WordPress, agency life, and entrepreneur observations
Excerpts from The Friday Chaser
There’s no finish line
If you sat down right now and listed out all the things you should be doing to improve your agency, how long do you think that list would be? Your website needs updates (or maybe…
Mar 21, 2025
I’d rather be wrong and prepared than right
I’m certainly no qualified economic forecaster — but, similar to what I posted in the group this week (link in the Inside The Group section below), it feels like the trade winds are starting to…
Mar 14, 2025
Quicker, easier, less expensive… And more effective
They say it’s not what you know, it’s who you know — and I think they (whoever they are) are right. No one reading this is best web developer on the planet, yet, here we…
Mar 7, 2025
Woah — that’s expensive
“Wow, that’s expensive!” It’s an uneasy moment when a client reacts this way to seeing the price you worked so hard on putting together for them. Instinctively, you feel the urge to explain yourself. You…
Feb 28, 2025
Have you done the math?
How did you come up with your pricing? Some base it on what they’d make at a 9-to-5 job. Others just copy what their competitors charge. And a lot of people I’ve talked to admit…
Feb 21, 2025
Harder than it needs to be
You see it all the time inside the group… Agency owners frantically bouncing from one hack to the next, hoping they’ll finally crack the client acquisition cheat code. Cold emails, mass DMs, LinkedIn automation tools,…
Feb 14, 2025
Squeaky wheels get the boot
Right before Christmas we had a leak in our top floor bathroom that trickled down into the main floor. Even just the small amount of water (a couple gallons that collected over a few days…
Feb 7, 2025
They’re worth rooting for
Had my subject line been click-baity, like “Why WordPress Leaders Are Failing Us”, this email would have gotten more opens. It’s just how the internet works. That’s not necessarily bad, but it’s not great either….
Jan 31, 2025
What’s your 20%?
If you look at all the agencies in TAB, I’d say they’re about 80% indistinguishable. We design and build websites. We offer ongoing care. We try out best to keep clients happy. We price things…
Jan 24, 2025
It’s not magic
At the start of the year, I set a goal to grow my care plan roster by 12. However, with everything on my plate, there’s no way I’m building 12 websites this year — so…
Jan 17, 2025
We’re not building websites, we’re building reputations
Y’all — Last night, I got the email every one of us dreams of getting: “You were right.” A few months ago I fired one of my biggest clients. Even after offers to pay me…
Jan 10, 2025
Not “another” year
I love this time of year. Everyone’s hit the reset button over the holidays and has goals, optimism, and the motivation to make this year better than the last. But maintaining that motivation through the…
Jan 3, 2025
Good Enough for Who It’s For
I probably mentioned this before, but a year or so ago I started riding a bike again. It’s something I’ve really grown to love, and as I got more and more into the hobby I…
Dec 27, 2024
It’s not padding, it’s margin
Imagine this is you and the alternatives your prospects have to consider: You’re stuck between a bunch of people who “make websites” and mass-market tools that make it cheaper than ever to get a business…
Dec 20, 2024
5 tips for ending 2024 strong
The end of the year is approaching rapidly — soon, we’ll be turning on our out of office notifications, closing our laptops, and pretending we’re not checking Slack 👀 Hopefully, anyway — it’s hard to…
Dec 13, 2024
Your grown-up, business version of a pony
It’s fun watching my kids — especially the littlest one — blow out her birthday candles. Her eyes are closed tighter than ever as she makes her wish and blows as hard as she can…
Dec 6, 2024
Impulse Control Assessment Day
Happy Black Friday! Or, as I like to call it “Impulse Control Assessment Day” 😅 It’s easy to get swept up in the frenzy — after all, we’re nerds for all this tech. Tools, software,…
Nov 29, 2024
A Magic Eye poster of your business
A couple weeks ago I brought in someone to help me streamline and optimize some things in my business. And before we’ve made a single change, this process has already been easily the most impactful…
Nov 22, 2024
The 5 scariest words in web design
“We hired a marketing director” If your long-time client ever uttered this sentence to you before, then I’m sure this sent shivers down your spine (sorry about that). It’s fresh on my mind, as I…
Nov 15, 2024
The only way forward
I’ve always leaned towards “ready, fire, aim.” Not because I’m reckless, but because taking action puts you in the driver’s seat. Some of my best wins came from just going for it, trusting that somehow…
Nov 8, 2024
