In this video, I share part 1 of a conversation I had with Jeff Novotny of Field Nation. He is their Director of Marketplace Provider Operations. Jeff and I discuss how YouTube can be used as a tool to help techs improve their skills. We discuss what Field Nation techs want, what they need to succeed, and the struggles new techs face getting started on Field Nation.
Want to join Field Nation and earn real money? Sign up here:
https://fieldnation.com
💼 Want to Earn More with Direct Clients?
📢 Work with 40+ Direct Client Field Nation Alternative Companies that offer service calls like Field Nation and Work Market.
👉 Get the Direct Client Package: https://fieldtechacademy.com/direct/
🤔 Have questions about:
Field Nation?
Work Market?
CloudWork Pro?
Field Nation alternative companies?
Other on-demand field tech platforms?
Want me to cover something specific in a video?
💬Drop a comment on the video or contact me directly:
🔗 https://fieldtechacademy.com/contact-us/
🌟 About Michael Firey
👨💻 Experience:
I.T. field tech freelancer since 2000 working with Field Nation alternative direct clients.
Field Nation I.T. field technician since 2010
WorkMarket I.T. field technician since 2011
Local small business owner since 1997
🎯 Mission:
Field Tech Academy is here to share 20+ years of IT Field industry secrets and help you succeed as an Independent IT Field Tech.
📺 Watch & Learn
💡 Learn how to become a successful IT field tech with our expert tips and insights.
🔗 Watch now: https://youtube.com/@fieldtechacademy
🌐 Resources for Your Success
✅ Direct Client Package: Learn how to earn more by working with nationwide Field Nation alternative clients.
🔗 https://www.fieldtechacademy.com/direct
✅ One-on-One Coaching: https://fieldtechacademy.com/shop/
📌 Skillset & Equipment List:
Need help filling out your Field Nation or Work Market profiles? Download my ready-to-use skillset and equipment list to stand out from the competition.
🔗 https://fieldtechacademy.com/product/field-nation-skillset-equipment-lists/
🤝 Connect with Us!
📌 LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/company/fieldtechacademy
📌 Facebook: https://facebook.com/fieldtechacademy
📌 Reddit: https://www.reddit.com/r/fieldtechacademy
📌 Contact Us: https://fieldtechacademy.com/contact-us/
❤️ Support Our Channel
💸 Tip Jar: Love our content? Leave us a tip to support the channel:
🔗https://fieldtechacademy.com/product/tipjar
🛒 Amazon Shopping: Bookmark this Amazon home page link and use it for all your Amazon purchases. Every click helps support our work!
🔗https://amzn.to/4g0qsV9
🎥 Video Transcript
Hello, this is Michael with Field Tech Academy.
In today’s video, I’m going to be sharing a conversation that I had with Jeff Novotny.
The director of marketplace provider operations at Field Nation.
We had a lengthy discussion and so I have made three different videos out of our conversation.
In this first video, Jeff and I are discussing how YouTube can actually serve as a tool to educate technicians.
We discuss what technicians want,
what technicians need,
and struggles that new technicians face.
Let’s get into it.
I’m Jeff Novotny. I’m the
director of marketplace provider operations here at Field Nation. I’ve been at Field Nation for a little over two years, but I’ve got about 25 years in the field service industry managing technicians, in both the telecom and the IT industries,
across
the US, Canada,
and a global environment.
Excited to speak with you today, Michael,
regarding
Field Nation and
the opportunities
we have with providers joining
our network.
My name is Michael
Firey and I’m with Field Tech Academy.
I am also a Field Nation provider.
I’ve been on Field Nation since 2011,
and I’ve done hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of business on Field Nation.
So I have
several years of experience being an employer
as well as a technician.
I
teach technicians about this industry
Because a a lot of them don’t even know the industry exists,
So a lot of times Field Nation is their first exposure to it.
I’m just fascinated by
that medium,
and the use of YouTube and how folks get involved in it and,
provide the, the content that’s out there. I because I’m a consumer of it. Right. Like I’m, I’m a consumer of whether
I’m
looking at field tech information or I’m just working on my truck.
I consume the
the information that’s out there and I love it.
That’s been so funny. Like on some of my videos you get the haters that will comment and they’ll be like anybody that that gets their information from some YouTube channel doesn’t deserve to be a tech.
I’m like, this is the new world.
That’s the information sharing. You’re absolutely right. That’s how you knowledge share.
And that’s the network. That’s the beauty of networking. And actually that is a, probably a great way to start in and talk about how
really what we’re talking about are just networks of relationships
and networks of talent
and
networks of knowledge.
You obviously are diving into the network of knowledge with with your channel. And what is Field Nation, what do techs need, and just in general in the industry.
And
we have a network of,
as a marketplace, of buyers and providers. And how do we connect those. And, and I think everything is
is really just getting into those, those networks
and just kind of exploring them. So I, I use the network, again, as for knowledge as well. The YouTube network.
It enhances my life at work and enhances my life at home.
