How to Invest in Marketing When You Cant Fully Prove It’s WorkingWith Ashley Wainscott of Simply Home

Eric Fortenberry: [00:00:00] Welcome to the podcast where we take a deep dive into the stories behind construction business leaders. We will share how they got started, how they found success, and the lessons learned along the way. I’m your host, Eric Fortenberry. Welcome to Builder Stories.

Eric Fortenberry: Welcome back everybody. Today I’m really excited. We’ve got an awesome guest here. We’ve got Ashley Wainscott, who is the CEO and owner of Simply Home Austin. For those of you who know me, I spend a lot of time in Austin, so got, got, got a, got a real sweet spot for, uh, for, for Austin. Really excited to have you on though.

Eric Fortenberry: Why don’t you kick us off, Ashley? Tell us a little bit more about you, how you got into construction, and what does your, what does your company do?

Ashley Wainscott: Yeah. So, uh, construction found me. I, I did not think I would be working in construction as a career. Um, I had the lifelong dream to be a wedding planner, an event planner.

Ashley Wainscott: Um, I watched [00:01:00] a movie with J.Lo when I was little. I don’t know if you’ve seen it, Eric. It’s, uh, The Wedding Planner. Um, but it is a great movie. And I, um, thought... Anyways, I thought that that’s what I’d be doing. I got into it. It was not for me. Uh, so I pivoted and started working on homes, doing make-readies, so all the little things you know you do before you sell your house, and that’s where I got my start and learned all the things like, you know, unbeknownst to me that there was a toilet flange, right?

Ashley Wainscott: There’s all these little things in a house that you grow up in and you know absolutely nothing about. Um, and so I just was taught by all my vendors and subs what, what everything was, and then, um, expanded into kitchen, bathroom, full homes, you know, as I felt like I was experienced enough and able to. And yeah, Simply Home.

Ashley Wainscott: We [00:02:00] started it, I started it, what, 13 years ago?

Eric Fortenberry: That’s awesome. Now, you were telling me earlier that when you first started, it was Simply Sold. Is that, is that, uh, was that kind of the first, uh, name and brand of the company? Did it, did it have a different business model? Or kind of tell us a little bit about how, how you evolved the, uh, the, the, the company there.

Ashley Wainscott: Yeah, yeah. That was an interesting moment. It was actually, it was a little bit before COVID. I’d done a full rebrand. Um, I wanted the name to feel more encompassing of what we were doing and how we had evolved to s- you know, building kitchen, bathrooms, full homes, and then starting to do a little bit of additions.

Ashley Wainscott: Um, but we started off just doing those make-ready projects, and so Simply Sold, to me, was more around the idea of selling, and I feel like it didn’t... Again, it just didn’t really represent the whole brand. And I mean, Eric and the world, you understand how it leaves opportunity and [00:03:00] possibilities for whatever comes next, right?

Ashley Wainscott: So if we wanted to get into launching other divisions.

Eric Fortenberry: Sure. It makes sense. You know, and, and, and I’m curious, can you tell us a little bit more about your team? Like what, what does, what does that look like today, and how has it evolved over the years?

Ashley Wainscott: Yeah. So at first, I wore all the hats, and it was just me.

Ashley Wainscott: And, um, hired, made my first hire, and she is who I call my work wife, and she was with me, and is still a little bit with me. We have a podcast together and, you know, um, she’s with me for about 10 years. And I just, uh, I don’t know how... You know, as 20-year-olds, you just, you have so much energy, so we were doing everything, right?

Ashley Wainscott: Um, the day I got to offload bookkeeping, social media, you know, those were the first things off my plate. Um, but then it evolved, and then I started hiring, [00:04:00] um, individuals that I thought could do my job but better, and that’s just where I’ve been, that’s where I’ve been headed pretty much every day since of like, who knows more than me, and how can you do it better than I can?

Ashley Wainscott: Um, because there are so many more experts, right? Like a construction manager with 30 years experience, that sounds great. I, I love that, right? I’m gonna lean on you for those things. Or a CFO or a CPA, right? So, um, that’s kind of how the team has evolved. We have a lot of outside consultants. We have, uh, virtual assistants.

Ashley Wainscott: We have a mix of, um, interns who we’re hiring right now and, um- You know, project managers, sales, business development, just everything to keep the wheels moving.

Eric Fortenberry: Yeah, absolutely. And I, I mean, I, I see you’ve got, you know, gorgeous website here. It’s, [00:05:00] uh, you know, really well done. You know, you guys are very active on, on, on social.

Eric Fortenberry: You’re putting out videos, like, constantly. You know, getting that, that content engine has, has clearly been, uh, started up very, very, uh, strongly for you all. How, how did you, you know, and, or, or when did you decide, you know, to invest in marketing and, and, and, and how does that, how does that go, you know, for your company today?

Eric Fortenberry: Like, how are you guys producing all this, uh, all this awesome content?

Ashley Wainscott: Yeah. You know, um, initially I had a social media-- I’ve had different social media consultants that I’ve worked with over time, and all have been great, but I’ve found the one. Nice. And they really focus on strategy and results, and you can just see and feel the difference from-- There, there are so many buckets in marketing, which I guess I-- you could say I was a little ignorant to as a business owner of, I was so used to, like, relationship and guerrilla marketing, right?

Ashley Wainscott: So I’m like, “Oh, I know [00:06:00] Eric. Eric, you know, we have a tight bond. He’s always gonna send me business.” And I kinda went a little more old school in my approach for a long time. Um, but in the last year, in recent years, I’ve really invested in SEO and GEO and AdWords and, um, have taken more risks with social media and, um, beyond relationships, right?

Ashley Wainscott: That’s obviously, like, the foundation. But yeah, the marketing components, there’s so, there’s so much to it And I’m married to a marketing guy, and you would think that I would understand this, but, uh, I’m finally bought in. I see the value.

Eric Fortenberry: Yeah. Well, would-- Where do you, where do you think, like, the majority of your leads are, are coming from?

