How to find website clients.

[simong93]

Good Morning all, so you probably here this all the time but hey im in a bit of bother so i need some advice (Lost my job eeekkkk).

I am a website designer and i have been for years, i have built websites but up untill last year i didn them via another company so they of course got all the repeat buisness. I know do them my self and since being forced out of my job last month i am more determined then ever to get this to work, It must work (baby number 2 on the way ) I also offer mobile repairs on phones etc, i did this as a great little bit of side money and to get the name out there but the competition copied what i was doing and under cut me and my appoitments dropped and dropped unless its repeat customers or from referals.

So what i have tried and the outcome:-

Free websites to influencers - They where happy but didnt work for me, everyone would rather pay peanuts then my prices.

Email Marketing - Worked but now thanks to GDPR has become nearly impossible.

Google Adwords - Put £200 on and got nothing back, maybe it was me but i did alot of research (Im broke so thats not a option now)

Facebook Adverts - £400 later i got likes and a few comments and i am marketing to them every day on facebook but no appoitments, my prices are good but there is always Mr A doing it on the side so is happy to make £20 for a few hours work

Changed pricing - I now offer monthly plans and lowered my prices but the issue im finding is you get Wix designers or theme users or square what ever the heck is called user, they build websites for people that take a few hours and charge £100-£200 where mine are from scrach at take longer.

Can anyone think of anything else i can try or any other way i can improve, I am skint thanks to my other job just getting rid of me with no warning, im doing long days marketing on facebook emails etc but nothing seems to be working for me.

 

[antropy]

Pick up the phone and generate the business. It is old school but its effective! Alex

 

[simong93]

Pick up the phone and generate the business. It is old school but its effective! Alex

Tried that, I used to do telesales but it just didn't seem to work, a website isn't on top of everyone's mind and they didn't really care for it. Most replys where send me a email

 

[intheTRADE]

Why do you list SEO, Email, Google Ads and Social Media in your services to clients if you can't make any of them work for yourself?

You are trying to offer way too many services when you haven't really mastered any of them. Pick one or two really focus on and push

Your own website doesn't do you any favours either, especially the stats bar. 8,694 repairs in 7 years? That's more than 3 per day working 7 days a week, 365 days per year. Get rid of all those lies. People don't fall for that rubbish anymore.

 

[simong93]

Why do you list SEO, Email, Google Ads and Social Media in your services to clients if you can't make any of them work for yourself?

You are trying to offer way too many services when you haven't really mastered any of them. Pick one or two really focus on and push

Your own website doesn't do you any favours either, especially the stats bar. 8,694 repairs in 7 years? That's more than 3 per day working 7 days a week, 365 days per year. Get rid of all those lies. People don't fall for that rubbish anymore.

Let's be honest here I can do them and I have, websites are a whole different ball game, I am competing with the world.

Also that's actually the truth the stats where pulled from my database. I keep track of everything, and I can do up to 10 repairs on one day or if it's a bulk client more

Simple rule of thumb, nothing nice to say don't say anything at all

 

[intheTRADE]

So you done 8000+ repairs as a nice little bit of side money? Ok. Of course you did.

If I am a potential customer how do I contact you? You have no contact details, address or form to fill out on your website

 

[Calvin Crane]

I agree with intheTRADE. Listening is a really rare skill. But let me tell you to stop Facebook Ads right now. How on earth are you selling Facebook Ads to clients when you clearly don't know why they are bad for services. And Google takes time to master. TBH you are in a poorer market now. I think mobile repairs is actually better and more in demand especially locally. Perhaps you need to fight on a basis of quality for that work.

 

[simong93]

So you done 8000+ repairs as a nice little bit of side money? Ok. Of course you did.

