“But surely that’s just common sense?” I’ve heard that so many times from frustrated business owners. Someone hasn’t done something the way they expected, a customer hasn’t been dealt with properly, or something obvious has been missed, and the reaction is usually some version of, “I shouldn’t have to tell them that!” Maybe you shouldn’t, […]
Author Archives: Marianne Page
Big Mac Thinking, OurWay Methodology, Simple Systems
Your Best People Might Be Hiding Your Biggest Problems
17
Sep
Sep
We all love having those people in the team: the ones who just know what to do. They’ve been around for a while, they understand how everything works, they know the customers, they know the quirks of the business and they can usually sort out a problem without making a song and dance about it. […]
Big Mac Thinking, OurWay Methodology, Simple Systems
Did Your Team Miss You While You Were on Holiday?
02
Sep
Sep
There’s something lovely about coming back from holiday and being told, “Thank goodness you’re back, we’ve missed you.” It makes you feel valued and important. Before you enjoy that warm glow for too long though, it’s worth asking exactly why they missed you. Did they really miss you, or did they miss the person who […]
Big Mac Thinking, Business Scale, OurWay Methodology
The Complexity in Your Business Isn’t Inevitable
27
Aug
Aug
Most of the chaos in a small business has been quietly built by the owner. I meet a lot of business owners who are drowning in complexity. Too many moving parts, too many things that only they can handle, too many days that end with a list longer than the one they started with. They […]
12
Aug
Aug
Customers judge you on what they can rely on every day. Cast your mind back to a business you’ve stopped using. The chances are it was the inconsistency. The times it was great followed by the times it really wasn’t, until eventually you thought ‘I’ll try someone else.’ That’s exactly what your customers are thinking […]
13
Jul
Jul
Every touchpoint a customer has with your business tells them something about you. The question is what it says, and how deliberately you’ve shaped it. Think about the last time you had a really poor experience with a business. My guess is it was a series of small things – a call that took too […]
11
Jul
Jul
If the same things keep going wrong in your business, you’re missing a How To. Every business has its recurring problems: the ones that get fixed on a Tuesday and are back by Friday; the ones that different members of the team handle in completely different ways, so the outcome depends entirely on who picked […]
09
Jul
Jul
Football has been proving this for decades. It’s a lesson a lot of small businesses learn the hard way too. Alan Shearer. One of the greatest strikers the Premier League has ever seen. Natural leader on the pitch, wore the armband with pride, scored goals that people still talk about. Newcastle gave him the manager’s […]
23
Jun
Jun
Most business owners say they want freedom – more time – less stress – a business that runs independently of them at every turn. And then they take their laptop on holiday…just in case. The truth is, a lot of them are holding on to the very chaos they say they want to escape, and […]
19
Jun
Jun
Most business owners are visionaries. They’re energised by possibility, fired up by new ideas, and never happier than when there’s something exciting on the horizon. Getting new customers through the door is the fun bit for them – the creative campaigns, the networking, the buzz of growth – that’s where their energy and attention naturally […]
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