This morning Steve Dalbec put his shoes on, walked into the decked-out Home Video Studio in his suburban Denver residence and began his day’s work by firing up the rack of equipment that is part and parcel of his trade. At that moment his colleague, Chad Godfrey pulled into a parking space near his suburban Kansas City storefront, admired the Home Video Studio sign adorning the front of his business, and smiled with pride as he unlocked the door and turned on the lights.
Dalbec and Godfrey are both owners of Home Video Studio franchises - the world’s largest franchisor of video services businesses with locations across the nation as well as Canada and Sweden.
This afternoon Steve received a hearty “thank-you” from a proud dad watching his daughter’s basketball scholarship video, knowing her chances of going to college have just improved greatly. Chad will shortly get an appreciative squeeze of his hand from an eighty-four year old great-grandmother who thought her old 8mm film and the precious images it holds was lost forever.
Steve and Chad stand ready with the equipment and know-how it takes to provide twenty-seven video services for consumers and corporations, including video production, editing and graphics design, DVD and CD Duplication, Video to DVD transfers, Photo Video Keepsake montages, Greenscreen Videography, Sports Videos and Corporate/Organizational videos.
This evening Steve will sit in his home office counting his receipts and remembering his satisfied customers. Chad will lock his storefront, think of the lives he touched and take his deposits to the bank. Steve Dalbec recently had a $25,547 month. Grossing between $5,000 and $7,000 a week is not uncommon with Chad Godfrey, whose best week ever was over $15,000!
This is a tale of two successful Home Video Studio owners with the same happy ending. Steve and Chad make money in a fulfilling and much needed service by providing “Video Services for Everyone.” How do they do it?
For starters the raw material is everywhere – ready to be duplicated, changed to a more modern format, or created into something entirely new. Who doesn’t have old photos, videos, 8mm and 16mm film or DVD’s? Who doesn’t worry that their memories might fall victim to time and elements? Who doesn’t have a dream to create something touching and meaningful from these contents? “We work with our customers’ needs at any and every step of the way,” says founder and president of Home Video Studio Robert Hanley. “From something as simple as a copy of a wedding to a complex creative masterpiece we have the means to give the customer what they need. This is why we say “Video Services for Everyone.”
But even the most abundant of raw material needs to be mined. This is where the marketing experience of Robert Hanley and the support team at Home Video Studio headquarters really shine.
“Around here we say, You’re in business for yourself, but not by yourself,” says Chad. “Robert Hanley and the franchise team have a lot to do with our success. The franchise is a ‘video business system’ that’s proven and works very well, just like plugging into a conduit flowing with electricity. Their training and constant encouragement are there to always keep us focused on what’s important, the fundamentals of running the business to constantly keep it successful.”
Steve notes, “By having the equipment that I have, coupled with the unparalleled training that Home Video Studio provides throughout the year I have found a way to make money at providing video services. I have not only learned technical skills, but marketing skills through the support system of Home Video Studio.” Although Steve and Chad are both Home Video Studio franchisees they turned their passion into a profitable business in two different ways. Steve came to the Home Video Studio family after a thirty year career at UPS, where, as an industrial engineer he diagnosed data and planned for expansion. The son of a professional photographer, however, he always harbored a passion for media. This led him to shooting and editing his kids’ scouts, dance and sports events. When Dalbec spotted an ad for Home Video Studio he saw examples of people who had turned this same passion for video into a business. “That ad, coupled with certain events that demanded that we move back home to Colorado helped me decide to remake a career as well,” says Dalbec.
That decision paid off. Besides posting a record year in sales, Steve has also taken home some prizes for his video excellence at the Hanley Awards, Home Video Studio’s annual awards program. Most notably Steve garnered Rookie of the year, Rookie Video of the Year and The Rising Star Award.
Always a creative guy Chad has loved being in video production for a large part of his life. Looking for a business framework for success he found it five years ago in Home Video Studio. He started part-time but decided to go full time within five months. Chad has never looked back, garnering Rookie of the Year in 2005, Studio Owner of the Year 2006, and the President’s Award in 2007. Chad also has thirty-one Hanley Awards. On the roster of the top sales performers nearly every week, he is particularly excited about his new storefront, which opened in July of 2009. That first month saw over $19,000.00 in sales! This beautiful new location boasts many amenities including a front reception area, an edit suite, and a production/shooting area.
What does the future hold for these two Home Video Studio owners? Steve aptly sums it up: “I literally believe that everyone is my customer,” says Steve. “Unless you’re a hermit or a spinster you most likely have a need for what I do. We live in such a video age that with hard work plus the visibility, support and ongoing training I receive as a Home Video Studio owner I should stay busy for a long time to come.”
http://www.sbomag.com/articals/SBO/2010/july/fast-forward/index.html
Posts
