Small Biz Geek is aimed at UK self-employed/small business owners with a beginner to intermediate knowledge of design, marketing and technology.
My name is Darren and this website is an online notebook containing thoughts, ideas, tutorials and practical help. 💡
Hailing from Ilkeston in the Derby/Nottingham area of the East Midlands, England, I’m passionate about teaching what I know and learning what I don’t.
I provide a website design service where I work closely with self-employed individuals and small firms.
What Type of Small Business Geek Are You?
This is the kind of geek you probably are:
✅ Beginner to intermediate skill level
✅ Uses Windows operating system
✅ Uses a Linux shared web host
✅ Operating or planning a WordPress.org website
What Type of Business Person Are You?
This is the kind of person you probably are:
✅ Business owner, manager, employee, freelancer, virtual assistant, technical support
✅ Often works from home or remote location
✅ Might also work from commercial office or premises
✅ Reader of books, listener of podcasts
✅ Enjoys learning and digging deep into the details
✅ Hates spammers
Computer Love…
Society is firmly entrenched in computers. The charming allure of digital screens has fast-tracked communications and offered up convenience surpassing all past predictions.
Whether you’re controlling your boiler thermostat or trading in the financial sector, the varied applications of computer technology have touched every aspect of modern life.
While consumer habits favour and fuel technology, it’s fair to say it presents a non-negotiable situation often viewed with trepidation.
Disruption to the Status Quo
The cyber age is throttling the traditional manufacturing economy spawned by the industrial revolution of the 1700’s.
The Spinning Jenny seemed radical at the time
Early mass production led to the bespoke cottage industries of 18th Century England becoming disenfranchised if not completely uprooted, and although large electricity companies still mine fossil fuels, and developing countries rely mostly on manufacturing, the age of industry is pretty much over.
Disruptive innovation has both created and threatened markets for a long time.
Henry Ford was able to find a way to use his Model T production line to double the wage of mechanics in Detroit, and Ford’s mass production lines were instrumental to the war effort.
With a sharp rise in post World War 2 commercial output, mass marketing was born.
Although new developments astonish us initially, they become part of the norm. Technology is predictable; it will always try to do things better, faster, cheaper.
Think about the following technological advancements:
✅ Electricity disrupted gas
✅ Aeroplanes disrupted balloons
✅ Fax machines disrupted letters
✅ Hard drives replaced most filing cabinets
✅ Mobile phones made public phones almost redundant
✅ Email replaced fax
✅ Cloud computing is gaining ground for home-based remote staffing
✅ Internet mobile devices have a larger market share than desktop computers
✅ Social media is uniting kindred spirits (as well as sulking teenagers)
✅ Artificial Intelligence is [fill in the blank] 😆
Thirty years ago, USB sticks, search engines, Photoshop, podcasts, YouTube, Skype and iPhones were unheard of. Now these technologies are as common as a cup of coffee.
Design, Marketing & Technology
Design, marketing and technology are a means to an end. Whatever a business is selling, they are first and foremost a problem solver.
- Design can be conceptual as well as visual. Spreadsheets, management systems and coding are every bit as valid as logos, leaflets or business cards.
- Marketing is the process of identifying and serving a particular group of people with a particular problem needing a particular solution.
- Technology is the hardware and software operating in our lives, whether we acknowledge it or not. It could be a simple Biro pen or a complex block-chain.
I Will Help You Build an Engaging Website
Whether you’re a consultant, one man band, small organisation, shop, office or factory, I want to help.
Let me help you use design, marketing and technology for decreasing costs, increasing income, streamlining operations and saving time.
Hire me to build a new website from scratch, or redesign an existing one.
We will come up with a plan of action together by first completing a questionnaire about what you do and what you want to achieve, change or improve.
- Read the monthly journal for tips, ideas, guidance and motivation
- Let’s work together on your small business website