Eric Fortenberry: Like, what, what are the marketing efforts that have made the biggest impact for you?

Ashley Wainscott: Yeah, you know, um, the mix of things these days, I feel like it’s a pretty good mix ’cause we have past [00:07:00] clients that come back, which like chef’s kiss, we love that. Um, and then there’s referrals from past clients. There’s Google.

Ashley Wainscott: Those are a little bit riskier, right? ’Cause you kinda just hope they’re the right fit. Um, then you have all of our referral relationships, architects and designers that we’ve worked with for a long time or even new relationships. Um, we have allies, so like other firms here in Austin that are our competitors, but we send each other business, and we get clients that way as well.

Ashley Wainscott: Um, and then of course, social media. So, you know, people could be following us for years and then say like, “Okay, I’m ready. I’m-- I’ve been loving what you’re saying, and now I’m ready.”

Eric Fortenberry: And so with these, like the, the referral partners you talked about, like working with architects, for example, like is that, is that something where, you know, you guys are both sending, you know, each other [00:08:00] opportunities?

Eric Fortenberry: Or is this, uh, you know, are they also doing all of your design, or did you bring some of that in-house, or h- h- how have you, how have you sort of structured that?

Ashley Wainscott: Yeah. So we did make a decision to bring design in-house, and that has been thought through the last couple years. But really the last year we implemented it.

Ashley Wainscott: And as you know, with any new division, there’s a lot of little, a little pieces, right? To make it as excellent as you want it to be. Um, but that decision was based pretty much on cash flow because we wanted to, we wanted to control the, when projects would be starting, what information we were getting, how we were getting it.

Ashley Wainscott: And so having more control over that made that decision of how do we have design in-house. We still take external projects, and it is a two-way street, right? Like they [00:09:00] expect us to send them projects and vice versa. And, um, you know, any relationship, we don’t want to be a taker.

Eric Fortenberry: Sure. Now, I, I, I got to ask too.

Eric Fortenberry: I see you have over 1,800 homes have been remodeled as, as, as, uh, I got that from your website now. So, you know, 1,800, I mean, if I divide that by what, like 13 years, I mean, that’s, that’s a lot of projects per year on, on average you- you’ve completed here. Like, uh, uh, how, how have you been able to keep up with this many, this many projects and, you know, what, what’s the size of these projects and the, and, and, and kind of the, the typical scope of them?

Ashley Wainscott: Yeah. Yeah. It is nuts when when you think about it. As I said, I had a lot of energy in my 20s. You know, a lot of weekend work. I mean, we had 30, 40, 50 projects running at any given time, and I don’t, I don’t... Eric, don’t ask me how I did that. I don’t know. [00:10:00] These days it’s, you know, it’s more like anywhere from 8 to 14, depending on the size of projects, right?

Ashley Wainscott: Um, but it could be anything from like a $75,000 project to a million dollar project. You know, our sweet spot’s kind of in between, but we’re still one of the few remodeling firms that does single room spaces at an elevated or luxury, um, service.

Eric Fortenberry: Yeah. It’s awesome. I mean, I, I, I can only imagine, uh, trying to manage that many projects at once.

Eric Fortenberry: I guess that makes sense why you found us, uh, over here at JobTread.

Ashley Wainscott: Yes. Yes, because we have to stay organized. All that information has to go somewhere, you know? And I mean, I will say, Eric, I, uh, I feel like, I felt like the industry was lacking a software like JobTread for a long time. I always felt like [00:11:00] construction got the, you know, short end of the stick for a long time just ’cause there wasn’t many options.

Ashley Wainscott: Um, so I was pretty pumped when JobTread came out.

Eric Fortenberry: Yeah. Well, that’s awesome. Glad, glad you find us- Yeah ... found us. I’m, I’m curious, when you, when you think back about those earlier years and, and some of those projects, are there any, are there any mistakes that come to mind that like you, you felt like you were just making over and over again, and like how, how did you kind of finally solve some of those?

Ashley Wainscott: Oh, yeah. I mean, we had what we call, it’s our version of the Bible, um, which is called Lessons Learned, and it is a very, very, very long Google document. Um, and so there’s, there’s so many lessons, and it’s j- and it’s... I mean, Eric, it could be something from like not putting blue tape on concrete stained floors, right?

Ashley Wainscott: And if you do, it better [00:12:00] be for like an hour or something. I mean, even then you’re risking it, right? But then it’s getting creative and like, well, how do you cover the floors if you’re not doing that? And then use purple tape, which is supposedly better, but purple tape, surprise, also does it, right? So, um, we hope to learn once with these things.

Ashley Wainscott: Um, it could be something from, a very common one was promising clients a time that vendors would be arriving. And you betcha, they would not arrive at that time. And so we had to learn that lesson and fall on our face so many times. But there’s just, there’s so many variables, right? Like plumbing emergency, electrician loses track of time, they stop to get something to eat, they didn’t think it was a big deal, [00:13:00] homeowners being in their home.

Ashley Wainscott: Some people care about an exact time, some people don’t. And so we had to start to learn, okay, what are clients complaining about the most, and how do I set this up realistically? You know, like, “All right, Eric, realistically, I’m gonna tell you they’re gonna be there-- I wanna tell you they’ll be there at 9:00, but let’s just say between like 9:00 and 11:00 to give us some room, and if they, they might not show up then.

Ashley Wainscott: I will update you as soon as I know something, but just know this is a fluid ra- right?” So it’s like setting expectations. Yeah.

Eric Fortenberry: That’s, that’s awesome. You know, I see on, on your website you’ve, you’ve, you’ve put a lot of time into really kind of defining who you all are and, and, and what your values are, your culture.

Eric Fortenberry: You know, can, can you kind of walk us through that a little bit?

Ashley Wainscott: Oh, yes. So we have [00:14:00] the culture document, right? The inevitable piece of paper that, um, lives, lives in the drive. But I feel like the real culture test is who you are and how you act on a day-to-day and how you uphold it. Because I could say all day, you know, “Here’s our mission, vision, values,” but if I’m not actually doing those things, and if I have a team that isn’t doing those things, then that document kind of just becomes I don’t know.

