The Proven Path to a Fastlane (Still Open for 2024)

[PizzaOnTheRoof]

Ok so this might be a long post.

I've tried my hand at freelancing lead generation and just couldn't get myself to go out and sell my services. I guess I'm too scared of sales. Too scared to go talk to people about myself. I've always been an introvert and an expert procrastinator.

So now I've sort of "given up" the idea of working for myself now and am working towards getting a web development job for now. I started learning HTML and CSS, and now onto Javascript.

But after reading through this thread I'm starting to second guess that decision. I really WANT to work for myself but the hardest part is the procrastination and fear of selling (especially cold calling).

Last time I cold called someone I got sweaty and hung up the phone immediately when they answered!

I WANT to have freedom. I WANT to work for myself. I DON'T want to work a 9-5 job.

I got laid off from my previous restaurant job due to the pandemic and my family is pressuring me to get new skills to land a better job, but I don't want a job. I like being at home and doing what I want on my own time.

I don't know if this would be right for me. I tend not to put in the work necessary to see something through. At least I'm self aware enough to know that I guess.

What do you guys think?

Maybe a job is the best thing for me at this point so I don't invest time and money into a program only to ditch it later on.

Is Fox's program different? I know you have to put in the work yourself but I feel like I need some accountability unlike other courses.

</ramble>

 

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[Fox]

In 2016 when I was doing dropshipping (fairly successful at the time) and a very close friend of mine asked me what skill he should learn that will make him money for years to come, I reffered him to you.

Your first ever thread about web design had been posted at the time and I read it thoroughly. Comparing it to my ecommerce business at the time it looked like you were earning peanuts, but it looked like a safe bet for my friend and even though I was just 18, I was self-aware enough to know that having web design & sales as a skill arsenal is more valuable than testing products with Facebook ads until one ends up profiting. Also, estimating profits and the amount of stress involved in running an ecommerce business versus a web design one.. unless they're both automated it's night & day.

Plus my mentality is not chasing numbers anymore, I'm chasing freedom. If earning 100k gives me freedom and happiness while 10M doesn't allow me to breathe, then it's a no brainer.

Years later after I've recovered from severe health issues, all my ecommerce money is gone and I am more than broke. I've got an awesome girlfriend and big dreams, my friend is earning 1.5-2k a month on average which is not fastlane but way better than my situation. He's getting all his clients from referrals while I'm making cold calls and going door to door basically.. and yes, I am also selling results with web design & SEO.

Thanks for being a cool dude and giving me direction in life. I've done some.. questionable life decisions which almost cost me my stay on Earth, but I have a second chance now and I'll be starting an EXECUTION thread soon. I haven't bought your course, and I currently barely have enough to eat, but I was in your now closed facebook group for a while and even introduced myself years ago. I've learned a lot from you.

I've been following you pretty much from Day 1 and some of your students as well and I believe I have the same mentality about money as you do. I am going to eventually surpass the student in me and become the teacher. And you can be sure I'll let you know.

Hey @Simon Angel thanks for the write up. I think there is a ton of potential in all areas (including e commerce of course) but maybe at the time you had some areas yet to improve on.

I think a good approach is to always focus on key skills that can be transferred to other opportunities if something doesn't work out. Good to hear that you are doing better and that you friend is also making progress (I am curious who that is ha!).

 

[Fox]

Big thanks to @Fox and to @mjb234 (a student of this course) for helping me with my business’s website. It turn out incredible!

If you are someone who is reading this and still on edge about doing this course. Just do it! Businesses are looking for you. Real problem and need solvers. This is still a valuable service business who help local businesses like mine grow.

You will be successful with the help of this great mentor @Fox.

This a link of customer focused site that @mjb234 created.
www.pimentellandscaping.com

Thanks JP and great to see this project completed. I hope it gets your biz a bunch of new sales!

And well done to @mjb234 - he was keen to get into a project where he could deliver a ton of value and show what a website can do.

Really cool to see a strong win-win here and show the value a good website can give to a business owner. Pretty cool also since this is also one of @mjb234's first few projects.

 

[Fox]

I have zero coding skills whatsoever. Are coding skills needed? Will the be learned in the program?

Ya lots of people have joined with no coding experience and have done really well. You will just have to learn the basics so you can use templates or basic website building software.

If you want to learn more on top of that later you can but for building websites it isn’t needed. I’m still a pretty average coder. It’s much more about understanding sales (how to sell yourself and your clients services) and getting your clients actual biz results.

If you apply we can tell you on the initial call how to learn what you need/how long it will take when it comes to learning to code as fast as possible. That way you can decide for yourself before you join.

 

[mjb234]

Is it possible to work for US clients from the Netherlands? I am not sure if this is possible, that is why I am thinking of just doing a 9-5 job web dev job.

It's definitely possible, although it may not be feasible right away. I'm from the U.S. but have been living in Spain while doing the program. So far I've had three clients in the U.S. and two in Europe.

It's generally a good idea to start building sites for people you know/have some connection with, as it will be easier to gain trust. Those people will probably be ones in your country or nearby. But once you get some solid results for those people, you can use those to sell to people in the U.S.

I think as long as you aren't spammy and show them that you can really help them and their business, a lot of people in the U.S. won't care where you're from. More and more business owners are getting used to working with international companies.

Still though, if you need extra income to hold you over while you're getting started, a 9-5 job maybe isn't a bad idea. Although it doesn't have to be in web dev.

Personally, if I were to search for a full-time job that would help with this journey, it would be in sales. You don't need super-advanced web dev skills to do this (you can always outsource any advanced technical stuff). But you do need to be able to sell your services.

I think @Fox will have more to say about it, as he's done projects for people in different parts of the world.

 

[Fox]

Just a quick question, is it possible to communicate only via e-mail or text messages? I am not a native english speaker and I think my accent and mistakes will scare future customers away. I am not afraid to try though, but I just think I will not have as much success because of that.

There are a few tactics you can use to get going with this kinda situation.

First off is you start locally to build as much experience and trust as possible (in your business results, rather than you personally).

