This week on Freelance to Founder:
S11 E1 — Hiring 50 Contractors in a Year (Whew!)
On today’s show, we talk with Karl who’s holding on tight while his writing business is growing fast. After writing for a few highly technical development blogs, Karl’s business exploded and he now works with 50 writers to deliver articles for his clients. And while Karl is crushing it by so ....
S11 E1 — Hiring 50 Contractors in a Year (Whew!)
On today’s show, we talk with Karl who’s holding on tight while his writing business is growing fast.
After writing for a few highly technical development blogs, Karl’s business exploded and he now works with 50 writers to deliver articles for his clients.
And while Karl is crushing it by some standards (his writing business has quadrupled since January), he’s naturally feeling like a bottleneck in his fast-expanding business.
Clay and I have a fiery chat with Karl where we uncover what has done right in his business to experience massive growth and some tough truths about what he has to do next in order to stay on track and not slow his own business down.
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More recent episodes:
S10 E12 — Close 90% of Clients (without Proposals)
On today’s episode we chat with Brady, who is building a web design business from his home in northern Idaho, USA.
Brady has already built up a small team of contractors and aims to get the business running almost on autopilot in the next 6-12 months.
To do that, he’s got to first perfect his sales process and then train someone else to do it.
But he’s got a bit of a sales problem.
After drafting a proposal and getting on a call with a client, too many people are just saying “no”—making it hard to get new web design clients on a regular basis.
So today’s episode becomes a masterclass on selling your services without ever drafting up a proposal—which Clay and I believe are a massive waste of time and effort.
This episode reveals what we recommend you do instead—the method that gets us a 90% close rate with new clients.
S10 E12 — Close 90% of Clients (without Proposals)
On today’s episode we chat with Brady, who is building a web design business from his home in northern Idaho, USA. Brady has already built up a small team of contractors and aims to get the business running almost on autopilot in the next 6-12 months. To do that, he’s got to first perfect his sa ....
S10 E11 — Coaching at Scale
On today’s episode, we chat with Brendan—a sales consultant who wants to scale his business to something bigger.
And while he finally started hiring people to help him scale, he’s still a bit unsure about a path forward.
He’s working on a course for more passive income and he’s trying to transition away from one-on-one consulting gigs to more of a sales coach role.
Since Clay and I are fresh off our recent 5-day recurring revenue challenge, we have some good advice for his course’s future and since Clay is building a very similar business to Brendan’s we wrap up the episode with some killer advice on scaling a coaching business.
S10 E11 — Coaching at Scale
On today’s episode, we chat with Brendan—a sales consultant who wants to scale his business to something bigger. And while he finally started hiring people to help him scale, he’s still a bit unsure about a path forward. He’s working on a course for more passive income and he’s trying to t ....
S10 E10 — How to Speak Your Clients' Language
On today’s show, we chat with Jon who’s a physical product designer and prototyper.
Jon’s got a highly technical business—which you’ll see as we chat with him on the episode today.
That means that Jon is very smart when it comes to product design and 3D printing, but has a hard time translating that expertise into language that appeals to clients.
So in today’s episode, where I'm also joined by my friend and guest coach Matt Olpinski, we walk Jon through some important ways to think about messaging and marketing.
Because, as a freelancer, you can offer the absolute best service on the market, but if you don’t know how to tell people about it, you’re in trouble.
S10 E10 — How to Speak Your Clients' Language
On today’s show, we chat with Jon who’s a physical product designer and prototyper. Jon’s got a highly technical business—which you’ll see as we chat with him on the episode today. That means that Jon is very smart when it comes to product design and 3D printing, but has a hard time tran ....
S10 E9 — Should You Branch Out or Niche Down?
On today’s show, we chat with Christine, the founder of Bryant Creative Company.
Christine has a nice freelance business where she works on graphic design and branding for her clients.
But over time, Christine has also begun to offer additional services such as web design—which, frankly, she doesn’t enjoy as much and she’s not as good at.
That brings up a whole lot of questions on our call such as: should I outsource jobs that aren’t a fit? Or should I decline them altogether?
If you’re not sure whether to expand your service offering or double down on what you do best then this episode, where we're joined by special guest coach Matt Olpinski, is for you.
S10 E9 — Should You Branch Out or Niche Down?
On today’s show, we chat with Christine, the founder of Bryant Creative Company. Christine has a nice freelance business where she works on graphic design and branding for her clients. But over time, Christine has also begun to offer additional services such as web design—which, frankly, she d ....
S10 E8 — Do You Have the Wrong Target Audience?
On today’s show we chat with Augusto who’s running a local branding and video marketing company in the United States.
Augusto has chosen to target local latino businesses because he feels they’re underserved and can really use his expertise.
