{"id":7797,"date":"2021-09-06T11:31:44","date_gmt":"2021-09-06T10:31:44","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-ie\/blog\/?p=7797"},"modified":"2026-07-09T15:35:27","modified_gmt":"2026-07-09T14:35:27","slug":"sound-advice-quit-day-job-business-idea-hazel-reynolds","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-ie\/blog\/sound-advice-quit-day-job-business-idea-hazel-reynolds\/","title":{"rendered":"Quit the day job with one creative small business idea"},"content":{"rendered":"<header class=\"entry-header has-dark-background-color entry-header--audio entry-header--has-illustration entry-header--has-illustration--audio\">\n\t<div class=\"container\">\n\t\t<div class=\"entry-header__row row align-center\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"col col-lg-7 col-xlg-6 entry-header__content\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"component component-single-header\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"entry-header__misc text--subtitle text--uppercase text--small\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-ie\/blog\/category\/growth-customers\/\" class=\"entry-header__link\">Growth &amp; Customers<\/a>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"entry-title-wrapper\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<h1 class=\"entry-title\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\tQuit the day job with one creative small business idea\t\t\t\t\t<\/h1>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p class=\"entry-header__description\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"single-post-details container\">\n\t\t<div class=\"col\">\n\t\t\t<span class=\"posted-on \">Published <time class=\"entry-date published\" datetime=\"2021-09-06T11:31:44+01:00\">6 September, 2021<\/time><\/span><span class=\"reading-time\"> min read<\/span>\n\t\t<button\n\t\t\ttype=\"button\"\n\t\t\tclass=\"social-share-button button button--icon button--secondary js-social-share-button\"\n\t\t\tdata-share-title=\"Quit the day job with one creative small business idea\"\n\t\t\tdata-share-url=\"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-ie\/blog\/sound-advice-quit-day-job-business-idea-hazel-reynolds\/\"\n\t\t\tdata-share-text=\"Please read this interesting article\"\n\t\t>\n\t\t\t<span class=\"social-share-button__share-label\">Share<\/span>\n\t\t\t<span class=\"social-share-button__copy-label\" hidden>Copy Link<\/span>\n\t\t\t<span class=\"social-share-button__copy-tooltip\" aria-hidden=\"true\" hidden>Copied<\/span>\n\t\t<\/button>\n\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div>\n\t<\/header>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-post-author has-dark-background-color alignfull\">\n\t<div class=\"container\">\n\t\t<div class=\"col\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"co-authors\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t<div class=\"entry-author-wrapper\">\n\t\t\t<a class=\"entry-author\" href=\"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-ie\/blog\/author\/bexburncallander\/\">\n\t\t\t\t<img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"\" src=\"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-gb\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/10\/2020\/12\/Rebecca-burn-callander-podcast.jpg\" class=\"entry-author__image\" height=\"40\" width=\"40\" fetchpriority=\"high\" \/>\t\t\t\t<span class=\"entry-author__name\">Bex Burn-Callander<\/span>\n\t\t\t<\/a>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed alignfull is-type-rich is-provider-buzzsprout wp-block-embed-buzzsprout wp-block-sage-buzzsprout-embed\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<div id=\"buzzsprout-player-9133963\"><\/div><script src=\"https:\/\/www.buzzsprout.com\/1422304\/9133963-hazel-reynolds-quit-the-day-job-with-one-creative-idea.js?container_id=buzzsprout-player-9133963&#038;player=small\"><\/script>\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n<section class=\"wp-block-sage-podcast-networks\">\n\t<div class=\"container has-dark-background-color on-scroll-highlight__target\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"h4\">Listen to Sound Advice on:<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t<ul class=\"unstyled\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<li>\n\t\t\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/podcasts.apple.com\/gb\/podcast\/sound-advice-get-year-one-in-business-right\/id1544479344\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<img decoding=\"async\" width=\"660\" height=\"160\" src=\"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-ie\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/13\/2021\/06\/2-US_UK_Apple_Podcasts_Listen_Badge_RGB.png\" class=\"attachment-medium size-medium\" alt=\"Listen on Apple Podcasts\" loading=\"lazy\" \/>\t\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t<\/li>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<li>\n\t\t\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/open.spotify.com\/show\/2yhPIOebSiBpEYek6q2GZJ?si=UWWTKrgIQ2OsUAlnHrzHTQ\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<img decoding=\"async\" width=\"330\" height=\"80\" src=\"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-ie\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/13\/2021\/06\/spotify-podcast-badge-blk-grn-330x80-1.png\" class=\"attachment-medium size-medium\" alt=\"Listen on Spotify\" loading=\"lazy\" \/>\t\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t<\/li>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<li>\n\t\t\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/podcasts.google.com\/feed\/aHR0cHM6Ly9mZWVkcy5idXp6c3Byb3V0LmNvbS8xNDIyMzA0LnJzcw?sa=X&#038;ved=0CAMQ4aUDahcKEwios_fb8YnuAhUAAAAAHQAAAAAQBw\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<img decoding=\"async\" width=\"300\" height=\"76\" src=\"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-ie\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/13\/2021\/06\/EN_Google_Podcasts_Badge_2x.png\" class=\"attachment-medium size-medium\" alt=\"Listen on Google Podcasts\" loading=\"lazy\" \/>\t\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t<\/li>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<li>\n\t\t\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/www.stitcher.com\/show\/sound-advice-get-year-one-in-business-right\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<img decoding=\"async\" width=\"558\" height=\"167\" src=\"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-ie\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/13\/2021\/06\/Stitcher_Listen_Badge_Color_Light_BG.png\" class=\"attachment-medium size-medium\" alt=\"Listen on Stitcher\" loading=\"lazy\" \/>\t\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t<\/li>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/ul>\n\t<\/div>\n<\/section>\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Her day job made her \u2018cry every night\u2019, so Hazel Reynolds took the plunge, quit, and crowdfund her first board game, Randomise, which became an Amazon bestseller.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Gameley Games has since sold 130,000 games (Jibbergiggle and Frozen Unicorns are fan favourites) and turned over \u00a31.3m.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Check out these show notes to learn about Hazel\u2019s journey and her experiences as a business owner.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Here\u2019s what she covers:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><a href=\"#idea-anchor-link\">A business idea can come from anywhere<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><a href=\"#side-anchor-link\">Side hustles aren\u2019t for everybody<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><a href=\"#entrepreneurs-anchor-link\">Entrepreneurs don\u2019t have to be ruthless<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><a href=\"#you-anchor-link\">You can do good with your business<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><a href=\"#if-anchor-link\">If you have a product, Amazon can handle logistics<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><a href=\"#youre-anchor-link\">If you\u2019re selling on Amazon, understand your prospective customers<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><a href=\"#take-anchor-link\">Take a close look at Amazon reviews of your product<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><a href=\"#focus-anchor-link\">Focus on getting genuine Amazon reviews<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><a href=\"#will-anchor-link\">You will get better margins if you sell an original product on Amazon<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><a href=\"#creativity-anchor-link\">Creativity is about making connections<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><a href=\"#set-anchor-link\">Set time for creativity, but understand it may come from anywhere<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><a href=\"#google-anchor-link\">Google only works if you know the questions you want to ask<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><a href=\"#business-anchor-link\">Business success doesn\u2019t need to be all about profit<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-buttons is-layout-flex wp-block-buttons-is-layout-flex\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-button\"><a class=\"wp-block-button__link wp-element-button\" href=\"#gate-73c0a131-e4f3-485b-a6c6-62c451003a2f\">Download your free small business toolkit: a guide, business plan template and cash flow forecast template so you can boss your business<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"idea-anchor-link\">A business idea can come from anywhere<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Bex Burn-Callander:<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">You came up with this incredible card game. Tell me what happened.