After that you can either do a few bilingual sites for businesses based in your country or in the country you wish to target. Since you speak another language this gives you a big advantage over other web designers.

I think for you it is the Netherlands so maybe a website for a shipping company or exports. Once you have this built it becomes a lot easier to reach out to 100% English speaking businesses. You will have a nice portfolio and real examples of "international" websites that contain English.

But to sell you will at some point have to have some phone calls. You can make this process easy on yourself but talking directly with a client is a great way to quickly see how to best help them and build up the best deal possible for you both.

If you want just apply and you can talk to us and see what you think. My biz partner had the same challenges learning English and few years ago but she now does amazing with sales through English. Also we got a bunch of students based in countries around the Netherlands selling in both their local language and in English.

 

[Black_Dragon43]

Would American/UK companies find it hard to trust a foreign web designer and therefore I'd struggle more compared to others?

Disclaimer: I am not (and have never been) a member of Fox's course, but I have grown to 6 figures selling marketing services to foreign markets (mainly USA, Canada, UK, Australia).

Well, do you have an accent? If you do, (for example, I have a heavy russian accent), then you may run into issues with people being initially reluctant to trust you. Nothing you can't overcome (as you can see, I've done quite well), but you do have to take it into account. It's best if you can work to eliminate the accent as much as possible, then you can come off as American or whatever. A good practice is to record yourself speaking, and then analyze where the problems are coming from your accent and try to solve them. It's hard to catch your accent while hearing yourself speak, because you're so used to it, but it's much easier when you have it on tape.

The other tip I've found helpful to bypass this issue is to simply lead with your expertise. Once your client starts to understand that you really know what you're talking about, then the accent and where you're from question becomes less relevant... so basically if you can get past the initial cold-call entrance, then it becomes less of a problem.

Anyway, if you have one, don't let your accent hold you back.

 

[Fox]

Also to add in an update here: the price of the program will be getting changed in 2021.

It will still be great value but the price is likely going up. We have grown the team a lot over the last year and we have to adjust to support that.

If you are looking to join you are going to get the best deal possible by applying before 2021.

Any questions on this hit me up via PM or just apply and talk to us directly.

Thanks.

 

[Fox]

Some March results from inside the group...



Michael just joined recently...





And nice progress here from Ben too...





Also if anyone joins from the forums and ever wants to leave a review/feedback on this thread - please do.

Also, you can leave/read reviews over here too: Fox Web School is rated "Excellent" with 4.8 / 5 on Trustpilot

Thanks!

 

[ZackerySprague]

Thanks to Fox's Web School, I earned a small victory! A family member, came to me for a small logo design adjustment. I made $50 dollars. I know it's small, but thanks to his Sales Process, I was able to make a small win!

 

[Fox]

A cool sale from this week...



to...

 

[Strategery]

Hey man, out of curiosity, hows it going for you?

Things are going well for me if you’re just asking about me lol, but I’m sure you want to know how the program worked for me. I’m probably the worst example, because I had some serious money chasing tendencies back then.

I did quit my job, and lived in Mexico for a while doing web design remotely. The program did help me to get and close leads, highest website I sold was $3k. I got distracted by other opportunities, and ultimately ended up doing something completely unrelated to web design.

If you decide to do this program, you need to commit. Don’t get distracted by other stuff, especially early on. Don’t sign up for this if you think it’s going to be easier than working a job… It’s not.

 

[farahead]

Hi Rob!

Just gotta say, ive made my first website sale just by reading your threads and taking action. Thank you!

However i still dont know what im doing, and im very interested in your course to learn more.

I just want to ask you, is the fastlane deal ending this June? 500$ off is crazy and i dont want to miss it.

Thanks alot!

 

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[Fox]

Dude, stop F*cking scamming people. No it isn't "a proven way to Fastlane".

MJ DeMarco's picture attached below:

View attachment 53638

If you keep scrolling down that same MJ newsletter email you will also find this...



Great post though.

 

[Fox]

Is this for web designers who want to grow their business or people who want to get into web design?

We have had plenty of both who have done really well.

If you already have a web design business and are stuck with sales/getting the right clients/getting big results from your projects we can definitely help.

 

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[Andy Black]

How saturated is the web design industry now? Is the value-oriented mindset ( and other cornerstones of the Fox philosophy) a big enough differentiator?

How many businesses currently want to get online, and do a good job of it so they make sales online? I’d say this pandemic has highlighted to many business owners the need for a (good!) website.

For someone who has worked with data - think analytics and machine learning - what advantages may be brought to the web design industry? Maybe analyse/project business outcomes of a new website and help with sales?

Google Analytics should be easy for you. It’s too complicated for most business owners.

If you then get into media buying and conversion rate optimisation then you’ll be confronted with a lot of data. Your advanced data analytics skills might not be necessary, but would make the normal data analysis a walk in the park.

 

[Alexio]

This year has been quite crazy so far, and a lot of people have reached out to ask me if web design is still a good option. While this is a marketplace post about my coaching program, it will also be a good general guide of the web design opportunities that exist right now.

Is web design still a profitable business in 2020?

You may be thinking, “Sure, web design was great when you started your gold thread in 2016, but what about now?”
Isn’t web design outdated now? Does anyone even still need a website and is it not oversaturated for making money?”

Maybe you have even thought about trying web design in the past, but you were never 100% sure if it was the right thing for YOU to pursue among all the different options out there. The most common questions I still get asked are:

• How hard is it to learn and make money?
• Can I learn this with no past experience?
• How much coding skills do I have to learn to sell websites?
• How fast can I sell my first project?
• Is it too late for me to compete against others doing this for years?
• Can I take this step without getting stuck in something that's NOT right for me?

If any of these questions sound familiar, then keep reading because I’ll answer all these below.

My goal is that by the time you finish reading this thread, you can definitively say either—“Yes, web design is a good option that fits with my long-term Fastlane plans”—or—“No, I can safely rule out web design for now.”

