Travis Harvego & Chris Morris - The Software with all the Tools of the Trade - PODCAST TRANSCRIPT

Editor's note: The following is the transcript of a live interview with Travis Harvego and Chris Morris from Roofle. You can Read the interview below or Listen to the podcast.

Intro: Welcome to Roofing Road Trips with Heidi. Explore the roofing industry through the eyes of a long term professional within the trade. Listen for insights, interviews and exciting news in the roofing industry today.

Heidi J. Ellsworth: Hello, and welcome to another Roofing Road Trips from RoofersCoffeeShop. This is Heidi Ellsworth, and we are here today to talk about revolutionary software. Things have moved so fast in the roofing industry over the last decade, and this, what we're talking about today, is putting it into hyper speed. I'm telling you, this is the coolest stuff.

So we have our friends here from Roofle, Chris Moor... Sorry, starting over. We have our friends here from Roofle, Chris Morris and Travis Harvego, and I'm so excited to welcome both of you to the show. Welcome.

Travis Harvego: Thanks for having us.

Chris Morris: Yeah.

Travis Harvego: It's good to be back. I think I did this a couple months ago, and it's good to be back again.

Heidi J. Ellsworth: Excellent. Well, let's start with some introductions. So Travis, can you introduce yourself, tell us a little bit about Roofle?

Travis Harvego: Yeah. I'm Travis, I'm the CEO and President with my cofounder of Roofle.

Heidi J. Ellsworth: And Chris, can you introduce yourself?

Chris Morris: Hey. Yeah, I'll do my best. Chris Morris, and I work with the partnerships for Roofle.

Heidi J. Ellsworth: Awesome. Travis, let's start out with what is Roofle? Who is Roofle? And a little bit of the history if you wouldn't mind, because I think it's fascinating.

Travis Harvego: Yeah. So we started this back in 2020 during the COVID times. We started originally as B2C, so we actually went and sold directly to consumers back in 2020 when we launched it. And so we did that for a couple of reasons. Number one, to test the product to see if the market was actually out there. The team and myself have always been pretty innovative in the construction industry because we came from a construction company for many years that we worked together.

And we went out and we said, "What are the biggest things that have come to the industry? We've seen so many changes. Can essentially this e-commerce slash price transparency thing actually be real as far as what homeowners actually want?" So we built the software and we launched it, and we were pretty successful at doing it. We've sold all over the country. It generated quite a bit of revenue that time.

And then the contractors started to come to us. They're like, "Hey, this is a cool idea. This is awesome. Love the website, love what you're doing. Can we get this? Can we start doing this?" And at that time we were actually a competitor of theirs because we were selling jobs against them. But they wanted the technology, so we ended up making the change. We said, "Okay, so going forward we're going to start selling software. We're now a software company. We're going to start selling the software to two contractors." And we made that switch.

We started writing code back in May of last year, and then we actually released our product in November of last year. We actually released the product to the general public. We did do a beta for a period of time, testing the product for a few months, but then we actually released it in November of last year. So we're just over a year old with our product. Seems like much longer. I've got quite a few gray hairs to prove it over that time period, but it's been fun.

It's been a fun time, but yeah, we essentially, we offer the ability for the homeowner to come to your website and be able to get essentially instant estimates on your website. So we actually embed that product onto the website, which allows that. It's fully white labeled and looks like it's actually the contractors' technology. So that's where we are today, a SaaS company selling software in the roofing space.

Heidi J. Ellsworth: I think it is a game changer for the industry. I mean, this is where homeowners can come in, they can get an instant bid. They can get to know the contractors, get to know what they're looking for. It just makes the whole process seamless.

And you have continued to improve. I mean, I've been watching. I've known you guys for a long time, been watching this. It's just such great technology. So let's talk a little bit about your Roof Quote PRO, and let's talk about that. Give us a little bit of history on Roof Quote PRO, and then let's talk about 2.0 and where it's coming. So Travis, maybe you can start us off.

