Maximizing Success at Local Trade Shows - PODCAST TRANSCRIPT

Editor's note: The following is the transcript of a live interview with Amanda Fields and Matthew Wallace of Roofing Contractors Association of Washington. You can read the interview below or listen to the podcast.

Intro: Welcome to Roofing Road Trips, the podcast that takes you on a thrilling journey across the world of roofing. From fascinating interviews with roofing experts to on the road adventures, we'll uncover the stories, innovations and challenges that shape the rooftops over our heads. So fasten your seat belts and join us as we embark on this exciting roofing road trip.

Karen Edwards: Hello and welcome to another episode of Roofing Road Trips from Roofer's Coffee Shop. My name's Karen Edwards, and in today's episode, we have some folks from the Roofing Contractors Association of Washington joining us and I'm really thrilled to welcome Amanda Fields and Matthew Wallace. Welcome.

Amanda Fields: Thank you.

Matthew Wallace: Thanks.

Karen Edwards: All right. So for those who don't know, could you introduce yourself and tell us what you do and what your affiliation is with the association? And Amanda, you can get us started.

Amanda Fields: Thank you. I'm Amanda Fields. I'm the Executive Director of RCAW. I come from a 20-year construction industry educational background. I'm committed to promoting professionalism and collaboration with the roofing sector to ensure RCAW remains a trusted resource and a voice for contractors across Washington State. And it's a pleasure to be here today.

Karen Edwards: Well, we're glad to have you. And now, Matthew, you are from Hope Roofing and a member of the association. Right?

Matthew Wallace: That's correct, yes.

Karen Edwards: Tell us a little bit about you.

Matthew Wallace: Let's see. I am a lifetime roofer. I started roofing in the '80s. So now I'd say I feel like I'm in my 80s, but I'm not. But I'm a co-owner of Hope Roofing on the Olympic Peninsula in beautiful Port Townsend. And I'm a recent addition to the Board of Directors with the RCAW. So I've been with those guys for several months now and I'm learning all kinds of new stuff with that.

Karen Edwards: Well, that's great. That's great to hear your long history with it and that at this point you're ready to get involved even more. I love it.

Matthew Wallace: Yes.

Karen Edwards: Excellent. So what we're going to talk about today is really the impact that local trade shows have on the roofing industry and how they can help businesses grow and what kind of things that they offer.

Karen Edwards: And Amanda, you guys have a great show. I know every year Roofer's Coffee Shop is there in one way or another, and you've been involved. So let's talk about what you feel are some of the benefits of those local shows.

Amanda Fields: Sure, sure. I think that participation in local roofing trade shows not only boosts growth, but it fosters professional development and it strengthens community ties. And of course, networking with your peers, supplier and vendor relationships and potential clients of course and obviously getting your hands-on experience with the latest roofing materials, tools or technologies, all that fun stuff.

Amanda Fields: Plus workshops, participating in training sessions or installation techniques, safety practices, business strategies, all that fun stuff. Trade shows offer opportunities to earn certifications that can boost your credibility expertise, but they help you build your business with your growth and marketing also as attending. And that's just some of them benefits that I think members come for.

Karen Edwards: So Matthew, from a contractor's perspective, what do you feel the value and the benefit that being able to go to a local trade show brings to your business?

Matthew Wallace: I mean, I've always felt that the local trade show, it's a fun day of roofing. A roofing contractor in any given day of any year, it's mostly hard days. And the trade show is a day where you're going to work and it's actually pretty fun and relaxing. So something to look forward to.

Matthew Wallace: The great benefit for me is I'd say the networking. There's a lot of people in the industry that I interact with on a regular basis, but it's just over the phone and there's a few times per year where maybe we come together and see each other. And so I don't know, I just feel like that network reinforces the connection and keeps it solid.

Matthew Wallace: And then another perspective I take on this, because I've been in roofing for quite a while and in what I call the modern age, things happen and change rapidly, quickly. So every year that I go to this, it feels like I'm learning like what's new, what's up and coming, what's the latest? And I guarantee things are changing every year.

