutes. You just need to share a bit of your information and.
why, how your business demonstrates excellence in home service. So applications are open from now until they open March 6 until June 12. So you have some time to apply, but apply today. It only takes a couple of minutes. From there, there's a second phase, June 12.
Rebecca (05:54.35)
actually scratch the June 12th part, the second phase. Yeah, the second phase, we then invite you to share a bit more about your business. So a bit more about your team, your hiring and leadership philosophies, your marketing strategies, what are your systems and operations look like? Are you technically savvy? Are you always looking to optimize your efficiencies? Those are the things we're going to be looking for.
Branden Sewell (05:56.845)
Yeah.
Rebecca (06:24.078)
And, you know, in addition to great customer service, what is your online brand? Like, do you have a great online reputation with reviews, things like that. So that second phase is about, you know, it can take anywhere from 10 minutes. Some people take an hour on it, but 10 minutes is, does the job. And then in June and July, we'll be reviewing applications, scoring them. We have a full team here that goes through every single application.
and then we'll announce, select and announce our recipients in August.
Branden Sewell (06:58.093)
Nice.
Rebecca (06:58.958)
Yes. Yeah.
Branden Sewell (07:02.605)
So the announcement will be in August. So essentially, I remember for myself, it would come in phases. I'd do the first part, not much time, and then I would do another interview and just go through another application process. And then finally, you find out whether you got it right. So that's really cool.
Rebecca (07:20.621)
Mm -hmm.
Rebecca (07:26.254)
Yes.
Branden Sewell (07:28.013)
Could you talk about, I know this is something that you guys emphasize a lot. It's pretty standard, I think, that it comes up as a question. These grants of $10 ,000, just for those who are listening, could you go over how those funds can be used? Obviously, I know the answer to this, but whether or not they have to pay it back in any way, could you go over those details?
Rebecca (07:55.342)
Yes, absolutely. So you do not have to pay it back. It's not a loan. It is yours to spend on your business however you'd like. So that could be tools and equipment, hiring. Maybe there's a new position on your team you really want to hire for. There is potentially some new equipment that will help you deliver a new service offering in your area. Really the sky is the limit. Whatever you think could help you.
Excel what you're doing already. We've seen past recipients purchase vehicles to put another crew on the road. We've seen someone get a lot of... Also, I'm going to... I'm reminding myself, it's... A lot of people get a lot of benefit from not just the funds, but a lot of local media recognition as well. So oftentimes, that's kind of what's almost most exciting for some recipients is...
Branden Sewell (08:49.549)
Mm -hmm.
Rebecca (08:54.254)
that local recognition when it can't always happen. It always depends on the news cycle. But for example, one of our recipients, two years ago, her business completely blew up after her local newspaper put her on the front page. And she now has that front page on her fridge. And she says she looks at it every morning when she drinks her coffee and it kind of keeps her going. So that's another fun bonus of the program.
Branden Sewell (09:09.869)
Hey.
Branden Sewell (09:15.917)
That's amazing.
Yeah.
Yeah, that's really good. And, you know, I can definitely say that like things for me in business really started to, you know, pick up and accelerate after becoming a recipient. And I don't know, you know, that it wasn't just the the painting business that I have, but it was also, you know, like my online, you know, reputation.
my, what am I trying to say, like my presence online grew. I started to be able to tap into reaching more people. Obviously that also accelerated my relationship with jobber, which really like turned into more opportunities as like now I'm a jobber ambassador and partner with jobber. So that's been amazing. One of like, I think it's probably one of my,
favorite things that I get to do as a business owner is be a partner with jobber. It's, it really is. I feel like, I feel like I'm part of the family and like when I get like, you know, little opportunities to interact with you guys and the team, I have a blast with it. And man, everybody that I meet at jobber is just so amazing. So it's, it's so much fun to get to work with you guys and have those opportunities. So, um,
Branden Sewell (10:47.917)
You know, definitely I would I would also encourage like anybody who's listening to this. Obviously, like when you think of this, it's like you almost think of it like, oh, this is the lottery. You know, there's like no way I could win. There's no way I would, you know, have an opportunity to do this. And I think some people may not take that initiative to go ahead and apply because they're thinking like, what are the chances? Well, I'm here to tell you, like I had those same thoughts. I was like, how in the world?