If I am a potential customer how do I contact you? You have no contact details, address or form to fill out on your website

Yes I have but I have but I also worked on behalf of company's too

Website is a temp website it's still being built but on that note I'll leave you there. I'm looking for genuine people too help me not bash me. Good luck with with your business though

 

[simong93]

Okay so to answer some quick questions, Facebook adverts, Google etc I can do and for my clients it works but for me I am getting to leads and the contacts but I am always beaten on cost.

It's not that nothing is coming through its more they are looking for other people as well. Websites is a cut throat business and there is always someone who is cheaper

 

[HarrisH]

Hey @simong93,

Sorry to hear about the news! But I guess there's always a blessing in disguise

If you haven't been on the operational side of things and aren't aware of how your old workplace generated business, I can see how starting up from scratch could be a toughie.

I can imagine with a dwindling budget and new responsibilities on the way, it's feeling a little daunting. Over the long-term, running a business is a fantastic solution for freedom - especially if you have an amazing skill like web development. However, you're probably finding it's super competitive and when opening a business, 80 hour weeks are normal at the beginning with not much return.

Instead of opening a business (which you can come back to once you're more settled), have you considered either of the following:

A) Getting back into Employment
B) Joining a Freelancer Marketplace

Going with Option A) is probably the best option if security is what you're currently seeking. It takes the stress out of things, especially with the late nights on the way!

Option B) is where things get a little more interesting. It's definitely easy to see that you've got a lot of in-demand skills! Why not take those skills where they're needed most? Freelancer Marketplaces like Upwork and People Per Hour have a ready-made customer base of business owners from around the world who need tech-related things done and don't mind paying for it if you've got the portfolio for it (some people earn up to £200/hourly).

All you'd have to do is simply set-up a Freelancer profile and get approaching 'Needed Work' offers.

I've found that when you're between a rock and a hard place, it's not always the best time to open a business, since you'll be more likely to focus on faster money, undervalue your work, overwork yourself, and might come to hate what you love doing as a result. When you're settled a little more with either of the above solutions, you can always revisit the idea and take the world head-on then

Sort of like a PHP IF command haha!

Hope this helps! Keep us updated with how you get on!

 

[WebshopMechanic]

Hi

OK, every industry is saturated. Every industry is cut-throat. You can't change that.

The way to get around this is to position yourself in the right way so people see the value in your expertise.

If you are constantly marketing yourself on price (Websites for £499) and against the likes of Wix then you will fail.

If you constantly go after the cheap-skate customer, you will fail.

They will never value your skills and they will probably be more trouble than they are worth. You will get to the end of the month, been very busy but have nothing to show for it. Believe me, I have been there and bought the t-shirt.

So, think about a market niche you can go after where your skills are at their finest and you can specialise or prove you have experience.

Also think, what industries have money to spend and what types of businesses the likes of Wix and Go Daddy are not suitable for. What industries require a premium experience for their customers?


Some examples may be:

The Marine Industry - Lots of money there in boats, yacht accessories, yacht repairs, navigation systems, life rafts, etc.

The Classic / Sports Car Industry - High-end classic car sales, High-end car modifications, High-end car storage, etc.

Building Trade (loft conversions / bi-fold doors) - Lots of builders get their leads from Checkatrade but people still look at their websites and are turned off. I've personally decided against using tradespeople with excellent reviews but bad websites. I want someone who takes pride in everything their business does. It's a confidence thing. If you target builders who operate in affluent areas then their customers will expect to see a premium website.

Interior Design - This is all about design and premium perception. They must have a high-end-looking website otherwise they won't convert any business. Many are awful. Why would a wealthy person invest in a company with a crappy website?


Before you approach these businesses you need to get your own website in order. Visuals and copy are vital. Make it look premium but personal, not just a wall of text. I know your current site is temporary, but it just looks like a standard Wordpress theme. You need something punchy.

When you're ready to get out there, simply Google keywords in your chosen nice and go through all the sites that are on page 3 and beyond. Look at their design, content and SEO. Also, look to see if their site works on mobile. If they look like a dog's dinner, there is your first target.

