How to Learn Code, Start a Web Company, $15k+ per month within 9 months

[jpanarra]

Here is how it usually goes...

http://joincanada.com/

The News section is actually a sub folder into which Wordpress is installed. This part of the site the client can update. I don;t do it often though cause clients don't actually get much use out of this usually and it ends up being outdated.

In short is a sub folder with wordpress.

Now that makes sense! Thanks

 

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[Chimp]

what theme are you using here fox? http://versys.ca/

I like the theme I purchased but it's missing some things that i'd like to pull from that theme. Thanks!

edit: viewed page source and saw that it was Sartre Skin Architecture.

 

[FastNAwesome]

@Fox do your initial emails dissect their website in detail, explaining all the things you could do for them, and all the benefits they would get?

Or it's more along the lines of something I think you had already posted. Something like "Hey, your website is losing money due to being outdated, and I can help."

Do you always schedule a call, or did you have occurrences of doing everything over email? What are the calls mostly about?

 

[Fox]

@Fox do your initial emails dissect their website in detail, explaining all the things you could do for them, and all the benefits they would get?

Or it's more along the lines of something I think you had already posted. Something like "Hey, your website is losing money due to being outdated, and I can help."

Do you always schedule a call, or did you have occurrences of doing everything over email? What are the calls mostly about?

Yes my emails are quite detailed. I usually email and then just call anyway a day or two later if I get no response.

There are so many variables are your email is just one of them, thinks can work perfect one time and get no response another time.

Best bet is to just keep going in a few different styles and see what starts to work the best. I don't have any one set approach.

 

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[Mr.Donnerhuhn]

I posted this on the facebook group, but I'll post it here as well:

If you're just starting out and don't have a big portfolio or network here's something you could consider doing. In addition to brute force high-quantity cold calling/emailing you should make an account on meetup.com and search for things like "business", "entrepreneurship", etc... and RSVP to meetups coming up.

Now you're probably NOT going to be finding 5/6-figure clients from meetup groups, but you will find people who are starting out or looking to expand and you may be just the person they need to bring more value to their business pursuits. Plus you'll get a good chance to make a positive, in-person impression so that even if you don't turn t hem directly into clients you might still be able to pull referrals from people in the group because they love how charming you are. Which as a fastlaner, I'm sure you are!

 

[visviza]

Yes my emails are quite detailed. I usually email and then just call anyway a day or two later if I get no response.

There are so many variables are your email is just one of them, thinks can work perfect one time and get no response another time.

Best bet is to just keep going in a few different styles and see what starts to work the best. I don't have any one set approach.

How can I come off as detailed yet not too boring like an essay? A couple of clients have told me that my emails weren't clear or the email was too long to read. Is there a certain structure or blocks of information that you always include?

One more question, how many emails did you use to send a day when you started this? It looks like I'm spending a lot of time in getting into detail about a clients website in each email and I don't know if I am actually wasting time.

 

[Fox]

Made a rookie mistake a blew potentially a 7k deal. I had a great call and the guy was keen to move ahead. I recorded the sales call and asked it I could use it later to help people learn (with the info blocked out). Never got a response back. Called the office today (5 days later) and he is "busy" so cant connect. The type of industry he is in it is possible that is true but I think I messed up.

I am kind of annoyed at myself for mixing up one area (sales) with another (teaching) but I did want to show people this is possible and remove that mental block. Probably should have waited till I have the deposit. At least it wasn't a 15k site.

Oh well. Will have to make some more cold calls.

How can I come off as detailed yet not too boring like an essay? A couple of clients have told me that my emails weren't clear or the email was too long to read. Is there a certain structure or blocks of information that you always include?

One more question, how many emails did you use to send a day when you started this? It looks like I'm spending a lot of time in getting into detail about a clients website in each email and I don't know if I am actually wasting time.

Welcome to the forum.

It won't sound like an essay if it helps there business. People want to know how to make more money, keep it relevant and on point. Provide Value.

I sent as much as it takes. Try different styles and different approaches. Without knowing everything about a niche, you and the actual customer that is very hard to answer. Its time need in the trenches so don't look for shortcuts.

 

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[Fox]

Literally the moment I posted that he wrote back and said he is really busy! Nice.

Also a guy on my FB group is about to close a 10-18k website (his first). When he posts over there I will relay it back here (he is not a member).

Just like that its all good again!

Also what do people think of the Fox Image <. It is a new logo I am working on.

 

[jpanarra]

Literally the moment I posted that he wrote back and said he is really busy! Nice.

