The following is a step-by-step look at the Frankly Framework process. Every framework begins with a conversation. I want to know your business and ask the right questions to see where Frankly can help you speak as only you can. After our conversation, I will get to work building the V1 of your framework. This process shapes out who are, how you should communicate, and who you are speaking to. This is where things get fun. We will meet to review the first version of your fr

Willie Nelson might be my all-time favorite artist. He’s strange. He writes songs about a woman getting killed for touching a man’s horse, talking to the walls, and swimming down a river of whiskey. Above all else, he was a Nashville outcast who had to scratch and claw to carve out his own musical lane. This is how Frankly feels to me. I’ve seen so many “silver bullet salesmen” offering AI-generated fixes to trick businesses into buying a bill of goods. I’m fed those ads so

I want you to think of your all-time favorite small business. What makes them special? Maybe it’s a coffee shop that knows to get cranking on your double-shot oat milk latte the second you walk in the door. Maybe it’s a barbershop that has formed countless decades-long friendships. These places are the soul of America, and in my opinion, they have been tragically underserved. A small business must be nimble. If there’s even an ounce of fat on them, they won’t survive for long

Every time I try to tell an out-of-towner about the significance of the Dari Bar, I get the same “Oh yeah, every small town has a dairy something.” The thing is, Silver Grove is far more than a small town, and the Dari Bar is far more than a milkshake stand. They’ve been the soul of the railroad town for nearly 60 years, and my family has been there for all of it. My earliest memories consist of summertime neighborhood walks with my Grandpa. My parents both worked, so I woul

I want to start by saying thank you. There may not be a more difficult time in modern history to operate a small business. Choosing to...

The first time I met Carus, he told me about a New Orleans-style jazz parade funeral he planned to throw for a goldfish. At that moment, I knew I needed this dude in my life any way he’d have me. Almost a decade later, he remains one of my favorite people, a business mentor in every sense of the word, and the owner of a distillery unlike any other. When I decided to begin this Frankly Friday journal, no name came to mind quicker than Second Sight Spirits. Their business is

America was built on family business. My first job was cooking steaks at my Grandpa’s place. Pelle’s Cafe in Silver Grove, Kentucky. Even then, at 14, I was struck by the big smiles and belly laughs that soulful businesses give their community. Their stories deserve to be told, and I’ve made it my business to help them do so. I’ve spent the last decade working for a handful of incredible creative agencies. I loved almost everything about it. One of the downsides of the agenc

High school jobs are interesting to say the least. My first gig was cooking steaks for my Grandpa’s place, Pelle’s Cafe in Silver Grove. I still remember my Uncle Joey teaching me the different ways to cook the steak (medium, rare, etc.) by pressing my hand on his palm. His steak nights were a community staple. Beyond getting enough food to feed an army for $8, it was the big smiles and belly laughs that a trip to Pelle’s brought its patrons. Old vets swapping war stories,

The Cincinnati Reds last won a playoff series in October of 1995. You read that right. 29 seasons without advancing to the second round of the MLB playoffs. Not since their last World Series, not since their last NL title – nearly 3 decades without a second round appearance. For the above average teams in the MLB, losing in the second round would be considered a failed season, and somehow we have yet to achieve that relatively mediocre achievement in my 28 years of life. For

A handful of things are meant to be held sacred in this life. A man’s relationship with his God, his wife, and of course — his barber. When I heard word that our resident mop chopper Kirby plans on moving to snowier pastures in California at the end of the month, I knew it was time to thank him for his years of service the only way I know how. My introduction to the barber world came in the form of the regionally renowned shop called Spanky’s when they first opened in 2015. I