Ashley Wainscott: Um-

Eric Fortenberry: Stale?

Ashley Wainscott: What’d you say?

Eric Fortenberry: Is it just kinda stale and not- Yeah ... not referenced, not used, not valued?

Ashley Wainscott: Right. Right. It’s not believable that it’s even worth considering. So, um, I’m of somebody that likes to bring it up every meeting. We talk about it. We implement it. We discuss it. You know, if there’s a [00:15:00] situation, like, what are we committed to, right?

Ashley Wainscott: What is the intention? What do we want the outcome to be? And just trying to stay aligned with it from day to day as much as we can.

Eric Fortenberry: Yeah. I mean, I, I, I like how you’ve, again, been very intentional about designing this, this culture and the, these, these values. You know, would, would you say that that’s been something that just kinda came naturally to you?

Eric Fortenberry: Or did you... Have, have you and your team kind of spent, you know, a considerable amount of time sort of, you know, over the years refining this? Like, how often do you kind of, you know, check back in with everyone and make sure that, you know, it still meets the same, you know, the, the same, same company you are today that you were, you know, 13 years ago is probably a very different company.

Ashley Wainscott: Yes, and I’m a very different leader. You know, I had to learn, uh, I hired a coach who I’m still working with, um, probably five, four or five years into the business, and I’ve learned a [00:16:00] lot since then. And I think the... You know, it is, it is interesting ’cause it’s like, yeah, how do you keep it fresh for your team?

Ashley Wainscott: And how do you talk about it in a way that’s fresh and to where it’s not just something that you’re repeating In one ear, out the other. You know, it’s like with my kids, you know, I have to keep things interesting, um, and not just say and do the same things over and over again ’cause they’re gonna get tired of it.

Ashley Wainscott: So, um, yeah, I think it’s something that we’re always working on, like whether it’s an exercise at a monthly team meeting or it’s a conversation. Um, it’s definitely evolved over the years. I’ve always, I’ve always stayed committed to, to the people though, and with like the main core of why we started and making sure people feel seen and heard, and valuing people and respecting them, that’s been my biggest, [00:17:00] like, focus.

Eric Fortenberry: Yeah. So, so you talk about you hired a coach for you. You know, have, have you, have you then provided coaching, you know, to your team and, and, and kind of what do you find that the most, you know, valuable, you know, coaching has been that you’ve ... You, you or someone else has been able to give to your team members?

Ashley Wainscott: Yes. I have been through several coaching programs and provide that to our team. I’ve also provided that, that same program to team members. So when we have leaders at the company, they also do have coach training, and they are able to provide coaching time to our team members to think through ... It’s an interesting approach because really it’s, you know, holding space for your team member to think through th- what they wanna think through and what an issue could be for them, instead of trying to feel like you need to resolve their [00:18:00] issues or that we have to have all the answers, you know?

Eric Fortenberry: Yeah. And you guys also, I see on, on your website, you spend a lot of time doing community, uh, community service or what it was like, 120 days of, of philanthropy work has, has been done. H- uh, tell us about that.

Ashley Wainscott: Yeah. Yeah, I ... We focus on anything homelessness wise, right? Anyone that doesn’t have a home. Um, so all of the nonprofits, whether it’s serving women and children or families or individuals, we, we’re there to help.

Ashley Wainscott: Whether it’s, um, time or money, we try and give both. And, um, ’cause realistically, we’re out remodeling other people’s homes, so the reality of us getting out and building someone a home like Habitat for Humanity, um, we obviously can’t do that, but we can help give back and, uh, work with them to do that

Eric Fortenberry: H- how do you decide, though?

Eric Fortenberry: Like, h- you know, again, I, I, you’re, [00:19:00] you’re, you know- Yeah ... you’ve run 1,800 projects over the years. I’m not sure where you find any free time for anything. But, like, h- how do you decide, you know, how much time and, and what resources to allocate to, you know, these, these, these, uh, you know, philanthropy projects?

Ashley Wainscott: It can be difficult, especially when you’re in a busy season, right? It’s like, okay, but realistically, where, where do we find just a couple of hours when the day feels so short? And, um- Everyone just reprioritizes, right? We find a way. And usually we’ll do things that are simpler and easier in the busy season.

Ashley Wainscott: So, you know, we’re gonna have a heavy Q4, so we know we’ll probably just do something where we can give one or two hours and make a significant impact the best we can. We have a list of nonprofits that we work with, and so we’ll be like, “Okay, this is a, this is a [00:20:00] Q4 opportunity.” Or even something like, “Hey, everyone, um, we’re gonna...

Ashley Wainscott: It’s back to school season, we’re gonna do backpacks with this nonprofit and get everyone’s school supplies together.” And even if we meet at Target for 30 minutes as a team, you know, everybody feels like, “Okay, I did something good.”

Eric Fortenberry: So is, is there like a goal? Uh, like some, some sort of a goal for the year or for the quarter?

Eric Fortenberry: Or like, I mean, how, you know... It’s like how, how do you sort of keep everyone, you know, wanting to go do all of that? And, and what would you say, you know, what, what, what would your team say, you know, they get out of this and, and what do they find to, to be the biggest benefits of, of, of all this, uh, you know, help that they’re doing for others?

Ashley Wainscott: Yeah. I... Every time... So it’s kind of like when you go, I kind of like to think of it like when you go to work out, you never regret that time, right? Although you don’t wanna go and work out sometimes. Yeah. You’re like, “This is [00:21:00] the last thing I have time for.” Um, and I, I think it can be like that sometimes, where it seems like a, the lowest priority because it’s not urgent and we don’t have a serious deliverable with it.

Ashley Wainscott: Um, but then every time we get done, everyone just feels so whole and complete, and they’re like, “Oh, God, that felt so great.” You know, we went to, um, Community First and we did all this gardening, and we helped get them ready for their farmers market for the people that live there. You know, there are just things like that that the team feels, everyone feels so passionate about it.