Quite often, people who are struggling for business don't immediately think that they need a new website. I will go down the marketing / advertising route first. But, this is where they fail because they are just throwing cash down the drain if they have a poorly designed website, with no clear message and doesn't work on mobile devices.

My approach is to send a very short email with an intro and some reasons why they are losing sales. I sometimes follow that up with a 10-minute screen recorded video of me auditing their site.

Finally, I will follow up with a call. More often than not, I get their attention and they find it useful because I am adding value and not going in with the hard-sell.

This approach helps me to convert a good amount of business and I am still in contact with many businesses who have received my videos because the timing is not quite right. I am nurturing them until the time is right.

You need to position yourself as a specialist and an expert. You also need to think in that way. You are not just a 'web designer'. There are millions of them.

You are a web specialist who 'designs high-converting websites for the <insert> industry'.

I hope that helps.

Matt

 

[CharlieHooray]

Have you considered attending networking events? there are loads out there (4networking for example) where you can pop along and might find someone who needs a new website or would be happy for you to review theirs?

I would say though you need to crack on with the local SEO and making your website 100% spot on. If someone approached me for SEO/Website I would look at theirs before making any judgement to ensure they knew what they were doing.

 

[AllUpHere]

Hi

OK, every industry is saturated. Every industry is cut-throat. You can't change that.

The way to get around this is to position yourself in the right way so people see the value in your expertise.

If you are constantly marketing yourself on price (Websites for £499) and against the likes of Wix then you will fail.

If you constantly go after the cheap-skate customer, you will fail.

They will never value your skills and they will probably be more trouble than they are worth. You will get to the end of the month, been very busy but have nothing to show for it. Believe me, I have been there and bought the t-shirt.

So, think about a market niche you can go after where your skills are at their finest and you can specialise or prove you have experience.

Also think, what industries have money to spend and what types of businesses the likes of Wix and Go Daddy are not suitable for. What industries require a premium experience for their customers?


Some examples may be:

The Marine Industry - Lots of money there in boats, yacht accessories, yacht repairs, navigation systems, life rafts, etc.

The Classic / Sports Car Industry - High-end classic car sales, High-end car modifications, High-end car storage, etc.

Building Trade (loft conversions / bi-fold doors) - Lots of builders get their leads from Checkatrade but people still look at their websites and are turned off. I've personally decided against using tradespeople with excellent reviews but bad websites. I want someone who takes pride in everything their business does. It's a confidence thing. If you target builders who operate in affluent areas then their customers will expect to see a premium website.

Interior Design - This is all about design and premium perception. They must have a high-end-looking website otherwise they won't convert any business. Many are awful. Why would a wealthy person invest in a company with a crappy website?


Before you approach these businesses you need to get your own website in order. Visuals and copy are vital. Make it look premium but personal, not just a wall of text. I know your current site is temporary, but it just looks like a standard Wordpress theme. You need something punchy.

When you're ready to get out there, simply Google keywords in your chosen nice and go through all the sites that are on page 3 and beyond. Look at their design, content and SEO. Also, look to see if their site works on mobile. If they look like a dog's dinner, there is your first target.

Quite often, people who are struggling for business don't immediately think that they need a new website. I will go down the marketing / advertising route first. But, this is where they fail because they are just throwing cash down the drain if they have a poorly designed website, with no clear message and doesn't work on mobile devices.

My approach is to send a very short email with an intro and some reasons why they are losing sales. I sometimes follow that up with a 10-minute screen recorded video of me auditing their site.

Finally, I will follow up with a call. More often than not, I get their attention and they find it useful because I am adding value and not going in with the hard-sell.

This approach helps me to convert a good amount of business and I am still in contact with many businesses who have received my videos because the timing is not quite right. I am nurturing them until the time is right.

You need to position yourself as a specialist and an expert. You also need to think in that way. You are not just a 'web designer'. There are millions of them.

