In this solo episode, Anna reflects on the previous conversation with Michael Gordeev and explores why so many business owners stay busy without actually moving their business forward.

She introduces the idea of "busy work", the comfortable tasks that feel productive but don't create real progress, such as endlessly tweaking websites, experimenting with new software, or building new features instead of focusing on sales and marketing. Anna shares personal examples of falling into this trap herself, and explains why it's such a natural response when uncertainty creeps in.

The episode centres around the three areas Anna believes most strongly influence business growth: Offer, Visibility, and Clarity. She explains how problems in any one of these areas can slow momentum, even when business owners are working long hours and doing their best.

Anna discusses how offers can become outdated as markets shift, using examples from changing customer behaviour and post-COVID market trends. She also shares how adapting pricing structures and delivery models can help businesses respond to tighter budgets and changing expectations.

Visibility is explored as one of the most common stumbling blocks for founders. Anna explains why simply building something isn't enough, and why consistent visibility across chosen channels matters far more than spreading effort across too many platforms. She shares real-world examples of hiring speakers and trainers based on their visibility and consistent presence.

The third theme focuses on clarity, particularly around messaging and communication. Anna highlights how jargon-heavy language and overly technical explanations can confuse potential customers, even when the product or service itself is valuable. Through relatable examples, including selecting professional services, she demonstrates how clear, customer-focused language builds trust and confidence.

Throughout the episode, Anna emphasises that growth often comes not from doing more, but from focusing attention on the activities that genuinely move the business forward. She also shares updates about the podcast itself, marking the completion of the first season and outlining plans for the next phase.

This episode is particularly helpful for founders who feel stuck in busy work, overwhelmed by competing priorities, or unsure where to focus their effort to create real progress.

In this episode, Anna is joined by marketing strategist Michael Gordeev, who shares practical lessons from large-scale brand turnarounds and explains how those same principles apply to smaller businesses.

Michael talks through what really happens when business growth stalls, and why the answer is rarely doing more marketing, but doing the right marketing. He explains how many businesses spread themselves too thin, trying too many activities at once, when the real progress comes from identifying the small number of actions that actually move the needle.

One of the key themes in the episode is the importance of focusing on the fundamentals. Michael shares real-world examples of companies that recovered from decline by stripping back unnecessary activity, identifying their true differentiators, and investing time and energy into the areas that mattered most.

They also discuss the idea of education-based marketing, where businesses provide useful insights and value first, rather than pushing straight into sales messages. This approach helps position businesses as trusted experts and creates stronger long-term relationships with customers.

Another highlight of the conversation is the Dream 100 strategy, a focused approach to identifying and reaching out to the small number of ideal customers who could make the biggest impact on business growth. Michael shares examples of how targeted outreach, personalised communication, and persistence can lead to high-value opportunities, even when early responses seem slow.

Throughout the episode, Anna and Michael emphasise that growth rarely happens in a straight line, and that plateaus are a normal part of business. The key is not panic or constant reinvention, but thoughtful adjustment, clear communication, and consistent focus on what truly matters.

This episode is particularly useful for founders who feel stuck, plateaued, or overwhelmed by too many marketing options, and who want a more strategic, focused approach to growing their business.

To find out more about Creating The Curve, our community and membership, go to: https://creatingthecurve.co.uk

To chat to our guest Micheal, find him on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/michaelgordeev

Most founders understand that customers matter.

But understanding that in theory and truly knowing what customers think, want, and struggle with are very different things.

In this solo episode, Anna builds on recent discussions about synthetic customers and explores one of the most common blind spots in small businesses, not spending enough time understanding customers properly.

Customer research is often pushed to the bottom of the list because it feels time consuming, awkward, or difficult to know where to begin. Yet it remains one of the fastest ways to sense check ideas, spot new opportunities, and avoid building something nobody wants.

Anna shares practical ways to get started, from simple conversations and informal interviews through to using AI as a pattern spotting tool. Not as a replacement for real people, but as a way to speed up learning and help businesses see what they might otherwise miss.

For founders who feel unsure whether their offer still matches what customers need, or who are noticing that sales feel slower than they used to, this episode is a reminder to step back, listen carefully, and reconnect with customers.

• Why customer understanding is one of the most overlooked foundations of business
• How synthetic customers and AI can help test ideas faster
• The role of customer interviews and real conversations
• How AI can help spot patterns in customer feedback
• Why markets shift and how to sense check direction
• Simple ways to start learning from customers without formal research
• How better customer insight can reveal new opportunities

This episode reinforces a simple but often forgotten truth, customers are not just part of the business, they are the business.