What is on your bench right now and what surprised you about it?
Hold it up and describe what is in front of you. The easiest one to start with, because the thing in your hands does most of the work.
Latest
What did a customer ask you this week that you actually had to think about?
Not the easy ones. The one that made you pause. A question a real customer asked is the piece that sells quietly for you for years.
Your first customer
Who it was and what happened.
What do you still find hard, after all this time?
Say how long you have been doing it, then say the thing that still gets you. The strongest one on the list.
A customer who came back
What brought them back.
What did you get wrong when you started out?
Far enough back to be safe, close enough to be true. Nobody holds a mistake from twenty years ago against you.
Who you do it for
The customer you do your best work for.
What have you changed your mind about?
Something you would have argued the other way ten years ago. It costs a little authority, which is why it buys so much trust.
Your tools
What you use and why.
What did you learn recently and who from?
A supplier, a customer, an apprentice, a video at 1am. If you only ever record one of these nine, make it this one.
A mistake you put right
What went wrong and how you fixed it.
What job did you turn down and why?
The one you sent elsewhere, or told them not to bother with.
A price explained
What goes into it.
What did a customer teach you?
They were right about something and you were not.
Photos on your phone
One picture and the story behind it.
What do you wish people knew before they call you?
The thing you say so often you have stopped hearing yourself say it.
Your FAQ page
Each question is a post.
Reviews you have been given
Thank the person and say what happened.
Your local area
What you love about where you work.
Someone you recommend
Another business and why.
A change in your trade
What is changing and what you think.
Your team
The people behind the business, in their own words.
Kind words from customers
With their permission.
The time of year
What changes for your customers this season.