EP 519: When Did Home Repairs Get This Easy

What makes Chris Blake with Blake and Sons Garage Doors a good neighbor?

We talk with Chris Blake of Blake and Sons Garage Doors about one of the most common homeowner frustrations: a garage door that suddenly stops working when you need it most. Chris shares practical insights into the small issues that often cause major headaches and explains why many garage door problems are simpler than homeowners initially fear.

Chris discusses how he learned the garage door industry through hands on experience and built a company focused on helping everyday homeowners with honest service and reliable solutions. He explains one of the most common misconceptions he encounters, the belief that every garage door problem requires an expensive repair. In many cases, issues can be traced back to safety sensors that have been bumped, blocked, or knocked out of alignment.

We also explore what a trustworthy garage door service experience should look like. Chris shares how his team often uses photos, videos, and phone calls to help diagnose issues before scheduling a visit. When possible, they guide homeowners through simple fixes remotely, helping customers save both time and money. He also discusses common repair timelines and what homeowners can expect when dealing with spring replacements, opener repairs, and other routine garage door issues.

Throughout the conversation, Chris emphasizes the importance of communication, transparency, and setting realistic expectations before any work begins. Those principles have helped Blake and Sons Garage Doors grow primarily through referrals and word of mouth from satisfied customers.

If you are a homeowner looking to better understand garage door maintenance, common repair issues, and how to avoid unnecessary service calls, this conversation offers practical advice and helpful tips you can use right away.

Subscribe, share, and leave a review with your question for the next episode.

Guest Info: Blake and Sons Garage Doors | https://www.blakeandsonsgaragedoors.com/ | (214) 326-6000

Transcript

Welcome To Good Neighbor Podcast

SPEAKER_00 0:00

This is the Good Neighbor Podcast, the place where local businesses and neighbors come together. Here's your host, Sophia Naval.

SPEAKER_01 0:10

Welcome to the Good Neighbor Podcast. Are you in need of a garage door company? Well, one maybe closer than you think. Today I have the pleasure of introducing your good neighbor, Chris Blake, with Blake and Sons Garage Doors. Chris, it's great to have you on today. Now we are excited to learn more about you and your business. So go ahead and tell us a little bit more about your company to kick things off.

Meet Blake And Sons Garage Doors

SPEAKER_02 0:38

All right. Well, we've been in business for over a decade now. We have a whole crew that can handle almost any size project. But we really want to primarily focus on just your run-of-the-mill average homeowner that has a garage door that just needs normal maintenance, whether it be by an accident or just normal wear and tear. So that's what we're trying to focus on.

SPEAKER_01 1:03

Wonderful.

How Chris Learned The Trade

SPEAKER_01 1:04

Now, diving a little bit more into your backstory here, how did you come up with the idea for this business? And originally, how did you get into it?

SPEAKER_02 1:15

Originally, uh I actually worked for my uncle, who owns a garage door company uh much further east than DFW. He helped me get started. Um, I worked with him over the weekends and learned the business. Uh, really got to have the hands-on experience directly from another owner that had been in business since the early 90s. So I got a lot of really good experience there. And then uh he helped me start my own here about a decade ago. And uh from there just kind of took off.

The Safety Beam Misconception

SPEAKER_01 1:47

Wow, Chris, you make you probably come across so many different situations in your industry, but what is that number one misconception that you tend to come across on the day-to-day when you're helping out some of these residents?

SPEAKER_02 2:02

I think the most common thing I run into is uh the safety beams on a garage door. Most people will bump them or have something in the way uh that block the safety beams and it causes the door not to be able to close. So the door will start to come down and then it'll stop and come back up. And they they think they need to have someone like me come out when it's really such a simple thing. They just need to check the safety beams, make sure that they're lined up, and make sure whatever they put in the way is moved out of the way. Um, we can usually walk people through over the phone at no charge and make sure they're taken care of for free.

SPEAKER_01 2:40

Wow, that's a wonderful service.

Who They Serve And Referrals

SPEAKER_01 2:42

Now, we're gonna go ahead and switch gears here for a second, get down to the heart of your business. Now, marketing is the heart of every business, and we say that because you know, without the clients, there is no business. So, ideally, who are you looking to attract and how are you attracting them today?

