Latest / The Refrigeration Mentor Podcast / Episode 197. Filters to Followers - Mastering the Art of Social Media for Education with "The HVAC Doctor" Matt Waxer

Transcript

Episode 197. Filters to Followers - Mastering the Art of Social Media for Education with "The HVAC Doctor" Matt Waxer · The Refrigeration Mentor Podcast

• 0:00
  Matt: Not only is it learning opportunities for everybody that's on these different social platforms, it's learning opportunities for the mechanics that I work with, for our apprentices, for the business owners. So if it's a minute, five minutes out of a job that is going to benefit everybody, my employer is more than happy for me to take that time to better our team.
• 0:01
  And if employers aren't willing to open their eyes to see the value in that, they might need to Take a second to change their mindset and their philosophy over that. Welcome
• 0:02
  Trevor: to the Refrigeration Mentor Podcast. I'm your host, Trevor Matthews. As a former technician turned entrepreneur, my goal is to really help train you, educate you, and mentor you in the commercial refrigeration industry.
• 0:03
  Each week, I'm going to have top guests from technicians. To manufacturers, to experts around the world to really help us grow and learn together by sharing their knowledge in commercial refrigeration, commercial HVAC. And not only on the technical side, but really the professional and the personal development side as well.
• 0:04
  I'm really excited that you're here. Now let's get a conversation going. Hey, I want to take a minute to talk about the upcoming Refrigeration Mentor learning programs. Every couple of months, we continue to roll out live instructor led sessions by subject matter experts on compressors, supermarket refrigeration, and CO2 refrigeration.
• 0:05
  We're really here to help you grow. Get to that next level. Head to the Refrigeration Mentor webpage, refrigerationmentor. com. Check out the events page. There's a compressor masterclass, there's a supermarket refrigeration program, and there's a CO2 program. There's also free trainings, free workshops.
• 0:06
  Really check them out. See if this interests you. Read a little bit about it because we're really here to help you. These live sessions are for you to come and ask questions, to learn a little bit, to grow. We've trained thousands of technicians from technicians from three to four to five years in industry all the way up from 20 to 30 years in industry.
• 0:07
  Either get them to the next level or get them back on track, build that confidence, that knowledge and that skill set. We'd love to see you there. We'd love to have you now. Let's get a conversation going. Welcome everyone. Uh, we're going to be talking about filters, the followers, really mastering the art of educational videos and social media, because you're awesome at it.
• 0:08
  You need way more credit for it. For sure.
• 0:09
  Matt: I appreciate that. I, I try, I do my thing. There's so many great individuals out there that is, that are making content to share knowledge openly and willingly. So, you know, great people like yourself, Trevor. People like Ty Brenneman, Craig Migliaccio, you know, phenomenal people that people I look up to, and I aspire to try to make content along a similar lines.
• 0:10
  So just to share what I know about the stuff that I work on so that people don't get stuck in the field. Cause I've been in that spot before you have to, we all have.
• 0:11
  Trevor: So why don't you, uh, introduce yourself a little bit?
• 0:12
  Matt: Yeah, for sure. Um, so my name's Matt Waxer. I am a 313 a refrigeration air conditioning system mechanic.
• 0:13
  Red sealed. I'm also a gas fitter one for those that are sitting in the audience. Obviously, those listening to the audio recording later won't see this. I've got a shirt that says the H fact doctor. That's my social media handle. Some people think that, uh, that name, that I've got this weird infatuation with the medical profession, and that I'm doctoring and doing surgery on HVAC equipment.
• 0:14
  No, no, it's all aspects of that name and this social media air quotes brand are true and factual. So I gave you the trade tickets that I have. I also have a PhD in psychology specialized in developmental cognitive neuroscience. Transcribed So I've got a little bit of an educational background, been around a little while, but found my true career happiness and success in HVAC and refrigeration.
• 0:15
  This is an absolutely amazing industry that we need to get in front of more and more people. I try to do my little part as well.
• 0:16
  Trevor: I love it. So, so let's talk about really how it started for you. Like, how did you get into putting stuff online? Cause you're making great stuff. I see lots of stuff on teaching people how to, uh, program boards, uh, even basic things as understanding filters and how they work, right.
• 0:17
  How did you start to just make those films and, you know, cause it's intimidating for a lot of people. You know, a lot of people think they can make film too and put it online and it doesn't work out really. But how did, how did that happen for you?
• 0:18
  Matt: Yeah, for me, I've been stuck on equipment out in the field.
• 0:19
  I've been left stranded. And our industry. There's so many great people that are out here sharing knowledge. People like Trevor, people like Mr Gary, who just sat down people that are trying to, you know, share their knowledge freely to empower and better people in our industry, people that have been in it for a long time and people that are just coming into it.
• 0:20
  There's a long held on tradition by some people that think that if I hold on to knowledge, I have I have job security. The way I look at it is if I know something that you don't know, and you're working on the same product, same piece of equipment, or even same component, you don't know about it. Well, I'll share what I know about it so that you're empowered to work on it.
• 0:21
  And I'm not the one that has to go do it all the time. It's. Strengthen everybody, uplift everybody together, but to to really get to that's kind of a circular way to circle back to your actual question of how did I get to making the content? It's sharing that knowledge, but also getting over the fear of You know, putting yourself and your face out there to share that knowledge.