Ashley Wainscott: Thankfully, on the team everyone is really committed. Um, goal-wise, we usually set a budget at the beginning of the year, like, “Hey, this is how much we wanna spend.” And then, um, we try to diversify it against the nonprof- all the different ones. We don’t wanna play favorites. Um, but then we [00:22:00] also each quarter volunteer for a day, at minimum

Eric Fortenberry: Awesome.

Ashley Wainscott: Yeah.

Eric Fortenberry: And we, our team, uh, they, they just, uh, we kind of divided up, so over the course of a couple days they’ll go out to, um, this earlier this week, uh, the, uh, the Texas Canned Food Bank. So we’ll go and kind of help pack boxes and canned foods and just throw, throw a little bit of muscle in there and help them kind of get, get, get everything packed up for, for others.

Eric Fortenberry: But, you know, it’s, uh, it’s, it’s definitely something that I, that I’ve found that, like, people do really, you know, enjoy getting out of the office, but still being able to, to bond with the team, you know, kind of do just something outside of their day-to-day, you know, responsibilities. And, and, and I think as, as a, as a team, as we continue to grow, you know, it, it is very important that we can also go out and help the community and we can help others and, like, not just think about every single thing that has to happen every day.

Eric Fortenberry: Like, there’s so much more that I think everyone can do and, and, and it’s important to, to go find those ways to contribute, and it sounds like you all have, have really got [00:23:00] a good, a good process here to track, you know, all the opportunities, and then you decide ahead of time, you know, when might be a good time of the year to do those things.

Eric Fortenberry: And so I, I think that’s great. And, you know, frankly, you’re, you’re the first person I’ve, I’ve had on the podcast who’s, you know, really made it this, this big of, you know, an initiative for their company. So I, I think that’s very exciting and, you know, hopefully others will, will take note and, you know, love, love to see a lot more community service from, from construction companies.

Ashley Wainscott: Yeah. And Eric, you touched on a good point that I ... That didn’t cross my mind, but it is a good team-building moment, and it does pull people out of like, “Did you get this done?” from the office, right? And not everyone just talking office talk. So it does provide, not only are you, like, helping your community, but you’re team-building at the same time.

Eric Fortenberry: Yeah. I mean, I tell people too, I, I think the more that you can engage, like, your, your employees, you know, families as well, and this could be an [00:24:00] opportunity where, again, they can come together. You’re, you’re doing good for the community, but they’re also getting to meet the other people in the company and really starting to understand the culture and, you know, just feeling more part of it, you know, which I think will, will go a long way, you know, when, when, when you need that person to, you know, answer that call at night or go run out to a job site on the weekend.

Eric Fortenberry: Like, the more bought in the whole family is and the more that they see, you know, why, you know, you’re, you’re wanting or needing somebody to go above and beyond, it’s, it’s because of that, you know, that, that level of care and, and desire to, to do good and to help others.

Ashley Wainscott: Yeah. I-- That... I mean, that’s how we elevate the community, you know?

Ashley Wainscott: Like, really thinking about others sometimes when we get so lost in the day-to-day, our day-to-day lives.

Eric Fortenberry: Yeah. Well, you know, it’s interesting. So, so Ashley, you, you’ve been, you’ve been building, you know, a, a woman-led company in construction for, you know, for a good little while now, and as, as you are I’m sure aware, well, that’s, you know, that, that’s, that’s rare.

Eric Fortenberry: You know, so, so I’m curious, like, was, you know, [00:25:00] with, with most of your team, you know, being women, you know, in, in, in this industry that is, you know, primarily male-dominated, like, was, was that intentional from, from the very beginning, or did it just happen? Like, how, how has that, you know, come to be and, like, I mean, when-- at what point did you decide to, to lean into that?

Ashley Wainscott: Yes and yes. So it was, it was intentional, not to the degree of which it is and has maintained. I have always wanted to include women in the business and in the industry because as I found for myself, we’re, women and men are a great complement for each other, and we just, we think differently. And so we think of things in different perspectives and angles, just like all human beings.

Ashley Wainscott: But when I got started, I did have the intention, “Okay, how can I bring women into this industry with me?” And then it just became a magnet because women [00:26:00] saw other women doing it, and they thought, “Okay, well, I feel safe here, and I can work, I can work alongside her,” right? “They seem like they’ll give me an opportunity.”

Ashley Wainscott: And a lot of people, to be honest, Eric, a lot of people would come to me and they’d say, “I have no experience in this industry, but I’ve always wanted to switch industries and do this.” And so they just needed the opportunity.

Eric Fortenberry: That’s awesome.

Ashley Wainscott: Yeah.

Eric Fortenberry: Yeah, we think that there’s, uh, there’s, there’s no shortage of opportunity, but I think the awareness and, and kind of the, the, the belief and, you know, that, that there could be an opportunity for somebody is, is often not, not as prevalent as we as- as, as we would hope.

Eric Fortenberry: You know, one of the big initiatives that, that we’ve got this coming year, we’re, we’re actually hosting our, our first inaugural Women’s Summit. It’s, it’s gonna be, yeah, the day, the day before JobTread Connect. I, I think we may end up kind of separating the event out in, in future years and kind of, you know, really, [00:27:00] you know, not necessarily try to couple it.

Eric Fortenberry: But we thought that this might be, again, a great way to just, you know, kick this off so that we can, you know, help more women find out about these opportunities and, and really, you know, recognize that, that there is a real need in this industry, and the impact that women are making is, is, is huge. You know, would y- y- you said again, like women are, you know, seeking you out to, to, to, to work for you.

Eric Fortenberry: I mean, do, do you have, do you have clients that also... Like, does that attract, you know, other women? Does it, you know, vendors, partners? I mean, kind of tell us, tell us a little bit about, you know, about that.

Ashley Wainscott: Yes. Yes. So we mainly market to women because most women, most women are intrigued and amazed that there is a woman-owned company that’s a general contractor or handling construction.