SPEAKER_02 3:02

So, our our ideal client is going to be someone uh in the middle class, um, has just a normal home, two-car garage, ideally, you know, two or three-car garage, uh, which is really what you see most in the north uh Dallas area, like Plano, Frisco, Crossburger, Salina, those really growing areas. Uh, not to rule out all the other areas around DFW, because we do service the whole Metroplex, uh, but just that middle income range, you know, between 100 and 150,000 uh income per year. Uh not to exclude anyone that makes more money. Obviously, we do all sorts of custom things as well for our you know more affluent clientele. And as far as marketing goes, we uh most of our business is actually referral and word of mouth. So we don't spend a whole lot in marketing. So really uh you find us, it's usually because we took care of someone really well and they want to share a name.

SPEAKER_01 4:01

Wow, Chris, you are definitely educating us all today.

YouTube How To Plans

SPEAKER_01 4:05

Have you ever thought about having your own podcast to continue educating your potential clients?

SPEAKER_02 4:12

Uh not a podcast. We we've been uh a YouTube channel is in the works uh doing some simple how-to's like how to align the safety beams, how to program remotes, very basic stuff. And uh, we are working on that now. Uh it's just a work in progress.

SPEAKER_01 4:30

Wonderful.

Jujitsu Life Outside Work

SPEAKER_01 4:31

And when you're not working on some of these garages, you know, outside of work, what do you like to do for fun?

SPEAKER_02 4:39

Uh so actually, me and my kids, uh, we all do jujitsu, which is a lot like wrestling or grappling. So I actually do coach uh some small kids uh in the evening times. So that's something I'm very passionate about, and as well as my kids, and they help coach and also they compete uh here in all the local tournaments. So it's a lot of fun.

SPEAKER_01 5:04

Well, that is really, really awesome to hear.

Troubleshooting Process And Pricing

SPEAKER_01 5:07

Now, jumping back into your business here for a second, when it comes to solving some of these day-to-day garage door problems, you know, what is the process you typically walk your clients through?

SPEAKER_02 5:23

So normally we obviously get to call first. Um, we ask some basic questions like is it not closing or is it not opening? Uh thankfully, with technology now, I can usually get a picture through text message uh or a video call and we can look at it together, go through some basic troubleshooting steps. Uh, and then if it's something simple like a safety beam, we can walk you through it and you're fixed. Uh but from that point, if it's something that we can't fix over the phone, we'll schedule a time usually within the same day or next day. And uh we try to offer a price range, you know, based on what we can discuss over the phone. Obviously, that's not you know 100% just because we don't know everything that could be going on with it, but we try to give people a realistic expectation of cost before we even show up. So that way when we show up, it's not a surprise and everything is out and open and uh you can feel confident that you're getting a reliable service that you can trust.

SPEAKER_01 6:28

So, Chris, realistically, how can some of these um fixes

Typical Repair Times Explained

SPEAKER_01 6:33

take?

SPEAKER_02 6:35

Like how long? Or uh most repairs will take under an hour. So uh obviously that varies on the size of door. Uh but most residential homes repairs between 20 and 45 minutes is very common. Uh like opener replacements, like if you're replacing the motor or if a spring breaks, those all take uh an hour or less. Uh replacements typically take probably two to three hours.

Where To Find Blake And Sons

SPEAKER_01 7:05

And final question for you: where can our listeners go to learn more about Blake and Sons garage doors?

SPEAKER_02 7:13

Uh the best way is our website, it's Blake and Sons Garage Doors.com uh or uh sending me a text uh at our phone number, which is also on our website. Um, so yeah, just very easy to reach. Uh emails on there and our website is a great link. It goes directly to me and I respond to everyone.

SPEAKER_01 7:33

Wonderful. And for our listeners who are listening today, what is that best website for you?

SPEAKER_02 7:41

That's uh Blakeands Garage Doors.com.

SPEAKER_01 7:46

Well, Chris, I really appreciate you being on the show today. We wish you and your business the best moving forward.

SPEAKER_00 7:53

Thank you so much for having

Nominate A Local Business

SPEAKER_00 7:55

me. Thank you for listening to the Good Neighbor Podcast. To nominate your favorite local businesses to be featured on the show, go to gmpfrisco.com. That's gmpfrisco.com or call four six nine two two one nine three four five.