Booked Solid

Aaron Plante
  • 5.0 (2)
  • Entrepreneurship

Booked Solid is the podcast for rental business owners who are done guessing and ready to build something real. Whether you're renting inflatables, dumpsters, equipment, or event gear — if you're trying to fill your schedule, grow your revenue, and stop running a job disguised as a business, this is for you. Every episode, we sit down with operators, industry experts, and vendors who've already been through it — the scaling, the mistakes, the systems that actually work. We break down how rental businesses go from one truck to five, why some operators stay stuck and others don't, and where you're probably leaving money on the table right now. No fluff. No recycled advice. Just real conversations with people who've built real businesses in this industry. Subscribe so you never miss an episode.

Episodes

  1. Oct 21

    AI Routing: What If Your Routes Planned Themselves?

    Every booth at the trade show says “AI.” But what does AI routing for dumpster rental businesses actually do, and how do you tell real features from a banner?   Thanks to Dumpster Rental Systems for sponsoring this episode. Dumpster Rental Systems (DRS) is the top waste hauling and dumpster software built for real operators — handling bookings, inventory, routing, billing, and more in one place. Learn more at https://www.dumpsterrentalsystems.com   ──────────   In this episode of Booked Solid, host Aaron Plante is joined by Chris McMurtry, Director of Product for DRS, to break down AI routing for dumpster rental businesses. They cover the three levels of routing capability, what each one demands from your data, and the questions to ask in your next software demo.   IN THIS EPISODE The two things “AI” means on a routing screen: the helper bot vs. the one-press “easy button”Why routing needs differ for a one-truck operator and a growing fleetTier 1: Geo-based routing, and why it should be a basic right for every operatorTier 2: Industry-specific logic that matches trucks, drivers, and assets, and why AI routing is only as good as your dataTier 3: On-the-fly re-optimization, from choosing a cheaper dump or transfer station mid-route to handling breakdowns, closures, and last-minute ordersHow driver autonomy shifts the dispatcher into an editor and approver roleThe business pressures that signal it’s time to move up a tierA prediction: conversational routing could arrive sooner than you thinkThree things to demand from any vendor: real industry logic, customization, and proof of savings

    AI Routing: What If Your Routes Planned Themselves?

  2. Sep 23

    The $350,000 Lesson: How The Tent Guy Learned to Keep His Profit | Booked Solid

    Adam Keller spent nearly 20 years building Tent-All Rent-All into a business many rental owners dream of running. What's his secret to decades-long success in the party rental industry? *This episode of Booked Solid is sponsored by Event Rental Systems (ERS), software for party and event rental businesses. -- Adam Keller owns Tent-All Rent-All, a rental operation new owners can only dream of - big format tents, restroom trailers, weddings from spring through fall. He also created StartAPartyRentalCompany.com, where dedicated rental operators learn from lessons he says cost him around $350,000. Along the way, Adam built a follower count of over 300,000 on social media channels "Real World Side Hustles" and "The Tent Guy and other Entrepreneur Stuff". In this episode, Adam explains why revenue was never the number that mattered - profit was. The efficiency habits that saved him the most labor hours, the inventory trap that cost him real money, and the line that inspired this episode's title: "rich customers suck." He also walks through the exact mistake that's cost new operators the most in year one, and why he's now selling most of the business he spent decades building.   Follow Adam: Tent Guy InstagramTent Guy InstagramSide Hustle YoutubeSide Hustle TikTokSide Hustle InstagramStart A Party Rental Company-- Learn more about Event Rental Systems (ERS) party rental software at https://eventrentalsystems.com/

