Here is a great topical interview to kick off the #HaltonHour Features series 2! I chatted with Martyn Rhodes of Rhomar Financial, we talked about network marketing, energy price hikes and most importantly, how Martyn can save people money on their energy and utility bills.
Martyn is based in St Helens, Merseyside and helps people save money on their energy and utility bills here in Runcorn and Widnes and all over the UK.
Contents
#HaltonHour Video Interview With Martyn Rhodes, Rhomar Financial
In this video interview I cat with Martyn about:
- How a health and wellness product introduced Martyn to network marketing
- Martyn’s philosophy on selling – trying products himself and letting results do the selling!
- Letting the customer lead the way – none pushy sales
- Ridiculously high energy price hikes
- How Martyn saved a client close to ÂŁ2,000 per year!
- Using social media in his business
- How people can earn a 2nd income with Martyn
- How to contact Martyn
Watch the interview via YouTube
Connect with Martyn Rhodes
Call: 07799 268213
Twitter: @SaintDusty
Email: martyn.rhomar{at}gmail.com
Web: uw.partners/Martyn.Rhodes (get an energy quote) or uw.partners/Martyn.Rhodes/partner (earn a 2nd income)
Web: Rhomar.isagenix.com (learn more about Martyn’s health and wellness products)
#HaltonHour Features: Martyn Rhodes Video Transcript
Transcribed by otter.ai
Jan Kearney
So hello, Martyn.
Martyn Rhodes
Hi, Jan.
Jan Kearney
Welcome to HaltonHour. Do you want to start by introducing yourself who you are, what you do who you do it for?
Martyn Rhodes
Yeah. Hi, I’m Martyn, Martyn Rhodes. I work in energy and utilities primarily, both domestic and commercial. I also work with a health and wellness company called Isagenix. But the main job if you like, is it up till about 18 months ago, I was mainly concentrating on the commercial side. But obviously from last summer, domestic prices have gone through the roof. Last October, energy went up 12% April, it went up 54 And the latest predictions are that it’s going to go up another on Monday. The latest predictions are that energy domestic energy is going to go up another 51% on the first of October. So my whereas two years ago, it was 70% commercial 30% domestic, that has totally swapped over at the moment because more and more people are just concerned about the domestic situation.
Jan Kearney
So how did you get into the energy market, so to speak?
Martyn Rhodes
My background is in financial services. And I got approached by a friend of mine about Isagenix, which is the health and wellness company they launched in the UK in May 2017. I slipped a disc a few years ago. So I put on quite a quite a lot of weight. So I said, Yeah, I’ll have a look at it because I need to lose weight but I’m struggling to exercise. So I went with him. Due, the company 100 did my due diligence on it and thought this is this is one way of hopefully losing weight without having to go running and things like that. I put my before and after pictures on Facebook and a girl contacted this is a long winded but I’ll get to the point. A girl contacted me on Facebook and said can you come and tell me how this works. But she lived in Warrington but worked in St. Helens so I went to I live in St. Helens myself. I went to her place of work in Saint Helens in the lunch hour I explained to her and a few other people what I was doing and bits about the company. I was approached by one of the directors that it was a merchant services company which is the card machines. And he said would you consider doing this because you talk to businesses anyway about all the things got involved with the card machine. Then got involved with energy and utilities commercially. Also with water, broadband, all that stuff. So I was basically 100% commercial utilities and energy and commercial utilities. I’ve got a friend who was a gardener. Obviously that’s quite seasonal work. He’s very busy April to October and then less show during that during the winter months who worked with a company called Utility Warehouse UW. He approached me a few times over the years. And then probably two years ago when the first lockdown happened. Obviously my income totally dried up because all the offices were shut pubs will shut up hotels were shut, factories were shut everything was shut. So in the summer of 2020 I got in touch had another look at the business side of it with him swapped over all my energy and utilities myself because it was it was by far and away cheaper than what I was currently paying for all the different bits and bobs. And so that was two years ago. And again for the first 12 months. I was still 70% commercial 30% domestic and then this time last year was when pretty much around this time is when we realized that the first big increase was coming on the first of October, which was the 12 percenter and once we knew that 12% was was in as I said, the last 12 months everything’s flipped and it’s now it’s now 70% domestic and 30% commercial.