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">What prompted you to start a business in the first place. What was the catalyst?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Hazel Reynolds:<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">There are probably two catalysts. The first was creating my first game, Randomise, to lure my 12-year-old sister away from her iPad.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I\u2019d go home up to Yorkshire and wanted something to get her to play with me, so we could have fun and spend quality time together.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I made Randomise specifically for her, and it worked.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">She loved it, and we played together and with other family and friends.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Everyone I played with said, \u201cOh, I\u2019ll take a copy of this. Are you going to make it? You should turn this into something you can sell.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">It wasn\u2019t until a year later that I took the plunge and decided to do something about it. At that point, I had gone from a career that I loved to a job that I didn\u2019t love so much. I was coming home from my job crying every night.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">It was my husband that said, \u201cWhy don\u2019t you try and make something of that game?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">And I said, \u201cOK, let\u2019s do it. I\u2019m going to give making games a go.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">At that point, I thought it would be something to do for a month or two, and then I\u2019d go tail between my legs and get another job.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Two things prompted it, but I\u2019m so glad they did.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">1. My little sister is one of my best play testers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">2. The bad job, because if that job had been a little bit less bad, I probably wouldn\u2019t be doing what I love today.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"side-anchor-link\">Side hustles aren\u2019t for everybody<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Bex Burn-Callander:<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Did you quit the job? Because it sounds like you hated it. Did you leave straight away, or did you try and do two things at once?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Hazel Reynolds:<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I planned to do two at once but struggled.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I\u2019ve got so much admiration for people who run <a href=\"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-ie\/blog\/joanna-booth-financial-script-side-hustle\/\">side hustles<\/a>. Once I\u2019d found myself in the job, it was just sucking so much energy and motivation out of me.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I think my self-esteem was pretty much at rock bottom.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">My husband said, \u201cYou know what, you just need to get out of this. You need to quit your job. Look after yourself and just focus on the game.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">That was a huge luxury to be able to quit my job and focus on something full time. It was quite a privileged situation to be in.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">We had a little bit of savings. We cut out all luxuries: no holidays and no eating out. We were able to live off his salary for a short period.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I thought I\u2019d concentrate on trying to make something of the game, and then I\u2019ll get another job in a few months, but that\u2019s not how it turned out.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"entrepreneurs-anchor-link\">Entrepreneurs don\u2019t have to be ruthless<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Bex Burn-Callander:<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">This is what I love about you, though.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">What you\u2019ve done here is talk about having zero self-confidence and that starting the business was an escape from something terrible, rather than running towards this bright, ambitious future.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">That is the opposite of what you hear from startup founders, and I love that because you don\u2019t have to fit a mould where you\u2019re this uber-confident \u2018I\u2019m going to dominate the world\u2019 type.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Hazel Reynolds:<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Yeah. I don\u2019t know if I would have had the courage or bravery to go and do it. I had to be in a dark situation before I give it a go.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I think we absorb this stereotype of entrepreneurs, which is that you\u2019ve got to be always on and working 80 hours a week. You\u2019ve got to sacrifice your family and be ruthless in business deals. That did not appeal to me.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I don\u2019t think I would ever have chosen to do that if that\u2019s what owning a business was.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Having taken that step or being nudged to take that step, I\u2019ve discovered that running a business is not like that at all. It can be completely different.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">You\u2019ve got so much choice in how you do things when you run a company.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">A brilliant community of people putting people before profit, putting the values at the heart of their company, questioning what success means.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Is success all about finances, or is it about spending more time with the people you love and having a choice every day about what you work on?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I discovered this amazing community of people doing things differently.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I\u2019m passionate about telling people that running a business is not all that you see on TV. That\u2019s not what running a business is in today\u2019s world must be, although you can choose to run your business like that.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Many people might have different ways to run their business, and you\u2019ve got lots of options.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I think if more people knew that, I think you\u2019d get more diversity and entrepreneurship.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">You\u2019d get more women and people with responsibilities thinking more about it because you can balance.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">It depends on what type of company you set up and how you go about things. But there are companies you can run that can fit nicely with the rest of your life and other essential things.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-buttons is-layout-flex wp-block-buttons-is-layout-flex\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-button\"><a class=\"wp-block-button__link wp-element-button\" href=\"#gate-73c0a131-e4f3-485b-a6c6-62c451003a2f\">Download your free small business toolkit: a guide, business plan template and cash flow forecast template so you can boss your business<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"you-anchor-link\">You can do good with your business<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Bex Burn-Callander:<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Tell me about that then.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">What makes your company uniquely different from the traditional idea and the stereotypes. Do you have very set working hours without burning the midnight oil?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I know, for example, that you do a lot of work with charity, and you give away a lot of games. For many manufacturers, they feel it devalues the brand by giving things away.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">What makes you unique and happy in what you do?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Hazel Reynolds:<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">We do lots of big, shiny, fun, happy and good things.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">But I think underpinning all of it is a genuine love for the people you work with and respect and trust.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">We\u2019re trying to set up the company that we\u2019d like to see in the world.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">What do we expect from companies? What do we think the best ways are to run a business?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">We\u2019ve got a motto which is to have fun and do good.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">We try and come back to that when we\u2019re making decisions. I mean, don\u2019t get me wrong, we\u2019ve grown a profitable, healthy and successful business, but that seems to be a side effect of how we\u2019ve run the business.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">When we\u2019re thinking about doing good, we think around three significant areas:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">1. Doing good for our customers<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">We feel so lucky to be in the business of joy and happiness.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">We get to wake up and think about how to bring people together and get them laughing and making memories with the people they love.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">We\u2019re lucky that that\u2019s at the heart of our company.