Success doesn’t happen overnight – both businesses and their founders grow by making small, consistent improvements, just 1% at a time. This is the ethos behind the Adobe Express ‘One Better’ movement, showing how every project can drive progress. Grounded in the realities of small business, it is backed by top industry creators – including creative director Ollie Olanipekun, designer Jessica Walsh, and brand builder Jonathan Mildenhall – who demonstrate the powerful results of incremental change. Tips from each include; “Find the moment of humour in your creative work” from Jessica; “Take your brain for a walk” from Ollie; and “Don’t design your first idea” from Jonathan.

Driving positive change across the business

Adoption of the 1% mindset is widespread: nearly a quarter (23%) of SMB owners & directors “always” use it in their business, another 33% apply it “often.”

Young business trailblazers are leading the charge: 29% of Gen Z SME leaders “always” use the approach.

Over 96% of respondents who have heard of the 1% mindset say it can make a positive difference to their business goals; 91% think it can make improvements in business outputs and profits; and 86% say it can lift staff morale. The areas seen as those that can benefit most are marketing (31%) and customer service (27%).

“The 1% mindset is about celebrating small, everyday improvements that, over time, unlock extraordinary results. It’s inspiring to see so many UK businesses adopting this approach and using tools like Adobe Express to make those incremental gains easier and more impactful. Technology and AI are levelling the playing field, empowering anyone to build their brand, elevate their creativity, and achieve remarkable growth one step at a time," said Steven Bartlett, entrepreneur and advocate of the 1% mindset.

Technology and AI: the engines of marginal gains

Among the UK’s SME leaders using the method, almost three-quarters (72%) say tech plays a big role in helping them track and implement 1% improvements in the business: and 61% who have invested in technology or software to support continuous improvement in the business already use AI assistants to supercharge daily gains.

Nearly half (49%) of all respondents cite AI-powered design suggestions or templates as being the most helpful AI features that would improve their business, followed customer engagement features (49%) and content writing assistance (43%) – tasks made all simple with Adobe Express.

Confidence and challenges on the road to growth

Confidence among UK SMB owners and directors is high; 92% feel positive about their growth prospects. Over the past year, 81% say their business has been “very” or “somewhat” successful; 91% have seen a positive impact from adopting the 1% mindset. Key barriers remain; 44% cite financial constraints; 35% struggle with knowing what improvements to make and also point to time constraints. But technology and a culture of small, steady gains are helping businesses overcome these hurdles.

A universal mindset for the future

The 1% mindset is not limited by age, region, or company size. SMB owners & directors across the UK, from Generation Z to Baby Boomers, are embracing marginal gains as the path to sustainable growth.

Gen Z (18–24) are the poster children for the 1% mindset; 78% believe in its power to make a difference to business goals.

64% of Gen Z and 64% of Millennial (25-34) SME leaders use the approach regularly, a higher rate than Gen X (43%) and Baby Boomers (21%).

“Small, incremental improvements are reshaping how businesses grow, adapt, and thrive in the face of ongoing economic challenges. Technology is the enabler, providing the tools and data, businesses need to track improvements and unlock new efficiencies,” said Simon Morris, Vice President, International Marketing at Adobe

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