Jan Kearney
You surprised me though with the timeline of getting started that the health and wellness came first. Because I mean, you’ve been on Twitter as long as I have. So you’ve always been in my periphery vision and then while I did HaltonHour, the first time around you were really active then.
Martyn Rhodes
Yeah.
Jan Kearney
So I always associated you with the card machines.
Martyn Rhodes
Yes. Yeah.
Jan Kearney
Which is how I knew your little face it came up on Twitter. So yeah, I hope I’m not swearing at you when I say network marketing because it frightens the life out of me and I’ve never been any good at it. How’s that been for you? How does that fit in with, like, your role? How did you get into that side of things? Or is it something that you’ve always always done?
Martyn Rhodes
I, it was basically the proposition from the health and wellness company which is a network marketing company.
Jan Kearney
Yeah.
Martyn Rhodes
They’re in 20, 26 countries around the world. Australia, New Zealand, obviously it’s American company America, Canada, and we launched in the UK in Europe in May of 2017. And I didn’t really I just basically wanted to get fitter and lose weight. I wasn’t gonna I wasn’t going to approach anyone and saying look at this from a business side or anything like that. I just thought if it worked, people are going to ask me and say, bloody hell what have you done?
Jan Kearney
Yeah.
Martyn Rhodes
Basically, I lost I went from 14 stone down to about 11 and a half stone. And people have said, What have you done? I need to, I need to, I need to, and obviously I promoted it on Facebook. I promoted it on Twitter, not overly promoted and that’s how I got into the into the network marketing side and so we do weight maintenance or whether people want to lose weight gain weight. We’ve got another range of products for energy and performance for athletes. And then last August we introduced a collagen product for your hair, your skin in your nails, and in the next couple of months because America gets it all first and then it comes over here. We will be launching a hair product for thickness and basically hopefully
Jan Kearney
Mines coming out in clumps. I’ve hit the woman of a certain age.
Martyn Rhodes
I think that’s due in about two months time over here. Some of the results in America have been great. But again, I’m going to I’m going to try everything so I’ve tried to wait for weight management. I’ve tried the collagen which was frightening because it’s only when you look at your before and after pictures that you realize that our bloody awful you look on the before pictures.
Jan Kearney
Oh no Come on. You’re human!
Martyn Rhodes
I see it on the crown here I just said right I’m gonna say as soon as we get the as soon as we get the hair products. I would be trying it if it works. Obviously I’m talking about it to people and just take it from there. And that’s just that’s just I just feel miles better than what I did. I’ve lost as I said about two and a half stone I found it pretty easy to keep it off. So that’s just a side thing that I’m I enjoy the products and that’s that’s the network marketing experience.
Jan Kearney
Yeah. So now you do the Utility Warehouse side of things. Now, I’ve heard of them and I used them in the past when I first moved over to Runcorn because at that point I was doing a quite a few networking meetings. So and you always have a utility warehouse person with a pig turning up at these meetings. So I knew I knew who who they were. And it was only because and please don’t take it the wrong way because it’s as well I pass your number and I’m saying speak to Martyn, he’s lovely. He’s really not pushy, because you’re not. But a lot of people who are in that role, and they’re just constantly like sign up now sign up now sign up now. So is that something that you’ve been very aware of? Or Or is it just naturally you you’ll just sit down and chat and and tell how you see it and go from you know, from there.
Martyn Rhodes
Yeah, I’ll just sit down and chat. Tell them how I see it. Like look, compare the bills. And basically I’ve found that by bundling the two things it does, one it always saves money, and two, it saves time. A UK call center, one direct debit one bill, one password, and that’s for everything and people have got their own personal account manager which is me so if they’ve got any problems they can come to me. So I just say look, I can save you 40 pound a month or in some cases 100 pound a month or whatever it may be. So one you’re saving money and two everything’s in one place, and most people are just happy to say, oh, touch wood. Most people are happy to this makes this makes perfect, perfect sense.
