Feature spotlight: To-Do’s

Show Notes

Jeff Koraleski, a technical services manager (TSM) at Buildertrend, joins us on The Building Code, for a “Feature Spotlight” on a true client favorite – To-Do’s!

Starting out as a customer success manager (something our listeners may know as a Buildertrend Coach) and spending some time on our product team before taking on his current role as a TSM, it’s safe to say that Jeff knows our product backwards and forwards, which is exactly why he’s the perfect person to discuss everything about the To-Do’s feature.

All About To-Do’s

In Buildertrend, the To-Do’s feature is located under the Project Management tab. The best thing about this tool: it’s easy to use for any kind of project. It doesn’t matter what size of company you are or what type of work you do, chances are you’ll love this feature if you aren’t already using it. Before implementing Buildertrend to-do lists, our clients use a wide variety of methods to track these tasks – Excel spreadsheets, with pen and paper … the back of drywall? Jeff has seen it all.

The primary function of the To-Do’s feature is to create a long checklist. As you walk the job site and notice things that need fixed, you can easily make your checklist and assign tasks to the right people, all from your phone and the Buildertrend mobile app.

Cool Features You’ll Find in the To-Do’s Tool

Take a photo to show your team or customer what exactly needs to be fixed. Draw an annotation to the photo with a handy arrow or whatever works for you to include more context and direction. Add the photo and annotation to your to-do list with a deadline to provide the perfect instructions for whomever is in charge of making the fix.

Your team or a sub can check off when a to-do list item is done, as well as upload a photo to prove to you that the fix was done correctly. Handy, right?

To-Do’s: An Oldie, but a Goodie … and Constantly Evolving

While the To-Do’s feature may seem simple enough today, it’s actually come a long way from where it first started with the help of client feedback. As a TSM, Jeff’s job is to take what our Buildertrend Coaches hear from our clients and relay that feedback to our product development team. A “win” for Jeff and the rest of our TSMs is to see a feature enhancement come through the idea pipeline and be pushed through to the live product. A really cool new product update that came from a client suggestion? Recurring items in the To-Do’s tool. This recent feature enhancement allows you to easily create the same checklist every week for your site walks

More About Our Guest

This wouldn’t be a “Feature Spotlight” episode without a fun fact (or two) about our guest, Jeff.

  • Jeff makes his own pottery! He’s in the process of converting his garage to a pottery studio, where he’ll have his own wheel and supplies (minus the kiln).
  • He loves his two English Bulldogs, Minion and Penny.

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Transcript

Zach Wojtowicz:

What’s up, everybody? Welcome to “The Building Code.” I’m Zach Wojtowicz.

Charley Burtwistle:

And I’m Charley Burtwistle.

Zach Wojtowicz:

And we’re back in the studio, and I’m really excited.

Charley Burtwistle:

Yeah. It’s been a long time, Zach.

Zach Wojtowicz:

Don’t tell the audience our secrets.

Charley Burtwistle:

Yeah, yeah, yeah. No, no, no, we saw you two weeks ago. It is a beautiful Friday afternoon.

Zach Wojtowicz:

It really is.

Charley Burtwistle:

4:30 PM.

Zach Wojtowicz:

October in Nebraska is special.

Charley Burtwistle:

There’s no place I’d rather be. And we have a very, very exciting guest. This is someone who, when I saw the name of the company at least on the …

Zach Wojtowicz:

Were you starstruck?

Charley Burtwistle:

… I was starstruck. Yeah. Yeah, DreamMaker Kitchen & Bath is absolute all-stars in Buildertrend lore. But Zach, tell the people who we got on the pod today.

Zach Wojtowicz:

We got Courtney Baxter-Marsh. She is out in Northwest Arkansas, which I’ve actually been to before.

Charley Burtwistle:

Of course. Yeah, yeah, yeah.

Zach Wojtowicz:

Get out of the office, some of us.