You are a web specialist who 'designs high-converting websites for the <insert> industry'.

I hope that helps.

Matt

Whilst I agree with what you have written in principle, the vast majority of web designers can't use this approach because they have no idea how to design or build a high converting website for any industry. Your approach is going to fall pretty flat if used by designers who should really be at the £499 end of the spectrum.

 

[NickGrogan]

Yes I have but I have but I also worked on behalf of company's too

Website is a temp website it's still being built but on that note I'll leave you there. I'm looking for genuine people too help me not bash me. Good luck with with your business though

No, you seem to be looking for people to tell you that you're doing great.

You've sent £400 advertising on FB, and then spent long days "marketing" on FB, which suggests that marketing isn't your strong suit and is not something that you should be offering to others.

Your website is bad from an SEO point of view, which suggests you should be avoiding that too.

I don't believe that you've written 181 lines of code per day, 7 days per week for the last 7 years, whilst doing up to 10 repairs a day too.

Where is the contact form, where is the phone number, where are examples of your work?

Find something you're good at, or at least competent at and focus on that.

 

[WebshopMechanic]

Whilst I agree with what you have written in principle, the vast majority of web designers can't use this approach because they have no idea how to design or build a high converting website for any industry. Your approach is going to fall pretty flat if used by designers who should really be at the £499 end of the spectrum.

I'd have to disagree with you on that one.

You have to think about the direction you want to go for your own business. If you can build websites but are not the best at design (the curse of many web dev companies) then you should outsource the design part. That way, you cover the technical and visual side of things.

I don't claim to be the best at everything. Nobody is. But I have found people to join my team who can cover me in my weaker areas to ensure we deliver a premium service for my clients. It works for me and it works for my clients.

I learned quickly that, if you try to do everything yourself, you can't grow and you burn yourself out.

Matt

 

[simong93]

Hey @simong93,

Sorry to hear about the news! But I guess there's always a blessing in disguise

If you haven't been on the operational side of things and aren't aware of how your old workplace generated business, I can see how starting up from scratch could be a toughie.

I can imagine with a dwindling budget and new responsibilities on the way, it's feeling a little daunting. Over the long-term, running a business is a fantastic solution for freedom - especially if you have an amazing skill like web development. However, you're probably finding it's super competitive and when opening a business, 80 hour weeks are normal at the beginning with not much return.

Instead of opening a business (which you can come back to once you're more settled), have you considered either of the following:

A) Getting back into Employment
B) Joining a Freelancer Marketplace

Going with Option A) is probably the best option if security is what you're currently seeking. It takes the stress out of things, especially with the late nights on the way!

Option B) is where things get a little more interesting. It's definitely easy to see that you've got a lot of in-demand skills! Why not take those skills where they're needed most? Freelancer Marketplaces like Upwork and People Per Hour have a ready-made customer base of business owners from around the world who need tech-related things done and don't mind paying for it if you've got the portfolio for it (some people earn up to £200/hourly).

All you'd have to do is simply set-up a Freelancer profile and get approaching 'Needed Work' offers.

I've found that when you're between a rock and a hard place, it's not always the best time to open a business, since you'll be more likely to focus on faster money, undervalue your work, overwork yourself, and might come to hate what you love doing as a result. When you're settled a little more with either of the above solutions, you can always revisit the idea and take the world head-on then

Sort of like a PHP IF command haha!

Hope this helps! Keep us updated with how you get on!

Thankyou for your amazing post freelancing did escape me I never really thought about it but 100% I'll give it a shot I do need to take a step back and stop the race to the bottom line it's killing me. I'll give freelancing a try and let you know what happens

Love that php if($outcome = "fail"){
Echo "try again"}

That will work too

 

[simong93]

Hi

OK, every industry is saturated. Every industry is cut-throat. You can't change that.

The way to get around this is to position yourself in the right way so people see the value in your expertise.

If you are constantly marketing yourself on price (Websites for £499) and against the likes of Wix then you will fail.

