Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Tracy Daves. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Alright, Tracy thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. Taking care of customers isn’t just good business – it is often one of the main reasons folks went into business in the first place. So, we’d love to get a conversation going around how to best help clients feel appreciated – maybe you can share something you’ve done or seen someone do that’s been really effective at helping a customer feel valued?

True customer appreciation is key to make them feel seen and heard. This is an on-going interaction. My goal is to be a mentor and a cheerleader to my clients, but to also learn from them as well.

I strive to have that personalization and connection with them (this goes for my personal life too.) There is an amazing feeling when you click with someone and build a relationship with each other. Building trust is the goal. It is truly rewarding to see a spark in our designers and encourage them to soar. I am invested in sharing my two-decade expertise, so they know how important they are. Great design truly matters. In our field, we are curating clients’ homes and selecting their interior finishes. We are creating a haven for folks to live in. How rewarding is that! It can be a joy with high highs or stressful with low lows. Emotions run the gamut in this process. My charge is to give my clients confidence with product knowledge, trend information in style and design, and sales tools so they can delight their home buyers again and again.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

First and foremost, I’m a believing wife and mom. Those are my most important roles. Professionally, I have been blessed with an almost twenty-year career in style and design for Shaw Builder + Multifamily. I’m thankful I have had many people filling my cup (it overflows) with their knowledge over the years. I train designers across the east coast on flooring, style, color trends, sustainability, sales knowledge, and storytelling. Designing from the ground up and using flooring as that foundation should be a staple in the home.

I love to assist my clients and my team on providing solutions through design. We might be presenting in a board room, or creating digital mood boards, conducting lunch and learns, crafting social media posts, or gathering feedback for future products through listening to the voice of our customers in new home construction.

When the mood strikes, I pour my passion and creativity into writing blogs for Shaw Builder + Multifamily. Snackable content is key in this fast-food consumer world.

Any stories or insights that might help us understand how you’ve built such a strong reputation?

Authenticity, for sure. In a nutshell, I’m a sensitive soul with a flair for the dramatics.

I take my vulnerabilities and flaws and share that with the design community. None of us are perfect, not a single one. Anyone who is juggling multiple balls in the air and pretends they are excellent at holding it all together… I’m not believing that. If you drop the ball sometimes, ask for grace. Learn from those mishaps professionally and personally. We are human.

Building a reputation takes time. It has to be earned. It doesn’t happen overnight. Get yourself out there. Reach out. Communicate. Celebrate others wins. Grieve with those who are hurting.

That is who I strive to be for my clients. I connect and share with them that I’m not perfect, and you can let your guard down with me. Be real. Be honest. Be vulnerable. There’s a fine line to stay professional. Delight your clients. Go above and beyond to make them feel special. Have fun. Dig deeper. Connect. Reach out with an old-fashioned phone call or congratulatory text. Be present.

All of these things have opened the door for me to be on HGTV, Lifetime TV’s Designing Spaces, speaking engagements for House Beautiful, and writing for multiple publications. This street cred, earning my stripes, helps others to learn from my successes as well as my failures.

How do you keep in touch with clients and foster brand loyalty?

We have a design dream team led by Christine Slaughter nationally. Our team has Kristy Duvall covering the west, Leslie Guthrie centrally, and me on the east. We have ramped up our social media presence. We also started Inside Look, a designer publication to the trade to keep our brand and our clients connected to us. On any of these outlets, you can find design advice, trend info, flat lays, blogs, product features, inspirational room scenes, and other creative content.
We just redesigned our website that leads in style and innovation. Check it out here where you can sign up for our monthly design newsletter, Inside Look:
https://shawbuilderflooring.com/

You can follow our design journey and gain insight on our Shaw Builder + Multifamily channels: Instagram, LinkedIn and Facebook . We would love to connect with you.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://shawbuilderflooring.com/
• Instagram: https://instagram.com/shawbuildermultifamily?igshid=MzRlODBiNWFlZA==
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/shawbuildermultifamily
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/shaw-builder-multifamily/