Lowdown

Parlaying Your Experience

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Steve Calitri Editor-in-Chief scalitri@towman.com

hen you come right down to it, each of us is a book of experiences. As a tow boss, and, or, as a towing and recovery specialist, it’s a rich book, maybe thousands of pages, maybe big colorful illustrations as well portraying the myriad of incidents and challenges you have engaged. The Adventures of the American Towman is also rich in experiences, sixteen years worth, comprising almost 200 episodes, 400 pages, two thousand illustrations. Could be a book, indeed American Towman has decided to collect all the Adventures into four books. Adventures fans will be able to

The Adventures has portrayed myriad recoveries

buy the Book I at TowXpo in San Antonio August 5th. Another release will make Book I available online in print and digital editions for current and future fans. I suspect the Adventures will play a role in grooming young men and women to become brave towers years down the road. There were plenty of recoveries illustrated in the Adventures, unusual ones too, from clotheslining a car across a body of water to recovering a tractor trailer dangling over a bridge and rescuing the driver. The books of the Adventures will reflect many of the experiences in your book. It begs the question, how can the tow boss, and, or recovery operator, parlay his experiences? If we are talking about parlaying your book of towing experiences into a new revenue stream, the possibilities can be interesting to contemplate. The obvious examples are the reality tv shows that towing has spawned, the latest being Hustle & Tow. On YouTube 106 • June 2021 | Towman.com

there are towers working overtime capturing their experiences in real-time video trying to generate cash from views. Then there is the site, FansOnly.com that allows you to sell your video experiences to subscribers. Towers have parlayed their experiences in more traditional ways. Some have become mayors of their towns. Many have parlayed their work with motorists into a logical diversification, body or mechanical repair. Others have parlayed their familiarity among townsfolk to open restaurants or ice cream shops. Some have become towing and recovery trainers. Some have branched out or spring-

boarded into different ventures altogether. The book of experiences inside each of is valuable, indeed so valuable one cannot put a price tag on it. Nor can one measure the level of self-confidence towing and recovery work has instilled in us. Self-confidence is the greatest trait one can have in negotiating one’s life through this world. Towing is a stressful trade. The work that this industry performs is not valued or compensated enough. You may be one of those tow bosses reading this, thinking you can’t escape this industry quick enough. Still there are those who love the work so much that it’s truly coursing through their veins. The world needs towmen. At least until the robots take their place. But until they do maybe the first parlay for every tow boss should be to parlay into a sound rate card. You’ve invested a lot into your business, maybe it’s time for you to make it a lucrative enterprise. Hey, you’re a great book. Sell it at a good price.