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">But it\u2019s also in the way that we treat them\u2014showering them with kindness.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">If we ever get a customer who needs help with something, we try and go above and beyond what they might expect, such as extending free games, making sure they feel good.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">2. Creating a good environment for the team<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Our team is awesome.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">We just hired our fifth person. I do a lot of work thinking about how we can make the environment the best it can be for them to thrive.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">If you\u2019re working in manufacturing and your boss is horrible to you, you could get them to make more bricks.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The old view is that you must be strict with the employees, and it\u2019s all about production.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">But we\u2019re not making bricks.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">We\u2019re in the business of ideas, and we don\u2019t have huge budgets and a vast team. What we\u2019ve got are good ideas that we execute well and put out into the world.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">It\u2019s trying to create that environment where people feel happy, trusted, and loved so they can do their best work.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">We\u2019ve also got some shiny things like loads of holiday days and paid sabbaticals once you\u2019ve been here five years. We give a thousand pounds to charity on your birthday.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">All the little shiny things are like a cherry on top, but underneath is genuine caring for people.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">3. You are doing good for the wider world<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">We feel super lucky that we can impact the wider world, and from the very beginning, we\u2019re bringing people together to see what we could do to help more people.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">From the start, we\u2019ve given away 10% of our profits to charity, which was nice and small at the beginning, but now it\u2019s growing, they\u2019re going to be some quite significant sums, which feels brilliant.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">We give away a lot of games.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">So last year, we gave away around two and a half thousand games, and we want to double that this year.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">We\u2019ve realised when giving our games to charities that most benefit from them, it costs us the same to give a charity \u00a320 or \u00a3100 worth of games. When they want the games, that is a valuable thing to give.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">So, we\u2019re still giving 10% of profits in pure cash to charity, but giving away the games is something we\u2019re that gets bigger every year.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"if-anchor-link\">If you have a product, Amazon can handle logistics<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Bex Burn-Callander:<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">That\u2019s interesting and inspiring for anyone looking for the right mix to make a good impact. There are all these different ways you can contribute as a business.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">You wouldn\u2019t be able to do that if you weren\u2019t building a big enough business to make a profit and be sustainable. I know that you have done that. One of the channels has been Amazon. I would love to talk about that because building a business on Amazon is a hot topic.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">How did you make that channel work for you?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Hazel Reynolds:<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">We knew from the start that we\u2019d want to sell on Amazon. It\u2019s a vast platform, and we wouldn\u2019t exist in the shape we are now without it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I found out I was pregnant the day after setting up my company, which was great but also gave me quite a deadline to get everything up and running.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">We signed up for Amazon\u2019s FBA, Fulfilment by Amazon service.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">That meant that they were able to handle all the packing and all the customer orders.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">From the beginning, that was all taken out of our hands, and it meant that it didn\u2019t matter whether we\u2019re selling three, 30 or 300 copies a day.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">At Christmas, it didn\u2019t make a difference to our day-to-day looking after the baby and running the company.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">It\u2019s about visibility.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">We get access to all those looking for a game and want something to help them spend time with their loved ones. We do not have to build a platform from scratch.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"youre-anchor-link\">If you\u2019re selling on Amazon, understand your prospective customers<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Bex Burn-Callander:<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Are there any hacks or exciting things you\u2019ve learned about how to market yourself on Amazon that you could share?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Hazel Reynolds:<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Yes, absolutely. Underlining it all is knowing who you\u2019re talking to and having a clear idea in your mind. This is important in all marketing, but just knowing:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Who\u2019s going to enjoy this game most?<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>What does that person think about?<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>What do they feel?<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>What are they looking for?<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">It\u2019s about tailoring your Amazon listing to make sure you\u2019re talking to them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Rather than trying to talk to everyone, try and just talk to that one person and tell them why your product is the one they\u2019re looking for.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-buttons is-layout-flex wp-block-buttons-is-layout-flex\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-button\"><a class=\"wp-block-button__link wp-element-button\" href=\"#gate-73c0a131-e4f3-485b-a6c6-62c451003a2f\">Download your free small business toolkit: a guide, business plan template and cash flow forecast template so you can boss your business<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"take-anchor-link\">Take a close look at Amazon reviews of your product<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Bex Burn-Callander:<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Because you\u2019re aiming at families, you would put something like great for family time or fun for all ages.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Hazel Reynolds:<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Absolutely. Real family friendly focused.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">We\u2019re targeting sociable adults as well, but people who have eight to 12-year-old children, that\u2019s our absolute core.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Be explicit about why people will enjoy it and how it will make you feel. You\u2019ve got to have a word with my colleague Dave who\u2019s better with the words than I am. But he\u2019s focused on that.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">We found it helpful to find out what was important to people and what people liked by looking at the reviews.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Reviews are massive on Amazon.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Looking through the reviews and seeing what other people are talking about when they talk about your products is so helpful because you can see things.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Like our games, it was always about laughter and having fun, and several of the games work well inter-generationally.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">People would say, \u201cThe grandparents have been playing this with the grandkids, especially over Zoom in lockdown.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">That was important because that came through from the reviews. We thought we should highlight this in the listing because that\u2019s important to people.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Talking about size is a learning.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">All our games are pocket-sized by design. We designed them to be small because if you put them in your pocket, you can play them anywhere, and parents get lots more use out of them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">You can just take them along wherever you\u2019re going. You use fewer environmental resources and they are easier to ship. It is generally good if they\u2019re smaller, and in the reviews, people love the size of them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">But in our early reviews, size was hard to see online.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Everyone\u2019s heard the story\u2014you buy something online, you think it\u2019s going to be a full-size sofa, and it arrives, and it\u2019s a dollhouse sofa.