Part 4 of 5: How 5 Businesses Survived a COVID Crisis

Posted on February 17, 2021February 17, 2021 by Caryn Jacobs

Strength Together In Crisis

How Paul Crooks Advertising harnessed the power of community

What do you do when your industry freezes, and everyone stops spending? Paul knew it could be the end of his advertising business. Even more concerning was seeing those in his business networks falling to pieces in the aftershock. How do you help when everyone’s hands are tied in the same way as yours?

At the Centre of the Buzz

Paul has metaphorically ‘jumped out of the plane’ more than once and landed on his feet. One of his most successful business ventures started with him literally walking the hard yards from business to business, pitching his idea, and making new contacts.

It worked because he’s wired for connecting people.

It took three years to get the Buzz business directory off the ground. As it gained momentum in the close-knit community of Albany Creek, Brisbane, curious rumours circulated about who it was, exactly, that published the glossy directory delivered to their doors. The cover was full of faces they recognised, which led to its true success: local business thrived on it.

That was in 2012. Today, I’m sitting in the suburban office of Paul Crooks Advertising, which offers traditional advertising services as well as marketing consultancy. Today, Buzz is distributed in multiple regions across greater Brisbane. Paul’s laid-back manner and regard for what I’m writing give clues as to how he’s become the super-connector that he is. He has a genuine interest in people and their pathways, which might be why his advice was sought after in a crisis.

Paul Crooks Advertising

When COVID hit

In March 2020, the first month of pandemic pandemonium for Australian businesses, the advertising market froze. Paul’s usual clients, including the big spenders, reeled from severe restrictions and marketing campaigns came to a screeching halt.

‘I’ve never experienced anything like it,’ Paul said.

‘The global recession was not the same, because at that time every business had different resources and challenges. This was new because everyone stopped at once. Nationally, globally even, everyone was in the same boat.’

Paul was acutely aware that his business was in jeopardy. With no government supports yet in place, he began answering tough questions from his trusted staff about future possibilities if no work came in. In the meantime, he looked for alternate tasks to keep them busy.

Making It Work

Reaching Out

Fielding calls from business owners in his network, Paul acted as a sounding board. Concerned about those within his reach who were ‘losing it’ because of the high stakes of future uncertainty, Paul himself was also seeking wisdom. He contacted several senior business people from his inner circle to get a feel for their predictions and how they were navigating the market disruption.

‘I thought I’d better say something to the business groups, so I recorded a video that went onto the Facebook page.’ This comment was typical of Paul’s understated manner but, in his address, I saw him encourage people to make the most of lockdown by spending time with family, to check on other members of the group, and to support each other.

He reminded the group that they would get through to the other side.

Adapting Ideas

After Easter, Paul rang Buzz businesses to check in. He discovered that tradies, deemed ‘essential services’, were doing well and could even work in people’s homes.

It gave Paul an idea, and he took the handbrake off distribution of the pending Buzz publication.

This would be a special edition.

It would let the community know about active essential services and it would encourage support of local businesses.

It was a roaring success. Businesses that advertised were flooded with queries and most were booked out for the next two months. A winter directory followed, with the bold title of ‘Let’s Help Local Business Get Back on Their Feet!’ Its centre page showcased personal messages from community business owners with their stories of people standing together in mutual support.

In the editorial, Paul wrote, ‘Who could have imagined what we were going to go through and yet here we are and I have never been more proud to be part of a community and a country that has banded together to fight an invisible enemy that has changed the way we live.’

Buzz Essential Services Directory

Buzz Helps Local Business

Getting Strategic about Business

Disruption to normal business gave Paul the luxury of time to think more strategically about his own business. With a background in television, he wanted to develop more video media for mainstream advertising.

It was a move that would speed up his marketing opportunities exponentially.

The video advertising that kicked off during lockdown went viral, with some videos reaching 90 000 hits.

