[PROGRESS THREAD] Yula's Fastlane Journey

[Yula]

Update for the last couple of weeks of the Fastlane Journey...
It's still been quite slow the last couple of weeks, but there have been massive improvements. Also I did find out why my dedication dropped like a brick!

I thought that I hadn't gone to the gym for approx. 3 weeks. Turns out it was actually already 6 weeks since I last went to the gym. Just goes to show what a massive impact working out has on your mental health!

I've also decided to upgrade my workspace and make it more professional. I previously worked on my 15 inch laptop and I've recently upgraded to this:



It's been worth the small investment because the work I normally do in 2 hours is now possible in 1.5!

Copyneers:
- The commission-based project is awaiting the contract.
- The 9-fig company is going to discuss with their team if it's green lights.
- I got some new leads on LinkedIn who are interested and are hopping on a discovery call.
- Made my first Loom video for another lead that couldn't hop on a call.
- Hiring a copywriter seems to be harder than I anticipated. The price they ask vs. the quality of work they can deliver is completely off. Currently reviewing 2 copywriters to see if they are fit for the task.

VenturePals:
- Since I built the app in FlutterFlow, uploading the app manually has been a headache. I'll have to get the premium subscription to upload it through the platform, so hopefully, that goes well. I'll let it run for 1 test month, gather some valuable data, and bring the app back in development.

I've also got a little side project which is also interesting for Copyneers. I'll update about it as soon as I can! We're back on the grind...

 

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[Yula]

Update for the last week of the Fastlane Journey...
Getting more and more traction again! Bought a new gym membership for a year so I´ll be going to the gym 4-5 times per week from this week onwards.

Also trying to get rid of all the bad habits, since I tend to get distracted on YouTube sometimes I'll make sure to watch something useful when I do.

Copyneers:
- Currently creating 2 lead magnets to see if this is a better approach to get some more leads.
- The Loom video turned out great and they are interested in working together. The only unfortunate truth is that they don't have the budget as of right now, so I'll be spending time to make it a good connection.
- Should hear back from one lead this week to schedule a meeting.
- In the process of getting liability insurance since I'll be dealing with larger companies than previously.
- Interviewing 3 copywriters to see which one fits the most, still waiting on 2 out of 3 test articles.

VenturePals:
- I kept procrastinating on getting the membership... Once I talked with my accountability partner we quickly came to the conclusion that it was just a massive mental roadblock since uploading it would mean receiving feedback if the idea is good or not. So I just upgraded the membership and am currently uploading the App to the AppStore and Play Store.
- Added some new blog posts to the website to see if I can generate some more organic traffic.

Side note: I've done the research for the side project and I'm currently waiting for some renders of the product to create a small proof of concept. Still can't say what the product is about, but I'll keep you up to date!

 

[Yula]

Update for the last week of the Fastlane Journey...
The ball is rolling again! A lot of headaches last week, but I'm getting a lot of sh%$ done.

Copyneers:
- I finished the lead magnets and ordered a privacy policy and cookie policy, so I can start running paid traffic to my lead magnets this week.
- One of the leads gave a red light at the last moment, but we're still communicating and I might do the work for free as this case study would be very valuable and give me access to a lot of companies in my niche.
- The performance-based project will be starting this week as well.
- Liability insurance has been bought!
- Invited a new round of copywriters, with a slightly higher hourly but I think I've found the right match.
- I've reached my LinkedIn limit for this month... I might get premium, but I'll first have to see how the lead magnets perform.
- This month has been slower revenue-wise as I've generated around $4K.

VenturePals:
- I bought the membership and uploaded the app to the AppStore and later found out that one of the core functions wasn't working lol... (One of the headache reasons)
- As I'm writing this the problem has been resolved, but now a new problem occurred with the messaging function. Hopefully, this will be fixed by this evening or tomorrow and then I can finally launch the private beta!

 

[Yula]

Update for the last week of the Fastlane Journey...
Last week has been filled with a lot of progress again!

Copyneers:
I managed to get quite a lot done for my agency last week. I've finally made some choices and interviewed all the copywriters and I've now finally hired one...

So from this week on, I'll have more time to focus on growing the agency instead of working for clients.

I've set up the website including the lead magnet, the policies, and the pixel, so it's ready for the Ads. I didn't have the time to run the ads last week, so that's what I'll be doing this week.

All the client copy is finished as well, so I did manage to generate the $4K.

I'll have the final meeting with the performance-based client on Thursday, so hopefully, we can get started on Friday and get some good results within the first month.

