Why We're Building Excel Frameworks (And What That Means for You)
How many software subscriptions does your business pay for?
Five? Ten? Twenty?
And how much are you actually paying per month once you add it all up?
£50 base subscription.
Plus £10 per user.
Plus £5 per 1,000 database entries.
Plus £20 for the "premium features" you actually need.
Plus the annual price increase that quietly appears every renewal.
It adds up fast.
And it never stops.
Subscription Fatigue
People are tired of subscriptions - I certainly am!
Every tool, every platform, every piece of software wants a monthly payment.
And the worst part? You're often paying for features you don't use, limitations you have to work around, and a platform that doesn't quite fit your business.
But what's the alternative?
Off-the-shelf Excel Templates are too generic or basic. They're built for everyone, which means they're perfect for no one.
Full Bespoke Solutions are brilliant - but they're an investment, and sometimes you just need something that works without starting from scratch.
There's a Gap
We've been thinking about this a lot at Office Mango.
There are common problems that businesses and individuals struggle with.
Problems that don't need a £200/month software subscription to solve.
Problems that Excel could handle brilliantly - if the solution was built properly.
So we're building something new: Excel Frameworks.
What Are Excel Frameworks?
Think of Frameworks as the middle ground between Templates and Bespoke Solutions.
They're not templates.
Templates are basic starting points.
They give you the structure, but you have to do most of the work yourself.
They're generic, limited in customisability, and usually require significant modification to actually be useful for your business.
They're not full bespoke either.
Bespoke Solutions are built from scratch, tailored exactly to your business, your data, and your processes.
They're perfect - but they take time to scope, design, and build.
Frameworks are something in between.
They're pre-built solutions for common business problems.
But unlike Templates, they're fully functional, professionally built systems with proper structure, automation, and documentation.
And unlike Bespoke, they're ready to go - with room for customisation to fit your specific needs.
Two Types of Frameworks
We're building two kinds:
Systems - Full operational tools that run a process or manage a function in your business.
Tools - Focused problem-solvers that give you insights, automate specific tasks, or make something faster.
Both are built on Excel (some even on Google Sheets).
Both require no additional software.
Both are yours to use forever with no ongoing subscription.
How They Work
You get a professionally built Excel solution that's 80% ready out of the box.
The core functionality is there. The structure is solid. The processes are in place.
Then we help you customise the remaining 20% to fit your business - your data fields, your categories, your branding, your specific requirements.
You're not starting from scratch. But you're not stuck with a generic template either.
And you don’t even need us for the customisation, it’s all going to be built in for you to be able to:
Add and manage users
Change Report layouts (in applicable solutions)
Add, Edit and Remove things from databases!
Our vision is to offer the option to support you in this process, but have you be able to change anything you need yourself - no reliance on us!
Why We're Building Them
Office Mango is growing.
We've been focused mainly on Bespoke Solutions and it’s been great!
But we've reached a point where we want to do more.
Making Solutions More Accessible
Look, not every business can invest in a full Bespoke Solution.
And that's fine - Bespoke isn't always necessary.
Sometimes you just need a solid, reliable system that solves a specific problem without the time and cost of building from scratch.
Frameworks let us offer professionally built solutions to more businesses - at a price point that makes sense for common problems.
Scaling What Works
We know there are problems that businesses and individuals face repeatedly.
Asset tracking
Data analysis
Process management
Reporting
These aren't unique challenges - they're common across industries.
So instead of rebuilding similar solutions from scratch every time, we're building Frameworks that solve these problems once - properly - and make them available to everyone who needs them.
The Excel Advantage
We're building on Excel (and on some Google Sheets as well) for a reason.
You already have it. Your team already knows how to use it. There's no new software to learn or install.
And most importantly - no monthly subscription eating into your budget forever.
Frameworks give you the functionality of dedicated software, built on a platform you already use and understand.
What This Means for You
If you're reading this, you might be wondering: "Are Frameworks right for my business?"
Here's how to think about it…
Frameworks Are Perfect If:
You're facing a common business problem that doesn't need a fully custom solution
You want professional-grade functionality without the software subscription costs
You need something that works now, not in 3 months after a full build process
You want the ability to customise and manage the solution yourself
You're comfortable using Excel (or Google Sheets) and want to leverage what you already have
Frameworks Might Not Be Right If:
Your problem is highly unique and requires a completely custom approach
You need integration with complex external systems
Your requirements are so specific that a pre-built solution wouldn't fit
In those cases, Bespoke is still the better option - and we're still doing that too.
What's Coming
We're in the early stages of building our Framework library working on our first System and Tool.
Over the next few months, we'll be releasing solutions for common business challenges.
Some will be Systems - full operational tools.
Some will be Tools - focused problem-solvers.
All will be built to the same standard as our Bespoke work - just ready to go out of the box.
Want to Stay Updated?
If you're interested in hearing about Frameworks as we release them, follow any of our socials for updates:
Book a call as well if you have a specific problem you think a Framework might solve or want to know more about them?
We're excited about this next stage of Office Mango - and we think you will be too.
📧 Email: info@OfficeMango.co.uk
🗓️ Book directly: Let's Explore Consultation