Am I going to win this grant? There's no way like why, you know, it's just, I just didn't think it was possible, but I was like, you know what, what's it going to hurt? It takes five minutes of my time to apply, you know, so like five minutes could be a really big game changer for your business and you know, like the projection of your business and the future. So, um, if you're listening to this, yeah, go ahead.
Rebecca (11:39.726)
I remember that.
Oh, sorry, sorry, Brandon. I was going to say I remember the shock in your face when we told you the news and everyone says the same thing. They say, I didn't think this could happen, but it happened. So definitely recommend, yeah, that five minutes could transform your business, change the trajectory of your life potentially. So what's to lose? I also am curious, Brandon, what, maybe you could share like what you spent, how did that?
Branden Sewell (11:56.845)
Yeah.
Branden Sewell (12:03.853)
Yeah.
Rebecca (12:12.462)
How did you spend your $7 ,500 grant in the first year of the program?
Branden Sewell (12:16.525)
Yeah, so there were three things that we allocated the funds to. One, we gave each one of our employees a bonus because I just felt as a business owner, I was like, man, you know, I haven't built this company alone. You know, I couldn't do it without my team. So I gave each one of them a bonus from the grant that we got just to thank them for being a part of, you know,
helping build a company that would have that opportunity at all. And then the other thing that we did is we did a free exterior repaint for a local teacher in our community. So what was that?
Rebecca (12:47.47)
Yeah, I love that. That's great.
Rebecca (13:01.294)
So.
I loved that so much. I remember hearing about that and we were so excited to hear that. Yeah.
Branden Sewell (13:07.405)
Yeah. Yeah, it was a lot of fun. So we had done one before that. And the person that we had done it for before was a previous client. And, you know, her story was that she was in remission from cancer and she wanted to have more done to her home, but she couldn't afford it. And so we like came in and surprised her. She was a teacher as well.
We came in and surprised her and painted her house for her. And then so that was something that we really wanted to do again. So we used the funds to do another one. This time we went to a school, went to the principal actually and asked the staff to like pick somebody. You know, say, hey, here's this opportunity. We want you guys to...
basically nominate a teacher on staff who you feel is deserving of this. And so we had a teacher who was nominated by her peers. And so we went in and, you know, completely repainted the exterior of her home. And she was thrilled. So we went into her school, like surprised her in front of her whole class with a big jumbo check and that.
Rebecca (14:27.438)
Oh my gosh.
Branden Sewell (14:28.589)
That was super cool that the like all of her students were so excited for and like giving her hugs and stuff like that. So, um.
Rebecca (14:35.118)
Aww. What grade teacher was she?
Branden Sewell (14:39.693)
It was elementary school. I want to say that she was teaching I Want to say like first or second graders Yeah, and we have a picture of it on our website so you can see that and then She one of the things that she was recognized living in Orlando we have a lot of
Rebecca (14:49.678)
Aw, that's, yeah, that's so sweet.
Branden Sewell (15:09.389)
you know, Hispanic people. And there's a lot of kids where like, you know, they're learning two languages. So she was actually like, she was known for like, you know, she would work all day. And then she would do a lot of like after hour work, working with kids who were, you know, learning two languages, doing like a mentoring program and stuff. So, but yeah, so that was really cool to get to recognize.
her for that. And then we kind of wanted to take what, you know, kind of like that same position that Jobber had of like recognizing excellence, right? And like servitude and like some of the like community, the things that, you know, like we wanted to see represented in that person. And she was representing those things in her community. So it was awesome to get to do that for her.
And then lastly, the third thing that we did is we were able to buy a van, a new work van. So that enabled us to start another crew and just helped us to grow. So yeah, that was everything that we used it for. Seems like forever ago now.
Rebecca (16:26.254)
Yeah, especially when it comes to money. It's you always want, there's, it's never a problem if it comes soon. I am out. Yeah.
Branden Sewell (16:37.421)
Yeah, yeah, yeah. Yeah, as yeah, I was just gonna say like as a small home service business owner, you know, it's every little bit counts. You know, we're not we're not like these huge corporations. So, you know, at that time, I had the grant that I received was $7500. And like for me, that was that was amazing. It was such a help to my business. And, you know, so I think.
like $10 ,000 for a small home service business. Man, it's just amazing.