• 0:22
  Like, man, I make a lot of mistakes in what I talk about. There's a lot of blooper reels. And even in the stuff that gets published and put out on social media, I make mistakes in what I say. And I'll be the first to then put in a little blurb of, Hey, I actually meant this, guys. Uh, read what's down below.
• 0:23
  It's getting over the, the fear and anxiety. of, you know, wanting to share, but then want people being ridiculing you. And in the same sense, you got to build a bit of a tough skin as well.
• 0:24
  Trevor: I know all about it. I was making videos earlier in the week and I was talking about drives and I'm going through it through how drives work.
• 0:25
  And I'm like, yeah, The drives, uh, the whole purpose of A VFD drive is for superheat. I'm like, . And I finished the whole thing and then I watched it back and I'm like, superheat, no, it's constant control. I just said, superheat. What?
• 0:26
  Matt: Wait, this a new drive? Yeah. We have superheat drives. Yeah. I gotta learn more about this.
• 0:27
  Let's get the conversation about that going.
• 0:28
  Trevor: So it's a, the thing too is like, uh, making videos is, is not always easy though. 'cause it takes time. You know what I mean? And the big thing he says is, you know, like. People are going to make fun of it, uh, this and that. I wasn't, at first when I started making it, it wasn't really, um, to, for everybody.
• 0:29
  I was making them, okay, I know I need to teach myself how to make videos. So I was making videos at first, teaching myself, and then I'm like, I teach a lot of people, why don't I put these on video so other people can find them? What are some of the things that you learned in the beginning of making videos compared to now?
• 0:30
  Because you make great videos and there's always that learning curve for anything, even HVAC. So yeah, let's talk about the
• 0:31
  Matt: learning curve. Not just the learning curve in HVAC, the learning curve in actually making content that will engage people. So one thing that I've learned in doing this is attention span.
• 0:32
  So I used to put out some pretty long form stuff or as long form as possible on the different platforms that I'm on. And the analytics that you get back from it show not as many people are interested in staying through the entire thing. So if you can get short little info clips out about certain things and then say, Hey, if you want a longer explanation, I also have this additional content for you to dive into as well.
• 0:33
  So little short snippets to get the attention and then bring them in for more information, a more thorough analysis, more thorough description of what you're trying to discuss and trying to educate people about.
• 0:34
  Trevor: Yeah, and I think that's really, really important because in the social content, you can't really always, you can't train.
• 0:35
  Like a full training. You can give like the basics. You can give like even even an advanced tip, but you can't go into the fundamental, the full range of a topic you need. You do need that long form. But over time, if you give little tips, it can add up to a lot of Lot of knowledge. And this is what I talk in when I'm watching your videos or Gary's or Brian's or anybody's videos.
• 0:36
  I'm trying to take one little nugget out of there to reuse it. And I really like on, on a lot of the stuff, like you'll put out there and say, okay, watch, go watch this bit longer video, you know, where you get the full scope of it, because some people take that out of contents, that little piece, like, well, that's not how you troubleshoot it.
• 0:37
  Well, you know, that's how you do it. And then maybe they're right the way they do it. But I know. The, the way it's done, it's supposed to be done by professionals through manufacturing training, through learning from field experience yourself, you know, because you did it and you understand it. Yep.
• 0:38
  Matt: I'm, I'm still out there doing it and still out there learning every day, just cause I know certain ins and outs on the products that I work on, um, doesn't mean that, you know, someone sends a message to me and like, Hey, have you ever thought about trying Looking at that same issue in this different manner, use this different technique.
• 0:39
  I'm not going to send a reply back saying, No, that's silly. Why would I think of doing that? Negativity. There's always going to be negativity out there. There's always going to be haters out there. And I took a lot of it personally to begin with. And I tried to reply back to them. Thought, Oh, I might be able to change their mind about something.
• 0:40
  Some people, yeah. Some people, no. I'm not everybody's cup of tea. Sometimes I'm not my own cup of tea. Uh, so there's a couple different strategies and ways to deal with it. One way is to just directly reply back and try to nip it in the bud, so to speak. Another way is just don't even pay attention to it.
• 0:41
  Some people will say if you don't pay attention to it, that person's won. Sometimes it's no, you're not even worth the reply. And a lot of the negativity that I receive, Uh, or comments about the products that I work on, and a lot of the negativity from my personal perspective and opinion comes from ignorance and lack of education on the product line themselves.
• 0:42
  So I've met some people out in the field to do training that have had negative things to say about the product, and when I meet them, they're like, Yeah, you didn't reply to my comment. I'm like, I'm sorry, which one? And they show me. I'm like, Okay, well, let's look into why you had that negative, you know, opinion on this product.
• 0:43
  And, you know, I'm I'm not here to change your mind necessarily. But if I can, you know, arm you with information to make it a better experience with it, nine times out of 10, they change their opinion. They're like, Oh, well, actually, you know, I didn't really understand how this worked. Now that I do, this isn't so bad.
• 0:44
  It isn't as piece of junk, As some people think, but what do you think on that, of that matter, Trevor?
• 0:45
  Trevor: Dealing with negativity is a question, and, uh, we all get it a lot. Like, I get it all the time. But there's different ways to handle it, and you gotta understand, really, not to take it personal, number one, you know, these people, most of these people don't know you, especially if they don't have a picture on there.
