What's actually stopping your business growing?

CarrieS · Jul 30, 2026

Something I keep noticing. I run a marketing agency and I'm a big advocate for small businesses but so many get in touch, we start talking, and then they go quiet. Something spooks them.

Sometimes it's cost. Sometimes it's that the whole thing sounds like a commitment they can't get out of. Sometimes I think they just don't want to hear that the answer isn't quick.

So I want to ask it straight, what's actually stopping you growing? And if you've looked for help and backed off, what put you off?

Be honest.

ctrlbrk · Jul 30, 2026

CarrieS said:
Something I keep noticing. I run a marketing agency and I'm a big advocate for small businesses but so many get in touch, we start talking, and then they go quiet. Something spooks them.

Sometimes it's cost. Sometimes it's that the whole thing sounds like a commitment they can't get out of. Sometimes I think they just don't want to hear that the answer isn't quick.

So I want to ask it straight, what's actually stopping you growing? And if you've looked for help and backed off, what put you off?

Be honest.

"What's stopping you from growing" sounds very click-baitish. Everyone wants to grow their business.

You seem to be implying that, because so many get in touch but then go quiet, they are the problem.

If you run a marketing agency, are you sure you're actually selling yourself and, if so, do you have demonstrable USPs that these prospects can't find elsewhere?

Frank the Insurance guy · Jul 30, 2026

Its probably less about what is stopping the business growing, but more about who to trust to help the business to grow.

Most businesses want clarity and certainty, which in a marketing world is not going to happen - I bet your quotes, terms and conditions are full of lots of variables and "get-outs" which state that there is no 100% guarantee of success etc. As such, trust then becomes the big issue.

Businesses are more likely to use a marketing agency that their friend has used and can vouch for how the partnership worked and the positive returns.

Do you follow up with your potential client's to see why they chose not to proceed? Sometimes it will be cost, but I suspect more likely they do not want to take the risk of little or no return. This is probably the biggest hurdle you need to consider.

fisicx · Jul 30, 2026

I don’t want my business to grow. I earn enough to pay the bills and indulge in my hobbies. What benefit is there to me to grow?

The chap who cleans our wheelie bins does about 3 hours a day. Growing the business would mean working more and that’s not what he wants.

EnterprisePro · Jul 30, 2026

fisicx said:
I don’t want my business to grow. I earn enough to pay the bills and indulge in my hobbies. What benefit is there to me to grow?

The chap who cleans our wheelie bins does about 3 hours a day. Growing the business would mean working more and that’s not what he wants.

Brilliant

EnterprisePro · Jul 30, 2026

CarrieS said:
Something I keep noticing. I run a marketing agency and I'm a big advocate for small businesses but so many get in touch, we start talking, and then they go quiet. Something spooks them.

Sometimes it's cost. Sometimes it's that the whole thing sounds like a commitment they can't get out of. Sometimes I think they just don't want to hear that the answer isn't quick.

So I want to ask it straight, what's actually stopping you growing? And if you've looked for help and backed off, what put you off?

Be honest.

Here is what I've seen from observation. I don't have data to backup my claims, but the business execs I've spoken to and observed think they need a marketing silver bullet to grow. After their meeting with a marketing agency, they felt flat or uninspired. (I can explain later if you want, but I;m trying to keep my answer short)

The business execs don't always (from my experience, not based on real data) realise its not marketing they need. They need a sales or GTM strategy and plans for actually executing it. Building relationships. Meeting people and exploring opportunities. There's space for outbound marketing, but its not the magical solution for all businesses. For example, aircraft mnfrs sales reps will be contact with their buyers directly. The folks who make automatic transmissions will be in contact with their respective automotive buyers. I know you're talking about small businesses, but I know of small businesses (~ 2 person endeavours) who have designed products, built prototypes (not necessarily engineering companies) and have managed to get in front of the right buyer, failed countless times until they secured a good starting point deal, which opened more opportunities. The point being, not all companies need to think "marketing" is the first answer, esp. in certain B2B circles.

NickGrogan · Jul 30, 2026

A lot of marketing people think it is a separate thing from sales, so they talk about marketing goals like clicks, views, eyeballs, or whatever. But in truth almost no business wants any of those things, they want sales.

Unless a marketing company understands that and works with the client to get sales, both sides end up disappointed.

JEREMY HAWKE · Jul 31, 2026

I don't want my business to grow
As it grows this would mean more of my time at the age of 56 as I cant afford to employ a manager and I would have to put a lot of effort in for a long time until it scales to the point where there would be enough funding to pay a manager
I have grown it before and it was a complete nightmare
The bloke that sits in his study making a bag or two on the trading 212 App for a couple of hours a day is a lot wiser than the fools running around like headless chickens for 20 hours a day

Gecko001 · Aug 1, 2026

Back in the day when I watched the Dragons Den, I remember the Dragons would laugh at some of the contestants when they mentioned how much they planned to spend annually on online marketing , saying things like it will be gone in a month. Also, there are a lot of stories out there where marketing transformed a company. I remember seeing a documentary about Fisherman's Friend lozenges, but I suspect that is not typical and in fact I think the owner of that firm did a lot of the marketing themselves.