Charley Burtwistle:

All right, let’s get her on here. Let’s get to chatting.

Zach Wojtowicz:

Hey Courtney, welcome to “The Building Code.” We’re really excited to have you in here today. Can you tell us a little bit about yourself and how you got started in construction?

Courtney Baxter-Marsh:

Thanks for having me. I am Courtney Baxter-Marsh, and I’m one of the owners of DreamMaker Bath & Kitchen of northwest Arkansas. We are located in the heart of northwest Arkansas, in Rogers, and we serve all of the area, so Bentonville, Rogers, Springdale, Fayetteville. All the surroundings out of that area.

Zach Wojtowicz:

That’s awesome. We were just talking before we brought you on that I’ve actually been to Northwest Arkansas, and I’m not sure …

Courtney Baxter-Marsh:

That’s awesome.

Zach Wojtowicz:

Yeah.

Courtney Baxter-Marsh:

How long ago was it?

Zach Wojtowicz:

It was about three years ago, I went to Fayetteville. I used to be a consultant for Buildertrend, so I would travel around. And I was like, “I’m going to Northwest Arkansas?” I got to Fayetteville. And what an amazing place. I highly recommend, Mr. Burtwistle, head on down to Northwest Arkansas. There’s a lot going on there. The airport was really big, and then there’s a ton to do. Great food, great people. It was awesome.

Courtney Baxter-Marsh:

Absolutely. It’s just continuing to grow. I can’t even keep up with how fast. I follow all these email trails of what to do in the community. But I think the latest one this week was we now have two airlines have direct flights to Phoenix. That was the newest direct flights. We can pretty much get to anywhere within two flights if needed, honestly, but we do have a lot of direct flights. It really is a bubble and a best-kept secret of America.

Zach Wojtowicz:

So, don’t go there. Yeah. So, we’re not allowed …

Charley Burtwistle:

We’re set to edit. We’ll edit that part out of the podcast.

Courtney Baxter-Marsh:

No, you’re welcome. We love visitors, and I love transplants. I personally did not grow up in northwest Arkansas. My mom is originally from Rogers. She actually graduated from Rogers High School, so that’s what brought us back to the area. So, I’ve grown up visiting the area and seen the growth over the last 20 plus years. And it’s incredible what it’s become. But it’s also such a wonderful place to live because it’s not just the taxes buying things, but it’s these Fortune 500 companies that are investing in the communities locally. So, we have so many things to do that are free. The Waltons, you’ve got the Hunts, you’ve got the Tyson family. And then just everyone in between. It really has just become such a great place not just to live but visit, too.

Charley Burtwistle:

That’s awesome. We’re super excited to have you on today from DreamMaker, which maybe other people have not heard of, but at Buildertrend, DreamMaker is kind of an all-star.

Zach Wojtowicz:

A celebrity account.

Charley Burtwistle:

A celebrity. Right when I saw the …

Courtney Baxter-Marsh:

Oh, I’m glad hear that.

Zach Wojtowicz:

Whether you knew it or not. We’re like, “Oh, we got DreamMaker?”

Charley Burtwistle:

Yeah, because you guys have what? Like 30 different locations. You guys are absolute power users. You’re always down to beta different features and different product offerings that we have. So, even I, I’m not in CS or Product or anything like that, but I saw a DreamMaker on the interview schedule. I was like, “Oh heck yeah, I love a chance to talk to a good DreamMaker person.”

Courtney Baxter-Marsh:

Yeah. We absolutely love DreamMaker. There’s actually 42 active locations.

Zach Wojtowicz:

42, wow.

Courtney Baxter-Marsh:

Started in 1975 but wasn’t rechristened into the name of DreamMaker Bath & Kitchen until 1999. Came from a family of franchisers. So, the cool part about DreamMaker is we are a locally, family-owned business, and we are invested in northwest Arkansas, but also the backing of a franchise. People don’t realize how crucial that is. Just think of Chick-fil-A. You go through, and it’s more than fast food. You walk away feeling better about your day. And I feel like that’s what happens with DreamMaker, is the fact that we have these amazing code of values. Corporate is so supportive. We actually have our own franchise coach. We meet with him weekly. We can lean on him. But with a franchise comes with those processes and systems that we’re able to elevate the customer experience in an industry that is so chaotic and so disruptive.