But Augusto keeps hitting a wall: his target audience is overly cautious when it comes to spending.
Which makes it hard to charge premium prices for his work.
So what can you do when you’re worried you’ve got the wrong target audience? Today, I’m joined by guest-coach Bobby Macey to answer as many of Augusto’s questions as possible because we both know all too well: if your audience isn’t aligned with your service, it’s almost impossible to effectively promote your freelance business.
S10 E8 — Do You Have the Wrong Target Audience?
On today’s show we chat with Augusto who’s running a local branding and video marketing company in the United States. Augusto has chosen to target local latino businesses because he feels they’re underserved and can really use his expertise. But Augusto keeps hitting a wall: his target audienc ....
S10 E7 — You've Been Lied to About "Work/Life Balance"
On today’s episode we chat with Adii Pienaar who recently published a book titled Life Profitability: The New Measure of Entrepreneurial Success.
As someone who’s very motivated by the lifestyle that freelancing and entrepreneurship can offer, I was intrigued when I first learned about Adii’s book.
So today, Clay and I have a heart to heart chat with Adii all about the lies about "work/life balance" and how to build a business that doesn’t ultimately consume you.
If you’ve ever felt burned out with the business you started in order to find more freedom in the first place or you've thought to yourself “this isn’t what I signed up for”, Adii’s advice will be the best thing you hear this week.
S10 E7 — You've Been Lied to About "Work/Life Balance"
On today’s episode we chat with Adii Pienaar who recently published a book titled Life Profitability: The New Measure of Entrepreneurial Success. As someone who’s very motivated by the lifestyle that freelancing and entrepreneurship can offer, I was intrigued when I first learned about Adii’s ....
S10 E6 — Do Clients Treat You Like an Expert? or Employee?
On today’s episode, we have a conversation with Matt Essam who helps freelancers attract and find their dream clients.
Have you ever felt like you are more of an employee than a partner when it comes to your client relationships?
Maybe you feel like you don’t have any creative input on your projects.
Or maybe you feel like you’re underutilized pushing pixels, moving commas, or doing some other menial tasks for your client.
If this sounds familiar, you’ll want to listen to our conversation with Matt today.
He’s got a pretty great solution to this problem plus some great advice on finding the perfect clients for your business.
S10 E6 — Do Clients Treat You Like an Expert? or Employee?
On today’s episode, we have a conversation with Matt Essam who helps freelancers attract and find their dream clients. Have you ever felt like you are more of an employee than a partner when it comes to your client relationships? Maybe you feel like you don’t have any creative input on your proj ....
S10 E5 — Collabs vs. Hiring
On today’s show, we check in with Margaret Ryland.
Now, if that name sounds familiar, that’s because Margaret joined us originally on Season 8 to talk about her branding and design business.
Since we last talked, Margaret has had some luck on collaborating with other creatives, but is still struggling to build out the processes required to actually make a first contractor hire.
It’s a big hurdle, but if she can’t push through it, she might be stuck as a one-person business for the rest of her career.
We’ll get into some advice and tactical tips for Margaret and anyone unsure about building a team in today's episode.
S10 E5 — Collabs vs. Hiring
On today’s show, we check in with Margaret Ryland. Now, if that name sounds familiar, that’s because Margaret joined us originally on Season 8 to talk about her branding and design business. Since we last talked, Margaret has had some luck on collaborating with other creatives, but is still stru ....
S10 E4 — 12 Mo. of Revenue in 30 Days
On today’s show, it’s just Preston and Clay.
That’s because in early January, Preston asked Clay how things were looking for the new year and his response was something like:
"I’ve already hit my 6 month revenue goal.
"
Yeah, it was January 7th.
NUTS!
A couple weeks later—Before January was even over—Clay shared that he hit his complete revenue goal for 2021.
That’s 12 months of revenue just in January.
Naturally, Preston had to get clay on a call and find out what he had been doing.
It’s a conversation you won’t want to miss.
S10 E4 — 12 Mo. of Revenue in 30 Days
On today’s show, it’s just Preston and Clay. That’s because in early January, Preston asked Clay how things were looking for the new year and his response was something like: "I’ve already hit my 6 month revenue goal." Yeah, it was January 7th. NUTS! A couple weeks later—Before January was ....
S10 E3 — Less Convincing, More Closing.
On today’s episode we have a coaching call with Shelley, who works in the music industry—which can be a tough gig right now, but Shelley is making it work.
There’s just a small problem with her principal business—booking artists into venues.
Getting clients to understand the value Shelley brings to the table is proving more difficult than she imagined.
After digging a bit deeper, Clay and I realize this is a simple messaging problem.
A common pitfall in marketing.
If you, like Shelley, want to get clients to say “yes” more quickly with less hesitation, stay tuned because, like Shelley, you might just need to tweak your messaging.