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Unfortunately, when we first uploaded the game, people didn\u2019t understand the size. The dimensions were on there, and we said what they were in the copy, but sometimes images are more powerful than the words.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Some people saw the image, clicked on it, and expected it to be a full-size board game. The contents are no different, but if you\u2019re expecting to receive a giant board game and you receive a pocket-size one, you feel like there\u2019s a problem.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">We don\u2019t want anyone to have a bad experience. If someone has thought it was one thing and they\u2019ve received something else, that\u2019s our fault.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">We\u2019ve done many things to be as explicit as possible about size. One of the main images is having the game in somebody\u2019s hand.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">We talk a lot on the listing about how it\u2019s small, and you can take it anywhere. There\u2019s pocket-size in the title.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">So, we\u2019ve worked hard to make sure people know what they are getting because when they know what they\u2019re getting, they love it. They think it\u2019s pocket size and brilliant that they can take it anywhere.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">But you just don\u2019t want people to have any surprises.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">One more thing I was going to say about the Amazon listings.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Another helpful exercise is putting yourself in the shoes of somebody looking for whatever your product is. So, for us, maybe family games.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Go on Amazon, look for a family game, see what comes up and other stuff they\u2019re going to be seeing, and then think about how you will stand out from them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">What makes you different? And highlight those points.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">We haven\u2019t cracked how to get good reviews as fast as possible. There\u2019s no magic trick to it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I think the sooner you can get reviews on your product; the sooner people will start trusting it and buying it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">It\u2019s hard because unless people are buying it, there\u2019s no one to leave reviews.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">So that generally has been quite a slow process for us for new products. But we do have that brand association now, so someone might buy it because they\u2019ve heard of one of the other games.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">One of the biggest challenges is getting those first dozen reviews. And we haven\u2019t cracked it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">My only advice is to make a great product that people will love and will enjoy. And then, eventually, you\u2019ll get those good reviews. But if anyone else\u2019s got any excellent hacks with that, I\u2019d love to know.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"focus-anchor-link\">Focus on getting genuine Amazon reviews<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Bex Burn-Callander:<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Can\u2019t you cheat? Can\u2019t you just get a hundred of your friends to buy every new game and leave a review, or is that super dodgy?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Hazel Reynolds:<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">It just feels wrong. I don\u2019t know. It\u2019s a tricky one because that\u2019s not what Amazon wants.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Amazon doesn\u2019t want your friends writing reviews. And they\u2019ve got magical algorithms that can work everything out.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I\u2019d be very nervous.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I\u2019m sure they could work out who knows each other. It\u2019s a bit of a dangerous game. We\u2019re still working on how to speed it up.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Bex Burn-Callander:<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Well, this is one for the community, then. They can come back to us and say, \u201cRight. We\u2019ve got it for Hazel. We\u2019ve got it cracked. This is what we did.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">So maybe we\u2019ll push that on social media and see if we can get something useful coming back to you.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Hazel Reynolds:<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">That would be amazing. Genuine reviews as quickly as possible is the goal.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Bex Burn-Callander:<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Can you put a little message in with the parcel to say, \u201cPlease review us? We\u2019d love feedback. And if you do, here are two pounds off your next purchase or something.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Hazel Reynolds:<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I\u2019m so reluctant. I worked at Which? Magazine, which does product testing, undercover investigations, and genuine, proper reviews with lab testing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The Which? Review is the top standard for a review.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">It\u2019s instilled within me this real sense of moral duty when it comes to reviews. It\u2019s got to be an honest review.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I think you\u2019re right, though\u2014you could do things. I\u2019m comfortable incentivising people who would leave a review anyway but need a little extra nudge.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">But there\u2019s this big light bulb in my head saying fake reviews is the devil. If we can find an ethical way to get genuine reviews fast, that will just make my dreams come true.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Bex Burn-Callander:<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">On the point about building on Amazon, one of the things that get discussed is that because Amazon often handles quite a lot of the grunt work, it can be expensive.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">So how many units at what kind of price point would you have to sell for it to be a viable model?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Because if you were selling toothpicks for a penny each and you weren\u2019t selling that many, it would probably not be, I\u2019m imagining.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">So how would you do the sums to know whether it works for your business?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"will-anchor-link\">You will get better margins if you sell an original product on Amazon<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Hazel Reynolds:<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Yeah, sure. I knew you would ask me about the numbers, so I\u2019ve gone and looked at our margins to offer a worked example. But I don\u2019t know if there\u2019s a formula for what price we can offer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I guess, in terms of margins, we make about a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-ie\/blog\/manage-your-finances-like-a-boss\/\">40% gross profit margin<\/a>. I can tell you how it breaks down, but that\u2019s very high on Amazon.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">It\u2019s because we\u2019ve got an original product that we\u2019ve invented ourselves that doesn\u2019t use expensive manufacturing materials. It\u2019s just cards. But all the value of it is in the intellectual property. It\u2019s the content on the cards and the writing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">It\u2019s like a book. The value is not the paper. It\u2019s this what\u2019s written on it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I think we\u2019ve got pretty good margins for Amazon. I think you\u2019re more likely to get those if you\u2019ve got something original that you\u2019ve created yourself. You can\u2019t be undercut. You\u2019ve not got many people competing in the same space, which is the challenge.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Five years ago, when I set up the company, there were many adverts about people selling on Amazon, saying you can make hundreds of thousands of pounds, using this tool to find out what products aren\u2019t selling and what you can sell for a bit cheaper.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">And that\u2019s made lots of people lots of money.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">For the long term, to have a sustainable Amazon business that will keep going, you must create new products, constantly manufacture, and constantly find small gaps in the market.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">And as soon as you\u2019ve got it working well, someone else is going to say, \u201cOh, I can do that for a penny cheaper.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">When you\u2019re competing on cost, that\u2019s always going to be a challenge.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I think we\u2019re fortunate in that our games are original.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">You can make other games, and we have a lot of competition, but it\u2019s not the same product. With lots of consumables, you\u2019re competing with the same kind of product, which is a challenge.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Bex Burn-Callander:<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">But has anyone tried to copy?