Also a guy on my FB group is about to close a 10-18k website (his first). When he posts over there I will relay it back here (he is not a member).

Saw that too, really exciting stuff going on over there!

Also what do people think of the Fox Image <. It is a new logo I am working on.

Great stuff!

 

[Polarbeans]

Just finished reading the whole 27-page thread! Great content, not only on building websites (which is not really the point of this thread) but a great lesson in entrepreneurship! Thanks @Fox and those who contribute!

 

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[JPMorgan]

Literally the moment I posted that he wrote back and said he is really busy! Nice.

Also a guy on my FB group is about to close a 10-18k website (his first). When he posts over there I will relay it back here (he is not a member).

Just like that its all good again!

Also what do people think of the Fox Image <. It is a new logo I am working on.

Fox thank you so much for sharing your knowledge in this thread with all of us! I'm sure everyone else that read this is as grateful as I am .



One question I don't think was answered throughout was regarding your proposal. After reading Breaking the Time Barrier, this thread, and even listening to some paid Grant Cardone content it is almost clear to me that the 3 option proposal is almost NECESSARY for the close. I'm so grateful that you recommended us that ebook, a lot of value in there.

That being said, what 3 options do you include in your proposal as far as services go when sending your proposal to a client?
Your response is greatly appreciated!

 

[Paul Thomas]

To what extent do you guys think its ok to work for free?

Say for example you're in early stages and don't have a portfolio and you find a guy (owner of a significant business) who allows you to do it for free for his business, hes knows tons of people in he industry, and has no clue what hes doing with his site and if you say it will help him make more $ hes all ears. Say it will take you 2-3 weeks, also say he'll need minor changes and upkeep over time to keep it going.

My thought is that its a great investment. At the very worst case you build experience and have a new template. At the true worst case you probably have a portfolio site. Best case, he introduces you to a $25K+ client, and many others stem from that.

The only worry in the back of my mind is what if he keeps asking for changes/maintenance after the site is "done" when you promised it for free. Of course if you're getting referrals from it, you'd be more than happy to make the changes in return.

I know this is a bit of rambling, but any thoughts on free work for experience and longer term investment/network in your early days?

 

[Fox]

Fox thank you so much for sharing your knowledge in this thread with all of us! I'm sure everyone else that read this is as grateful as I am .



One question I don't think was answered throughout was regarding your proposal. After reading Breaking the Time Barrier, this thread, and even listening to some paid Grant Cardone content it is almost clear to me that the 3 option proposal is almost NECESSARY for the close. I'm so grateful that you recommended us that ebook, a lot of value in there.

That being said, what 3 options do you include in your proposal as far as services go when sending your proposal to a client?
Your response is greatly appreciated!

Thanks!

I used to do a three option proposal, I have since stopped. One price (with a little leeway). I look at the job and see what needs to be done and then price it to do it right. Going below a certain price is bad for both me and the customer.

I am seeing more and more the mindset that the top 5% have when it comes to business. Money is only a very small part.
Its more about honesty, quality and delivering what you promised. They want to work with people who get results and can deliver.

 

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[Fox]

To what extent do you guys think its ok to work for free?

Say for example you're in early stages and don't have a portfolio and you find a guy (owner of a significant business) who allows you to do it for free for his business, hes knows tons of people in he industry, and has no clue what hes doing with his site and if you say it will help him make more $ hes all ears. Say it will take you 2-3 weeks, also say he'll need minor changes and upkeep over time to keep it going.

My thought is that its a great investment. At the very worst case you build experience and have a new template. At the true worst case you probably have a portfolio site. Best case, he introduces you to a $25K+ client, and many others stem from that.

The only worry in the back of my mind is what if he keeps asking for changes/maintenance after the site is "done" when you promised it for free. Of course if you're getting referrals from it, you'd be more than happy to make the changes in return.

I know this is a bit of rambling, but any thoughts on free work for experience and longer term investment/network in your early days?

Only do it if your heart is in the right place. If you are sincere about just doing it for a portfolio piece then it can be a good move.

That being said a lot of business owners (myself included) don't like hiring people for free. It means you are obligated to return the favor (law of reciprocity), also it is hard to argue about quality or results if it is free. I just prefer it to be done right first time and pay.

I would say only do it for someone you know. With someone you don't know personally either price low or wait till you are better. From working with a lot different students over the past few months this would be my current advice on this.

 

[Fox]

I know I have a lot of PMs from guys on this thread that I haven't responded too. I just don't have the time at the moment.

