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Small business (SMB) decision trees (should I / vs / when to)
Last verified: 2026-09-08Lumina seed `smb-decisions-hub`
Decision trees structure options from facts you paste. They are not legal, tax, HR, collections, financing, or antitrust advice. You own every call.
These small business (SMB) recipes help you decide first—paste your facts, score a simple tree, and pick a labeled path—before you write the email, posting, proposal, or RFP section. Paths are options, not prescriptions. Not legal, tax, or HR advice where those topics appear.
The 10 decision trees
| Decision | One-line job |
|---|---|
| Should I hire W-2 or contractor? | Paste control/independence facts → W-2 / contractor / project / don't hire yet. Not legal advice. |
| Should I raise prices now? | Paste margins & churn → raise all / selective / repackage / hold. No invented market rates. |
| Should I take this client? | Score discovery notes → take / tighter terms / refer / walk. Upstream of the proposal. |
| Should I bid this RFP? | Paste fit & evidence gaps → bid / conditional / no-bid / partner. Gate before drafting sections. |
| Should I discount to close? | Paste margin floor → hold / value-add / time-boxed cut / walk. Commercial path before scripts. |
| Should I switch vendors or renegotiate? | Paste terms & real alternatives → renegotiate / dual-source / switch / tolerate. No invented BATNA. |
| Should I pause or cut my ads? | Paste CAC/ROAS & cash → pause weak / cut % keep winners / reallocate / hold. No invented benchmarks. |
| Should I accept these payment terms? | Paste runway & terms → accept / counter / surcharge·milestones / decline. Before AR aging. |
| Buy vs lease this equipment? | Paste quotes & utilization → buy / lease / rent / defer·subcontract. No invented APR or tax outcomes. |
| Keep, discount, or discontinue this SKU? | Paste margin/demand/support → keep / raise·shrink / clearance-sunset / discontinue. SKU-level gate. |
How to use this hub
Open the decision that matches your “should I…?” question.
Use the table of 10 small-business trees. Each recipe is a paste-your-facts path, not a prescription.
Paste only real facts; mark gaps [MISSING] / [NEED FACT].
Do not invent margins, BATNA, APR, legal classifications, or market rates to force a path.
Pick one labeled path; run the second-model check.
Paths are options. You decide. A second model should challenge invented numbers and overconfident legal claims.
Follow Related recipes into the how-to for wording.
After you pick a path, use the matching how-to (proposal, vendor email, job posting, RFP section, and so on).
After you decide (how-to cluster)
| If you decided… | Next how-to |
|---|---|
| To hire (esp. W-2 lean) | Job posting from role notes + pay band |
| To engage a client | Freelance proposal from a scope, Service estimate / quote from job notes, Sales objection pack from notes |
| To bid an RFP | RFP section from approved evidence |
| To renegotiate a vendor | Vendor / supplier negotiation email |
| Payment terms, then invoice ages | Late-invoice follow-up sequence (day-7 / 14 / 30) |
| Need cash context for ads/capex | Weekly cash-position brief from bank/CSV paste |
| Reviewing a lease document | Lease / contract clause checklist |
| Already chose among options—need a memo | Decision memo from notes |
When not to
- Paths are options, not prescriptions. You own every call.
- Not legal, tax, HR, collections, financing, or antitrust advice.
- Do not invent facts, market rates, BATNA, APR, or certifications to force a path.
- Skip this hub if you already know the call and only need wording—jump to the matching how-to.
Related recipes
- Should I hire W-2 or contractor? (small business) — Small business (SMB) hire path: paste behavioral/financial/relationship control facts—lean W-2, contractor, restructure as project, or don't hire yet. Not legal advice.
- Should I raise prices now? (small business) — Small business (SMB) pricing path: paste costs, margins, and churn tolerance—then choose Raise across board / Selective raise / Repackage / Hold + cut cost.
- Should I take this client? (small business) — Small business (SMB) client-fit path: paste discovery facts, score fit/risk, then pick Take / Tighter terms / Refer out / Walk—optional wording only after the path.
- Should I bid this RFP? (small business) — Small business (SMB) RFP go/no-go: paste fit, timeline, and evidence gaps—then Bid / Bid if Q&A clarifies X / No-bid + decline / Partner-sub.
- Should I discount to close the deal? (small business) — Small business (SMB) close path: paste margin floor and buyer constraints—Hold price / Value-add / Small time-boxed discount / Walk.
- Should I switch vendors or renegotiate? (small business) — Small business (SMB) vendor path: paste terms, quality, lead time, and real alternatives—Renegotiate stay / Dual-source / Switch with transition / Tolerate short-term.
- Should I pause or cut my ads? (small business) — Small business (SMB) ad-budget path: paste CAC/ROAS and cash facts—Pause weak channels / Cut % keep winners / Reallocate to sales ops / Hold spend.
- Should I accept these payment terms? (small business) — Small business (SMB) payment-terms path: paste cash runway and offered terms—Accept / Counter deposit+shorter net / Surcharge or milestones / Decline work.
- Should I buy or lease this equipment? (small business) — Small business (SMB) equipment path: paste quotes, utilization, and maintenance—Buy / Lease-finance / Rent short-term / Defer or subcontract.
- Should I keep, discount, or discontinue this SKU? (small business) — Small business (SMB) SKU path: paste margin, demand, and support cost—Keep / Raise price or shrink scope / Clearance then sunset / Discontinue now.
- Job posting from role notes + pay band. — Paste role notes, pay band, and must-haves into a full job posting—no invented salary or fake DEI claims; EEO language you supply.
- Freelance proposal from a scope. — Brief + rates → proposal. Not a contract. No invented portfolio.
- Service estimate / quote from job notes. — Build a line-item service estimate for trades/agencies from job notes and your rates—no invented prices; labeled estimate, not a contract.
- Sales objection pack from notes. — Real objections → response frames. No invented case studies.
- RFP section from approved evidence. — Answer from evidence only. Gaps beat invented certifications.
- Vendor / supplier negotiation email. — Paste current terms, volume, and alternatives you actually have—draft a volume/terms/lead-time negotiation email with no invented leverage.
- Late-invoice follow-up sequence (day-7 / 14 / 30). — Paste invoice facts and aging—draft day-7, day-14, and day-30 follow-up emails without inventing fees; not legal collections advice.
- Weekly cash-position brief from bank/CSV paste. — Build a weekly cash-position brief (opening/closing, inflow/outflow buckets) from pasted bank/CSV totals—verified math only; not bookkeeping or tax advice.
- Lease / contract clause checklist. — Lease → clause checklist. Not legal advice; second-model pass.
- Decision memo from notes. — Options + facts → a memo. Facts stay separate from assumptions.