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Thoughts, guides, and insights from the Dizzy Otter team

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Custom SoftwareAwards ManagementBespoke PlatformCase StudySouth West Business

Why nobody has built the awards platform you actually need

There aren't many off the shelf tools for running an awards programme, and none of them fit your categories or your scoring. Here's why Tech South West needed a bespoke platform, and what we built.

Charlie Swinhoe

October 2, 2026

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SellingSalesCustom softwareBusinessStartups

Nobody Buys Software

Internal systems are boring and nobody gets excited about buying one. So you sell time, freedom and the idea that a business is worth building around. Here is how we actually sell custom software.

Charlie Swinhoe

September 4, 2026

Featured

What Is Custom Software

Custom software used to be an enterprise purchase. AI changed the economics of building it, and that puts bespoke systems within reach of businesses that could never justify them before.

Charlie Swinhoe

August 28, 2026

Featured

AI Broke Every Pricing Benchmark In Software

AI broke every pricing benchmark in software, so we had to invent our own. Here is what we charged, why it quietly cost us money, and the model we ended up with.

Charlie Swinhoe

August 21, 2026

What AI actually is and what it can do for your business

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AIBusinessStartupToolsPractical

What AI actually is and what it can do for your business

Most people use AI for one thing and assume that is what it is for. It is not a writing tool or a coding tool. It is a thinking partner that makes you better at everything you already do. Here is what that actually looks like in practice.

Charlie Swinhoe

April 13, 2026

Featured

The rules of building a business just changed. Most people haven't noticed.

The bottleneck in building a business was never the code. It was always building something nobody wanted. AI hasn't changed that. It's just made it faster and cheaper to get it wrong.

Charlie Swinhoe

April 7, 2026

Featured

StartupsFundingEntrepreneurshipBusinessAI

You Probably Don't Need Funding

Almost every founder convinces themselves that funding is the thing standing between them and success. It is the wrong order. Here is what we learned the hard way.

Charlie Swinhoe

March 30, 2026

FailureFoundersBusinessStartupsMindset

Most of What You Call Failure

Business culture treats failure as a badge to collect. Most of what gets called failure is a pivot, a misstep or a decision that ended — and conflating that with real collapse trivialises both.

Charlie Swinhoe

September 25, 2026

Custom SoftwarePricingBusinessSMEPractical

How Much Does Custom Software Cost

Most people have a number in their head that is years out of date. Here are the real ranges for building custom software in 2026, how long it takes, and how it compares to what you already spend on subscriptions.

Charlie Swinhoe

September 18, 2026

AutomationAICustom softwareBusinessStartup

What Should You Actually Automate

Some automations save you real time. Others quietly remove you from the decisions your business needs you to make. Here is how to tell the difference, and where the automation should actually live.

Charlie Swinhoe

September 11, 2026

hiringbusinesspeople

I Used To Hire Good People. Now I Hire For Roles.

Just because someone wants to be involved does not mean they should be. What I got wrong about equity, enthusiasm, and hiring good people into roles that did not exist.

Charlie Swinhoe

August 14, 2026

How to actually work with AI

Most people who think they are bad at AI are not bad at AI. They are bad at asking questions. Here is what working with AI well actually looks like and why the quality of the conversation changes everything.

Charlie Swinhoe

April 16, 2026

The Exeter Opportunity. A New Wave of Tech.

Exeter isn't known for its thriving entrepreneurial community, nor for its technological prowess. That's exactly why the opportunity is here.

Charlie Swinhoe

March 30, 2026

The Beginning of a New Era of Software

AI has changed what's possible. Custom software is no longer a luxury reserved for enterprises with deep pockets. Here's why we started Dizzy Otter, and why the era of off-the-shelf compromise is ending.

Charlie Swinhoe

March 18, 2026