Jan Kearney
Then you get someone awkward like me that goes I’ve got pay as you go and I don’t want the phone and I don’t want this. I’m happy with these bits but I’m not happy with them bits. It was great that you were happy to still to talk and a bit different which made I mean it does it makes all the difference so every time someone moans about the bills now I go here’s Martyn’s number have a chat with him is fabulous. So it’s and whether they do or whether they don’t is up to them, isn’t it
Martyn Rhodes
It’s going it’s going really well on that side because I think people now the news is the news is that bad. There it’s headlines every day or every week or you know, eight weeks ago. Yeah, probably end of April. The prediction was that the price cap, which is for an average user would go from 1971 to 2600. So an increase of about 30%. Monday. That figure was revised to 51%
Jan Kearney
That’s shocking
Martyn Rhodes
In eight weeks, you’ve gone you’ve gone up 21% It’s just so it’s on everyone’s mind so I can go. I was in my local pub on the on Monday evening. Speaking to friends who I’ve known for years and they just said bloody elec. Our electricity bills, I said do you want me to look at it. So I went round yesterday, looked at everything look what they were paying for the gas and the electric, the landline, the broadband, the mobile, the boiler cover, they had boiler cover. Did them a quote and save them probably with take because I’ve fixed their energy for them. So I’ve taken out this 51% in October. In their case it will be about two and a half 1000 pounds for the year.
Jan Kearney
Wow Wow. Because I mean that hike is coming whether it’s going to be 30 or 50 or 60%. There’s going to be a massive, massive jump come winter for for all of us. And it’s and I think a lot of people are really nervous about it now. Even people who are relatively okay at the moment are going to be struggling. And then on the other side, you’ve got people who are already suffering off off the last one. So I mean, it’s important to get the fact that you know, you can save money you don’t have to stay at so we’ll stay with the big the big providers. I mean, how have you found because so many energy companies went bust didn’t they? Like well it was like like last year. I mean, as that impacted on people’s nerves about swapping utilities.
Martyn Rhodes
Yeah, I mean, this time last year, there was I think 75 providers, and I think now there’s less than 20.
Jan Kearney
Yeah.
Martyn Rhodes
So, yeah, I think people the initial response was to go Oh, God. I’m going to the old style big six as it as it were, but all the big six are charging on the price caps. Charge exactly the same. They’re all on the on the price cap. We’re actually under the price cap. We,re the only one that is under the price cap. But also the advantages that if you bundle, if you add your broadband and your landline that gets you another two and a half percent. If you have the mobile that’s another two and a half percent. If you don’t have the mobile but at the boiler cover, we can get up to 5% off the price cap which is which is about 100 pounds. So that’s quite significant on its own but by bundling as well. We can offer some really good fixed rates and it’s the fixed rate that takes out the October hike. That is what most people are talking to me about at the moment. And they’ve looked at their own provider and said, what can you do for me bearing in mind what’s going to happen in October? I had one person who was with one of the big six. They offered him a deal. And he said can you beat that? I saved him 30 pounds a month just on that quote by bundling everything. But not only did you save 30 pounds a month, it also saved what he was paying on his mobile, plus what he was paying on his landline and his broadband because our quote was for everything. You know so in effect it was about, it was about 75 pounds a month, which is about 900 pounds a year. So you know he was made up and obviously then he’s told a couple of friends and obviously with a referral business which is great. They’ll tell people and hopefully they tell people and then all you do is say well, this is what we can do for this and this is what we can do if you do this and then like we did with with you.
Jan Kearney
Yeah,
Martyn Rhodes
Whatever you decide to do. That’s that’s not a problem.
Jan Kearney
Yeah, I mean, yeah, I was told my sister about your for parents and I know you sorted them out. Because with my mum being very disabled now. The heating is always on and my sister was phoning around and it was just shocking the quotes that were coming in. So I know you storted you sorted them out as well. But how have you managed to keep that price underneath the price cap when everyone else is going through the roof?
Martyn Rhodes
Well because we’re the only genuine multi service provider in the country, because we can do boiler cover and home insurance because we can do the mobile phones because we can do the landline and the broadband and because we can do the energy and utilities by bundling everything. We were just able to make the proposition just a lot more a lot more attractive.
