Ask Rezzz

Sales is something that you learn. It’s a constant learning to be honest with you.Sales today isn’t what it was in the 80s, 50s or 30s.How you improve your sales is more about you and the relationship with your client than it is about sales tactics and tips.The question today has a bit of a “I want a silver bullet” feel to it. I hate to disappoint you but there isn’t.However I will share with you, 3 things that you can do to affect your sales cycle and get those leads to close and sign that proposal.Step 1: Educate clients more and better!First thing to work on is the top of the funnel, the awareness stage, basically the client education part of your business.The more informed a lead or prospect is: About their problemAbout the possible solutions to their problemAbout the options that provide the solutionsThe more they are likely to understand what it is they are buying from you when you present it.70% of the buying decision is made way before someone reaches out to you.If someone reaches out to you, they’ve

If you are struggling with the content on your website, today we are going to fix that and get you on the right path.Just like yesterday’s show which is [What makes a great case study?](https://rezzz.com/ask/great-case-study), this show is all about the reader too.Before jumping into today’s show, I want you to load up Twitter.Type in @rezzz and then put in your website URL and hit enter.I’ll tell you in a just minute why, but what else do you have to lose? It’s a free shout-out to your website right?It was back in 2014 when the light clicked for me.I was going through a re-branding effort. See up until then I had created my own logos, either a friend or myself would design my website, and I wrote all my own content based on what I had in my own head.Sure I was doing just fine with my business then, but I felt as if I could do better. Not just in business, but as a personal brand.See I was very technical, but what I was hearing from clients was that I was able to translate the geek speak, the techno mumbo jum

It’s one thing to have a portfolio, it’s another thing to have an effective one that contains case studies to help covert those shoppers into buyers.I was speaking with some Feast members, and then again over the weekend when I was emailing my cousin’s friend who was looking for a job. They asked me about what goes into a great case study. In all the conversations we dove pretty deep into what makes a great case study with examples, workshopped some, and even outlined some initial ones.The one thing that all these conversations had throughout was to keep in mind that it is all about the reader.Write so your ideal customer can relate to the case studyIf you have an ideal client in mind, then your case studies should only be about those types of clients.The reason for this is that you want the reader to identify with you and trust that you can solve their problem.The goal of a good case study is:Show that you understand the industryShow that you know the problems of that industryYou can solve those problems wit

Imposter syndrome is a real thing. As a freelancer, as an introvert, and just working with smart people every single day, it can be an overwhelming feeling to get past that you don't know enough.Today's show will share you my story and what I look to when I have this feeling. In the freelance world, we can't let ourselves stop us.This question came by way of Instagram and with respect to the person who DM’d me, they will remain anonymous. However, I will say that this person was one year into their freelance business.So they admittedly hadn’t been doing it very long, but felt that most times they feel that they don’t know enough about business and development as they should.Imposter Syndrome is realI want to share with you a story.It was Friday if my first week at a consultant firm and we had an all hands meeting at a global telecommunications company that we were being billed out to. I was just hired as a senior developer in a team of 14 people. Our team and a few of them, making it about 20 people in the ro

As a freelancer, business owner, consultant, sometimes the productivity and motivation isn't there when we need it.Today I’m going to share with you 4 tips to increase productivity and motivation.I was asked this on Instagram and got such an awesome response from it, I thought that I’d share this here with you as well.By the way, if we aren’t connected on Instagram, let’s do that - I’m rezzz20 and when you follow me, drop me a DM and say “hi”We all battle it from time to time. Sometimes we just don’t feel up to it today. That the motivation just isn’t there and we’ve gotta try and push through.Sometimes the motivation is there, but wonder if we are working on the right thing at the right time.The worse case scenario is that the lack of motivation leads to the lack of productivity. Well thanks to Gabs for the question over there on the gram, I want to share with you 4 tips to increase your productivity and motivation.Know the 3 things you need to do each day, the day beforeLove what you doCelebrate the small w

