Smarter Online Business - Tech, Tools & Truths for Websites that Sell

Send Carrie a Text Message! Have you ever felt like you should be sending a newsletter... but every time you sit down to write one, you overthink it?  Maybe you're wondering:  How often should I email?   What should I even talk about?   Am I emailing too much?   Am I not emailing enough?   And am I accidentally breaking some newsletter law I don't know about?   A lot of business owners m...

Send Carrie a Text Message! If you've been in business for more than five minutes, you've probably heard advice like:  "Done is better than perfect."  "You need to be everywhere on social media."  "Hustle harder." "Automate everything."  While each of those ideas has a little truth to it, I've learned over the last 24 years of running a busine...

Send Carrie a Text Message! Have you ever looked at your website and wondered why it isn’t converting? Maybe people are visiting and sticking around for a bit, but they’re not clicking, buying, or booking. Often, the problem isn’t your design. It’s your messaging. Today’s guest, Josh Allen Hull , is a coach, messaging strategist, and storyteller who helps business owners craft words that move peop...

Send Carrie a Text Message! Hiring a developer can feel a little like dating. Everyone looks great on paper, everyone says they can help, and everything sounds promising in the beginning. Then, six months later, you find yourself wondering, "How did we get here?"   Maybe the project is over budget.  Maybe it's behind schedule.  Maybe you're frustrated, they're frustrated,...

Send Carrie a Text Message! Have you ever chosen a piece of software because it was cheaper, someone recommended it, your coach used it, or it simply looked easier to use? Most of us have, and sometimes those decisions work out just fine.  But other times, the most expensive software decision isn't the software itself. It's everything you have to fix later. Choosing the wrong tech stack...

Send Carrie a Text Message! DIY can be incredibly smart in business. In fact, most entrepreneurs have to DIY in the beginning. You learn your audience. You figure things out. You stretch your budget. You wear a lot of hats because that's what it takes to get your business off the ground. But there comes a point where DIY quietly shifts from being resourceful to becoming expensive. Expensive i...

Send Carrie a Text Message! If you’ve ever felt like…  You’ve done the work… You’re really good at what you do… But somehow, the less qualified people are getting the opportunities…  This episode might hit a little close to home.  Because today, we’re talking about something most experts don’t realize until it’s too late:  👉 Being great at what you do does not mean people will find you.  And in f...

Send Carrie a Text Message! Have you ever added a tool “just for now”… created a workaround… skipped fixing something because things were mostly working …  and told yourself you’d clean it up later?  That might be tech debt.  And it’s one of the most expensive hidden problems in online business.  Because tech debt doesn’t usually show up as one giant disaster.  It shows up as messy systems, random...

Send Carrie a Text Message! Let me ask you a quick question: when someone lands on your website, is it mostly about you or about them?   This is one of the most common issues I see with websites. They look great, sound professional, and list all the right credentials, yet they still struggle to convert visitors into customers.  The reason is often surprisingly simple. The website is talking about...

Send Carrie a Text Message! What if ads didn’t feel complicated… expensive… or like a total gamble?  Because for a lot of business owners, that’s exactly how ads feel.  You’ve probably wondered:  Should I be running ads?  When is the right time?  And how do I even get started without wasting money?  In today’s episode of Smarter Online Business , I’m joined by Paul and Melissa Pruitt , who help en...

Send Carrie a Text Message! Is SEO dead?  Or is it just… different now?  Because if you’ve been paying attention lately, it feels like everything is changing.  People are asking questions in ChatGPT instead of Google.  AI is summarizing answers instead of sending traffic to websites.  And it leaves a lot of business owners wondering:  “Is SEO even worth it anymore?”  Or maybe more importantly…  “W...

Send Carrie a Text Message! Should you put your prices on your website… or not?  This is one of those questions that sparks a lot of opinions.  Some people will tell you:  “Always show your prices.”  Others will say:  “Never show your prices—get them on a call.”  And it’s very common to feel stuck somewhere in the middle.  In this episode, we’re breaking down the real answer—because it’s not as bl...

Send Carrie a Text Message! You’ve invested in your website.  It looks good.  It feels professional.  You’re proud to share the link.  But… it’s not bringing in the leads or sales you expected.  And that’s where a lot of business owners get stuck.  Because if it’s not the design… then what is it?  In this episode, we’re breaking down why people don’t buy from your website—even when it looks great...