Charley Burtwistle:

I love your energy, by the way. Very passionate, I can tell.

Courtney Baxter-Marsh:

Just get me on cabinets.

Charley Burtwistle:

I love it. No, it’s really exciting. That’s why, if you’re watching us on camera on YouTube, I’m beaming like a goofy idiot. I just love when our builders talk about how much they love their jobs. You started your franchise in northwest Arkansas fairly recently, correct?

Courtney Baxter-Marsh:

Yes, very recently.

Charley Burtwistle:

What was it like to start during 2020? Just a normal year.

Zach Wojtowicz:

Yeah. A time a lot of businesses were booming for sure.

Courtney Baxter-Marsh:

COVID was definitely still around. 2020 was worse, from what I’ve heard. We’ve had to figure out some processes with COVID being a real thing, but luckily not as bad as 2020. When we entered in 2021, actually it was an incredible year to enter the remodeling industry because it was so lit. Honestly, there’s no other way to put it. Remodeling was lit in 2021. Everyone was spending extended amount of times in their homes trapped, unable to get out that they then realized, “I am so sick and tired of looking at my cabinets. I hate my bathroom.” Or, “There is no place for my kids to do homeschool or homework.” So, then they were turning to us, which the experience was so crazy because no market analysis could ever project what happened in 2021. And then throw in the supply chain, labor shortage. It was a good thing, but also there were some headaches.

Zach Wojtowicz:

Absolutely. Well, we’ve heard that a lot from even our builders who had been in the industry for 30 years. It didn’t matter how much experience you had. But a really unique opportunity to have a franchise support that had standard operating procedures you could adopt to and really go. So, talk us through your growth story then. Obviously, in 2021 you had probably a pretty small team. How has it changed? How’s your evolution of your business been over the last couple years?

Courtney Baxter-Marsh:

Yeah. The cool part with the backing of DreamMaker is they’ve laid out our map of growth. We’re controlling the growth, the market is controlling our growth, but we get to just follow that map and what that looks like. But for us today, we are a team of five. There’s me, one of the owners. I’m the marketing manager as well as the office manager. And I also handle all of our financials. So a lot.

Zach Wojtowicz:

Just a couple things. Yeah, those are …

Charley Burtwistle:

Casual.

Courtney Baxter-Marsh:

Yeah, just like everything. And then my mom, Mary, is actually our designer. And she handles the sales of the project as well as all the design selections. And she truly is a remodeling designer. And then my dad, Scott, is our general manager who manages our production side. And then we have our carpenters. They’re really good at what they do. They take pride in their work and they really make Mary’s visions come to life with the clients and stay in communication with the client.

And then I feel like an extension of our DreamMaker team is our trade partners that we use. Our licensed plumbers, our licensed electricians, countertop fabricators, those that we’re using for every project. But then there’s also some other trade partners that we’ll use on special projects. So, it really just depends on the project of who’s being brought into it. But I think that has been a challenge, is to control the growth and really be prepared. And I always side on the side of conservative when it comes to growth but sometimes you have to take that risk. And obviously, there’s always a financial downturn when you bring on more people, but then eventually they will become more efficient and grow. So, that’s kind of what our growth has been like.

Charley Burtwistle:

Yeah, it seems like a really, really, just listening to you talk, mature process. Even though the business is fairly new.

Courtney Baxter-Marsh:

Yeah.

Charley Burtwistle:

We try not to get too Buildertrend salesy on the podcast, but I am curious …

Zach Wojtowicz:

That’s why we dress like a Buildertrend advertisement.

