Built Not Born Podcast · 20 October 2023
Another Crazy 2023: Business Uncertainty, Customers and Growth
A candid conversation about unpredictable demand, customer service, business relationships and the reality of trying to plan and grow when the usual patterns stop behaving normally.
Episode guide
About this episode
Chris and Helen Butler look back on a business year that has felt unusually difficult to read. Their businesses have continued to move forward, but they describe needing noticeably more effort to achieve results that would previously have felt easier to generate. With customers more cautious about spending and traditional buying patterns becoming less predictable, planning ahead has become harder.
The conversation focuses on what happens when demand arrives in waves. After a slower and more uncertain period, September brought a sudden increase in enquiries, workwear orders and video production activity. That is positive, but it also creates a familiar problem for small businesses: how do you add people, equipment and capacity without committing too early to costs that may become difficult to sustain if the surge does not last?
Customer relationships sit at the centre of the episode. Chris and Helen talk about the value of building genuine partnerships with clients rather than treating every interaction as a simple transaction. They share examples of customers who have supported their podcast, businesses they have enjoyed working alongside, and the way referrals and recommendations can strengthen a wider business network.
They also discuss the less comfortable side of customer service. During a particularly busy week, Helen received feedback from a client after taking longer than expected to respond to a product enquiry. Rather than dismissing the criticism, they reflect on why feedback matters and how business owners have to face problems directly, review the process and make changes where possible.
The episode also gives a behind-the-scenes look at a busy week of video production, including filming with Tailex Group and seeing first-hand how accommodating a client can be even during a demanding working day. For Chris and Helen, experiences like this reinforce the importance of working with people who value long-term relationships and mutual support.
Away from the business discussion, the usual Mr & Mrs In Business tangents return, from camera equipment and expensive production gear to holiday packing, rolling versus folding clothes and trying to keep a family trip secret from their son. Underneath the humour is a wider point about founder life: business, family, workload and personal relationships rarely sit in separate boxes, especially during the busiest periods.
Key takeaways
What you'll learn
- The same level of revenue can require far more effort when customers are cautious and demand becomes harder to predict.
- Sudden increases in work can create pressure on people, processes and capacity, so scaling too quickly can be as risky as scaling too slowly.
- Customer feedback can be uncomfortable, but responding to it properly can reveal where service and internal processes need to improve.
- Strong customer relationships are built through communication, reliability and a willingness to support one another beyond a single transaction.
- Existing customers can be one of the most valuable places to look for future work, referrals and stronger commercial relationships.
- A capable team and clear processes give founders more freedom to pursue new opportunities without abandoning the core business.
Questions from this episode
Frequently asked questions
How can a small business plan when customer demand is unpredictable?
Chris and Helen describe the difficulty of forecasting when older seasonal patterns no longer feel reliable. Their approach is to stay open to opportunities while being cautious about adding permanent costs until increased demand appears sustainable.
Why are existing customer relationships important for business growth?
The episode argues that existing customers can lead to repeat work, referrals and wider opportunities. Chris and Helen emphasise staying in touch, understanding what customers need and looking for ways to support them beyond the immediate sale.
How should a business respond to negative customer feedback?
Their view is to take feedback seriously, face the issue directly and look at what can be improved. Even when circumstances are unusually busy, they see useful feedback as a chance to strengthen service and internal processes.
When should a business add more staff or capacity?
Chris and Helen discuss waiting until a rise in workload looks likely to continue before committing to additional staff, machinery or other fixed costs. In the short term, they accept that busy periods may require extra hours while they assess whether the demand is temporary or sustained.