Ashley Wainscott: I got a lot of questions when I first started off, like, “Okay, and w- you know, what role does your husband have in this?” And I just laughed and I was like, “My husband is not [00:28:00] remotely handy at all,” you know? And it doesn’t mean he can’t be in the business, because marketing brain but, like, you know, he’s, it, construction isn’t his thing.

Ashley Wainscott: It’s, he’s not interested in it. Um- Anyways, I’m rambling here, but, um,

Eric Fortenberry: Chris, do you think though that it, it has been a deciding factor for why a client may have chosen you over, over someone else?

Ashley Wainscott: Oh, yes. Yes. We, in the closeout surveys that we get with clients, that is one of the driving factors of why they chose us

Eric Fortenberry: That’s awesome.

Eric Fortenberry: Yeah. You know, I think that, uh, you know, a- again, uh, there, there’s-- starting any business is very hard, you know? And, and I think for, you know, for, for a woman to enter the construction space, you know, they, they, they probably have a belief that, like, it’s 10 times harder. And I think hearing, though, how [00:29:00] you’ve been able to make it an advantage and are very intentionally targeting, you know, women as customers, and you have positioned yourself, you know, as a better alternative to, to anyone else out there, I mean, like, that, that’s gotta be very, very motivating and inspiring for other women to hear about.

Ashley Wainscott: I would think so. I did have to fully embrace the pink in my logo and in my marketing and messaging. I’m not necessarily a pink gal.

Eric Fortenberry: Yeah.

Ashley Wainscott: But I think from a marketing perspective, uh, that strategy and approach has really worked. There’s something about the relatability of the, of the colors and of the way we’ve established it that women feel drawn to, not just me, but also the, the look.

Eric Fortenberry: How did, how, uh, y- your, you know, your brand is very unique, and it’s, it’s clearly very intentional. H- how did you develop, [00:30:00] you know, your place in the market and, and, and kind of where did that all sort of originate?

Ashley Wainscott: Yeah, you know, um, when I took a look, you know, did a little competitor analysis and took a look of what was an option to potential clients, I definitely wanted to stand out.

Ashley Wainscott: Uh, so pink, uh, more updated, even-- I wouldn’t even say mo- ’cause we definitely don’t have a modern approach by any means, but it was something light, airy, refreshing, and that’s been a lot of the feedback that we’ve gotten is just that it’s approachable. It doesn’t feel too luxury. It doesn’t feel too this, too that.

Ashley Wainscott: Um, people feel like they can reach out and talk to us.

Eric Fortenberry: Sure.

Ashley Wainscott: Yeah.

Eric Fortenberry: You know, I think a lot of the brand is also, you know, from, from what I can tell, sort of appears to be centered around you.

Ashley Wainscott: Mm-hmm.

Eric Fortenberry: You know, do you, do you think... Are there any downsides to that? [00:31:00] And, you know, it’s, it’s, it’s also very kind of Austin, you know.

Eric Fortenberry: If you ever wanted to open up additional, you know, geographic markets or, you know, are, are there challenges that you’ve already sort of maybe thought about that, you know, ’cause you can’t be everywhere

Ashley Wainscott: Yeah, that would be convenient if I could multiply myself. If I could have, uh, stand-ins, you know, like, “Hey, uh, that Ashley, go there.”

Ashley Wainscott: But yes, I-- in recent years, we have pulled myself more out of the marketing so that it is, it is more focused on Simply Home, and I think each quarter, each year, it just gets a little bit more that way to where I’m still here and a part of the brand, but we include team members in, um, videos, and it’s not with me.

Ashley Wainscott: So they’re doing videos on their own. Um, we feature them often on all of our different marketing [00:32:00] components because, you know, yeah, I don’t want it to be, like, Ashley Wainscott’s construction firm. I want it to be Simply Home and the people that make up the company. Um, so yes, and even considering how we could expand or offer different products, I think a lot of that is how we strategize and place-- how we place me into- Yeah

Ashley Wainscott: the marketing.

Eric Fortenberry: Well, I love that, you know, you, you’ve, you’ve put such a focus on video. I mean, your, your content, it’s, it’s, it’s genuinely funny. Like, it’s, it’s, it’s genuine. It’s, it’s, it’s, uh, very authentic and, and I just-- I have a good time watching it. I, I think for anyone who, who wants a, a different spin on, you know, how to create some, some great construction content-

Eric Fortenberry: definitely they need to go check out, uh, you know, your, your, your video content there. But, you know, w- talk, talk, talk to me a little bit about, like, how, how do you, how do you see video and, and what has been kinda your, your mission around that? And like, how has it, how has it developed over time? Because, you know, again, I, I [00:33:00] know that video, it, it takes a lot of effort.

Eric Fortenberry: You know, it’s, it’s one thing to create, you know, social content, which again, you guys have done great at, but, like, to create, you know, video and to consistently deliver, you know, high quality videos is a lot of work. And, and so I’m curious kinda what-- h-how have you done that and, and how has that, that content strategy changed for you?

Ashley Wainscott: Yeah. So leaning, leaning into the video, that has been a big push in strategy, uh, the last couple years. We actually have hired a video team.

Eric Fortenberry: Okay.

Ashley Wainscott: And they’re pros. They come in and tell us, you know, what angle works better with the lighting or, you know, how to approach the camera because the, the thing is these days is keeping people’s attention, right?

Ashley Wainscott: And so I had to learn even in the beginning of a video to not be like, “Hi, I’m Ashley,” or not pause or start to ramble. They want you to just get to the point. [00:34:00] And so they’ll help you rehearse that, right? Say that again, but say it more direct or say it slower, faster. Um, so they’ll help coach you from that sense.

Ashley Wainscott: But-

Eric Fortenberry: And, and is this a, is this like a, uh, like a third party, or is it you actually hired these people on your team?

Ashley Wainscott: Third party.

Eric Fortenberry: Okay.