Rebecca (17:14.51)
Yeah, yeah, I know that's so great. And I love how with your, how you decided to spend the grant that you kind of spent it in a way that was both indirect and directly growing your business, that you balanced supporting your community and growing your business and creating awareness. So I love that. And it sounds like you picked such a different serving person for the exterior paint job and it was exterior, right? A new...
Branden Sewell (17:43.309)
Yeah. Yeah. Yeah.
Rebecca (17:43.822)
Outdoor look, yeah, that's awesome. Yeah, that's great. And I think I love what you said about the, you know, it doesn't take a lot to make a huge difference. That's also a big learning that came up before we created the program is, you know, a little can go a very long way. So we don't have to, you know, yeah, you don't have to, this doesn't need to be a millions of dollar program. Maybe it will be one day.
Branden Sewell (18:11.501)
Right. Yeah.
Rebecca (18:12.142)
but to make a big difference. And yeah, I love with your answer, you kind of justified why we selected you as a grant recipient. So, who knows to you?
Branden Sewell (18:22.029)
I appreciate that. Yeah, yeah. Well, you know, I hope that whoever's listening to this one, you're inspired by, you know, the work that Java is doing because they like I said, they are really making a difference. And when we look at the home service community in general, you know, like I know that you guys recently did, you know, the trade report, Owen, you know, the trades in general.
And I think the trades need that support. They need that community to come together and say, hey, this is an amazing community that's making a difference that's extremely viable for our communities. And let's really boost them up and give them the recognition that they deserve. Because I know so many people.
who are working in the trades are doing work that truly matters. And I think for like even me, myself, like my generation, I can remember when I was younger, it seemed like there was such a like a negative view of the trades of like, that's like a last resort. And maybe that it's like not, you know, honorable work. And that's so misleading, because when you think about it are,
communities, our homes, our businesses could not thrive without these service -based businesses, these trades. I mean, that's how you get electricity and running water, clean water, you're plumbing. That's how you're able to be comfortable in Florida in the middle of extremely hot climates. And so it's just...
I think that it's amazing that there's a program like this out there that is recognizing the amazing work that home services are doing around the nation. That actually just made me think, another question, is there any restrictions on who can apply based on where they're located? So I think when I was a part of it, was it the US and Canada?
Branden Sewell (20:45.421)
Is it still that way?
Rebecca (20:47.534)
Yes, it is. So it's the US and Canada and that excludes Quebec in Canada. So anyone residing in US and Canada.
Branden Sewell (20:54.349)
Okay.
Branden Sewell (20:58.285)
can apply. Okay, so unfortunately if you're one of my listeners and you're somewhere else, I apologize, but this is yeah, it'll be a program for those in the US. Is there anything else that you think that we could go over based on? Well, let's ask this. If somebody wins, what can they expect from Jobber? Of course they're going to receive the funds, but there's, for my own experience,
I saw that there were, like I said, a lot of other opportunities that kind of opened up, you know, based on winning. I know I've done, I think I had to do like a photo shoot with, with Jobber. You guys helped a lot with like getting like press releases out and stuff like that. What would somebody expect after they went? Like, what would that look like?
Rebecca (21:51.982)
Yeah, great question. I think, so yes, we send you the money, the fun part. That will come your way. And we also will do our best to get the word out about you locally with local media in your service area. So we will provide a media package that you can update and forward to local media. We will also be help doing some of that outreach as well for you.
Branden Sewell (21:58.445)
Alright.
Rebecca (22:21.966)
Best case scenario is you end up on the front page of your local newspaper. We want to understand that our programs are actually making a difference, making a positive difference, so we'll also follow up with you a few times after. And then that can lead into maybe asking you to take part of a video project that helps advocate for the trades.
and home service. It could be, you know, we invite you to be a part of our job or summit, our annual event. So there's there's a few different opportunities. I know a few of our past recipients ended up on our podcast. So our Masters of Home Service. So all sorts of opportunities. I know a lot of people say that.
Branden Sewell (23:08.365)
Mm -hmm.
Rebecca (23:18.67)
you know, their team also and their ownership just kind of morale gets a boost when, you know, that level of recognition out of thousands of applicants across North America, you get a nice boost that way too, and kind of a reminder of why you're doing what you're doing. So a few things, and that brings me to my next kind of just made me think I.
