The Critical Shift To Generate $5k to $10k Per Month With Your Web Design Business
If you want to bring in a consistent, steady $5k to $10k per month with your WordPress consulting business it takes a lot of work. There is no secret trick or special thing that I know – or that anybody else knows – that will generate a 6-figure WordPress consulting business for you overnight. Most people I talk to are already working crazy hard. They're just not seeing any results and they are burning themselves out.
What makes all the difference is after the work is done, are you getting a check for $500 or $5,000? When you start seeing the results coming in from your work, that gives you the energy and excitement to continue working towards even bigger things. Let's talk about how to get there.
Does This Sound Familiar?
You've been trying to get your business off the ground but it's not budging. You're out there emailing people, trying to talk to business owners, and going to business networking meetings. People seem interested because they recognize that they need help with their online presence. Maybe they even ask you to follow up with them. So you do, and then it happens. Nothing.
Even the people that seem the most interested either don't reply at all or say they want to talk again but just not right now. Or maybe they like what you're saying but they just don't have the money for it right now. They'll be back in touch later – which usually means never, right?
So, you take on some really cheap, maybe even free projects because you want to build up your portfolio and, heck, some money now is better than no money. But as you're working late hours, missing out on family time and everything else, you start feeling like this stinks. Everybody's getting a great deal but you.
Then you go show your work to your client and they have all these nit-picky changes.
- Change the font size.
- I don't like these pictures. Can you try something else?
- I've got some new copy for the About page. Can you update that?
You're thinking, man, these guys are really squeezing me here. Don't they know how great of a deal they are getting? Why are they cranking my gears over stuff that doesn't really matter?
The biggest problem is that if you keep running your business like this is that you won't get different results because you keep doing the same things over and over. Then you burn out and give up.
Web Design and WordPress Consulting Has Changed
The answer is to fundamentally change the approach you're taking to your business. Web design has totally changed over the last year or two. There are more and more ways to get a website built for super cheap prices. Web design, banding, and WordPress work is getting massive downward price pressure from places like Fiveer and Upwork. Wix, Weebly, and Squarespace are putting websites directly in the hands of business owners so they can build everything themselves. Ad agencies who used to send work to WordPress consultants are now keeping this work and doing it internally.
All the places where web designers and WordPress consultants used to get leads and work are drying up. The businesses you are talking to are saying no to your $800 – $1200 pricing because they can get basically the same things for half that price – or even for free on their own.
Bottom line: The big change is that websites and the digital media services you used to offer are now overpriced (in the eyes of your clients).
How Do You Adapt?
The answer is that you have to stop selling generic digital media services and start offering business solutions to the problems your clients are facing.
The good news is that once you make this shift, you are going to be set high above everyone else because most people are still stuck in the old system where they are offering web design, graphic design, branding, business identity, etc. They are seeing that their leads are drying up and the only thing they can think of to do is lower their rates. This is what's causing the downward spiral – the price race to the bottom. It's a terrible situation for everyone involved. You're not able to keep your business running at these low-budget prices and you're clients aren't getting the results they are counting on you for. When you break out of this old approach to web consulting and start putting the focus on driving the results your clients really need, then you're going to shine like a light, attracting clients eager to pay for the premium results you're offering.
The bad news is that this is a hard shift to make for most people. It's so hard, in fact, that most people will never make the shift and will burn out. The reason this is a hard shift is because it requires leadership, developing a vision, and creatively structuring the way you offer your services. Most people I talk to are trying to do all of this in a vacuum, by themselves. So they run into problems like:
- Who am I really best able to serve?
- What kinds of services do people in that market actually need?
- What can I charge for those services?
- How can I set that up so that I'm building recurring revenue to stabilize and scale my business?
- How can I change the way I present myself and my business to my clients understand how working with me is different?
The problem is made even worse because people need this to happen right now! They don't have the time for a bunch of trial and error experiments. Things are tight so if anybody is willing to pay for anything then you just do it. This keeps you stuck in the old system that is going to continue to get worse.
Getting The Help You Need
I can't underscore strongly enough how amazingly critical getting help has been in my life. I can honestly say, if I had not reached out for help and worked with some freaking AMAZING mentors I would never be where I am today. I'm the kind of person who tends to think that I will just buckle down and work harder. I'll figure it out. A lot of times it's true. You totally have to have that grit and determination. But if you're going to crank down and give it all you've got, do it with a system that works.
Don't keep doing the same things over and over! If you feel like you're doing the things we talked about at the start of this session you can't double down on that and expect it to suddenly start working because you're milking a dry cow. Eventually, you just can't squeeze any more toothpaste out of the old tube.
If you want new results you have to have a new system. You have to make that shift we were talking about where you focus on getting results for your clients rather than selling them technical services.
Let's Talk
If you're loving this idea but feeling stuck as to how to get there, let's talk! We'll get on the phone for 45 minutes for FREE and we'll dive into:
- Uncovering your ideal market
- Finding clients you love working within that market
- Discovering your ideal pricing for your projects
- Figuring out how you can start building recurring revenue for your business
If you want to work with me to implement this stuff, great! If not, that is totally cool too. But for goodness sake, save yourself the pain of burning the midnight oil for nothing. If you're going to be working hard, make it count!
