Multi-Generational Michigan Entrepreneur Breanne Martin Gaudard Relies on Apple-Focused CRM Called Daylite to Power Family Businesses

Our Customers / April 8, 2022 / Tucky Wong

Breanne Martin Gaudard and her family are the epitome of The American Dream. She and her parents grew up in family businesses where spouses and children worked side by side in construction companies, restaurants and now her father Ed’s award-winning RE/MAX first real estate team. Located in the suburbs 20 miles north of Detroit, Michigan, the five-person team – out of which four are immediate family – serves the real estate needs of generations of families for over 30 years, and in 2020 closed 150 residential houses and condo sales, a record that was up 50% over the previous year.

Photo of the team at Ed Martin's RE/MAX real estate company. They pose side-by-side in a casual way, smiling.

Team Ed Martin has served the real estate of generations of families for over 30 years.

Third generation entrepreneur and mom to three kids

As a third-generation entrepreneur and mom to three kids, Breanne instinctually knows that to thrive, businesses have to be able to scale. With the experience she gained from watching her mother do the bookkeeping, she took on technology management priorities that include Daylite, an Apple-focused CRM app that promises it can power teams to “handle more clients, close more deals and execute more projects than ever before.”

Prior to using the Daylite CRM, Martin family businesses mostly ran off of paper file folders, a Rolodex contact-card system, and another CRM called Realty Juggler that wasn’t Mac compatible and didn’t fit with how the team actually worked together using email as primary communication. 

Daylite was a game-changer

“In 2014 my Dad found Daylite. He was loyal to the Mac so finding a CRM that was designed specifically for the Apple ecosystem was important to him,” she said. “He told me, ‘Bre, this could be a game-changer for us. Figure out how.’”

Breanne was also running two other family businesses with her husband, Jake Gaudard, at the time. One was a home inspection business involving her husband, and one was a company that provided general labourers for restoration jobs and home handyman tasks. “We handled everything from trees falling on houses to cleaning up after fires to pipes bursting,” said Breanne. “A lot of the work that came to us was a spur of the moment emergency disaster relief.”

Screenshot example of using Daylite smart list to keep track of multiple projects/properties from different team members

Breanne and her team use Daylite’s smart lists to keep track of multiple projects/properties from different team members.

Daylite keeps track of jobs and associated documentation

The contract labourer business was a perfect target for Daylite. “We had multiple crews that might be at several job sites each day, and those jobs in turn might generate 40-plus detailed invoices and associated documentation required by the insurance companies,” she explained.

“We had a big flood in 2014, so the business just exploded with new work. It was up to me to keep track of all the projects, which I organized in Daylite under different companies with individual job numbers, and get us paid so we could pay the crews. I knew Daylite from having just set it up in our real estate business, so we went with that to manage all the projects, create invoices and keep track of day-to-day action,” she said. 

Daylite Project and Project Pipelines help the team visually track the stage of each project and the tasks related to them.

Receivables went from 120 to 14 days

“Using Daylite, we took our outstanding receivables from 120 days to 14 days. That was huge,” stated Breanne. “We were on the hook for six figures of work, had a large payroll of about 40 guys, and had no outside financing. Without Daylite, we could have closed the doors. But instead, we got the business organized, generated the documentation and invoicing required by the insurance companies, kept everyone paid on time, and that business is still running today.”

Breanne relies on Daylite to track all documents, emails, calendars, and contacts. “Everything is tracked and linked. You can find it under a specific project or just a keyword like a street address or person if you’re not sure.”

Daylite Mail Integration a key feature

Daylite’s ability to associate all related client files, photos and even texts to related emails through a feature called Daylite Mail Assistant, or DMA, is Breanne’s most valuable feature. Daylite Mail integration allows users to combine the sophistication of Apple Mail and Daylite. She and her teams can store and link emails to contacts, projects or opportunities. Anyone can create new projects, opportunities and tasks and chose to delegate actions to colleagues like listing photos, inspections or showings. 

Screenshot of Daylite Mail Assistant exemplifying how a Real Estate agent would use Daylite Mail Assistant to capture all the communication with clients

An example of how a Real Estate agent would use Daylite Mail Assistant to capture all the communication with clients.

“Daylite’s delegation feature is key,” she said. “If my Dad needs three of five team members at a meeting, he can click those attendees and sees when we accept the meeting. Or if our operations manager delegates a task to a team member, she gets an alert when it’s completed. There’s no need for texting or follow-up calls. It’s all right there in Daylite.”

Example of how to create and delegate a task in Daylite

Daylite makes it easy to create and delegate tasks with just a few clicks.

Syncs data across multiple Apple devices

Daylite’s ability to sync meetings, projects, tasks and anything else stored in its databases across all Apple devices from MacBooks to iPads to iPhones is another key feature for Breanne. “We can check on progress from anywhere we are on whatever device we happen to be using. When we receive a call about a specific property, it is pivotal we all have accurate and the most up-to-date information.”

Multiple team members can access the same information using Daylite.

Breanne’s bottom line on Daylite is that it’s an invaluable contribution to the success of her family businesses. “I want to shout about it from the rooftops to spread the word on this CRM because I want it to be around for a long, long time!”

About the author: Tucky Wong is Marketcircle’s Senior Marketing Manager. With a wealth of Marketing experience that spans nearly two decades, her expertise has become an invaluable asset in the world of small business empowerment as she’s the great mind behind impactful content and strategies. Tucky’s commitment to empowering small businesses ensures that every strategy and piece of content resonates with the spirit of growth and achievement.

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