• 0:46
  A lot of times it's people that don't have their face on there. You go on their profile, they got no videos at all. of themselves. For me, I used to take it personally to I used to take down video sometimes when someone's made fun of me or said that was wrong. And then I go back and look at it because I was embarrassed a little bit.
• 0:47
  Like, did I actually say that wrong? And then I go back and look at, no, I said that, right? That actually, that person doesn't really know the right way to do it. Um, so I used to call it same thing. I used to call a comment back or email back, but there is sometimes They're not wrong. So there's, there's the haters, but there's some people that are, are, they wanted to make disruption, but I've seen me make content out there where I was doing it wrong and it actually helped me, but it was very negative in a very negative tone.
• 0:48
  But there was one, I remember I was back at, uh, 2019, maybe 2018 at the HVAC symposium, maybe 2019 Brian Orr event, and I was doing a compressor training. That was one of my first time doing it on video. And I can't remember if it was the first time or not, but I said, um, and ah, a lot. And then he put it up online.
• 0:49
  And then everybody was like, I couldn't handle listening to this guy after three minutes and I couldn't. And I took a person, I was really upset. And I'm like, why are all these people saying all this? I go back and I listened to it. I was saying ums and ahs the whole time. So it really helped me. I went and took courses to get better.
• 0:50
  But for those people that are just out there to hate. You got I I'll personally email if they have a picture they have a photo picture and I see they got videos out there I will send them a private message and ask them is there something I can actually help you with kind of like you would do Or I don't I don't respond Don't respond to them on there because a lot of what they are looking for what they're just looking for you to respond back So they can argue with you more
• 0:51
  Matt: Yeah, there are definitely the people that will do that.
• 0:52
  And I also take the route of taking it away from the main audience and taking it into a private message as well. And if they don't want to engage there again, you're not worth my time. Uh, as much as I would, sometimes negative comments can breed very interesting conversations and can actually breed a very interesting dialogue back and forth where at the end of the day, you can say, you know what, I respectfully disagree with you, but if they're just there for the sake of being negative, no one's going to change their mind.
• 0:53
  They just want to be there to be a proverbial S disturber.
• 0:54
  Trevor: And sometimes it's hard though, because you get so many, like there's not so many negative, but you get so many people that comment on, there's so many messages and emails, and sometimes I get lost because I had people like you say, Oh, how come you're not answering me?
• 0:55
  So, Sorry about that. Just like you. I take
• 0:56
  Matt: personal offense to all that, Trevor. No, I'm kidding. I know you're just a phone call away as well.
• 0:57
  Trevor: Yeah. The big thing is, is that, um, if you, if you message them privately, And they don't respond back at all, then you know that they're just looking, that's one way to tell that they're just looking to start an argument or something or, or hate on you.
• 0:58
  And there's going to be just people like that. They don't understand. Right. Um, and that's no different than me being in the trade, working with a, an old guy who makes you carry his tools the whole time and, and doesn't, you're learning the trade by carrying the tools around. That's a similar way. That's putting hate on, hate on an apprentice, man.
• 0:59
  Matt: Yeah, well, there's putting the hate on the apprentice old school training philosophy and mentality that we're seeing a good shift away from, but there's also the young. Some people say, Yeah, I'm old school and saying this, the young apprentice mentality of not putting your phone down. Your phone is a tool.
• 1:00
  And I'll tell my apprentices your phone is a tool, but you need to be using it For the right thing at the right time. I
• 1:01
  Trevor: like that.
• 1:02
  Matt: If you're not using your tool of your phone to be a looking up a manual, be asking a contact, you may have a question you have about something or using an app to diagnose something or hook a tool up to it.
• 1:03
  You're just there browsing the internet for personal reasons when you're supposed to be bettering yourself and learning about. The trade that you're in, then you're not using your tool of your phone properly. And at that point, it's the sorry, you've lost the privilege of your phone for a while. You got to put that away.
• 1:04
  And we're gonna go to just a verbal method of training for a little bit until you can show the respect and decency that you will use the tool properly. It's the same as with physical tools. So If an apprentice pulls a pair of pliers out of my tool bag and starts beating the snot out of a component with the pliers, yes, everything is a hammer to a certain degree, but it's also not a hammer.
• 1:05
  It's use things in the proper way and respect the tools that you have at your disposal.
• 1:06
  Trevor: But I see you at work putting up these videos all the time. Well, why can't I play on my phone while I'm at work as well?
• 1:07
  Matt: Work first, content second.
• 1:08
  Trevor: There you go. So that's the big thing. I think that's where there's a There's probably is going to be more courses on how to properly take videos at work because this is a very it's a great tool But if you're not doing it properly, there's a lot of people while you're at work and you're doing all this, you know But it's planned out.
• 1:09
  I bet you there's a lot of content that you make that you're not actually paid for at work Do you
• 1:10
  Matt: so yeah all the content that you see on my social media? Bran, I'll be recording stuff while I'm doing my job, but I don't let my job be encompassed and circled around the content that I create. If I have an opportunity to create a video for a learning experience for the audiences and the platforms I'm on, It's going to be typically under five to 10 minutes of my work time, but I'll make sure that there's another task going on that needs to be completed while I do it.