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Do you have to worry about copycats, especially once you\u2019ve got success?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Hazel Reynolds:<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I don\u2019t lose sleep over it because no game is truly original. I think all games are evolutions of other games<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">To make Randomise, I picked up all the bits of my favourite party games, Charades, Articulate and Pictionary, putting a new twist on them by creating these random identities where you get three different cards.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">It might be a confused octopus eating spaghetti or an angry beaver playing the drums.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I added that layer of randomness on top of what was already three established mechanics: drawing, describing, or acting it out.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Randomise has got the best of all worlds and elevates it to another level.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I think for us, we\u2019re lucky we\u2019ve had some good hits and games people love. Our games are naturally viral once they\u2019re out there because you\u2019ve got to play them with three or four people.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">We\u2019ve sold a quarter of a million games now, and all those games are out there getting played and advertising games to other people.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">If someone would come along now and make another version, I think it wouldn\u2019t be ideal, but I\u2019d focus on making the next new best thing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-buttons is-layout-flex wp-block-buttons-is-layout-flex\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-button\"><a class=\"wp-block-button__link wp-element-button\" href=\"#gate-73c0a131-e4f3-485b-a6c6-62c451003a2f\">Download your free small business toolkit: a guide, business plan template and cash flow forecast template so you can boss your business<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"creativity-anchor-link\">Creativity is about making connections<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Bex Burn-Callander:<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The next big hit.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">How often do you have to bring up new games, and once you\u2019ve had a hit, is there extraordinary pressure to try and make another hit again and again?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Hazel Reynolds:<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">That\u2019s funny because I was just thinking back. I\u2019d made a game before Randomise that was cards that had things from the seaside you had to act out.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I came home to my husband and said, \u201cChris, I\u2019ve made this great game. It\u2019s a seaside acting game\u2014things from the seaside you have to act out.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">He replied, \u201cI\u2019m not sure that\u2019s strong enough.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I cried, \u201cI\u2019ve made this great game, Chris. How can you not love it? It\u2019s seaside acting.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">He says, \u201cWhy don\u2019t you try again?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I tried again to improve it, and I came up with Randomise, which sells many copies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">So don\u2019t give up on your first idea.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">After I made Randomise and got it all up and running, I thought of my business as Randomise. Now I\u2019ve made this thing. I\u2019m going to sell it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I then had my son, and I had to think about making another game.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Is this something I could do again, or is this a one-off thing that I happened to make and do well?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">It took a little while.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">We had a full board game we got excited about, but we couldn\u2019t get it to that great level. It was good, and people enjoyed it, but we couldn\u2019t get it to the level that we could say, \u201cThis is the best thing. People need this.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">We spent quite a lot of time on that one but paused it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Then two years after Randomise, we brought out two games, Soundiculous and The Pretender.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">And Soundiculous is now our best seller by miles.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I don\u2019t think it\u2019s taken over Randomise yet because Randomise had five years and Soundiculous three years, but it\u2019s going to.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In the next few months, it will overtake Randomise for cumulative sales.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I think after having done those, I could say, \u201cOh yeah, this is just a thing.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Creativity is a thing that you can practice, get better at, and keep. We\u2019ve all got creativity inside of us.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">When we\u2019re children, we\u2019ve got no fear about spending time painting and experimenting, tapping into that creativity. I think it\u2019s only when we get older that we lose that bit.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I remember I didn\u2019t take an art GCSE because my mom said, \u201cOh, you can\u2019t guarantee yourself an A in that because it\u2019s all subjective. So, I\u2019d just leave it.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">And being quite studious, I thought, \u201cOh yeah, better do the objective things so I can get As.\u201d And from that point, I think I just stopped thinking of myself as creative.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">It\u2019s been an absolute joy over the last five years, tapping back into that creativity, permitting myself to think of myself as a creative person and to be able to explore that.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">People sometimes ask where the ideas come from.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I think the first thing is to stay curious and keep looking at what\u2019s going on.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">We play many other games, but outside of games\u2014culture, movies, books, exhibitions, galleries\u2014and noticing things. Keeping your eyes open, noticing what\u2019s going on, soaking it all in, getting all that inspiration, and welcoming it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The second thing I need is that time and space to let connections be made because so much creativity is about connecting. By joining things together, it turns into something completely different.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I love swimming in the sea\u2014a time where I\u2019m not thinking about anything else.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">That\u2019s sometimes when the connections come.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">It\u2019s the classic thing where good ideas always come to you when you\u2019re in the shower.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">And why is that? Because your brain has got time to join the dots and put things together.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"set-anchor-link\">Set time for creativity, but understand it may come from anywhere<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Bex Burn-Callander:<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Do you set specific windows of time then?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Do you have a rule where you have two hours a day to be in your thoughts, or is it not as rigorous as that?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Hazel Reynolds:<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I have tried. I\u2019ve tried to do creative Fridays, spending Friday just doing creative stuff.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">But there are two minor issues.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I don\u2019t know if it\u2019s my personality, but if I must do something, I don\u2019t want to do it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I can find joy in every aspect of my work, even if I\u2019m doing annual accounts\u2014there\u2019s a joy to be had in that. Once I get into it, I love looking at the numbers and working it all out. Any aspect of my company I can get joyful about and enjoy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I used to write at Which? Magazine, so maybe it\u2019s a deadlines thing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">But if I have something blocked in my diary which says, \u201cI must do this today.\u201d Something in my brain goes, \u201cI don\u2019t want to do it.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">It\u2019s the weirdest thing because even if I\u2019ve got a day blocked out to make new games, suddenly, I get to it. I\u2019m thinking, \u201cOh, I don\u2019t know if I want to make new games today.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Essentially where I am now is that I try and block out time for creativity, but I also must grab creativity when it comes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Often the creative stuff comes when I\u2019m thinking about other aspects of my business. So much of it comes from when we\u2019re talking about our customers. When we\u2019re really in that zone of who we\u2019re talking to, that\u2019s when a lot of the good stuff comes out.