Matthew Wallace: If I go there this year, which I will, I'm going to see stuff that wasn't there last year. And that's pretty valuable and important to me to stay on top of things.

Karen Edwards: Yeah, it helps you stay on what's new, what's emerging, what's next. But I also am curious about the Pacific Northwest is a very specific climate. You have your own unique weather patterns, it's damp.

Karen Edwards: How important is it for learning about and understanding products that maybe are meant for that climate in that region, but in another part of the country, it really wouldn't matter. Are you able to really hone in on the products that are going to work for your customers?

Matthew Wallace: Yeah, I would say that's a good point. If someone presents me with something and they tell me we've had great response from these other contractors, they're using it in this capacity, they're using it to solve these problems, it's held up in these ways. That's definitely going to get my attention and I'm going to check that stuff out and probably test it out.

Matthew Wallace: Usually when somebody comes at me with a new product like that, a sales network, they're pretty great about giving me some samples and then we take that stuff out and field test it.

Matthew Wallace: So I love side-by-side comparison and I love a scientific approach on things like that. So to me, that's just an interesting and fascinating thing that we can do in our day-by-day existence is test drive new stuff.

Karen Edwards: Yeah. Yeah. That's fantastic. I'd love to talk a little bit too about the networking with other contractors. When you attend these events and the shows.

Karen Edwards: Amanda, you probably see this all the time because you are working with the board every day, but it's almost like a special kind of magic happens when you get contractors together who are talking about what's going on, some best practices, what trends are.

Karen Edwards: Do you see that, Matthew, when you're there?

Matthew Wallace: There's certainly an opportunity for that. I'm the kind of person who I've always felt when I see other roofing companies, even when they're my rivals, I feel like there's a bond that goes across company lines where if you have the right situation, you approach that person and talk shop with them.

Matthew Wallace: So when you're at the trade show, plenty of opportunity for that. And especially, I love it when people come to the show and they're flying their company colors and you recognize the name.

Matthew Wallace: Even if they're from a different, say micro region, you step up and you talk shop. I don't know. It's a beautiful thing and definitely a chance to learn.

Karen Edwards: Well, in addition to seeing what's new and seeing the products and talking to your vendors and your suppliers, I know there's opportunities for education.

Karen Edwards: So Amanda, I wonder if you could talk to me a little bit about the kinds of education sessions that contractors would see at a regional event like yours.

Amanda Fields: Sure. This year we are having a Spanish only version of the CPR First Aid Certification. We are also having a class on leads, generating leads, the dos and don'ts of lead generation.

Amanda Fields: We also have our lobbyist coming in to tell you, he'll give you a breakdown of what happened during session and what you need to pay attention to; rules, new regulations, new laws, that sort of thing.

Amanda Fields: We also have a company coming in, bringing in a how to work your business, how to enhance your business, the way... How do I say this? How to grow your business with inside, how to deal with personnel in the right way. And it's to help you grow your business. I don't know any other way to say it.

Amanda Fields: And we are also having our attorney come. Trent was going to come and he's going to talk about also stuff in session, but new laws and regulations, labor and industry stuff you need to know, those sort of classes.

Amanda Fields: And we're still looking for more education. Anything to do with building your business and growing is what we want to provide for our members and all members as well.

Karen Edwards: Excellent. Yeah. And Matthew, when we were talking earlier, before we started recording. And you had said, "If we're going to talk about installing roofs, I can do that. I've been doing this so long."

Karen Edwards: But the sales, the marketing, that stuff, not so much. But this is the opportunity then to learn about that and expose yourself to that.

Matthew Wallace: It's certainly the opportunity. As I spoke before about innovation, the innovation that's coming on rapidly is not so much in materials. They make changes, but shingles are shingles, roofing is roofing. Those changes seem like they come more slowly, but there's all this software, lead generation, computer stuff, marketing.

