Open doors. Jared walks through them.
You start conversations with established home service contractors, find out whether we can help, and book the ones who fit into a free strategy call with Jared. Jared runs the call and closes. Neither of you can do the other's job well, so the handoff between you is where deals are won or lost.
- Book qualified meetings. Free strategy calls with contractors who fit.
- Respond to inbound fast. Inside 5 minutes during staffed hours. Inbound beats outbound, always.
- Prospect outbound every day. Work the call lists in priority order, even when it's slow.
- Hand off cleanly and protect show rate. Full handoff notes, confirmations, no-show rebooks, and chasing proposals that go quiet.
- Keep HighLevel accurate. Every contact you touch has an owner, a status, a disposition and a next date.
- Trade: HVAC, plumbing, electrical, drain/sewer. Roofing and garage doors are fine when they come up.
- Size: The bar is flexible right now. Today: about $300k+ and committed to growth. Jared sets it.
- Decision-maker on the call: owner, GM, or whoever owns marketing.
- Capacity to answer and run more jobs if calls go up.
Good signs: unhappy with their agency, adding trucks or a location, great reviews but weak Maps visibility, paying for shared leads, can't tell what marketing works.
The mindset
Most calls end in a no, and that's the job working. It takes several touches to reach most owners and several more to book one. Reps who quit after the fourth try leave most of the deals for whoever keeps going. Prospect every day whether you feel like it or not, and expect today's calls to pay off over the next 90 days.
Where prospects come from, and what to do first
Work top to bottom. Anything hot interrupts whatever you're doing. Every contact keeps the source it first came from in HighLevel's Source field; if they show up again from somewhere else, note it, never overwrite it.
Meta ad: strategy call request Hot
They asked for a strategy call straight from the ad.
5 Star directory: profile claimed Hot
An owner verified their cell and company email to claim their listing. You get their direct line.
Website: Google Maps scan or contact form Hot
The contact arrives with their search term, scan link and top-3 share filled in.
Meta ad: heatmap lead magnet Hot
They asked for a free market heatmap, not a sales call. Lead with the heatmap.
Directory change request, listing request, contact form Warm
An owner engaged with the directory but didn't claim. Homeowner messages go to Jared.
Heatmap mailer follow-up Warm
Owners we mailed a big blue envelope with a printed Google Maps report inside. Expect a CSR: recruit her, don't push past her (Gatekeeper call-back script a week later).
Reactivation Warm
Past strategy calls that didn't close, and former clients who left on good terms.
Purchased lists: Coldlytics and Trusted Leads Cold
Owner name, email and phone for contractors we bought. Both vendors work exactly the same way: same cadence, same scripts, same fields. A phone labeled Mobile is a direct line; Work is the front desk.
Directory verification calls Cold Pending approval
Call listed companies and get the owner to verify (claim) their profile. Everyone who verifies becomes the hot list, with a verified cell and company email. Monthly slices, top 3 in their city first, only once a slice is approved.
New source? It gets added to this list and to HighLevel's Source options before anyone works it.
How fast, how often, and when to stop
Response clocks
Outbound cadence (every contact on a call list)
Six calls over two weeks, at different times of day. HighLevel schedules each one from your disposition, so the contact reappears on Call Today on the right day.
Any real conversation ends the cadence early: it becomes an opportunity (see 04). After a conversation, one short 1:1 email recapping it is always welcome.
After a snapshot or scan goes out
For an AI visibility snapshot: when it's ready, its share link goes in the contact's Report Link field. That sends the email and text below, and puts the follow-up calls on Call Today. A Google Maps scan goes out as a screenshot of the map and summary that you email and text yourself, never the scan link (it opens an internal system); then set the next business day as the follow-up date. Either way, use the Snapshot or scan follow-up script.
A booking on Jared's calendar stops it at any point. So does a reply asking for a different time: set Next Follow-Up Date to their date.