The pandemic also gave Paul time to set up an online version of Buzz, which had always been on the To Do list. Buzz Trades and Services website is now up and running, reaching a wider audience.

The Resilience Factor

The Power of Community

Paul is not new to big life challenges. Arriving in Australia knowing only his future wife, he built social and business networks from scratch. He later survived the global financial crisis of 2008. In Paul’s opinion, taking the big jump from leaving a corporate job to starting his own business was far more hair-raising than facing COVID-19. With these experiences behind him, Paul knew he could get through the pandemic.

What worried him most were the others in his ‘tribe’.

Facing the reality of businesses within his network having to close, the greatest source of strength for Paul was the power of connection. He was encouraged by those coping well and he used the network to help those struggling. He and others helped obtain business grants to keep other businesses afloat. Seeing businesses support each other, like providing free services, spurred Paul on. ‘It was very positive—we did all look after each other. I felt I wasn’t on my own.’

Tips from Paul

Stay connected

‘Surround yourself with people who know what they are doing,’ Paul says. You never know when being in community will be your lifeboat. The give-and-take created within a healthy network has tangible effects, especially in a crisis.

Image credit: TheDigitalArtist from Pixabay.

Life is easier for those who can adapt

Paul says, ‘Most people have to be pushed out of the plane. They don’t do it voluntarily.’ For some, just the thought of change creates anxiety. Paul could see the panic set in for these individuals, threatening the end of their businesses. He talked several people through it, sometimes with daily check-ins, helping them not to fear what hadn’t yet happened but to embrace change.

‘Always be prepared to throw out the plan you’ve got. If you can do that, you can cope with life a lot easier. If you’re set on one thing and it doesn’t work… People that adapt are the ones that are successful.’

Move with the times

If he hadn’t learned to move with changing technology, Paul would still be laying out pieces of paper on an art board to draft an advert.

“It sounds weird now, but that was in my lifetime.”

Today, most of Paul’s advertising is online. Pandemic changes accelerated the next jump—perfecting video marketing. And it’s paid off.

“If you still want to do the old stuff, you’ll get left behind.”

Moving Forward

Once JobKeeper support went live, many clients used their increased disposable income and time to focus on marketing. Websites by Paul Crooks Advertising are now looking slick with videos that capture the passion of business owners in a way that words and images can’t.

Though there was a momentary scare on whether his business would survive the pandemic, Paul Crooks Advertising is now busier than ever. The local business network is also stronger than ever, having gained strength from mutual support through hard times.

See For Yourself

If you’d like a flavour of the Brisbane-based network that keeps Paul so connected, check out the new Buzz Trades and Services website.

For queries on advertising and marketing services, or the Buzz directory, contact Paul Crooks Advertising:

Email: admin@paulcrooksadvertising.com.au

Phone: (07) 3264 2988

Part 3 of 5: How 5 Businesses Survived a COVID crisis

Posted on February 10, 2021 by Caryn Jacobs

Don’t Give Up

How Alfina Saved Her Cafe from a COVID crisis

“How am I going to pay the rent?” was the first thing Alfina thought (after swearing) when the prime minister announced COVID-19 restrictions for cafes like hers. It was a sleepless night, but at 4am the plan came.

A Community Gem

You’ll probably only find Alfina’s Cake and Coffee through word-of-mouth community networks, because it’s one of those hidden gems. The cakes are what grandma used to make – homebaked, rustic, and always delicious in that wholesome-ingredients-kind-of-way. Favourites like lemon meringue will always be on the menu, but you can also count on new creations based on Alfina’s inspiration for that day. That’s because, as the only staff member, Alfina bakes all her own cakes.

But there’s something else. An intangible golden thread runs through this cafe: the way it connects people.

How many cafes have you visited where the friendly conversation at the next table spills over to include you? When last did you hear people around you break out in song… or even dance… while you were tucking into a spongy piece of chocolate mud cake?