Matthew Wallace: And frankly, as a roofing installer, that stuff can easily go right over my head and I could easily avoid it. So if someone is there to of capsulize and kind of show me that it's approachable and how it could wield that, that's going to be valuable to me. And I would say that'd be time well spent by that person.

Matthew Wallace: They would have my attention and I'd be just the kind of person who would maybe be able to put that to use.

Karen Edwards: Okay. Very well said. Let's talk a little bit about strategies to... Because attending a trade show is you're taking time that you're not on a job. You are spending the day learning about new things, growing, working on your business.

Karen Edwards: But not just the owner should be attending the trade shows. There's value in having maybe some project foreman or superintendent, maybe your estimators.

Karen Edwards: What kind of ROI would a company get out of having those types of roles attend these shows? Any thoughts on that?

Matthew Wallace: I mean, I kind of see the trade show as a sort of like an all-you-can-eat buffet. So once you buy that ticket, you could just eat a single roll and call it good or you could fill your plate multiple times. And so the more you do, the more you get at this thing.

Matthew Wallace: And I would definitely say if you can bring the whole crew, there's a lot of fun to be had there with networking and learning opportunities intermingled with that. But there is something for everybody.

Matthew Wallace: And as a company, we're always trying to find, I guess we call them team building exercises, things that we can do together outside of re-roofing somebody's house.

Matthew Wallace: And it seems like it's beneficial. It just gets everybody on the same page and makes you into this team unit, family unit. So trade show is an excellent way to balance those two things.

Matthew Wallace: You're not just having a barbecue, but someone is going to learn something. Somebody is going to win the fastest shingler competition.

Matthew Wallace: I talked to a guy who used to be an employee here, and at some point in the past he won that and that's a badge of honor that he still wears. And how fantastic is that?

Karen Edwards: Yeah, I love that you've positioned it as a team building activity. I had never really thought of it in that respect because they can be a lot of fun and they can be interesting.

Karen Edwards: And if you have got somebody on your team that wins that fastest shingler competition, then yeah, that's something to be really proud of. And then you will take away knowledge, and all that back into your company that these folks are going to bring back. So very well said.

Karen Edwards: I do want to talk a little bit about that fastest shingler competition. How does that work? Do people sign up ahead of time? Do they just sign up at the show? What's that look like?
Amanda Fields: They do. They sign up ahead of time. They can register online or by calling the RCAW office, and we provide all the tools for them there at the event. It goes really fast and a crowd forms around and it is fun to watch. It's absolutely fun. People come just to watch that.

Amanda Fields: It's neat to see how everybody has a different technique on how they shingle.

Karen Edwards: Yeah. Yeah, that's true. So I'm curious, you mentioned earlier when we were first getting started that there was opportunity for certifications. I know CPR is one of them, because you mentioned that.

Karen Edwards: But what other kinds of certifications are people able to work toward by coming to the event?

Amanda Fields: That's the only certification class we have at the event. Maybe other manufacturers may have some certification classes they want to put on for their materials, but this upcoming year we did ask every vendor to have some sort of hands-on activity for somebody to come and touch either it's a game or you're pounding shingles or it's something interactive to get more of their attention because everybody learns in different ways.

Amanda Fields: They can just walk by and look, but they're not going to remember just walking by and looking. But if you have something at your booth that they can touch and feel and use, they're going to remember that. They're going to come back to that.

Amanda Fields: So we're hoping that that will have a more, it'll be nicer this year for everybody.

Karen Edwards: Yeah, that's a great idea. That's a great idea to have activities happening in the booth because like you said, everybody does learn in different ways and that's why at Roofer's Coffee Shop, when we do a podcast, we have the audio and then we have typically the transcript as well, because some people like to listen, some people like to read.

Karen Edwards: It's that same concept, you're just taking that and turning it around and doing it on the trade show floor. I love it.

Amanda Fields: Yes. Yeah, very fun.

Karen Edwards: Okay, so tell me the time of year. When is your show and how do people find out information about it?