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Now I know when creativity comes, and I make the most of it, but creativity is a muscle and can be practised.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I enjoy those creative Fridays when I get into them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Maybe there is a little bit of fear of what would happen if I don\u2019t come up with anything good. What if I spend all day and Chris says my ideas are rubbish?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"google-anchor-link\">Google only works if you know the questions you want to ask<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Bex Burn-Callander:<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I must ask you about <a href=\"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-ie\/blog\/sound-advice-how-to-fund-your-startup-sam-jones\/\">Dragons\u2019 Den<\/a> because this is such a cool experience. I know that you didn\u2019t go on to take funding, but I think many people who run businesses wonder, does it give you that much exposure?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I know it was a long time ago but tell me about that whole experience and what it did for the business for you and your confidence.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Hazel Reynolds:<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">It seems like so long ago now. I guess two and a half years ago we filmed it, and two years later, it went out.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">People would always say, \u201cOh, you should go on Dragons\u2019 Den.\u201d And I just thought that\u2019d be nice. But I never got around to applying.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">It was them who approached us and said, \u201cYou\u2019ve got a small business. Would you like to go on Dragons\u2019 Den?\u201d And I thought, OK.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Luckily, we\u2019d been profitable from day one. We didn\u2019t have high costs. We were making a profit from the first year and could reinvest that profit into growing the business.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">We\u2019d been growing quite nicely, organically.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I didn\u2019t go on it for the money. What I did go on was for the advice.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">We did some soul searching when they contacted us and thought we don\u2019t necessarily need the money, but we would love that expertise, if we could get a good dragon that could help us with international growth.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Google\u2019s amazing. I\u2019ve built my business on Googling stuff\u2014I taught myself business accounting. Everything you want to know, you can just basically get from Google.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">But you don\u2019t know what you don\u2019t know. I can\u2019t google something when I have no idea what I should be asking.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Getting an investor on board with a wealth of experience would\u2019ve opened those doors for us and given us a shortcut to a lot of that information that we were grappling for when it came to international stuff.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">We decided to go on, and we got an offer of investment. It wasn\u2019t from the two dragons that we were hoping for, and it also wasn\u2019t a great deal in the end.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">We didn\u2019t think it made good financial sense.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In terms of exposure, it was brilliant to go on there and to have all those kinds of people see our games and hear our story. That was amazing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">It went live a few days before Christmas. It was just one week too late\u2014it was too late to order from Amazon.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">We\u2019d thought maybe we could see a massive increase in sales, and we didn\u2019t. It was a few hundred copies that we sold on the day.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">However, there\u2019s ongoing brand awareness with people being aware of us. They might see our games and think they\u2019ve seen that somewhere.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I think that\u2019s stuff you can\u2019t measure. I didn\u2019t regret it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I like talking about my business in case you\u2019ve noticed!<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I was on Dragons\u2019 Den to talk about the business for an hour and a half. It\u2019s funny because what they show on TV is 10 minutes, and it looks like I walk in and say, \u201cI make games. I\u2019d like some money. Can I have some money, please?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">And they say, \u201cYeah, have some money.\u201d And then I reply, \u201cNo, thanks.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Which is excellent TV.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">They were asking loads of good questions that I loved answering. And there was a long negotiation period between Jenny and me, trying to work out whether we could make it work and what she would be bringing to it. All that stuff gets cut.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">But I loved it. It was a brilliant experience and so much fun.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Bex Burn-Callander:<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Nice. That sounds cool. And I\u2019ve watched the clip, and I thought, \u201cWow, she\u2019s done so well.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Hazel Reynolds:<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I know. It looks surprising to turn them down, but it didn\u2019t feel that at the time.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-buttons is-layout-flex wp-block-buttons-is-layout-flex\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-button\"><a class=\"wp-block-button__link wp-element-button\" href=\"#gate-73c0a131-e4f3-485b-a6c6-62c451003a2f\">Download your free small business toolkit: a guide, business plan template and cash flow forecast template so you can boss your business<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"business-anchor-link\">Business success doesn\u2019t need to be all about profit<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Bex Burn-Callander:<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">What are your ambitions for this business?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I mean, when I was thinking about games, do you want to be bigger than Uno? What do you have as your big lofty, hairy, audacious goal, I think they say in business land?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Hazel Reynolds:<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Life\u2019s great, to be honest. What is our big, hairy, audacious goal?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Pretty much to keep doing what we\u2019re doing, make more awesome games and get our games to more people. That\u2019s the key to it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Keep making good stuff and using that creativity, keep making fun new things, and get to more people.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">We are expanding internationally in US, Australia, and Europe.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">We\u2019re printing 14 different language versions of some of our games this year. Six different languages and three different games. We\u2019re signing them off today\u2014it\u2019s an epic project we\u2019ve taken, and it\u2019s exciting getting to reach new people in different places.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">But the biggest goal I\u2019d say is our impact outside our company.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">During lockdown last year was when the Games for Good programme stepped up. We\u2019d always given games to charity, but we realised the value of it last year.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">We ended up doing lots of different kinds of game donation. I think that\u2019s the area I would like to increase.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Our business is at a stage now where we can live comfortably, and we\u2019ve got everything we need. We\u2019ve got a roof over our heads and food to eat.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Hopefully, we\u2019re going to get to Cornwall in the camper van tomorrow!<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I want to grow the company bigger, and it looks like it will grow pretty much whatever I do. I always thought I\u2019d run a charity rather than a business when I was younger. I didn\u2019t ever think I\u2019ll end up running a business.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I\u2019m interested in what can you do with running a business that can have an impact and contribute to the redistribution of wealth, supporting the causes you think are important.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">If anything, that\u2019s the area I\u2019m most excited about, seeing what our company can do for good. I don\u2019t know what exactly that looks like.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I think the charitable money in the games is increasing through working in partnership with different charities. I\u2019m not dreaming of a Ferrari or anything.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">That\u2019s not me. I\u2019m content.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">For me, success means getting to spend the time that you want to with the people you love and being able to choose every day what you want to spend your time on.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I love growing my company. I love my team and what we\u2019ve made, and I would choose to spend more time on that. I value having the choice.