Episode 147: Living Legendary with Industry Pioneers Al Curtis (Ask the Pool Guy) & Sandi Maki (Ask the Pool Girl)

Episode Summary:  Al Curtis and Sandi Maki are the creators of Ask the Pool Guy and Girl, a brand that began at the dawn of social media out of a sheer passion for the art and craft of building a pool.  Al, a lifelong member of the industry, is the face of the brand. He had his start at a summer job with a local pool company and never looked back. Sandi began working with Al in 2004 and used her cutting-edge marketing prowess to complement Al’s wealth of old-school industry expertise.  In the late 2000s, Al and Sandi began to host training sessions on how important it is for C-suite executives and company owners to embrace social media. Somewhere down the line, Al realized that he and Sandi had never actually applied these principles to their own business—at least not as well as they could be.  With nothing to lose, Sandi took a camera, pointed it at Al, and he began to talk all things pools. And he did it every day—whether or not he wanted to, whether or not he was out in the field, whether or not he looked “camera-ready”.  Listen in as Al and Sandi share their non-negotiable approach to securing great customers, how they turned the company into a family business, and how they have been able to create a beloved brand over the years by simply being their authentic selves and living legendary.  Topics Discussed:  02:17 - How the Al got into the pool industry  13:01 - How the Sandi got into the pool industry  16:23 - Al’s burnout and becoming partners  18:42 - Embracing and teaching social media