How One Volunteer Install Became $15K in Subcontract Work
One volunteer install. That’s all it took for Kodi of The Event Kode to build a balloon subcontracting income that cleared more than $15,000 in a single year... without pressing pause on her own business in Kentucky.
Subcontracting is still a bit of a mystery in our industry. How do you get invited? What should you be paid? And how do you leave town without everything falling apart? Kodi answered all of it, and she’s proof you don’t have to choose between running your business and helping on big installs.
Say Yes to the Event That Matters
Kodi's first travel install was volunteering at the Eagles Autism Challenge. It was close to her heart, and it showed people she was willing to travel.
That one event set off a chain. She met someone who brought her to Ole Miss Bid Day. Then she got hired to do an install on behalf of another business - by herself - and several more jobs after that.
Her advice:
- Watch stories for question boxes asking who can come help
- Don’t dismiss an opportunity just because it’s unpaid; you never know what it leads to
Know What’s Standard
Once you have some experience, it’s fair to expect:
- About $500 a day
- Travel covered, whether that’s a flight or gas money
- Hotel and food covered
Get the details in writing too: dates, daily rate, hours and what’s included. As Kodi points out, this money is profit. No inventory, no overhead... just an extra set of hands.
Build a Team That Runs Without You
Here’s another key part. Kodi's team picks their own shifts on a shared Google Calendar, and anyone who signs up must name a backup. In five years of having employees, she’s never had a single call-in.
Turn Your Network Into Bigger Bookings
All that subcontracting paid off at home. When Kodi quoted her biggest paid job yet, she knew exactly who to call. Now she’s flying in three friends and covering their travel.
Being able to say “I’ve done this at scale and I know who can help” is a powerful thing to put in a quote.
Want the whole conversation? Listen to the full episode with Kodi here.