Branden Sewell (23:33.453)
Mm -hmm.
Rebecca (23:45.454)
we get a lot of feedback from people after they apply, whether they've received the grant or not. They love the experience of going through and answering the questions and the application form, especially the second phase, because it's almost an exercise of what are my beliefs? What are my philosophies? You know, what leadership strategies are successful? How am I growing my business? And you're not often, I know your podcast is doing a great job of that, Brandon.
how you kind of go big picture, see big picture, go get off the ladder. So it's kind of win -win.
Branden Sewell (24:14.701)
Mm -hmm.
Branden Sewell (24:21.741)
Yeah, that's really good. And, you know, to your point, like one of the things I just want to like add this is like just a value add maybe not even directly correlated with job or grants. But I back then I had a business coach, I was in a coaching program. So a lot of the things I think maybe that job or was looking for I had got through coaching, you know, so like I was already clear about like,
what my values were, what my mission statement was. I had all of that already figured out. I had already, you know, been strategically thinking about my business and how we, you know, interact with the community, how we do our marketing and things like that. So, just a side note on all of this, you know, hire a business coach, hire a coach to help you to grow as a business center, because it's a huge value add. I,
Right before this call, I was on a call with my business coach. So I had an hour long call with him. And that's just invaluable as a business designer to be able to grow. And so a couple resources like job or grants with coaching, man, the sky is the limit as far as where you can go in business. So yeah, I think for anyone listening to this,
please definitely check out Jobber Grants. I will definitely, like Rebecca mentioned, I'll put a link in the show notes where if you're interested, you can go and click and you can do the application process right then and there. But definitely encourage that. Is there any last things that you'd like to mention to the listeners about the program or just Jobber in general?
Rebecca (26:16.59)
Yeah, I just want to say thank you, Brandon, for partnering with us always today. And always it's been awesome working with you more over the last few years. And I really loved what you were saying about, you know, the there's a, you know, the trades doesn't get nearly the credit, the recognition they deserve. That's why we built this program. We want to get the word out about home service, how awesome and amazing, incredible and impactful your work is.
Um, and at jobber, we want to help make everything part of that go more smoothly. Um, so apply to the program. If you haven't already look up other jobber resources, jobber Academy. Um, there's also our community, the jobber entrepreneurship group. Brandon is an active member there. We love to see you in there, Brandon. Um, so join that and, um, yeah, thank you so much for.
Branden Sewell (27:03.117)
Yeah, I love it.
Rebecca (27:12.718)
listening in to learn more about job or grants and apply, take two minutes, five minutes, and you could have $10 ,000 to transform your business.
Branden Sewell (27:23.053)
Yeah, that's so good. You know, just to reemphasize what you're saying, even if you don't end up winning job or grants, still press into all that job or has to offer. Because for myself, like I said, I have gained so much value from job or not just from job or grants, but from the things like you just mentioned. Job or entrepreneurship group on Facebook has been amazing. Like if I have something that I'm going through in business,
I can jump on there, ask a question and get tons of experienced entrepreneurs giving feedback, helping. There's amazing people like Janine Chambers who hang out in there and she is like incredible with Java and she was just helping me. I think like two days ago I just reached out to her. I was like, Hey, I have this issue I need help with. And she was right there and helped me right away. But anyway, there's just, there's an awesome community there.
You have all of like Jobber Academy where you guys are putting out educational content all the time to help home service business owners, your YouTube, Instagram. There is just so much there. And so I would say this too, if you're not using Jobber, what are you doing? Like you should be a Jobber user if you're listening to this podcast. And if you want to sign up for Jobber and be a part of an amazing community.
Rebecca (28:41.486)
Thank you.
Branden Sewell (28:49.325)
Um, and add value to your business, not just from, like I said, not just from the software standpoint, but just from the amazing team that's there at job or that is serving the home service, um, uh, community so well, um, you'll definitely benefit from it and then tell somebody else about it because we can all get better together. So, um, thank you so much, Rebecca, for your time. Thank you jobber, uh, for having, uh, this amazing program for home service business owners. And, uh, yeah.
We'll see you next time on the next episode of the Off the Ladder Podcast.
