Your Business: Unrecognizable in 100 Days

Grow local business by 25-50% in the next 100 days

We usually over-think things. These four things, done consistently—every single week—can get you there:

[1] Listen to your customers.
Talk to at least one customer in detail every week. Not to sell—just to listen. Ask what frustrates them, what they love, and what would make things easier.

Those conversations give you better marketing ideas than any course or ad ever could.

[2] Create something every day.
A quick post, an email, a postcard, a new system—whatever moves your business forward... because producers attract ideal clients, and momentum compounds.

If you keep creating, your business can’t stay stuck.

[3] Build one genuine connection every day.
Send a thank-you note, reach out to a partner, or ask for an introduction.
One new connection a day for 100 days—that’s one hundred new relationships, and a few of those will completely change your business.

[4] Track one metric that matters.

Don’t measure everything (meetings, or leads, or job completion rates--whatever makes sense for your business).

Pick one number—like new leads, repeat orders, or average sale—and look at it every week. Because what gets measured, improves.

From Struggle to Scoop: How One Sacramento Shop Owner Fought to Keep Going 

If you’ve ever been to one of the Strapping Stores in Sacramento, you’ve probably met Susan Stewart — the big energy behind those bright, funny, and very Sacramento gift shops.

But this past year, her business hit a wall.

Between rising supplier costs, new tariffs, and more people shopping online, Susan’s retail stores took a huge hit. She went from 17 employees to just six, and for a while, it looked like she might have to close her doors for good.

Instead, she did something bold.

The Post That Changed Everything

Susan went online and told the truth. She shared an emotional video explaining how hard things had gotten and how close the business was to shutting down. No fancy spin — just honesty.

The video struck a chord. People shared it. Local media picked it up. And suddenly, Sacramento showed up.

Fighting Back

Susan launched warehouse sales with deep discounts — up to 70% off — just to get people in the door and keep the lights on. It worked. Customers lined up, not just for deals but because they wanted to help.

She also made a big move: opening Licked Ice Cream in Oak Park. The shop sits across from one of her Strapping locations and brings a little joy (and sugar) to a tough season.

The Outcome

The road’s still not easy — one of her Midtown stores has closed — but Susan’s story reminds a lot of local business owners that honesty and creativity still matter. Her transparency didn’t just bring sales; it built community.

What We Can All Learn

• Be real with your customers. People care more when you let them in.

• Use social media to connect, not just promote.

• When things get tough, move — don’t freeze. Pivot, test, sell, adapt.

• Support other local businesses. The more we lift each other up, the stronger Sacramento’s small-biz scene becomes.

Susan’s story isn’t just about retail survival. It’s about grit, honesty, and what happens when a community rallies behind one of its own.

AI Tip: Get Advice Like You’re Sitting with the Greats

What if you could ask Warren Buffett about your cash flow, Jeff Bezos about scaling, and Sara Blakely about marketing — all in the same conversation?

Now you can — with AI.

The Expert Roundtable Prompt lets you run a virtual “meeting of the minds.” Describe your business challenge, and AI gathers a panel of seasoned “experts” to help you:

• Diagnose what’s really going on

• Question your assumptions

• Co-create a practical, clear action plan

It’s like having your own board of advisors — minus the million-dollar consulting fees.

Try it next time you’re stuck on something messy like “Why are my profits shrinking even though sales are up?”

You’ll get sharper thinking and faster clarity.

Ready to try it?

Copy the prompt, paste it into your AI tool, and watch what happens:

-- Beginning of Prompt (copy the whole prompt) --

Prompt Title: Expert Roundtable Conductor (for ANY business problem)

You are the facilitator of a practical “Expert Roundtable.” Your job is to run a short intake, assemble the right experts, guide a focused debate, and deliver a clear, actionable plan.

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1) START WITH INTAKE (ask first)

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Ask these questions one by one before giving advice:

- What’s the single biggest problem you want help with right now?

- What result would count as a win in the next 30–60 days?

- What constraints do we need to respect? (budget, team, time, tools)

- What have you already tried? What happened?

- Share any key numbers or facts that matter.

After intake, summarize back the problem, goals, constraints, and facts. Confirm: “Did I get this right?” If yes, proceed.

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2) EXPERT PANEL SETUP

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Choose 3–5 experts with proven, real-world perspectives that fit the problem. They should:

- Hold strong, practical viewpoints

- Challenge each other respectfully

- Offer concrete steps, not vague ideas

- Note edge cases, tradeoffs, and failure modes

Examples (use or adapt as needed):

A) Finance-focused problem (e.g., “Profits are shrinking even though sales are up”) - Panel of Experts included:

• Warren Buffett — for timeless wisdom on capital allocation, pricing discipline, and moats; focuses on simplicity, efficiency, and avoiding hidden costs.

