Category: Freelancers & Agencies

There’s a lot more to onboarding new clients than meets the eye. Sure, there are the major necessary evils, like invoicing, support and contracts, but have you ever thought about all the time you spend organizing emails, files, requests, logins, tasks and notes? The more clients and team members you add, the more confusing the whole thing gets. Luckily there are so many tools and approaches you can take to make onboarding new clients a breeze, while keeping yourself sane and your clients happy. Here\’s how forms can help you out.

Drumming up web design business can be a challenge. It’s often irregular; meaning you may get a lot of work requests all at once and go long periods with few or no new clients. For this reason alone establishing multiple streams of income is a great idea. Especially passive income steams that earn even when you’re not actively working on them. Ensuring that even when new clients are scarce, you’re not worried about cash flow. In this article, we’ll talk a bit more about why it’s smart to use multiple streams of income as a web designer. We’ll also walk you through seven project ideas you can put into action to increase your earning potential.

Partner programs help you through revenue, resources, credentials, promotions, leads, and discounts. While the value of these benefits varies, depending on your business and the specific program, they’re all worth serious consideration. Adding multiple revenue streams to your business mitigates risk. More income sources makes you less dependent on any one source. That gives you more negotiation power in dealing with clients, and it can help alleviate the “feast and famine” cycle of chasing the next big client or project.

No matter how experienced we are at doing something, there’s always a chance that we’ll make a mistake. So, in this article, we’ve pulled together a checklist of tasks that web designers and developers should consider when launching a new site. By following this checklist — or, even better, by using these recommendations to create your own checklist — you’ll have a documented process to follow for every site that you launch.

Pitching a website redesign is a tricky process. It can be hard to show why a redesign is needed without sounding as if you’re putting down the site’s current look. Plus, sometimes your potential client is the original designer, and insulting their skills or vision could ruin your relationship. In this article, we’ll discuss some reasons why working on redesigns can be beneficial to your career. Then we’ll share four tips on how to approach website redesign pitches to help you land the job.

Fiverr is often associated with low-quality services and people working for peanuts. That’s partly true, but things have changed significantly since the site’s early years. Did you know that some basic SEO gigs currently start at $595? Other gigs start at $500, $400, or $300, so forget about the idea of getting everything for $5. Fiverr has allowed users to sell gigs above the $5 standard price since November 2015, and it created a large variety of services and prices. Are you interested in selling WordPress services on Fiverr? This post is the perfect start for you! Here are the pros and cons of this activity.

First you’re mildly annoyed. Then you’re frustrated. Then you’re worried. Then you panic. This is not playing out as you had envisioned. Did they not like you? Did they change their mind? Did they find a faster or cheaper solution? Possibly none of the above. Possibly all of the above. For whatever reason, when people don’t respond, you begin to have doubts about yourself, what you said, what you did. But don’t let those doubts or concerns take over. It’s time to follow up, determine what caused the lapse in communication, and get the conversation back on track. Here\’s how to do it right.

Sometimes, getting new clients is as simple as being a little creative. I know how it feels sometimes. You are stuck. You need clients to pay the rent next month. You think that if you don’t get anything soon, you are going to be turning out the lights in a couple of months. You are stressed out. It is at this point that you have a hard time focusing and thinking of anything to do to round up some paying clients. Relax. Breathe. Take a deep breath. You are going to get through this, I promise. You just need to take a step back and come up with a gameplan. Today we are going to look at four things you can do to find clients for your freelance WordPress business. Let’s get started, shall we?

Have you ever wondered how much a new lead is actually worth to your business? And, more specifically, whether you have a particular funnel or channel that brings in more valuable leads over others? It can be frustrating trying to glean these kinds of insights from a tool like Google Analytics (because you can’t), which is why Troy’s discussion with Keith Perhac is a must-listen.

On the surface, an existing site in need of maintenance is a gift. No development or build needed; just check the dials on schedule, be ready if anything goes awry, and bill the client. Well, of course, this is WordPress, and although we love it, it is never quite that easy. A site you didn’t build is an unknown entity, and most clients have very little knowledge of their site “under the hood,” as long it appears to be working. Go through the following intake checklist when accepting management of WordPress sites you didn’t build. These steps are designed to help you evaluate the site quickly, so you don’t spend too much time getting up and running.