Travis Harvego: Yeah. So Roof Quote PRO, and people get it confused. There's Roofle and there's Roof Quote PRO. So Roofle is the company itself, and then Roof Quote PRO essentially is the software that we sell.

But Roof Quote PRO has came a long way in the last year. We've had 11 different releases of different features, and sometimes even 20 features in each release.

Heidi J. Ellsworth: Wow.

Travis Harvego: We've seen features rapidly, always evolving. Because again, we have this tech stack of what we use to do essentially e-commerce kind of built up in our back pocket, it's just been able to redevelop it and release it to contractors. So we know what we want to build, and so we essentially have that pipeline full, but recently we've been able to essentially release essentially 2.0. Being able to now have, with integrations we've re-released with some of the biggest measurement companies that are out there, so now we can get measurements through our platform. We also have integration with Beacon as well, so now we have a direct order integration that came out.

Also, we're moving people more down that e-commerce, more prequalified leap path. We've been able to add waste factors and slopes, and all these different things as far as making this leap more qualified, more accurate. And then being able to move down that line towards that e-commerce. So a lot of integrations that we have, and then a lot of amazing features that we've added for that instant quote type capabilities.

Heidi J. Ellsworth: Yeah. You know what, I want to talk through, just so everyone listening out there, the process. I think that's important for the contractors. So Chris, maybe starting, maybe you can help with this question is when a contractor talks to Roofle and then says, "We want to do Roof Quote PRO," what is the process for that contractor in getting it engaged into their business and onto their website?

Chris Morris: Yeah, that's a great question. And I think really, when you talk about being built for contractors from contractors, I think it's important. Travis is a recovering contractor, I am as well and many of our teammates and folks are in that same camp. There are classes, Heidi, that you can go take, and support groups for recovering tractors.

But it's important. Tech stacks are great, and they want to be disruptive, but really what we think is it's the efficiency tool. And to be able to get it, what we see is typically a failure to launch, meaning hey, I went to a show, I saw you, I bought, but I didn't integrate it into my work process or workflow.

And so we want to make sure that we hand hold through that. So we do we have a help center? Yes, of course, and documentations and things that you can do yourself, but we also have a guided tour. We have a group of customer success folks that will get on and make sure that they take the time needed to get you to implement that into your current workflow.

And it's interesting, and to compound to what Travis said, we're not really creating the demand for the homeowner, we're simply harnessing it. So a homeowner wants to go look, they want to have an inquiry, they want to understand intimate details about their roof and about their home. They want to have a guide.

So really, if you think the other parts of our life, if we want to go find out what a property costs, right, what a home costs, what a boat with a car, tuition, whatever those big, monumental things in your life, you can go find a quote, or at least a range or guide to what that investment might look like. And so we're just bringing that to the roofing space.

Heidi J. Ellsworth: I think that's so important, because we are an Amazon society, right? We're used to being able to go online, look at prices, do research, then buy. And what you all are doing, in order to bring that process, that ability to the roofing contractors and I think, when we really look at the next generation, Travis, you gave a great presentation at the RCAW meeting, talking about the e-commerce and what the next generation is going to demand. Maybe talk just a little bit about that, because I think that's really important because some contractors think, oh, people don't want to come on and get just a quote, they want to talk to us. Well, this next generation doesn't really want to talk to anybody, they just want to go buy stuff.

Travis Harvego: Yeah. And me being a millennial myself, unfortunately I have to claim myself in that territory but that's what I am, and knowing how we were raised and really what we want is we want it when we want it, and we don't want to have to talk to people to get it. We want to be able to do our research, make our own conclusions, before we actually talk to the experts.

And so with being able to allow that generation to do so is really what this is all about, is that we can't control what the consumer wants. We have to adapt to what the consumer wants. So if we want to stay in our old ways, then naturally it's going to essentially push the consumers away.

And so those that are there to adapt to this next generation that's coming are going to be able to capture that audience and get more of that business. Millennials own just over one third of the homes today, which is shocking to believe, but they do. So they're starting to become more of the audience that we're dealing with, and we're going to be able to make them happy and get their business by being able to offer tools that they actually want.

