Discover the heartwarming journey of Amanda Shepherd from Voda Cleaning and Restoration, a local business dedicated to supporting their community in Southwest Florida. Amanda shares her passion for service, stemming from her personal experiences with Hurricane Ian's aftermath, emphasizing the mission of helping neighbors regain their homes and peace of mind. The episode delves into the complexities of water damage restoration, debunking common myths that often lead homeowners down risky paths.
Tune in to learn why mold remediation is a delicate science that requires expert intervention, rather than household solutions that might seem convenient. Amanda highlights cutting-edge technologies that enhance the restoration experience, making processes smoother and more transparent for clients. She also reflects on the vital role of teamwork and positive company culture in delivering outstanding service, sharing stories that warm the heart.
Join us as we explore the innovative approaches Voda embodies, their commitment to eco-friendly practices, and how they put clients first, always. If you’re in need of restoration services or just curious about what goes on behind the scenes in this industry, this episode is a must-listen. Don’t forget to follow Voda on social media and reach out for free estimates, because they’re always ready to help! Subscribe, share, and leave a review to support local businesses like Voda that truly care about their communities.
Voda Cleaning and Restoration
Amanda Shepherd
Fort Myers, FL · Pineland, FL · Iona, FL · Saint James City, FL · Palmona Park, FL · Cape Coral, FL · Bokeelia, FL · Suncoast Estates, FL · North Fort Myers, FL · Pine Island Center, FL
(239) 666-7359
vodacapecoral
myvoda.com
Episode Transcript
This is the Good Neighbor Podcast, the place
where local businesses andneighbors come together.
Here's your host, cabo, jimSchaller.
Speaker 2 (00:12):
Welcome Good Neighbors to episode number 235
of the Good Neighbor Podcast.
Today we have Good NeighborAmanda Shepherd from Voda, I'm
sorry.
Cleaning and Restoration ofSouthwest Florida.
I got that out, I got itWelcome.
Speaker 3 (00:28):
Hi, thank you.
Thanks for having me.
Speaker 2 (00:30):
Absolutely Always fun to introduce new people to our
listeners in our community andshare what they do.
So let's jump right in and wantyou to share a little bit about
what you do.
Speaker 3 (00:41):
Sure.
At Voda Cleaning andRestoration, we specialize in a
wide range of services to keepyour homes and businesses clean,
fresh and damage-free.
We're known for our five-starservice, eco-friendly products
and top-notch customer care.
Unlike some companies that workfor insurance providers, we
work for you, though we docoordinate with insurance
(01:02):
providers if needed, so we'reavailable 24-7 for emergency
services.
We offer water damagerestoration, mold remediation,
fire damage restoration,biohazard cleanup and
restoration.
We also, on the cleaning side,we have tile, grout, carpet, LVP
, floor cleaning, upholsterycleaning, air duct and dry event
(01:24):
cleaning and odor removal, andwe proudly serve all of
Southwest Florida, from SouthVenice down to the Everglades.
Speaker 2 (01:30):
Wow, it's a big area.
So let's back up your story alittle bit.
How did you get involved in allof this?
Speaker 3 (01:38):
Sure, yeah, I wanted to build a business that
actually shows up when we say wewill, calls people back and
treats customers and teammembers with real care and
respect.
After experiencing damage fromHurricane Ian and seeing how
much our neighbors werestruggling, we knew this was a
way we could help the community.
We also fell in love with Voda.
When I say me we, I'm speakingfor me and my husband.
(02:02):
I mainly run the business, butmy husband also, Chuck Shepard.
He also helps out with thebusiness as well.
So we fell in love with Voda.
The company won Franchise ofthe Year Award in 2024, and they
have amazing people, systemsand resources.
And now we've built a greatcompany culture in Southwest
Florida with a team thatactually enjoys working together
(02:24):
, which makes a huge differencein the service we provide.
Speaker 2 (02:28):
Absolutely.
That makes a big deal.
It's kind of they become familyin essence, right that's right.
So let's talk about starting abusiness number one but growing
into what you have thechallenges along your journey.
Whether personally orprofessionally, we've all gone
through some type of challenges.
Is there something that youwent through that you can look
back at now and say you knowwhat?
I'm in a better place now and Imade it through it?
Speaker 3 (02:53):
Sure, just starting a business in general is way
harder than you would expect,kind of like having kids.
There's a lot to figure out andit's nonstop work.
But through the process I'velearned so much about networking
, growing a business and stayingresilient, and it's knowledge
I'll carry with me forever andI'll pass along to my kids one
day as well.
Speaker 2 (03:13):
Absolutely so.
Let's talk about some of themyths or misconceptions
surrounding what you do that wecould, kind of no pun intended,
but clean up for our listeners.
Speaker 3 (03:32):
Yes, One of the biggest misconceptions is I can
do it myself.
I'll just make a flood cut andput some fans in there.
So I'm referring to whenthere's a flood from a hurricane
or rain, for example, or itcould be a pipe burst or
something like that inside thehome.
They call it a flood cut.
You know they'll cut a couplefeet or a couple inches whatever
it is of drywall and throw somefans in there.
So a lot of customers do thinkmy friend will do it.
(03:54):
You know my neighbor has a fan,I'll just throw that in there,
but not quite Water damage.
Restoration is actually ascience, so we use psychrometry
to measure the moisture levelsand safely dry out materials.
Plus proper HEPA filtration andantimicrobial treatments are
needed to prevent mold in thefuture as well.
So another really bigmisconception is bleach or
(04:19):
vinegar can kill mold.
Speaker 2 (04:21):
Exactly.
I'll just dump bleach on it,it'll be OK.