Jan Kearney
Yeah, just by, because you’re buying in bulk essentially.
Martyn Rhodes
You get in a tube and I mean, I did one for my friend’s elderly father just across the field from where I live. He’s 93 Unbelievably, and still totally compos mentis. And he said, I’ll swap over to you, he said because I’m sick of having this energy and gas and electric with them and broadband with them. And I’ve got my phone with them and I’ve got my boiler cover with them. So we actually have four different providers. So when I told him I could do all four, he said I’ll do it then, it’s just miles easier.
Jan Kearney
Yes.
Martyn Rhodes
I said I said okay, Tony, I said but just let me tell you how much I can save you as well. In his case, it was over 2000 pounds. Now that was because some of that was because he had a Sky package. And he said I watched this I watched that I watched that and I watch that and I’m like well why have you got this added on? Anyway No idea. Can you sort it out? Sky got the permission to he gave permission for me to speak to them. We cancel that which was that was 500 pounds. And then we saved him an awful lot of money on his boiler cover. Money on his mobile money on his gas and electric and money on his landline broadband and it came to just under 2000 pounds. He said I only wanted to do it because it was easier. He said I wasn’t bothered whether you save me money or not. I said well this is this like 160 pounds a month I said well that’s obviously most people want to save money. He was like the opposite. He said just make it easy for me.
Jan Kearney
Just make it easy. And everything’s in one place and isn’t it you log in to your dashboard and it’s it’s all there for you. Well mine isn’t because mine is pay as you go but I still have a dashboard. Say, but yeah, it’s all fun. So, I mean, I know you’ve been on Twitter forever, like me, it feels like forever anyway. A long long time. Is I mean is that your main way of of networking, or do you do a lot of offline networking as well?
Martyn Rhodes
No, I’d say Twitter is I tend to use social media. Twitter, I do promote the commercial side the domestic side and the Isagenix side. I tend to use Facebook really just as putting stupid jokes on and messing around and doing it that way. I probably should use but I’m on Instagram. Don’t use it on LinkedIn, don’t use it. I’m on Facebook, don’t use it for anything to do with business, the only business that and I should look at these other platforms. Definitely. I really promote the business side is just on Twitter. And yeah, I mean, I go to nothing formal like these BNI is or anything like that. But there are a couple of group local groups where I’ll go and talk. If they’ve got someone from UW already there. I just say I do commercial because obviously, none of these groups want two people doing the same. Now, I’ll talk about the commercial side where I can use brokers to get a better deal whether it’s the gas the electric, the merchant services, water, which is now deregulated in England. If someone does commercial I can talk about the domestic side. On the couple of meetings I’ve been so if someone if you’ve already got someone doing Utility Warehouse, for example, and already got someone doing the commercial side, I’ll talk about health and wellness. So I just say whatever you want me to talk about, I can I can fit that in.
Jan Kearney
Yeah, because I mean, you’ve got such a broad range of services now. I mean, you mentioned right at the beginning of our chat, that when the pandemic hit and everywhere it was locked. down and shut down that you felt it as well as that sort of, you know, spreading the risk across so many services as as that helped perk it back up or is it purely an energy issue that suddenly seen the influx or am I getting too personal now because of just being nosy?
Martyn Rhodes
The commercial side, as I said, virtually shut down. From day one. My as I said, my my friend who’s been with UW for God about 12 years I think he’s talked about, to me what he talked about, it’s only once a year for about the last eight years and I’ve kind of said I’m okay where I am, I’m doing this, I’m doing that. I’ve not got time, which is what you can just fit it in around your little little pockets. So I actually approached him and said from the commercial side is totally shut down. People are still domestically, they’ve still got to pay the gas and electric. They’re still using a mobile phone. They’re still using broadband. So let’s let’s go through it. So as I said, pretty much for 12 months, from summer to 2020. To the summer of 2021. I didn’t do an awful lot. I just I was just talking to friends and family. And just said, look, I can save you money and I can put everything in one place. And then it was it was it was external factors. Really it was about this time last year, when everyone was talking and saying, I mean 12% now seems nothing.
Jan Kearney
It does, doesn’t it?