Subject: Your AI visibility snapshot for {{contact.company_name}}
Hi {{contact.first_name}},
Here's the AI visibility snapshot I mentioned on our call: {{contact.report_link}}
It shows where you come up when homeowners ask ChatGPT and Google's AI to recommend a company like yours, where you don't, and the top three to five things to fix first. It takes a couple of minutes to read.
I'll give you a quick call tomorrow to walk through anything that stands out.
{{user.first_name}}
Elevated
Not used while Maps scans go out as screenshots. Never put a scan link in Report Link.
Subject: Your Google Maps Visibility Report for {{contact.company_name}}
Hi {{contact.first_name}},
Here's the Google Maps Visibility Report I mentioned on our call: {{contact.report_link}}
It shows where you show up in the top 3 on Google Maps across your service area, where you don't, and who's getting those calls instead. It's a 2-minute read.
I'll give you a quick call tomorrow to walk through anything that stands out.
{{user.first_name}}
Elevated
Hi {{contact.first_name}}, it's {{user.first_name}} with Elevated. Just emailed your AI visibility snapshot for {{contact.company_name}}. If it's not in your inbox, check spam: {{contact.report_link}} I'll call tomorrow to walk you through it. Reply STOP to opt out.
Only to contacts who gave a cell and agreed to a text on the call.
Subject: Did your AI visibility snapshot make sense?
Hi {{contact.first_name}},
Did your AI visibility snapshot make sense? If it's easier, grab 30 minutes with Jared and he'll walk you through it and what it would take to fix: https://grow.elevatedaudience.com/widget/bookings/strategy-call-jared
{{user.first_name}}
After a conversation that isn't a yes yet
| What they said | Nurture reason | Next touch |
|---|---|---|
| "We have an agency and it's fine." | Has an agency | 60 days |
| "We're too small for that right now." | Too small for now | 90 days |
| "Call me after the busy season." | Timing | Their date |
| Six touches, never reached | No contact | 90 days |
| Said yes to an AI snapshot or Maps scan | Prospecting stage Snapshot Sent | Text now, call the next business day |
| A proposal has gone quiet | Sales stage Proposal Presented | Day 14: your task |
"Has an agency" is a win, not a loss. When that agency drops the ball, you want to be the next call they take.
Lists before conversations. Pipelines after.
Cold and warm outbound contacts live on smart lists, not in a pipeline. A contact becomes an opportunity only when a real two-way conversation happens, or when an inbound lead arrives. That keeps every pipeline card a real person and the forecast honest.
Contacts on smart lists
You own · field Outreach StatusProspecting pipeline
You ownSales pipeline
Jared owns · you protect show rate and chase quiet proposalsNo-shows aren't a stage. Tag the contact no-show; the reschedule workflow fires and you call within 10 minutes.
Why "Qualified?" matters to you
After every strategy call Jared marks whether it was a real fit and why. That's your feedback loop: it tells you what a good booking looks like, and held-and-qualified calls are the number that counts on your scorecard.
Pick the situation, say the words
Scripts get you started. Listen more than you talk, ask one question at a time, and drop the script the moment they want to have a real conversation. [Brackets] are things you fill in from the contact before you dial.
On a live call?
Open the Call Navigator: one line at a time, a button for whatever they say, and a ready-to-paste HighLevel note at the end. These scripts are the same ones, laid out for reading.
Qualify on every prospecting call (required)
Same three questions on every prospecting call, one at a time, right after they say yes to being able to handle more work (the early yes makes the next questions feel natural):
- "Let's talk about your goals for [Company]. Where's revenue right now, and what's your goal for this year?"
- "How important is hitting that this year? Top priority, or more of a nice to have?"
- "If there were a clear plan to get you to [goal], does acting on it this year sound doable for you?"
The bar: The bar is flexible right now. Today: about $300k+ and committed to growth. Jared sets it. Under it: thank them and set Nurture, Too small. A yes on priority and a yes on investing is the reason to book. Write their exact words on the contact: Jared's best closes use them.