But it's not all about just that. I actually had a story the other day, I'm going to tell a quick story.

Heidi J. Ellsworth: Yeah, yeah.

Travis Harvego: I was talking to a contractor, and he goes, "Man, I normally think of your technology and I'm successful with it, with typically the millennials and a little bit older type generation. The other day I had a 67 year old engineer come through my website and use the technology. The guy you would never think to use this technology came through, and he actually was the easiest customer to deal with, and he bought with me right on the spot."

And the guy goes, "You know why I'm using your company? It's because if you invest in tools like you have on your website, what are you doing behind the scenes that I'm not seeing?" And so he was just blown away by really what he had put into his business to allow him as the consumer to come there and be able to access that information upfront.

And so we're hearing more and more stories like that with our subscribers that are using the technology, such as like closing at an 80%, 70% close rate with all these ones they're going to out to because they're essentially the only ones that that consumer actually called out. Because it was the only person that they were able to get some sort of idea as far as what that price was. And I think it's becoming more and more important in the coming years as the consumer starts to change and say, "I want these things upfront."

Heidi J. Ellsworth: Yeah. And I don't mean to go too far down the rabbit hole of the generations, but one of the things I've seen with my generation is our kids... I have a millennial and I have a Gen Z, and they're teaching me, right? So you're right, it's not just the next generation, it's also some of us who are being taught, and seeing the technologies out there, and we are totally changing our buying habits around this because it's so much easier, and we're so busy in life overall.

And so it brings me back to some of the, I think of that story you just told, Travis, with the 67 year old man but also all these young buyers out there, they also want to be validated. They want to know that the technology, the integrations, everything is strong. And having been part of the EagleView startup, so I relate to your startup story of course, Travis, but having been part of that, that kind of technology combined I think is so powerful. So Chris, maybe talk a little bit about EagleView, GAF Quick Measure and how it's working with Roof Quote PRO and how it validates the measurements and everything else that goes along with it.

Chris Morris: Yeah, I think it's more of a complimentary story, so great technologies that are out there, but it's harnessing the demand from the front end. So we've got primary demand, right? So the end user going through a technology, and then being able to compliment that on the backend, so go get the detailed measurements you're going to be able to create a rec order or a work order to be able to go purchase. So it's just complimentary in the demand, and then harnessing it, and then making sure that you have that file proposal ready to go and you can trust the end results.

And something interesting too with Travis's story is we saw through 2020 and 2021, we saw the new generation jumping into QR codes. So if you wanted to go to a restaurant and you wanted to eat, you needed to have a phone that took a picture that got the menu.

So we saw a lot of people being pulled into, whether they want to or not, into this. So while we're talking about online capabilities, there's offline ramifications to this in a positive manner. You're able to go put a QR code, you're able to put a door hanger, you're able to go a leave behind or a direct mail piece to where you have a QR code so people can interact on their phone and be able to have that some sort of environment that they find online.

Heidi J. Ellsworth: Yeah.

Chris Morris: So we're going to talk online, it's great, but we're finding more and more success stories of folks using it at point of sale or offline as well, being able to connect that to things like Quick Square and Quick Measurements, and being able to with EagleView. It's just complimentary tech stack. And we have with webhooks and CRM integrations and all, I think the software, the SaaS product that wins is the one that complements the other investments of a contractor.

Heidi J. Ellsworth: Yeah, I agree, I agree. I want to go back, because I really love what you're saying there about the QR codes and the marketing. And really, using this technology on the Roof Quote PRO technology, is the contractor has to use it, or the roofing company should. You don't have to, but you should use it, like you said, across the board. I mean, this should be something that is just so ingrained in your marketing plan and in your culture and how you're talking around e-commerce, Chris, maybe talk a little bit about how contractors, continue that thought, how contractors need to incorporate this across and how it's helping them.

