Life & Work with Josh Stone of Cleveland

Today we’d like to introduce you to Josh Stone.

Hi Josh, we’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
I’ve been building things my whole career — first with my hands, then with code.
I started in construction, running my own company for years. I loved the work, but I got tired of the employee headaches and the low bar in that industry. What I didn’t get tired of was solving problems for business owners. While I was running that company, I taught myself web development and digital marketing out of necessity. I built my own website, ran my own Facebook and Instagram ads, grew a following of about 3,000 before I closed up shop. I realized I was better at that part than swinging a hammer.
I transitioned into a digital marketing manager role, where I built everything from inventory apps to custom CRMs. I was doing the work I loved, but for people who didn’t always see the value. I watched the companies I worked for throw money at agencies and vendors who didn’t have their best interest at heart — people who took the check, delivered the bare minimum, and disappeared when things went wrong. Templates passed off as custom work. Ad campaigns that generated nothing but spam calls. Websites with stock photos of products we didn’t even sell.
That’s when it clicked. There are business owners everywhere — plumbers, roofers, gymnastics studios, masonry contractors — who need real help with their digital presence but can’t afford a full-time marketing department and keep getting burned by companies that just don’t care. They need a partner who actually picks up the phone, does quality work, and treats their business like it matters.
So I started Gideon Codeworks. We build custom websites, manage Google and Meta ads, handle social media, and deploy AI tools like chatbots that answer customer questions 24/7. We’re local, we’re responsive, and we don’t hide behind support tickets.
Now we’re recruiting Account Executives nationally to bring this solution to home services companies across the country — contractors who are great at their trade but leaving money on the table because they can’t respond to leads fast enough or their website looks like it’s from 2009. We’re here to show them what a real digital partner looks like.

Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
Smooth? Not even close.
When I was running my construction company, I learned the hard way that finding good people is the hardest part of any business. I’d hire guys, train them, and then watch them either disappear, do sloppy work I had to fix myself, or steal customers for side jobs. By the end, I wasn’t running a company — I was buying myself a job, showing up every day to undo the mistakes of people who didn’t care as much as I did. That burned me out.
Then I went to work for other people, thinking it would be easier. It wasn’t. I’d pour myself into building systems, websites, marketing campaigns — real assets for these businesses — and the owners either didn’t understand the value or didn’t want to hear it. I watched them write checks to vendors who delivered garbage while ignoring the person in the building actually trying to help them. That was frustrating in a different way.
Starting Gideon Codeworks came with its own challenges. Building a client base from scratch takes time. Convincing small business owners to invest in their digital presence when they’ve been burned before takes trust. And recruiting Account Executives nationally on a commission-only model means you’re looking for a specific kind of person — hungry, self-motivated, and willing to bet on themselves. Not everyone’s built for that.
But honestly, the struggles taught me everything I needed to know. I understand what small business owners go through because I’ve been one. I know what it feels like to get burned by people who don’t deliver. And I know what it takes to build something that actually works. That’s what I’m doing now.

Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your work?
Gideon Codeworks is a digital marketing company built for small businesses — specifically home services contractors like plumbers, roofers, HVAC techs, and masonry companies. We help them stop leaving money on the table.
Here’s the reality for most contractors: they’re great at their trade but terrible at answering the phone. The average response time to a web lead in home services is over four hours. By then, the customer’s already called someone else. Studies show that leads contacted within five minutes are 21 times more likely to convert than leads contacted after 30 minutes. Most contractors don’t even know they have a problem — they just know they’re busy but the jobs aren’t closing.
That’s where we come in. We build custom websites that actually convert, manage Google and Meta advertising, handle social media, and deploy AI-powered tools like chatbots that answer customer questions and book appointments 24/7. We also set up automated follow-up sequences so quotes don’t just sit in someone’s inbox collecting dust. Everything is designed to capture more leads, respond faster, and close more jobs.
What sets us apart is simple: we actually give a damn. We’re not a big agency farming work out to the lowest bidder. We’re not sending templated garbage and calling it custom. When a client calls, they get a real person who knows their business. We respond fast because that’s the whole point — if we can’t do it ourselves, how can we preach it to our clients?
What am I most proud of? Building something that solves a real problem. I’ve sat across the table from business owners who’ve been burned three or four times by marketing companies that took their money and delivered nothing. When we turn that around for them — when their phone starts ringing and they see the ROI — that’s the win. That’s why I do this.

Is there anyone you’d like to thank or give credit to?
I’d be lying if I said I did this alone.
First, my family. I’ve got three kids at home — two biological and one step — and they’re a big part of why I push so hard. Building something that lasts, something I can be proud of, something that shows them what it looks like to bet on yourself and do the work — that matters to me. My girlfriend has been in my corner through this whole journey too, supporting the long hours and believing in what I’m building.
My early clients deserve a lot of credit too. People like Kyle at KS Masonry and Restoration, who needed to finally check off the boxes he’d been putting off for too long — a real website, actual SEO, a professional online presence. He trusted me to take his business to the next level. That trust means everything when you’re trying to build a reputation. Every client who says yes early on is betting on you before you have a long track record to point to. I don’t take that lightly.
I’ve also learned a ton from the business owners I’ve worked with over the years — even the difficult ones. Watching how other people run their companies, what works and what doesn’t, what mistakes they make with vendors and employees — all of that shaped how I built Gideon Codeworks. Sometimes the best mentors are the cautionary tales.
And honestly, the Account Executives I’m bringing on now are part of the story too. They’re betting on themselves and on this company. Building a national sales organization means finding people who believe in the mission and are willing to grind. That kind of buy-in pushes me to keep building something worth being part of.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://gideoncode.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/gideoncodeworks/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/GideonCodeworks
• LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/company/gideon-codeworks/
• Twitter: https://x.com/gideoncode