If you constantly go after the cheap-skate customer, you will fail.

They will never value your skills and they will probably be more trouble than they are worth. You will get to the end of the month, been very busy but have nothing to show for it. Believe me, I have been there and bought the t-shirt.

So, think about a market niche you can go after where your skills are at their finest and you can specialise or prove you have experience.

Also think, what industries have money to spend and what types of businesses the likes of Wix and Go Daddy are not suitable for. What industries require a premium experience for their customers?


Some examples may be:

The Marine Industry - Lots of money there in boats, yacht accessories, yacht repairs, navigation systems, life rafts, etc.

The Classic / Sports Car Industry - High-end classic car sales, High-end car modifications, High-end car storage, etc.

Building Trade (loft conversions / bi-fold doors) - Lots of builders get their leads from Checkatrade but people still look at their websites and are turned off. I've personally decided against using tradespeople with excellent reviews but bad websites. I want someone who takes pride in everything their business does. It's a confidence thing. If you target builders who operate in affluent areas then their customers will expect to see a premium website.

Interior Design - This is all about design and premium perception. They must have a high-end-looking website otherwise they won't convert any business. Many are awful. Why would a wealthy person invest in a company with a crappy website?


Before you approach these businesses you need to get your own website in order. Visuals and copy are vital. Make it look premium but personal, not just a wall of text. I know your current site is temporary, but it just looks like a standard Wordpress theme. You need something punchy.

When you're ready to get out there, simply Google keywords in your chosen nice and go through all the sites that are on page 3 and beyond. Look at their design, content and SEO. Also, look to see if their site works on mobile. If they look like a dog's dinner, there is your first target.

Quite often, people who are struggling for business don't immediately think that they need a new website. I will go down the marketing / advertising route first. But, this is where they fail because they are just throwing cash down the drain if they have a poorly designed website, with no clear message and doesn't work on mobile devices.

My approach is to send a very short email with an intro and some reasons why they are losing sales. I sometimes follow that up with a 10-minute screen recorded video of me auditing their site.

Finally, I will follow up with a call. More often than not, I get their attention and they find it useful because I am adding value and not going in with the hard-sell.

This approach helps me to convert a good amount of business and I am still in contact with many businesses who have received my videos because the timing is not quite right. I am nurturing them until the time is right.

You need to position yourself as a specialist and an expert. You also need to think in that way. You are not just a 'web designer'. There are millions of them.

You are a web specialist who 'designs high-converting websites for the <insert> industry'.

I hope that helps.

Matt

Perfect, so much of what you said is me in a nut shell, I am marketing at a price, one of the issues I face is my clients won't listen to me, when I say look doing this will help convert or this they just brush me off and bid my price down. I love your idea though don't market as a website person but as someone who makes them money, when you think about it. It makes perfect sense it's well worth a shot.

In all honesty the site is built in bootstrap it was just put there so something was there rather then a launch page, the site is only a 2 months old max, the complete site is nearly Finnished just crossing the I's and dotting the TS and it should be live soon. Your approach and advise is amazing though thankyou, also by focussing on a niche I can build my site to accommodate the niche

 

[simong93]

Have you considered attending networking events? there are loads out there (4networking for example) where you can pop along and might find someone who needs a new website or would be happy for you to review theirs?

I would say though you need to crack on with the local SEO and making your website 100% spot on. If someone approached me for SEO/Website I would look at theirs before making any judgement to ensure they knew what they were doing.

Yep I will agree the complete site is nearly ready for launch its in its final stage

I have tried some networking events but I only seem to find ones that want stupid amounts of Monday from me, one I found wanted £50 a attendance plus's 40 mile drive there it would be nice to find some closer

 

[simong93]

No, you seem to be looking for people to tell you that you're doing great.

You've sent £400 advertising on FB, and then spent long days "marketing" on FB, which suggests that marketing isn't your strong suit and is not something that you should be offering to others.