Chris Morris: Yeah, absolutely, Heidi. And I think, really, it's nothing new. It's still... The same marketing principles applied 100 years ago that do today, it's just the vehicle in which you get there. And so that's what this platform is, is you're creating demand by a give to get scenario. They give you your address, you return something. They give you information, you return something very intimate to that property or to those homeowners or property owners.

So you're able to do that, so you think about the CTAs, right? Buy one window, get 1000 free. What makes people take the next step? And we've seen a ton of contractors say, "Home of the instant quote. Find the price of your roof in 27 seconds. See what your claim may be." All those different sort of things that are just creating that environment for that homeowner or that property owner to take the next step. And as we know, we're a give to get society, so they give a little information, they get a ton back.

And to Travis's point earlier is what we keep hearing over and over again, that these are project ready buyers. They've gone in and we've seen their time onsite exponentially increase from an average of less than a minute to seven, eight minutes. And really, again, to talk about working in a complimentary fashion or in concert with other things, well, guess what? They're going to go see what the price of their roof could be. They're going to go look at the colors and the products that you feature and that support you. And then they're going to go look at the team page and the About Us page, and they're going to go look at your reviews, and all that. So it compliments what good contractors are doing today.

So it's really an additive to their workflow, and allows them to have homeowners, we keep talking about it, none of us want to go across town to a one legger that thinks it's going to be $2,000 and it's really $22,000. So you can think of it as a lead efficiency tool as well.

Heidi J. Ellsworth: Makes total sense. And Travis, having used this as a roofing contractor within the business, to me, even through EagleView and through some of the other projects that I worked on, there is a cultural shift that has to go on within your company. Your sales team has to understand it, the e-commerce is part of it. Your operations, your front office. Talk a little bit about that, that really cultural shift to first technology, and then I think, everybody's been making that shift to technology, but now we're getting ready to make that shift to e-commerce, which is another leap. So talk a little bit about that.

Travis Harvego: Yeah, it's been a fun ride for sure. We got run out of a few buildings when we would go into there, talking about price transparency has been the biggest one. And that's kind of the first piece. And we know this is going to take time for adoption, people are going to be able to get used to it. It's the same thing when EagleView first came out, and it was like, why do I want to buy that report when I can use my tape measure still? And then slowly, ask anybody, "Who has a tape measure?" And no roofer carries a tape measure anymore. Right?

So you slowly see that transition, but it's having the same message. Really, a lot of this, what this has been about is talking about price transparency, like when they tell us that they shouldn't show their price online, it's like, "Why not?" Essentially, that's really what the consumer is all about now as far as being able to have some sort of price transparency, and now contractors are starting to understand it, adopt it and then that also goes into it's kind of hand in hand, but speed to lead too, which is a big thing that we keep talking about, too. So many contractors take hours or days to get back to these customers, and they're like, "Well, I can't set appointments. I'm paying so much for marketing and I can't get any appointments set."

So we talk to a lot of contractors about speed to lead also. It's not only about just showing your price, getting the conversion. Now we do that afterwards. It's like, "Well, I'm sure Suzy in the office is fantastic, but if you have 20 of these things coming through every day, she probably can't get back to them. So let's look at other processes within your business on how we can get back to them in seconds."

We should be contacting them in under 30 seconds while they're still on your website. That's the benefit about our technology is that you know they're on your website because they're going through that experience right now. When their information comes through give them a call, they're still shopping on your website, and having a conversation while they're still on the website.

And then we start making the shift towards e-commerce. Now we start to talk about the whole e-commerce thing, like, "Okay, now you see that essentially price transparency is okay. It hasn't affected your business that much. Everyone else is starting to really adapt it." You're getting the leads down, you're getting back to customers quickly, and now we just have to look at what are your thoughts on e-commerce? And they're like, "Oh, yeah, let's hold up a second there." It's like explain to me how that works.

And so we essentially became consultants, kind of. This is what we have to do in a space where people are not used to these changes. They look to the people that have done them and are preaching them to say, "How do we do it? How can it be done?