On top of this, you likely want a business to tick some important boxes:

Before we dive into the full thread, I want to quickly mention these points. With anyone on here considering making a change in 2020, these points are probably going to be on your mind. So I have covered them directly upfront:

• You are looking for a viable business model that can actually work - no playing around
• You’re looking for a business model with very little or no downside risk
• You need to be cash-flow positive in a short amount of time. You can’t wait all year to start making money.
• You don’t have the ability to invest $10,000s to buy a business or be able to order a bunch of inventory
• You don’t want to have to go back to zero and start entirely from scratch—or even worse, try to get a job
• You want something easy to run with no need for staff, an office, in-person meetings or supply chains
• You prefer to build a skill set that is transferable if needed and useful in all business areas
• You also want something that can be part of your bigger long-term Fastlane plan
• You need to be able to start right away using only the skills and resources you already have

If some or all of this sounds accurate for you, then the good news is web design fits all these criteria. I'll do my best to show you how throughout this thread.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
One last intro point to keep in mind about the web design opportunity that exists right now...

Every business on earth is suddenly desperate to sell more.

They need to quickly and correctly secure and grow their revenue streams.

And all their customers only have one main place to interact with them at the moment:

Online.
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So what does it take to succeed in web design in 2020?

For the last 3+ years, I’ve been lucky enough to help a lot of people get started with web design. Through Fox Web School, this forum, and several other places we have built a great community of people who have learned web design in a practical and profitable way.

I try not to promote too heavily on the forums, but there have been at least 100 members on here I have worked directly with. I also started the Fox Web School YouTube channel that has now over 11,000 subscribers, and we used to have a Facebook group with over 12,000 members.

This has allowed me to work with, teach and coach literally thousands of web designers. What I want to cover below are the clear trends I have noticed on why some of these people succeed, while others get stuck or fail over and over.

Using an approach that works well some students have made very fast progress with zero previous experience. (I'll give specific examples in just a moment.)

They have sold their very first website for MORE than some web designers with 5+ yrs experience have ever made from a single project.
AND the best part is these same students also do an amazing job at helping their clients to make more sales and grow their business.

It is a total win-win for everyone involved.

What I have seen is that when it comes to succeeding or failing with web design, there are a few very different strategies that people follow.

In short—when people follow the right approach, they do very well—with the wrong approach it never works.

“So what are the different approaches and why do some people succeed when others don’t?”

Let's get right into it by first looking at what NOT to do...


The 2 common approaches to web design that WON’T make you profitable (or create freedom)

Wrong Approach #1 – You focus 100% on coding and technical skills instead of learning how to be a well-rounded business person.

95%+ of web designers fail to reach freedom because they spend all the time developing technical skills. They think if they are experts at Javascript or Wordpress they will be in high demand and profitable.

They quickly find out, though, that it just doesn’t work that way. Business owners don’t think in terms of code and design — they instead keep focused on their most important business challenges or problems.

Can you imagine a business meeting where the owner tells his team, “We badly need to put more money into HTML and CSS this month”? That is never going to happen!

What matters most to a business owner is what clearly keeps their business running and growing. These are going to be areas like increasing sales, attracting new customers, or making sure everything is running efficiently.

It is these key business areas where you need to clearly show how you can help.

To succeed you have to present what you can offer in a way that matters to them. If it isn’t easy for them to see the value in what you are selling, they will put it at the bottom of the list with 1,000 other things that need to be done someday.

What gets their attention is “here is how you can get more customers” not “I could improve your old Javascript”.

The people who do best don’t focus on selling the technical stuff - instead they look for ways to create value and then make it appealing for a business owner to invest in.
Often they actually have very little or average technical skills.

While advanced coding skills can get you a job, by themselves they won’t make you an entrepreneur. Focusing too heavily on your technical skills usually leads to you just becoming another cog in someone else’s business. With a “must keep learning more code” mindset it is easy to become overqualified without any clear way to make money or sell yourself.

Unfortunately, though, a lot of web designers don’t ever see this and keep heading in the totally wrong direction. And when it fails to work, they mistakenly double down on the exact skills that are already hurting them the most... “I don’t get it - I can code amazing - why can’t I find work?”. I have got a bunch of these types of DMs all the time - it doesn’t work.

Also there are so many easy ways to make a website in 2020 with very basic coding skills and anything extra on top of that can be easily outsourced. The truth is you don’t need to be that good technically to run a profitable web design business. The real skills that make you profitable are often not technical.

(A lot of old school web designers or people who paid big money for coding degrees will disagree. BUT these same people complain they can’t get hired and there are no good clients. Business and selling skills always come first.)


Wrong Approach #2 – You focus on building beautifully-designed, custom-coded websites.

A lot of web design gurus out there will teach people that this is where the money is — spending weeks building fancy, custom-coded websites. But this approach doesn’t work well either.

First, you will end up working around the clock to make the perfect design. When you focus on selling design, you attract clients who think about how things look, rather than how well they work. You’ll have clients focused on the design of every pixel, section, and button. Many times, it means a lot of extra hours added to the project and dozens of rounds of changes.

I am sure some people on here have horror stories of these sort of projects! Design focused projects can be a nightmare.

Secondly, though, very few businesses care about design in the first place. When they don’t know what they want, they might say, “design,” but what they are really after is a solution to a deeper problem.

Your clients don’t really need elaborate custom illustrations, 3D graphics, tons of animations, and award-winning art. They don’t care much about a totally unique, fully custom website that’s nothing like a visitor has ever seen before.

What they are looking for is a real change in their business. They are secretly hoping that the fancy new design helps them get more sales, or brings in new customers. Often when you get to the core issue it was never really about design - it was something bigger they were after.

The cool thing is when you identify what really matters you can get a lot better results with much less work. There are way more effective (and easier) ways to help create sales than spending 100 hours on photoshop making custom graphics.

Of course, this doesn’t mean that visual design is useless or bad. It’s just one of the tools we can use to build great results. Just like with technical skills - it is nice to have but don’t let it be what you rely on to build your web business.

----

Where both of the above examples go wrong is the same - putting specific skills before an overall approach that works.