Speaker 3 (04:25):
That's right.
So that could work on a hardsurface.
But on porous materials, moldroots deep inside, so
professional remediation isoften needed to prevent any
future mold growth as well.
Speaker 2 (04:37):
Absolutely, and we've seen a lot of that down here
because of the hurricanesrecently.
So there's a lot of people thathaven't fully cleaned that and
they're just inviting troubledown the line, correct?
Speaker 3 (04:49):
Absolutely Yep and most likely higher costs in the
future as well to remediate ifit's not taken care of right
away.
Speaker 2 (04:55):
Absolutely.
So, going off script a littlebit, do you notice anything
changing or trending in theindustry lately?
Speaker 3 (05:03):
There are dehumidifiers where you can
check moisture readings fromremotely, where there is new
technology out there so you cancheck those remotely.
There's a lot of new programs.
We use some cutting edgetechnology in our company where
(05:26):
we can scan the room with whatthey call LiDAR technology, so
we can use an iPad to actuallymap out the rooms of the house
or the business in the differentareas and measure square
footage.
So it avoids lengthy drawings,you know by hand, and it
actually helps the customers andthe insurance providers see
(05:49):
everything and what we're doingreal time and it actually works
kind of like a Facebook newsfeedor something, you know
something in social media whereyou can invite different people
to look at it and they can seethe status of drying logs.
Speaker 2 (06:03):
And that's the technology.
It's a wonderful thing.
It helps everybody do their jobeasier and prevent further
damage like you guys do.
Now are you from SouthwestFlorida originally?
Speaker 3 (06:15):
I'm from Virginia and moved to Southwest Florida 10
years ago, and my kids were bornhere, so I've been here for a
while now.
Speaker 2 (06:21):
What brought you to Southwest Florida?
Speaker 3 (06:25):
The same thing that brings everybody else.
I think the warm weather andwater.
So I'm actually from the beach.
I'm from Virginia Beach.
Okay, and it just wasn't quitewarm enough for me there all
year round.
Speaker 2 (06:36):
I'm with you.
I'm with you.
That's why we stay furthersouth, you know, as far south as
we can.
So I know, owning a businesscan be very demanding of your
time, but when you do get amoment of free time, what do you
enjoy doing outside of work?
Speaker 3 (06:51):
Right now it's all been all about school projects
and for the kids and preparingfor the Pinewood Derby race.
For Cub Scouts as well it'scoming up.
We're also hooked on MarioParty Jamboree for Nintendo
Switch which, as you can tell, Ihave young kids, two boys that
are six and eight, so it's kindof like a video game board game,
(07:12):
and we've been making atradition of playing that on
Friday nights and then again,with the warm weather and water,
we love to get out on the boator get out to the beach whenever
we can.
Speaker 2 (07:23):
That's it.
Get out and enjoy SouthwestFlorida Absolutely.
Is there one thing you wish ourlisteners knew about Voda that
maybe they wouldn't be too awareof?
Speaker 3 (07:34):
Yeah, we're locally owned and we genuinely care.
And I just want everybody torealize that Voda is a national
franchise which, like I said,makes it great that we have
those technical resources andexcellent systems.
But we are locally owned herein Southwest Florida.
You know we genuinely care.
We've been through thehurricane damage.
We offer free estimates and ifyou're not happy with our
(07:57):
services we'll come back and fixit.
You know we'll clean the carpetor tiling ground again.
We're also big on communicationand we always put you first,
not the insurance company.
Speaker 2 (08:08):
And that's the big thing, especially with all the
issues with insurance latelydown here.
So how would our listeners goabout contacting you if they
wanted to learn more or had someissues they needed help with
resolving?
Speaker 3 (08:19):
Sure, give me a call anytime with questions.
I love speaking to ourcustomers and I'm happy to help
anytime.
If I don't know the answer,I'll get with my operations
manager, who has many, manyyears of experience in the
industry.
So you can also check out ourwebsite and look at our social
media pages as well.
So just look up Voda Cleaningand Restoration of Southwest
(08:40):
Florida and, like I said, giveme a call anytime.
I'm happy to talk.
Speaker 2 (08:44):
Very good, any last words for our listeners today.
Speaker 3 (08:48):
Thank you for listening and love everybody in
Southwest Florida and happy tohelp the community here.
Speaker 2 (08:55):
Absolutely, Amanda.
Thank you for being such a goodneighbor.
It was a pleasure getting toknow you and we hope to see you
out in the community soon.
Speaker 3 (09:02):
Thank you.
Speaker 1 (09:05):
Thank you for listening to the Good Neighbor
Podcast.
To nominate your favorite localbusinesses to be featured on
the show, go to GNPEstero.
com.
That's GNPEsto.
com, or call 239-296-2621.
Popular Podcasts
Stuff You Should Know
If you've ever wanted to know about champagne, satanism, the Stonewall Uprising, chaos theory, LSD, El Nino, true crime and Rosa Parks, then look no further. Josh and Chuck have you covered.
Dateline NBC
Current and classic episodes, featuring compelling true-crime mysteries, powerful documentaries and in-depth investigations. Follow now to get the latest episodes of Dateline NBC completely free, or subscribe to Dateline Premium for ad-free listening and exclusive bonus content: DatelinePremium.com
Las Culturistas with Matt Rogers and Bowen Yang
Ding dong! Join your culture consultants, Matt Rogers and Bowen Yang, on an unforgettable journey into the beating heart of CULTURE. Alongside sizzling special guests, they GET INTO the hottest pop-culture moments of the day and the formative cultural experiences that turned them into Culturistas. Produced by the Big Money Players Network and iHeartRadio.