The sprint diagnostic is the first two weeks of every BusinessBooster.ca engagement. It finds the single constraint that would add the most revenue in 90 days if fixed, measures where that constraint stands today, and puts it all on one page. Skip it and the sprint becomes a to-do list; do it well and the next 11 weeks almost plan themselves.
What the diagnostic is
It is a short, structured look at how money flows into your business, from the first time a buyer hears of you to the day they pay and, ideally, come back.
We follow one path through five stages: attention, enquiry, reply, quote or offer, and repeat. At each stage we want a number, even a rough one. The stage with the biggest gap between where it is and where it reasonably could be becomes the sprint's constraint.
This is business and marketing consulting. We don't audit your books, give legal or tax advice, or inspect anything physical.
Who it is for
- Owners of businesses with roughly 2 to 50 staff who feel busy but not growing.
- Teams that have tried several marketing tactics at once and can't tell which worked.
- Businesses about to spend more on ads or a new website and wanting to check that's the right move first.
It suits service businesses, trades, clinics, local retailers, B2B suppliers and professional practices. It is less useful for a business in its first few months, before there is anything to measure.
What's included
- Kickoff call. We agree which figures you can export and who answers enquiries.
- Numbers pull. Six to twelve months of enquiries, sales, average sale value and repeat customers, from whatever systems you use.
- Call and inbox sample. We review a sample of recent enquiries to see how fast and how well they were handled.
- Source check. Where buyers say they found you, compared with where your money goes.
- Constraint choice. A short written comparison of the candidate lanes and why one wins.
- The charter. One page: the constraint, the baseline, the target, the weekly figures, what is in scope and what is explicitly parked until day 90.
Timeline
- Days 1–3: kickoff, data requests, access to analytics and ad accounts in your business's name.
- Days 4–9: analysis, call sample, source check.
- Days 10–14: draft charter, a review call, final charter signed off by the owner.
If your data arrives late, the timeline stretches; the sprint clock starts when the charter is signed, not before.
How results are measured
The diagnostic itself is measured by one test: does the charter contain a baseline number and a target number that both sides agree on? If it doesn't, it isn't finished.
A good target is ambitious but plausible. For example, if your close rate on quotes has been 22% over the last six months, a sprint target of 30% is a stretch; a target of 60% is a fantasy that will demoralise the team by week five.
Mistakes to avoid
- Choosing the constraint you find most interesting. Owners often want to work on branding or a new website when the numbers point to slow replies.
- Setting a target with no baseline. "More leads" can't be judged. "From 40 to 55 qualified enquiries a month" can.
- Parking nothing. The charter must list what will not be touched for 90 days, or the sprint quietly becomes five projects.
- Leaving the front-line staff out. The person who answers the phone usually knows where enquiries die.
Questions we ask in the kickoff
- Where did your last ten customers first hear of you?
- What happens, step by step, when someone calls at 4:45 on a Friday?
- Which service would you most like to sell more of, and which would you happily sell less of?
- What did you try in the last year that didn't work, and how did you know?
What happens next
Once the charter is signed, the sprint moves into one boost lane: lead flow, quote-to-sale or repeat and referral, run on the weekly scoreboard. For a do-it-yourself version, read how to pick your bottleneck. To talk it through, call, text or email.
Frequently asked questions
How long does the diagnostic take?
Usually about two weeks of calendar time. Most of that is waiting for data exports and listening to a sample of calls; your own time commitment is a kickoff call, a few hours of pulling numbers, and a charter review.
What if our numbers are messy or missing?
That is common and it is not a reason to delay. We estimate the baseline from whatever exists, such as invoices, call logs or the inbox, and the first sprint week fixes tracking so later weeks are measured properly.
Can we buy the diagnostic without the full sprint?
Yes. Some owners take the charter and run the sprint with their own team. The proposal can be scoped that way, and the charter is yours to keep either way.
Who needs to be involved from our side?
The owner, plus whoever answers enquiries and sends quotes. In a business of under ten people that is often two or three people in total.