S10 E3 — Less Convincing, More Closing.
On today’s episode we have a coaching call with Shelley, who works in the music industry—which can be a tough gig right now, but Shelley is making it work. There’s just a small problem with her principal business—booking artists into venues. Getting clients to understand the value Shelley br ....
S10 E2 — Are You Stuck in "Create" Mode?
On today’s show, we have a chat with Erica who, frankly, intimidates both Clay and me.
That’s because Erica is working with some of the brightest people in the world to solve some of the biggest problems faced by humanity.
But despite working with some incredible clients and solving some meaningful problems, Erica is stuck when it comes to moving her business to the next level.
What we uncover during the conversation is Erica (like so many of us) is perhaps getting the cart before the horse by developing a massive, university-level course for PhDs before she ever tests the market to see if people will buy.
Since Clay and I are both admittedly more salesmen than educators, we offer an alternative approach that seems to resonate.
If you’re stuck in “create” mode and can’t seem to get to the “launch” or “revenue” stage in your business, then have a listen, because we’ve got some good advice for you in this episode.
S10 E2 — Are You Stuck in "Create" Mode?
On today’s show, we have a chat with Erica who, frankly, intimidates both Clay and me. That’s because Erica is working with some of the brightest people in the world to solve some of the biggest problems faced by humanity. But despite working with some incredible clients and solving some meaning ....
S10 E1 — 3 Ways to "Spy" on Your Ideal Client
3 Ways to Spy on Your Target Audience
On today’s episode, we have a coaching call with Nikolai—a freelance Webflow developer living and working in New Zealand.
Nikolai’s entire freelance business completely turned around when he decided to focus exclusively on Webflow, showcasing the power of finding your niche as a creative.
And while Nikolai has seen a nice bump in new leads and more projects from sites like Upwork and networks like Dribbble, he’s not 100% sure how to find more of his ideal audience.
From that question, Clay leads us into 3 ways he has successfully “spied” on his target audience to learn what their pain points are and eventually create the perfect product to sell them.
S10 E1 — 3 Ways to "Spy" on Your Ideal Client
3 Ways to Spy on Your Target Audience On today’s episode, we have a coaching call with Nikolai—a freelance Webflow developer living and working in New Zealand. Nikolai’s entire freelance business completely turned around when he decided to focus exclusively on Webflow, showcasing the power o ....
S9 E14 — Leader vs. Entrepreneur
S9 E14 — Leader vs. Entrepreneur
On today’s episode, we have a great coaching call with Andrea, who’s growing her agency—helping companies get the most out of the popular marketing software, Hubspot. Andrea has hired contractors to help grow her business in the past and just a month before this conversation, Andrea hired he ....
S9 E13 — Are You Optimizing for Profit?
S9 E13 — Are You Optimizing for Profit?
On today’s episode, we chat with Yusef who’s building his own small product design agency. Yusef’s got a lot going for him: he’s got great cashflow, he’s getting new clients regularly, and he enjoys the work he’s doing. But when it comes to the most profitable projects in his business, h ....
S9 E12 — Getting Out of Your Own Way
S9 E12 — Getting Out of Your Own Way
In today’s episode, we chat with an up-and-coming agency-builder, Maddie. And during our conversation we come up against one of the most common issues hold many of us back: Getting out of our own way. The thing is, Maddie is extremely bright. She’s got a lot of great things going. And she’s go ....
S E — Will Clients “Subscribe” to Freelancing?
S E — Will Clients “Subscribe” to Freelancing?
On today’s episode we mix it up a bit with Craig Solid—a consultant in the healthcare space. Craig’s business is going well and he’s trying to figure out how to better serve his clients on an ongoing basis and potential find some subscription revenue as well. What we uncover is a potential m ....
S9 E11 — Make Art, Make Money
S9 E11 — Make Art, Make Money
On today’s show I (Preston) have a really great conversation with James O-Reilly, an indie artist who’s working on making the transition from freelancer to founder. James has had heaps of work come in over the last year which is good because he's making good money as an artist, but he’s not ex ....
S9 E10 — Working From Anywhere (Remote Works Podcast Sneak Peek)
S9 E10 — Working From Anywhere (Remote Works Podcast Sneak Peek)
To listen to more episodes or subscribe to Remote Works, click here. On today's bonus episode, I share with you a fun podcast called 'Remote Work' from the team at Citrix. You know how, before Covid, only a relative few of us knew how great it was to work from anywhere? Well, Remote Works is on a mi ....
Clay and Preston have each grown their own one-person businesses to something much bigger and now they offer weekly coaching calls with freelancers ready to do the same. Your weekly dose of real-world, practical, actionable advice to take your service-based business to the next level—with occasional surprise guest experts or deep dives on must-have skills for success.
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