Ashley Wainscott: Yeah. We’re not quite at the level where I need them full-time, but you never know. So yeah, they just meet us at job sites. They’ll meet us y- most of the time at job sites, but you know, sometimes when we’re doing a photo shoot at the end of a project, we’re doing client testimonials, we’re filming the space, they’ll be there as well.

Ashley Wainscott: Um, and a lot goes into it, right? Just the amount of scripting, how to say something, um, because you want it to still feel authentically you. Especially me, I always have to have like a pun or a s- something that they’re like, “Okay, [00:35:00] add it in there,”

Eric Fortenberry: you know?

Eric Fortenberry: So is this, is this, uh, is this something that like, you know, you, you, you’re paying kind of like monthly, or is it on a per project basis? Like, you know, and I’m just kind of curious, like how, how, how have you, you know, decided to, you know, make this investment? Is this, is this a large investment? Is this, you know, not n- you know, ’cause it’s, it’s, it’s not just your time and it’s not just paying, you know, them, but there, there’s a lot that like goes into, you know, producing high quality videos.

Eric Fortenberry: So like how, how do you, how do you measure the return, you know, on that investment and, and kind of just... ’Cause I, ’cause I know a lot of people, like I, I ask all the time, like, “How many of you all are, are, you know, recording content at your job sites?” And like, you know, and nobody says they do it. Now, well, how many know you should do it?

Eric Fortenberry: And everybody knows they should do it, but there’s this like, this fear about getting behind the camera and they, they, you know, again, they, [00:36:00] they just, they just don’t do it. There’s this, there’s some sort of a mental, you know, block and, and, and, and, and I’m curious, like, I mean, you know, how did you get over that?

Eric Fortenberry: You know, the, the cost, the fear, the, you know, the desire to, to do it. Like what, what do you recommend others do with, with video?

Ashley Wainscott: Yeah, ’cause there’s so many reasons and excuses you could make to not do it.

Eric Fortenberry: Yeah.

Ashley Wainscott: Right? It’s the easiest thing to knock off your list and be like, “Ah, I’ll do it later, I’ll do it later.”

Ashley Wainscott: One, I think it’s vulnerable ’cause you’re putting yourself out there, and, you know, the people online can say whatever they want about you. Um, and so that’s number one. Number two, I think it’s the amount of effort that you have to put into it and time and, you know, the scripting and going back over it and then editing it and...

Ashley Wainscott: I, I mean you invest for sure thousands a month, right? I think if you hired somebody to do the filming alone, [00:37:00] but obviously you need the editing, it’s like you need the whole kit and caboodle. You know? You can’t just do one without the other. Um, and so depending on what that looks like, I think you just do have to get over it and try it.

Ashley Wainscott: Anything marketing related, you have to try, and you usually, in my opinion, I feel like you have to give it a good runway, maybe six months, and just try it and see how it works for you. I... The return part’s tricky

Ashley Wainscott: It’s very tricky because there’s just no way to know if they’ve seen your videos and that is what got them. You know, the people-- Most of my clients will say that they have gone to our Instagram and have watched videos. Was that the thing that sold them? I don’t even think they know consciously or subconsciously.

Ashley Wainscott: I don’t know. Um, but I [00:38:00] know that it being there

Eric Fortenberry: Every single client has watched some videos. So I think it is worth it Yeah. D- is it... Are you going for more like long form or short form, or how do you sort of decide the balance between those?

Ashley Wainscott: Social media team directs me, which is great. Um, but right now, apparently, what’s been the thing is just getting on your phone, being in front of the camera and chattin’, because people think, you know, oh, this person isn’t a robot, they are real.

Ashley Wainscott: Yeah.

Eric Fortenberry: So I

Ashley Wainscott: will listen to them. Um, but what was weird is, Eric, for years, I’m that person that could just get in front of you and chit-chat all day, but for years it, that wasn’t popular. So I had to try really hard to do the, like, direct, scripted, you know, robotic thing, which is still a component, but, um, [00:39:00] now it seems to be just like, “Get on your phone,” right?

Ashley Wainscott: It’s like, just get on your phone, say things, talk about what you do. Even if you don’t have professional people doing it, it won’t... It will only lead to more awareness and trust from, for your company-

Eric Fortenberry: Sure ...

Ashley Wainscott: as long as you’re-

Eric Fortenberry: Yeah. ... you’ve

Ashley Wainscott: been acting crazy.

Eric Fortenberry: Whenever, uh, whenever my, my marketing team gives me a script, I find the script to be so much harder ’cause like I’m, like, trying to, like, make sure I don’t mess up, and I gotta remember every word, and, you know.

Eric Fortenberry: But the times they just walk up and they just ask me a bunch of questions on camera, and I just answer naturally, like, it’s, it’s so much easier for me. You know, it, it’s, it’s, it, it feels more authentic, more genuine, you know? And I, and I do think that in, in this day and age, I mean, there is just so much like, you know, AI slop and videos and just, just crud that gets created and published that, like, really wasn’t good, and it’s kind of like digital pollution.

Eric Fortenberry: You know, it, it’s, it’s, it’s nice when you find really genuine, authentic video and, and, [00:40:00] and I think again, like, the, the notion of like it’s gotta be perfect, like, you know, that, that’s not the case, you know? I mean, look, if you say something and, and, and, and stutter on a word or say the wrong word or... Like, who cares?

Eric Fortenberry: You know, like, the point is that you’re a real person, and you’re sharing your real thoughts, and I think that’s what people wanna see. They wanna get to know the real person who they’re gonna be working with, and, you know, the more that you can do that, the, the better it is. I, I think everyone can learn, you know, and, and, and, and video can just warm your prospects up so much, you know?

Eric Fortenberry: And there’s, there’s a lot of opportunity to use it for education about what will it be like to work with us. What happens when we tear open your walls? You know, or, like, just there’s, there’s so much great You know, opportunity that like before we had all this video content, before people could see what it looks like inside of a job, like the, the, the, the expectations of what was gonna happen was just so mismatched to, to reality.

