Founder and President of Local SEO Search, INC. John Vuong is back on the podcast with a look at the current SEO Landscape and how things have changed over the past couple years so that you can learn how to get better rankings for you and your clients! In This Episode 00:00 - Introduction 02:41 - SEO Course 04:32 - Greeting to John 07:12 - Added wisdom and leadership 11:36 - 2021 SEO landscape 16:30 - Adding value for long term 18:07 - Some client strategies 21:49 - Importance of site speed 24:3...
Nov 22, 2021•1 hr 14 min•Transcript available on Metacast Web Dev Mentor for Graphic Designers Emma Kate shares some tactical, practical and invaluable tips for setting client communication boundaries which is crucial not only for your sanity as a web designer but also for getting projects done on time. In This Episode 00:00 - Introduction 06:20 - Greeting to Emma 15:47 - Be the boss, set boundaries 23:16 - Experiment with what works 28:42 - Have empathy 32:32 - When to set client boundaries 41:23 - Contract stipulations 43:44 - Using tools for boundar...
Nov 15, 2021•1 hr 18 min•Transcript available on Metacast Josh shares his top 10 tips (along with a challenge) for why and how to personalize your web design business. In This Episode 00:02 - Introduction 03:04 - Why would you get personal 04:12 - The paradigm is shifting 05:26 - Separate from the pack 10:27 - 1) Real pictures of you 15:16 - 2) Adding a “Founder’s Note” 16:47 - 3) Add an “About” page 18:58 - 4) Tell who “We” is 20:37 - 5) Show “We” in a team page 23:00 - 6) Post a Homepage video 25:46 - 7) Add a “Here’s Who” after “contact me” 27:35 - ...
Nov 11, 2021•38 min•Transcript available on Metacast Founder of Branding and Design Agency ZFactor.com and Host of “The Angry Designer” Podcast, Massimo Zefferino, shares his top tips and lessons learned on how to get projects done on time. Especially when managing a lot of projects. In This Episode 00:00 - Introduction 03:45 - Greeting to Massimo 06:35 - Connecting tech to humans 09:16 - Building on strengths 12:38 - Showing expertise with presence 17:36 - Passion can go well into 70’s 19:02 - Overwork the key projects 23:30 - Your 75/80% is thei...
Nov 08, 2021•1 hr 11 min•Transcript available on Metacast Gravity Forms community experience manager James Giroux and host of “INPUT” shares the content marketing strategy of Gravity Forms in their new push to humanize their brand. In This Episode 00:00 - Introduction 04:07 - Greetings to James 07:16 - Process of becoming a CEM 14:26 - Like a good barbeque 18:09 - Coming up with a strategy 21:37 - Adjusting to generational shift 23:41 - Using the WP tool 26:00 - A collection of “Input” fields 30:14 - Push back on conversion content 34:10 - Where is the...
Nov 01, 2021•1 hr 22 min•Transcript available on Metacast Josh shares a lesson from his Website Maintenance Plan Course on how and when to sell your maintenance plan to new clients. In This Episode 00:00 - Introduction 03:57 - Sprinkling method to talk hosting 04:14 - 1) End of Discovery Calls 06:45 - 2) During proposal process 08:30 - 3) Onboarding process 09:54 - 4) Later stages 10:58 - 5) Hard sell during launch 13:18 - Buying clients out 14:22 - 6) During follow up 15:31 - Having a liability clause 16:37 - 7) Do a trial plan 18:12 - Quick recap Get...
Oct 28, 2021•23 min•Transcript available on Metacast Host of the Self-Made Web Designer Podcast Chris Misterek is back on the podcast to share his experience, tactics and tips for getting high paying clients purely online via UpWork! In This Episode 00:00 - Introduction 03:43 - Greeting to Chris 07:33 - What Upwork is looking for 10:44 - How many projects to start 13:36 - Pitching your “Super Powers” 17:21 - Hearing voices 21:14 - There’s a hole in UpWork 25:19 - Networking is the same regardless 27:56 - Projects are not always low-ball 30:00 - Ge...
Oct 25, 2021•1 hr 6 min•Transcript available on Metacast Founder and instructor of online coding school FrameworkTV, Mark Lassof, shares his thoughts on how much code you should learn nowadays in 2021 and beyond. In This Episode 00:00 - Introduction 05:51 - Is coding becoming extinct 09:18 - Creating innovative products 11:37 - How have tools changed 16:29 - Do you want to build brands or tools 20:06 - What are the fundamentals 26:02 - Explaining JavaScript and jQuery 35:42 - Winning the browser war 41:25 - Difference of mobile to desktop browser 44:3...
