Simon Swan

The foundation of a £1bn business isn’t the product. It’s the people. Whether your team shows up motivated, clear, and performing at their best all comes down to one thing: Great management. I’ve seen it in every business I’ve backed, and lived it during my time scaling HomeServe. You can have the best idea, the right strategy, and capital behind you. But if your team isn’t bought in, aligned, and supported, none of it will work. The real job of a CEO is making sure your people have what they need to succeed, and contribute in a meaningful way to the growth of the business. Here are a few lessons I’ve learned over the years: ✅ Set clear goals, then get out of the way. ↳ Micromanagement kills motivation, while clarity makes way for autonomy. ✅ Give feedback in real time. ↳ Don’t wait until a formal performance review. Small, frequent nudges build trust and momentum. ✅ Coach, don’t control. ↳ Help your team solve problems, not just follow orders. ✅ Celebrate effort, not just outcomes. ↳ People do their best work when they feel seen and supported. ✅ Hire leaders, not managers. ↳ Managers execute, but leaders raise the game. If you get this right, your team will execute and surpass your vision for the company (which is really what you want!) But if you get it wrong, no amount of strategy will save the day. Few people understand this better than Ben Askins. He's been living and breathing world-class management for years, and he his new book will help a lot of founders. You can find My Boss is a Moron on Amazon or in any major book retailer: https://lnkd.in/eeCriGeD It's well worth keeping an eye out for it. Thank you Ben for supporting my book when it launched, and I hope yours does just as well.

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Every multimillion $ business I know is adapting to AI marketing. Every failing business is doing the opposite. People are falling behind without realising it. Somehow they are still ignoring AI... (In particular, AI search) And their businesses will suffer because of it. The best time to learn this new AI-powered funnel was yesterday... The second best time is today. I've already used this exact playbook to: ✅ Drive millions of impressions and thousands of leads every month.  ✅ Build and scale multiple 7 and 8‑figure companies. ✅ Generate over $10M in revenue this year alone. Here's how it works: (Check out the full sheet for examples/details 👇) 📢 Awareness ↳ Make people aware you exist. Online Location: - Organic social (LinkedIn, TikTok) - AI search (AEO + GEO) - Traditional SEO (top‑of‑funnel content) KPIs: - Impressions - AI citations in answers - Organic traffic growth Strategy: - Optimise content for AI answers.  - Use founder‑led content marketing.  - Publish broad awareness content for search. 📚 Consideration ↳ Educate and nurture that audience. Online Location: - Organic blogs  - Educational social content - Forums KPIs: - Session time, scroll depth - Returning visits - AI snippet appearances Strategy: - Build mid‑funnel SEO content - Engage in communities AI scrapes - Use gated content to capture leads 🎯 Intent ↳ Capture those evaluating your offer. Online Location: - Bottom‑funnel SEO (pricing, reviews) - AI‑powered chatbots on landing pages - Branded search + referral traffic KPIs: - Demo requests, calendar bookings - Form completions - Branded search volume Strategy: - Optimise bottom‑funnel pages  - Showcase proof with real data  - Use interactive tools to capture leads 💳 Conversion ↳ Turn intent into revenue. Online Location: - Landing pages and checkout flows - Email nurture sequences - Social DMs KPIs: - Conversion rate - Revenue per lead - Cart abandonment rate Strategy: - Personalise CTAs using AI insights - A/B test AI‑generated page variants  - Layer urgency: time‑bound offers and bonuses 🤝 Loyalty ↳ Retain and grow customers. Online Location: - Email (loyalty programs, upsell flows) - Community platforms (Discord, LinkedIn groups) - Help articles and SEO‑driven support hubs KPIs: - Retention rate, repeat purchase rate - Referral sign‑ups - Engagement in community spaces Strategy: - Build personalised loyalty loops  - Use AI for predictive churn alerts - Encourage community‑led growth This is the only funnel you need to get ahead in 2025. And to get you started,  I'm very excited to be launching my new AI business: Searchable. It's an SEO & AEO growth engineer that can analyse, fix,  And scale your website to drive customers. You can learn more here and join the waitlist 👇 https://bit.ly/4fofoBH - - - - 📌 If you want a high-res PDF of this sheet: 1. Follow Chris Donnelly. 2. Like the post. 3. Repost to your network. 4. Subscribe to: https://bit.ly/4dCkNEf