On 5 Star calls, disclose Elevated first, in one sentence, right before the revenue question: "Quick context so this makes sense: 5 Star was built by our sister company, Elevated Audience. They do marketing for home service companies. Your listing stays free either way."
- "How are most new customers finding you right now?"
- "What are you doing for marketing today, and is it working?"
- "Can you tell which of it turns into booked jobs?"
- "If calls went up next month, could your team handle it?"
- "Anyone besides you involved in picking a marketing partner?"
"Great. I'll send it today so you see it first. Jared, our founder, asked me to set up a free 30-minute call with you, so he can walk you through it and share the steps you can take first to get to [goal]. Does [day/time] or [day/time] work better?"
- On 5 Star calls it's "Jared, who owns Elevated Audience". On Elevated calls it's "Jared, our owner".
- Then the email (one they check themselves, or confirm the one on file), then "Is the number I called you on your cell?"
- Can't pick a time: text the calendar link. Wants to see it first: hold a time anyway, and they can text you to cancel.
- Default: book 2 business days out, so Jared has time to prep.
- Same day only for a very hot, clearly qualified lead, at your call, and never less than 2 hours out.
- Get every decision-maker on the invite.
- Send the invite while you're on the phone and ask them to accept it.
Objections
| They say | 5 Star calls | Elevated calls |
|---|---|---|
| "How much?" | "Your listing is free, and it stays free. If you mean marketing help, that's our sister company, Elevated Audience. Their programs start at $2,495 a month plus ad spend, month to month. Which one fits depends on your market. That's what Jared, who owns Elevated Audience, maps out on a free 30-minute call. Does [day/time] or [day/time] work better?" | "Great question. Programs start at $2,495 a month plus ad spend, month to month with no long-term contract. Which one fits depends on your market. That's what Jared, our founder, maps out on a free 30-minute strategy call. He looks at your market and tells you which program fits, if any. Does [day/time] or [day/time] work better?" |
| "Already have an agency" | "Makes sense. How's it going? Anything you wish they did better?" | "Makes sense. How's it going? Anything you wish they did better?" |
| "Send me something" | "Happy to. I'll email you the link to your listing. Quick question first so I send the right thing: are you getting any calls from ChatGPT right now?" | "Happy to. Here's what I'd send you." |
| "Is this a sales call?" | "Fair question. I'm calling about [Company]'s free listing, and it stays free either way. I do have one quick question about how customers find you. If it's not useful, we'll leave it there." | "Fair question. Yes, I'm with a marketing company. I'm calling for one reason, and if it's not useful in a minute, we'll leave it there." |
| "Not interested" | "" | "" |
| "Is this a marketing agency?" | "Fair question. 5 Star is a free directory, and it stays free. It's built and managed by our sister company, Elevated Audience, a marketing agency for home service companies. Nothing you buy changes your score. Fair to keep going for a minute?" | "Yes. We're Elevated, a marketing company that only works with home service contractors like [Company]. Fair to keep going for a minute?" |
| "We tried SEO, it didn't work." | "What were you hoping it would do? We measure it in booked jobs and closed revenue, not rankings." Then ask how they track jobs today. | |
Inbound and sales calls have their own wording. Each script above lists the quick replies for that call, and the Call Navigator shows the right one automatically.
Protect the directory on every call
5starhomeservicepros.com ranks top-rated home service companies by a published 0 to 100 score from Google rating, review count and review recency. About 15,000 companies are listed publicly; about 20,000 more are hidden until they have enough reviews or their market has enough contractors for its own page. Nobody can pay to be listed or to rank higher. That's the whole value, so never blur it.
A free Verified and Vetted badge. A person on our team talks with the owner and checks the business against public records. The profile then shows who we spoke with and when, their license confirmed with the state, the other checks we ran, and the reviewer's name and date. Renews yearly.