Send Carrie a Text Message! What if the real secret to time freedom in business is not better time management… but building high leverage assets that keep working even when you are done for the day?  Today’s guest is one of my favorite people to learn from on that exact topic - Jerry Potter.  Jerry teaches online entrepreneurs how to run their business in half the time by focusing on assets like Y...

Send Carrie a Text Message! One of the most common questions I get from business owners is surprisingly simple.  “How many pages should my website have?”  And usually that question comes with a little bit of stress behind it.  Should it have five pages?  Ten pages?  Twenty pages?  Do you need a blog?  A resources section?  Landing pages?  Or maybe you are wondering if your website is too small or...

Send Carrie a Text Message! Have you ever sat down to build or redesign your website… and suddenly realized you have no idea what should actually go on it?  So you start choosing colors.  Maybe picking a theme.  Maybe even hiring a designer.  But the problem with most websites is not the design.  It is the lack of clarity behind them.  Today we are talking about the three things every business own...

Send Carrie a Text Message! What if I told you that you only need 20 minutes a week to write emails that actually make money?  Not 20 minutes a day.  Not hours of storytelling.  Just 20 focused minutes.  Today, I’m joined by the Fresh Princess of Email Marketing herself, Liz Wilcox .  Liz is an email strategist and keynote speaker who helps small businesses build real relationships and real revenu...

Send Carrie a Text Message! You can tell people you’re trustworthy.  You can say you’re experienced.  You can list your credentials.  But online? Words alone aren’t enough.  If your website doesn’t visually reinforce trust, visitors hesitate. And hesitation kills conversions.  In this episode, we’re talking about how to use visual trust signals to increase conversions without rewriting your entire...

Send Carrie a Text Message! You’ve probably heard me say this before…  Your website should be your smartest sales tool.  But what does that actually mean?  Because a lot of websites look good.  A lot of websites exist.  But very few actually work.  In this episode, I’m breaking down what separates a brochure website from a smart sales tool… and how to know which one you have.  Rate, Review, &...

Send Carrie a Text Message! You’ve probably heard this before:  “You don’t need a website. You just need a funnel.”  Or maybe the opposite:  “Funnels are scammy. Just build a solid website.”  So which is it?  Do you actually need both?  Or is one enough?  In this episode, I’m breaking down the real difference between a funnel and a website, when you need one, when you need both, and how to make th...

Send Carrie a Text Message! Ever wonder why some businesses scale with ease while others stall out despite having great products or services?  In today’s episode of Smarter Online Business , I’m joined by Dr. Umut Aslan , a business strategist, educator, and Certified Scaling Up Coach who’s spent years researching exactly what makes companies thrive.  From selling his own company to pursuing a doc...

Send Carrie a Text Message! It’s one of the most frustrating moments in online business:  You send the email.  They click the link.  And then… nothing.  No sale. No signup. Just silence.  In this episode, we’re unpacking why that happens and how to fix it—so more of your clicks actually convert .  This one’s especially for you if you’re sending traffic to sales pages, lead magnets, or product link...

Send Carrie a Text Message! Money mindset, messy books, missed reports—sound familiar?  Whether you're wrapping up your year or planning ahead, financial clarity is the move for smarter business growth.  In this episode, I’m joined by Michelle Mitchell —financial strategist and founder of Mitchell Consulting—who’s known for helping powerhouse women stop being the bottleneck in their business....

Send Carrie a Text Message! You can say you’re trustworthy.  You can say you’re experienced.  You can say you’re great at what you do.  But if your website doesn’t show it visually, visitors hesitate.  And hesitation kills conversions.  In this episode, we’re talking about how visual trust signals work , why they matter so much, and how small changes to your website can make visitors feel safer, m...

Send Carrie a Text Message! What if you could grow your audience and email list every single day ...  …without spending a dime on ads or being chained to social media 24/7?  Today’s guest, Tracy Beavers , is here to show us how.  Tracy is a business growth coach, speaker, and creator of the Business Visibility Made Easy course. With over 20 years of experience and hundreds of entrepreneurs helped,...