Business owners don’t go to sleep thinking of code or design. They are thinking about their actual business.


Web design gets (very) profitable when you start to think bigger than just code and design...

The main reason people succeed with web design is by shifting their mindset to what really matters.
Instead of focusing on code or design they start to look at things from the business owners perspective.

These web designers only focus 20% of their time on learning technical skills and design, but the other 80% on mastering how to use and market those skills.
Many are not the “best” coders or designers, but they understand how to make their skills extremely valuable in the marketplace.

They realize that running a web design business has very little to do with technical skills or your design ability.

>>> It is all about creative problem solving and adding value. <<<

To give some examples, here are a few of the skills you can quickly develop to be running a profitable web design business in a short amount of time:

1) Problem Solving​

Learn to see the overall situation and come up with creative solutions that make a difference. This is like the story of the expert who charged $20,000 for fixing one small part in a large factory. He wasn’t paid for the work involved - it was for knowing the right solution​

​

2) Creating Value​

This forum knows that money always flows towards value. When you learn to see web design as just a tool to be used to help a business solve their big problems and achieve their big goals, you can quickly increase your prices by 2, 5, 10 or more times. Business owners will always pay well for websites that offer real value.​

​

3) Master Selling​

Businesses need cashflow to survive. And every business is interested in either securing their cashflow or growing it. Most likely both. So knowing how to build a website that helps with sales is a super valuable and profitable skillset. (And knowing how to sell helps you get more bigger and better web design deals, too).​

​

4) Communicating and Messaging​

Along with selling, businesses also need a lot of help making sure they have the right message that reaches the right people. You become extremely valuable when you can help create and improve their messaging. This skill requires you to identify customer needs and understand the marketplace.​

​

5) Mindset and Self-Management​

This is an easy area to work on that gives you a massive boost over the competition. Most web designers struggle with managing themselves and their business. Being able to do both means you can make rapid progress and also see gains in other areas of your life too.​

​

6) Combining Simple Skills​

Scott Adams (creator of the Dilbert comic) calls this ‘Talent Stacking’. It is about combining several skills to create massive value. When you have basic proficiency in a bunch of different areas like web design, copywriting, email marketing and so on you start to open a lot of very profitable opportunities for yourself.​

How many of these require a degree in computer science or a certificate from a fancy design school? None.

But these are the sort of skills that put you at the top of the marketplace. They are what make you profitable and in demand. If you look at any success thread on this forum you are going to see the people who succeeded have used a combination (or all) or these skills.

These types of skills are where you need to be focused to succeed. They are what will set you up for long term success as both a web designer but also in the bigger picture as an entrepreneur.

With that in mind let’s look at how you can get started with learning and developing these core business skills...


A realistic plan to succeed at web design in the short, medium, and long term

There are three main stages you will progress through in your web design journey. These stages also show why web design is such a great way to learn the key skills we talked about above and to prepare for your future Fastlane ventures.

***I’ve included student case studies from people on this forum to show you what to expect at each stage. If you are one of the people (or another student) then feel free to add in more details below if you wish.***


The first stage: Getting started

This is where most people are going to be when they first join the program. You will either have just started learning the basics of code or will have some coding skills but struggle with sales.

The first goal here is to change how you view web design and to focus on what matters most to a business owner. When you can see why they would buy, you can start to align what you are selling with what they want. This makes it a lot easier to sell, but it also means that what they hire you for is much more valuable for them, too. It is 100% win-win.

The second goal is to help develop the best mindset possible for business (and life). After hundreds of emails, facebook messages, and interactions with students, I’ve noticed that mindset is one of the biggest things that holds most people back. So we put a fair amount of focus on helping you to overcome mindset issues such as self doubt, procrastination, perfectionism or poor self-management.

In around 3 months, our students will typically land their first $1,000 project. Getting that first win under your belt feels great and creates a ton of momentum! While this isn’t life-changing money, it’s still a great first milestone, and it helps to validate the fact that you’re building a solid foundation of skills. You’re learning how to sell, how to close deals, and how to manage a project. You’re changing the way you see business. You’re beginning to help others and be in demand.

A good example of this is @Alfie

Alfi started just a few months ago having never coded before. He recently moved to Norway from Indonesia, so he had a few challenges with starting a new business. Once he joined, we got him going in the right direction, and he ended up closing his first deal for 2,000 euros for a coaching business.

The cool thing is that even though it was his first project, he got amazing results for his client and ended up creating a great sales system for both the online and offline part of their business. The owner was very pleased, and Alfi now has a great example project to use to land even bigger future projects.

Another example is @Isaac Oh

Isaac started a few months back and has gone from a $500 project to a $2,500 project to just recently enjoying his first month over $10,000. Keep in mind he only just started to learn code when he joined, too. This isn’t about just charging massive prices either - his clients are getting massive value and huge results from his websites.

Now keep in mind these are some of our top student results, but it goes to show what is possible within just a few months with minimal technical skills, just by working on the right steps in the right order, addressing your mindset and approach, and having the support to keep you on track.


Medium Term (2-3 years):

This is where you start to focus on stabilizing your income and building a solid base of clients and referrals. While we all love a big payday project, to succeed long-term, you also want to build that reliable base of consistent cash flow.

So this stage is all about building the right relationships, helping businesses in a big way, and being seen as more of a trusted advisor than a freelancer.

The cool thing is that as you build more trust with each new client, you also get to learn a lot about how successful businesses grow and thrive. You’ll be getting an inside look at how their businesses run and developing real, transferable skills. On some projects you can get dozens of hours working directly alongside seasoned business owners.

This experience helps with a lot more than just web design. It can be very hard to get this kind of insight elsewhere but with web design, business owners share openly with you as you work together. You get a lot of exposure to what makes a business successful, what creates sales, and what keeps customers coming back. It’s like a free mini MBA of sorts.

To give a few examples of people at this stage who started with just making websites and now have mastered several very valuable Fastlane skills…

A great example of this is @GuitarManDan . You probably have already seen his own great gold progress thread on here but I will quickly cover his progress....