Oct 18, 2021•1 hr 11 min•Transcript available on Metacast The godfather of Divi tutorials, Geno Quiroz, is back on the podcast to talk about the changes he’s making in his white-label web design business and potentially starting a podcast interview series to help get more clients. In This Episode 00:00 - Introduction 04:49 - The apprentice and the padawan 10:00 - Passion come to life 15:15 - Who’s going to pay for maintenance 20:56 - Adapting to the subscription model 28:37 - How to take care of 20 new clients 34:01 - You must stay in your lane 41:39 -...
Oct 14, 2021•2 hr 55 min•Transcript available on Metacast Web design freelancer Kristin Pearson shares her top lessons learned having just gone full time into web design. In This Episode 00:00 - Introduction 03:40 - Biz course 04:40 - Greeting Kristin 10:06 - Coaches 10:32 - Speakers 11:55 - Process of both 14:38 - Kristin’s start 21:55 - Learning WP 23:28 - Tech deters some 24:53 - Solving problems 25:42 - Communities 28:20 - The starting point 38:26 - Safety plan 42:42 - Time-guilt shift 46:20 - Balancing things 48:48 - Getting clients 53:44 - A reco...
Oct 11, 2021•2 hr 35 min•Transcript available on Metacast Seasoned entrepreneur and business owner Walter Hill Jr, founder of Icon Blue, shares about why most businesses fail and more importantly, what red flags to look out for and avoid! In This Episode 00:00 - Introduction 01:42 - Avoiding failure 04:56 - Greeting to Walter 11:29 - Learn from others 14:11 - Eliminating mistakes 15:40 - Encourage others 17:39 - Basic fundamentals 21:08 - Premise of red flag 22:42 - Common red flags 23:59 - Service of product 28:18 - Mistakes even at top 34:03 - Don’t ...
Oct 04, 2021•1 hr 8 min•Transcript available on Metacast Josh shares his thoughts on what to do based on a recent situation of a client passing away. In This Episode 00:00 - Introduction 03:48 - Take the high road 05:40 - 1)Backup sites 06:20 - Giving control 08:06 - 2)Users and passwords 08:57 - Organize together 09:54 - 3)Contact info 12:22 - 4)Transition plan 13:03 - Ask questions now 13:55 - Be helpful 16:16 - 5)Plan of action 16:34 - New relationships 19:03 - Recap Get all links, resources and show notes at: https://joshhall.co/141 Get my entire ...
Sep 30, 2021•23 min•Transcript available on Metacast Jon Philips of holygrailwp.com takes us further into site speed and website optimization in part 2 of our Site Speed Podcast Series. In This Episode 00:00 - Introduction 00:14 - Podcast Prelude 04:40 - Greeting to John 12:45 - Geographic location 14:51 - Server strength 16:44 - Premise to course 17:30 - Ranking factor 18:13 - SEO component 19:27 - Third party resources 20:03 - Chat widgets 20:18 - Using heavy fonts 21:25 - Needless assets 23:57 - Image optimization 27:13 - Responsive images 29:4...
Sep 27, 2021•1 hr 18 min•Transcript available on Metacast Tim Strifler of DiviLife.com is right back on the podcast to share 5 beginner tips on how to speed up your website and boost performance! In This Episode 00:14 - Podcast Prelude 01:42 - Free 10 Step plan 03:39 - Welcome to Tim 06:09 - Hot topic - Speed 06:34 - Divi 4.10 10:14 - 1) Use great hosting 13:37 - Siteground 14:56 - Flywheel 16:45 - WPEngine 21:50 - Dad bods 22:14 - 2) Proper Caching 23:03 - How caching works 25:46 - WPRocket plugin 28:30 - Divi static CSS file 30:53 - Replicate what wo...
Sep 20, 2021•1 hr 1 min•Transcript available on Metacast Josh shares his top 5 strategies for helping you take your web design business to 6-figures (100k or more) per year! In This Episode 00:02 - Podcast Prelude 03:11 - Scaling mind shift 04:43 - 1) Task inventory 05:56 - Tasks aren’t equal 07:10 - Do the 80/20 09:31 - Automate immediately 12:17 - 2) Solidify top services 16:32 - Have a good site 18:34 - 3) Refine your systems 24:02 - 4) Focus on A clients 28:19 - 5) Offer a 10x product 33:56 - Recap 34:31 - New Masterclass Get all links, resources ...