Try post on here instead. It will be a while before I have a chance to go read them. Thanks.

 

[JPMorgan]

Thanks!

I used to do a three option proposal, I have since stopped. One price (with a little leeway). I look at the job and see what needs to be done and then price it to do it right. Going below a certain price is bad for both me and the customer.

I am seeing more and more the mindset that the top 5% have when it comes to business. Money is only a very small part.
Its more about honesty, quality and delivering what you promised. They want to work with people who get results and can deliver.

Ahh I love it man. I've always been intrigued of Grant Cardone's approach of, "it's wrong to offer one product, you have to offer the product they want along with two products they don't want" but then again we doesn't sell websites lol. Have you noticed you've had greater success now that you have a one price take it or leave it type approach?

 

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[DKNJ]

I create wordpress sites and host them on Bluehost. There are many hosting options available. I use Bluehost because I can pick up the phone and call someone when I have questions. Their customer service is pretty good for today's standards. My emails are routed to my gmail/outlook accounts.

How do you like bluehost? I have hostgator and am planning on switching. I got a malware attack and I'm still in beta. Not even live. I was on spamhaus blacklist, got a reputable freelancer on upwork and got the malware cleaned. Hostgator won't remove the suspension on my domain unless I hire a professional service they are partners with sitelock or a "professional" third party.

 

[TheDutch]

Hi All,

Just came by this page about 2 week ago.
Done 3 courses so far, finishing up the Udemy HTML & CSS course right now.

Planning on starting to build my first 2 pages in the upfollowing weeks.
Got 2 jobs ready to work on(small one's).

Looking for a good, solid, 'cheap' host to host the websites on.
Does anyone have any good reliable hosts?

I'm reading some up here, but not sure what to expect?
As @DKNJ said: "Hostgator won't remove the suspension on my domain unless I hire a professional service they are partners with sitelock or a "professional" third party."

Wanting to avoid that.

As for the pricing, i'm 'lowballing' my first 2 pages, for sure. Told them it's the startup, so they are getting the best prices they'll ever going to get, in trade for honoust, real ratings for my own page. Which i still have to make, doing that after i've done the first 2.

I'm charging a startup fee (Pricing -30% as @Fox mentioned on the first page) for the page, after that they're going to pay the rent of the website monthly, or once a year. (+small fee for me, yearly will be cheaper for them).

If you guys have any advise, or criticism regarding my way of working, tell me.
Trying to do everything as efficiently as possible.

Oh, and @Fox , great job so far, really admiring your way of working. Joined your Facebook group too..

 

[JDx]

@TheDutch Welcome
I use GoDaddy and it works well for me.

 

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[jpanarra]

Hi All,

Just came by this page about 2 week ago.
Done 3 courses so far, finishing up the Udemy HTML & CSS course right now.

Planning on starting to build my first 2 pages in the upfollowing weeks.
Got 2 jobs ready to work on(small one's).

Looking for a good, solid, 'cheap' host to host the websites on.
Does anyone have any good reliable hosts?

I'm reading some up here, but not sure what to expect?
As @DKNJ said: "Hostgator won't remove the suspension on my domain unless I hire a professional service they are partners with sitelock or a "professional" third party."

Wanting to avoid that.

As for the pricing, i'm 'lowballing' my first 2 pages, for sure. Told them it's the startup, so they are getting the best prices they'll ever going to get, in trade for honoust, real ratings for my own page. Which i still have to make, doing that after i've done the first 2.

I'm charging a startup fee (Pricing -30% as @Fox mentioned on the first page) for the page, after that they're going to pay the rent of the website monthly, or once a year. (+small fee for me, yearly will be cheaper for them).

If you guys have any advise, or criticism regarding my way of working, tell me.
Trying to do everything as efficiently as possible.

Oh, and @Fox , great job so far, really admiring your way of working. Joined your Facebook group too..

I personally use Bluehost, and i know Fox uses Godaddy. Both are fine and have solid UI for beginners and experts.

 

[Fox]

If you are not planning on making money off the hosting, which I don't, then GoDaddy is fine. Easy to use and decent customer support.

 

[TheDutch]

Sweet, thanks for all the replies guys.

I think i will be going for GoDaddy, searched a bit for the reviews & stuff..
They should be perfect and best for the cheap basic hosting, which suits me best as a beginning front end developer.

 

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[Fox]

I helped a student on the FB group close his first ever website, over $4200! Plus the company is very high profile.

He has a good eye for design and I am sure he will do a great job. Pretty happy with that.