This week will be focussed on getting in some new leads and I'll be reaching out to unresponsive LinkedIn connections with a message I've set up as a one-last-try remedy!

I'm aiming to schedule at least 2 discovery calls this week!

VenturePals:
The MVP is live and I currently have some people testing the App on iOS!

I tried to gather some more MVP testers on the forum, but sadly it didn't get much notice.

Google/Android is still giving me a headache as they keep disapproving my verification requests. The problem is that I still live at my parent's house and I need some way to show them a letter from the government with my name and address.

But the ones I've sent to them are too old according to them...

So that throws a spanner in the works...

I did however speak with my accountability partner who is an excellent developer in Flutter and proposed to do the project together with him. We're yet to discuss the full details on compensation but it will likely be equity share, which I'm more than fine with.

So once we've gathered all the feedback and feature requests, we're gonna start building the first official version!

If all goes as planned (including a buffer), we should be able to release a full working version somewhere at the end of January!

 

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[Yula]

Update for the last week of the Fastlane Journey...
This week didn't go so much as planned, unfortunately... I worked quite a lot, but I lost oversight of what I had to do and what the mandatory tasks were so whenever I was finished for the day and looked back on what I had actually accomplished - I got quite confused...

Copyneers:

I've set up the website including the lead magnet, the policies, and the pixel, so it's ready for the Ads. I didn't have the time to run the ads last week, so that's what I'll be doing this week.

I've had a mental block that stopped me from actually launching the ads...

When I was sparring with my accountability partner we quickly came to the conclusion that I was scared that I wouldn't know what to do when people actually signed up.

So I just have to kick it off and let the ads run, I'll launch them today!

I'll have the final meeting with the performance-based client on Thursday, so hopefully, we can get started on Friday and get some good results within the first month.

Had the meeting last week but unfortunately, they pulled out last moment because of some private matters.

Nothing I can do about and we'll have to see if we can continue with the project in January.

This week will be focussed on getting in some new leads and I'll be reaching out to unresponsive LinkedIn connections with a message I've set up as a one-last-try remedy!

I'm aiming to schedule at least 2 discovery calls this week!

I did manage to focus on messaging potential leads, but the results were still not as I hoped...

However, @Black_Dragon43 gave a workshop yesterday in which he cleared out some of the problems I was facing (massive thanks to you!) and I have a better feeling about the new approach I have.

Still have some small projects running from existing clients, but not nearly enough to come close to the 5-digit MRR.

I've got some leads in the pipeline, but the sales cycle is extremely slow.

But, setbacks can happen... Let's gooo!

VenturePals:
Got some really valuable feedback from the MVP testers!

Made an overview with the new necessary but foundational features for the first official release and my accountability partner is going to start with the backend this week.

Meanwhile, I'll be doing the new branding guidelines, since we've had some feedback from the testers about the current branding as well!

Also, ever since my problem-solving part is active again I found several use cases where we could repurpose the code. So by creating this app, we can create a couple more without investing much time in technical development!

See you next week!

 

[Yula]

I've had a mental block that stopped me from actually launching the ads...

When I was sparring with my accountability partner we quickly came to the conclusion that I was scared that I wouldn't know what to do when people actually signed up.

So I just have to kick it off and let the ads run, I'll launch them today!

Update: I've just launched them and they are approved and ready to go!

 

[Yula]

Update for the last week of the Fastlane Journey...
Back on track and managed to get a lot done last week! On a side note, I've been bulking for the last 2,5 weeks and I've never been this consistent. Currently up by 1,5 kg's already, which might be due to carb loading, but I'll have to see how much I've gained in about 1,5 weeks.

Copyneers:
Managed to schedule 4 discovery calls for the upcoming week, so I'm really excited that I'm finally getting some responses! In the upcoming weeks, I'll update you on how the calls went and what percentage will end up joining the sales call.

I tried the Meta ads last week, but my niche isn't really active on Meta, so I'll be trying out LinkedIn ASAP.

I've just bought Sales Navigator for this month, so I'm first checking out how much improvement this brings me and after I have a clear picture of the possibilities with this I'll add LinkedIn ads.

An old client of mine contacted me as well so I've got some extra revenue rolling in this month! And the 10-fig company finally reached back and the case study for one of their products is looking extra good!

Also! My SEO results are getting better and better and are steadily increasing by the day, so the weekly blog posts are finally paying off!

VenturePals:
Development of the App is making great moves right now!

The backend is pretty much all set, except for one of the features... The UI is also getting along quite far and we're well on track to reach January as an official launch date.