Eric Fortenberry: But like now that they see it, and I think you do a really [00:41:00] good job of, of not just showing the pretty, you know, after. Like you have the before, you have the during, and the after, and I think that really paints a very holistic picture of the experience that someone will go through, you know, when they, when they, when they hire a contractor and decide to remodel their home.

Ashley Wainscott: Yeah. That expectation, that expectation that we can set early on, it just makes a world of difference. You know? If people know what they’re getting into, which, you know, Eric, they can’t really ever know until they experience it.

Eric Fortenberry: Yeah.

Ashley Wainscott: You can say it till you’re blue in the face, but you can try as much as possible to do as much education.

Ashley Wainscott: Um, you can try. Yeah.

Eric Fortenberry: So I’m curious, and, and, and I wanna come back to, you know, again, you’ve, you’ve been a very successful, you know, w- woman-owned business here. Like, what would you say has been the biggest challenge for you?

Ashley Wainscott: You know, as a [00:42:00] business owner, I think there are different seasons and phases of the business, and I like to say new levels, new devils I

Eric Fortenberry: like that ...

Ashley Wainscott: you know, and it’s like you’re playing a Mario game from the ’90s, and you have this new creature in front of you, and you have to figure out how to learn to get over that.

Ashley Wainscott: And you’re probably gonna fail, and they’re probably gonna eat you up, and you’re gonna have to start over, and I think it’s those moments as a business owner where you don’t know the right decision. You’re going with your gut and hoping for the best, um, but when you get knocked down, and then you have to get back up, right?

Ashley Wainscott: And it feels really hard to get back up, or it can feel like, man, I... That... This has really taken it out of me. Um, those are [00:43:00] the tough moments as a business owner that, you know, the outside variables sometimes, whether it’s the economy or anything else, and you just have to fight to survive. Um, those moments can be difficult, but when you get through them, you feel, I mean, you feel like the Hulk, right?

Ashley Wainscott: Like, you can just rip... You’re like, “I’m so strong, and I can do anything,” and you know, if you can get through that, then you just feel so, I don’t know, empowered by all of it.

Eric Fortenberry: Yeah. What do you, what do you do, though, when you get... When you feel like you’ve been knocked down? Like, how, how, how do you, how do you pull yourself through and, and, and ultimately pull yourself to get back up?

Eric Fortenberry: Because I, I see so many times, you know, there, there, you know, some, some big issue can come up, and it just starts to spiral and, and that, you know, like, can be the final blow for, for so many contractors, especially if they’re early on, you know, solo owner, [00:44:00] operator. They’re, you know, just they, they, they take one huge blow, and then that’s the end for them.

Eric Fortenberry: I mean, h- how do you, you know, personally keep persevering through that?

Ashley Wainscott: So first, it’s a matter of my mental state. So I’d say step one is, like, gather yourself and breathe, and you... It’s switching, um... It’s a switch for me that’s like, okay, everything is gonna be okay. I have to let it go, and I know this sounds so cheesy, but it really is like giving up control of Of the outcome because you don’t know what the outcome will be, but you know damn well that you’re gonna fight, right?

Ashley Wainscott: And you’re gonna give it your best shot. Um, and so I think it’s turning that off, like the worry and the fear of whatever’s coming, switching into [00:45:00] like that neutral mode and you’re like, “All right. Let’s see what it has in store for me.” And you aren’t in control, right? Like the universe and whomever has a bigger plan for you.

Ashley Wainscott: And usually, I lean on other people, you know, maybe talk through, “Hey, what do-- Here’s what I’m considering.” I’m a talker, outer, so I just need to talk it out with someone a lot of times or even a group of people. Like, “Hey, Eric, you know, what do you think I should do,” right? If you’re my friend, I might talk it out with you and then just feel relieved or I might go to my lawyer, my CPA, or whomever and just really lean on others to hear me out.

Eric Fortenberry: That’s great. You know, you’ve, you’ve been at it now for 13, 14 years, something like that. What’s, what’s the longer [00:46:00] term vision? What, you know, what’s, what’s the five, 10-year plan? Where, where do you wanna take the business?

Ashley Wainscott: I-- so next we’re taking it into sustainability and wellness within your home. Yep. Sustainability, you know, has a lot of things come up for people when you say that word. So I try and think more wellness in your home. So it might be just educating homeowners on what it looks like to save money and energy in different places.

Ashley Wainscott: Like, uh, you know, how do you get hot water instantly in your kitchen when your hot water is across your house, your hot water heater is across your house? You know.

Eric Fortenberry: It’s hot water circulators. I mean, it’s such an easy thing, such a cheap install. I can’t believe everyone doesn’t do that.

Ashley Wainscott: Right. Why isn’t that just a standard thing?

Ashley Wainscott: It blows my mind, and most people know nothing about them. So it’s just little things, little educational things that I think [00:47:00] water filtration systems, air purific-air purifiers on your HVAC system. There’s just-- there’s so many things that we can educate homeowners on that I wanna get really knowledgeable about.

Ashley Wainscott: Rainwater collection, um, all of those things. I geek out with these things, so I love that. And then I think there’s definitely opportunity in the next couple years. Could be-- We’ve been looking at expansion, so we’ll see.

Eric Fortenberry: Nice.

Ashley Wainscott: Yeah.

Eric Fortenberry: Awesome. Well, look, I, I, I appreciate you coming on and, and again, sharing a little bit behind the scenes.

Eric Fortenberry: I’m, I’m curious kinda as, as we wrap up here, like, what, what advice would you give others who, who, you know, maybe earlier on in their career, maybe they’re thinking about making a switch just like you did. Like, what do you wish that you would have known at the beginning of your company that, that you now know that, that may help somebody else?

Eric Fortenberry: Like, what, what, what top advice, you know, would you give them?[00:48:00]

Ashley Wainscott: The f- the first thing is I’d say find a coach. I used to think coaches were very woo-woo until I found a really good one. Uh, that has been... The amount of value I’ve gotten from my coach has just been insurmountable. I can’t, I can’t even express a value. Um, but number two, I think leaning on experts, leaning on the who, right?