Charley Burtwistle:

Yeah. A little trade secret. I actually forgot to wear my podcast gear today, so I had to go in the supply closet and grab some gear.

Courtney Baxter-Marsh:

It’s okay. Your name is hiding up to your neck, so I can’t even really see.

Zach Wojtowicz:

There you go.

Charley Burtwistle:

We have a nice cameras over here. And yeah, did you know we work at Buildertrend? Because …

Zach Wojtowicz:

Yeah, we’re repping it.

Courtney Baxter-Marsh:

No kidding.

Charley Burtwistle:

Shocker. But what I was curious was, were you guys Buildertrend users from the start? Was that something that, “We’re starting this business, we want to use Buildertrend?” Or was it something that you adopted along the way?

Courtney Baxter-Marsh:

Yeah. We were one of the few guinea pigs. I don’t think we were Buildertrend guinea pigs, but we were one of the first franchises because we were opening for operations about the time that they were transitioning. So, we actually got onboarded with Buildertrend before the other franchises. So, that was kind of cool in a way that we didn’t have to learn a system that was then going to be taken away, which the old system, as I’ve been told, was an in-house system, but you couldn’t do everything within it that Buildertrend does.

And the feedback I’ve gotten from other franchises is that, after the challenges of learning something new, is that it’s all held within Buildertrend, so it has absolutely made things more seamless. Everyone knows what’s going on, which is crucial and pretty much a game-changer when it comes to the construction industry. But we were fortunate to start with Buildertrend, and that’s all we know. And we’re in it all day, every day. I like it from a sales standpoint. I have a background in insurance before construction, and I fell in love with CRM systems. I think it’s amazing …

Zach Wojtowicz:

What a fun thing to talk about at parties. “Tell me about your CRM.” “What’s your hobby?” “CRMs.”

Courtney Baxter-Marsh:

I met someone who worked for Salesforce, and I was like, “Can we get coffee?” I really want to talk about this. But if you think about it, and it’s just like a tradesperson, you don’t know what baggage they’re bringing from home. You don’t know if they didn’t sleep the night before because something happened, or maybe there was a death in the family. You don’t know what they’re going through, but it’s so amazing that you can come to work, log on to Buildertrend and, without even having to think about it, I know what my day should look like. And it makes you more productive. It makes things not fall through the cracks. But I like that you get your sales initial call, and it handles absolutely everything, all the way to walking out of a project.

Charley Burtwistle:

Yeah, I think …

Courtney Baxter-Marsh:

Everything.

Charley Burtwistle:

Yeah, the efficiency that can bring, too, for as fast as you guys are growing. That is true value. And so, it’s really exciting to hear it.

Courtney Baxter-Marsh:

When I get calls every day from people who want our money and emails, I’m like, “How do they even find our emails and our phone numbers?” But they’re like, “Oh, we want to handle your estimating, and we’ll do it for free to show you how we’re…” And I’m like, “Excuse me, who is hiring someone to do their estimating?” Because you could make a huge mistake as far as costs, and you could potentially lose your business if you’re not careful with estimating.

And so, that’s the coolest part about Buildertrend is that we do our own estimating. We do our own change orders. We do our own purchase orders within. But I think the really cool part about Buildertrend is the unlimited storage space that it has for holding our photos. not only for the home site visits, but also the finished photos. Then you also have your legal documents, everything you need. I can access it on my laptop, on my cell phone. If I’m on vacation and didn’t take my laptop, I can log into my husband’s and all I need is my username and password. Immediately I can see the same exact thing I see when I’m at home.

Charley Burtwistle:

Gosh, listening to you talk right now, I could just tell that’s going to be the clip that they use and put on Instagram. They take one little 15 second clip to post on the socials.

Zach Wojtowicz:

Courtney, how do you feel about Omaha? We’ll fly out here, get you in the studio.

Charley Burtwistle:

Yeah. No, you can take Zach’s job.