• 1:11
  So I'm not wasting company time to create the content as well, because not only is it learning opportunities for everybody that's on these different social platforms, it's learning opportunities for the mechanics that I work with, It's learning opportunities for our apprentices. It's learning opportunities for the business owners of the companies that You know, company I work for companies that other people work for as well.
• 1:12
  So if it's a minute, five minutes out of a job that we're doing, that is going to benefit everybody, my employer is more than happy for me to take that time to better our team. And if employers aren't willing to open their eyes to see the value in that. They might need to take a second to change their mindset and their philosophy over that.
• 1:13
  Trevor: But the thing is, is that you talk with your employer about it. I see a lot of people that go out there and they don't talk with their employer and then now you have an end user looking and then someone's on the phone holding and doing a recording. You know what I mean? So this is something that if you want to do, you should be talking with your employer about it.
• 1:14
  Get them to understand because if that situation comes up, You can explain to your employer, I was making this short video while I was on my break. You know, you get breaks. So that was while I was on my break. You don't want to be breaking into company's time, especially if you didn't talk to it, because actually you're supposed to be there doing the job.
• 1:15
  You know, Matt will be talking and explain to his employer that I'm making this for the company. They got an agreement on there. So if you're just going out and spending an hour making a video while you're supposed to be doing a specific job, that's not good. Not what you should be doing.
• 1:16
  Matt: The editing and the posting of all the content that I put out, that's done on my time.
• 1:17
  That's not done on company time. So the recording of it, if I can set up a phone, depending on the location I'm working, because there are a lot of locations for the job that I do where no content can be made. There's confidentiality issues. There's sensitivity issues. There's NDAs in place where stuff cannot be made.
• 1:18
  Okay. And you have to respect those customers and those things first over the generation of content for whatever purpose you're putting that content out. You have to think about your customer, your client, your employer first, and then think about, you know, let's say you're on a job where you can't film anything, but you have a really good opportunity to make a content video while you then need to think of a way and manner to To move that to a different location.
• 1:19
  Maybe you, you take that to your driveway and on the weekend on your own time, you explain it and make it a little educational video about that or content about it. And that way you still get the message out that you had an idea that you thought, Hey, this will be good. It's just on a different location and a different time as well.
• 1:20
  Trevor: And that's the big thing I talked to with a lot of content creators. You have to be respectful of your company's time because you are actually working a job for them. You're paid to do a job, not paid to make videos on the job site. So the something that most people need to talk about, and I like what you bring up there, confidentiality, you can't just go and start recording on somebody's property.
• 1:21
  And then there's a lot of stuff that's proprietary, a lot of things like that. So you've got to be very careful in that sense. But when you build that relationship with your end user, with your customer, and you ask for that stuff nine times out of 10, you usually get the go ahead. There's a mutual respect there, as well as that.
• 1:22
  I've seen lots of, lots of the content creators. I know all this, most of the stuff's done on their own time. It's not done on company time. They might be at a site, but they like, I, I filmed a half an hour here, but I made that half an hour up somewhere else in the job. You know what I mean? So absolutely.
• 1:23
  And a lot of people I've talked to, well, I see all these people making content during work hours and they're getting paid for it. Why can't I do it? There's usually agreement in there. And if not, that's still, you know, cause you still have a job to do. And it's why I talked to young people making contents, like a lot of my content that I do on my own time.
• 1:24
  Matt: Absolutely. Yeah. And to go to the confidentiality thing, where you say nine times out of ten, that's also contextual. So, to give you a concrete example, uh, I work on a lot of government facilities. Um, a lot of military facilities and there is absolutely no way whatsoever, hard stop, no way that any content is going to be created in a lot of these facilities.
• 1:25
  So to give you a concrete cement example, before coming to CMPX, I was doing a service call on a corrections facility. You're not making content on a corrections facility. Hard stop. No. No. It's hard to even get an agreement. To bring your actual work tool, your phone into an area to use it as the proper tool.
• 1:26
  You're using it in facilities like this and in other facilities as well. So you have to have that conversation with the end user with the client. And you got to make sure that everybody is online and on par with what's going to be done and make sure that if you are permitted to use the tools you need to do your job, that in this example of a corrections facility, it was the phone that I was using my work phone, my personal phone stayed locked in the truck, the work phone was inspected prior to going to location and it was escorted as well.
• 1:27
  And inspected and escorted back to my van, back to my work truck as well. So sometimes there's the nine out of 10 yes agreement. And there are a lot of locations and facilities where it is an absolute no. And this is why you have to respect that. Yeah.
• 1:28
  Trevor: And this is why you bring it, you bring it up with your service manager or your boss and talk about it.
• 1:29
  And I know there's going to be some out there that don't get it and they're going to be dicks about it, but it's better to know that you're not supposed to do it on that facility. Then get in trouble, lose a whole contract. That would not be very good for your organization. Lose a contract because you made some videos on there.
• 1:30
  Matt: It's not necessarily only just lose a contract. There can also be a lot of legal ramifications to the individual. And then it goes up the hierarchy within the company as well for orders and fines that could be levied possibly. So know where, know where you're creating content, know how you're creating it.
• 1:31
  And. Know how to frame it as well. So setting up shots, uh, and filming content where you're not showing any identifiable landmarks in the background. You're just showing the issue at hand that you want to demonstrate and display. It's something that I work very hard and have worked very hard to continue to do because that way you're focusing in on exactly the message and the aspect of the message you want to focus on rather than, Oh, hey, look at this piece of equipment I'm working on near this big major landmark.