Ashley Wainscott: Who can you talk to to help you, and don’t feel like you have to do it alone, because so many entrepreneurs were like, “I’ll figure it out,” or, “I’ll just do this,” or, “I’ll do that.” And it’s like, well, who can help you do that, right? Can you partner with someone? Can you do trade work with someone? Maybe you’re so early in your business, maybe you have mentors.

Ashley Wainscott: Um, I never took advantage of mentors early on, and it was such a missed opportunity that I was like, oh, what? [00:49:00] I could’ve just learned that from someone? I didn’t need to go through that personally. Um, so to me, it’s kind of like the people, how to lean on the who, whether it’s a coach or a mentor or an expert.

Ashley Wainscott: Um, just don’t be afraid to, like, ask somebody to help.

Eric Fortenberry: Yeah. That’s awesome. You know, I s- I see so many people who they, they feel like they just have to go at it alone because, you know, they’re the owner, they’re the CEO, and it’s like, just because you’re at the top doesn’t mean you have to be alone. Like, I mean, there are so many people that are going through the same thing or have already gone through those same challenges and, and, and, and most entrepreneurs, business owners I know, like, they would be happy to sit down and give somebody, you know, a little bit of advice or share how they overcame that challenge because they know how hard it was for them, and they don’t want you to have to go through that same thing.

Eric Fortenberry: But h- you know, again, w- where do you... Like, where, where do you, where do [00:50:00] you find these people? Mm-hmm. You know, where, where did you find your coach? It sounds like you’ve tried multiple coaches. Like, how did, how do you think someone should go, you know, try to find others that they can, you know, hire as a coach, find mentors, just networking?

Eric Fortenberry: Like-

Ashley Wainscott: Yes, business groups You know, like NARI or, which is specific for remodelers, but they’re women’s business groups, um, like WPO, Women’s President Organization. There’s EO, right? There’s ... And there’s even smaller ones for when you’re just getting started. Um, but I would say, I mean, reach out to, like, and Eric, and be like, “Eric, who would you suggest?

Ashley Wainscott: Do you have a coach? Do you have someone that you’ve worked with before?” And it, like, I would imagine even through LinkedIn or any, anyone that you admire that you see is somebody successful, I would say ask them.

Eric Fortenberry: Yeah. That’s, that’s great advice. You know, I, I, [00:51:00] I tell people all the time too, like, man, you, you gotta go find the people in your industry who are doing great work, they’re, they’re, they’re, they’re great role models, and just go study what they’ve done, you know?

Eric Fortenberry: And there’s, there’s a lot of people, I mean, just again, like you, you’re super transparent. You’re constantly putting out content and, and, and, and sharing education. And when you go find those people, you know, reaching out to them, I mean, yeah, and what’s the worst that can happen? They, they say they don’t have time or no or they just ignore you?

Eric Fortenberry: Like, all right, cool, whatever. Like, you know, no harm, no foul, right? Just, you know, but like, I think putting yourself in the position to be ready to, to receive advice and guidance from others, I mean, that, that ... it sounds like that’s been, you know, really helpful for you. You know, again, I encourage everyone out there listening, like, you know, again, if, if, if you need some ideas, yeah, by all means, like, we are here at JobTread to, to help be, you know, hey, w- h- coaches, guides, whatever you wanna call us, however we can help, we can put you in touch with others because, you know, we have seen [00:52:00] the impact of, of having a coach.

Eric Fortenberry: I mean, it, it is, it is so clear night and day when a business has been going at it for years and then they hire a coach and then bam, like, you know, usually takes a couple months after that, but, like, the trajectory of their business, it is just, it is just so crystal clear when you look at the numbers how much of an impact that can make for people.

Eric Fortenberry: And, you know, again, it could be the difference between sinking and swimming, you know? Like, it, it could, it could, you know, really set you up for success early on, or you could go at it alone for a long time and then come, come, you know, years later, figure out, man, I should have done that a long time ago.

Eric Fortenberry: But, you know, it’s, it’s

Ashley Wainscott: exciting to see- Yeah, and if they don’t answer you, you can, like, email them again.

Eric Fortenberry: Yeah. Be persistent. You gotta follow up. Absolutely. But it’s, it’s been so exciting just to, to see what you’ve been able to build, Ashley. You and your team, you do phenomenal work. You make it fun. I mean, I, you know, I watch your videos, like, man, I wanna go work with Ashley, too.

Eric Fortenberry: Like, you know, it’s, it’s just, it’s super cool what, what you’ve been able to do, and, you know, I, I’m, I’m excited to watch where you continue to take your business. I have no [00:53:00] doubt you will continue to be very successful. You know, I l- I love the, the, the, the, again, the philanthropy, the focus on it’s not just about Ashley and your company.

Eric Fortenberry: It’s about your community, and it’s about your clients and about, you know, your employees and doing good and helping others to grow because I think when you can elevate everyone around you, you know, good things happen. Good, good- It will come, you know, but it’s, it’s, it’s really about kind of having that right mindset, like you said, and, and just, you know, no matter what, you know, you’re gonna keep fighting.

Eric Fortenberry: You’re not gonna let any, any one thing get you down. And, you know, I, I think you’re a really great role model for, for a lot of others out there. So thank you for, for coming on, for sharing your story. You know, I can’t wait to see you at the Women’s Summit in, uh, in January, you know, but keep up, keep up the great work, Ashley.

Ashley Wainscott: Yeah. And thank you for having me.

Eric Fortenberry: Thanks for joining us for this episode of Builder Stories. We hope you enjoyed the conversation and gained valuable insights that can help you in your journey along the way. Don’t forget to subscribe to the show and leave us a review. And as [00:54:00] always, if you or someone you know has a story to share, please contact us at builderstories.com.

Eric Fortenberry: We’d love to hear from you. I’m Eric Fortenberry, and remember, every builder has a unique story. Keep building yours.