- For the contractor: a trust signal homeowners see beside competitors who don't have it, and proof a real person checked them out. A license confirmed during vetting earns the same 5 points any verified license does.
- For the directory: verified businesses and a direct relationship with each owner. That's what makes it trustworthy to homeowners and to the AI assistants that recommend contractors.
- It is not: a rank boost, for sale, or tied to buying marketing. If a Preferred company is our client, the profile says so.
- On claim and verification calls, finish the listing work before any marketing question.
- On an AI visibility call, the directory is only how we're connected: say so up front, and never tie the listing to their rank or to buying anything.
- Never say or suggest that buying marketing, claiming or Preferred changes a score or rank.
- Disclose Elevated Audience in one sentence right before the revenue question, not in the opener: "Quick context so this makes sense: 5 Star was built by our sister company, Elevated Audience. They do marketing for home service companies. Your listing stays free either way." Owners hang up when the opener says "marketing company." Asked directly? Say so straight away.
- Only quote a rank or score you just checked on the live page.
- If they only want listing help, help them and end the call.
- Text a claimant only if they ticked the text-consent box on the claim. Otherwise call and email.
| Directory question | You say |
|---|---|
| "How did I get on it?" | "It lists the top-rated companies in each city from public Google ratings and reviews. You qualified on your reviews." |
| "Do I have to pay?" | "No. The listing and Preferred are both free." |
| "Can you move me up?" | "No, and nobody can. Rank is the score alone. More recent reviews is what moves it." |
| "Take me off." | "Understood, I'll pass that along today." Escalate to Jared, tag dnc, turn on Do Not Disturb. |
If it isn't in HighLevel, it didn't happen
- Search first by company, phone and email. No duplicates.
- Assign it to yourself (Assigned User). Ask before taking one that belongs to Jared or has an open deal.
- Never prospect clients (tagged active client or stage:client), or a same-trade competitor in an exclusive client's market. Check the Client Markets list before you work a new city.
- Disposition every call before the next dial.
- Notes: "They said:" for facts, "My read:" for your take.
- Every open contact has a next date, from the cadence, a Nurture reason, or a task.
- Phone is the best number to dial, labeled Mobile (reaches the person) or Work (front desk: ask for them by name).
- Main Company Number always holds the company line.
- Got a direct or cell number? Put it in Phone, label it Mobile, leave the company line where it is.
- Bulk import, bulk edit or delete contacts.
- Add anyone to a workflow, or send bulk email or SMS.
- Send cold email from HighLevel. 1:1 email after a conversation is fine.
What each disposition does
| Disposition | What HighLevel does next |
|---|---|
| No answer · Voicemail left | Adds 1 to Call Attempts and sets Next Follow-Up Date from the cadence. After touch 6: Nurture, No contact, 90 days. |
| Gatekeeper, callback set | Next call date = the callback time they gave. |
| Wrong number | Off the list and flagged for a data fix. |
| Snapshot requested | Prospecting opportunity in Snapshot Sent, snapshot request logged, follow-up call due the next business day. |
| Conversation, interested | Creates a Prospecting opportunity in Engaged. |
| Conversation, not now | Prospecting opportunity in Nurture with the reason and next date. |
| Strategy call booked | Prospecting → Strategy Call Booked, and a Sales opportunity with your handoff. |
| Not a fit | Outreach Status = Disqualified, with the reason: out of niche, no capacity, no decision-maker, or not a fit. |
| Do not call | Tag dnc and Do Not Disturb on all channels. Permanent. |
Your smart lists
Call Today
Yours, Not Contacted or Attempting, Next Follow-Up Date today or earlier, not on Do Not Disturb, not a client. The power dialer runs from this.
One per campaign
Heatmap Mailer, purchased-list contacts also on the directory, purchased lists by revenue, Reactivation. For choosing tomorrow's batch.
Follow-ups Due
Snapshot follow-ups and Nurture contacts whose next touch is today or earlier.