Nothing can waste your time more than jumping at an opportunity you get for a freelance project through a someone you know. I’ve been there and going to share with you what to do.Let me paint the picture for you.You get this quick, short email that says:Hey Fred - I was talking with Joe and he is in need of X. I told him about what you do and thought that it’d be best for you to jump on a call with him today or tomorrow. That’s what he said would work for him best. Talk soon, RefIt’s awesome that Ref was touting your wares right? I mean, Ref knows you, likes you, and trusts you enough to put his reputation on the line and suggest someone to work with you.Sounds awesome, right? Well…It’s not all awesome.Why a referral can be badHere’s the thing, you have a ton of things going on today and tomorrow with limited time for a call. You have a sales process that everyone goes through too.You have an intake form or project brief that you have all leads fill out prior to jumping on a call.But your friend set the expec

I've had this feeling so many times I lost count.If you haven't had any objections to your pricing, then as I shared in episode 60, I’m going to tell you the very same thing my mentor told me to do on the very next prospect, and that’s to double it.If you have had some pushback on your pricing, it means that they don't understand the value of their investment. There is a disconnect between your "thing" and your price that you have yet to make it a clear no-brainer for them to sign up with you.How you close that gap is based on* Showing a track record, better known as testimonials or case studies, of proven success* Having problem you are solving for them to be painful* A short timeline to the proven resultsWhen I started out freelancing, I always thought that signing $20,000+ contracts was the path to success.I soon realized that those big projects took way too long to prove results. Sometimes 4-5 months!Resulting in my profits

-------------------For full show notes, your own customized Ask Rezzz playlist, and bonus material, head on over here for it all. -------------------However, I’ve never once used one. Mainly because I never wanted to build my business on rented land. And in episode 95 where I answer the question “How viable is it to find a job as a front-end web developer as a freelancer in the current market” I shared that I didn’t like the idea that there was someone else’s hand in the sales process.Places like Upwork and Fiverr have been very successful for people. I’ve spoken to and are friends with many of them. But they will say that it’s getting harder and harder to succeed in those places.See here’s the thing about job boards, they have algorithms just like Facebook, just like Google, and just like any other website out there that makes money.They will push the best, most “relevant winners” in front of users.As I mentioned, I have many friends that use and are on these platforms. I’ve also heard from many people DMing

This is going to be a pretty simple answer today.It’s not easy to do, but taking vacations and being able to step away from the freelance business for a day or a week can be scary.From about 2004 to 2011 I didn’t take any days off.There was no vacation, no hotel plans, no cruises, no car rentals, nothing that resembled any sort of pleasurable trip because I wanted to get away.When was the last vacation you had? Maybe even years at some point where you didn’t get a break?So why is that?Big excuses is why!Too much workNo time, I'll look into next yearHow will the business be when I get back?Will there be a business left?So how do you step away?Communication and planning!1. Communicate with your clients as early as possible.The earlier on, the better. Timelines, sales, and delivery may all need to be figured out. And the more time you have to plan all that out the better.2. Give yourself a buffer before going away.If you are taking a week off, don’t work yourself to the bone the week prior to going away. When yo

Today I’m going to share with you 3 tools that I’ve found extremely helpful, useful, and are making my life and business better.These aren't your run of the mill tools that you hear everywhere (at least not yet - or at least I hadn't ;) )Bonjoro, Undraw, and Hey Meta.Review of BonjoroThe first is bonjoro.com. I’ll be honest, I’m not sure where I heard of this tool, but in using it, I’ve grown to love the company as well.Full disclosure, I am an affiliate so if you want to check out Bonjoro and would like to buy me a beer, please click the link.But to be perfectly honest, this app was a part of this list prior to me being an affiliate anyway.Bonjoro is an app that you can tie into your own systems and send a personalized video to. So for example, when you get a new customer or even someone filing out your contact form, this app will ping you to record a video on your phone.I’ve used this for a number of things and if you have attended one of my Live Q & As or newly signed up to my newsletter, you’ll have r