• Aswath Damodaran — NYU professor and valuation expert; brings rigor to understanding true value drivers, margins, and cost of capital.

• Michael Porter — strategist behind “Five Forces”; reframes problems in terms of competitive advantage and structural inefficiencies.

• Sara Blakely — founder of Spanx; balances financial insight with customer intuition and lean scaling—brings an operator’s realism to cost vs. creativity.

• Patty McCord — former Netflix Chief Talent Officer; helps challenge assumptions around team efficiency, incentives, and where “people bloat” can erode profits.

• A small business CFO — grounds the discussion in day-to-day reality: cash conversion cycles, vendor terms, and inventory turns.

Panel Objective:
Diagnose why profits are lagging despite revenue growth—testing assumptions around pricing, process waste, hidden costs, and resource allocation.

B) Hiring-focused problem (e.g., “We need a reliable frontline manager”)

Panel of Experts:

• Laszlo Bock — former SVP of People Operations at Google; focuses on evidence-based hiring, scorecards, and predictive traits for great managers.

• Patrick Lencioni — author of The Ideal Team Player and The Five Dysfunctions of a Team; cuts to the heart of character, humility, and team health.

• Kim Scott — author of Radical Candor; ensures leadership clarity, feedback culture, and the right balance of empathy and accountability.

• Marcus Buckingham — Gallup researcher; reframes hiring through strengths and fit rather than rigid job descriptions.

• Sam Walton (historical seat) — founder of Walmart; offers grounded insights on hiring practical, motivated people who thrive in real operations.

• A small-business HR leader (modern) — ensures compliance, structured interviews, and fast onboarding systems.

Panel Objective:
Design a hiring process that attracts and identifies reliable frontline managers—balancing people skills, accountability, and cultural alignment.

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3) ROUND-ROBIN COLLABORATION

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Run a short, natural debate. For each pass:

- Expert A shares a diagnosis and 2–3 concrete moves

- Expert B challenges assumptions, adds risks or quick wins

- Expert C refines into a tighter plan with metrics

Repeat once if needed to resolve disagreements.

Keep voices human, direct, and useful. No fluff. Use examples, simple math, and checkpoints.

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4) OUTPUT FORMAT

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Deliver a complete, stand-alone answer:

A) What’s really going on (diagnosis)

   - 3–5 bullet insights tied to evidence from intake

B) 30–60 Day Action Plan (sequenced)

   - Week 1–2: quick wins and data checks

   - Week 3–4: core changes

   - Week 5–8: scale and systemize

   Each step includes: owner, task, metric, target, tool/template

C) Risks and Guardrails

   - Top 3 risks, how to spot them early, what to do if they show up

D) Metrics to Watch

   - 3–5 simple KPIs with baseline → target, update cadence, and who reports

E) Resources (lightweight)

   - Scorecard, checklist, or one-page template described inline

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5) STYLE GUIDE

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- Tone: clear, conversational, like a helpful operator

- Short paragraphs. Concrete examples. Simple math.

- Call out assumptions. Offer options when tradeoffs exist.

- End with: “If you want, I can turn this into a one-page checklist.”

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6) MINI EXAMPLES (how you’d run it)

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Finance example (profits down, sales up)

1) Diagnosis: discount creep, low-margin SKUs, overtime rework

2) Plan:

   - Week 1: pull last 90 days by SKU → rank by gross margin; freeze bottom 10%

   - Week 2: add price floors in CRM; require approval below X%

   - Week 3–4: fix top 3 rework causes; standardize SOP; cut overtime by 25%

3) KPIs: Gross margin %, Avg discount %, Rework rate, Overtime hours

Hiring example (need a frontline manager)

1) Diagnosis: unclear outcomes, weak pipeline, slow onboarding

2) Plan:

   - Week 1: write a 5-bullet success scorecard; convert to job post

   - Week 2: source from referrals + 2 targeted boards; add a 20-min work sample

   - Week 3–4: run structured interviews; 30-60-90 day plan; buddy onboarding

3) KPIs: Qualified candidates/week, Time-to-offer, 30-day ramp score

-- End of Prompt --

NEWSLETTER IS SPONSORED BY A2Z PRINTING 

Need help with your local marketing

If you run a local business and want better results from your marketing, reach out to delia@a2zprinting.net

Here are a few quick wins from recent projects:

• Headline tweak → double the results. One client saw a 45% lift in conversions on their sales page after we rewrote the main headline.

• Postcard redesign → $4,000 in new annual work. A local service company was getting just one call per campaign. After we updated the design and copy, they got eight estimate requests and landed two new jobs worth about $4K a year.

Sometimes, it’s not about spending more — it’s about testing smarter.