The handoff (before a booking is done)
- Contact name, title, cell and email; company, trade, website and Google Business Profile link
- Primary city and the other cities they serve; source and campaign (plus directory or mailer link)
- Revenue band and tech count if they said; current marketing, spend and agency
- The problem in their words; who's attending; your one observation from the call
Talk jobs and revenue, not marketing jargon
Owners don't buy SEO. They buy booked jobs, full schedules and revenue they can trace. Translate everything into those.
| Topic | Say it like this | Leave to Jared |
|---|---|---|
| What we do | "We help home service contractors get more booked jobs from Google, their website and ads, and we track it to closed revenue." | Strategy for their business |
| Guarantee | "We guarantee qualified leads in 60 days, or your next month is free." Use it any time it helps. | The fine print |
| Price | "Programs start at $2,495 a month plus ad spend. It's month to month, no long-term contract." | Which program, discounts |
| Proof | "Fuller Services spent $23,078 on marketing over 30 days (Jan 26 to Feb 25, 2026) and closed $468,861 in tracked sales." | Promising the same results |
| Exclusivity | "We only work with one [trade] company per market on our top programs, and [City] is still open." Only when the Client Markets list shows it's open. | Which program includes it |
Reasons to call that land
A real observation
A competitor ranked above them with three times the reviews, no Maps presence for their main service in their own city, or strong reviews but none recent. One fact, checked by you before the dial.
The AI search check (your default cold opener)
Ask ChatGPT "best [trade] company in [City]" before you dial. "I asked ChatGPT for the best AC company in Tampa and you weren't in the answer" starts longer conversations than any ranking talk.
The town over
Pick a town they serve 1 to 2 towns from their shop and search Google Maps for "[service] in [Town]". "Do you know how many calls you're getting out of [Town]?" Most owners don't, and Maps rankings fade fast with distance.
Shared ground
Name the local competitors they know, the software they run (ServiceTitan, Housecall Pro), or the groups they're in (Nexstar). Common ground gets you past the first ten seconds.
Something we sent
A mailer, a heatmap, a listing. "We mailed you a report" beats "I'm calling about marketing" every time.
Never
Make up a number, promise a ranking or result, trash a competitor, or send a link to our internal systems, calculators or the program builder.
Same rhythm every day, measured every Friday
Weekly scorecard
| Measurable | Target | Why it matters |
|---|---|---|
| Dials per day | 80 | Ramp 40 → 60 → 80 over the first three weeks; 100 once lists are always prepped. |
| Contacts in an active cadence | 100+ | Your pipeline of future conversations. |
| Owner conversations | Track | The step that turns dials into meetings. |
| AI visibility snapshots sent | Track | Qualified owners who said yes to an AI visibility snapshot. |
| Snapshot to strategy call | Track | How well the follow-up call converts. |
| Strategy calls booked | 5 / week | Five a week is the agency's 20 qualified leads a month. |
| Held and qualified | Track | The number that actually counts. Jared marks it after each call. |
| Show rate | 75%+ | Confirmations and rebooks. |
| Inbound speed to lead | < 5 min | Median, staffed hours. Directory claims count. |
| HighLevel hygiene | 100% | Owner, status, disposition and next date on every contact you touched. |
Every week
Friday: scorecard, pipeline review, and the top three objections from your recordings. Objections that keep coming up get a row in section 05.
Learn from real calls
Real calls, what worked, and what to say differently. Listen to the recording first, then read the notes.
Sala Air Conditioning: inbound directory callback
HotOct 2, 2026 · 19 min 50 sJason, from Sala Air Conditioning in Dallas, called back about Cesar's voicemail on his 5 Star listing. Jared took the call while Cesar listened in. Jason had filled in his profile himself the night before and wanted to know his two change requests (founded 1972, Texas license) went through, and why a competitor's page looked richer than his. The requests were approved live, but his score still read 73 when he hung up. He agreed to a calendar link and an AI visibility snapshot plus a Maps scan for "AC repair."
