The A to Z business review is a two-to-three-week project in which Ali Sedighi checks all 26 letters of your setup and tells you, in writing, which ones are red and what to fix first. It is designed for owners who suspect gaps but do not know where they are, and who would rather spend money once on a clear list than repeatedly on scattered fixes.
The review is business and marketing consulting. It does not replace an accountant, lawyer or insurance broker, and we say so on every letter where those professionals belong.
What the review covers
Every letter gets the same three questions: does it exist, is it current, and is it in the owner's name? Those three questions catch most real-world problems.
- A, D, E, X: who owns the domain, hosting, email and online accounts, and whether a second person could get in.
- B, F, H, L: whether your business number, provincial registration, filing calendar, workers' compensation account and licences exist and are dated, with links to the official pages.
- C, J, K, T, V: how money, job records, key numbers, tools and vendor contracts are organised.
- G, M, R, S, W: the growth letters, reviewed at a lighter depth than in the growth letters service.
- N, O, P, Q, U: name checks, the clarity of your offer, privacy policy, response habits and consent records.
- Y, Z: whether you have a year-end routine and when you last cut spending you no longer need.
Who it is for
The review fits owners at a turning point. Typical cases we see:
- ☐ You bought an existing business and the handover file was thin.
- ☐ A partner, manager or long-time contractor is leaving, and they "did all the online stuff."
- ☐ You are about to sign a marketing contract and want the foundations checked first.
- ☐ You have been trading five years or more and never stepped back to look.
- ☐ You are growing into a second location or province and need to know what doesn't transfer.
It is less useful if you started last month. In that case the free A to Z checklist and an hourly session will usually do.
What you get
You get your own checklist back, marked up, plus a one-page priority list. Each letter has a colour and a one-line reason. Red letters are ranked twice: once by risk (what could stop the business) and once by money (what is costing sales). Where the two rankings disagree, we explain which to do first.
You also get a short call to walk through it. Most owners leave knowing their next three actions and roughly what each will take.
Timeline
Plan on two to three weeks.
- Day 1: a 30-minute kick-off call. We agree scope and you receive a document list.
- Week 1: you gather documents and logins; we start on the letters we can check from outside, such as search, reviews and website.
- Week 2: we check the inside letters with you on a screen-share, so you never send us passwords.
- Week 3: you receive the marked-up checklist and we walk through it together.
How results are measured
A review succeeds when the red letters turn green, not when the report is delivered. We count the red and amber letters at the start and suggest you re-score yourself 90 days later. Owners who want us to do that re-score with them often move onto the letter-a-month advisory.
Mistakes to avoid
The biggest mistake is fixing the easy letters first. A new logo (O) feels like progress; recovering an ad account from an ex-employee (A) does not. Do the risk letters first.
Other common slips:
- Treating amber as green. "I think the accountant has it" is amber until you have seen it.
- Sharing passwords by email to speed things up. Use screen-share or temporary access instead.
- Re-doing the whole alphabet every year. After the first review, revisit the yearly letters on the annual calendar and leave the stable ones alone.
Ready to start? See pricing for the project range, or go to contact and tell us roughly how long you have been trading.
Frequently asked questions
How long does the review take?
Most reviews take two to three weeks from the day we receive your documents and account list. The slowest part is usually the owner finding logins, which is itself a useful finding.
What does the review cost?
It is priced as a project, within our published range of $3,500 to $25,000, and most reviews for a single-location small business sit at the low end. You get a written quote before anything starts. GST/HST is extra, by province.
Will you check my taxes or legal documents?
No. For letters such as B, F, H, I and L we check that the item exists and is current, and we flag anything that looks missing. Whether it is correct is a question for your accountant, lawyer or broker.
Can I do the review myself instead?
Yes, and the free checklist is designed for exactly that. The paid review adds a second pair of eyes, evidence checking, and a ranking based on what we have seen go wrong elsewhere.