In this article we discuss the eight changes you can make in your freelance business to stop being just another choice and become the only choice for your ideal clients (and start chargming more too!).

Getting started in the world of freelance web development is not an easy task. In addition to solid technical knowledge, you’re on the hook to constantly keep up with the latest tools and methods, as well as to persuade prospective clients that you have the necessary skills and abilities to deliver the results they demand. Fortunately, a part-time side hustle as a freelance web developer can provide an excellent opportunity to gradually get some experience before making a full-time commitment.

Chris Lema is no stranger to the WP Elevation crowd or the WordPress community at large. This is his second time joining Troy on the podcast; the first was to discuss the secrets to growing a business. He also recently stopped by WP Elevation Live to explain why storytelling is essential when it comes to marketing your business. If you missed the opportunity to see Chris in Santa Monica or you simply want more juicy tips on how to use storytelling to get the right clients, give this episode a listen.

Most people that receive a salaried paycheck are probably less interested in taxes than the average freelancer. If you’re self-employed, taxes can get really interesting because paying Uncle Sam is something that you must plan for, not something that happens automatically. If you don’t, you run the risk of being hit in the face at tax time with a big debt. Like I was. While I’m not an accountant, I’d like to share some of the things I’ve learned about the U.S. tax system and the real price of existing within the gig economy.

There’s a simple enough strategy for driving up the value of your WordPress business and keeping finances in the black. If followed, your business could be quite prosperous in just a short amount of time after launch. But what happens if you lose sight of the value of your WordPress business? It’s easy enough to do. And with the perceived and actual value of your services driving how much money your business makes, anything that throws it off kilter could effectively wipe away all that hard work you did to make it profitable in the first place.

In this post, I’m going to share everything I know about attracting and winning better WordPress website clients with decent budgets into your business. You need to read the whole post. If you\’re going to do this, commit to it and I promise you it can be done. This post is part mindset and part tactical. I don\’t believe the tactics are valuable without the right mindset, so if some of this feels a bit “Woo Woo”, try and sit with that feeling and do it anyway. What have you got to lose?

However, the exact same higher-touch lead generation and nurturing strategies enterprise companies use can be used by you, even if you’re solo. There’s a lot about effective audience building that we can learn from enterprise leaders who have lead generation and nurturing down to a science. Ready to start playing the long game? I’ve got 3 core truths to start with (that many of us learned the hard way).

If you have freelanced or owned your own business for any length of time, you know how difficult it can be to create a constant, steady stream of qualified clients who are happy to pay you what you’re worth. From marketing and social media efforts to networking and advertising to strategic partnerships and public speaking, it takes a lot of time, energy, and effort to persuade a stranger to hire you or buy from you. Here are 16 simple things you can do to provide remarkable service, turn your clients into raving fans, and earn more referrals.

The discovery phase is a crucial part of a project if you are hoping for an accurate understanding of what the client needs, who will be using the end product, and what the technology behind each step is. At the end of this phase of the project, you will know the scope of the project and you should be able to deliver a document for each piece of the puzzle you “discovered” along the way. But this process is not free. Either the client pays for it, or your company eats the cost. Here’s why it’s worth it.

At the heart of every successful client services business are happy and satisfied clients, streamlined project management, and web design projects that boost the bottom line. That’s why it pays to develop strategies that will ensure the success of your web design projects — and your business. Here are 14 ways to make that happen.

You can find plenty of positive things online about being your own boss, and we all know someone who says going freelance was the best decision they\’ve ever made. With this article, we want to give you a more realistic view of this often glorified way of living.

As website professionals, we function mainly as a service-based business. And like any service based business, customer service is critical to our growth. It’s also critical to manage a client list that doesn’t drive you crazy. As some would say: happy client, happy web pro! Since we are our own boss, it’s easy to avoid common customer service rules. We excuse ourselves from doing certain outreach or extending extra care because there is no one looking over our shoulder. Avoidance, however, only ends up costing us greatly later down the road. Here\’s how to do it right!