Courtney Baxter-Marsh:

I actually have really fun memories in Omaha. My husband and I got married a month before we opened for operations. Talk about jumping into the waters, like …

Zach Wojtowicz:

Dang, yeah.

Charley Burtwistle:

Yeah.

Courtney Baxter-Marsh:

Yeah. I’m still trying to figure out the balance of work and personal life, but that’s all …

Zach Wojtowicz:

Maybe it’s because you have three titles.

Charley Burtwistle:

Yeah. Yeah. And working with my parents. I love them, but man, we choose to be codependent at some points. But we actually postponed our honeymoon because COVID and because we were starting a business, trying to figure out when the best time would be. Well, news flash, there is no good time. You make it happen. So, we ended up going in September. We booked dive motels two weeks before we left. So, we actually got a jumpstart in Omaha to then get out west. We went to the Badlands, Devil’s Tower, Glacier, and then Yellowstone and Grand Teton. But Omaha was the start of the honeymoon, and I’m ready to go back.

Zach Wojtowicz:

Of your dive motel adventure.

Charley Burtwistle:

Yeah, I was going to say. Talk about Badlands and Teton and Glacier. Those are cool, but you kind of peaked at Omaha. It’s all downhill after that, unfortunately.

Courtney Baxter-Marsh:

Right? Well, now the best part about Omaha is there’s a DreamMaker there.

Charley Burtwistle:

That’s right. That’s right.

Zach Wojtowicz:

I actually didn’t know that.

Charley Burtwistle:

Yeah. They’re pretty new, aren’t they?

Courtney Baxter-Marsh:

Yeah. And they’ve got an incredible design center. If you haven’t had a chance to go by, you absolutely should.

Charley Burtwistle:

We’ll do some promos there.

Zach Wojtowicz:

I actually …

Courtney Baxter-Marsh:

No, you really should.

Zach Wojtowicz:

I want to see it.

Charley Burtwistle:

Yeah. I could maybe use definitely a kitchen remodel, maybe a bath.

Courtney Baxter-Marsh:

Absolutely.

Charley Burtwistle:

So, I may have to just swing in and check it out, which …

Courtney Baxter-Marsh:

And the best part is another female DreamMaker owner is at that location, and I don’t think there’s many of us.

Charley Burtwistle:

There you go. Yeah, I would actually check it out. I joke sometimes when we have guests on that … we had one that did elevator systems. I was like, “I’d love an elevator in my house.” But I am pretty serious about kitchen and bath, which is my poor attempt into a segue back onto the questions.

Zach Wojtowicz:

Nailing it.

Charley Burtwistle:

Which was, kitchen and bath, obviously in your guys’ name, but you’ve also talked a ton about how many leads you have coming in. How do you weigh the balance between, “We’re specializing in these specific types of remodels,” with, “We can maybe take on a little extra work?” Do you have to turn clients down a lot? Or how do you focus on finding the right clients?

Courtney Baxter-Marsh:

Wow, that’s many questions in one.

Charley Burtwistle:

Yeah, that was like six. I was counting in my head as I was asking them.

Courtney Baxter-Marsh:

Usually when we’re turning people away, they’re looking for something that we can’t offer. I had one this week. It was a very kind old gentleman was very gruff about, he wanted an acrylic shower installed. And I was like, “Sorry, we don’t do those.” Never gave me the opportunity to explain why. So, that conversation ended. So, we’ll turn them away if … Well, it’s important to figure out who your client is and to find those clients that value what you do. Because we’re so different than others in our industry, Buildertrend helps us with their format of asking those qualifying questions and keeping track of those qualifying questions, so that we could see, if we got burned, where did we go wrong?

But then finding out and pre-qualifying them ahead of time. Are they the right fit for us? Do they value what we do? Unfortunately, HGTV has ruined that as far as people don’t understand the true cost. I tell you what, I probably have not had a single person come to us saying, “This is what I think it’s going to cost.” And have they ever been spot on? Never ever. And I had an older woman last week. And she was offended that it would take more than one day to remodel her entire kitchen.

