Helping people with websites

[GoranS]

Hello everyone,

I'm Goran, 23 years old from Croatia.

This will be my thread documenting my progress helping people with websites and marketing.

GOAL: Get a first paying client in 90 days and quit job

Currently I'm building a shopify store for a local client for free. He sells jewelery and already has some repeat customers, we just need to get them online and setup email marketing.

Then I'll do a few more local projects with real results for portfolio and then look for clients abroad.

The end goal here is not to build an agency. Instead, I'll use this to become self employed and get some real skills and then start a more scalable business.

 

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[Speed112]

Hello everyone,

I'm Goran, 23 years old from Croatia.

This will be my thread documenting my progress helping people with websites and marketing.

GOAL: Get a first paying client in 90 days and quit job

Currently I'm building a shopify store for a local client for free. He sells jewelery and already has some repeat customers, we just need to get them online and setup email marketing.

Then I'll do a few more local projects with real results for portfolio and then look for clients abroad.

The end goal here is not to build an agency. Instead, I'll use this to become self employed and get some real skills and then start a more scalable business.

Good luck!

Hopefully, your plan works out really well.

What kind of skills are you bringing to the table (or building) that set you apart from the sea of website builders out there? Do you build websites focused on sales? Since you mentioned marketing as well.

Are you good at design? Programming? Copy? What's your personal genius?

 

[GoranS]

Good luck!

Hopefully, your plan works out really well.

What kind of skills are you bringing to the table (or building) that set you apart from the sea of website builders out there? Do you build websites focused on sales? Since you mentioned marketing as well.

Are you good at design? Programming? Copy? What's your personal genius?

Thanks!

Yes, I plan on building websites focused on sales and real results.

I know HTML and basic CSS (enough to properly edit a theme and deliver a clean website).

Copywriting is another one. I'm no expert copywriter but sometimes I look at copy on a website and cringe. So that's another area where I can add value.

What's my personal genius? I don't know. Maybe just the ability to put myself in business owner's shoes and see things from their perspective.

For example, this client who sells jewelery... I already have a million ideas that he could use to improve his sales. Many that wouldn't cost him much. Or anything.

That's also how I plan to differentiate myself. Offering value upfront, helping people improve their websites and doing good work.

I'll definitely work on my skills and improve them, but even at this level I'm sure I can create some nice results.

Hope you follow along!

Are you doing web design too?

 

[Speed112]

Hope you follow along!

Are you doing web design too?

I will as long as you keep us posted

Yes and no. I primarily do direct response copy, but I have been working on building some websites in recent history for my own sake and the ventures I have stake in. So I've been inadvertently building that experience as well.

It's an interesting way of solving problems. Definitely high value-add if you're result-oriented.

the ability to put myself in business owner's shoes and see things from their perspective.

That's a very important skill that many people miss.

It looks like you know what you're doing, so keep at it and I'm sure it'll lead to a lot of good.

 

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[GoranS]

I will as long as you keep us posted

That's the plan.

It looks like you know what you're doing, so keep at it and I'm sure it'll lead to a lot of good

It sure doesn't feel like it, hahaha. Thanks for the support and we'll see where it goes.

 

[Christopher104]

Thanks!

Yes, I plan on building websites focused on sales and real results.

I know HTML and basic CSS (enough to properly edit a theme and deliver a clean website).

Copywriting is another one. I'm no expert copywriter but sometimes I look at copy on a website and cringe. So that's another area where I can add value.

What's my personal genius? I don't know. Maybe just the ability to put myself in business owner's shoes and see things from their perspective.

For example, this client who sells jewelery... I already have a million ideas that he could use to improve his sales. Many that wouldn't cost him much. Or anything.

That's also how I plan to differentiate myself. Offering value upfront, helping people improve their websites and doing good work.

I'll definitely work on my skills and improve them, but even at this level I'm sure I can create some nice results.

Hope you follow along!

Are you doing web design too?

