How do you know when the time is right for you to rebuild or even refresh your website? Refreshing your website doesn’t have to be a huge overhaul. It can literally be a bit of a “spring cleaning” that you take in stages to make it more manageable (and a better fit for your budget). In today’s episode, I’m going to take you behind the scenes of these two website refresh projects and tell you exactly why we decided to make the switch, how we got to that conclusion, and even what steps we took to ...
Feb 21, 2023•18 min•Season 2Ep. 33
You started your service-based business because you’re amazing at what you do. Doing the job you love isn’t what makes being an entrepreneur difficult. It’s finding the clients to work with you and pay your rates. The biggest trap that I see a lot of new business owners fall into is thinking that they’re going to find all of their clients through Instagram or other social media channels. While it’s possible to build a decent base of clients that way, you’re running a lot of risks. So how do you ...
Feb 14, 2023•18 min•Season 2Ep. 32
Even if you’re a solopreneur now, do you have a goal to grow and scale your business? You’ve got to protect that business! In this week’s episode of the Captain Coder Podcast, I talk with Mairin of Solivagant Legal . An expert in crafting the right contracts for online businesses (and their websites), Mairin is not your typical attorney. A digital nomad who loves to travel (which we talk about in this episode), she’s truly living the type of business she helps her customers create. Throughout th...
Feb 07, 2023•1 hr 18 min•Season 2Ep. 31
Want your website to generate leads and revenue for your business? You need to bring the right people to it! Facts: even the biggest companies in the world have to continuously work to bring new people to their websites and keep their traffic numbers high. In today’s episode, I’m sharing my 7 favorite (and free!) ways to drive traffic to your website.
Jan 31, 2023•16 min•Season 2Ep. 30
A few months ago, a friend tagged me in a post requesting website professionals to be interviewed for a live show. I responded back to the author and noted that my favorite thing to talk about in those opportunities was digital accessibility. He messaged back to politely say that they were “focused on more standard web design topics and not something that niche.” Niche? Making an accessible website for everyone to use is niche? I’m about to go on a rant today, but all web design should start wit...
Jan 24, 2023•15 min•Season 2Ep. 29
Hey service-based business owner - do you often wish you had more hours in the day? Have you hit an income cap because you simply don’t have time to take on other clients? Are you wondering whether or not it’s time to hire? You’ve probably hit what many of us service providers do. I like to call it a “time ceiling.” It IS possible to scale your service business and grow it - without having to hire a huge team. In fact, you should implement these things before you hire anyone. I’m talking about i...
Jan 17, 2023•20 min•Season 2Ep. 28
Can your website actually make you money? It better! Whether you DIY’d your website on your own or hired a professional to do it for you, you’ve invested time and money into it. It’s your home online, after all. If you feel like your website just isn’t turning a profit for you though, I’ve got a few things you can change to make it better and see that real ROI.
Jan 10, 2023•13 min•Season 2Ep. 27
Have you ever tried to drive someplace new and not use Google Maps? I’m going to guess that’s a negative. You know that if you want to actually end up at your destination that you have to have a guide to get you there. That’s the same way it is for your business! If you want to grow – and scale – at a steady rate, you cannot wing it. You need a map to get you there. Creating a digital marketing plan only takes a few hours of your time and yet it can save you HOURS and even DAYS throughout the ye...
Jan 03, 2023•33 min•Season 2Ep. 26
I have a quick question for you. When I say the phrase “using marketing data” do you get a little scared? Do you kind of want to hit back and not think about it? Hey, I get it! I may be a coder but my natural skillset is heavily creative, not logic. I joke to my accountant mom all the time that I don’t understand why she actually likes her job. But something she’s said to me a few times over the years holds true for marketing data, too. “Numbers tell a story.”...
Nov 29, 2022•16 min•Season 2Ep. 25
Do you want to stop spending all of your time trying to market your business? Frankly, trying to market your business can feel very overwhelming. There are so many platforms to worry about, so much content to create, and just the general feeling like you’re missing something if you’re not following the latest trends. But I promise that it doesn’t have to be that way! Creating your marketing content can be a far more seamless process than you might think. In today’s episode of the Captain Coder P...
