Every article we've published.

Field-tested writing on marketing, reviews, customer loyalty, and the daily work of running a small business.

12 articles

All 12 Marketing 2 Reviews 2 Retention 2 Operations 2 Case studies 2 Growth 2

How to get more Google reviews from happy customers

A short, practical script — the one we've used with a dozen clients to roughly triple monthly review volume without any software.

MHMaren HolstMar 4, 20267 min read

Marketing

SMS marketing for service businesses, without being annoying

How clinics, salons, and contractors are using text messages to fill the calendar — and the three rules that keep customers from unsubscribing.

IPIwan PritchardFeb 18, 20268 min read

Operations

Why nobody is booking on your website

Most small business booking pages fail the same four ways. Here's how to audit yours in under twenty minutes.

IPIwan PritchardFeb 2, 20266 min read

Case studies

A 40-year-old bakery, a quiet rebrand, and a 22% revenue lift

Pendry & Sons has been making the same five loaves since 1984. Here's what we kept, what we changed, and the one piece of signage we put back after a month.

MHMaren HolstJan 22, 202612 min read

Retention

Loyalty programs that don't feel like loyalty programs

Punch cards work. Apps almost never do. A short defence of the cheapest retention tactic on the menu.

IPIwan PritchardJan 9, 20265 min read

Reviews

How to respond to a one-star review (in three sentences)

A template that has saved more reputations than any reputation-management software we've reviewed.

MHMaren HolstDec 14, 20254 min read

Case studies

Twenty minutes with Greta of Holm & Holm

The third in our series with proprietors who've been at it for more than a decade. We talk about why she finally hired an accountant — and what it changed.

MHMaren HolstNov 30, 202511 min read

Growth

Local SEO in 2026: the four things that still move the needle

Skip the long checklists. These are the only ranking factors we've watched matter for service businesses this year.

IPIwan PritchardNov 14, 20259 min read

Marketing

Restarting a newsletter after eighteen months off

What we sent, what we didn't, and the one paragraph that got us 31 replies on the first send.

ALAda LefèvreOct 30, 20256 min read

Operations

A 15-minute audit for any small-business website

Print this, sit down with a coffee, and walk through your own site as if you'd never seen it before. You'll find at least three things to fix.

ALAda LefèvreOct 12, 202510 min read

Growth

Three rules for a referral program that actually pays out

Most referral programs die in the same way. Avoid the three mistakes and you'll be ahead of nine out of ten competitors.

IPIwan PritchardSep 28, 20257 min read

Retention

The onboarding email a clinic sent that increased rebookings by 14%

Five paragraphs, no images, no buttons. Here's why it worked — and how to adapt it for your own business.

MHMaren HolstSep 9, 20255 min read