• 1:32
  Oh, I'm next to Niagara Falls doing this. No, it's not about that.
• 1:33
  Trevor: And that's a good tip. And because the big thing is, is you may not know, you know, and that's that's why we talk about this because we we've done a lot of these and we figured out a long way, you know what I mean? So these are tips to really help you understand that it'll make it easier for you because the whole purpose of it is for education.
• 1:34
  You want to help people. You don't want to, you know, get your, you in trouble or your company in trouble making these videos.
• 1:35
  Matt: Yeah, absolutely. And for anybody that's just getting into, you know, social media creation phase of if they're getting into that. For what they do. It's going to be a very big learning curve.
• 1:36
  I'm always learning. Trevor's always learning and to know how to frame stuff, how to put it out and when to is a big thing that you need to, as Trevor said many a time, you need to have that conversation with your employer. And if you're the business owner, you need to think about how the content you put out that's consumed by everybody.
• 1:37
  Let's be honest or everybody that's in your audience. You have to be cognizant of how that could potentially impact future business for you or future business for your employer. Because the last thing you want is to ruin a business relationship or jeopardize future business, uh, for any and everybody just because you wanted to put out a video.
• 1:38
  Trevor: And so, so we talked about some of the tips on what Uh, not to do, but there's way more benefits of doing educational videos like you do. Because I know for sure from the stuff that you've been doing over the last few years, bring a ton of business into your organization. So let's talk about some of that.
• 1:39
  So some of the, what are some of your favorite shots to take when you're doing an educational video?
• 1:40
  Matt: Well, obviously it's try to get the camera off of the face and into the equipment. Uh, people aren't there to look at this. Um, I am. I appreciate that. But it's get get your face out there to a certain degree so people can identify and recognize who you are when you're floating around important events like a trade show for networking.
• 1:41
  But get focused on the educational issue, the task at hand. So let's say, for example, I did a little video a while back about the inner workings of a potential relay. Okay. And it was about getting that potential relay as close up as possible and focus on the camera to show people who may or may not have known how that works or just the inner guts of it to give them an education of exactly demystifying what's in the box, so to speak, or I don't know, there's a compressor guy sitting near me.
• 1:42
  I've done one ish and so teardowns in my driveway. But like showing the inner workings of a compressor, people won't take the time to break down parts on their own. And you will learn a lot from that. Uh, and then take the additional step of how do I frame this in a video way or in a content way that it can be absorbed by people properly as well.
• 1:43
  Trevor: Yeah. So the two biggest things that I heard out of that is like, you got to brand yourself, but it's using your face, but then you got to have value. That you're bringing to your audience. And that's what it's all about is like, you want to bring, you're making these videos that has to be value in it. So it's that technical tip or that knowledge, something that someone's going to gain a benefit from it.
• 1:44
  So that's two, I think the most important things myself in when you're making content is the branding of it. Cause you want people to recognize that you've done it because you're doing a good job, so they will share it because a lot of times people don't see who's making it, why would they share it? So build the brand.
• 1:45
  But then that value piece, like you do when you make it. You make a good a, a good piece of content on say it's how to program a controller. 'cause you do, uh, lots of great ones on there. It's like little quick snippet and then showing them that valuable tip. So hopefully that they take something away from it.
• 1:46
  How do you, um, do the follow up? So what's your, your thing, because a lot of the stuff that I do like, comment and share, how do you get better interaction on your posts?
• 1:47
  Matt: That is a great question that I'm still in the infancy learning stages of a lot of what I put out. It's if anybody engages with it or shares it along, that's of their own volition.
• 1:48
  There are different methods and different platforms to I'll repost say I'm mostly on Instagram. I'll take an Instagram post. I have it auto fed into Facebook. There's different audiences. Um, if it's a more professional, uh, less comical meme like post your content, depending on the message behind it, it can go on LinkedIn.
• 1:49
  I haven't broken into YouTube, but it's knowing different audiences are on different social platforms. And by hitting multiple platforms, you're going to get different people liking and sharing. One thing that I see in a lot of posts is, you know, like and follow so and so. You don't see that in my posts.
• 1:50
  Um, a lot of people don't take the time to read through the description of a post. A lot of people are just going to, if it's an audio recording, they're there to take in the audio. And sometimes they'll read down if they're really engaged with it, but you got to get their attention and grab it fast is what I, what I've found in, in the stuff that I've put out.
• 1:51
  Trevor: I think really one of the biggest things is really engaging with the audience. So if you get a comment. Don't let it sit there for a week or three weeks or a month. You know, Do your best as you start to grow there more and more and it's harder to do. But I think bringing that value to that, like that person, spend the time to write a comment on it and you know, it's like, Hey, that was a great post.
• 1:52
  Or I took a lot away from that. I really believe it's, uh, it's very important for me anyway. It's to say thank you for liking the post. What did you get out of the post? Um, and you know, how can I help you more? And sometimes I even private message people to see if I can help them in another way, you know what I mean?
• 1:53
  Or how can I bring more value to them?
• 1:54
  Matt: Absolutely. Absolutely agree with that. And another thing in making this form of content as well is you need to be genuine to yourself. So, everybody has their own personality, their own delivery method, their own style, and one person is not going to be everybody's cup of tea.