Your website is bad from an SEO point of view, which suggests you should be avoiding that too.

I don't believe that you've written 181 lines of code per day, 7 days per week for the last 7 years, whilst doing up to 10 repairs a day too.

Where is the contact form, where is the phone number, where are examples of your work?

Find something you're good at, or at least competent at and focus on that.

Not true if you have something worth contributing of course I will listen but if someone is going to be an ass for no reason I'm.gokng to ignore them

I can market, I can get people to the site or interested my issue I always seem to find is the people I am attracting are looking for a deal so I explain why I'm good, what I do but time company B beats me by £100 and I've lost the deal as if I go any lower it's pointless.

The website is nearly complete and will be upload soon, I'm starting to see that was quite a flaw on my part I should have focused on that first.

The lines of code is a average for the amount of work I've completed, as I did say before the repairs is backed up BUT I never asked anyone for help on that so I don't see why it's being bought up.

Temp website they will be on the proper site.

I am good at websites, i can compete with most at my databases skills are also good. I am working in the field I am good at and the field I love

 

[ethical PR]

Why are you wasting money on marketing when your website (first impression for potential clients of your approach and the quality of your work needs a complete rethink).

As a web designer had do you not know it is a legal requirement to provide your contact details on a website.

You ask what else you can do -

1. start off where you should of when you decided to create a business by clearly understanding who your target market are (I will give you a clue not the general designer refrain of - all SME's) but a detailed picture of exactly which businesses your research shows would value your services.

2. be able to articulate in a 30 second pitch why customers should use you rather than one of your thousands of competitors (another clue don't use woolly words like 'quality service' )

3. use the research you have carried out to identify which activities, content and channels you should be using to reach your customers and used that to develop your marketing plan.

With a second baby on the way it seems you would be better going to freelance or work for another agency or in-house until you have built up the skiils-set to run your own business.

 

[simong93]

Why are you wasting money on marketing when your website (first impression for potential clients of your approach and the quality of your work needs a complete rethink).

As a web designer had do you not know it is a legal requirement to provide your contact details on a website.

You ask what else you can do -

1. start off where you should of when you decided to create a business by clearly understanding who your target market are (I will give you a clue not the general designer refrain of - all SME's) but a detailed picture of exactly which businesses your research shows would value your services.

2. be able to articulate in a 30 second pitch why customers should use you rather than one of your thousands of competitors (another clue don't use woolly words like 'quality service' )

3. use the research you have carried out to identify which activities, content and channels you should be using to reach your customers and used that to develop your marketing plan.

With a second baby on the way it seems you would be better going to freelance or work for another agency or in-house until you have built up the skiils-set to run your own business.

Iprecious hasn't been going for more then a few months after i changed the name to something a little bit shorter and Catchy. That website at current isn't being marketed or had any money spent on it.

I will take your words and make this work

I have the skill set to run a company, I have the know how I have the experience but everyone needs help in some way that's why I'm reaching out to get others advice

 

[simong93]

Thanks for your advice all, I be got alot to think about I'm.going to Finnish the site then focus on a niche thanks everyone. There's no more need to comment

 

[NickGrogan]

Iprecious hasn't been going for more then a few months after i changed the name to something a little bit shorter and Catchy.

Is Iprecious the new shorter catchier name?

I can market, I can get people to the site or interested my issue I always seem to find is the people I am attracting are looking for a deal

Anyone can spend £600 on FB/Google that's not marketing, that's advertising. If the people that you're attracting aren't interested in what you're offering then they are worthless.

I can get 250,000 people a day to visit a web page, but precisely none of them will be interested in saving on their business energy that all that's going to get me is a big bandwidth bill.

Please don't offer people things that you don't know how to do, you will cost them money and hurt their businesses.

If you're great at web design and databases, sell that but stay away from marketing and SEO

 

[Alan]

Love that php if($outcome = "fail"){
Echo "try again"}

shame about the bug

 

[Alan]

There's no more need to comment

Sorry came in late to this thread.