I was inspired to do web design because of MJ's book. out of the seven months I've been practicing I only spent one on HTML and CSS. That's how easy it is. If that's all you know then you wont get far, even if you are using a third party library like Shopify or Wix. MJ might have gotten away with it when the internet was new, but now it isn't.

We both know MJ is an old dude. So he was working in early 2000's - 2009. websites generally looked like this:

This is something you could EASILY create with todays web standards. But look at GitHub's home page today:



Yikes! if you visit the actual page that globe spins in the background. I'm actually kind of envious.

The amount of web developers back then were few. I couldn't find an exact number but I would have to guess within the 500,000 - 1 million range.

Today that number is at 23 million.

I didn't give you this information to make you feel overwhelmed or discouraged. In fact, 99.999% of those people are probably just looking for a cushy job with google or something. My little brother has over six years of programming experience. He wants nothing to do with starting a business. That's because he wants to type scripts and get paid to do it. He doesn't want the fuss of learning how to niche or market. How to handle employees or manage books.

I'll give you another example...

My girlfriend comes from India. Indians are some of the smartest most hardworking people in the world and guess what most of them major in:

programming.

Does she want to start a business or take risk? Nope. She wants a high paying job.

This is your diamond lining. Out of those 23 million web dev's out there there only exist hundred's or thousands of web dev companies.

And don't worry about cookie cutter website builders like Shix or BadPress or TimeWastify. These platforms all profit from consumer ignorance and advertising. Have you noticed the amount of Wix advertisements you will get when looking up tutorials on YouTube? A lot. At least I did.

That's because their product can't deliver and they need to be the loudest voice on the internet to get any sort of business and scare away any potential competitors. They charge a low monthly fee because if they were to profit based on commission they would die pretty fast.

I've been learning for seven months as I've said before and I didn't really find this passion rewarding until I started learning how to program.

Yes. You will need to learn JavaScript. I'm going to be completely honest with you and might sound harsh because I'm trying to help you:

If all you know is HTML and CSS and are using third party web makers, your website will just be average at best and will not rise above consumer expectations. Here are the steps you need to take...

1- Learn what it means to be a freelance web developer. Look at this tutorial first to get a good understanding of what to do and where to go.

The Complete Freelance Web Developer Guide: How to Make Money Through Freelance Programming Jobs

It’s common for developers to go the freelance route. This is true for many who have just finished freeCodeCamp and are thinking of working for themselves as opposed to working for “the man.” It is also true for many who have developer jobs but are considering going out on their

www.freecodecamp.org

2-Next, learn the fundamentals of JavaScript.

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HOfuju3dgjE&list=PLGC-hHIh7l5vs0uDGlQEXQGQR2hW8Gcwl


go through this tutorial video by video and DONT CHERRY PICK INFORMATION! One of the biggest mistakes I made learning was jumping from topic to topic. I never learned anything valuable doing it. If you get bored, get up and go take a break. Then come back and keep going. Unlike HTML or CSS, JavaScript is good-old fashioned programming so you wont understand what the hell you're doing sometimes. just bear with it. Once you're done with this I promise things get a lot more fun.

3-Learn HTML DOM

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FIORjGvT0kk&list=PL4cUxeGkcC9gfoKa5la9dsdCNpuey2s-V&index=1


HTML and CSS code here:

GitHub - iamshaunjp/JavaScript-DOM-Tutorial at lesson-1

All course files for the JavaScript DOM Tutorials on The Net Ninja YouTube channel. - GitHub - iamshaunjp/JavaScript-DOM-Tutorial at lesson-1

github.com

Now you can actually start making JavaScript do things. Once again, don't skip videos please. Its amazing how the first video in these tutorials have lots of views but the second one has only a fraction. How can you commit to a business if you can't even commit to a few courses...

okay! that's where you can start. if you have any questions feel free to ask. good luck!

 

[GoranS]

Bought the Fox Web School course today.

After going through the intro sections I'm very satisfied with the content quality. It also gave me a confidence boost that I needed.