Zach Wojtowicz:

Dang. Where’d she get that at?

Charley Burtwistle:

No kidding. That’s insane.

Courtney Baxter-Marsh:

Yeah. Thank you, HGTV?

Zach Wojtowicz:

Yeah. It’s magic. It just appears.

Courtney Baxter-Marsh:

It’s great for ideas, but it’s not realistic, and it’s really hurt us. But it gives us the opportunity to educate and open up that conversation. And figuring out if someone’s coming to us who is a DIYer, those are not our client. That’s not the client that’s going to find value in what we’re doing. We’re not the cheapest, but we’re usually not the most expensive either. We bring quality to the table. For us personally, we have a three-year warranty on our workmanship for each project, which that is unheard of. And the reason why is because we’re having to make tough decisions on how we’re constructing things, like the quality of the waterproofing system in the shower. So, finding those clients that value making those tough decisions, that’s what leads you to an amazing experience working with a homeowner, transforming their home.

Zach Wojtowicz:

Courtney, those are some amazing little sales … Did you sell insurance or were you on the backside of insurance? I’m over here like, “Dang.” You’ve just got natural business sense. I love it.

Courtney Baxter-Marsh:

I am just in the business of people, and that’s it.

Zach Wojtowicz:

I love it.

Charley Burtwistle:

Yeah. Yeah, and I knew you said going into this that you were a little nervous, but you’re absolutely killing the podcast right now. I’m in awe. If you ever want to come take Zach’s job, feel free.

Zach Wojtowicz:

That’s the second time he’s said that. I’m starting to get the message.

Courtney Baxter-Marsh:

No worries, Zach. I actually really love my job.

Zach Wojtowicz:

Oh good. All right, good. I was getting nervous. You guys sent someone out to Buildertrend University not too long ago. Is that correct?

Courtney Baxter-Marsh:

Yes. Scott, my dad. Scott Baxter.

Charley Burtwistle:

Gotcha. Did he come back with any big takeaways, or was that just a vacation out to the infamous Omaha for him?

Zach Wojtowicz:

Yeah, what dive motel did we put him in?

Courtney Baxter-Marsh:

No, I got the bill. It was a nice one.

Zach Wojtowicz:

Yeah, yeah, yeah. We’ll put him with the Cottonwood. Free advertising for them.

Charley Burtwistle:

Yeah. A huge shout out to our friends over at the Cottonwood.

Courtney Baxter-Marsh:

He came back with some Evian water. I was like, “Where did you get that from?” And he said, “The hotel.” I was like, “Okay, it was nice.” No, he really enjoyed his time. And I know that because he wouldn’t really communicate with me much while he was there. He was either learning or really enjoying, or both. But he came back and he was like, “You know what? When y’all get me to retire from here, I’m going to see if Buildertrend will hire me.” He said that y’all have a putting green. And just the communication that happens between the teamwork is just really cool. And having fun in the process, which is one of our core values.

Charley Burtwistle:

Yeah. We definitely have a really energetic environment here in the office.

Courtney Baxter-Marsh:

Yeah. But he came back on fire for everything he learned. It was drinking water out of a fire hose. But he was like, “Courtney, we’ve got to look into these specific topics.” We will never 100% utilize Buildertrend to its full extent, just because y’all are continuously changing and the fact that y’all actually take concerns and have a voting system for making changes. And I’ve seen y’all do it firsthand, probably because Scott complains loud enough but I think …

Charley Burtwistle:

We did say celebrity status. We didn’t say why.

Zach Wojtowicz:

Yeah.

Courtney Baxter-Marsh:

Yeah. The world is ever-changing, and that’s the saddest part about construction, is I look at some of these companies, and I’m like, “You’re operating the same as you did in the ’80s.” But Buildertrend is so fast in coming and watching and ever making changes to make sure that you’re making us efficient.