I found, when I used to offer them, there really was only two effective ways to get website clients
1. Face to face networking, it is hard work and a long burn, but you meet people that know people that know people that have a problem. Really the only way I got 'higher value' sites ( above £2k)
2. Google Adwords, with a decent campaign you can get as many websites as you can handle at the 'budget level' - but most importantly you MUST have a landing page that is specifically designed to match the advert, so if your campaign is specifically targeting a niche ( like the marine niche mentioned ) the landing page must only be about websites for the marine niche - no distraction - high easy conversion - form on the page - phone number on the page - social proof on the page.
Then you should be able to get one site for approx £100-£150 of advert spend. When we did it this way we were cranking out about 10 x £600 sites a month for about £1,000 spend.

 

[Andy Harris]

Many many years ago I lost my job and did this:

1. Joined some networking groups (some paid, but not spending a lot).

2. Gave very cheap (for them) advice to businesses that could be getting better results from their websites.

3. Signed a few clients up on a deal of getting a percentage of their revenues ongoing, as a result of what I achieved (website strategy, SEO, paid Ads etc.).

That got things rolling and evolved to other clients.

Also worth mentioning that there are sometimes other things you can do to get a foot in the door with future clients, but not by directing selling what you offer initially. I know it's our product but I don't generally mention it here, so this may aid your thinking: https://www.a1webstats.com/a1webstats-white-label/

Hope that helps in some way. There will be businesses out there that need your help - you just need to find a way to build a bond with them.

Andy

 

[fisicx]

Specialise!

Don't build any old website, build something for a niche. Become the go to person for Church groups or parquet flooring installers or whatever.

Better still don't even build websites. Offer apps, plugins and extensions that solve problems. It's hugely lucrative and there is far less competition. You can then upsell and offer a website upgrade.

Don't compete, find a niche and dominate. I've found mine and it's bringing in paying clients from all over the world.

 

[antropy]

Tried that, I used to do telesales but it just didn't seem to work, a website isn't on top of everyone's mind and they didn't really care for it. Most replys where send me a email

Well we get clients who are looking for new websites from calls? Maybe you might need to look at your pitch and who you are targeting. As @WebshopMechanic highlights, if you focus fully on price and do not specialize then you are barking up the wrong tree. Alex

 

[ethical PR]

Iprecious hasn't been going for more then a few months after i changed the name to something a little bit shorter and Catchy. That website at current isn't being marketed or had any money spent on it.

I will take your words and make this work

I have the skill set to run a company, I have the know how I have the experience but everyone needs help in some way that's why I'm reaching out to get others advice

If you had the skillset to run a company you would know that you need to do your market research BEFORE you go into business to see whether there is a gap in the marketplace for your service or product.

You would know that you need to develop a marketing strategy and plan before you design your website and any other collateral, so you do this with your target audience and key benefits at the forefront of what you do.

I appreciate everyone is on a learning curve when they set up in business, however I question why you would choose to launch your own business at this stage, rather than getting a contract with an agency or in-house so you have definite income to support your family with a little one on the way. This would give you time to carry out your research to give your business the best chance of success rather than rushing in headlong without having a clear idea of your target market or how to reach them.

 

[Lloyd N8N]

This advice comes from Gary V - text everyone in your contacts: 'Do you know anyone that may need a website designed?' Follow up with a bit more of a personal message... 'I've just started my own company and would love to get some new clients...

 

[Lucan Unlordly]

Get 'on the knocker!'

Go bang on a few doors.

Find a street with a few independent shops and talk to people. If they have a website they may not be happy, may want it upgraded, may want it converted for online sales. Maybe one of the staff members has a sideline business they want a site for.

Put yourself out there as somebody who can hold their hand through the process.

See a new business opening, get in early, while the builders are still on site...etc., etc.,

Get off your ass.......

