MARVIN JOLES
IN THE MIX
The Offseason Blueprint:
Setting Up 2026 to Be Your Best Season Yet
W hen the last load of sealer’ s drained and the temps start dropping, most contractors finally exhale. The phone quiets down. The trucks cool off. Now, if you’ re like me, the first quiet couple weeks are welcomed, but then always hits the question: What Now? The truth is, the offseason is when next season is built. Every championship team is made in the offseason and our businesses in this industry are no different. Whether you run a one truck operation or manage a multi crew company, what you do between now and March determines how smooth, profitable, and stress-free your 2026 season will be. Here’ s where my head’ s at as we close out the year.
MARVIN JOLES
Events like ConExpo / ConAgg, PaveX, or NAPA’ s Annual Meeting are where you hear what’ s next, meet people solving the same challenges, and get fired up again. You don’ t even have to leave town as you can join virtual summits or hop on industry webinars from suppliers and manufacturers. If you attend just one event this offseason, go in with intention: take notes, shake hands, and ask questions. Most of my biggest breakthroughs, from pricing strategy to marketing inspiration, came from conversations over coffee( and beer) with other contractors.
Dial In the Equipment
Your equipment is your livelihood, and downtime next summer costs way more than repair time in winter. Take a day to line up every piece of gear, from your crack machine to your spray wand. Clean it, inspect it, fix what’ s been“ on the list” all season. Replace worn hoses, change filters, and don’ t forget the small things like squeegees, tips, batteries, or that striping gun that“ kinda” worked this season. If it’ s sitting in the corner, not getting used, ask yourself why. Can it be sold, rebuilt, or replaced with something that actually makes money? A clean shop in January means a clean start in April.
Invest in Learning( and Networking)
Conferences used to intimidate me, like drinking from a fire hose, until I realized the ROI isn’ t in the travel miles, it’ s in the mindset shift on where the“ value” is.
Get Tech-Savvy Before the Rush
Technology moves fast, faster than most of us in the field have time to keep up with during the season. You CAN NOT afford to get left behind in this area.
This is the time to research new tools:
• Job Management Software can streamline scheduling and customer communication.
• Digital and Virtual Measurement tools can reduce mistakes and impress clients with professionalism.
• Marketing automation and social scheduling tools can help you show up consistently online without losing weekends to your phone. The goal isn’ t to become“ techy”, but it’ s to work smarter, not harder. Let the tech take on some of the chaos so you can focus on leadership and growth.
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