Dan started his web design business in 2018 using our previous course and had a very decent year or two. However, he wanted to take things to the next level and didn’t want to get complacent. He joined the Fox Sales Legends program around midsummer last year.

Since joining he has made even more progress and along with some big website sales he has done really well with building ongoing recurring revenue too. To give just one example he landed a $25,000 sale alone was from a cold email technique that I shared in the course (but Dan gets all the credit for taking tons of consistent action!).

Now while the big sales are cool the great thing is Dan has built an amazing (and highly valuable) skillset that is a great foundation for moving to more Fastlane business ventures. He now has the cashflow, experience, confidence and mindset that I am sure will lead to a ton of future success.

I asked for a direct quote (maybe he can add more below) and he was nice enough to say: “I couldn't have done it without the help and support of this community. It helps me stay accountable to myself and always push to improve each and every day.”


Long-term (3-5 years)

I hinted at this with Dan's story, but our end goal with this approach to web design is much bigger than just making some websites. This last stage is really what separates our school from other courses.

As much as we love web design (and we do!), we always see it more of a launching pad than an end destination.
Our end goal is always for our students to use their web design experience to go on to even bigger and better things.

Web design is a great way to get profitable and learn a bunch of skills, but it does have some limitations too. Once your income gets to around $100,000, you will be basically working a fulltime job, either doing the projects yourself or outsourcing to others.

This is a great first goal for someone who is struggling right now, but the better goal is that once you are profitable you start also transitioning from web design to launching an even bigger and better business.

If you think about any successful Fastlane business, you are going to need a certain set of skills. You will need to learn how to find unfulfilled needs in the marketplace, how to create a valuable product or service, how to sell that service, how to market and scale your business, and so on.

Once you have those skills, you’ll probably want to move on to something bigger than web design. It is a natural next stage, and one we have built into the way we teach from the very beginning. We have done our job right when you get to a stage where you are ready to use what you have learned (and your cash flow from projects) to reach for that next level.

A good example of this is @MJ DeMarco himself. Now obviously MJ isn’t a student or has taken any of my training but if you look back at MJ’s story (before his big successes) he first started paying his bills and improving his skills through web design work...

“I aggressively marketed my website. I sent out emails. Cold-called. Mailed letters. I learned search engine optimization (SEO). Because I couldn’t afford books, I visited the Phoenix library daily and persisted to read about Internet programming languages. I improved my website, learned about graphics and copywriting. Anything that could help me, I consumed.

Then one day I had a breakthrough; I received a call from a company in Kansas who raved about my website service and wanted me to design their website. Sure. I obliged with a price of $400. They thought the price was a steal and within 24 hours, I built the company their website.

I was ecstatic. In 24 hours, I had most of the rent payment. Then ironically, not 24 hours later, I received another call from a company in New York asking for the same thing… a new website. I designed theirs for $600 and it took me two days to complete. I had another rent payment!

 Now, I know this isn’t a lot of money, but from poverty to $1000 in three days felt like winning the fifty million dollar Powerball.

My first few months in Phoenix, I gained traction and survived on my own for the first time in my life. No flower boy. No bus boy. No pizza delivery. No sponging off mom. I was purely self-employed! I was momentous acceleration, a wind at my back that foreshadowed a directional change into a new universe of wealth generation.’

and...

“I took a contented pause thankful of my recent move and glanced at my bank balance. It was more than $5,000 and it was more money than I ever knew. Now I realize that $5K is not a lot of money, basically it is bankrupt. However at that moment in my life, it meant not having to get a job for at least another year. You see, that $5,000 bought me one year of freedom. Freedom to pursue success. Freedom to do what was necessary. Freedom to pursue my dream. For the next year, I was guaranteed to own every hour of my life.”

Links:
https://www.mjdemarco.com/my-story/
https://www.thefastlaneforum.com/community/threads/one-year-of-flf.56628/#post-417628 (post #17)

This is a great example of starting web design in the best way possible - with a focus on using it to go much further when the time is right. And I fully agree with MJ here and think web design is NOT a great long term option. The best web designers are always people who used web design to go on to do something much bigger! That is how you make it truly Fastlane.

But for someone on here right now without a solid business plan, who doesn’t have a ton of money in the bank to invest, and who might be struggling with core business abilities such as mindset or sales, then web design can be a perfect option to get you to where you want to be long term.


What are the key ingredients to make Web Design work for me?

The mistake I have seen over and over is people who have the best of intentions, but head completely down the wrong road. They focus on developing the wrong skills, working with the wrong type of clients, and having no idea how to increase their sales or results.

What can seem like progress at first, can quickly turn into a dead end. They end up working for free or cheap for months on end, yet things are still not improving. They are no closer to big sales or any real success.

Web design is definitely not an area where hard work is necessarily going to pay off - you have to think strategically.

Where is a good place to start?

Get a good game plan. No matter how low your current skills or experience might seem, with a solid plan to follow you can make way faster progress than the other 90% of people going in circles. With a smart approach, one or two projects done the right way will add up very fast.

Along with that surround yourself with the people who are already getting good results and learn from them. You don’t need to reinvent the wheel. The people who run successful web design businesses use the same effective tactics over and over again. This is where a coach or mentor is going to be key. You might think I am biased (since I also coach) but I invested a lot in coaching when I first started. I still do.

On top of this it's crucial to have a solid support system to keep you motivated and focused. Working as a web designer can be disastrous if you are alone. By being a part of a group of like minded peers though you can keep yourself accountable while making a ton of personal and business progress. You got to have a strong network.

These core ingredients to web design success is why we have structured Fox Web School the way we have. We saw what was needed and transitioned from video courses and “do it alone” content to building a school that provides you all of what you need to succeed.


What Fox Web School Can Offer

Nobody needs another generic course that gets you average results. There are plenty of these, and they churn out people who will never make more than a few $100 for a website.

What you need is the right coaching and blueprint (along with a proper community) for creating real success. You want a place to develop the right skills in the right order - and stay motivated and enjoy wins in the process.