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I\u2019m interested in how we can grow the impact and bring more people joy, by making more good games.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">But no, I don\u2019t have any big, hairy yacht plans.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Has Hazel inspired you?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Wherever you\u2019re listening or watching, subscribe to <a href=\"https:\/\/podcasts.apple.com\/gb\/podcast\/sound-advice-get-year-one-in-business-right\/id1544479344?_gl=1*uuzo36*_ga*MjA5NDY4NjE4OC4xNjE0NzM4MTI4*_ga_N0V23L0VEC*MTYyNDM1NjY3Mi4yLjAuMTYyNDM1NjY3NS4w\">Sound Advice on Apple iTunes here.<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><a href=\"https:\/\/open.spotify.com\/show\/2yhPIOebSiBpEYek6q2GZJ?si=UWWTKrgIQ2OsUAlnHrzHTQ&amp;nd=1&amp;_gl=1*uuzo36*_ga*MjA5NDY4NjE4OC4xNjE0NzM4MTI4*_ga_N0V23L0VEC*MTYyNDM1NjY3Mi4yLjAuMTYyNDM1NjY3NS4w\">We are also on Spotify<\/a>, and anywhere else you get your podcasts.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">We would love for you to join our community to share your insights and stories, take your recommendations for guests, and even ask some questions you would like us to ask in the future.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Let us know on <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/sageireland\">Twitter @SageIreland<\/a> using the hashtag #SoundAdvicePodcast, on Instagram @SageOfficial at or in the comments below, and we will get back to you.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"single-cta gated-content\">\n\t<div class=\"single-cta__positioner on-scroll-highlight__target\">\n\t\t<div class=\"single-cta__wrapper has-dark-background-color\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"single-cta__content\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<h2 class=\"single-cta__title h3\">Small business toolkit for clients<\/h2>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"single-cta__description\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>Share this free guide, business plan template and cash flow forecast template with your clients to help them run their businesses and achieve their goals.<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<a\n\t\t\t\t\t\thref=\"#gate-73c0a131-e4f3-485b-a6c6-62c451003a2f\"\n\t\t\t\t\t\tclass=\"single-cta__button button button--primary\"\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t>Download your free toolkit<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t<img decoding=\"async\" width=\"1440\" height=\"810\" src=\"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-ie\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/13\/2022\/04\/GettyImages-1097994958-1440x810.jpg\" class=\"single-cta__image\" alt=\"\" loading=\"lazy\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-ie\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/13\/2022\/04\/GettyImages-1097994958-1440x810.jpg 1440w\" sizes=\"auto, (min-width: 48em) 33vw, 100vw\" \/>\t\t\t<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n\n<div class=\"single-cta\">\n\t<div class=\"single-cta__positioner on-scroll-highlight__target\">\n\t\t<div class=\"single-cta__wrapper has-dark-background-color\">\n\t\t\t<div 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srcset=\"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-ie\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/13\/2021\/04\/z.5E3A0481_All-Uses.jpg 999w\" sizes=\"auto, (min-width: 48em) 33vw, 100vw\" \/>\t\t\t<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n<section class=\"more-topics alignfull has-grey-light-background-color wp-block-sage-post-topics\">\n\t<div class=\"container\">\n\t\t<div class=\"row\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"col col-12 col-lg-4\">\n\t\t\t\t<h3 class=\"more-topics__title h2\">Browse more topics from this article<\/h3>\n\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t<div class=\"col col-12 col-lg-8\">\n\t\t\t\t<ul class=\"post-tags__list\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<li class=\"post-tags__item\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-ie\/blog\/tag\/ecommerce\/\" class=\"post-tags__link button button--secondary\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tecommerce\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/li>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<li class=\"post-tags__item\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-ie\/blog\/tag\/start-business\/\" class=\"post-tags__link button 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src=\"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-ie\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/13\/2022\/04\/GettyImages-1154410198-1440x810.jpg\" class=\"card-post__image\" alt=\"\" loading=\"lazy\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-ie\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/13\/2022\/04\/GettyImages-1154410198-684x384.jpg 684w, https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-ie\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/13\/2022\/04\/GettyImages-1154410198-768x432.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-ie\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/13\/2022\/04\/GettyImages-1154410198-1440x810.jpg 1440w\" sizes=\"auto, (min-width: 48em) 250px, (min-width: 30em) 100vw, 100vw\" \/>\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/figure>\n\t<\/div>\n\n\t<div class=\"card-post__content\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"card-post__label\">Recommended<\/div>\n\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"card-post__meta\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<svg role=\"presentation\" aria-hidden=\"true\" focusable=\"false\" width=\"24\" height=\"24\" class=\"card-post__meta-icon svg-icon\" 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datetime=\"2026-04-10T10:12:46+01:00\">10 April, 2026<\/time><\/span><\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"card-post__meta-text\"><span class=\"reading-time\">12 min read<\/span><\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\n\t\t<p class=\"card-post__title h3\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<a\n\t\t\t\t\tclass=\"card-post__title-link\"\n\t\t\t\t\thref=\"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-ie\/blog\/guide-to-subscription-billing\/\"\n\t\t\t\t>\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\tA guide to subscription billing\u00a0\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n\n\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t<p class=\"card-post__description\">\n\t\t\t\tThis guide to subscription billing covers how it works, best practices, and what to look for in the right software solution for your business. \t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\n\t\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t<\/article>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"row related-posts__non-featured\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"col col-12\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<h2 class=\"related-posts__heading related-posts__heading--more h4\">More on this Topic<\/h2>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"col col-6 col-lg-3 card-grid__item\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<article\n\t\tclass=\"card-post related-post related-post-1 post-16742 post type-post status-publish format-standard has-post-thumbnail hentry category-money-matters category-strategy-legal-operations tag-accounting-102 tag-bookkeeping tag-business-planning tag-cash-flow tag-financial-decisions tag-grow-business tag-startup-stories business_type-small-business business_type-accountants\"\n>\n\t\t\t<a\n\t\t\tclass=\"card-post__link\"\n\t\t\thref=\"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-ie\/blog\/business-loan-calculator\/\"\n\t\t\t\t\t>\n\t\t\t<figure class=\"card-post__media\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<img decoding=\"async\" width=\"684\" height=\"384\" src=\"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-ie\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/13\/2023\/09\/GettyImages-1327235816-684x384.jpg\" class=\"card-post__image\" alt=\"Working on business funding applications\" loading=\"lazy\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-ie\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/13\/2023\/09\/GettyImages-1327235816-684x384.jpg 684w, https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-ie\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/13\/2023\/09\/GettyImages-1327235816-768x512.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-ie\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/13\/2023\/09\/GettyImages-1327235816-1215x810.jpg 1215w\" sizes=\"auto, (min-width: 48em) 250px, (min-width: 30em) 100vw, 100vw\" \/>\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/figure>\n\n\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"card-post__meta\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"card-post__meta-text\"><span class=\"posted-on \"><time class=\"entry-date published\" datetime=\"2025-10-31T09:30:00+00:00\">31 October, 2025<\/time><\/span><\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"card-post__meta-text\"><span class=\"reading-time\">18 min read<\/span><\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\n\t\t<p class=\"card-post__title h5\">\n\t\t\tBusiness loan calculator (with amortisation schedule)\t\t<\/p>\n\n\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\n\t<\/article>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"col col-6 col-lg-3 card-grid__item\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<article\n\t\tclass=\"card-post related-post related-post-2 post-15854 post type-post status-publish format-audio has-post-thumbnail hentry category-growth-customers tag-entrepreneurship tag-grow-business tag-start-business tag-sound-advice-podcast tag-startup-stories post_format-post-format-audio business_type-small-business\"\n>\n\t\t\t<a\n\t\t\tclass=\"card-post__link\"\n\t\t\thref=\"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-ie\/blog\/sound-advice-turn-social-presence-into-business-growth-part-2-ash-jones\/?scroll=1\"\n\t\t\t\t\t>\n\t\t\t<figure class=\"card-post__media\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<img decoding=\"async\" width=\"684\" height=\"384\" src=\"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-ie\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/13\/2024\/12\/Sound-Advice_Blog_S3_Ep24-684x384.jpg\" class=\"card-post__image\" alt=\"\" loading=\"lazy\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-ie\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/13\/2024\/12\/Sound-Advice_Blog_S3_Ep24-684x384.jpg 684w, https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-ie\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/13\/2024\/12\/Sound-Advice_Blog_S3_Ep24-768x432.