You can find all the steps and questions to ask yourself over in the show notes. So don't sweat trying to copy all this down. Just have a listen first.Yesterday I gave you a dose of reality.Harsh? Maybe. Blunt? Somewhat. But if you are still a skeptic in this whole niching down thing. I want to give you a bit of a game plan so that you can test the waters and see if specializing your business has an positive impact on your business.In business, you need to experiment sometimes. I’m a HUGE fan of making some assumptions and building an experiment.WHAT MAKES A GOOD EXPERIMENTA good experiment has an assumption, a set time around the experiment, and a measurable goal.Parameters for testing the waters of niching down:Assumption: niching down has a positive impact on your businessTime: 45 daysMeasurable goal: Get 2 new clientsI want to disclaim that there are no guarantees. Your mileage may vary, but what I want you to get from this exercise is a feeling for what being a specialized business can mean for you. Is m

-------------------For full show notes, a customized Ask Rezzz playlist, and bonus material, head on over here for it all. -------------------Let me ask you a question, why are you niching down?What ever that reason is, that’s your focus. It’s that “why” that brought you to this conversation in the first place.“What got you here, won’t get you there.”You’ve heard this before from Marshall Goldsmith, right?It’s the idea that sometimes you need to be a bit uncomfortable and out of your comfort zone to achieve the results you want.This fear of niching down aligns with a similar fear of gambling.It’s easy to stay being a generalist because that feels safe because you’ve been able to build a business around it. But you are at a point where you are starting to think about your value, whether that’s your rate or time or both.While niching down can feel like you are betting it all on one-hand, in reality it’s betting on a hand where you know what everyone else is holding.If you are solving a problem, have a track rec

-------------------For full show notes, a customized Ask Rezzz playlist, and bonus material, head on over here for it all. -------------------I’m often asked this question around niching that seems to question either or.Yes, you can pick the type of work you do and specialize your business.Yes, you can pick the type of customer you work with and specialize your business.But, the type of work you do and the type of customer you work with are both part of niching down to specialize your business.When I’m working with clients on finding their specialty, I have them reflect on the type of work AND the type of clients they’ve had in the past.A key part of the exercise and self-reflection is figuring out what they liked and what they didn’t like both about the people and projects.The reason is simple. Ultimately it’s the customer that you are helping with your solution in the end. You can’t be fully successful with just one piece of the puzzle.If the type of work you like to do is something that the market doesn’t

Your personal brand is what people say about you when you are not in the room - Chris Ducker-------------------For full show notes, a customized Ask Rezzz playlist, and bonus material, head on over here for it all. -------------------Why is the Nike Swoosh so effective? And if you don’t think it is, my one year old son points to it anytime my wife and I wear Nike apparel and says “swooo”. Why is the red for Manchester United or the navy blue from the Yankees so widely recognized?These things are all apart of branding. When you see them outside of their normal context, it puts it right into context.In 2015, I decided to hire Megan Gray for the branding of my company. I gave up the reigns and gave her complete creative control over all things rezzz.I didn’t know it then what sort of an impact it’s had on my business, but looking back over the past 3 years, it’s done a 5 things for my freelancing.Took a lot of the decisions away from me when it comes to imagery, text, font, etc.Elevated my professionalismSets a

But as a professional, it’s your job to protect your time, which protects your profits. And I want to share with you 2 things that I use to keep the conversation going.-------------------For full show notes, a customized Ask Rezzz playlist, and bonus material, head on over here for it all. -------------------When you have a phone conversation or video chat, always set a time limit and an agenda for the call.These will be the 2 lifesavers for you to keep the conversation on point, focused and effective.This is especially true with sales calls.When you are on a sales call, often times the lead will want to unpack and explore their project with you. They want to start defining the requirements of their project with you on the line.This is a surefire way for you to lose time and money. It will turn a half hour call into and hour and a half.Before you hop on the call, define the parameters of that call. For example, that it’s a 30-minute call to talk about any specific questions about the project and if at the end

