Notes on what actually works for small-business marketing — and what doesn't. New post every Tuesday.
Predictable for me, varied for you.
Audience, SEO, voice, positioning. The thinking part — who you're talking to and why.
Timing, hashtags, rotation, platforms. The machinery — when and where to push the buttons.
Engagement truth, UGC expectations, what nobody tells small businesses. Anti-aspirational.
Phone vs pro photos, video, voice, tools. The making — what to use and what to skip.
You don't have to be on camera to be in the video. Three formats that work for the camera-shy small-business owner — process shots, voice-over, before-after — plus the only piece of gear that actually matters and the 30-second rule.
Read the post →A 12-like post that brings you a $4,800 client is a successful post. The "engagement rate" on it is irrelevant. Why influencer benchmarks are wrong for your business, and the three numbers worth tracking instead.
Read the post →Most small businesses post too much on too many channels and burn out by month three. The 70/30 rule, channel-by-channel cadence for a one-person operation, and the 90-minute weekly window that actually fits.
Read the post →Five customers, three questions, a Saturday morning. The audience research that actually works for a small business — and why the customer you wish you had more of is already showing up in your client list.
Read the post →Most small businesses don't need a professional photographer for most of what they post. Here's when the phone in your pocket is genuinely plenty, the handful of moments where pro shots actually pay for themselves, and five phone-photo habits that lift the quality of everything else.
Read the post →SEO for a small business is mostly local SEO — and most of what owners get sold has nothing to do with what actually moves rankings. A plain-English intro to the four levers that move the needle, the four ways small businesses waste money on it, and the unsexy version that actually works.
Read the post →Most hashtag advice is generic, outdated, or written for influencers and DTC brands — not businesses with a phone number on the door. Here's the honest platform-by-platform read: what works on Instagram, LinkedIn, TikTok, Facebook, X, YouTube, and GBP — and where to stop wasting energy entirely.
Read the post →UGC really does win — when it shows up. The catch: most small businesses can't manufacture customer UGC at scale, and most owners forget they themselves count too. Here's what UGC actually means for a five-table restaurant or a one-truck contractor — and what consistency does even when UGC stays at zero.
Read the post →Most small businesses are too specific for broadcast marketing. They're a 2%-of-the-room business paying to talk to the 98% who'll never buy. Here's why niche beats reach — and what "niche" actually means in practice.
Read the post →New post every Tuesday from here on — Strategy, Mechanics, Reality, Production, in rotation.
Want the heads-up when each one drops? Drop me a line and I'll add you to the short list.