Nov 15, 2022•43 min•Season 2Ep. 24
Looking for that latest magic marketing shortcut? I’ve got bad news for you. It doesn’t really exist. You may be missing out on the number one marketing tool for your business, though. This marketing tactic is so powerful that it can even drive as much as two thirds of your marketing efforts forward. Want to know what it is? Check out today’s episode!
Nov 08, 2022•15 min•Season 2Ep. 23
One hurdle in creating digital marketing pieces for a lot of business owners is finding images they can use - and that they actually like. It can be expensive to have photos shot for you by a professional, and maybe you need an image of a cityscape or something nowhere near you. The problem with just going to Google Images? You’re probably violating copyright laws and you’re putting your business and your content at risk. There are better ways to source images to use throughout your marketing - ...
Oct 25, 2022•16 min•Season 2Ep. 22
Have you thought about adding a digital course to your business? As a service provider, chances are you'd like to add some steady, recurring revenue to your bottom line so you're not always chasing that next sale, that next client. Taking your unique expertise and wrapping it up in an online course is a great way to add a different kind of service to your business. Before you say you can't do that or there are too many digital courses out there, the online education industry is expected to boom ...
Oct 18, 2022•15 min•Season 2Ep. 21
If you don’t follow the right steps, launching a new website can actually cause you a lot of problems. Suddenly things can be broken that worked before, Google may not reflect the updated information, and worse, you can lose customers because something doesn’t work right. How do you protect yourself against the common mistakes that can happen during a site launch? Checklists my friend! The Captain Coder team utilizes a 3 page checklist of things that we check on every single website we take live...
Oct 11, 2022•20 min•Season 2Ep. 20
Have you been trying to grow your online business and have struggled? You need to build up that trust factor, girl! Building trust online is very different from how you build trust with your local community. Think about it. You’re trying to not only get people to believe you can help solve their problems, you’re just trying to get them to believe that you’re actually real. There are some shortcuts to help you build up that Trust factor quickly, even if you're just starting out. In today’s episod...
Sep 27, 2022•18 min•Season 2Ep. 19
Working with clients one on one can be tough. Does this situation sound familiar to you? You’re maxed out. You’re not making the money you thought you would and you’re not necessarily getting the freedom you pictured when you started your business either. Is there any hope for that to be better? One of the best things you can do for yourself and your business’s growth is to do something I honestly struggle with all of the time. Find some help. What does that look like?...
Sep 20, 2022•18 min•Season 2Ep. 18
Ready to upgrade your DIY website to one someone else builds for you? Hiring a web designer can be great because you no longer have to worry about making those updates yourself and you can finally get a website you’re proud of. But how do you pick the right web designer from the seemingly endless supply of them on the internet? I put together 6 vital questions you should ask any web design agency you are thinking about hiring to ensure that they’re looking out for the most important part of the ...
Sep 13, 2022•21 min•Season 2Ep. 17
Why did you start your business? Have you ever stopped to write this out - or even fully flesh out your answer? And no, the answer probably isn’t for more money, flexibility, and freedom, because let’s be real - it can take years to get to that point in your business. Today, I’m going to take you through why discovering your why can be one of the most powerful investments you can make in your own business and I’ll even give you the questions to ask yourself to find your answer....
Sep 06, 2022•14 min•Season 2Ep. 16
When you build a website, especially when you spend money to have a website professionally built, you want it to last. You don't want to spend thousands of dollars just to turn around and spend the money again in just a couple of years and do it all over again. In today's episode, you'll learn how to future-proof your website by using the best platform you can possibly use for that purpose. Mentioned Resources: Yoast SEO WP Engine...
Aug 23, 2022•22 min•Season 1Ep. 15
Running paid ads through Google, Facebook, and other online platforms can help you accelerate your marketing and leads generation. Paid ads on digital platforms can feel pretty overwhelming and unless you set up everything correctly, can end up costing you more money than they should or need to. But here's the secret - you can do everything on your ads to optimize them, set up everything the way that Facebook or Google loves, but unless you've done the work on your website first, it won't matter...