Karimbo · Aug 1, 2026

The berry isn't worth the squeeze. Pay more marketing get more sales, hire more staff, getting a bigger premesis, pay more taxes, pay more insurances.

Sometimes, businesses are in a comfortable space and they don't want to take on cost. They want to make more profit by reducing their overheads.

I'm in that space now. I have probably saturated my market and now I want to pay less on adwords and rely more on seo.

Sometimes marketers are off putting they don't understand roi. If they bring in £3000 in more sales and I pay them £500 to do that. The narketer thinks they generated 6x in sales.

Businessman understands that the gross profit on that £3000 is probably only £500 and the narketer takes all of that and the business still has all the risk.

Marketer thinks they 6x my sales. I'm thinking they just 0x it and wasted my time.

When narkets talk about these silly gains and know it to be not worth their fee and they keep pushing it. It just gets up my back.

WaveJumper · Aug 1, 2026

Interesting as I have never heard so many people over the last month tell me they not looking to grow their business as they see no point in giving our government any more of their hard earned dosh. Just this week I discovered three companies who don't work Fridays or Monday's.

I get the distinct feeling our government are going to find they have a very sharp and ever decreasing tax revenue coming in. I also cant believe the huge number of people I know who have upped sticks and moved to Dubai current count is 8.

In short it could well be more business individuals are spending more time looking at how they can protect their current assets / money going forward, growing and investing may well have taken a back seat at the mo.

Karimbo · Aug 1, 2026

WaveJumper said:
Interesting as I have never heard so many people over the last month tell me they not looking to grow their business as they see no point in giving our government any more of their hard earned dosh. Just this week I discovered three companies who don't work Fridays or Monday's.

I get the distinct feeling our government are going to find they have a very sharp and ever decreasing tax revenue coming in. I also cant believe the huge number of people I know who have upped sticks and moved to Dubai current count is 8.

In short it could well be more business individuals are spending more time looking at how they can protect their current assets / money going forward, growing and investing may well have taken a back seat at the mo.

That is not my position. I am not that guy.

I dont think taxes are that high. I think we pay for too much to american tech companies to sell to our UK audience.

My taxes are small in comparison to what I am paying to Google.

Paul Kelly ICHYB · Aug 3, 2026

@CarrieS what did those people say when you asked?

We may have lots of good reasons, many of which are probably right, but, ultimately, they are the only people who really know.

Turn their responses into activities to correct.

My guess is a lot will be based on your pitch, which is not uncommon, as, whilst related, marketing and sales are different things.

Costs will be high on the list!

SophieBennett · Wednesday at 10:41 AM

CarrieS said:
Something I keep noticing. I run a marketing agency and I'm a big advocate for small businesses but so many get in touch, we start talking, and then they go quiet. Something spooks them.

Sometimes it's cost. Sometimes it's that the whole thing sounds like a commitment they can't get out of. Sometimes I think they just don't want to hear that the answer isn't quick.

So I want to ask it straight, what's actually stopping you growing? And if you've looked for help and backed off, what put you off?

Be honest.

For me, the biggest barrier would probably be not knowing exactly what I’m getting for the money. Small businesses often have tight budgets, so committing to something without clear expectations can feel risky. I also think people back off when they feel like they’re being pushed into a long-term contract before they’ve had a chance to see some results.

Mark T Jones · Wednesday at 1:29 PM

We are all bombarded by marketers selling us thier services. Frequently the nature/style of their approach is enough to tell you they aren't very good at marketing.

My top 3 turn-offs are:

Using the term 'targeted' in a clearly untargeted message.
Bombardment of messages (often with cliched/predictable escalation).
FOMO. In particular waving terms like 'grow your business' like some kind of threat.

Personally - yes, I do need to do a bit more business - in a very clear & defined way. That won't involve employing people, taking on offices or a desparate quest for 'leads'.

My wife actually needs to ramp her prices right up and lose a load of customers, but refuses to do so.

chenmichael · Thursday at 4:26 PM

I reckon one of the biggest challenges is not really knowing what the right problem is to tackle.

It’s tempting to think, “I need more marketing” or “I need more leads,” when the actual issue could be pricing, conversion, capacity, cash flow, or just not having enough time to focus on the business.

I also find that people often hesitate when the suggested solution seems like a huge commitment. Sometimes, breaking it down into one small thing to test first can make it a lot easier to actually get started.

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What's actually stopping your business growing?

CarrieS

ctrlbrk

Frank the Insurance guy

fisicx

EnterprisePro

EnterprisePro

NickGrogan

JEREMY HAWKE

Gecko001

Karimbo

WaveJumper

Karimbo

Paul Kelly ICHYB

SophieBennett

Mark T Jones

chenmichael

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