@Fox

 

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[GoranS]

I was inspired to do web design because of MJ's book. out of the seven months I've been practicing I only spent one on HTML and CSS. That's how easy it is. If that's all you know then you wont get far, even if you are using a third party library like Shopify or Wix. MJ might have gotten away with it when the internet was new, but now it isn't.

We both know MJ is an old dude. So he was working in early 2000's - 2009. websites generally looked like this:
View attachment 37342
This is something you could EASILY create with todays web standards. But look at GitHub's home page today:


View attachment 37343
Yikes! if you visit the actual page that globe spins in the background. I'm actually kind of envious.

The amount of web developers back then were few. I couldn't find an exact number but I would have to guess within the 500,000 - 1 million range.

Today that number is at 23 million.

I didn't give you this information to make you feel overwhelmed or discouraged. In fact, 99.999% of those people are probably just looking for a cushy job with google or something. My little brother has over six years of programming experience. He wants nothing to do with starting a business. That's because he wants to type scripts and get paid to do it. He doesn't want the fuss of learning how to niche or market. How to handle employees or manage books.

I'll give you another example...

My girlfriend comes from India. Indians are some of the smartest most hardworking people in the world and guess what most of them major in:

programming.

Does she want to start a business or take risk? Nope. She wants a high paying job.

This is your diamond lining. Out of those 23 million web dev's out there there only exist hundred's or thousands of web dev companies.

And don't worry about cookie cutter website builders like Shix or BadPress or TimeWastify. These platforms all profit from consumer ignorance and advertising. Have you noticed the amount of Wix advertisements you will get when looking up tutorials on YouTube? A lot. At least I did.

That's because their product can't deliver and they need to be the loudest voice on the internet to get any sort of business and scare away any potential competitors. They charge a low monthly fee because if they were to profit based on commission they would die pretty fast.

I've been learning for seven months as I've said before and I didn't really find this passion rewarding until I started learning how to program.

Yes. You will need to learn JavaScript. I'm going to be completely honest with you and might sound harsh because I'm trying to help you:

If all you know is HTML and CSS and are using third party web makers, your website will just be average at best and will not rise above consumer expectations. Here are the steps you need to take...

1- Learn what it means to be a freelance web developer. Look at this tutorial first to get a good understanding of what to do and where to go.

The Complete Freelance Web Developer Guide: How to Make Money Through Freelance Programming Jobs

It’s common for developers to go the freelance route. This is true for many who have just finished freeCodeCamp and are thinking of working for themselves as opposed to working for “the man.” It is also true for many who have developer jobs but are considering going out on their

www.freecodecamp.org

2-Next, learn the fundamentals of JavaScript.

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HOfuju3dgjE&list=PLGC-hHIh7l5vs0uDGlQEXQGQR2hW8Gcwl


go through this tutorial video by video and DONT CHERRY PICK INFORMATION! One of the biggest mistakes I made learning was jumping from topic to topic. I never learned anything valuable doing it. If you get bored, get up and go take a break. Then come back and keep going. Unlike HTML or CSS, JavaScript is good-old fashioned programming so you wont understand what the hell you're doing sometimes. just bear with it. Once you're done with this I promise things get a lot more fun.

3-Learn HTML DOM

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FIORjGvT0kk&list=PL4cUxeGkcC9gfoKa5la9dsdCNpuey2s-V&index=1


HTML and CSS code here:

GitHub - iamshaunjp/JavaScript-DOM-Tutorial at lesson-1

All course files for the JavaScript DOM Tutorials on The Net Ninja YouTube channel. - GitHub - iamshaunjp/JavaScript-DOM-Tutorial at lesson-1

github.com

Now you can actually start making JavaScript do things. Once again, don't skip videos please. Its amazing how the first video in these tutorials have lots of views but the second one has only a fraction. How can you commit to a business if you can't even commit to a few courses...

okay! that's where you can start. if you have any questions feel free to ask. good luck!

Thank you!