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If I wanted 10 discovery calls this week I’d do this: 1. Find my top 2 x ICP segments Example: Startup Online Accountants, Freelance Wealth Management CEO’s 2. Decide which Sales Nav filters, or awareness signals your ICP should have (i.e. UK based, 1st year in company, posts regularly but doesn’t get engagement, has invested in branding) 3. Spend 30 mins each day adding 10 people in each segment to a CRM (I use folk, you can use notion etc) 4. A/B test outreach with each segment. A = warm outreach immediately. B = warm outreach on 3rd touchpoint. 5. On top of the 20-lists, set up an automation to cold outreach to each segment (I use dripify) 6. If you find A or B is significantly better, switch to that the following week This technique doesn’t just get you calls each week. It gives you data to make the system repeatable, or refine. — Sure, I’ve distilled this into some post bullets, But I can teach you the expanded version of this, and do it with you.

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While everyone’s busy jumping on the Coldplay CEO trend with zero original thought... Posting things that have nothing to do with their business... This is your chance to cut through the noise and stand out from the sheep. Let’s call it what it is. Most people on here are chasing views with clickbait takes that don’t move the needle in their business. Their content is loud. But their bank accounts are quiet. Because attention without intention is just noise. If you’re tired of playing that game and want to build something that actually converts, focus on the real work: 1. Who are you? 2. What are your superpowers? 3. What does your business solve LinkedIn isn’t about how many people see your content. It’s about who sees it. Here’s a crash course in doing it right: 1. Optimise your profile and treat it like a landing page 2. Understand the pain, frustration, and aspiration of your ideal client 3. Create content that speaks directly to them 4. Share personal stories to stay relatable and real 5. Build target lists in Sales Navigator and connect intentionally 6. Start honest, human conversations in the DMs Do this consistently for 3 months, and you won’t need to piggyback off someone else’s scandal to get noticed. You’ll be building a brand that attracts clients, not just clicks.

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How a founder actually becomes a thought leader, NOT just ‘another LinkedIn motivational speaker’ Firstly, you need a territory you own. 📍Pick the 2–3 problems you’re obsessed with Say them so clearly that people tag you the moment those problems show up 📍Now the story Here I’m not talking about the sugar-coated ‘Founder’s Journey’ brochure But the real one: why you started, the mistakes you made, and what you’d never do again. 📍Create more than you comment One deep post a week that teaches One timely take that challenges One BTS that shows your decision-making. (Teach me how you think, not just what you sell) 📍Stack proof Small panels > big silence Guest on niche podcasts Co-author with people your audience already trusts (When journalists need a quote on your niche, your name should be #1) 📍Engage like a human, not a brand account No ‘Great insights!’ drive-bys (please) Ask better questions, add context, disagree with respect 📍Protect the vibe With consistent tone, consistent values, evolving insights You can pivot your product but don’t confuse people by pivoting your personality 📌 BONUS My simple starter cadence if you want to steal it: ✂️Monday ⇢One sharp lesson from your ops ✂️Wednesday ⇢A contrarian take on an industry headline ✂️Friday ⇢A framework or checklist your audience can use today Do this consistently ♻️ for 90 days, and then tell me ‘personal branding doesn’t work’ I’ll wait! P.S. Comment ‘Roadmap’ if you want me to drop my no-fluff 12-month thought-leadership plan. ———————————— Hey, I’m Nisha Nain Follow me for more tips on Personal Branding. Want to build your Personal Brand on LinkedIn and attract more leads? I help Founders/CEOs and Coaches turn their LinkedIn profiles into Landing Pages and their audiences into customers. DM me for more details. Let’s build your Personal Brand together! #personalbranding #linkedinforfounders #consistencymatters #linkedingrowth

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Does your business have its own special language ... a whole alphabet of metrics LTV, CAC, ROAS etc. Experience has taught me that most of those are lag indicators... they tell you what's already happened. The most important KPI... (okay so that was a punn) the one that gives you an indicator into your future success... is almost never on the main dashboard. It has nothing to do with finance and everything to do with feeling. I break down what it is, and why it matters so much, in my new blog post. https://lnkd.in/ggkdsCtX #Leadership #KPIs #CompanyCulture #EmployeeEngagement #BusinessStrategy #DataDriven #FounderStory

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