Articles by Topic
Danielle Lemons is Vice President of Operations at DirecTech Connect. Her guides for small business owners live on daniellelemons.com. Here they are grouped by subject. For the full list in one place, see daniellelemons.com/writing or the Writing page.
Business phones and calls
Choosing, switching and getting the most from a business phone system, so calls reach a person.
- 6 Questions Before Switching Phone Systems
- A Dropped Call Is a Missed Job
- Keep Your Number When You Switch Providers
- Texting From Your Business Number
- After-Hours Call Handling
- How to Read Your Business Phone Bill: Taxes, Fees and What to Question
- Local or Toll-Free: Choosing the Right Business Phone Number
IT, security and the office network
Backups, passwords, Wi-Fi, new hires, departures and the everyday IT habits that keep a small office running.
- What Managed IT Services Actually Means
- 5 Questions Before Your Internet Goes Down
- 4 Backup Questions Every Owner Should Answer
- 5 Checks for Slow Office Wi-Fi
- Phishing and MFA Basics
- Employee Offboarding Checklist
- Choosing Business Internet
- New Employee Technology Checklist
- Password Managers for Small Teams
- Guest Wi-Fi, Your Router and Your Firewall: Network Basics for a Small Office
- Retiring an Old Computer Without Leaving Client Data Behind
- Office Printers and Copiers: The Security Settings Owners Often Miss
- A Change Calendar for Office IT Work: Announcing Updates Before Staff Feel Them
- What to Keep in a Shared Systems Document for Your Business
- Planning Technology for a Second Business Location
- Organizing Shared Business Files So Your Team Can Find Them
- Surge Protectors and Battery Backups for a Small Office
- Shared Mailboxes Instead of Shared Logins
- Keeping Customer Data Off Personal Phones
Websites and local search
Homepages, Google Business Profiles, reviews, domains and how to work with a web designer.
- Your Website Doesn’t Need Fortune 500 Polish
- Why I Build Your Website First
- 6 Questions Before You Hire a Web Designer
- Google Business Profile Basics
- AI Search and Local Businesses
- Template Site or Custom Site?
- What to Put at the Top of a Local Business Homepage
- How to Read Your Google Business Profile Performance Numbers
- How to Brief a Web Designer So You Get the Site You Pictured
- How Many Pages Does a Small Business Website Need?
- How to Ask Customers for Reviews Without Feeling Awkward
- What a Website Maintenance Plan Should Actually Cover
- Business Email on Your Own Domain vs. a Free Gmail Address
- Choosing a Booking Tool for Your Service Business
- When Your Domain Is About to Expire: What to Check This Week
- 3 Website Checks When Calls Dry Up
Running the business
Planning, process, budgets and the operations habits behind the technology.
- Forty Projects at Once
- Why Every Small Business Needs a Written Process
- What to Expect From a Technology Partner
- Why I Chose a Company Whose Values Match My Own
- Don’t Market Like a National Brand
- Reading a Technology Contract
- What a Good Project Kickoff Looks Like
- Write a One-Page Plan for the Day Something Goes Wrong
- Planning Your Technology Budget for Next Year
- How to Run a Thirty-Minute Quarterly Technology Check-In With Your Team
- Setting Up a Shared Business Calendar Your Team Will Actually Use
- What Forecasting $1 Billion Taught Me
- One Vendor for Phones, IT and Web
About the author: Danielle Lemons, Vice President of Operations at DirecTech Connect.