Before I share with you my answer, are you new to the podcast. Maybe you are simply overwhelmed and not sure which episodes you want to listen to first. I bet you there are a few episodes you’ve missed that pertain directly to you and can help you with your business right now!I’ve got the answer for you. You can get a customized playlist of Ask Rezzz episodes based around you, your business, and your experience. This playlist is made by minifigs and gremlins directed by me of course, that are handpicked especially for you.I’m always going to suggest you niche down. Let’s get that out there straight off the bat.It’s just a matter of how fast you specialize to that niche and how strongly focused you stick to it.Regardless of your situation, you should always be working towards that niche. In the end, that’s where you’ll want to be to avoid that feast or famine cycle.With that out of the way, I’m a realist. I know you’ve got bills to pay. They will never stop coming in and how well positioned you are on being ab

Before I share with you my answer, are you new to the podcast. Maybe you are simply overwhelmed and not sure which episodes you want to listen to first. I bet you there are a few episodes you’ve missed that pertain directly to you and can help you with your business right now!I’ve got the answer for you. You can get a customized playlist of Ask Rezzz episodes based around you, your business, and your experience. Head on over to askrezzz.com today to get your custom playlist made by minifigs and gremlins that are handpicked especially for you.Now let’s get back to today’s show shall we?When you first start out selling a recurring service, you’ll start to make it out be an afterthought in the conversation. You’ll focus on what the lead came to you with in the first. What you want to do is re-frame the conversation so that the solution is the recurring service, not the one-off project.How you do this really depends on you and your business, but there are a few things to keep in mind:If you listened to the show w

-------------------For full show notes, your very own Ask Rezzz playlist, and bonus material, head on over here for it all. -------------------Having a track record of solid, reliable, work will go a long way to helping you close sales. Having just your own website won’t do.You’ll need to do a bit of hustling, maybe even barter with some folks and trade your skills for an opportunity.Reach out to some local agencies to see if they have any overflow work. Agencies aren’t the most ideal to work with if you want to drive the ship of projects, but they are an amazing starting point to build up a reputation and place in the market.The idea is to get work that you can do and build up a nice track record of good work.SOME THINGS YOU’LL WANT TO KEEP IN MINDWhen you start this journey, you’ll want to make sure: You can showcase the work on your own website. You can talk about the work you are doing. To try and stick to the same type of technology, or same industry, or even same location. The smaller the project, the f

-------------------For full show notes, a customized Ask Rezzz playlist, and bonus material, head on over here for it all. -------------------Today’s show is going to be a little different. I’m always asked what I look for when it comes to red flags in talking with leads and clients.Like you, I always try to learn from what other folks do in their business so that I hope not to fall into those same pitfalls.And so when I get asked this question I try to put myself in their shoes. Maybe there is something they are experiencing at that moment where they are looking to get insight into something they are missing.So what I’m going to do is list off 26 red flags for you. These are a mix of my own and other business owners that I’ve spoken to both inside and outside of the Feast community.Some may be obvious, some may not. But I’ll leave that to you.1. Had issues with the other developer / designer2. Their values, what they represent don’t align with your own3. “I’ll know it when I see it”4. “Maybe we can work out

-------------------For full show notes, a customized Ask Rezzz playlist, and bonus material, head on over here for it all. -------------------I’ve found that freelancing clients are often the ones that need the motivation on the longer projects. They are the ones paying, so really they’ll want that return on their investment as quickly as possible.I’m always saying “be consistent” in both my personal as well as professional life. In fact, “be consistent” is just one thing that I’ve been whispering in my son, TJ’s ear since the day he was born.Being consistent means showing up each and every day you say you will for the client. I find that any and all projects have both short term and long term gains. Even if they are simple and small milestones along the way to those longer term goals.Long term projects will always have stepping stones to the end game. Things like a feature being built, a set of designs completed, beta testers coming in, even something like content has been written and signed off on is a shor