<![CDATA[Always Booked]]>https://alwaysbooked.comhttps://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!Gbu-!,w_256,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fe5c857b1-e458-4e52-92b1-5e2de048c82b_1080x1080.pngAlways Bookedhttps://alwaysbooked.comSubstackWed, 15 Apr 2026 14:48:17 GMT<![CDATA[Christmas Tree Sales Are Whispering a Warning to Service Businesses]]>https://alwaysbooked.com/p/christmas-tree-sales-are-whisperinghttps://alwaysbooked.com/p/christmas-tree-sales-are-whisperingMon, 22 Dec 2025 11:03:16 GMTYour daily briefing to keep your calendar and your pipeline always booked.

Today’s Top Stories

child standing in front of Christmas tree with string lights
Photo by Arun Kuchibhotla on Unsplash

Christmas Tree Sales Signal Softer Holiday Spending for Main Street

Evercore ISI’s annual Christmas tree survey shows sales up just 3% since Thanksgiving versus 7% a year ago, suggesting consumers are trimming their holiday bu…

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]]><![CDATA[Inflation surprises, Adobe's AI move, & last-minute tax tips]]>https://alwaysbooked.com/p/inflation-surprises-adobes-ai-movehttps://alwaysbooked.com/p/inflation-surprises-adobes-ai-moveFri, 19 Dec 2025 11:02:43 GMTYour daily briefing to keep your calendar and your pipeline always booked.

Today’s Top Stories

black Android smartphone near ballpoint pen, tax withholding certificate on top of white folder
Photo by Kelly Sikkema on Unsplash

1. Last-Minute Year-End Tax Moves for Small Business Owners
With less than two weeks left in 2025, it’s crunch time for tax planning. Key moves to consider include holding your annual board meeting (mandatory for corporations) to…

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]]><![CDATA[Clients Feel Broke, Costs Are Rising—Here’s How Service Businesses Can Still Stay Booked]]>https://alwaysbooked.com/p/clients-feel-broke-costs-are-risinghereshttps://alwaysbooked.com/p/clients-feel-broke-costs-are-risingheresThu, 18 Dec 2025 11:01:35 GMTYour daily briefing to keep your calendar and your pipeline always booked.

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Photo by Claudio Schwarz on Unsplash

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]]><![CDATA[Unemployment hits 4-year high—but your clients are still spending]]>https://alwaysbooked.com/p/unemployment-hits-4-year-highbuthttps://alwaysbooked.com/p/unemployment-hits-4-year-highbutWed, 17 Dec 2025 11:02:23 GMTYour daily briefing to keep your calendar and your pipeline always booked.

Today’s Top Stories

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Photo by Hennie Stander on Unsplash

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]]><![CDATA[Your Competitors Just Got Billions. You Won't See Your Cut Until April.]]>https://alwaysbooked.com/p/your-competitors-just-got-billionshttps://alwaysbooked.com/p/your-competitors-just-got-billionsTue, 16 Dec 2025 11:03:09 GMTYour daily briefing to keep your calendar and your pipeline always booked.

Today’s Top Stories

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Photo by Alexander Mils on Unsplash

1. Big Businesses Cash In on Trump’s Tax Cuts While SMBs Wait

Amazon, Walmart, and Verizon are using immediate tax savings on research, capital, and interest deductions to unlock billions in cash right now. They’re reinvesting i…

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]]><![CDATA[Costco, the $124T wealth transfer, and why the U.S.-U.K. trade deal just stalled]]>https://alwaysbooked.com/p/costco-the-124t-wealth-transfer-andhttps://alwaysbooked.com/p/costco-the-124t-wealth-transfer-andMon, 15 Dec 2025 11:01:46 GMTYour daily briefing to keep your calendar and your pipeline always booked.

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Photo by Marques Thomas on Unsplash

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]]><![CDATA[Tariffs Are Forcing Staff Cuts + QBI Deduction Is Now Permanent (What This Means)]]>https://alwaysbooked.com/p/tariffs-are-forcing-staff-cuts-qbihttps://alwaysbooked.com/p/tariffs-are-forcing-staff-cuts-qbiFri, 12 Dec 2025 11:02:58 GMTYour daily briefing to keep your calendar and your pipeline always booked.

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Photo by Pawel Czerwinski on Unsplash

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]]><![CDATA[Fed cuts rates—but warns the easy money era may be over]]>https://alwaysbooked.com/p/fed-cuts-ratesbut-warns-the-easyhttps://alwaysbooked.com/p/fed-cuts-ratesbut-warns-the-easyThu, 11 Dec 2025 11:00:29 GMTYour daily briefing to keep your calendar and your pipeline always booked.

united states of america banknote
Photo by Joshua Hoehne on Unsplash

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]]><![CDATA[AI regulation just changed—here's what service businesses need to know]]>https://alwaysbooked.com/p/ai-regulation-just-changedheres-whathttps://alwaysbooked.com/p/ai-regulation-just-changedheres-whatWed, 10 Dec 2025 11:03:15 GMTYour daily briefing to keep your calendar and your pipeline always booked.