 

[Chris Ashdown]

You are right that millions are building websites so the costs of making them is always going down and few will make any real money doing them

Before I retired I had about 15 years of using a e-commerce package named sellerdeck where a individual made a great living just making apps for sale to improve the usability of the software so selling one piece of software to many customers rather than playing around trying to make individual jobs

Is this a area you could investigate and therefore stand out from the crowds by making small addons

Trying to get sales is always hard but sometimes its better to earn far less than you historically made and take the long term view and grow your customer base with your rates increasing as you succeed

Local ads can be low cost for phone repairs especially in free weekly papers, newsagents windows and so on, some people forget that there was advertising prior to the internet

Often people can only judge your skills by what you offer them, in your case your website and images of past work and recommendations, this shows if you are a snotty nose 15 year old trying it on or the best designer with something to offer that's special,

Many designers show how clever they are in design, but forget to make the product easy to use, for the actual user, graphics are fantastic and would win any competition but failing in usability the death of many designers

Good luck

 

[StevePoster]

I would recommend to optimize your website first especially on the complete details of the site business because in time this will represent your listing in top ranking results in search. Craft your own benefits from your specialized services so that target users will recognize your brand and shared to their network.

 

[Chris Ashdown]

Sl;ightly off topic
Do you often wonder about the experts in marketing, making extremely high priced TV adverts, that after watching make you wonder what the product was or was meant to do

Sometimes it appears the designers only want to show how clever they are, and forget they are there to help sell a product

 

[Lucan Unlordly]

Sl;ightly off topic
Do you often wonder about the experts in marketing, making extremely high priced TV adverts, that after watching make you wonder what the product was or was meant to do

Sometimes it appears the designers only want to show how clever they are, and forget they are there to help sell a product

Yes, and far too often these days.

At Christmas my nephew puts together a quiz, part of which is to name the company behind the TV ads. John Lewis, M&S etc.,
There are always one or two that everybody knows but cannot recall the brand.

 

[AllUpHere]

Sl;ightly off topic
Do you often wonder about the experts in marketing, making extremely high priced TV adverts, that after watching make you wonder what the product was or was meant to do

Sometimes it appears the designers only want to show how clever they are, and forget they are there to help sell a product

There's no need to wonder, it's a well known fact that most 'award winning' adverts cost more than they ever gained the client. Even when you include largely intangible benefits such as brand awareness, they still come out poorly.

Corporate adverts are a chance to show off and blow a load of the clients money in order to try to win yourself an award.

 

[sundaresh]

Try social media platform but it take more times it's fully based on how you can communicate with that

 

[ethical PR]

Try social media platform but it take more times it's fully based on how you can communicate with that

What utter rubbish

 

[Dillon Lawrence Ltd]

There's no need to wonder, it's a well known fact that most 'award winning' adverts cost more than they ever gained the client. Even when you include largely intangible benefits such as brand awareness, they still come out poorly.

Corporate adverts are a chance to show off and blow a load of the clients money in order to try to win yourself an award.

Utter nonsense. Do you have examples?

If you think for a second that agencies are given free reign by large companies and big corporations to win awards and that they simply disregard campaign objectives etc, then you are wrong.

I don't doubt some bomb but it's an exception rather than a rule. If it wasn't they'd have dried up a long time ago.

 

[Lucan Unlordly]

Utter nonsense. Do you have examples?

If you think for a second that agencies are given free reign by large companies and big corporations to win awards and that they simply disregard campaign objectives etc, then you are wrong.

I don't doubt some bomb but it's an exception rather than a rule. If it wasn't they'd have dried up a long time ago.

Unless it's changed significantly in the past 20 years, there are agencies that produce stuff which they know the client will like, and those who will produce stuff that they think will work and will walk away if the client tries to impose their will. The latter being in the minority.

Somewhere in between the parameters laid down at the outset are reconfigured so nobody gets egg on their face.