Amanda Fields: So our show is March 10th at the Tulalip Casino, and they can find more information about it on our website at www.rcaw.com or they can call our office at-

Karen Edwards: In case you're listening to this while you're driving, RCAW does have a full directory on Roofer's Coffee Shop. So you can just hit up Roofer's Coffee Shop and find that directory on the website. You can get all the information. And this is one day event. Tell me how it's structured. Is there education in the morning? When's the show open?

Amanda Fields: Yeah, great question. So this year we're going to do it a little bit different. The day before is set up from 2:00 to 8:00. So March 6th is the setup.

Amanda Fields: And then after setup we are going to have, going to have our membership dinner. We call it something different this year. We're going to merge the two, it's called the Industry Insider Event.

Amanda Fields: So we're going to have a network and everybody's already there setting up their booths. So we'll have some heavy appetizers and we'll have some speakers come in to talk about RCAW. And that's the first day, March 6th.

Amanda Fields: And then the next day at the trade show is from 9:00 to 2:00 PM. and classes start from 9:00. We have classes in hour sectors from 9 to 10, 10 to 11, 11 to 12. And again, we're still looking at more education to bring to the trade show, but right now, those are the classes we have confirmed.

Karen Edwards: Excellent. And that's the best part about the show too, one of the best parts. I mean, it's all fun and educational and a good time for all, but you don't know what kind of swag you're going to get from the exhibitors. They usually have lots of fun stuff.

Amanda Fields: They do. They do. And we give out gift bags as well. Everybody who registers and attends gets a free gift bag and they also get a free lunch, and there's coffee, tea, water, all that good stuff there.

Amanda Fields: So we just want to make sure everybody is comfortable and happy and learning something and getting something new from the trade show.

Karen Edwards: What does registration cost if somebody wants to attend?

Amanda Fields: It's free for RCAW members and it's $25 for non-members, and that includes the education as well.

Karen Edwards: Wow. Yeah, that is very affordable. I think if anybody's making an excuse like, "Well, it's too expensive to attend." No way. Yeah. Matthew?

Matthew Wallace: I want to chime in, especially contractors, if you're going to do this thing and you should, mark it on your calendar, because if you don't, you're going to end up double booked one day and it's going to make it much less fun.

Matthew Wallace: So this thing comes on in early March, and a lot of times that's a time of year where if you get a nice day, you really want to make some headway with your roofs. And if it's a rainy day, that would be somewhat of a blessing, I'd say, for heading out to a trade show. But you should just make the commitment, mark it on your calendar.

Matthew Wallace: And the next thing you should do is go to the RCAW website, look over that program and plan your strategy for the day, because you'll have these opportunities to meet with vendors to network with other people. There's a bunch of fun to be had.

Matthew Wallace: There's food and education, and so if you want to bring your crew out, do this thing and maximize it, a little bit of planning goes a long way. That's my experience with it.

Karen Edwards: Yeah, I think, yeah, because you can see who's going to be there. You can see the list of manufacturers or vendors, so you can plan, "Hey, you know what? I've been thinking about trying a new software, so I see somebody from this company's going to be there."

Karen Edwards: And a lot of people when they're at trade shows will offer free trials. They'll offer special deals. So it's definitely worth it. Good advice, Matthew.

Karen Edwards: I just want to thank both of you for being here and sharing the information about the show. March 7th, 2025. It's a Friday, so that makes it even better. But like Matthew said, put it on your calendar.

Karen Edwards: And we want to thank everybody for listening out there. And remember to visit RCAW's directory on Roofers Coffee Shop, and you'll find all their contact information and get that show on your calendars now.

Karen Edwards: Amanda, Matthew, thank you so much.

Matthew Wallace: Thanks, Karen.

Amanda Fields: Thank you, Karen.

Karen Edwards: All right, thanks everybody for listening. Hope to see you on a future episode of Roofing Road Trips.

Outro: If you've enjoyed the ride, don't forget to hit that subscribe button and join us on every roofing adventure. Make sure to visit RoofersCoffeeShop.com to learn more. Thanks for tuning in, and we'll catch you on the next Roofing Road trip.