US President Donald Trump is seen in Washington, DC, the United States [Kent Nishimura/Reuters]

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]]><![CDATA[The split economy reshaping who books your services]]>https://alwaysbooked.com/p/the-split-economy-reshaping-who-bookshttps://alwaysbooked.com/p/the-split-economy-reshaping-who-booksTue, 09 Dec 2025 11:02:35 GMTYour daily briefing to keep your calendar and your pipeline always booked.

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]]><![CDATA[Small businesses just cut 120K jobs—are you the canary in the coal mine?]]>https://alwaysbooked.com/p/small-businesses-just-cut-120k-jobsarehttps://alwaysbooked.com/p/small-businesses-just-cut-120k-jobsareMon, 08 Dec 2025 11:02:28 GMTYour daily briefing to keep your calendar and your pipeline always booked.

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]]><![CDATA[Half Your Customers Now Shop With AI—Are They Finding You?]]>https://alwaysbooked.com/p/half-your-customers-now-shop-withhttps://alwaysbooked.com/p/half-your-customers-now-shop-withFri, 05 Dec 2025 17:01:51 GMTYour daily briefing to keep your calendar and your pipeline always booked.

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]]><![CDATA[Small-Business Jobs Plunge, Social Goes Pay-to-Play, and AI Agents Land]]>https://alwaysbooked.com/p/small-business-jobs-plunge-socialhttps://alwaysbooked.com/p/small-business-jobs-plunge-socialThu, 04 Dec 2025 12:10:38 GMTGood morning.

We’re going live on LinkedIn at 9am PT / 12pm ET today with the stories and strategies that matter most to your calendar, your pipeline, and your team’s paycheck.

Here’s the link to join: https://www.linkedin.com/events/7402219993364549632/

And here’s what we’re covering:

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]]><![CDATA[This Month's Labor Report Could Make or Break Your Fall Revenue — Here’s Why]]>https://alwaysbooked.com/p/this-months-labor-report-could-makehttps://alwaysbooked.com/p/this-months-labor-report-could-makeTue, 05 Aug 2025 14:53:02 GMT
Photo by Cande Westh on Unsplash

July’s jobs report just dropped, and it’s sending a clear message: the hiring boom is over — but we’re not in crisis mode yet. What does this mean for your spa, therapy practice, or online coaching biz? A whole lot more than you might think.

Subscribe for free to receive new posts that keep your calendar full and business …

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]]><![CDATA[June Small Business Earnings Surge 🚀]]>https://alwaysbooked.com/p/june-small-business-earnings-surgehttps://alwaysbooked.com/p/june-small-business-earnings-surgeMon, 28 Jul 2025 10:01:14 GMTGood morning, founders!

Here’s your daily dose of key insights from the Always Booked Today podcast to help keep your calendar—and business—always booked. Let’s dive in.

🎙️ Listen on: Apple Podcast | Spotify | Pocket Casts | Substack

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]]><![CDATA[Navigating Economic Uncertainty: A 5-Point Plan for Business Owners]]>https://alwaysbooked.com/p/navigating-economic-uncertainty-ahttps://alwaysbooked.com/p/navigating-economic-uncertainty-aMon, 28 Jul 2025 01:02:38 GMT
Photo by Christiann Koepke on Unsplash

As we step into the second half of 2025, small business owners are facing a host of challenges that are difficult to ignore. Economic uncertainty is at an all-time high, driven by rising inflation, interest rates, and shifting consumer behaviors. If you’re feeling the weight of flat or declining sales, you’re not al…

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]]><![CDATA[Analyzing the One Big Beautiful Bill Act: What It Means for Business Owners]]>https://alwaysbooked.com/p/analyzing-the-one-big-beautiful-billhttps://alwaysbooked.com/p/analyzing-the-one-big-beautiful-billSat, 26 Jul 2025 20:37:40 GMTHi there—and thanks for reading the AlwaysBooked inaugural post. I noticed a gap in the news that actually impacts small business owners (those of us with revenue under $7.5M according to the SBA), whether they're on Main Street or running online businesses. Most mainstream media focuses on broad, national stories or big corporations, leaving the unique…

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]]><![CDATA[ICYMI -Jennifer Griffin Smith (Brightcove) - Thinking and acting like a media company]]>https://alwaysbooked.com/p/icymi-jennifer-griffin-smith-brightcove-e55https://alwaysbooked.com/p/icymi-jennifer-griffin-smith-brightcove-e55Tue, 07 Nov 2023 17:30:00 GMTContinuing our review of the Destination CMO greatest hits (so far) this week we are looking back at this informative and inspiring conversation with Jennifer Griffin Smith. When we first sat down with Jennifer back in October of 2022 she was the Chief Marketing Officer of Brightcove. Now she’s in a new role as the CMO of Acquia. We hope our Destination CMO audience will enjoy these stories and insight’s from Jennifer’s career as a senior marketing leader.