 

[TheDutch]

I helped a student on the FB group close his first ever website, over $4200! Plus the company is very high profile.

He has a good eye for design and I am sure he will do a great job. Pretty happy with that.

Congrats! I'm sure you both are quite pleased with that being his first order.

Hope this question is not too personal but;
Is it just front end development or is there also back-end included?

 

[SunnyDftw]

What do you guys do about ongoing maintenance? Whether that be if the site goes down, or links stop working or something? Do you go in and fix whatever is broken for free? Or for an hourly/flat rate?

Do you charge higher maintenance cost if the site initially cost more?

Now obviously if they want something changed like the nav bar, or content on a page, adding a new page, feature etc you charge for that. But same Q, do you charge relative to what you charged for the site initially or?

Last Q, for a client that wants to routinely change things would it be better to use a CMS like Wordpress and train them on how to change content?

I got offered a job to make a website for a band and that website would include an ecommerce section, and a music section that would be changed every so often(when they dropped music I'm assuming). I, lacking the backend knowledge to make a website like that, was going to use wordpress + woocommerce. They asked how much it would be to maintain the site, like adding new merch n shit, but honestly I'm not interested in the passive income from maintaining a site at the moment and would rather just train them for a fee, if even possible. Is it a possibility?

 

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[SunnyDftw]

Congrats! I'm sure you both are quite pleased with that being his first order.

Hope this question is not too personal but;
Is it just front end development or is there also back-end included?

Probably just front end, I don't think Fox has ever mentioned doing backend work himself, or implying people following his mold should learn it. Can't speak for his students of course, but I'm just assuming.

 

[Fox]

I will be hiring for sales guys soon. Keep an eye out for a upcoming Ma

Congrats! I'm sure you both are quite pleased with that being his first order.

Hope this question is not too personal but;
Is it just front end development or is there also back-end included?

Front end, I don't know backends languages and they are not needed in my line of work.

What do you guys do about ongoing maintenance? Whether that be if the site goes down, or links stop working or something? Do you go in and fix whatever is broken for free? Or for an hourly/flat rate?

If its my fault or "chance" then its free, if its them wanting changes - flat rate. But nothing has ever broken since I started.
My code is nearly 100% self sustained, there is no reason for it to break.

 

[SunnyDftw]

If its my fault or "chance" then its free, if its them wanting changes - flat rate.

How do you decide how much to charge? Relative to how much the site initially cost? I.E. Charging $100 for maintenance on a site that you charged $1000 for, and charging $50 for a site you charged $500 for, but doing the same thing.

 

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[TheDutch]

How do you decide how much to charge? Relative to how much the site initially cost? I.E. Charging $100 for maintenance on a site that you charged $1000 for, and charging $50 for a site you charged $500 for, but doing the same thing.

I personally would indicate the time working on it +small fee and use that as a price.

If it takes me 5 minutes, and it's a good customer, it would be free. Good for trust & word-of-mouth advertising.
That being said, i would have a good connection with that customer too.
If it's a shit company that doesn't really care much, i would probably just charge 1hr.

Make sure your customer knows the price before you're starting on the maintenance tho..
Can't charge much if you're doing it afterwards.

Front end, I don't know backends languages and they are not needed in my line of work.

Sweet... Sounds even more like a solid deal now.

 

[InspireHD]

I spent the last few days reading through this thread. This, along with the reddit thread, caused me to look more into this idea of web development. I have my own personal wordpress site, that I barely ever look at, and I have an idea for another website that I started coding, but am having trouble with. I bought The Web Developer's Bootcamp on Udemy earlier this year and went through about 85% of it. And yesterday I went through the free Web Design course made by the guy Fox recommended. I'm planning on buying his HTML course and working through that.

Through the ideas in this thread and Reddit I searched for a couple businesses in my local area. The mechanic I use for my car inspection doesn't even have a website. I feel like there might be an opportunity there. Also, I stumbled upon the website of a funeral home and nearly had a panic attack at how bad their website was. It's a mess in and of itself, but their "above-the-fold" is about the size of an iphone screen and they have a yahoo email address. When I do a google search for "funeral homes + city", they are number 1 and their description says it can't be found due to the robot.txt! I literally can't even believe it.

Anyway, a huge thanks to Fox for all of the content shared here. You have given a lot of people hope and direction. Often times, we get stuck not knowing which way to turn. This results in doing nothing. You have at least helped people take the first step. And for people who are trying this new for the first time and making mistakes, it's the mistakes that are making them better in the long run.