Here’s What They Said.

Most companies bury their bad reviews. We read ours on a podcast. 

After every pool build, Aloha Pools & Spas sends a customer survey. Not the kind designed to collect five-star quotes for the website — the kind that asks, point blank, what we could do better. Last year, we collected over 160 responses. Pat Baker, Brad’s executive assistant, sorted every single one into categories: good, bad, construction, retail, service. 

Then Brad and John sat down, turned the cameras on, and read the worst ones out loud. 

No script. No rehearsal. No cherry-picking the easy ones. 

Here’s what our customers told us — and what we’re doing about it. 

“I had to reach out multiple times just to find out when they were coming.” 

This was the most common theme in the surveys, and Brad didn’t flinch when he read it. 

When a customer buys a pool, especially an above ground or semi-inground, the sale moves fast. Financing goes quickly, the customer places flags in the yard for equipment placement, and then… they wait. Their pool gets in line behind other builds, and last year, there wasn’t a clear process for keeping customers informed during that wait. 

Ashley, who handles office coordination, was managing too many things at once. The result was a communication gap — a “dark hole,” as Brad called it — where customers didn’t hear from anyone between signing the contract and seeing a crew show up. 

What’s changed: Aloha has added a project coordinator role to handle the inground pool process, freeing Ashley to stay in direct contact with homeowners throughout the build timeline. The goal is simple: no customer should have to chase us down for an update. 

“We felt tossed aside once we signed a contract.” 

This one hit the same nerve. It’s the same gap — the salesperson does their job, the customer signs, and then the waiting begins with no touchpoint in between. 

Brad was the first to admit that even he falls into this trap. He’s sold four pools this year and catches himself thinking, “I haven’t talked to this person in a while.” But the busyness of running a company with multiple locations across eight states means things slip. 

What’s changed: The team is building a check-in process between the point of sale and the start of construction. It’s not perfect yet, but Brad says the feedback so far in 2026 has been significantly better. 

“They left trash, tools, and even mud in the street.” 

This is the one that got a live reaction. Mid-podcast, Brad picked up his phone and texted the construction crew directly: 

“Hey guys, just a reminder — I’m reading some survey results and there is one person complaining about mud being on the street that they had to clean up themselves. And I really don’t want people to have to say that about our company, period. I’m actually doing this while on a podcast talking about it. It’s pretty freaking embarrassing.” 

He sent it to the construction thread while the cameras were rolling. John confirmed it came through on their internal communications. 

What’s changed: Beyond the real-time text, Brad and John brainstormed a new trash hauling program during the episode — offering above ground and semi-inground pool customers the option to have all packaging and debris removed for an additional fee. That idea was born on camera, in response to a real customer complaint. 

“We spent thousands and no one showed us how to use the equipment.” 

For above ground pools in the $7,000 to $15,000 range, Aloha has traditionally asked customers to come into the store for their pool training. It keeps costs competitive. But multiple survey responses made it clear: some customers need hands-on help at home. 

What’s changed: Aloha is rolling out several new options for pool education: FaceTime and Teams-based training sessions where customers can get a live walkthrough and record it for future reference; Lisa, Aloha’s “pool guru,” teaches poolside know-how classes every Saturday at rotating locations, announced on social media; the team is also working on recording these classes for on-demand access. And there are already pre-recorded pool care videos available on the Aloha website and YouTube channel. 

“I sent pictures and messages and got no response.” 

Brad explained that when customers send photos and texts through Service Titan, Aloha’s service management software, everything is permanently logged in the customer’s file — even if it doesn’t feel like it in the moment. The messages, photos, and even phone call recordings are all stored. 

The problem isn’t that the data is lost. It’s that the response doesn’t come fast enough during peak season. 

What’s changed: Aloha now has four dedicated people in the service admin office. General Manager Jamie is actively working on eliminating missed calls. Brad was also candid about the seasonal staffing reality: the team needs 20 people in April and May, four by summer, and maybe one in winter. Staffing for two months of surge while keeping prices competitive is one of the hardest parts of the business. 

“Do not sell pools until you can actually execute the build with quality and customer care.” 

Brad’s response was direct: he’ll argue the quality of their work to the end of time. If something isn’t right, they fix it. But the “customer care” piece — the communication, the timeline expectations — that’s what they’re working on. 

The overpromising problem comes down to human nature. Brad compared it to a story about a man who made $300 in a single day and then told everyone he made $300 a day. The construction team builds eight pools in a great week and then uses that as the baseline — without accounting for rain, manufacturer delays, or hitting an unmarked water line mid-dig. 

What’s changed: Last year’s historically bad spring — with the entire year’s worth of rain falling by July — made timeline estimates nearly impossible. This year’s dry spring has helped, but the team is also building better tracking and more realistic benchmarks. Brad incentivizes his construction crew with bonuses for completing inground pools within three weeks, which happens about 40% of the time. 

Why We Do This 

Brad could have kept the survey results in a spreadsheet. He could have addressed them quietly behind the scenes. Instead, he read them out loud on camera, texted his team in real time, and brainstormed new programs while the audience watched. 

That’s what Aloha’s SERVE core values look like in practice. The E stands for “exceed expectations of the customer” — and you can’t exceed expectations if you don’t know where you’re falling short. 

Every customer who goes through a build process at Aloha receives an automated survey. That’s not changing. Brad reads every response, and the constructive criticism — or as he put it, the “construction criticism” — is what drives the company forward.