Questions

Hi! I'm the owner of wantdesign.co.uk and I'm going to take the next step by hiring full time help and setting up a limited company. I've got wantwebsite, wantseo, wantapp .co.uk domains and thinking about creating landings with focus on each service (wantdesign will be just for branding services and print design). Is this a good idea or should I find a new, more brandable, name and run everything under one name? Thank you.

Lot's of great ideas from everyone that has posted. Here are my two cents.

1) I am a firm believer in multiple domains talking about one specific service. The reason I believe in this concept is I have been doing it for more than 15 years now and I have not spent one dime on advertising. My niche markets are unique so it may not apply to what you are doing, but for me I turn business down. When people have twenty services on one website I believe they can get confused. If they see you specialize in just one thing or that website is specific to one thing they can't be distracted as much.

2) There are two types of domains. Brandable and searchable. Geico or Nike is a brandable name and a searchable name would be bestinsurance4u.com or bestshoes.com. I've always done searchable domains and had the best luck. The traffic I get off of these searchable domains are so much more than my brand name that I VERY SELDOM US MY BRAND NAME.

3) I see you have different types of services that require different types of qualifications. I strongly recommend that you do an online quote. I started doing this around five years ago and my business tripled within that first year. My quote form had specific questions geared to my business. I was able to stop 1-hour phone conversations and get an online quote to them within 3 to 5 minutes of my time. 90% of my business is now computer generated and automated so that I very seldom even talk to anyone on the phone.

4) Short story. I am a real estate broker. Most would advertise how good they are at selling properties. I do evictions to get my foot in the door. It's a service that most people don't want to do so they hire someone. Once I evict them I have already established a relationship with that owner so now I can renovate their property, lease their property, or sell their property. Consider doing the same thing in your business. Figure out how to get your foot in the door and then tell them about other services. My average client uses me three times for some service. One is the eviction process and then it can be as simple as running a credit report or typing a lease. All generating income at a consistent rate.

5) I've owed over 1000 domain names and have figured out how to get my websites ranked on google without paying. Content is key and multiple domains about the same service will get you more leads. In 1990 I started my buisness. The internet was not popular or being used so we relied on the yellow pages. I created a company then that started with the letter A. Allstar Leasing. I then purchased another business ad and phone and did Bemis Realty. What people would do is shop around and call the first one and then twenty minutes later call the second one. I said I have more so you can keep calling, but you are going to get us again. We had literally 7 names. Fast forward. Now ranking is how they find you. The other day A guy called me (rare event lol). Talked to him for 30 minutes. Five minutes later I get an online quote and it's him. I immediately emailed him back and said I just got off the phone with you and You filled out my online submission form. Just so you know I have 40 websites and chances are you are going to get me on most of them. He said he kinda figured that since the questions asked on the online submission form were what I asked him on the phone.

6) I have been in business now for 25 years. I've learned the best thing anyone can do is make sure you have a system in place that is consistent. Your system will make or break you. Take fast food places. You must have a set presentation. Time it and refine it. Always look to decrease that process. The quicker you can do a service the more money you make. Organize your thoughts and make sure you follow through. I good app to organize things is Trello. I know there are many things out there, but I prefer this personally.

7) You can have all these great ideas but at the end of the day you need a good accountant, attorney and mentor. All cost by the way. You must make sure that what you are doing is legal and you should have all the proper documents to protect yourself from liability. You should always keep up with your profit and loss statements. You can't really build a business if you don't know what you are making or losing.

My final thoughts are this. People never plan to fail, but they do. What makes winners versus losers is how you treat your customers, the value of the service you offer and how well you deliver that service. It's better to charge more for a service and have less people than to charge less to get bulk and provide a poor service. I tripled my prices and increased my attention to detail. I work less and make more. Win win for both clients and myself.

Good luck!


Answered 8 years ago

Unlock Startups Unlimited

Access 20,000+ Startup Experts, 650+ masterclass videos, 1,000+ in-depth guides, and all the software tools you need to launch and grow quickly.

Already a member? Sign in

Copyright © 2024 Startups.com LLC. All rights reserved.