If you\’ve been using WordPress for a while, it\’s likely that you feel pretty confident in the day-to-day operation of your site. In this post, we\’ll discuss how to become a “WordPress Expert” and then we will walk you through some steps to help you achieve that status. It\’s important to note that when we talk about WordPress “experts,” we\’re using the term somewhat loosely. WordPress is a massive platform. There\’s no real way to become an expert on every aspect of the entire Content Management System (CMS).

There is one thing every digital agency, WordPress agency, and services company needs: clients. In the services world, clients make the world go ‘round because, without clients, you wouldn’t have a business. Here\’s your 9 steps guide to getting more cients to grow your agency.

Pricing is tricky, to say the least. And no doubt you’ve had a similar conversation to this one I had recently with a massively popular (and profitable) blog I wanted to write for: Client: “I’m sorry to break this to you — but you’re nowhere near the $XX rate.” Me: “Thanks very much for your feedback. Much appreciated 🙂 Cheers” Whether you’re a writer like me or a developer or designer, no freelancer wants to work for peanuts. Maybe you offered a client an estimate and didn’t hear back? Or, maybe the client got back with a reply similar to the one above?  Whatever the case, here\’s how to charge what you\’re worth!

“Everything is negotiable. Whether or not the negotiation is easy is another thing.” The problem with selling time is that the buyer knows margins are high. When I ran my consultancy, I was constantly pressured to negotiate down our rates. Our formula was pretty simple: We had a client rate, and then we had what I paid my staff. The difference is what paid me, our non-billable staff, outfitted our office, and whatever was left was profit.

In this post, I’m going to share some Instagram for business tips. We’re going to go over how you can get the most from the link in your profile by creating a custom landing page made just for the ‘gram. We’re also going to cover Instagram Shopping and how to set up Instagram for business.

All of these tools will allow you to build a sales pipeline for Instagram so you can influence the influencers. With so many Instagrammers switching over to blogging, there is definitely an increased demand for personal lifestyle sites, so let’s turn those double taps into dollars.

How do you go from dropping out of university and paying bills by doing odd freelance jobs to running an award-winning WordPress development agency? 93Digital founder and managing director, Alex Price, is here to tell us how.

You want your clients to love you, you want to make them happy, and you want them to tell all their friends about you when the project is done. Communicating exactly what you expect of the client and how specific situations will be addressed can sometimes feel like we’re putting that at risk. But in reality, that couldn’t be farther from the truth. Setting clear expectations and being upfront about what your client will need to do will make them feel more comfortable. Taking the time to set expectations also reinforces the fact that they are working with a professional, not their buddy, and shows them that you take their project and the relationship seriously.

WordPress consultants come in a bunch of varieties: developers, designers, writers, strategists, marketers, support personnel, and so on. For some WordPress experts, though, the day-to-day focus on these specialised tasks isn’t enough – they want to take on a role more closely resembling that of a CEO. In that case, it’s time to consider starting a content marketing agency using this checklist to guide you through the steps, from initial planning all the way through marketing your business.

So you landed the client, built out the site, did all the testing, and it’s time to wrap up this project. But first, someone’s gotta pay the bill. While there are many different ways you can take care of hosting, the best option for you and your business is dependent upon how you run the show. Let’s dive into the details and find the clearest solution for you!

I’ve had many people tell me they want to get started in WordPress development—most commonly on their own as a freelance WordPress developer—but they don’t know how. The more I think about it, the more this makes sense: WordPress development is an enormous subject, and one that reaches far beyond the (also very confusing) WordPress technology itself. In this article, I list and outline the major topics in WordPress development that I’ve needed to figure out myself to work as a successful freelance WordPress developer.

If you’re selling yourself like a painter, and estimating out how much time it’ll take you to complete a project and then multiplying that time estimate by an hourly rate, I’d seriously encourage you to ditch your line-item quotes and move toward selling a story.  Here’s how.

I say this a lot and will say it once again: if you truly want to elevate your WordPress business, then it needs to have the right processes and procedures to support it. One of those processes that many consultants don’t think about? As a WordPress developer, you’re hired for your expertise in building websites – strategy, design, coding and testing. Those tasks all fall on your shoulders. There are times, however, when you can’t move forward on a website without your client’s help, like when you need content from them. Here’s how to do it right.