That is exactly what you get with us at Fox Web School.

We focus on helping you master valuable skills that make a difference.

In fact over the last year we already put this to the test. We worked with a great core group of students from this forum and elsewhere and put all of this into practice.

We called it the “Fox Sales Legends” program and it was built with a specific end goal of first getting profitable with web design and then using web design to go even bigger.

Some of these students are the people mentioned above, but there are many others too. The program has had a lot of success stories over the past year and we now have a very solid core community.

Based off what was proven to work the best from the last year of the program we now have a detailed structure for 2020 to take you through the following stages:

a) Stage one - Get Going​

1. You’ll learn what makes a website high value, how to sell a website, and how to prospect for initial projects.
2. After that, there will be an example of an actual website project.
3. The goal of this stage is to get you to land your first paying customer ($1,000 or more).
4. By the end, students will be able to sell consistently and be ready to increase their profits.

b) Stage two - Getting Profitable​

1. This section of the course will show you how to go from $1,000 projects to $10,000 plus project/monthly income.
2. You’ll learn more advanced selling, prospecting, proposals, and how to solve even bigger business problems.
3. You’ll also get better at skills like negotiating, networking, communication, workflow, and proposals.

c) Stage three - Get Growing​

1. In this final section, you’ll figure out how to use your combined web experience, skills, and cashflow to get into creating your own business.
2. We will look at finding ideas, ways to add value, how to start a new business, and how to get your first customer.
3. The goal of this stage is to help you create a new “Fastlane” style business that can cover your living and lifestyle costs for now while still continuing to grow further.

(This is a quick overview - below we cover how to get the full details if you wish)

Also at the risk of repeating myself, getting profitable is NOT about technical skills - it is primarily about mindset and approach.
Skills are a part of the solution yes, but they come after you know what needs to be done and why.


Also, you get access to our amazing community...

Weekly live calls

Every week, we have a group call where you can share your progress, ask questions, and speed up your learning pace. These 90 minute video calls are a great place to interact and take advantage of the “hive mind” approach to problem solving. I personally run each one and you’ll also get detailed feedback, advice and coaching on each call.

Directly from taking part in the weekly group calls, a lot of our students have had massive breakthroughs and gotten great results.

Membership to the private Fox Sales Legends Facebook group

You’ll also get full access to our private Facebook group, where you can interact with your fellow students. You all know what a private Facebook group is, but this one is actually active (ha!) with very detailed information and feedback.

I have a deal with the students - tag me in any post and we will get it solved. It is pretty common to see whole sale pitches and proposals get created and then successfully closed in the facebook group each week. If you join and have any issue with web design, your business, motivation, mindset etc - we are always in the FB group ready to help.

Private Accountability Slack Group

A lot of students asked for this and we put together a great system to make it happen. Here’s how it works: each student, if they wish, gets their own private accountability group with around 5/6 other students. We keep it tight so you can form a close bond and keep each other moving forward. If you are on board for this, we have a “no one gets left behind” policy!

These groups are really cool to experience - everyone is super committed and wants to help each other overcome obstacles, keep themselves accountable, and celebrate each other’s wins.

These groups have been proven to be an incredibly supportive environment that keeps you focused and moving forward. Participating in a group also helps you not to stray too far off track and take daily action. While I miss not being involved in some of the big sales, it is cool to hear the stories of when a mastermind managed to tackle a big challenge together!

>>> If you are interested click here and take a quick quiz to see if you would be a good fit to join <<<


What you need to be able to join…

Compared to a lot of other coaching programs, and the fact we work with you for a full year, our cost to join is reasonable. We run a tight operation though, and do require a few things from you to make sure it makes sense to work together:

- willingness to commit and stick with a proven plan
- a few hours of time each week to learn and apply what we teach you
- some savings or cash flow to cover your cost of living as you learn the business
- you want guidance and coaching to help you take the shortcuts and avoid the long detours


But on the other hand here are some things that you don’t need to join:

- advanced or even intermediate coding and programming skills
- prior business experience - we teach you business skills from scratch
- a ton of free time - we get that you have a life and maybe a job to support yourself before the biz takes off
- a personal website, business cards etc. - there are better ways to get started without wasting time
- living in an English-speaking country (we have students from around the world, including Europe, South America and Asia)
- a perfect mindset - it’s ok if you have some fear and doubts with these types of things. That’s what we’re here for!

We aren’t miracle workers, but if you are willing to apply yourself and have the minimal resource to make this possible this is a realistic option to start learning web design the right way. If you are a good fit we will be doing everything we can to make sure you succeed.


There’s never been a better time to join…

The Fox Sales Legends program of course isn’t the only way to jumpstart your web design business but we do think it is the best way:

• You could lose $200k and 4+ years of your life getting a degree in computer science or graphic design—only to be stuck working a job for someone else.
• You could go through a coding boot camp ($10-25k) and get a foundational knowledge of how to build websites—only to still be stuck working for someone else at the end of the program.
• You could take dozens of cheaper courses and programs that focus on coding and design. You end up skilled in one area but again without any clear consistent way to make money.
• You could try “google” your own way. We get a lot of students who join after doing this for months and years. They often get badly stuck and have to spend even more time unlearning bad approaches and “work for cheap” mindsets.

What all of these approaches also miss is a real community who actually cares that you succeed and a system in place to make sure you stay on track.
Plus a coach who actually cares if you succeed or not.

The bottom line is that joining Fox Sales Legends is super reasonable with an easy way to make back your investment:
- You can join for only $1995 as a one-time payment (one year full access)
- Or you can enroll on the payment plan for only $900 upfront, followed by 11 monthly payments of $150

Over a whole year of working together either option is easy to offset with a few smaller projects.
Even just one decent project will cover the full cost of the program and many manage to do this within the first few months.

>>> If you want to know more - just click here to take a quick quiz that lets us know you’re interested <<<


******
The current C0VlD-19 situation and why it is actually a great time to start web design

It’s no secret that the current situation at the moment is a challenge for all businesses. The beauty of web design is that you can do it from home, with no possible issues from supply chains, in person meetings, shipping, staff, etc.

