What is sub-scratch and why must you eliminate it?

Photo by Francisco De Legarreta C. on Unsplash



You’ve never heard of sub-scratch before. That’s understandable. It’s a term I created. Here’s how I explain it to clients, and why you need to AVOID it.



Starting from scratch / sub-scratch




Starting from scratch is an opportunity to start anew. It frees you to build a project on a clean, clear foundation. And it’s extremely underrated.



Starting from sub-scratch is the exact opposite. It’s what happens when you start work on a project, which is already broken. You need to pick up the pieces and erase the damage before doing anything else.




I was prompted to write this, after learning about the following, recent sub-scratch example.



A business owner wrote, and sent, a very pushy marketing email to everyone in a local business directory. None had requested the information. She then discovered that she and her ‘spammy email’ were being trashed in the local Facebook business group. The business owner then posted confrontational responses to some individuals in the group, making things even worse. By choosing to dabble with the initial marketing that caused the problem, then dabble with the PR required to mitigate the problem, she’s seriously damaged her reputation within her target marketplace.



My expensive sub-scratch mistake



I made my own sub-scratch mistake well over 20 years ago. It cost me a fortune. I still cringe when I think of it. I had a financial investment decision, which I was maybe 80% sure I knew the answer to. Rather than hire a professional Financial Advisor, I dabbled. I asked a wealthy friend and he agreed I was right. So, I proceeded. I was wrong and so was my friend. It ended up losing me thousands. I still needed to hire a professional Financial Advisor, but she needed to unpick my DIY financials, before building me a solid foundation.



As small business owners, you and I need to make sure we don’t create sub-scratch problems. We need to be very intentional about the things we absolutely know we’re able to do, and those things where we lack the knowledge required. It’s always more effective and far less expensive, to hire an expert at the start, rather than afterwards.
What is sub-scratch and why must you eliminate it? was written by Jim Connolly and originally published on Jim's Marketing Blog