 

[holiday]

We both know MJ is an old dude

@MJ DeMarco LOL

 

[GoranS]

@MJ DeMarco

@MJ DeMarco LOL

 

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[Branko]

I was inspired to do web design because of MJ's book. out of the seven months I've been practicing I only spent one on HTML and CSS. That's how easy it is. If that's all you know then you wont get far, even if you are using a third party library like Shopify or Wix. MJ might have gotten away with it when the internet was new, but now it isn't.

We both know MJ is an old dude. So he was working in early 2000's - 2009. websites generally looked like this:
View attachment 37342
This is something you could EASILY create with todays web standards. But look at GitHub's home page today:


View attachment 37343
Yikes! if you visit the actual page that globe spins in the background. I'm actually kind of envious.

The amount of web developers back then were few. I couldn't find an exact number but I would have to guess within the 500,000 - 1 million range.

Today that number is at 23 million.

I didn't give you this information to make you feel overwhelmed or discouraged. In fact, 99.999% of those people are probably just looking for a cushy job with google or something. My little brother has over six years of programming experience. He wants nothing to do with starting a business. That's because he wants to type scripts and get paid to do it. He doesn't want the fuss of learning how to niche or market. How to handle employees or manage books.

I'll give you another example...

My girlfriend comes from India. Indians are some of the smartest most hardworking people in the world and guess what most of them major in:

programming.

Does she want to start a business or take risk? Nope. She wants a high paying job.

This is your diamond lining. Out of those 23 million web dev's out there there only exist hundred's or thousands of web dev companies.

And don't worry about cookie cutter website builders like Shix or BadPress or TimeWastify. These platforms all profit from consumer ignorance and advertising. Have you noticed the amount of Wix advertisements you will get when looking up tutorials on YouTube? A lot. At least I did.

That's because their product can't deliver and they need to be the loudest voice on the internet to get any sort of business and scare away any potential competitors. They charge a low monthly fee because if they were to profit based on commission they would die pretty fast.

I've been learning for seven months as I've said before and I didn't really find this passion rewarding until I started learning how to program.

Yes. You will need to learn JavaScript. I'm going to be completely honest with you and might sound harsh because I'm trying to help you:

If all you know is HTML and CSS and are using third party web makers, your website will just be average at best and will not rise above consumer expectations. Here are the steps you need to take...

1- Learn what it means to be a freelance web developer. Look at this tutorial first to get a good understanding of what to do and where to go.

The Complete Freelance Web Developer Guide: How to Make Money Through Freelance Programming Jobs

It’s common for developers to go the freelance route. This is true for many who have just finished freeCodeCamp and are thinking of working for themselves as opposed to working for “the man.” It is also true for many who have developer jobs but are considering going out on their

www.freecodecamp.org

2-Next, learn the fundamentals of JavaScript.

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HOfuju3dgjE&list=PLGC-hHIh7l5vs0uDGlQEXQGQR2hW8Gcwl


go through this tutorial video by video and DONT CHERRY PICK INFORMATION! One of the biggest mistakes I made learning was jumping from topic to topic. I never learned anything valuable doing it. If you get bored, get up and go take a break. Then come back and keep going. Unlike HTML or CSS, JavaScript is good-old fashioned programming so you wont understand what the hell you're doing sometimes. just bear with it. Once you're done with this I promise things get a lot more fun.

3-Learn HTML DOM

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FIORjGvT0kk&list=PL4cUxeGkcC9gfoKa5la9dsdCNpuey2s-V&index=1


HTML and CSS code here:

GitHub - iamshaunjp/JavaScript-DOM-Tutorial at lesson-1

All course files for the JavaScript DOM Tutorials on The Net Ninja YouTube channel. - GitHub - iamshaunjp/JavaScript-DOM-Tutorial at lesson-1

github.com

Now you can actually start making JavaScript do things. Once again, don't skip videos please. Its amazing how the first video in these tutorials have lots of views but the second one has only a fraction. How can you commit to a business if you can't even commit to a few courses...

okay! that's where you can start. if you have any questions feel free to ask. good luck!

Love this.