Aug 16, 2022•17 min•Season 2Ep. 14
I did it! I took my week remote and the time away from my standard day to day. I feel like my week disconnected from my norm was 100% effective. But did I actually hit the goals of everything I planned? Listen in to see how I improved my boundaries, created better habits, and got my business groove back.
Aug 09, 2022•21 min•Season 2Ep. 13
Tell me - do you actually treat your business the way you should? Focusing on your business's growth and health should be your number one priority, but when you're a service provider, you're often getting caught up in your clients' businesses instead. These last few weeks especially have been a doozy for me. I have goals and visions that I want to enact in my business, but I don't take the time. So this week, I'm doing something slightly drastic and I'm sharing what it is with you....
Jul 26, 2022•11 min•Season 2Ep. 12
Where are your warmest leads coming from? They’re coming from Google! When someone is searching for your services through Google, they’re actively looking for a solution to their problems. They want to find someone just like you. Is your website optimized to be included in those search results? In today’s episode, get my 5 best tips to improve your ranking on Google. Mentioned Resources: WPEngine Yoast SEO...
Jul 19, 2022•24 min•Season 2Ep. 11
By not making your online content accessible, you're excluding 25% of the population in the U.S. alone. Today's episode of The Captain Coder podcast is incredibly special to me. I have one of my best friends from college on to talk about her journey with the disability community and how she's learned how important it is to make the Internet accessible. Fair warning - this is a longer episode. But I promise you, if you tune in, you're going to be moved, you may tear up a little, and you're...
Jul 12, 2022•1 hr 4 min•Season 2Ep. 10
Can you be a business owner and be an introvert? When you think of famous entrepreneurs, you might think they’re all extroverts. They have no problems talking to people, going out and selling their products and services, and getting to know more people who can push their business forward. But I promise you, you don’t have to be an extrovert to succeed in business. In fact, some hugely successful entrepreneurs are self-declared introverts - Bill Gates, Elon Musk, even digital marketing experts li...
Jul 05, 2022•16 min•Season 2Ep. 9
When you first started your service business, you were mostly worried about getting clients and keeping your costs low. Right? One of the great things about starting a done-for-you service business is that you can start your own business with little to no overhead. Keeping costs low and business simple often means a lot of business owners start with creating social media accounts and don’t prioritize getting a website. Why is that a problem? In today’s episode, I’m going to show you why this is ...
Jun 28, 2022•17 min•Season 2Ep. 8
Has your business stagnated? Do you feel like you’ve gotten to a certain point where you just don’t know how to grow your business? You probably have great ideas for your business, but without the right systems in place, they remain just ideas. If you want to start scaling your business without the overwhelm, let me introduce you to my own secret weapon - Erin Taylor of Lunimae Strategies. In this episode of the podcast, Erin and I got deep into systems and how they help your business grow. Thro...
Jun 21, 2022•36 min•Season 2Ep. 7
One in four adults in the US have some sort of disability and control $500 billion in disposable income. Does your online content reach them - at all? Chances are, there are some tweaks you need to make to the content you’re creating on social media and within your website to be inclusive to everyone. Ensuring your digital content is inclusive is also called digital accessibility. In today’s episode, I’m going to teach you exactly what digital accessibility is, why it matters to you and your bus...
Jun 14, 2022•29 min•Season 2Ep. 6
Your ideal customer lives on Google. In fact, that’s where they’re at when they’re the most ready to buy. The most ready to sign up for a discovery call or even a service directly. How do you capture the attention of your dream customers when they’re on Google searching for someone to help them? You know you’d be the perfect fit, but how do you even get your foot in that SEO door? In today’s episode, we’re going to learn 8 easy steps you can take to improve your SEO now. SEO is a long-term proce...
Jun 07, 2022•32 min•Season 2Ep. 5
Stop creating content no one reads or listens to. If you consistently put out content but feel like it falls on deaf ears - well, it probably is. You can’t get consistent leads and revenue when you talk to no one, so start attracting your ideal customer now! How do you do that? By speaking their lingo - not your own technical jargon. In today’s podcast, learn how you can go from 0 downloads to a list of raving fans that keep coming back for more content. Mentioned Resources: Jargon Thesaurus Fre...
May 31, 2022•22 min•Season 2Ep. 4
