The Spacious Blog
Getting effective feedback is the key to a successful project. Whether it’s a client, boss, employees, etc. a good feedback process makes a project stronger. When done poorly, however, it can unravel into a never-ending nightmare. A solid feedback process is more than just sending a draft and saying “Let me know if you have […]
What’s Your Story?
You’ll consume hundreds of pieces of micro-content today, and you’ll forget about 98% of it by tomorrow. What’ll stick? The compelling stories, the conversations, interactions, text, photos, and videos that fit into a storyline that resonates with your life in some way. As an organization or business, your marketing is going to waste if you […]
27 Things I Learned From 5 Years in Business
This April marked five years since I left my last “real job” at a nonprofit and dove full-time into starting a business. I had just spent about a year self-learning code and basic design in my free time. I felt far-from-ready but realized I’d never get things off the ground while working full-time at a […]
I Got My 35th Care Plan Client!
I got my 35th website care plan client signed on this month! These care plans started off as a tiny source of revenue for clients who needed ongoing help after launching their sites. Over the years they’ve become a foundational aspect of my business. I believe in the value of maintenance, not just build cool […]
How To Unlearn Boring
We internalize this belief that in order to be successful in business, in running an organization, or in our careers we need to be professional. In this case, “professional” is really just another way of saying boring. It’s the opposite of having a personality, of being unique, of being memorable. Not only is this advice […]
When it comes to communicating with your audience, the first thing that you should worry about is what your customer needs, and how you can help them with it. If your sole message is always “buy from me” without providing any value, it’s going to do more harm than good. The fact that you need […]
Get More Done By Switching Less
Everyday you lose a tremendous amount of productive minutes by switching from one task to the next. Why? Every time you start a new task, you lose precious momentum, energy, and time. This is because you have break the inertia of one task in order to transition into a new one and get those creative […]
The Challenge Every Nonprofit Faces
My work tends to be split evenly between nonprofits and small businesses. Both of these are fundamentally the same in a lot of ways when it comes to things like marketing, websites, and an online presence. Essentially, both are trying to connect with their audience, build trust, and have people want to continue to work […]
4 Questions Every Nonprofit Needs to Answer on Their Website
Most nonprofit websites have way too much content while simultaneously leaving their audience’s key questions unanswered. In order to focus on what matters, aim to answer these four key questions on your website. You can also use these questions in reverse to evaluate whether existing content is necessary. If it’s not directly helping to answer […]
The Most Important Skill in Business is Understanding Humans
I’m a sensitive introvert by nature, which means I’ve spent my life being (overly) attentive to what other people are thinking and feeling. This orientation towards the world has hindered my career in many moments, but I’ve realized recently that it’s been one of the traits that made my business work, even before I really […]
How To Consistently Come Up With New Ideas For Your Blog
We’ve all been there before, staring at a blank Word doc and not knowing where to start. When it comes to writing blog posts, it doesn’t have to be a chore. A good process makes it much easier. Here’s my approach.
It’s Not Just a Matter of Open vs. Closed for Small Businesses
I got a phone call from a plant nursery owner a couple weeks ago. He’s not a client of mine but he wanted some ideas about what to do during this hard time. I mentioned some ideas like curbside pickups, but he’s committed to remaining closed until it’s safe to re-open. The reason? For the […]