You’ll be genuinely welcomed at Alfina’s, and that in itself is the reason some of her customers are no longer lonely. It’s how a cancer sufferer found a haven of positivity during her unforgiving treatment. In Alfina’s words, “It’s the kind of place where there’s always someone to talk to, and where you’ll get a job to do if you hang around long enough.”

And that’s exactly how things have always worked there. One of the regular customers built the bookshelf that now holds free secondhand books, and the giftware shelves are filled with jewellery, honey and handcrafted toys made by locals. Volunteer staff have always rallied round her, finding meaning in being part of this special place in Eaton’s Hill, Brisbane.

That was before COVID.

When COVID hit

Alfina had just returned from celebrating her mother’s 80th birthday in Cairns, (and had started running out of toilet paper) when the restrictions hit. Concerned friends and family called, but Alfina had no idea what to tell them. She had until lunchtime the next day to make a plan or close the shop.

To close would mean losing her only source of income.

At the best of times there was not abundant profit after bills were paid, so she could not afford to have debts pile up. Despite government urging landlords to be lenient, her landlord did not offer any reprieves.

Making It Work

Becoming a Takeaway Shop

Alfina’s first plan was only one idea, but it was enough to keep the doors open.

To become a takeaway venture almost overnight, the shopfront would need to tantalise passersby. Since indoor seating was no longer viable, the the deli counter full of tempting treats and special savouries was moved within a metre of the front door, spanning the width of the shop. A few socially-distanced chairs were dotted around outside for waiting customers. Then Alfina waited.

It worked.

Local people emerged from their work-from-home tethers, keen for a change of environment. And cake, it seemed, was the comfort they were looking for.

A Volunteer Army—For Milk

The daily morning shop for milk supply was part of Alfina’s everyday routine until pandemic panic decimated grocery store supplies. Milk—essential for coffees— became the most precious commodity of all. With individual purchases limited to two bottles per customer, the coffee service was in jeopardy.

But this didn’t stop Alfina. She got up two hours earlier each morning and followed an itinerary of shops until she had the supply she needed. Later, her army of volunteers kicked into action, using their quotas on her behalf. This comradery shortened her shopping trips and her very long working hours.

The clincher: Friday Night Platters

Ultimately, this ingenious ‘platter pivot’ was how the cafe survived a COVID crisis. The cafe’s deli counter boasts authentic European meats and locally sourced products. Cheeses and chocolates come from Tasmania, the Gold Coast, and Melbourne.

The ‘Friday Night Platter Evening’ at the cafe had previously become popular. Families would bring their own wine and sit down to a light meal of savoury meats, cheeses, olives and fruit from the deli. When dine-in restrictions changed the landscape, it meant no more Friday nights.

But it left an itch that needed scratching.

Before long, families started asking for these platters as a takeaway. Not missing an opportunity, Alfina and a friend designed appropriate COVID Safe packaging. The neat box was perfect for Zoom virtual dinner parties, and the orders kept coming. They were a hit over Easter especially, and remain a standard item from the deli today.

The Resilience Factor

The meaning the cafe held for some customers during enforced isolation, spurred Alfina on. For a group of ladies in a nearby retirement village, the coffee run was their only outside contact in a day. One lady said, “You saved us – we would have gone insane.”

One elderly lady used to visit daily to order a sandwich, just to break the isolation. Alfina would make sure she only started making the sandwich when this particular customer arrived—it gave them more time to chat, socially distanced, of course.

Alfina enjoyed how life went back to basics for a time, with families going out together. “It felt like back when I grew up. Everyone was just nice.”

Yet, as much as the café helped others, Alfina maintains that it was the constant support of the café community that got her through the crisis.

Tips from Alfina

Don’t give up: Stick to your gut feel and work it out

“People are surprised that I wasn’t ever shut,” Alfina says, with a twinkle of pride. Hard work is nothing new to Alfina. She has had to put in the hard yards to make life work for her and her children since their father died. ”My life hasn’t been easy – I’ve raised them myself, always put them first.”