Martyn Rhodes
What 12% In October, and everybody was going Jesus 12% 12% And since then, it’s just, I know it sounds awful. It’s just got worse and worse. So it went 12% in October the 54 in April and the latest prediction from Cornwall Insight, which is the one that everybody trusts to get the predictions right. They came out on Monday and said because last week it was it was 46 it was 42% Two weeks ago. Then last week, they said it’s going to be 46% And then on Monday they came out and it’s going to be 51%. So in two weeks it’s gone from 2800 The average user to 2880. Then the latest prediction is 2980. So it’s basically for the average user 250 pounds. A month which is ridiculous
Jan Kearney
Shocking, absolutely shocking. So um, we’ve hit 25 minutes. It’s gone nowhere hasn’t it? So I before I wrap it up, I know you’ve sent me links, which I will put on the bottom of the interview. But if you want to let everyone know where they can find you how they can follow you how to contact you, and then it’s on the screen as well. So how is the best place to get ahold of you?
Martyn Rhodes
Well, I suppose mobile is the most easy and direct one which is 07799 268213. I’m on Twitter @SaintDusty SAINTDUSTY st because I’m from St. Helens dusty because my surname is Rhodes. Dusty was my nickname as a kid at school dusty. @SaintDusty My email is martyn.rhomar@gmail.com Rhomar is the is the name of the company that I’ve set up, which is the first three letters of my surname followed by the first three letters of the Christian name. So Rhomar martyn.rhomar@gmail.com I’ve got my uw website is uw.partners/Martyn.Rhodes RHODES. Martyn with a Y, which a lot of people forget. And then as I said I’ve you said Jan, Yeah have sent a few links out there. Because what I have found in the last probably in the last three months is that I’ve talked to people who are saying things are getting so tight now and that they they realize that I fit the UW business around all the other things. It’s certainly not a full time thing for me even though it’s taking up more and more of my time because of the current situation. And I’ve got people approaching me saying that might be something that they might like to do as well to help their friends and family save money on energy and utilities. So if anybody wants to look at signing up as a partner it uw.partners/Martyn.Rhodes/partner. And then there’s other there’s other links that I think I’ve already sent.
Jan Kearney
Yeah, you’ve sent me some over so I’ll make sure they go underneath the video both on the blog and on YouTube.
Martyn Rhodes
I think a lot of people now I think the latest figures is 1 in 4 people are now looking either have or are looking for a secondary income anyway. The cost of living crisis like this is it’s a service that everybody uses. Everybody uses Gas and Electric, got mobile, got the broadband, so it’s a service that everybody uses. It’s something that you can fit in in the pockets of your day. And obviously with with my help and support, you know, there’s significant savings out there for clients and customers and also an opportunity to earn a secondary income for people that are looking at them.
Jan Kearney
Yeah, that’s, that’s brilliant. It’s fabulous. Is there anything else that you want to say before we wrap everything up?
Martyn Rhodes
Oh, probably not at this stage and as soon as I shut this computer down.
Jan Kearney
Well, we’ve talked about domestic energy we’ve briefly covered commercial energy, you’ve talked about health and wellness wellness with Isagenix So,
Martyn Rhodes
that’s that’s, that’s that’s the that’s enough to be going on with I think
Jan Kearney
There’s plenty there isn’t there. That’s That’s lovely. Thank you very much, Martyn. Thanks for giving up your time today to have a chat. And I’m hoping that our otter AI is as transcribed this otherwise I’ll be sat there tapping away. So So anyway, I think we shall call it a day. We’re on half an hour. We’ve tied that up pretty quickly haven’t we really, thanks very much Martyn. And I’ll speak to you soon and hopefully see you this evening at HaltonHour.
Martyn Rhodes
You certainly will. Thank you Jan Bye bye
Transcribed by otter.ai
Connect with Martyn Rhodes
Call: 07799 268213
Twitter: @SaintDusty
Email: martyn.rhomar{at}gmail.com
Web: uw.partners/Martyn.Rhodes (get an energy quote) or uw.partners/Martyn.Rhodes/partner (earn a 2nd income)
Web: Rhomar.isagenix.com (learn more about Martyn’s health and wellness products)
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