Have you ever considered how much more money you could keep just by cutting down on overhead costs? No matter how well business is going, there\’s always something you can to do to increase profit margins. The following guide is going to focus on how to use this awesome little trick to increase profit margins overnight.

“How long is a string?” is the question that pops into my head when a potential client asks how much a website will cost. A string can be any length, maybe it’s four inches, or maybe it’s 40 miles. You won’t find out until you measure. Websites are the same way — to learn how much one costs you have to measure (scope) it. Then you measure along the way to be sure you’re on track. This is just one best practice to follow when you’re learning how to manage a project successfully. We’ve got more tips for you below.

Becoming more efficient at your work is a huge plus, especially if your job involves developing websites. You can pick up extra work if needed, and enjoy a feeling of satisfaction having completed your tasks quickly and accurately.

I think we can all agree that one of the most stressful things about having your own business is bringing in new clients. Have you ever wondered how others are doing it and seem to be doing so well at it? We did too! So, we polled 640 WordPress consultants to get their top tips on how to find WordPress web design clients. You\’re going to love these tips!

It’s every business owner’s fantasy to have invoices paid on a timely basis: immediately upon receipt, without clients questioning the amount or delaying getting the funds together for even one day. If you’re wondering how to get clients to pay on time, we’ve got answers on how to make it happen.

Not every web design certification is created equal. Many are built for those new to design—students, new graduates, and people starting out with their first clients. Some are more technical, helping more experienced designers and developers understand specialized topics like front-end development frameworks and digital marketing tools. Others… well, let’s say some others just aren’t worth the paper they’re printed on. So how can you separate the wheat from the chaff?

A web design contract protects you, your time, your bottom line and your sanity. As with any contract, a web design contract defines the business and legal relationship between you and your client, as well as the personal relationship concerning business practices, communication and interactions. Legally, it’s a mutually binding agreement, where each party makes commitments around deliverables and compensation for the work to create them. If either party fails to meet their commitments, the contract becomes the basis for possible legal action. Here’s how to do it right.

A professional portfolio is key for seeking out new clients. What to include, how to present your work, and how often to update your portfolio are all important considerations that could set you apart from your competition, or leave a less-than-lasting impression on potential leads.

When your business is new, it’s easy to accumulate waste and not realise it. You lay down processes the best way you know how and then focus on charging full steam ahead – finding new clients, building a steady stream of revenue and making a name for yourself as a trusted WordPress expert. The problem is, when you’re so focused on what’s going on inside your business, you lose sight of the waste that surrounds you. Wasted money. Wasted effort. Wasted resources. The second you’re ready to scale your WordPress business, it’ll become painfully clear something has gone askew when your profit margins won’t budge.

When making the decision to launch a new business, you understand that you’re taking a big risk in doing so. Mistakes will inevitably be made along the way, but you hope your enterprise will be profitable before long. The reason why so many business owners fail to achieve this goal, however, is because they haven’t made profitability a priority, according to Mike Michalowicz.

Many WordPress freelancers and agency owners are specializing or finding a niche in their businesses, They discuss how they need to adapt and change to the WordPress climate. This is the first roundtable of Season 8 where Matt Medeiros, Jason Resnick, Sara Dunn, and Nathan Allotey discuss the changes in the WordPress community.

Follow the steps in this guide to provide an audit for your WordPress website clients. Copy the template to your favourite tool for presenting the information. Special thanks to Kristina Romero for originally putting this together.  This template was share on the Silence is Golden of WP Elevation.

In the past year, my company has vetted more than 2,500 freelance writers. And before building out a team, I was a six figure-plus freelancer for sites like Kissmetrics, WordStream, AdEspresso and more. Point is: I know how to make money freelancing. I lived the three mistakes below, intimately understanding the problems and issues they cause when you’re trying to make money freelancing. And now I continue to see them played out in front of me by hard-working — yet misguided — freelancers. The silver lining? You don’t have to make these mistakes.