• 1:55
  So, the content that Trevor creates, you know, there's a lot of people that really like Trevor's content, me included, and there's obviously people that don't. Haters out there, or, you know, other people who just don't say anything whatsoever, and I'm in an equal boat. But if you're presenting and making content where you're not your personality and you're putting on a fake persona That's gonna shine and when people meet you they're gonna be less inclined to the you know Oh, let's hit that on follow button.
• 1:56
  So like the content I create or you know, when you find me out here on the show floor That's me. That's who I am There'll be times where I say I'm presenting at a booth I got to be a little bit more amped up in the, in the personality and presentation, but at the end of the day, what you see with me out here on the show floor and on social media, that's who I am.
• 1:57
  And if you're not that, then it's not going to come across in the proper manner, from my opinion.
• 1:58
  Trevor: Oh, a hundred percent. You've got to be yourself. And you know, there is, you can have, uh, different, uh, I call them different modes, but depending on the platform, are you on stage? Are you doing an educational video?
• 1:59
  Are you in a training class? So you can have different, I believe there's different personas in that aspect myself, because I know when I'm on stage, it's different than when I'm making an education. I'm trying to keep it always up, but there are, there's different Trevor here and refrigeration mentor here.
• 2:00
  Um, when I'm doing different content, uh, because I think. The number one thing you said there is being real, you know, and people want to know you're real and then you can, like you said, it was perfect, perfect saying, like when someone meets you, they, they meet actually who the person behind the content is, you know what I mean?
• 2:01
  Yeah.
• 2:02
  Matt: So they, you know, when, if anybody's around here that hasn't met me or has met Trevor and, and you've seen us on social media and, I, it's going to be a more calm, chilled down version. Unless you want me to amp it up or have Trevor ramp it up and we can do that for you. But I do agree with you that there's kind of different, I don't know if I like the word personas, but different kind of delivery methods you need to adopt and perfect and master to deliver the message properly, given the target audience of what you're doing.
• 2:03
  So if I'm training a bunch of technicians on a roof. They're going to get, you know, this kind of style of conversation, and I'll throw in a few jokes here and there because if you don't, you're going to lose them. Uh, they're not going to retain the information. So any way that you can hammer home the point you want to make in a multimodal way through a joke that's appropriate for the situation in context through, you know, draw air quotes, dry technical delivery.
• 2:04
  Okay. Uh, through. Hey, get your hands on this laptop and you're going to program this controller. Hey, get your hands in this heating section. You're going to set up the combustion section of it today. Any way that you can get it in a multi method way. People are going to retain and hold on to that information a lot more because at the end of the day, we are the more senses we can put into attaining and learning information, the more likely you are to it.
• 2:05
  To actually retain it as well.
• 2:06
  Trevor: Um, once again, too, depending on the platform, you need to talk to the, differently, your audience or different audience. It's kind of like you're trained to people that are a bunch of left brain people or right brain people, like analytics and numbers or, or more free going, you know what I mean?
• 2:07
  So you do want to go to understand your audience. And I do like that. What are some of the tips that you could give someone who wants to start making videos and, but don't really know how to start?
• 2:08
  Matt: Yeah. Uh, so don't be afraid to make multiple takes. I don't. It's what you see put out online isn't a one take process necessarily.
• 2:09
  Sometimes it is, sometimes it isn't. If it is great. If it isn't, so be it. There's good blooper reels that I have on my phone that they're there for me to remind myself and some people will see him. If they ask, or sometimes I might make a blooper reel about me trying to talk about something, fuddle my way through it, just to show, like, hey, I'm human too.
• 2:10
  Like, just because I can talk cogently and coherently about a topic doesn't mean that, well, we've all had to struggle to get that knowledge, to get that level of proficiency to communicate it on a platform, within a video, and implement the techniques and strategies we need to deliver that message efficiently.
• 2:11
  Uh, also all of the content I do, uh, you'll see people walking around the floor with big video setups or with camera crews, uh, you don't need to invest in a ton of equipment. Necessarily. If you have that at your disposal and a means to do so, and you think that that's going to help you out, then that's you go do you do it?
• 2:12
  Absolutely. A little trade and, uh, content creation secret. Uh, all of my stuff's just off my Samsung phone. Yeah. That's all you really need. Uh, if I want to get more tech and set up more things to make my job easier, cause maybe I will, maybe I won't, I don't know. I, it is hard at times to find different boxes and tool bags to set up on a roof to frame a picture of a unit, but Hey, that's the behind the scenes struggle.
• 2:13
  Trevor: Yeah, yeah, yeah, no. And those are good points. Like the big thing is you don't have to go out and break the bank right away on it. Uh, I think one tip would be getting a tripod that you can say that it's flexible, that you can move and then, uh, uh, iPhone holder or Android phone holder, you can get them on Amazon, pretty cheap, even the tripod holder.
• 2:14
  If it's a windy day, be careful because the wind can knock them over.
• 2:15
  Matt: Yeah. Don't, uh, don't rest your phone on your, uh, shameless plug, Supco, TradeFox, Magnetic Umbrella on a windy day. Uh, both kind of went for a fly on a roof with me. I was running across it trying to chase down Mary Poppins, uh, as she, uh, grabbed my, uh, umbrella invisibly and, uh, also make sure the phone wasn't broken because these things ain't cheap.
