Cadence
Digital hygiene list
Tidy up your business’s Google Maps, Facebook reviews, and email before wasting budget on marketing or sales outreach.
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Why keep digital hygiene tight?
If your WhatsApp number is outdated on Google Maps or your mailbox is full just as a potential client mails you, you’re not only missing out, you’re probably paying for the privilege. It’s normal for small businesses in Kokstad or Westville, like Sipho’s Rooibos Distributors, to overlook their digital basics while managing VAT201s or fighting off Highveld storms. This card is your reminder: sort your public info before you even think about running paid campaigns. You’ll save hours, avoid lost leads, and look far more trustworthy in one morning than with all the ads in the world.
A quick note: digital hygiene is not a once-off checklist. It’s a simple rhythm, repeated before every marketing push, busy week or after school holidays (trust us, inboxes tend to fill up then). This is a routine, not a project. You can always mark it off on your cadence sheet or pin up in the storeroom next to your cash calendar.
Your digital hygiene rhythm
Here’s the rhythm. Four timed slots help you keep it clean, without losing your mind. Slot each into your team’s week right after the Monday opener, before new posts or paid activity. Keep owners short and sharp, one name per slot, not “everyone”. Assign, check, tick off.
- Update Google Maps listing (8:30-8:40), Owner: Nolo (Reception)
- Check social page reviews and respond (8:40-8:50), Owner: Zanele (Client Service)
- Clear and file email inbox (8:50-9:00), Owner: Rafiq (Admin)
- Test and tidy contact forms/links (9:00-9:10), Owner: Mandy (Sales)
If you’re facing load-shedding in Westville, shift these to the first block after power returns. If you’ve got a public holiday like Heritage Day on a Tuesday, bump all slots forward 24 hours. The goal is regularity, not perfection.
How to bend the rhythm
Load-shedding’s a given in Kokstad. Rather than panic, treat the Digital hygiene list as a floating task: if your slot gets zapped during a Stage 4 blackout, put it in the next available power window. Just don’t let it drift past the week, Friday 3pm and everyone’s brain is already at the KFC drive-through. Public holidays? Nudge each slot to the next business day. Schools out? Expect WhatsApp replies to lag, so allow a little grace for inbox catch-up.
For more routines that flex with reality, see weekly ops rituals or browse our starter kits.
Example: Ria’s Catering, Westville
Every Thursday morning, Ria in Westville uses this card. Her kitchen gets a ten-minute pause after staff clock in. Nontokozo updates the Google Maps number (last week someone had typed 083 instead of 082, so new orders dropped). Sipho replies to two reviews, good or bad, never rushes. Ria herself clears old quoted emails and undelivered invoices from the inbox. Jacques quickly clicks their contact page to check links aren’t broken (they once lost a big Westwood Mall function because of a wrong mailto link). It’s simple and there’s always a laugh about some review or a typo.
Where to look for help
If you’re stuck, stuck, or just don’t know where to start, look up our FAQ for SME starters. Prefer a guided card? Our supplier list at supplier hub points to digital support providers in Durban, Pietermaritzburg, and Joburg. For more rhythm cards or to start your own, check all available cards at cadence resources.