To Alfina, persevering through this challenge continued to model to her now-adult children the value of hard work in getting where you want to be.

Solutions evolve over time

“If it doesn’t work the first time, try a different way.”

Alfina reflects that she only had initial solutions, but each new solution gave her the next step, which was all she needed, and that way she kept going.

On Mother’s Day in March, Alfina was still experimenting with ideas. COVID Safe practices took extra time, and a fourteen-hour day was not sustainable. By Father’s Day in June she’d found an efficient structure for service, working smarter rather than harder. Alfina now has a time of day by which all baking has to be done and gets home at a decent hour.

Moving Forward

Just about everything changed at the cafe, but it didn’t happen all at once. What worked in March would no longer work now. But some things have stuck, like having the deli near the shop entrance. The permanent changes have been good for business. The happy community of customers stuck with Alfina through it all, and are back in full sing… er… swing.

See For Yourself

Visit Alfina’s Cake & Coffee to indulge in one of Alfina’s delicious home-baked goodies and a cuppa.
Order a platter – phone, or message via the Facebook page, and you’ll be able to collect within 24 hours.
Pop in to select something from the deli or giftware selections.
Come in just to say hello — Alfina loves a chat.
If you have an idea that’s not on the menu, speak to Alfina – she’ll make it if she can.

Contact details:

Alfina’s Cake & Coffee

(07) 3325 5820

6 Bunya Park Drive, Eaton’s Hill, QLD 4037

Part 2 of 5: How 5 Businesses Survived a COVID crisis

Posted on February 3, 2021February 3, 2021 by Caryn Jacobs

Finding the Silver Lining

How Clean as Can Bee Harnessed New Opportunities

In March 2020, Clean as Can Bee business partners, Paul and Craig, walked out of a growth seminar brimming with ideas. They couldn’t wait to get started on restructuring the company to harness its organic growth. But when COVID-19 restrictions kicked in just days afterwards, they lost three quarters of their customers. Plans were about to change in a way they could never have predicted.

Cleaning is Not a Dirty Word

“We are sick and tired of the way people look down on the cleaning industry and its workers, considering both to be of low socio-economic worth.”

As I interview them in their home-based office, the vibrancy with which co-owners, Paul and Craig, explain their vision for Clean as Can Bee is refreshing.
“Whenever we get together, we want to talk about our passion – how we can grow our business to help more people and their families. Besides that we’re quite boring, really.”

Starting out fresh from Canada, Paul, his wife and his son combined their collective strengths to form a cleaning business. Gaining a reputation for quality real estate exit cleans, they expanded to residential and commercial jobs. But the business was never only about creating a family legacy. For Paul, it was about who they could bring with them on the journey.

“You only need to turn on the news to see the latest industrial relations breakdown within the cleaning industry. It’s not well regulated, resulting in a systemic problem of money-hungry cleaning services taking advantage of workers.”

Clean as Can Bee takes a different approach.

They have a catchy vision. Staff recruit more staff because they love their jobs. Their motto rings true as they raise the image of the cleaning industry: Teaching the world that cleaning is NOT a dirty word.

Clean As Can Bee | Happy Cleaners

When COVID Hit

Business restrictions laid out by government on 22 March had immediate impact. All residential cleaning contracts were placed on hold to avoid the risk of contagion in peoples’ homes. In a knee-jerk reaction, fifty percent of commercial customers cancelled jobs, large and small.

There was no guarantee that Clean as Can Bee would get those customers back.

As the weeks passed, the remaining commercial customers had far less need for cleaning, since many of their employees were working from home. More work was lost.

Making it Work

Sourcing New Work

It was a dilemma. Clean as Can Bee had to let go of their reliable income streams – residential and commercial cleans. They were forced to seek new cleaning avenues.