Zach Wojtowicz:

Absolutely. It’s pretty interesting, too. Even in the last four years, it’s really come really far. When I came to Buildertrend it was kind of on the back end of the 2010s. And I remember my first few months at Buildertrend, I was like, “Wow, there’s a lot of areas of opportunity to improve and these clients coming in.” And it’s exciting for us because I think we play a bit of a part as a company to help changing that mindset. The relationships we’ve built. We’re in the people business, too. And so, there’s this really cool effect of we hear our builders, we see their needs, we improve it, they drive the adoption more, they’re finding people that think like them.

I just read a report from the Construction Dive about new technologies coming out. And there’s so much cool stuff. And we’ve got a lot of cool stuff planned. So, I totally agree. But I think there’s a lot of builders like you who are starting to be the new generation to continue to improve and iterate.

Courtney Baxter-Marsh:

Well, everything is modernizing. Look at our smart homes, look at our vehicles. Why is construction not moving at that same pace to become modern? Why is the communication with customers not becoming more modernized?

Zach Wojtowicz:

Not enough women. Got to get more of the women in.

Courtney Baxter-Marsh:

Yeah. Well, and I think part of it, though, is change is hard.

Zach Wojtowicz:

Yeah, it is.

Courtney Baxter-Marsh:

Even if it’s good, change is hard. And I’m one of those that change makes me uncomfortable. I’ve been through a lot of tragic events in my life and so, change, to me, is uncomfortable even when it’s good. But once you get through that uncomfortable, that’s when you get to celebrate the win. Not just for you, but your customer.

Charley Burtwistle:

Right. Yeah. And when your customer wins, you win. And that’s all you really have to worry about.

Courtney Baxter-Marsh:

Absolutely.

Charley Burtwistle:

And that’s something that I think we both agree on, Buildertrend and DreamMaker, in just continuing to fight for the customer. And take care of that and the rest take cares of itself.

Courtney Baxter-Marsh:

And I think y’all do a really good job because there’s a huge difference between a custom home builder and a remodeler. That’s one of the things I’ve learned, is you want to talk about a difference between new build and remodeling? Just look at electricians and plumbers. There’s a major difference. But the fact that y’all are able to cater to the builders but also the remodelers, I think that’s pretty cool, too. That y’all are able to see those differences but cater to both.

Zach Wojtowicz:

Yeah, absolutely. And a lot of it, too, is those principles. It’s interesting to hear you say you guys have a franchise coach. A lot of people come to us looking for insight into what other builders are doing, too. And so, there’s the software and then there’s the processes and the business practices that we’ve picked up on through customer engagement, through relationships that we can then share. And that’s really valuable, too, and it’s super exciting.

I am interested. You guys have been doing this for a while. You’ve kind of hinted at this. What are some of the overall lessons that you’ve learned in the last three years? You just talked about the differences and those sub-trades, but what are some of the other things that you’ve picked up on?

Courtney Baxter-Marsh:

I think something I’ve really learned is it’s not just about creating a pretty space or a functioning space that might add to resale value or build equity in a home. We’ve gotten to see firsthand how remodeling, especially a kitchen … simply changing a peninsula to an island, how that actually reconnects the family and builds those bonds. So, it’s really cool to see that it’s not just a physical product. It’s almost like the psychological aspect of reconnecting that family. But then also I think the rare opportunity I have to work alongside my parents. Goodness, we’re also neighbors. They live one street over. So, we’re running and building a business together. We see each other all the time. And I think that’s a really unique opportunity that I’ve gotten, is to have my parents be my cheerleader my whole life. To go after my dreams and figure out what I want my career to be, to now that I get to cheer on my mom when she closes an awesome sale. And I get to cheer on my dad as well.

