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1 year of working for ourselves
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The Fear & Freedom and Why We Wouldn’t Change a Thing Celebrating 1 year of Clear Coast Solutions As I write this, it is June 1st. Exactly 365 days ago, Mik and I officially launched Clear Coast Solutions. If you had told us a few years back that we’d be…
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The ROI of Freedom: Calculating Your “True” Hourly Rate
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In the world of small business, there is a common myth that “doing it yourself” saves money. We treat our own time as an infinite, free resource. So why are you spending three hours on a Tuesday afternoon trying to figure out why your email signature looks weird or manually…
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The “Hit by a Bus” Test: Why Your Business Needs SOPs
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“I have it all in my head.” It’s the most common (and most dangerous) sentence in small business. At Clear Coast Solutions, we hear it every week. It’s usually whispered by a founder who hasn’t slept since 2023. You’ve built a successful brand, your customers love you, and the gears…
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eCommerce Store Optimisation: 5 Simple Ways to Sell More
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Most eCommerce business owners we talk to have the same goal: “We need more website visitors.” We need more sales.” But here is the honest truth: if your store has a “leaky bucket,” bringing in more people won’t help you grow. When we talk about a leaky bucket in eCommerce,…
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Cut the Crap: tech tools that actually make your small business better
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Running a small business in 2026 can feel like juggling flaming torches while blindfolded. There’s a tool for everything (emails, social media, accounts, projects, marketing…), and some of them are probably doing more harm than good. But here’s the thing: you don’t need every shiny app under the sun. What…
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Resolve to Grow: Small Business New Year Checklist for 2026
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A new year is here! Time to dust off the cobwebs, grab a coffee, and give your business a little TLC. Whether you’re a tiny start-up or a growing SMB, this simple new year checklist will help you kick off 2026 on the right foot. No jargon, no complicated charts—just…
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Social media posts people actually want to read
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How to stop people scrolling past you Let’s be honest: we’ve all posted something on social media that we thought was brilliant… only to be rewarded with two likes (one from your mum and one from your business partner). If you want to stop this and start creating posts people…
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The Digital Declutter: Why Less Tech Can Mean More Growth
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In the rush to “do digital”, many small businesses have ended up drowning in a sea of apps, subscriptions, integrations and dashboards. And the ironic result? Slower growth, higher costs, frustrated teams.At Clear Coast Solutions, we are big believers that in a noisy tech landscape, sanity wins. Let’s explore why…
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Start Small, Stay Smart: Why Less is More with Your Digital Tools
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Digital overwhelm is real. We live in a world that constantly tells us to do more, buy more, and add more. Websites, CRMs, newsletters, analytics dashboards… it’s endless. Every day, someone tells you, “You need this. Everyone’s using that.” And the temptation is real: add everything, do everything, keep up…
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Digital SOS: How to Rescue a Website That’s Just Not Working For You
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You know that feeling when you look at your website and think, “Why isn’t this thing doing its job?” You’ve invested time, money, and maybe even a little bit of your soul. Yet the phone isn’t ringing, sales aren’t climbing, and your website feels more like a digital dead end…