The branding guide is still a work in progress, but the content is pretty much finished for the app.

 

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[Yula]

Update for the last couple of weeks of the Fastlane Journey...
I've been busy for the last couple of weeks, hence why I didn't update this thread until now. I've had lots of meetings with prospects and I've scheduled about 4 sales calls so far. Most of them are in January so this month will not be the best revenue-wise... (More time to focus on VenturePals)!

Bulk is going great so far and we're up 2,5kg!

Also, last week was quite hectic after my little brother's car got stolen. Fortunately thanks to some trackers we found the car about an hour from our place...

Copyneers:
- SEO Results went downhill all of a sudden? Not sure why...

- After getting Sales Navigator the quality of the leads is way higher, and engagement has doubled!

- Sales cycle is still VERY slow, might be industry standard since I'm targeting tech companies...

VenturePals:
December will most likely be fully focussed on VenturePals, since all the sales calls for Copyneers are after newyears.

- Branding Guide is done!

- Currently renewing the website through Webflow - the previous one was build with carrd.co

- Marketing plan is ready for action, starting next week!

- New logo is also done!

 

[Yula]

Update for the last week of the Fastlane Journey...
No progress for Copyneers, apart from that I've landed a new client finally! Project will start in January and will be performance-based, they're covering the costs so it's only time I'm paying if the results are bad...

VenturePals:
The new website is fully done and live! Feedback is always welcome, so check it out -> here <-

I've also launched the socials this week with the same branding as the website and will start with paid advertisements next week! The coding part of the app is also on track and the launch date will be announced soon (somewhere in January).

Some tasks for the upcoming weeks:
- Contact possible affiliates
- Write an email flow for affiliates
- Write an email flow for our own email list
- Keep socials up to date
- Launch on product hunt/indiehackers

 

[Yula]

Update for the last week of the Fastlane Journey...

I started bullet journaling after my success partner suggested it and WOW! A total game-changer...

Previously I wrote down everything on single pieces of paper, the number of times I had to rewrite my 1,5,10 Planasy and recalculate my escape number due to this is 1 too many. Right now it's organized and well and I broke down each goal in months and even weeks/days.

For the last week, the focus has been on the App, the development is still on track and we're off to develop the last (but most time-consuming) part of the App.

I was hoping for some valuable feedback on the website I've created but this thread doesn't seem to have some active followers, unfortunately. Maybe it will once some real results are coming in, until then it's me and my computer!

If someone still wants to give some feedback, this is the website: https://www.venture-pals.com/

I've grown the Instagram page from 0 to around 50 followers in a week now, but it's a lot more difficult than I imagined it would be. I'm still uploading 5 days per week with quality carousels, but I'm just not sure how to get my page in front of more people without doing paid shoutouts.

I've heard that Instagram Reels are a good way to get some new people in front of your page, but I was hoping to stick with just the carousels.

So if there's someone out there who knows how to get some more eyes on a page, let me know!

This week I'm going to prepare for the Product Hunt launch and gather all the assets needed to fully optimize the page.

 

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[Yula]

Update:

Just got back from winter sports in Austria, so back to business!

Things are finally starting to take shape and this first quarter will sort of be a make-or-break moment. If it breaks I still won't quit but I'll have to re-assess the whole plan and make some big changes.

No business updates for now as it won't be of any interest for this thread, but just updating this so you know I'm still grinding!

Set some new goals for this year and thought I'd share the physical ones here:

- Compete in a freestyle snowboard contest again
Some elaboration: I used to compete in the Dutch/Europe Cup snowboarding, both Slopestyle and Big Air. However, when I was 15 I had a serious accident that resulted in me breaking my upper jaw, which is essentially my skull, and was out of the game for 10 months. After recovery, I ended up quitting...

Last month I went to a snowboard contest and apparently, they had an open qualification round, so I thought it might be fun to train again this year and see if I could qualify. The thing is, it's been 8 years since I've last done a competition...

- Walk an ultramarathon - 100km
There's an ultramarathon in Belgium where you have to walk 100km through the Ardennes and I'm planning to participate somewhere at the end of the summer with a couple of friends.

I've never done a normal marathon, but I've always been athletic so I thought this would be an interesting challenge.

- 75-day hard
Speaks for itself, but I want to have done and completed the 75-day hard challenge this year.

 

[Yula]

Update:

Quite a lot has happened since the last update. I noticed that as of lately I have been working more IN my business, rather than ON my business.