Sep 16, 2021•37 min•Transcript available on Metacast Website Strategist Wes McDowell (who’s YouTube channel just surpassed 6 million views) shares his thoughts on how web designers and marketers can use their websites alongside social media and other digital platforms in 2021 and beyond. In This Episode 00:02 - Podcast prelude 02:20 - Review shout-out 04:05 - 10 Step Action Plan 05:01 - Greeting to Wes 07:46 - Podcast to YouTube 09:57 - Wes’ perfect client 10:55 - Why focus on site 14:52 - What a funnel is 16:48 - Owning your stuff 19:10 - What Go...
Sep 13, 2021•1 hr 3 min•Transcript available on Metacast Former school teacher turned web designer Shannon Morris of Turia Web Design, shares her experience on how she learned web design, started her business and went full time in less than a year. In This Episode 00:02 - Podcast Prelude 05:07 - Welcome to Shannon 07:09 - Career change 12:50 - Decisions 20:00 - Just getting started 24:33 - Growth mindset 25:16 - Figure-outiveness 26:15 - Feeling fulfilled 28:14 - Introvert networking 35:08 - Keep trying 38:10 - Work can come quickly 40:22 - Start comf...
Sep 06, 2021•1 hr 11 min•Transcript available on Metacast Josh shares 10 of the most important items that should be covered in your website design contract. In This Episode 00:14 - Podcast prelude 01:54 - Business course 03:18 - How & when 05:59 - 1) Deliverables 07:45 - 2) Payment terms 10:36 - 3) 3rd Party tools 13:01 - 4) Point of contact 15:08 - 5) Turn around time 16:09 - 6) Response time 17:42 - 7) Avoid delays 23:55 - 8) Credit your agency 25:20 - 9) Going live 26:47 - 10) Client liability 28:48 - Recap Get all links, resources and show note...
Sep 02, 2021•33 min•Transcript available on Metacast The man behind WPCrafter.com WordPress For Non-Techies, Adam Prieser, who at the time of posting this has 221k+ YouTube subscribers and well over 17 million views, shares his super-valuable expertise on how web designers can create content that helps build trust, authority and can be a 24/7 sales tool. In This Episode 00:02 - Podcast prelude 04:06 - Greeting to Adam 06:08 - Adam’s backstory 11:36 - Building rapport 14:57 - Get into content 16:05 - Imposter syndrome 20:46 - Videos attract 22:44 -...
Aug 30, 2021•1 hr 20 min•Transcript available on Metacast Tim Strifler of DiviLife.com (who has a thriving email list in the tens of thousands) shares his top tips for building and growing YOUR email list. In This Episode 00:19 - Podcast prelude 03:51 - Greeting to Tim 07:34 - About Tim 12:10 - Email is NOT dead 16:25 - Homebase 18:56 - Staying top of mind 21:42 - 2021 email market 23:37 - Doing it wrong 24:39 - Utilizing follow-up 30:07 - Unsubscribe offense 31:36 - Helpful survey info 35:17 - Finding balance 36:43 - List building 41:41 - Size doesn’t...
Aug 23, 2021•2 hr 30 min•Transcript available on Metacast How do you get clients when you don’t have a portfolio yet?? Josh shares his top tips for building your portfolio so you can start getting your first paying web design clients. In This Episode 00:02 - Building with no clients 03:49 - Use “Featured Work” 04:08 - 1) Offer to build for free 05:56 - Consider who’s looking 07:41 - Set constraints 10:08 - Have a deadline 11:13 - Get a testimonial 12:24 - Ask for referrals 14:16 - 2) Build mock ups 16:23 - Create different 19:44 - 3) White labeling 23:...
Aug 19, 2021•29 min•Transcript available on Metacast Brad Hussey, web designer freelancer turned web design "productizer" and now coach, shares his tips and a specific action plan for how to scale your business by productizing your web design services. In This Episode 00:02 - Podcast prelude 04:41 - Greeting to Brad 07:58 - Come to Jesus moment 11:41 - Selling value 13:20 - Definition of productize 16:16 - Some examples 20:15 - Productized value 26:00 - Distinctions 27:27 - Being unremarkable 31:31 - Change your mindset 38:11 - Value of ...
Aug 16, 2021•2 hr 30 min•Transcript available on Metacast Author of children’s book “The Too Tall Giraffe,” Crissy Maier, shares her tips for booting imposter syndrome by finding and focusing on your superpower and what often makes you different. In This Episode 00:02 - Podcast prelude 03:59 - Welcome to Crissy 06:16 - Origin of her book 08:04 - Strength in weakness 10:01 - Finding superpower 14:43 - Negative to positive 18:58 - What brings a smile 20:46 - Intentional and aware 21:43 - Wrong focus 26:05 - Prove side hustle 32:51 - What you accomplish 3...
