If I knew then what I know now...
Nobody starts perfect. And if you take the time to get every tiny detail right before bringing in paying customers... chances are you may never start at all. This holds true for virtually any business, but I'm talking specifically about offering online marketing as a service for local businesses.
If I could go back to the beginning, here are a few things I would set straight:
1) Plan for success and become invested in your work. *see rest of post
2) Become a hosting reseller and start charging monthly fees to your clients. The investment is minimal and to have a business you need cashflow. This doesn't mean ridiculous hosting charges. Even $10-15/mo. is fairly competitive. Had I done this from the beginning I'd be sitting a few thousand a year prettier.
3) Run through leads consistently. Whether you're calling, emailing, using direct mail, webinars, or whatever - the more leads your run through/qualify the more sales you make. Even on days with a full client-serving workload, it's a good idea to dedicate some time to contacting potential clients.
4) Don't be afraid of using the phone. People like me and many others on this forum who use the phone are making sales while you're acting scared, hoping for someone to email you. If you don't have knowledge/money to invest to get leads, there's almost nothing you could do that would be more beneficial than picking up the phone and contacting local businesses. Nothing more needs to be said on the subject.
5) ...But don't just use the phone. Use marketing to generate interest in your product. This includes the promotion of your website, posting on Craigslist or other advertising portals, local advertising opportunities (COC, Home Shows, newspaper (idk just a thought), local bulletins, etc... I suppose attending meetup groups would fall under this as well. These are the things that bring in clients weeks/months down the road and shouldn't be your number one focus, in my humble opinion.
6) A new client is worth more than you think. Using a some type of system to get referrals is an absolute must. You're a fool if you don't have some type of approach in place for each client. You should also contact every client of yours - no matter how small - to see if there's a way you can help them achieve more through their online presence. Some might not, but I guarantee some will. This of course only comes into play if you have satisfied clients and do great work. But I think that goes hand-in-hand with understanding the worth of your client: do better work, get more money through referrals and additional services. It's a win-win.
That's all I can think of right now, but I'm sure more will pop into my head later. If you offer web design/seo/mobile/online marketing services... if you could go back to the beginning of your career, what would you do differently? And why?
If I could go back to the beginning, here are a few things I would set straight:
1) Plan for success and become invested in your work. *see rest of post
2) Become a hosting reseller and start charging monthly fees to your clients. The investment is minimal and to have a business you need cashflow. This doesn't mean ridiculous hosting charges. Even $10-15/mo. is fairly competitive. Had I done this from the beginning I'd be sitting a few thousand a year prettier.
3) Run through leads consistently. Whether you're calling, emailing, using direct mail, webinars, or whatever - the more leads your run through/qualify the more sales you make. Even on days with a full client-serving workload, it's a good idea to dedicate some time to contacting potential clients.
4) Don't be afraid of using the phone. People like me and many others on this forum who use the phone are making sales while you're acting scared, hoping for someone to email you. If you don't have knowledge/money to invest to get leads, there's almost nothing you could do that would be more beneficial than picking up the phone and contacting local businesses. Nothing more needs to be said on the subject.
5) ...But don't just use the phone. Use marketing to generate interest in your product. This includes the promotion of your website, posting on Craigslist or other advertising portals, local advertising opportunities (COC, Home Shows, newspaper (idk just a thought), local bulletins, etc... I suppose attending meetup groups would fall under this as well. These are the things that bring in clients weeks/months down the road and shouldn't be your number one focus, in my humble opinion.
6) A new client is worth more than you think. Using a some type of system to get referrals is an absolute must. You're a fool if you don't have some type of approach in place for each client. You should also contact every client of yours - no matter how small - to see if there's a way you can help them achieve more through their online presence. Some might not, but I guarantee some will. This of course only comes into play if you have satisfied clients and do great work. But I think that goes hand-in-hand with understanding the worth of your client: do better work, get more money through referrals and additional services. It's a win-win.
That's all I can think of right now, but I'm sure more will pop into my head later. If you offer web design/seo/mobile/online marketing services... if you could go back to the beginning of your career, what would you do differently? And why?
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FreshAndThemes -
Thanks
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