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Web Design Business Journey

Anything considered a "hustle" and not necessarily a CENTS-based Fastlane

Zarar

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Hello everyone,
I am creating this thread to keep track of my progress in Web Design.

Background: 21 years old, started to learn coding one and half month ago , decent html/css knowledge and basic seo knowledge so far

Current Situation: About to finish my first project and the short term goal is to finish the portfolio stage by completing at least 3 projects that would help me land in clients in future.

What I want to achieve in future: Be an entrepreneur, create a full income stream from web design, be location independent and eventually move and establish a fastlane business.

I will keep this thread updated as frequently and detailed as I can. I hope this thread will motivate/inspire others who might want to embark on the same journey in future.

Feel free to contact me about anything :)
 
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Zarar

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Sep 11, 2018
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Week 1 Progress:
About to finish my first portfolio project for a DJ (Unfortunately for me Portfolio stage is taking much more than expected) which I am doing to the my best of abilities to create a great first-piece.
I have been utilizing Trello for workflow and increased productivity thanks to the amazing post I discovered here (GOLD! - Achieve Laser FOCUS + PRODUCTIVITY With The System Legendary Fastlaners Use...)
Preparing my prospecting list and narrowing down the potential clients/niches
Went through Rob's sales course again as sales is the most important aspect

Plans going forward:
Do a project/design for a big company in a big industry for free to use it for later jobs
Starting Cold-calling / E-mailing after the first portfolio piece (15 prospects a day)
Try doing smaller jobs related to a big niche I want to target as Rob suggests in his post
 
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Silver Silk

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Week 1 Progress:
About to finish my first portfolio project for a DJ (Unfortunately for me Portfolio stage is taking much more than expected) which I am doing to the my best of abilities to create a great first-piece.
I have been utilizing Trello for workflow and increased productivity thanks to the amazing post I discovered here (GOLD! - Achieve Laser FOCUS + PRODUCTIVITY With The System Legendary Fastlaners Use...)
Preparing my prospecting list and narrowing down the potential clients/niches
Went through Rob's sales course again as sales is the most important aspect

Plans going forward:
Do a project/design for a big company in a big industry for free to use it for later jobs
Starting Cold-calling / E-mailing after the first portfolio piece (15 prospects a day)
Try doing smaller jobs related to a big niche I want to target as Rob suggests in his post
Go get it! I aim to do the same thing, i need to free up some time my career is so demanding, getting out but its not an over night process.

Keep going and cant wait to hear the progross over the next few weeks and months, im sure this'll be a gold thread in a year or so!
 

Zarar

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Sep 11, 2018
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Go get it! I aim to do the same thing, i need to free up some time my career is so demanding, getting out but its not an over night process.

Keep going and cant wait to hear the progross over the next few weeks and months, im sure this'll be a gold thread in a year or so!

Such a high value comment really appreciate it! And yes definitely it's not a overnight process but I believe that with hard work it's achievable. I wish you good luck as well :)
 

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Zarar

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Week 2 Progress:
Finally put the DJ website online
Currently working on another portfolio project
It's been a very busy week with exam preparations taking up bulk of my time, but will return to full attention from Friday on

Plans Moving Forward:
Finish the second portfolio project within a week
Fully set up my own web design website
Push to finish the website for my initial client that I had to postpone for some time
If it does not materialize start prospecting immediately and put the target niche plan into action
Go through prospecting and sales courses again and take notes
 

Zarar

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Sep 11, 2018
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After a long layoff of posting in this thread, I will continue to post here regularly. My mindset was up and down during this period and also other parts of my life were dragging me down. I kept working on projects but I was not giving all my attention. What's more, the project(s) took longer than expected but I am hoping to make a strong return after watching Rob's Starting From Scratch Challange a few weeks ago.

A few changes in my mindset:
I am becoming less and less affected if I don't get the client
Cultivating an Abundance Mindset
I am focusing more on long-term
I realized that I am learning a valuable skill-set that would be very helpful even if I fail at web design

Plans for before 2019 and afterward:
Sell my first website before 2019 if I can(excluding portfolio work)
Closely follow what Fox(Rob) is doing and replicate and modify it to my own
Become more confident when it comes to selling as well as in real conversations
 

harp1600

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Hello everyone,
I am creating this thread to keep track of my progress in Web Design.

Background: 21 years old, started to learn coding one and half month ago , decent html/css knowledge and basic seo knowledge so far

Current Situation: About to finish my first project and the short term goal is to finish the portfolio stage by completing at least 3 projects that would help me land in clients in future.

What I want to achieve in future: Be an entrepreneur, create a full income stream from web design, be location independent and eventually move and establish a fastlane business.

I will keep this thread updated as frequently and detailed as I can. I hope this thread will motivate/inspire others who might want to embark on the same journey in future.