Destination CMO with guest Jennifer Griffin Smith 

As the Chief Marketing Officer of Brightcove, Jennifer Griffin Smith is motivated by discovering the possibilities technology can offer, and building communities of like-minded people who can share stories, be inspired, and learn from each other. Jennifer is an international marketing executive with more than 20 years of experience managing go-to-market strategies and corporate communications for public and private technology companies. Before joining Brightcove, Jennifer held CMO positions at Alfresco Software, Software AG, Workhuman, Avid Technology, and Progress Software. On the Destination CMO podcast she shares the best career advice she ever received, and the specific advice she would give to someone working towards the CMO role. Also in this episode, Jennifer and Vincent discuss how the role of marketer has changed in recent years, and how the streaming industry has changed during that time as well. Jennifer explains that, as streaming takes hold, every company needs to act and think like a media company. You’ll have to listen to the full episode to hear why and how. 

Follow Jennifer on LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/jennifergriffinsmith/

Follow Vincent on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/vphamvan/

Join the Destination CMO community on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/destination-cmo/ 
Podcast produced by https://www.freshpickedstudio.com/

]]><![CDATA[ICYMI - Mike Volkin (entrepreneur) - Building a career as a freelancer]]>https://alwaysbooked.com/p/icymi-mike-volkin-entrepreneur-building-731https://alwaysbooked.com/p/icymi-mike-volkin-entrepreneur-building-731Tue, 31 Oct 2023 16:30:00 GMTThis month, the Destination CMO podcast crew is busy in the studio recording new episodes for Season 3 of the podcast! Vincent is sitting down with some great marketing leaders, and you don’t want to miss those insightful conversations coming up next season! In the next few weeks we will be looking back at some of our favorite episodes of Season 2. If you’ve a regular Destination CMO listener, you know that we love fractional CMO stories on this podcast, and  Mike Volkin delivers with his expertise as a marketing consultant and top-rated freelancer on Upwork. Stream the full episode to hear Mike’s insights on building value in companies, and why fractional CMOs and marketing consultants are so valuable for startups and small businesses. 

Destination CMO with guest Mike Volkin (entrepreneur, Army veteran, speaker, and author) 

Our guest today is Mike Volkin, an entrepreneur, consultant, and top-rated freelancer for Upwork. As a fractional CMO and entrepreneur coach Mike has consulted with more than 400 companies. He’s also an Army veteran, speaker, and author of 6 books -one bestseller. As a serial entrepreneur, he has built and sold 6 of his own companies. Today on Destination CMO Mike explains the strategy that led him to becoming one of the top-rated freelancers on Upwork. Mike also shares his advice for how entrepreneurs can build their freelancing careers, increase their revenue, and create passive income streams. Click the link in bio to stream the full episode. 

]]><![CDATA[ICYMI - Lisa Joy Rosner (Fractional CMO)- Make a plan that can flex]]>https://alwaysbooked.com/p/icymi-lisa-joy-rosner-fractional-e72https://alwaysbooked.com/p/icymi-lisa-joy-rosner-fractional-e72Tue, 24 Oct 2023 16:30:00 GMTThe Destination CMO podcast crew is in the studio this month recording new episodes for Season 3 of the podcast! We can’t wait to share our conversations with some really insightful CMOs coming up next season, and for now we are looking back at some of our favorite episodes of Season 2. When we first sat down with Lisa Joy Rosner in October of 2022 she was the Senior Vice President of Brand and Digital Marketing of Oracle. Now she’s leveraging her transformational marketing experience as a Fractional CMO and strategic advisor. We hope you enjoy Lisa’s insights about initiating high value partnerships and building brand trust. And stay tuned for announcements about Season 3 of Destination CMO. Vincent is sitting down with some incredible CMOs and senior marketing leaders, and you don’t want to miss our new episodes, premiering in January 2024.

Destination CMO podcast with guest Lisa Joy Rosner (Fractional CMO)

With more than 20 years of executive experience, Lisa Joy Rosner is an expert at developing metrics-driven marketing solutions for public and start-up companies. In her role as the Senior Vice President of Brand and Digital Marketing at Oracle, she passionately advocates for customers, teams, and revolutionary ideas. Throughout her senior marketing career, Lisa Joy’s teams have included customer, sports, and industry marketing, as well as brand experience design and global advertising in B2B SaaS, MarTech, AutoTech, IoT, Security, Big Data Analytics, and E-Commerce. On this episode of Destination CMO, Lisa shares her thoughts on how important it is to have a flexible career plan for yourself, and that her business and career philosophy is centered on resilience. On the podcast she tells us “you can always change the path you're on.” Click the link in bio to stream the full episode. 

Stream new podcast episodes at https://destinationcmo.com/

Follow Lisa Joy on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lisajoyrosner/

Follow Vincent on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/vphamvan/

Join the Destination CMO community on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/destination-cmo/ 

Podcast produced by https://www.freshpickedstudio.com/

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