I think that’s the biggest thing that I’ve learned, especially with DreamMaker, is how important it is, the quality of life. That’s the reason we’re doing this. Not just for us owners, but… we were actually calculating at reunion, how many families are impacted through one DreamMaker franchise. And you just think about our employees, their spouses, their kids. Our trade partners, their spouses, their kids. And then if they have subcontractors under them. And it’s just amazing to see. And then of course you have your homeowners within your community that you’re connecting to. Or Buildertrend. We’re your customer. We’re helping build your business as well, financially. So, it’s so cool to see how we can all come together and just bless everyone.

Charley Burtwistle:

Yeah, absolutely. And on that note, as we’re wrapping up here, the topic of community and building other people up. For other builders or remodelers that are listening to this right now, maybe getting started in their business, maybe looking to iterate and improve on their business. What advice or sage words of wisdom would you like to give them right now?

Courtney Baxter-Marsh:

Well, first I would say if you have any interest in DreamMaker Bath & Kitchen, definitely check it out. It is a faith-based company and they cross boundaries that corporate America runs away from. We live our life out striving to live by our code of values, so check those out as well. But honestly it comes down to the three simple Ps: people, process and product. You have to have people who enjoy what they do and take pride in their finished product as well as the clients who value what you do.

The process. Luckily we’ve got Buildertrend to help us stay that structure and processes that keep us efficient as a company, as well as the product. It’s not just the finished product because Mary makes some really beautiful spaces. But it’s that customer experience.

Charley Burtwistle:

There you go. Good three Ps.

Zach Wojtowicz:

Yeah. Couldn’t have asked for more. I need to store that away for us.

Charley Burtwistle:

I was thinking that. I got it down in my notepad. Yeah.

Zach Wojtowicz:

Sorry.

Charley Burtwistle:

I already stole it. Well, Courtney, that was phenomenal. Thank you so much. We could talk to you for another hour. You’re always welcome to come back to talk to us more about what’s happening in northwest Arkansas.

Courtney Baxter-Marsh:

Awesome.

Charley Burtwistle:

So, thank you so much for joining us today.

Courtney Baxter-Marsh:

Thank y’all. I really appreciate it.

Zach Wojtowicz:

Thanks Courtney.

Mr. Burtwistle, we just had Courtney here on “The Building Code.” DreamMaker home that her celebrity status stacked up to a level of star-struckness.

Charley Burtwistle:

Yeah. Absolutely.

Zach Wojtowicz:

This guy is shook right now.

Charley Burtwistle:

I just feel like, gosh, the people … and huge shout to our production team and everyone. But the people we get on the podcast are just incredible. People ask me all the time, “Charley, you’re a data scientist, why are you doing the podcast?” I’m like, “This is the only chance I get to talk to our customers.” I am so grateful for this opportunity. And Courtney was a perfect example of that. Just the passion that she has, not just for the business but her customers and the entire franchise network at DreamMaker, was really, really cool to see. And talking about doing things the right way for the right reason. Incredible company, incredible person. Huge fan of Courtney.

Zach Wojtowicz:

I know I’ve got like … PTSD isn’t the right word. I just got used to how amazing our customers are. You just see it all the time, that you kind of forget to recognize how special and rare it is because we get only the best of the best that use Buildertrend. So, yeah, Courtney was an absolute boss. She was just admirable. Her energy, her passion. You just feel it. I probably had a goofy smile. I did have a goofy smile on my face the whole time. Check it out on YouTube.

Charley Burtwistle:

Yeah. And I will check out the new Omaha location of DreamMaker Bath & Kitchen as well. I am a homeowner.

Zach Wojtowicz:

Look at that lead gen here on the pod.

Charley Burtwistle:

Yeah. Use for a referral code, Charley Burt …

Zach Wojtowicz:

Oh, now we’ve got affiliate programs? T-shirts, affiliate programs. We’ve got it all here on “The Building Code.” I’m Zach Wojtowicz.

Charley Burtwistle:

I’m Charley Burtwistle. We’ll see you next time.

Jeff Koraleski | Buildertrend


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