At the same time, a lot of businesses are now desperate for problem solvers just like you to help them secure and grow their online sales and systems while making the whole business more efficient. This is the exact approach that we have always focused on at Fox Web School. So with the trend going more and more in that direction, it means a lot of new opportunities.

While some businesses will cut back in other areas, they are often looking for ways to invest in a clear solution to improve their cash flow and bring in more customers or clients. A lot of our current students have quickly adjusted and are back on track with new sales or never had many problems in the first place.

So while things are changing a lot at the moment, I think right now there are a ton of opportunities to be helping businesses with all of their online systems and with creating new sales.


If all this sounds good to you, here’s how to join

As much as we’d like to accept everyone into the Fox Sales Legends, we are really focused on making sure we only let in people we know we can help in a big way. I haven’t even promoted this program on my Youtube channel yet cause I knew this forum was the best group of people to start with.

Also if you do reach out and we don’t think that we can help you - that is 100% fine. We don’t do any pushy sales stuff or fake scarcity tactics. We will gladly point you to other resources which are a better fit for now and we can keep in touch.

So that’s why there’s no checkout page or “buy now” link. We take the time to get to know each new possible student first before we offer them the chance to join. We work closely with our students for a full year so it matters to us that they want to succeed as much as we want to help them.

>>> To apply for the Fox Sales Legends, please click here to fill a quick quiz <<<


You’ll be taken to a short questionnaire where you’ll put in some basic information. This helps us decide what the next best step is and how we can help you or guide you in the right direction.

If you are a good fit for the Fox Sales Legends, I can’t wait to work with you and see you succeed along with the current students.


>>> Yes, I want in! Click here to apply for the Fox Sales Legends mentorship program <<<

Thanks,

- Rob

P.S. In this time of worldwide economic uncertainty, you need skills that will get you paid. With the Fox Sales Legends program, web design is really just a useful vehicle to help you develop a full range of overall business skills.

No matter what your long term plan, or how big your business or lifestyle goals, you’ll always need to know how to sell, get clients, solve problems, and keep a good business mindset.

You get all that in the Fox Sales Legends program (while also developing the useful skill of web development). So I hope you’ll decide to apply. Here is the link again to book a call…

>>>>> Full link: Apply for the Fox Sales Legends mentorship program <<<<<

I NEED to print that
is really long
and I need to study every single word

thank you from Italy

 

[Jeff Noel]

After going through this thread, I believe the biggest fear of people on the fence is all about the following:

But if you can't get hired, your skill is useless.

And if there's one thing I'm sure of, it's that @Fox is the man to help you sell, especially in web design. People who have been around long enough know that Fox transpires confidence and motivation.

This bundle is a no brainer for people interested in freedom through a web design business.

 

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[Andy Black]

I want to make sure before I dive in

Absolutely, do your due diligence. Also check it’s a good fit for you personally.

I’d argue that you can’t be sure of anything before you start. But that’s often why folks put out lots of free content so you can see if it will be a good fit for you before you dive in.

 

[Fox]

Have you sold a web design company for your money system target value?

This sounds like a "paradox of practice" to me and MJ instructs us not to take advice from "gurus who preach one roadmap while getting rich using another." (Fastlane guidelines #12).

Check the first post - this is covered.

We aren't selling anything as a final destination - web design is one way to get going with learning the skills and mindsets needed to then go bigger with other ventures.

 

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[Fox]

Curious question guys. Don't be offended. Are American's usually totally ignorant or blind when it comes to website design? I noticed it before, and I just got it confirmed again.

When I was doing FB Ads in the Fitness Niche, I was searching around a lot to find clients in the US and in my European home country. What struck me was that the US websites were SO ugly compared to their European counterparts.

Today I decided to look into another niche and started checking out websites. Checked 100 websites for my European country, and found a maximum of 2-3 sites that I think could be improved. So quickly realized that the market is probably not there.

Then I decided to check same kind of companies in the US, and I am absolutely shocked by the result. From 100 companies I checked, 27 (!) websites were SO, SO bad. Some like they were build before computers were even invented, none of these 27 were responsive, the colours just hideous and I think around 5 of these sites didn't even work. And these are active companies with a good amount of employees in a niche where you often have to look presentable.

@Fox maybe you have noticed the same? This just proves that the market in the US is huuuuuuuuge, and I might even put my other projects on hold just to pursue this thing, haha.

Ya it isn't hard to find sites in massive niches in the states/Canada that look awful.
And you are right - Europe does seem to have a better design standard overall.

---

As for gauging old sites my test is does this site sell?
I don't actually care too much if a deign is new or not. I want to see if it's persuasive.

Sometimes older sites can still do very well with sales cause they say the right things or have such a clear CTA. On the flip side some modern sites suck for conversion although they look super fancy.

So ya there are a lot of older trash sites but the best test is imagining you are an ideal customer of theirs and trying feeling if the site would get you to contact them or go to someone else.

 

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[Fox]

Had @Johnny boy on the guest call just now. Was a lot of fun and he gave some hard hitting advice.

Thanks Johnny.

If anyone else is interested in doing a guest call shoot me a PM.

 

[Fox]

I haven't been so active on this thread lately so I'll try to jump in with some updates every 1-2 weeks...

So first off is the extra courses we have added in over the last while - a few people asked about these and I don't think it was mentioned so well (so some people have missed it).




^ These are all really solid and it's been cool to have these as a bonus.
There are plans to add in some more over the next few months also.

Next up is some template ideas we have been working on.
These are to help people who join to have their first few website projects up and running as soon as possible.

This is one we are nearly finished that will be available for free to students once its ready to go...

FWS Template

fws-template.webflow.io

^ This one for example can be quickly customized to set up as your own personal profile website.
Next, we are going to start adding in templates for client websites too. So easy to get those first few big results.

Along with that I just want to add in a few recent student results...

 

[Andy Black]

So I don't want any student getting stuck with the title of "web designer" or "web developer".