Recording
Phone-line audio. Download the MP3 to listen offline.
Cesar right after the call: "You used a lot of things that I wouldn't have." That's why it's here. The Directory: inbound callback script in 05 is built from it.
The lesson in one line
The directory is the door, not the pitch: solve the owner's listing problem, show the result live, then ask about growth.
What worked (keep it)
| Time | Move | Why it worked |
|---|---|---|
| 0:28 | Asked the business name and his name before anything else | Got into the record in 20 seconds |
| 0:50 | Opened his listing and named a field that would raise his score | Concrete and about him |
| 1:24 | Checked the inbox and read back his license number | Proved we got his request |
| 5:13 | Explained the competitor's layout as enrichment, not a paid tier | Kept the directory credible |
| 7:32 | Discovery question: "How close are you to your goal for the year?" | Got the pain: up on last year, short of goal, wants more calls |
| 9:00 | Framed the strategy call as free value: "take it to your current agency or implement on your own" | Low-risk ask |
| 12:23 | Reflected his own words back before the ask | Turned a soft no into a yes to a link |
| 18:38 | Tied his line "we're service guys, not marketing experts" to the strategy call | Strongest close on the call |
| 19:23 | Let him pick how to schedule (calendar link) | He chose, so he owns it |
What to change
- Finish the listing before the pivot. Elevated came up at 6:21 while his question was still open, and he said so twice: "it's kind of getting into more than I was anticipating" (10:03) and "I wasn't expecting a, you know" (12:04). Don't mention Elevated until the score has moved on screen, or until you've said exactly when it will move and how he'll know.
- Never quote a score you can't show. "About 15 more points, to an 83" was wrong and never appeared. Only give numbers you can see on the live page.
- Keep one set of numbers. "150 businesses a day" became "125 per day" a minute later. Prospects notice.
- Say the company name right. Read it off the screen.
- Ask discovery questions one at a time. "How many trucks, what kind of revenue" in one breath got neither answer.
- Bridge, don't jump. Earn the Elevated mention with his own goal, not with our story about the directory.
- Answer his last question. "Is there anything I need to do differently?" got praise and a promise to ask the dev team. Better: one concrete step, like "Ask your next 20 customers for a Google review. That's where most of your points are."
Your assignment
Listen to the Sala call 3 to 5 times. Write down every line where you'd ask "you said this, what does that mean?" Bring the list to the next standup. Jared: "I don't expect you to know everything I said on that call. It takes a lot of time and training."
Qualification bar
The bar is flexible right now. Today: about $300k+ and committed to growth. Jared sets it. Multi-location or 10+ staff: check for a client conflict first.
When the owner gives a number, ask how important hitting it is this year, then whether they'd invest in growth. A yes to both is the reason to book.
Tools you use on these calls
| Task | Where | How |
|---|---|---|
| AI visibility snapshot | Discord, Clutch HQ server, Blast SDR channel | Message "Run an AI visibility audit for [website]" (Blast's name for the AI visibility snapshot). About 15 minutes; returns a share link, score, top finding and a suggested email. You can ask Blast follow-up questions about it. |
| Heat map a lead saw | Elevated Engine > Growth > Lead Gen > View Report, or Lead Info on the contact | Use the red spots as the opener |
| New heat map for a warm lead | Elevated Engine > Growth > GBP Heat Maps > One-off scans | 11x11 grid at about 7 miles for people we talk to (Meta ad leads get 7x7 at 6 miles). Screenshot the summary and text or email it. |
| Directory change requests and owners | 5 Star admin (inbox, businesses) | Approve requests; "add owner" when email verification fails; owners sign in with a magic link to their registered email |
| Log the lead | HighLevel | Set yourself as contact owner; create the opportunity in Prospecting > Interested; move it to the booked stage once they book; out-of-niche leads get the out-of-niche tag |
| Inbound callbacks | LeadConnector mobile app | Web app ringing is unreliable |