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Deep Discovery

Tell us your story.

This is the thinking we do together before we meet. The questions go deeper than the usual intake form, and that is the point: the more openly you answer, the more valuable our session becomes. There are no wrong answers, and nothing here is judged.

About 15 minutes No wrong answers Goes straight to the founders

01 You and your business

The basics, so we know who we are talking to.

02 Your story

Every business starts somewhere. We would love the short version.
For example: what sparked it, what the early days looked like, and what has kept you going.
Be as specific as you like: the team, the customers, the revenue, your own days.
The things worth protecting. We build around strengths, not just problems.

03 What you sell

Your products, services, and how clearly they land.
The plain-English version, exactly as you would say it out loud.
They are not always the same thing, and that is genuinely useful for us to know.
In their words, not yours. For example: "Can you just fix my website?" or "Do you do catering for 200?"
New services, products or markets, and whether customers asked for them or you spotted the opportunity.

04 Your market

Your customers, your competitors and your patch.
Both halves matter. Bad-fit customers cost more than most businesses realise.
For example: regulation, technology, staffing, costs, customer expectations.
Name names if you like. This stays between us.
If you have real answers from customers, share them. If you are guessing, that is fine too, just say so.

05 Money and goals

Honest answers here shape everything we recommend. Nothing is judged.
For example: where they find you, what first contact looks like, how a quote or sale happens, how long it takes.
Revenue, customers, team size, or something else entirely. Gut-feel goals are welcome, just tell us they are gut feel.
Almost every owner has one they avoid. Naming it is usually the first step to fixing it.
For example: "an extra booking every week", "ten hours of my time back", "a team that runs without me".

06 How the work gets done

Systems, tools, time and AI. This is where we usually find the fastest wins.
A real day beats a typical day. Include the admin, the interruptions and the jobs that took longer than they should.
For example: quoting, invoicing, rosters, chasing payments, answering the same questions.
CRM, accounting, booking, spreadsheets, the works. Whiteboards and paper diaries count.
For example: "a couple of us use ChatGPT for emails" absolutely counts. "Nowhere yet" is a perfectly good answer.
Who does what, in what order. If the honest answer is "it depends who picks up the phone", say exactly that.

07 Your people

Who carries the business, and how change lands with them.
For many owners the honest answer is "me". That is one of the most useful answers you can give us.
The things that never get delegated: pricing, key customers, sign-offs, the secret recipe.
Embraced it, tolerated it, quietly went back to the old way? All common, all useful to know.

08 Keeping it safe

A few practical questions about data and risk. No technical knowledge needed.
For example: a CRM, spreadsheets, an inbox, someone's phone. Shared logins are worth mentioning.
"Never" is the most common answer we hear, so do not be shy about it.
Contracts, insurance, certifications, processes. Everyone has something on this list.

09 Working together

So we can make our session, and anything after it, easy.
Business partner, family, finance, just you. It helps us make sure the right people are in the room.
Dream big. This tells us exactly where to focus first.
Sending or downloading shares your answers with the Back Bone founders, confidentially, so we can prepare for your session. We will be in touch.

Thank you. That is exactly what we needed.

Your answers are with us, and we will come to your session with real thinking already done. Feel free to download a copy of your answers for your own records.