I'm thinking of going Offline and could use some help

[mrgreen]

I've been really thinking of starting some marketing Offline in my local area to start. So many great threads I've read here makes me more and more confident i can succeed.
I'm pretty sure i can get clients using various methods. I've been in sales for years selling to small and large companies...i don't have a problem making calls or closing deals...and getting rejected is part of it..because believe me that happens.. a lot. Its a numbers game. Not that all my efforts will be towards calling clients but its an option.
i don't know why i never thought of offline before,but I'm getting excited and my brain has been spinning with ideas.

I'm worried however about actually making and selling websites to clients.. I'm worried if a simple WordPress template will be enough. will they be ok with that? Ive always had difficulties making nice sites..i usually outsource them.

I certainly don't want to rip anyone off with horrible websites but i don't want have to pay an arm and a leg to produce websites they will be happy with. (not yet at least)
Should i outsource the work or should i just try and make clients the simple sites with WordPress and templates myself?

 

[mzonas]

I think that simple sites are just fine. What people want is that they look simple and attractive. When it comes to marketing, really, businessmen look for leads rather than website design. I use responsive theme or buy premium themes from time to time. It just depends on what your client wants.

Just make sure that design is mobile and tablet friendly. Either that or upsell them to get more monies xD

 

[ice41]

Do it on your own and you'll have the same template for all of your clients, or outsource it and you'll have great selling websites with happy customers. Happy customers = more referrals

Btw, if you wanted to sell more websites, you need to hire a designer and developer. Some people can do both, you just have to look for them. Your aim is to provide more clients, and fast TAT. The more the work you have, the more money in your pocket.

Just my 2cents bro

 

[mrgreen]

I think that simple sites are just fine. What people want is that they look simple and attractive.

Im glad to hear that i just want to make sure i can deliver such sites with ease,even with my limited wordpress skill ...obviously it would save me a lot of cash i would've used to outsource design..obviously though if need be i would hire someone to do that..but i would have to charge more.

I keep thinking everyone is super picky and knows all about Online marketing..but the truth is offline people probably know much much less..and most would be happy with a nice clean simple site. At least i hope so.

"

 

[mrgreen]

thanks for the replies guys

Do it on your own and you'll have the same template for all of your clients, or outsource it and you'll have great selling websites with happy customers. Happy customers = more referrals

Yeah i worry about using same template for multi clients, esspecially if they are in the same local area. or even niche for that matter
gotta practice more making clean wordpress sites i suppose and see how they like it,if they dont well i guess ill try again.
Next step will be figuring out what to charge and offer for services.

Right now im thinking of Buying a domain like (city)+seo.com or .net and then just making a very clean simple site detailing what i can do and prices(should i mention prices on the site? or wait for interest first?) this is feel will be a good starting point and a reference to anyone that asks if i have a site and more info..it will also servce as a place to get leads. hope im making sense and this is a good idea..

 

[ringle]

Oh dear, you're going offline? I feel for you.. It's a big scary world out there. Just make sure you pack a bag with plenty of supplies and don't make eye contact with weirdos and you'll be ok.

Good luck, brother. Our thoughts will be with you on your arduous journey into the unknown.

 

[Techxan]

This is poor advice. You have to be able to show the customer what he wants, and they have no imagination at all and cannot even visualize the site without being shown.

Here is you problem, you customer likes you, your rates, but not the template you like. What to do, you certainly cannot tell them take it or leave it. Another thing, when theyask to see the websites you built, you will wind up sending them to see 5 sites tat are exact copies of each other except for the contents.

This will tell them real quick that you are inexperienced.

You can even try the old "I have perfected this format and had good success with it" route. The end result s they will either like what you show then, or not.

The more variety you can show then the better.

Instead, this is what I do.

I have a hosting account thru bluehost that allows me to host as many sites as I wish.

I bought a generic domain and use this domain to host my sample sites in. I disallow all search engines so that nothing gets indexed.

In this domain account, I put ion several sub dir4ectories, I call them :
samples
testbed
clientdemos
demos
and so on.

Then I install Wordpress into each one of these directories, so this domain winds up ith 10 or so WP installations in it.

(Before I get blasted, I do know about MU, but i prefer to test in real world setups)

Now I build a sample site in these diorectories to demo for my customer. I clone a ferw sites that work real well, and load up an assortment of the themes I own, say 6 or so, on each site.

Now I can show a potiental customer a sample site for a similar business by directing them which demo applies, and I can switch out the themes so they can see a variety of styles.

Since this domain name only holds the demo sites, and no one gos there (actuelly some people do seem to find them), and the pages are not really hooked to any navigation or such, the load on the server with this setup is practically nothing.

This is particularly helpful for when the customer needs to have other people's opinion about the website. It also gives then a real website to look atm which helps ythem visualize.

