20 of the 55 businesses I audited were directly affected by Covid in ways that demanded immediate digital change. Not in the general sense that everyone was affected. These were businesses whose entire operating model had to pivot. The pivots A translation service that had been delivering 90% of its work face to face suddenly
32 out of 55 businesses I audited had Google Analytics installed on their website. Barely any of them were looking at the data. I understand why. You log in, see a wall of numbers and graphs and think “I have no idea what any of this means.” So you close the tab and get on
I heard this more often than I expected. 11 of the 55 businesses I audited had a broken relationship with their web developer or agency. The person who built the website was no longer available, and the business was stuck. How it happens It happens gradually and then all at once. One business had a
38 out of 55 businesses I audited were managing their client relationships through spreadsheets. Some had multiple spreadsheets maintained by different people with no shared version. One had client data split across Excel, Gmail folders, paper files and someone’s memory. Another had its entire client base in a paper folder in a locked office. If
37 out of 55 businesses I audited had social media issues that needed addressing. But the issues weren’t what you’d expect. The problem wasn’t that businesses weren’t on social media. Most of them were. The problem was that they were on it without any idea why. Two types of broken There were two distinct groups.
This is the last piece in the series. 55 businesses. 728 pages of reports. Two years. Manufacturers, breweries, charities, jewellers, recruitment firms, escape rooms, a woodturner who trains veterans, a company that analyses explanted medical devices. Here’s what I took away from all of it. Small businesses aren’t bad at digital because they’re lazy They’re
Eleven RFP responses received. Scored against a weighted matrix. Three agencies on the pitch stage. The build that followed will run into the mid six figures. The selection consulting was a rounding error against it. The job was to make sure the right agency was chosen for the right reasons, and to make sure every
Before I open a browser, before I check page speeds or meta descriptions or social media accounts, I ask every business the same question: what do you actually need digital to do for you? It sounds obvious. It isn't. The answer almost always reveals a gap between what the business is asking for and what
Competitor analysis was part of 32 out of 55 audits. It was consistently one of the most valuable exercises, and the one that generated the most uncomfortable conversations. Most businesses have never looked Not properly. They've glanced at a competitor's website. They might know what their main rival charges. But they've never sat down and
An ethical recruitment firm working exclusively with ex-forces personnel came to me with what seemed like a straightforward problem: they had two websites. One aimed at employers. The other at candidates. Different domains, different designs, different content management. The logic made sense on paper: different audiences need different messages. In practice, it was a headache.