Aug 09, 2021•1 hr 9 min•Transcript available on Metacast Josh shares his top 10 regrets from a decade of web design journey going from freelancer to solo-preneur to agency owner. In This Episode 00:02 - Prelude to regrets 02:44 - Josh on Instagram 03:38 - A Podcast review 04:34 - Full transcriptions 05:31 - 1) Not raising rates 08:46 - 2) Not joining network 10:14 - The real power 12:09 - 3) Always saying yes 14:39 - 4) Not focusing on SEO 16:35 - 5) Not email marketing 18:08 - 6) Not following up 18:53 - 7) Not asking for referrals 21:10 - 8) Not sca...
Aug 05, 2021•37 min•Transcript available on Metacast Professional copywriter and host of the Storytelling Secrets podcast, Jules Dan, shares his top tips and tricks for effective copywriting that we as web designers can apply to website copy, emails, social media posts and more! In This Episode 00:02 - Intro & announcements 04:02 - Greeting to Jules 05:34 - A little history 08:55 - Words sell a story 10:53 - Showcasing your values 12:02 - Make stories your own 12:58 - What is copywriting 16:04 - Being conversational 18:31 - Strategy of story 1...
Aug 02, 2021•1 hr 7 min•Transcript available on Metacast Chief Marketing Officer of clean.io and digital security expert, Kathleen Booth, shares best practices and leading industry tips for keeping websites safe and protected from malvertising, Ecommerce revenue loss and standard website hacks. In This Episode 04:00 - Greeting to Kathleen 05:36 - What is cybersecurity 09:55 - Three code categories 13:55 - None 100% trustworthy 16:51 - Where you host is #1 18:25 - CMS & theme are #2 19:20 - Plugins 20:31 - Updating on plugins 21:31 - Two factor aut...
Jul 26, 2021•59 min•Transcript available on Metacast Josh shares his tips on how to handle and prepare for clients who want to take over and edit the website you designed after they’re live. In This Episode 00:46 - Triggering nightmares 05:06 - Have a backup 06:15 - 1) Proposal & Planning 06:58 - Who is editing 08:12 - Are they tech savvy 11:02 - Plan to train 12:23 - Account in proposal 14:34 - 2) Manage & fulfillment 14:55 - Access timeline 16:39 - What type of access 20:00 - Create processes 21:27 - Test before live 22:50 - 3) Empowerme...
Jul 22, 2021•37 min•Transcript available on Metacast Owner of DoubleStack.net and Web Business Mentor and Coach, Lee Blue, shares his expertise on landing higher projects and better web design clients through “Solution Based Marketing.” In This Episode 04:39 - Greetings to Lee 07:05 - Coaching hands-on 09:06 - Business strategy 13:55 - Reverse engineering 17:38 - Package skills upfront 20:39 - Distinct marketing 21:33 - Setting boundaries 22:46 - Bundle up for niche 26:33 - The premium pay 28:53 - Use what you learn 30:22 - It’s like dating 36:00 ...
Jul 19, 2021•1 hr 14 min•Transcript available on Metacast CEO and Founder of Kanopi Studios, Anne Stefanyk shares her top sales strategies for web design freelancers and agencies. In This Episode 03:46 - Greeting to Anne 07:43 - Aware but not “in” 07:53 - Qualification process 10:24 - Most fundamental 12:12 - Tracking leads 14:17 - Existing network 17:53 - Creating prospects 18:25 - Using LinkedIn 23:01 - Authentically human 26:36 - Clear personas 31:28 - Black and white 33:13 - Dream of cold call 35:14 - Create sustainability 39:50 - Time to add sales...
Jul 12, 2021•1 hr 15 min•Transcript available on Metacast Josh shares his thoughts and experience on what to do when a client decides to hire a digital marketing or SEO agency to take over the website. In This Episode 01:59 - The “Do not’s” 02:55 - 1) Be offended 04:11 - 2) Caught off guard 04:51 - 3) Lose your cool 06:02 - 4) Close the door 07:05 - 5) Think it’s over 10:41 - From experience 13:22 - Big issues 15:53 - Solutions 17:04 - Warnings 18:34 - 1) Very common 18:59 - 2) SEO takes time 19:46 - 3) Warn of spammy 20:47 - 4) Discuss options 21:35 -...
Jul 08, 2021•27 min•Transcript available on Metacast