I think that's what we really value ourselves on. Whenever we demo a contractor and show them the technology, how they do it, it may not be a good fit for them. And we're okay telling them that. That essentially maybe right now, for you, it's not a good fit. If we can do X, Y and Z and we can get these things going within your business, I think it'd be a great fit for you.

But I think that we lay it out for them very well and educate them, and giving them the tools with the software to be successful. That eventually we'll get to where everybody says, "Okay, we're ready for e-commerce." But it takes, obviously, a little bit of time.

We have a couple guys that are pounding the table and they're already doing it. They've already figured out their own way of doing it, and I think we'll have others soon to follow. But it's a movement. Now, I show a video all the time about a movement, starting a movement and we were the first guys talking about it. I was the crazy guy talking about it in the building and they're like, "Get out of here, you don't know what you're talking about." And now we're starting to see that group kind of coming together, pulling together as far as they're doing it, they're being successful at it, and they're looking and waiting for that next thing that's going to happen as we go through this big change and this big evolution in this industry.

Heidi J. Ellsworth: Go ahead, Chris.

Chris Morris: Well, I just think metrics don't lie.

Heidi J. Ellsworth: Right.

Chris Morris: So a metrics driven business and being able to look at time onsite, being able to look at organic conversion rates. Being able to go, and some of those anecdotal, right, on close rates and all that, nor would we share a contractor's close rates, but we're hearing it, we're seeing it.

So you're just thinking about, by hook or by crook, you're driving people to your site. Whether you're a direct canvasser, whether you have a paid search on social, big SEO strategies, it doesn't matter. You're paying one way or the other to drive people to your brand. And once they get there, what are you doing?

And so we always hear, "More leads." Well, what if we were able just to convert the leads that you're already getting at a higher rate? And all the way through the sales process.

And so the thing that's really interesting is just to look at the metrics, and we know how people buy. We know that onsite, and because we use a strategy called UTM, so they stay on their site, stay on their brand and then they're able to go shop. Meaning they're able to go look at past projects, look at customer reviews. And then this is just a vehicle that really ties it all together.

So we really kind of have an e-commerce in the box. So a contractor can sign up, go to an hour or two hour long onboarding thing and then, voila, they're able to go do it. And then say, "Hey, don't trust us. Put it on your site and go see the results yourself."

Heidi J. Ellsworth: Yeah. See the numbers. It's all driven by data.

Chris Morris: Correct. Yep.

Heidi J. Ellsworth: Okay. So much of this now, and with this, your new integration. I don't know how new, but the newer integration with Beacon, that's another game changer. I mean, when you start integrating with the distributors and making that flow and that easy, so Travis, tell us about that integration.

Travis Harvego: Yeah. That goes hand in hand with the EagleView integration, the GAF Quick Measure integration, because we know that essentially for them to be able to order or send an order to Beacon, they need detailed measurements. They need something that gives them those detailed measurements, which in our technology, we don't give those types of measurements, so they have to have one of those.

So we want to be able to keep them in the platform and be able to keep them flowing very well in the platform, also controlled by the homeowner. So in our platform, the homeowner can request this final proposal which then orders this EagleView or measurement in the background, and then it's already starting that process to already start happening while they're clicking buttons.

And so with having those detailed measurements those things come back, and then you can automatically convert those measurements into an order through our Beacon integration. So we take the eaves, ridges, whatever, that they prebuild out templates for their products as far as what ridge they use, or shingles, whatever it is. You take the measurements, you then convert those over into how many bundles and how many rolls or whatever it is, and then be able to directly then order them right through the platform.

So again, it's that pathway essentially to e-commerce, really one platform, to where you can export it, we have great ways to export all of your stuff over to a CRM if you want to, very friendly with all of them. But a lot of the contractors don't have CRMs. And they don't use CRMs, maybe they're not large enough to have a CRM. And then they want to have some sort of direct order integration, our platform is a great way to be able to do that direct order integration, or send that order directly to Beacon right there in our platform.