I even use it for my technical skills that like even Excel spreadsheets. Like I go out there and I learned how to do Excel.
So does that mean I’m not
a good
business acumen because I have to go to YouTube to figure out how to
write this complex formula? No, I’m just learning.
So I, I certainly do appreciate you. And I certainly appreciate you taking the time to do this. I think this is a win win for, for Field Nation and for you,
and actually
techs. The tech, all the techs out there that are trying to get into the industry and learn and figure out,
you know, how to get into the industry, how to survive in the industry, and how to grow their business in the industry.
I think this is a fantastic,
a way to do this. So,
All right Michael. So
as we start talking about
the providers that are out there and Field Nation.
I am very curious, from your perspectives, I know you talked to a lot of techs a lot of times.
As we talk about what techs,
as they approach the marketplace,
what do you feel like they need to know?
First of all, what do techs want
out of the marketplace? And then what do they maybe need to know
to access the marketplace and be successful in it? Is there any kind of high level themes
or things that you hear
from techs?
Well, I feel like A lot of the techs, especially the new techs, really struggle with getting tickets up front. They just they’ll come in to the platform and they’ll bid on tickets and they’ll bid on tickets, and they just they feel like they’re not getting any tickets assigned to them.
And I’m sure that’s hard. even, you know, because I try to think of it from the buyer perspective, too. You know, because I’ve been a buyer in the past, you know, I used to have a national network of technicians before OnForce and Field Nation and all these platforms existed.
And I built that up. And it’s always a question of, can I trust this tech to do the job?
Can I trust that they’ll show up? That’s always the first thing. Will they even show up?
So from a buyer perspective, I’m sure it makes them a little nervous to
assign a ticket to a tech they’ve never seen before.
That has no ratings,
and they can tell is new.
But of course, then on the flip side, a new technician is trying to get established. So it’s it’s a catch 22. You’ve got both sides of the equation. You know the guy I think the technician is just trying to get out there to make either maybe some extra money
or hopefully get themselves established where they can make a living off of Field Nation and and this industry.
That’s interesting. I know from our perspective we see techs coming in and I would say the probably the biggest thing for the providers that are signing up
is they’re absolutely hungry for the work.
They want the work. They want the experience. They want, How do I how do I fast track to get the experience that I need,
to build my
customer relationships, my customer network.
I know it can be frustrating right out of the gate
when they’re starting, Because they want to start at the top. Everybody wants to start at
the top,
But you have to build that, that momentum.
I mean, we’ve seen some best practices that have been successful of taking some smaller jobs, some, some less lucrative jobs just to get your name out there.
To start to build your reputation,
to establish your quality work history,
and then you can kind of start to move
your scope of work, your complexity of job, to the right a little bit.
with that also comes
potentially even more lucrative jobs,
more complex jobs, and
bigger customers and bigger names. And it just kind of snowballs after that. But that getting started can be frustrating for sure.
for techs. So is that kind of a common theme that you, you hear do techs have trouble
getting a foothold and started?
I think that is probably the number one thing that I hear. Because I follow a Field Nation group on Reddit,
and of course techs comment on my videos.
The biggest thing is,
I
can’t get those first few jobs.
And so I’ve kind of even one of my videos went into trying to say,
like what you just mentioned,
what do you need to do? Go after jobs that other techs don’t want.
And that can be jobs that don’t pay as well. Because,
like you said, everybody wants to start at the top.
But
you’re coming into the platform, nobody knows you.
You don’t have a reputation. So you have to think of it more as a marathon instead of a sprint.
And so you’ve got to take
that crummy little $25 job.
You’ve got to take a job that’s maybe an hour and a half, two hours away, that nobody else wants to drive to.
You’ve got to make those sacrifices on the front end to establish yourself, to establish your reputation, and of course
the next step in that is to actually do the job,
do it well,
and get yourself a rating from the buyer
by being excellent.
That takes time. It’s not going to be a fast process.
I agree. I think patience is key right up front.
I think another key is, is really
put some investment in marketing yourself.
Making sure that your profile
is
fully up to date and accurate,
and easy to read.
Professional pictures
and when you’re requesting work, professional outreaches, perhaps even in the messages
that
market yourself
to try and catch the attention of buyers.
I would also suggest that maybe
for your profile, making sure you’re aligned with industry requirements
that are out there.
There’s a lot of demand for the right licenses, the right certifications,
and making sure those are uploaded and accurate on your profile.
Hey, Michael.
Great talking to your brother.
Good talking to you.
Thank you. Sir,
I appreciate you taking the time to watch this video with Jeff Novotny and I.
If you’re interested in signing up with Field Nation,
visit their website at
fieldnation.com.
if you got value today, please smash that like button
and subscribe to the channel.
Be sure to visit my website at fieldtechacademy.com.
I have some digital downloads that can help strengthen your Field Nation profile.
I also offer one on one coaching.
I can assist you with getting started on Field Nation or having better results.
As always, let’s get you out in the field making money. I’ll see you in the next video.