    The $350,000 Lesson: How The Tent Guy Learned to Keep His Profit | Booked Solid

  3. Aug 5

    The Biggest Mistake Haulers Make with Technology with John Shaw | Booked Solid

    Up to 20% of a hauler's revenue can quietly disappear through uncharged extra days, waived overweight fees, and other billing gaps. John Shaw gets tactical about where it goes and how to get it back - the two habits he tells every operator to stop immediately (running on gut feeling and "that's how we've always done it"), why AI can't do anything for a business still running on a dry-erase board, and where to start once your data is ready.    John has nearly 40 years of technology leadership behind him - commanding a 200-soldier signals intelligence unit in the U.S. Army, leading a digital transformation at a $20 billion company, and holding two U.S. patents. He's now VP of Technology for the Field Services Group at Fullsteam, setting technology strategy across field service businesses.    No hype cycle jargon. Just what nearly four decades inside technology leadership says about who wins with AI and who gets left behind.  Thanks to Dumpster Rental Systems for sponsoring this episode. Dumpster Rental Systems (DRS) is the top waste hauling and dumpster software built for real operators — handling bookings, inventory, routing, billing, and more in one place. Learn more at https://www.dumpsterrentalsystems.com/

    The Biggest Mistake Haulers Make with Technology with John Shaw | Booked Solid

  4. Jul 1

    You Are the Brand with Jamie Schluckebier - Spring Forward Inflatables, Jumpin J's & KoSocial

    Jamie Schluckebier didn’t start with a plan. He started with a bounce house, a shoestring budget, and $350 a week as a youth pastor trying to support a family. Thirteen years later, he runs two separate event rental brands in South Georgia, a marketing services company called KoSocial, and a community called Bounce House Marketing Skool where over 230 operators pay $20 a month to learn everything he knows. He still remembers the Friday he didn’t deliver a single unit himself. That was the day he understood the difference between a business and a job. In this episode, Jamie goes through all of it – how he built Spring Forward from scratch, why he acquired a competitor’s brand and what he’d do differently, and how 48% of his revenue now comes from customers who keep coming back. He talks about the two-brand strategy most operators would call cannibalization – and why it’s actually about Google real estate. He breaks down when an operator should try to learn marketing themselves versus when paying a professional will leapfrog years of expensive trial and error. He also gets specific about AI – not the hype, the actual tasks. What he has running on a daily schedule, where it falls short, and why a motivated operator with the right tools will still beat someone who expects the tool to do the thinking. His philosophy is simple: he is the brand. Not the logo, not the truck, not the hashtag. Him. And he explains exactly how that translates to bookings – and what operators who aren’t ready to be a personal brand can do instead. What you’ll take away: The actual breakdown of where bookings come from after 13 years (repeat, referral, ads – the real numbers)Why buying a second brand was 70% about Google, 30% about customersThe line where DIY marketing stops being the right callHow to use AI for specific SEO and operations tasks – and where to keep your hand on the wheelThe moment you know you’ve built a real business Thanks to Event Rental Systems for sponsoring this episode. Event Rental Systems (ERS) is the best all-in-one event and party rental management software built for real operators — handling bookings, inventory, dispatch, and billing in one place. Learn more at https://eventrentalsystems.com/

    You Are the Brand with Jamie Schluckebier - Spring Forward Inflatables, Jumpin J's & KoSocial
  • 4 Episodes

Ratings & Reviews

5
out of 5
2 Ratings

About

Booked Solid is the podcast for rental business owners who are done guessing and ready to build something real. Whether you're renting inflatables, dumpsters, equipment, or event gear — if you're trying to fill your schedule, grow your revenue, and stop running a job disguised as a business, this is for you. Every episode, we sit down with operators, industry experts, and vendors who've already been through it — the scaling, the mistakes, the systems that actually work. We break down how rental businesses go from one truck to five, why some operators stay stuck and others don't, and where you're probably leaving money on the table right now. No fluff. No recycled advice. Just real conversations with people who've built real businesses in this industry. Subscribe so you never miss an episode.

Information

  • Creator
    Aaron Plante
  • Years Active
    2026
  • Episodes
    4
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © 2026 Aaron Plante
  • Show Website
    Booked Solid