The Problem with Ideas

Ideas are great, necessary things but lately I've been getting a little disenchanted with them.

Often an idea grows into a delay. They can be serious momentum killers.

I'm seeing that managing a project is really about managing ideas. Ours and the clients.

The best ideas are ones that can be quickly and easily tested. I look for those first. What can we start with?

Websites should not start out with every idea everyone had or even half of them. They need to be iterative like software.

Why do we build websites like houses, arranging every last piece of furniture before the reveal? These sites aren't physical structures. 

So put up something better than what you have, quickly, then add on based on feedback.

Digital square footage is cheap and ideas can be expensive and distracting.

New Elevator Speech

Small Box is a 5 year old company with 12 employees and over 150 clients. We use the Web to grow businesses and organizations. Most of our client engagements focus on building and marketing a website.

When we build a website we focus on accomplishing three things- easy to find, easy to use and easy to update. An "owner friendly" site is critical to having a site that is both search and user friendly. If you don't like updating your website then you probably do not have an "owner friendly" site. Users and search engines hate stale sites and keeping them fresh with content is crucial.

When we market a website we leverage a customized blend of approaches that can include: E-mail Marketing, Social Media, Link Building, Local SEO, Pay Per Click and Ongoing Conversion Analysis. It's all about results. We see what works and build on those successes.

We seek clients that believe in the power of the web, to grow their business online and trust us to make it happen.

I Don't Know

It's so hard to admit I don't know something- how long it will take, what it will cost, etc.

If I admit early and often to what I don't know, even with serious pressure to make definitive statements, the better the overall outcome is. Every time.

My former business partner, Dan Ripley, told me early on - "it's ok to say 'I don't know'".

Great advice.

The Input/Trust Scale

I am starting to ask clients where they fall on this scale. As we move towards 1 our price comes down and our timeline accelerates.

1 - Highest level of Trust.
Almost no involvement with creative process or site content- "let me know what you need to know and then show me when it's done".

5 - Blend of Input and Trust.
Some creative and content involvement: "I have ideas and need to give input on mission critical items (site structure, design, content) but trust you to take care of the details"

10 - Highest level of Input.
Heavily involved with creative process and providing site content: "I know exactly what I want and I need to be involved at every step of the project"

Credit Lines

One bank says- "no money, no way" despite our substantial growth, low debt and strong cash flow.

Other bank extends us a generous credit line.

I don't get it. How can two banks looking at the same data come to such different conclusions?

I need to contact my friends at the SBA and see what they think.

Just glad we were able to find one bank that could do it.

The bank? Huntington.