But cancelled jobs meant more time to think, and ideas on the back burner became conversation pieces. What about mountain bike cleaning? Motorbike cleaning? Carpets?

They had nothing to lose by activating new ideas.

Over the next 2 months they identified an additional three vertical markets that could make them a better business. Aiming to become a one-stop shop for real estate, they would make carpet cleaning and yard care their business. Decision made, they got cracking on streamlining the processes.

Finding Workers Got Harder

Quality cleaning staff had always been scarce, but with the government rollout of JobKeeper, few people were in desperate need of work. Recruitment agencies yielded nothing.

Applications from higher end income earners looking for supplements to their JobKeeper allowances were a short-lived glimmer of hope. Unused to manual labour, all of them fled at the first signs of hard graft, like cleaning blood off the floor of a medical clinic. Guarding against a high staff turnover, Clean as Can Bee quickly ended that path.

“Our customers often want to know who will be cleaning for them,” Paul said. “They love our cleaners, and they love the fact that the same cleaner stays on.”

The staffing roadblock facilitated a new idea.

Craig turned to contacts servicing the NDIS (National Disability Insurance Scheme) to explore employment of a person with a disability. The plan worked! More on that below.

Real-time number crunching

To qualify for JobKeeper for their staff, Clean as Can Bee had to provide clear numbers to the government. Eligibility required certain changes—the single touch payroll for a start. It sparked another opportunity.

Paul knew that their accounting processes could be better streamlined by adjusting business structures for organic growth. Now seemed like a good time for change.

Guided by ATO compliance guidelines for COVID-19, Clean as Can Bee permanently implemented new pay structures. Shifting workers from being subcontractors to employees meant they would secure employee benefits. While this was a lot of work, the restructure placed the business in a position to grow exponentially faster.

The Resilience Factor

Generosity – A Chance to Give Back

What would motivate a business to provide free services when everyone else was holding on tightly to their money? That question sparked this interview. The answer, it seems, sprang from a deep faith and the foundational company value of generosity.

“We’ve been very blessed,” says Paul.

He has always seen the business as a God-given assignment. “It’s not just a [marketing] strategy… I don’t drive a brand new car. We want to be genuinely generous. I want a large business to be able to help more people. The more you can give away, the more families you can help. Every employee has a family around them.” This is the ‘why’ behind the ‘what’. When the going gets tough – which it does – Paul draws strength from the meaning behind all that they do.

Once the business took stock of what they could still accomplish in the lockdown, they wanted to help their customers. Free cleaning for floundering businesses, like the one that could no longer afford their warehouse and needed an exit clean, was a no-brainer.

Another way they helped was by becoming government-approved to sanitise by COVID Safe protocol. They were able to relieve customers of mandatory extra cleaning regimes, and provided the additional time and disinfectant supplies free of charge.

A bright future with NDIS candidates

It took some trial and error before the new NDIS recruit found his groove, but once Clean as Can Bee identified a job that built on his strengths, it opened up a new section of business that they’d always considered – car detailing.

“He is keen, he is fun and he is really, really good at what he does,” Craig said.

They discovered that people with a disability are generally more eager to work than those without. It was a breath of fresh air at a time when there were many obstacles to overcome.

Car detailing

Tips from Clean As Can Bee

Let Go and Look For the Silver Lining

Too many businesses try to survive whatever event knocks them by holding onto the things they’ve always done. The secret is to let go when a strategy is no longer feasible and look for the silver lining in every situation. If you hold on too tightly, you might end up losing it anyway.

Seek New Opportunities

A business needs to continue to expand its borders and search for new opportunities. That way, when business is lost, which is inevitable, there is new business waiting in the wings to replace it. Roll with the punches and keep a finger on the pulse of what customers need from you right now.

New Plans Take Time to Grow

Implementing growth ideas during a crisis takes time. New products or services initially might only replace the business you’ve lost, but you won’t be going backwards. When the crisis is over, you’ll find yourself operating at a higher level, and better placed to thrive.