Feel free to contact me about anything :)

Sounds really good, mate. Keep it up and don't give up. I think one of the hardest things about living the entrepreneurial lifestyle is motivation. There will be a lot of days where you don't get paid for like 12 hours of work. Just know that it will pay off if you stay grinding.

Good luck!!
 
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jpanarra

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I was exactly where you were 2 years ago and I've learned tons even though I'm not making mad cash at the moment. I wanted to drop some advice so you dont make the mistakes I did.

I know you probably see alot of 'niche' or 'vertical' speak and people telling you that you need to get one or target one. So I kept trying to sell to a certain business category and I was not getting the conversions I was looking for

While its true that it's critical to focus on a niche but what worked for me was once I was entering a new 'vertical' I offered them a 'free labor' website. They'll cover the costs for pictures, hosting, and domain which usually runs them around 200-300 bucks, which is a massive bargain for them, but now I've got a portfolio piece for that niche and I can use that website domain as a reference for other cities or competition in the area. With that barganing chip and with time you can build a cases study with that on hand I can quote the businesses much higher and convert much quicker than I was trying to get my first client for in a brand new space at a 'full website price'.
 

Zarar

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Sep 11, 2018
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Sounds really good, mate. Keep it up and don't give up. I think one of the hardest things about living the entrepreneurial lifestyle is motivation. There will be a lot of days where you don't get paid for like 12 hours of work. Just know that it will pay off if you stay grinding.

Good luck!!

Thanks man. I can totally relate some days I feel like everything is going well and soon everything is going to be fixed while on the other days worry and anxiety creeps in about potential failure etc . But in the long run hopefully it will take off the ground if I continue to put up the necessary effort.
 

Zarar

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Sep 11, 2018
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I was exactly where you were 2 years ago and I've learned tons even though I'm not making mad cash at the moment. I wanted to drop some advice so you dont make the mistakes I did.

I know you probably see alot of 'niche' or 'vertical' speak and people telling you that you need to get one or target one. So I kept trying to sell to a certain business category and I was not getting the conversions I was looking for

While its true that it's critical to focus on a niche but what worked for me was once I was entering a new 'vertical' I offered them a 'free labor' website. They'll cover the costs for pictures, hosting, and domain which usually runs them around 200-300 bucks, which is a massive bargain for them, but now I've got a portfolio piece for that niche and I can use that website domain as a reference for other cities or competition in the area. With that barganing chip and with time you can build a cases study with that on hand I can quote the businesses much higher and convert much quicker than I was trying to get my first client for in a brand new space at a 'full website price'.


Thank you for the detailed information you have provided.It's relieving to see that other people have gone through the same as well. I know having niche is important but in the beginning I should not as well be that picky I guess.I have really resonated with your approach and look forward to implement once the New Year comes in. I am still undecided on what potential client and target niche in the long run though.
 
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Zarar

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Progress Log:
I am taking deliberate break from web design until January 2nd due to Christmas Time and New Year's Eve affecting prospecting outside my country as well as taking a break for a fresh start. I will still be working on projects on Turkish clients when the need arises during this time.

What I will be doing until January 2nd
I will read books on sales,prospecting,success and autobiographies during this time to strengthen my outlook and mindset as well as video courses
I will look for potential skills I can learn over time (SEO/Google Ads or Digital Marketing)
I will set up my exact goals for 2019 and break it down into pieces
I will seek after the people I can potentially learn and implement their advice
 

Zarar

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Sep 11, 2018
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You seem organized and in order. Are you operating on an offline basis right now (i.e. converting local businesses and finding local other clients)?
Thanks for the compliment. Right now I am working on local projects but two projects I have completed were international clients. Working with international clients is more profitable for me so that's my goal eventually to sell abroad. I think I have to work local for some time in the beginning to prove my results and improve my brand as well as specializing in a particular niche but I think it's not beyond the realms of possibility to sell abroad without doing local work.
 
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Bru

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Greetings from France, I m in the same situation, I ve started my web agency a few months ago.
You seem on the right path.
Wish you all the best for your adventure.
 

Zarar

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Greetings from France, I m in the same situation, I ve started my web agency a few months ago.
You seem on the right path.
Wish you all the best for your adventure.
Thanks man all the best for you as well.
 

Zarar

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So I am back to web design after an unexpected school assignment taking up my 2 full days.

For 2019 I have set up goals like this:

The ultimate goal is to earn between $40k and $50k so that’s about 4k per month-so around 2 small-medium sized projects by international clients. I have no problem working locally and I am ready to do some local work in the beginning but I want to be location independent as soon as possible.

It's kind of ambitious goal since I have not sold a website to international clients apart from portfolio works within my network. But it's a challenge and I want to see how far I can go. I could fail at it but I believe it's better to aim high than aim small.