So we just want to have it as seamless as possible, have many different avenues for the contractor as possible to make it easy for them to be able to streamline their orders. I know as a contractor I always wanted to try to streamline every process. If I can keep things automated, if I can keep it through technology, things can move faster. They're not relying on humans to send emails or faxes or whatever, however that they were sending them. We can click a few buttons and then we're automatically sending those things directly to our supplier.

And then we're also getting real time delivery tracking, and photos after the delivery has been dropped. You've been able to track those things in there. But again, if you want to push the links, those things over to your CRM, you're allowed to as well.

Heidi J. Ellsworth: Well, and just, I mean, let's look in our crystal ball into the future. Homeowner comes in, they see what they want, they buy it, goes to Beacon. It goes to operations. They have a house. Next. I mean, that's phenomenal. That's like The Jetsons.

Travis Harvego: It's not too far away to where ultimately that homeowner is essentially, I mean, you look at your Amazon app, and when you make an order with something you can see as far as where it's going, when it's coming. And then even a lot of times when that package is on its way, you can track it in your app as far as where your delivery driver is and how many stops he is away.

Imagine that homeowner essentially being able to track that in their customer portal that they have, where they're seeing when it's going to arrive, what's the delivery date, without you having to constantly call them and try to get all of them. You're able to automate text to notify them, or they can access it themselves in their customer portal that they can then see as far as where that tracking may be. So it's not too far off to where those things will be reality actually happening.

Heidi J. Ellsworth: And I have to say, the medical world has gotten us all used to having to use portals. So no one is that scared of portals anymore, in fact, you kind of like it. Everything's there, I can figure it out.

Okay. Let's talk about how contractors can start using this, start using Roof Quote PRO 2.0 and start incorporating it into their business. So Travis, how do they get started?

Travis Harvego: It all starts, we always encourage everybody to do a demo with us. That's where it all starts. Meet with our team. We have a great team that will show you the technology, how it works, how it can be implemented within your business.

Usually it takes about 30 to 45 minutes to go through that process with them. Ask as many questions as you want to. We'll give you all the feedback. If you need to talk to maybe some resources, or see some of the things that you need to see, we'll get all those handled on that call.

Then we'll look as far as what package best fits you. Will it be a monthly package or a yearly package? We have two different packages, we'll go through all that with you as well. And then you can go ahead and make the choice, the smart choice in your business to say, "Yeah, I'm going to implement this within my company." And then we will set up a two hour... First it's a one hour onboarding call, then we do a second if necessary, just to verify and check everything's good and everything like that. But then we book that onboarding call, we go through that process.

We get you onboard and set, and then we'll do monthly check ins with the contractors as far as making sure they have everything they need. They also get a customer success team that they get access to and when they have any questions or anything like that comes up, they can always reach out to them and we'll get back to them as far as if there's anything that needs to be done, or fixed, or however we can help them with their process.

But it starts with doing a demo. Get a demo of Roof Quote PRO and see if it's the next greatest thing within your business in the next year.

Heidi J. Ellsworth: That is great. I love this. I love watching where you're going with it. Chris and Travis, thank you so much. This is so inspirational, and I just think, as I said earlier, it is a total game changer for the industry. So thank you so much for sharing all this information, and how to get going. I really loved having you on this podcast.

Travis Harvego: Thank you.

Chris Morris: Awesome.

Travis Harvego: Thank you, Heidi.

Heidi J. Ellsworth: Thank you. And thank you all for listening. Please reach out. Check out the directory on RoofersCoffeeShop for Roofle. Reach out for a demo. This is the perfect, perfect goal for 2024 for you and your business, so check it out right away.

Please also listen to all the podcasts that are out there. We've been busy lately, so there's some great podcasts under the RLW navigation under Roofing Road Trips, or of course you can find them on your favorite podcast channel. Just hit that subscribe, and hit the notifications so you don't miss a single episode. We'll be seeing you next time on Roofing Road Trips.

Outro: Make sure to subscribe to our channel and leave a review. Thanks for listening. This has been Roofing Road Trips with Heidi from the RoofersCoffeeShop.com.