• 2:16
  Trevor: And because we went through some of that stuff, you know what I mean? I, I think that's, that's key. It's, uh, to really just do it. Just make some videos. Get them out there and post them because I think that's where I think a lot of people struggle. They'll make a bunch of videos. They'll watch it 40 times like, Oh, I can't post it.
• 2:17
  So I've, I've went through a phase where I just, I've done challenges with myself. So I think that's another good one. Make a list of the videos that you would like to make. It could be just like talking about a filter dryer and how it works. We'll say, yeah, you know, just write down a list of things that you want to make.
• 2:18
  And then all of a sudden go in and say, okay, let's do less than two minutes. Absolutely.
• 2:19
  Matt: Another thing that I would say to those that are just starting out, uh, that will be listening later online or that are out here in the audience is, believe it or not, everybody hates the sound of their own voice. You know, I'll, I'll listen when you do get the audio out for this.
• 2:20
  I'll, I'll listen to, to our conversation. I look forward to it, but I'm going to cringe whenever I hear him hear myself talk, most people don't like the sound of their own voice, believe it or not. Uh, you're not alone. If you think I'm the only one that doesn't, and that can prevent you from like those watching your video 40 times, make the content, put it out and then move forward from there.
• 2:21
  Trevor: Yeah. And it's just doing, doing more of it. Like as a. I was the same way, like even, you know, I remember when I was younger recording on a tape recorder and then playing, I'm like, who's that person? That doesn't sound like me. Oh my God. Ah, but now it's like, there's just so much out there. It's just, just do it, take that action and make the videos.
• 2:22
  And then you have more content down the road and then you can see yourself progress since the last five or six years of me recording is like, I can see a progression of, as it gets better, how to talk in front of the camera a little bit better. I highly recommend. Taking some courses, like taking, like speaking courses so that you feel comfortable.
• 2:23
  Cause I know, I remember a lot of times I was saying stuff and I'm like, that doesn't really sound right. You know, and then I actually took courses how to properly speak and then I go, that helped me talk with people better, but it just evolved my, my training, my presentations and the videos I make.
• 2:24
  Matt: Absolutely. Another valuable resource is the people that are making content out there. So, you know, I'll. I'll message Trevor quite often and ask him about, you know, different methods, different styles, like Ty, you know, I'll shoot Ty Brenneman a message and, you know, ask him questions about the content he's making or different tips and tricks and the community, the online HVAC community and online plumbing community and people out there making content.
• 2:25
  Nine times out of ten, they're more than willing to, you know, share what they know to, to help lift up, lift up everybody. It's together, we all go together, and we go further. You can go by yourself and do what you do, but As a community, we all want to make each other better. And when you find the people that all want to make each other better, everybody's content gets better as well.
• 2:26
  Trevor: Oh, a hundred percent. I totally agree. And, and the only way we get better is other people get better and they show us stuff and then we can show them stuff. That's just the way it is because newer people, especially the younger people, uh, in the industry can show us lots of stuff on the tech side. And I've seen it time and time again over the last year.
• 2:27
  It's like, man, I'm this is how I can make things better or more efficient. Uh, uh, another thing, uh, another tip would be like chat GPT. It's another great one for maybe the, um, the subject line or description of your posts to really enhance what it looks like. So, cause I, I've thought. You know, it takes a long time to write a lot of the content.
• 2:28
  So when you have a, for me, I have a lot, a lot of videos, so I'll write a little blurb of it and then I'll use chat GPT to see if it'll come out with something better that is for my target. Because there's a lot of different people that I'm targeting here. It could be a business owner, could be a technician, it could be an end user.
• 2:29
  And so you want to direct that conversation, that, that message that way. What, what tools do you use to help you, um, with your social media?
• 2:30
  Matt: Yeah, so a lot of what I use, I haven't gotten into using the A. I. side of things. I haven't gotten into chat GPT or anything of that yet. It's it's on in my wheelhouse of things that are on the docket to use and try and and see if it fits with the style of stuff that I want to put out.
• 2:31
  If it doesn't, I won't use it. If it does great. It's another tool to be used to make things better. If it works to make it better. A lot of what I do to break out the old school method is, I use contacts and people I know to ask questions about, Oh, hey, I saw you do a video in this way. What did you kind of used to do that?
• 2:32
  So, you know, people like, um, Tony Mormino with insight partners, their marketing director. He's doing great things with the content that he's putting out. So I've got a wonderful open discussion with Tony about different ways to target different markets and how to produce content. People like yourself.
• 2:33
  Personally, I prefer, yeah, to use different kinds of tech and different apps. That's great. And that people, you know, direct you towards them is awesome. But for me, it's a lot of the face to face verbal interaction with people about it and also online conversations that really helps drive how I produce my content.
• 2:34
  It's not going to be for everybody, but that, that's what I use, Trevor.
• 2:35
  Trevor: What about when you're doing like, uh, transcribing and stuff? So I know Instagram came out with a good one, a few years of the closed captioning. Is there any, uh, apps or anything that you use, or do you just use like the, the main platform apps?
• 2:36
  Matt: So, I'll use the main platform app. Um, there's a few others out there, but predominantly the main platform app, and then edit any spelling and grammatical mistakes that it does make, because if I leave any in there, oh, There's a guy out there that'll, that'll get on us about it. Uh, don't worry. We still like you, Matt.