Find a way to prospect abroad consistently for a more profitable business
The first goal of this year is to sell a website abroad as soon as possible
Be fully location independent so that I can move abroad to live/travel
Learn or outsource complementary skills (SEO in particular) so I can make more profits
Implement Monthly retainers and recurring revenue so that I can have a slow but steady income

Will see how far it will go :)
 
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Thomas Baptiste

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Very nice. In terms of international clients, I haven't had much experience in that realm myself, but I'll just redirect some advice I've gotten here:

  • Choose a niche
  • Choose a client in the niche
  • Research client thoroughly
  • Establish contact with client (call/email)
  • Confirm deals
  • Begin work
  • Get paid
Also
Heres a tip: get clients on a monthly retainer for maintenance/updates/other stuff.

They WILL need it.
Underrated execution right there.
 

Zarar

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Very nice. In terms of international clients, I haven't had much experience in that realm myself, but I'll just redirect some advice I've gotten here:

  • Choose a niche
  • Choose a client in the niche
  • Research client thoroughly
  • Establish contact with client (call/email)
  • Confirm deals
  • Begin work
  • Get paid
Also
Underrated execution right there.

Thanks for the tips man will keep those in mind.
 

Zarar

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Sep 11, 2018
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A quick report so far:

Facebook/Social Media messaging has not yielded any tangible results (over +100 messages over 2 week period)
Looking for alternative prospecting ways
Started cold emailing

To be honest I have been slacking off for the past couple of weeks since I did not have any projects to work on. Hopefully, I can get a sale soon and go from there
 
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The Abundant Man

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A quick report so far:

Facebook/Social Media messaging has not yielded any tangible results (over +100 messages over 2 week period)
Looking for alternative prospecting ways
Started cold emailing

To be honest I have been slacking off for the past couple of weeks since I did not have any projects to work on. Hopefully, I can get a sale soon and go from there
It'll happen. We're all gonna make it
 

Zarar

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Report:
So far no leads (international/local)
Been sending cold-emails for the past week
So far unproductive month but no worries
Some of my clients stopped responding/flakey unfortunately

It looks like there is an ongoing trust issue with international clients even though I worked on international projects. So my plan for next month is to focus local leads and go from there. I will be fully honest and seriously it looks like it's going to take a lot of work up front and I have to work locally even if it's not as profitable for the time being. I will be still sending emails in the previous niches but I don't know if I can pass the trust barrier at the moment.

The reason I was so insisted on international clients is that there is like an economic crisis going on here in my country and most people are not foresighted/don't know the value of a good website apart from the obvious profit. But I will have to pave the way for success to happen with both local/international clients.

Will see how the next month will go, hopefully, things will turn around soon :)
 
D

Deleted50669

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Report:
So far no leads (international/local)
Been sending cold-emails for the past week
So far unproductive month but no worries
Some of my clients stopped responding/flakey unfortunately

It looks like there is an ongoing trust issue with international clients even though I worked on international projects. So my plan for next month is to focus local leads and go from there. I will be fully honest and seriously it looks like it's going to take a lot of work up front and I have to work locally even if it's not as profitable for the time being. I will be still sending emails in the previous niches but I don't know if I can pass the trust barrier at the moment.

The reason I was so insisted on international clients is that there is like an economic crisis going on here in my country and most people are not foresighted/don't know the value of a good website apart from the obvious profit. But I will have to pave the way for success to happen with both local/international clients.

Will see how the next month will go, hopefully, things will turn around soon :)

Do you have a presence on site like Medium? Being able to point to expertise / contributions to the coding community will help build that trust. The few times I've consulted developers with questions I found them through Medium articles.
 
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Maxboost

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Report:
So far no leads (international/local)
Been sending cold-emails for the past week
So far unproductive month but no worries
Some of my clients stopped responding/flakey unfortunately

It looks like there is an ongoing trust issue with international clients even though I worked on international projects. So my plan for next month is to focus local leads and go from there. I will be fully honest and seriously it looks like it's going to take a lot of work up front and I have to work locally even if it's not as profitable for the time being. I will be still sending emails in the previous niches but I don't know if I can pass the trust barrier at the moment.

The reason I was so insisted on international clients is that there is like an economic crisis going on here in my country and most people are not foresighted/don't know the value of a good website apart from the obvious profit. But I will have to pave the way for success to happen with both local/international clients.

Will see how the next month will go, hopefully, things will turn around soon :)

Do it for free since you have no portfolio. Don't sell websites, sell results.

You're doomed to fail if you don't understand this.

Provide results for a small to medium sized business then sell those results to the entire industry.
 

Zarar

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Sep 11, 2018
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Do it for free since you have no portfolio. Don't sell websites, sell results.

You're doomed to fail if you don't understand this.

Provide results for a small to medium sized business then sell those results to the entire industry.
Yes, I agree with you on that I will redirect my efforts to strengthen the portfolio this month
 

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