Shifted gears and got back into working ON the business. Since then I've done the following for Copyneers:
- Outsourced the work for my clientele, which still operates at 50% profit. (DONE)
- Set up a bookkeeping system to spare me the headaches. (DONE)
- Landed a new client for a case study in the field I'm trying to operate. (DONE)
- Getting them results. (In progress)
- Landed another client outside of my niche to increase monthly income for now. (DONE)
- Made a flowchart for my funnel. (DONE)
- Wrote a VSL for on the website, including the powerpoint presentation. (DONE)

For VenturePals I've done the following:
- Legal stuff. (DONE)
- Set-up Product Hunt page (In progress)
- Wrote the VSL for the launch. (DONE)

Quite happy with the progress, although it's still hard to keep my focus at times. The pressure is getting a lot higher since I'll have to prove to my parents that this becomes sustainable.

So you might be wondering, what's coming in this next phase?

The most important goals for February will be:
- Case study done for the new client.

- Launch VenturePals on Product Hunt.
If anyone has some experience with launching on Product Hunt, please let me know! I'll share my experience and the things I've learned after the launch is done.

- Start consistently working on personal brand @ LinkedIn
I've never liked being in the spotlights and I still don't, but it gets more clear each week how important a personal brand really is. I've tried it several times, but never really consistent and I have yet to find my tone of voice and USP.

- Funnel for Copyneers done.
I want to automate as much as possible, so I want my funnel to be done by the end of February. This includes lead magnets, email nurture campaigns, etc.

- SOP's for Copyneers done.
As I would like the quality to be consistent I'll need to have some standard operating procedures in place, to make sure the quality is the same, if not higher than my own work.

I'll update you soon!

 

[Yula]

Update:

This month has been quite hectic! I thought I had finished all the legal stuff for VenturePals, but Apple decided to throw a curveball and the deadlines were missed.

To get the App in the Appstore you need a legal entity, and setting up legal entities in the Netherlands is a bit weird and complex if you have no knowledge (like me) about it. So long story short, couldn't release the App on the ideal launch date.

Not too big of a problem since we didn't exactly announce a specific date yet.

The legal entity is currently being set up and should be up and running in the middle of March! If that's done at least all the legal requirements are covered. In the meantime, we have build a small community and have released a beta version for them to test as of today.

Most bugs are covered and we're super excited about the first result, now it's a matter of others being just excited as we are!

So what have I done in the last month?

VenturePals:
- Make website GDPR compliant (really excited to have finished this, GDPR is complex)
- Set up ad pixels
- Product Hunt teaser page finished (currently at 150 signups)
- Product Hunt VSL done!
- Getting a name in the Product Hunt community
- 45 email signups through organic Reddit posts
- Run first paid Ads
- AppSumo page (in progress)
- Fastlane Marketplace post (in progress)

Copyneers:
- Client work
- Started 2 new projects!

I'm really starting to figure out why people don't try to grow 2 business at once! Copyneers has been steady, as well as the income. The time VenturePals has needed, left me to postpone the goals I had for Copyneers this month.

March will be big for both VenturePals as well as Copyneers, so I need to start scheduling my time correctly.

Keeping up the grind...

See you soon!

 

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[Yula]

Quick Update!
Legal entity has been setup after many headaches! Currently waiting on the DUNS number to finalize the Apple and Google enrollment and then we're ready to launch VenturePals

I'm also in the qualification for the Founders Live Pitch Challenge global competition! If you're reading this and would like to support, you can go to the link below and watch my 99 second pitch and vote for us. Would be highly appreciated!

Founders Live Prime Time Global Competition - Vote for the best startup pitches in various regions of the world

 

[Yula]

Another Quick Update!

We just launched on Product Hunt : D

On a very competitive Tuesday, so I'm asking some Fastlane love! Could you go over to this link https://www.producthunt.com/posts/venturepals/ and vote for VenturePals?

As I'm writing this we're at the #2 spot, but #1 is close!

Will be writing a thread after the voting is closed tomorrow on how to launch on Product Hunt : )

 

[FreakyThomas]

Just voted - Good luck !

 

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[Yula]

Quick Update:

I was about to make a post about how real the desert of desertion is... and apparently, I missed that we got our first active monthly subscription!

The feeling I got when I saw this in the dashboard is something I've never felt before... It's so hard to explain.

After 8 days of launching, we finally did it!

Over the past few weeks, I've been calling several large communities to get them to onboard their audience on our platform, which is finally coming along together as well!

We got our first accelerator to run a pilot with us and see how their community feels about it.

Much more to come will keep you posted!