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-ie\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/13\/2024\/12\/Sound-Advice_Blog_S3_Ep24-1440x810.jpg 1440w\" sizes=\"auto, (min-width: 48em) 250px, (min-width: 30em) 100vw, 100vw\" \/>\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/figure>\n\n\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"card-post__meta\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<svg role=\"presentation\" aria-hidden=\"true\" focusable=\"false\" width=\"24\" height=\"24\" class=\"card-post__meta-icon svg-icon\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" viewbox=\"0 0 24 24\"><path d=\"M9.75 1.5C8.793 1.5 8 2.293 8 3.25v8.377a.8.8 0 0 0 0 .243v4.38c0 .957.793 1.75 1.75 1.75h5.5c.957 0 1.75-.792 1.75-1.75v-4.377a.8.8 0 0 0 0-.243V3.25c0-.957-.792-1.75-1.75-1.75zm0 1.5h5.5c.147 0 .25.102.25.25V11h-6V3.25c0-.148.102-.25.25-.25m-4.012 7.989a.75.75 0 0 0-.739.761v4.5A4.76 4.76 0 0 0 9.749 21h2v2a.76.76 0 0 0 .216.537.74.74 0 0 0 .534.223.76.76 0 0 0 .535-.223.74.74 0 0 0 .216-.537v-2h2A4.76 4.76 0 0 0 20 16.25v-4.5a.76.76 0 0 0-.216-.537.74.74 0 0 0-.535-.223.75.75 0 0 0-.75.76v4.5a3.24 3.24 0 0 1-3.25 3.25h-5.5a3.24 3.24 0 0 1-3.25-3.25v-4.5a.755.755 0 0 0-.469-.707.8.8 0 0 0-.293-.055zM9.5 12.5h6v3.75c0 .147-.102.25-.25.25h-5.5a.24.24 0 0 1-.25-.25zm3 1a.997.997 0 0 0-1 1 .997.997 0 0 0 1 1 .997.997 0 0 0 1-1 .997.997 0 0 0-1-1\" \/><\/svg>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"card-post__meta-text\"><span class=\"posted-on \"><time class=\"entry-date published\" datetime=\"2024-12-23T07:00:00+00:00\">23 December, 2024<\/time><\/span><\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"card-post__meta-text\"><span class=\"reading-time\">43 min read<\/span><\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\n\t\t<p class=\"card-post__title h5\">\n\t\t\tTurn social presence into business growth \u2013 Part 2\t\t<\/p>\n\n\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\n\t<\/article>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"col col-6 col-lg-3 card-grid__item\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<article\n\t\tclass=\"card-post related-post related-post-3 post-15839 post type-post status-publish format-audio has-post-thumbnail hentry category-growth-customers tag-entrepreneurship tag-grow-business tag-start-business tag-sound-advice-podcast tag-startup-stories post_format-post-format-audio business_type-small-business\"\n>\n\t\t\t<a\n\t\t\tclass=\"card-post__link\"\n\t\t\thref=\"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-ie\/blog\/sound-advice-turn-social-presence-into-business-growth-part-1-alex-nicolaou\/?scroll=1\"\n\t\t\t\t\t>\n\t\t\t<figure class=\"card-post__media\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<img decoding=\"async\" width=\"684\" height=\"384\" src=\"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-ie\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/13\/2024\/12\/Sound-Advice_Blog_S3_Ep23-684x384.jpg\" class=\"card-post__image\" alt=\"\" loading=\"lazy\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-ie\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/13\/2024\/12\/Sound-Advice_Blog_S3_Ep23-684x384.jpg 684w, https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-ie\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/13\/2024\/12\/Sound-Advice_Blog_S3_Ep23-768x432.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-ie\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/13\/2024\/12\/Sound-Advice_Blog_S3_Ep23-1440x810.jpg 1440w\" sizes=\"auto, (min-width: 48em) 250px, (min-width: 30em) 100vw, 100vw\" \/>\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/figure>\n\n\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"card-post__meta\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<svg role=\"presentation\" aria-hidden=\"true\" focusable=\"false\" width=\"24\" height=\"24\" class=\"card-post__meta-icon svg-icon\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" viewbox=\"0 0 24 24\"><path d=\"M9.75 1.5C8.793 1.5 8 2.293 8 3.25v8.377a.8.8 0 0 0 0 .243v4.38c0 .957.793 1.75 1.75 1.75h5.5c.957 0 1.75-.792 1.75-1.75v-4.377a.8.8 0 0 0 0-.243V3.25c0-.957-.792-1.75-1.75-1.75zm0 1.5h5.5c.147 0 .25.102.25.25V11h-6V3.25c0-.148.102-.25.25-.25m-4.012 7.989a.75.75 0 0 0-.739.761v4.5A4.76 4.76 0 0 0 9.749 21h2v2a.76.76 0 0 0 .216.537.74.74 0 0 0 .534.223.76.76 0 0 0 .535-.223.74.74 0 0 0 .216-.537v-2h2A4.76 4.76 0 0 0 20 16.25v-4.5a.76.76 0 0 0-.216-.537.74.74 0 0 0-.535-.223.75.75 0 0 0-.75.76v4.5a3.24 3.24 0 0 1-3.25 3.25h-5.5a3.24 3.24 0 0 1-3.25-3.25v-4.5a.755.755 0 0 0-.469-.707.8.8 0 0 0-.293-.055zM9.5 12.5h6v3.75c0 .147-.102.25-.25.25h-5.5a.24.24 0 0 1-.25-.25zm3 1a.997.997 0 0 0-1 1 .997.997 0 0 0 1 1 .997.997 0 0 0 1-1 .997.997 0 0 0-1-1\" \/><\/svg>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"card-post__meta-text\"><span class=\"posted-on \"><time class=\"entry-date published\" datetime=\"2024-12-16T08:00:00+00:00\">16 December, 2024<\/time><\/span><\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"card-post__meta-text\"><span class=\"reading-time\">38 min read<\/span><\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\n\t\t<p class=\"card-post__title h5\">\n\t\t\tTurn social presence into business growth \u2013 Part 1\t\t<\/p>\n\n\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\n\t<\/article>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"col col-6 col-lg-3 card-grid__item\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<article\n\t\tclass=\"card-post related-post related-post-4 post-15824 post type-post status-publish format-audio has-post-thumbnail hentry category-growth-customers tag-ai tag-entrepreneurship tag-grow-business tag-start-business tag-sound-advice-podcast tag-startup-stories post_format-post-format-audio business_type-small-business\"\n>\n\t\t\t<a\n\t\t\tclass=\"card-post__link\"\n\t\t\thref=\"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-ie\/blog\/sound-advice-using-ai-for-your-business-heather-murray\/?scroll=1\"\n\t\t\t\t\t>\n\t\t\t<figure class=\"card-post__media\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<img decoding=\"async\" width=\"684\" height=\"384\" src=\"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-ie\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/13\/2024\/12\/Sound-Advice_Blog_S3_Ep22-684x384.jpg\" class=\"card-post__image\" alt=\"\" loading=\"lazy\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-ie\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/13\/2024\/12\/Sound-Advice_Blog_S3_Ep22-684x384.jpg 684w, https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-ie\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/13\/2024\/12\/Sound-Advice_Blog_S3_Ep22-768x432.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-ie\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/13\/2024\/12\/Sound-Advice_Blog_S3_Ep22-1440x810.jpg 1440w\" sizes=\"auto, (min-width: 48em) 250px, (min-width: 30em) 100vw, 100vw\" \/>\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/figure>\n\n\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"card-post__meta\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<svg role=\"presentation\" aria-hidden=\"true\" focusable=\"false\" width=\"24\" height=\"24\" class=\"card-post__meta-icon svg-icon\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" viewbox=\"0 0 24 24\"><path d=\"M9.75 1.5C8.793 1.5 8 2.293 8 3.25v8.377a.8.8 0 0 0 0 .243v4.38c0 .957.793 1.75 1.75 1.75h5.5c.957 0 1.75-.792 1.75-1.75v-4.377a.8.8 0 0 0 0-.243V3.25c0-.957-.792-1.75-1.75-1.75zm0 1.5h5.5c.147 0 .25.102.25.25V11h-6V3.25c0-.148.102-.25.25-.25m-4.012 7.989a.75.75 0 0 0-.739.761v4.5A4.76 4.76 0 0 0 9.749 21h2v2a.76.76 0 0 0 .216.537.74.74 0 0 0 .534.223.76.76 0 0 0 .535-.223.74.74 0 0 0 .216-.537v-2h2A4.76 4.76 0 0 0 20 16.25v-4.5a.76.76 0 0 0-.216-.537.74.74 0 0 0-.535-.223.75.75 0 0 0-.75.76v4.5a3.24 3.24 0 0 1-3.25 3.25h-5.5a3.24 3.24 0 0 1-3.25-3.25v-4.5a.755.755 0 0 0-.469-.707.8.8 0 0 0-.293-.055zM9.5 12.5h6v3.75c0 .147-.102.25-.25.25h-5.5a.24.24 0 0 1-.25-.25zm3 1a.997.997 0 0 0-1 1 .997.997 0 0 0 1 1 .997.997 0 0 0 1-1 .997.997 0 0 0-1-1\" \/><\/svg>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"card-post__meta-text\"><span class=\"posted-on \"><time class=\"entry-date published\" datetime=\"2024-12-09T08:00:00+00:00\">9 December, 2024<\/time><\/span><\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"card-post__meta-text\"><span class=\"reading-time\">1 min read<\/span><\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\n\t\t<p class=\"card-post__title h5\">\n\t\t\tYou don\u2019t need to be a \u201ctechie\u201d to use AI for your business\t\t<\/p>\n\n\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\n\t<\/article>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t<\/div>\n<\/section>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Hazel Reynolds, the CEO of Gamely Games, reveals how creativity is all about making connections and why you don&#8217;t have to be 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