Moving Forward

Paul and Craig view COVID-19 obstacles as a blessing. The need to survive the pandemic facilitated better understanding of their business, leading to a more complete business model.

And the other good news: They’ve re-signed contracts with ALL their previous residential and commercial customers.

Clean as Can Bee continues to grow at a remarkable rate year on year. Their future, says Craig, looks brighter than ever.

See For Yourself

Clean as Can Bee would love to hear from you.

Do you have a similar story to theirs? They love a good chat.
Do you know of potentially good cleaners looking for work in the North Brisbane area?
Want a quote?
Want to share a message of support?

You’ll find them here:

Visit their website: www.cleanascanbee.com.au
Phone or text to let them know how they can help: 0404 258 785
Send an email: info@cleanascanbee.com.au

Part 1 of 5: How 5 Businesses Survived a COVID crisis

Posted on January 26, 2021January 26, 2021 by Caryn Jacobs

Don’t Stop Training in the Off Season

How SBIM Capitalised on COVID Downtime

The first COVID-19 restrictions hit Australia in March 2020 but it was the first of April that loomed like a dark cloud for SBIM in Brisbane. Anticipating a cascade of phone calls after issuing quarter-end invoices, the team braced themselves for a deluge of non-payments. If that happened, the walls could fall down.

A Sticky Business

If you’re a small business owner, you’ll want your business to pop up strategically in online searches, particularly the prominent ones like Google, YouTube, Facebook, Instagram or TikTok. You want to be found, you want your customers to like what they find, and you want them to act on it. This is the kind of marketing that SBIM offers.

But wait! There can only be one No 1 on an online search results page, right?

So what happens when your digital marketing agency also has your competitor as a client? That’s where SBIM is different. If you engage with them, you’ll be the one and only business of your kind in your industry.

SBIM | Meeting Room

Our meeting room for this interview was one you’ll see in the video on SBIM’s website, and it resonated with the rest of the neat office, with company colours splashed across decor and the team’s polo shirts. (In case you’re wondering, SBIM stands for ‘Small Business Internet Marketing’.)

As the owner, Gary’s thoughtful answers demonstrated a no-nonsense thoroughness that was mirrored in his COVID-related responses. The team’s easy friendliness in the open-plan office echoed a value that has a lot to do with SBIM’s survival through a pandemic: they value people. It’s what makes their customers ‘stick’.

When COVID hit

The problem with media being our main source of information in the beginning was, of course, that media reports were sensationalist.

“If you believed it—projections were catastrophic. Many panicked,” Gary said.

Yet, after SBIM sent out their invoices on the first of April, the phone lines remained quiet. A good sign. Invoices were paid. First crisis averted.

The real threat came as May, June and July crept in.

The marketplace braced for a potential recession, and SBIM phones remained quiet— too quiet this time. After years of relying on healthy monthly intakes of new business, SBIM sustained three months of zero new customers.

Making It Work

SBIM | Don't panic

Sifting Facts from Fiction

For Gary, it was a conscious decision not to panic. Instead, he sifted out the facts from the sensationalist misinformation. He spoke to his established team of trusted advisors – consultants and accountants, especially helpful times like this – and took their advice to hold onto staff and keep cash in the business. Armed with this information, he reassured his team while seeking objective facts to shape further action.

“We didn’t want to contribute to the noise,” Gary said.

How Were the Customers Going?

Marketing someone’s business requires getting to know them well, over time. Gary and his team used the quarter-end mark as a catalyst for checking in with each of their customers. The contact was welcomed, and working relationships grew stronger with customers knowing someone was looking out for them.

How to Market in Uncertain Times

With most of SBIM’s customers working in professional fields like law, medical practice and accounting, they had not been as hard hit as the travel and hospitality industries. Despite that, they still had to make decisions about how to market their business in the midst of a pandemic.