Now say I am working on a carpet site.

I go out and steal content froma carpet siote and toss it into 4 of my testbeds. A long as it is about the niche, you are fine. .

Ineach onthese test beds, I out in 4 or 5 themes. Then I take screenshots for the customer to look at.

I send him these screenshots to see if any are close to what he wants, and if she find one she likes, she can go look at a live site.

This way he can see 4 or 5 different themes I already know how to use.

 

[mrgreen]

You have to be able to show the customer what he wants, and they have no imagination at all and cannot even visualize the site without being shown.

thanks soo much for the Reply Techxan
see this is what i was wondering..if i deliver a basic site..they could be disappointed or they might just think that looks great as is (i hope) but i need to show them something. I completely get what your saying and the approach to have sample sites ready..thing is... that's my problem.
i have a hard time as it is just getting one sight up and running, let alone have samples they can pick and choose.

I know its probably super easy for you and other s but at this point i think it would be tough just to have all the samples ready. Sorry if i sound lazy but im very concerned with my website skills.

Im really gonna try and target Smaller size biz with no website or a real garbage one that i feel i can improve on, at the same time i can learn and build a small portfolio for future sales.

I will do my best to deliver them a nice simple site adn hope they like it. mabye i can give them a few themes to choose from if they seem like they want more options.. Im going to do my best to offer them a nice discount or serivec for free if they can recommend me to others ( i think Referrals is HUGE!)
Selling them the site is just one thing.

I plan on selling as many services as i can to each client
ideally a monthly charge for a package that takes care of many of their needs..and if they don't know what they want..my job will be to show them

 

[grafxextreme]

MrGreen you're over complicating this. The truth is they don't care what the site looks like. They only care about the results it produces. The old static websites are dead for most small businesses such as dentist. They now need mobile websites.

The fact is, many of these professionals buy a website from a company which specializes in providing them with websites. It's the same site with only the contact info and some videos which make a change. And they invest $1500 or more for these sites.

Take a look at chirobuilt dot com. They use a basic template and if you do a search for chiropractic websites you'll see they are almost all the same. The difference is the color, header, contact info, etc.. As you can see from their site, they have no clue as to how Internet users currently use the Internet or what they're looking for when they visit a website.

Most templates give you many options such as single column, two columns or three columns. You can change the logo/header pretty easily. It's the other bells and whistles which will make it unique such as "click call", integrated auto responder, videos, the ability to provide video newsletters, coupons or even schedule appointments online.

Don't let the gurus make you believe it's more complicated than it is. The trick is to stop selling website and sell them solutions.

Good luck!

 

[mrgreen]

Hi grafxextreme, You are totally right. I AM Over complicating things. I guess i worry too much in general, like im already stressing on what to charge for theses sites and seo services...at first i thought to sell cheap services. and cheap sites... more i read the more i think that is stupid and will just attract cheap customers and more problems in the long run.
not to mention businesses would probably think im a joke of a company offering "deals" for WAY less ... ...urrggg im my own worst enemy sometimes.
thanks for that example site,i looked at it and can see what you mean.
i never thought of mobile websites as i thought most would do the serious searches from home. I should reconsider now and offer both.

I guess i will just try and make the sites myself for now to start using wordpress templates. I hope they will be ok.

Don't let the gurus make you believe it's more complicated than it is. The trick is to stop selling website and sell them solutions.

So very true.
Im trying to soak all this info in like a sponge. Trying to get ready for some action offline. failure is not an option.i really appreciate your reply and the encouragement.

 

[willdini]

I'm starting up with my web design biz too, and what I'm doing is going with responsive templates from theme forest and elegant themes(doesn't really matter where they are from just as long as they are fully responsive). This way when I am demonstrating sites to potential clients, I can show them what their new site will look like on a regular computer, tablet, or mobile device. With fully responsive themes, they get a site that looks awesome on all those devices. There is no doubt in my mind that businesses are becoming more aware of mobile computing and I'm hoping that can be a good way to seal the deal.

And with all the different themes to choose from, and the different ways you can set them up, you shouldn't run into too many sites that look the same. I actually have a meeting tomorrow with my first client who was blown away with just a pretty simple setup of an elegant theme theme. Something to keep in mind, and something that I am always trying to remind myself, is that most of these business owners ARE NOT internet marketers. They don't know the first thing about wordpress or CSS or HTML. When I told my first client that I would be using wordpress, he really didn't know what that was, or cared. A lot of your potential clients will probably have sites that look like they were built in the early 90's and any new responsive wordpress theme with even a basic setup will just blow that away.

And for your portfolio, if you need to, just "fake it till you make it" and whip up 5 or 10 different wordpress blogs on sub domains or directories on your site, or heck even buy different domains and setup sites on them that were for "previous clients".