• 2:37
  Trevor: I think that's, that's the big thing too. Cause I, I use a ton of different softwares. Like I use, uh, there's Veed. There's a, there's a few other ones that are probably not, not. not prevalent for people who's just starting out. But I think getting in and trying different ones like, um, I've used, uh, transcribing ones as well.
• 2:38
  So if you're not really good at thinking on the spot, I know you're good at thinking on the spot to make a video. And I am, but some people aren't. So there's like, I use a big VU. I don't use that one anymore, but yeah, I can actually hold the camera there. You write your little script, just say it's the filter script on what to say.
• 2:39
  And then you can hold it there and go through your script while it's recording you. Uh, to make it a little bit easier, um, when you're doing that. Usually for me, I'm more ad hoc. So I, I just read off that
• 2:40
  Matt: I'll go off the cuff or whatever is up in this crazy brain of mine, uh, and play it back to myself.
• 2:41
  Yeah. And if I don't like it, I'll, I'll rehash mentally what I want to say and redo it in that way. Uh, but yeah, there's definitely other strategies to use where, like you say, you can actually write it out and have it run the script like a teleprompter for you. Yeah. Yeah. Uh, if from my experience being on teleprompters before, um, I personally don't like using a teleprompter because I don't read so fastly or goodly.
• 2:42
  Um, I prefer to, yeah, really push the whole grammarian thing. Uh, Matt will know what that means, but, uh, uh, it's for me, a teleprompter, Uh, style doesn't fit with my personality and my style of information delivery. If someone uses that and it works great for them, awesome. Um, I know that, like, when I was doing a little video in Atlanta with Craig Migliaccio, uh, Craig mentally rehearses what he wants to say, and then if he, you know, has a little misstep, it's the, oh, I'm sorry, we're gonna restart, we're gonna redo it.
• 2:43
  So there's, there's that aspect of it as well in that method, and then there's also this other method of using like a teleprompter style where if it works for some, great, it's not going to work for everybody. But yeah, there are a lot of different forms of technology readily available out there that some will fit with your style and your delivery method.
• 2:44
  And your content creation style. And there'll be others where it just doesn't work. And it, like you said, it's a matter of figuring out the ones that work for you.
• 2:45
  Trevor: Yeah. And then, and then you can do voiceover. It's another, another strategy, right? Cause I've, I've tried all of it and you know, you got to figure out what works for you.
• 2:46
  So final question, what would be like the top two or three tips? Someone who was just starting out to make social media, they want to make some educational videos. They want to help other people. Out there, uh, how people may be inside their organization. Just, uh, what would be one or two of the top tips that you would give them for starting out?
• 2:47
  Matt: Yeah. So starting out, it's, if you have a mindset that, Oh, I'm going to get this video out and everybody's going to like it and I'm going to get so many comments. No, no. It, it's. It's a long game play. And if you are willing and freely willing to share your knowledge and be vulnerable to do so, just start putting it out there.
• 2:48
  Just take that step, put it out there. And over time, more and more people will be engaging with it. It's a matter of taking that first step to start. We didn't all run off the bat. We all had to learn how to crawl, then learn how to walk, then learn how to run. Different people progress at it at different rates.
• 2:49
  Different people succeed at it at different rates. And at the end of the day, also, don't compare yourself to other platforms and other people. It's a bad trait that a lot of people can adopt. I've been guilty of it myself. I'll openly admit to it. However, at the end of the day, I'm making content to try to help other people, and I'm making content I want to make.
• 2:50
  And whether you like it, lump it, hate it, whatever. Whatever, if you're engaging with it, great. If you're not great as well, I've learned to accept that not everybody's going to look at it, not everybody's going to follow it and hey, I'm okay with that and everybody else should be okay with it as well.
• 2:51
  Trevor: So Matt, how can people get ahold of you if they want to learn more about you, learn more about the videos and your social media stuff?
• 2:52
  Matt: Yeah, for sure. So. I'm predominantly, uh, can be found on Instagram. Uh, so my Instagram handle is the underscore HVAC underscore doctor. I'm also kind of on TikTok, kind of not, under the same name. Uh, on Facebook recently under my actual name, Matthew Waxer, Matt Waxer. And you can also find me on LinkedIn under my full name, Matthew Waxer.
• 2:53
  Awesome. Thank you so much. Really appreciate you coming on the Refrigeration Mentor Podcast. Thanks Trevor. It's been an absolute blast.
• 2:54
  Trevor: I want to thank you so much for hanging out with me and the refrigeration mentor podcast. If you enjoyed this episode, please leave a comment. Let me know what were your key highlights, what you took away from myself or my guests as well as if you have not subscribed yet, head over to Apple podcasts or Spotify and subscribe.
• 2:55
  And if you enjoyed this episode. Please share it with a friend, let your friends know that there are people who care, who want to share the refrigeration information to help them get to the next level in their career. If you have not been to the Refrigeration Mentor website at refrigerationmentor. com, go check it out.
• 2:56
  There's a ton more guest podcasts I've been on as well as the event page. Check out the events page because there's a lot more free trainings. Well, it's paid training to really help you grow your knowledge base. Super excited. Can't wait to see it. The next refrigeration mentor podcast. Let's get a conversation going.