“We were keeping our ear to the ground,” Gary said. The cost of digital advertising dropped quite suddenly as big advertising platforms like Facebook and Google strove to drive more online traffic in the absence of the big spenders spending.

Based on reliable sources and discussions with his business advisors, Gary presented his customers with two feasible marketing options. Either they could access approximately 25% more online advertising without spending more, or they could maintain their existing level of advertising and save. Pausing marketing campaigns altogether ran the risk of losing momentum already gained in the marketing lifecycle, growing from awareness to hard sales.

Many customers took the opportunity to capitalise on online marketing.

As a result, in a very short space of time, SBIM built more online stores than ever before.

Of course, SBIM faced the same two choices.

The Resilience Factor

A fresh project

At this lopsided moment in time, Gary realised that business growth pre-COVID had led to SBIM neglecting their own marketing. It was a pitfall when strategising for scalable impact in the long run.

Gary took his own advice and tripled SBIM’s inhouse marketing efforts, capitalising on the low-cost window. New purpose renewed the team’s energy levels at a time when so much else seemed to be flagging.

The SBIM White Room, usually busy with customer video production, became busy with capturing and editing SBIM’s own interviews. Content generation on marketing strategies, and quality edutainment clips proliferated. Over the next few weeks, the team built up Insta and YouTube followings.

The result of their consequent marketing surge? “That’s paying back big time,” Gary reports.

Relationships matter

As business slowed, Gary took stock of what he still had, and he became especially grateful for SBIM’s strong existing customer base. Relationships built over years through trust and proven results meant that customers trusted SBIM’s advice along the bumpy road too. Only one customer out of the entire database terminated their services throughout the pandemic restrictions.

“A period of three months with no new clients proved that we could survive without new business. It reinforced that we have a resilient business model where recurring services underpin our stability,” said Gary.

In the revitalised business plan moving forward, the focus on customer relationships heightened, with service and customer results being key.

Tips from SBIM

Find Advice You Trust

Surround yourself with trusted advisors, a pool of people you can go to for honest feedback, rather than feeding off the general public. Many business owners listen to too many opinions. If you look long enough, you’ll find ten different points of view that all conflict.

Gary’s advice is to hitch your wagon to people who can give you solid, unbiased, unhyped strategies. Listen to your trusted inner circle of influence, and then trust your gut feel. Make space for your own judgement, and make your decisions based on a combination of the two.

Don’t Stop Training in the Off Season

“I knew we were going to come out of this. I just didn’t know how.”

Being a cyclist himself, Gary knew they had to keep going based on what they knew for sure to be true, and to keep getting ‘fit for purpose’.

“Don’t stop training in the off season – that’s when you get stronger.”

A previous employer, a large music retailer who knew that success would not last forever, was where Gary first learned this. He has seen this wisdom repeatedly proven over his working career. Gary maintains that recessions or downtimes are the times to stay calm and tap into past experiences—your own or from others. That way, you’ll be ready to catch the wave when the upturn comes.

SBIM | Don't Stop Training in the Off Season

Moving Forward

SBIM not only survived COVID, but came out the other end a better business. The rigours of navigating a pandemic forced Gary into a deeper understanding of his business, becoming more conscientious about business growth planning, and being better placed to look after customers.

“We want to remain the go-to people for sound marketing advice, as we were able to be through the uncertainty.”

See For Yourself

Interested in digital marketing for your business?

Because SBIM is interested in getting you results, they work on a ‘no lead, no pay’ guarantee.

Book a discovery session via phone or the website.
A team member will identify your needs and whether SBIM can provide what you’re looking for, whether it’s more traffic, more leads or more sales
If it’s a good fit, SBIM will work with you achieve the marketing goals of your dream business.

Contact details:

https://www.sbim.com.au

Phone: 1300 781 609

Office 1/ 162 South Pine Rd, Brendale, QLD 4500