The program doesn't teach code or design either - this can be learned anywhere for cheap or free.

We focus on how to work with businesses and solve problems - through web design.

Then we add in a bunch of other skills like copywriting, SEO, ads, systems, sales etc.

I would say the ideal approach is something like:
- first 6-12 months focus on getting a solid groundwork of basic skills and selling some websites
- then try add in some extra services like SEO / ads / marketing to build up monthly reoccurring revenue too
- and then after that (10-12 months) start using what you are learning (plus cashflow) to build a bigger more Fastlane business

"I think my main concern at the moment is that with web dev I'll just create another job for myself"

People get stuck in a job cause they only have one skill - they are limited as being a cog in a machine.
I really aim with the program to give enough skills to run the whole machine (start your own proper business).

Are there other ways to start in business? Ya, of course
But is this a solid way to start with a bunch of useful skills for someone new to the game? Yes, massively

MJ did a great video about starting with a skill:

GOLD! - HOT! - From Flat-Broke to Financial Freedom: How to Get Started When You Have No Money

I see this question a lot here, and posted in a lot of introductions. How do I get started when I have no money and no skills? I made a video to answer... Also there's an update on my next book near the end of the vid! Enjoy, and if you're broke with no skills, I hope it helps you!

www.thefastlaneforum.com

 

[Fox]

Hey Fox,

just watched some of your lessons and find this is a very hands-on and reliable approach.

Just to get it right: this is basically seen as a step towards fastlane? Or can you do this business fastlane at some point in the future as well (as in: not being limited by the amount of time available)?

Looking forward to your feedback.

Hey @PhilKowalski I also answered this in the other thread too, but I will copy it in here:

---

“Is Web Design Fastlane?”

I am going to kick this off by asking this question, which is one I get quite a bit.

First, I would say to check out this video from @MJ DeMarco himself…

And then I am quoting MJ here from that video...

MJ DeMarco:
As some of you might know, I got my start freelancing, I learned web skills, HTML, JavaScript, CSS, - the usual stuff. And that's what really prompted me or gave me the ability to actually fund other ventures and other things that I wanted to do. So it was kind of like the foundational job that allowed me to move into a more a Fastlane approach.

That time period [freelancing] was about probably about eight months - I did freelancing / developed the websites for various transportation companies. And in that process, it was able to learn more skills and interactive features and functions. And that allowed me to actually programme my own business system.

So I ran for about 10 years, made a tonne of money doing that and sold it a couple times, and then kind of semi-retired as an author started writing books, which I did not want to publish with a publisher. So I started my own publishing company, which has done remarkably well, more so than I had ever expected. Freelancing has been definitely instrumental in getting me started.

And surprisingly, it hasn't changed a lot. I still see that as a great opportunity, a great Launchpad into bigger and better things. I mean, anytime you go on the internet, and you see a website that's poorly designed, especially in local trades, local industries, you know, local dentists, local electricians, and whatnot, you just see some really poorly designed websites.

So if you can bring those companies into the current age, you know, with perhaps reviews and online scheduling, (and a lot of it's just plug and play stuff) then you can really charge your premium to companies that simply are still living in the dark ages and haven't brought their presence up to speed.
Click to expand...

My thoughts would also line up with this approach.

Web design is just a skill, and really what will make it Fastlane for you or not is what you do with it.
If you decide to learn web design and then just do freelancing forever, then, of course, it will not be Fastlane.

But if you are looking for a place to start right now and learn a lot of foundational Fastlane skills, then it can be a great place to start. You will learn to sell, market, business systems, copywriting, email marketing, SEO, ads, code and design, automation, building a team, how to get clients and so on.

A better way to look at it is "can a Fastlane business benefit from good online web design skills?".
And the answer to that is yes.

95%+ of businesses have a large need for effective online sales. marketing, and systems - making web design a good starter service to sell. PLUS it's a very handy skill to have later when building your own bigger businesses.

I would also say that very little is needed to get started. It is basically a laptop and an internet connection.
But... come in with a plan to use this to go bigger as soon as you can. The goal is NOT to be freelancing forever.

So if you are already prepared to build a full-on proper Fastlane business, then it's probably not needed.
But if you are looking for a way right now to boost your skills, cash flow, and momentum - it could be a great choice.

 

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[Fox]

He recently announced that he got married in his group. That's why he was busy.

Thanks guys ha! But I am not married just yet - I have been in Denmark / Sweden trying to get the paperwork all sorted out. It's a long story but my gf is Russian and it won't be possible to get legally married elsewhere in Europe. So we will get legally married this week and then have the full wedding sometime next year.

 

[moustamid]

Best investment I made for my Freelance Business . Rob and the community provide a valuable mentoring program that takes you to the next level .
if you are serios about your business , getting a lifetime support system from experts in no brainer , I already got my investment back on my first month of enrolment .

 

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[Fox]

Cool recent win...

 

[SpinnerRedPenny]

Nah, it is only Fb and live the calls.

Copy all! Thanks for the response.

 

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[luminis_]

Just wanted to give a quick testimonial for anyone on the fence (I wasn't asked to write this):

I joined @Fox's program at the beginning of the year and it was honestly one of the best investments I've ever made. Aside from the actual web design lessons that he teaches, the business FUNDAMENTALS are what truly set it apart from my experience.

A website is simply a tool to solve a singular or complex business problem, and the way Fox explains this in depth was a "lightbulb" moment for me. His Sales module was also brilliant and solidified strong principles to close a deal.

The community is also amazing - the Facebook Group was an great resource and I never hesitated to ask questions because everyone was so welcoming and helpful.

Lastly, the fact that this program continues to evolve and add "mini-courses" is a great bonus. In fact, the Agency Mini Course inspired me to take the skills from this program and start my own agency from scratch! While its a different business model, the principles have carried on from the program.

If you're a young entrepreneur looking to acquire strong fundamentals or an experienced one looking to start an in-demand business (remember, we're selling business solutions not websites), then I would HIGHLY recommend this program.

If you're on the fence, pull the trigger!