(How to) Build THAT Trust? - Web Design Outreach

[UnderdogStrategy]

Hello guys,

I've been trying to land some clients for a while now, but with no success (something small on Upwork, but that's not the direction i want to take).

I tried cold emailing people but it has been a disaster (insults, harsh replies that turned me down for weeks).
Some guy told me he was getting tons of work simply outreaching people on instagram/facebook and directly asking if they needed a website.
I've tried that as well but didn't work out for me.

I realized i wasn't providing any value.
I was just a random anonymous stranger trying desperately to sell something. Like a beggar.
Didn't like that feeling.

And i realized it's all about TRUST.
People buy if they trust.

Shifting my mindset towards the importance of trust, i'm trying to find a strategy for outreaching that makes sense.
I don't have real case studies yet, nor any big proof or results to show off.

Had two ideas so far:
1. Video introduction on my site - maybe some "let's build a website together" content on youtube too.
I don't like cameras, i'm not a good communicator but i guess this can level up the Trust.

2. Upfront value, creating a report with all is below

• analysis of the demand of their services(keyword research with geo modifiers basically "service+location" or "problem+location")
• picking the top 3 players online and show how much are they getting investing in a digital marketing strategy
• put together 3 mock ups, all within the industry's standards but each with a difference style/feel (one mock up will lead to a binary decision, with 3 the probability to really feel one like "theirs" is much higher)

Then just making a list of people with a not well positioned/designed website or people who don't have a site at all and try to open a conversation based on the data above.

I don't really know what to do more than that.
I know usually people start leveraging their network, which i tried, but with 0 results.

Have you tried something similar? What did work out for you?

Thanks!

 

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[MTF]

@Fox.

Also, check out this book:
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08XZP5PPG/?tag=tff-amazonparser-20

 

[UnderdogStrategy]

@Fox.

Also, check out this book:
Amazon.com: $1,000,000 Web Designer Guide: A Practical Guide for Wealth and Freedom as an Online Freelancer eBook: O'Rourke, Rob Anthony: Kindle Store

Didn't know he published a book, thanks for the recommendation, I'll check it out!

 

[Fox]

Hello guys,

I've been trying to land some clients for a while now, but with no success (something small on Upwork, but that's not the direction i want to take).

I tried cold emailing people but it has been a disaster (insults, harsh replies that turned me down for weeks).
Some guy told me he was getting tons of work simply outreaching people on instagram/facebook and directly asking if they needed a website.
I've tried that as well but didn't work out for me.

I realized i wasn't providing any value.
I was just a random anonymous stranger trying desperately to sell something. Like a beggar.
Didn't like that feeling.

And i realized it's all about TRUST.
People buy if they trust.

Shifting my mindset towards the importance of trust, i'm trying to find a strategy for outreaching that makes sense.
I don't have real case studies yet, nor any big proof or results to show off.

Had two ideas so far:
1. Video introduction on my site - maybe some "let's build a website together" content on youtube too.
I don't like cameras, i'm not a good communicator but i guess this can level up the Trust.

2. Upfront value, creating a report with all is below

• analysis of the demand of their services(keyword research with geo modifiers basically "service+location" or "problem+location")
• picking the top 3 players online and show how much are they getting investing in a digital marketing strategy
• put together 3 mock ups, all within the industry's standards but each with a difference style/feel (one mock up will lead to a binary decision, with 3 the probability to really feel one like "theirs" is much higher)

Then just making a list of people with a not well positioned/designed website or people who don't have a site at all and try to open a conversation based on the data above.

I don't really know what to do more than that.
I know usually people start leveraging their network, which i tried, but with 0 results.

Have you tried something similar? What did work out for you?

Thanks!

Hey you are already well on the way to making this work.

At the start lots of top people recommend X method works for them but that is because they got a lot of trust/experience/past results.

But when you first start you don't have those things so the same methods don't work (till later).

Before people are likely to trust you as a business focus on who is likely to trust you as a person.

- people on your area
- people in your network
- friends, family, friends or friends
- network groups / forums / fb groups
and so on

Do a few projects with this group of people first and focus on people with a real business and a real problem.
Once you solve some problems you now have results and something sellable to other businesses.

Then you can start using more "normal" prospecting methods.

 

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[UnderdogStrategy]

I want to say lots of things about the book (which i read in one go yesterday) but I'll write them in its own thread.

Just want to say here it helped me diving deeper into the Trust problem (which is deeply addressed in the book) and I might have had a good insight.

I can't leverage my network, which I tried, but no family, no "social media" contacts, not even my friends helped me out (this can open a sad topic, but who cares in the end).

It might not be as powerful as a personal reference, but there are other ways to build some initial trust, like having something in common.
As Fox said, might be living in the same area. Also, a passion for that specific industry.

What else? Solving problems (which is the core concept). Or, just, make someone else noticing they have a problem that's damaging them.

I was driving back home from the gym last week, turn into a narrow street. I had to stop because there was an old man walking with the dog, and had to let them pass first.
The old man stopped and told me something.
I lowered the window.
He made me notice one of my headlights was broken, and recommended to change it, or police would have fined me.
I said thank you.

What feeling did this left in me? Annoyed? Pissed?
No, i was just thankful because he made me noticing something that could have turned into a bigger damage.

This can be applied in outreach too, i guess.
Instead of keep looking for someone who need a website, even using the "problem solving" mindset, i'll look for someone who already has a problem (which damage his top biz priorities).

I'll try to make them notice and suggest some solution. Let's see if this approach can lead to something.


(sorry for the long post, just put my thoughts together here)