Passive income. The holy grail of online businesses. Products, courses and offers that make you money while you sleep. I’m here to tell you that there’s real work behind generating passive income! This week’s Minima question comes courtesy of one of my readers, Lucy. “Can you share how you launched your book and how you […]
The five things you need to test right now
Here’s the problem. You have a site, but you never visit it (or maybe you don’t keep it up to date) – so you don’t know that anything is wrong until other people tell you! Here’s how you can avoid the 5 biggest site mistakes I see all the time. 1. Contact form doesn’t work […]
9 lessons in 9 years running a design business
I never thought when I started my business that I’d still be working for myself (and still loving what I do). I’m so honored to work with amazing clients and challenging projects that make a difference in this world. I’ve collected 9 tips from some of my hardest lessons – I’d love to hear from […]
What to do when you think you’re not good enough
I’ve been mentoring and talking with designers for the last few years – and when I survey my audience about what they struggle with most in their business, three answers pop up the most. The most common responses? the fear that they don’t know enough the fear that they’re not credible enough to promote (and […]
How to make your stock photos look “not so stock”
Looking to make your site stand out from the crowd? Using stock photos can often make your site feel generic. In this special photoshop Minima Tutorial, I’ll show you how you can use filters and actions to create gorgeous, unique graphics for your custom site. Products used in this tutorial All of the effects, fonts […]
How do you get more design clients – especially if you’re just starting out?
I’ve been getting this question a lot lately in my one-on-one designer consultations. Maybe you’re new to design or maybe you started out like me – having worked for someone else for years, you’ve got no idea how to generate leads and get new clients. When you’re just starting out, everything about your business can […]
The art of the followup
Want to know why some designers are consistently busy and others can’t seem to get enough work? What’s the secret to a never-ending a stream of new clients and consistent cash flow? Explore the art of the follow-up. How many times have you gone into a store and not purchased anything. Did the clerk or […]
Building a better pop-up optin
Looking to create your own version of a pop-up optin box? In this Minima tutorial, I’ll show you exactly what I use to easily create high-converting pop-up boxes. Create, test and tweak away! Click here for the OptinMonster plugin featured in this tutorial.
Lessons from a goldfish
Last week I was in Denver for a tech conference. When I called to check in with my husband, he asked if I had gotten the pet fish. I didn’t know it, but one of the fun perks of my hotel was a goldfish for your room. When I relayed this to my new friends […]
Secrets behind creating a memorable online course
Curious about building an online course? Watch my behind the scenes video that shows you exactly what I used to create a memorable course.
The art of the redesign
Are you planning a website redesign? Watch the video below to review a few points to consider before you redesign your site.
Before you leave that day job
Recently I’ve had a few folks write me about when is it the right time to leave the day job. When I started my business over a decade ago, I was terrified that I had no idea what I was doing. I’d been working at a small firm in DC that had its own office […]
How to pick the perfect plugin
Confused on how to pick the right plugin? Watch the video below to see how I evaluate and review plugins for my site. Determine your needs Don’t just install the first one you see without researching it Check to see when it was last updated Check for support issues Check the cost Evaluate plugins on […]
Behind the Curtain – what happens when a web designer redesigns her own site?
Watch the video review of my own site as I explain my 6 goals for my website redesign and the strategies I employed to remake my site. Links mentioned in the video Parallax Pro Theme from Genesis Business Professional Font from You Work for Them Typekit from Adobe Envira Gallery
Simple tip to add people to your newsletter list
I’m sharing one of my very best strategy tips today – how I’ve easily added hundreds of quality subscribers to my newsletter list. If you’re running an online business, you’re always looking for ways to add people to your list. In today’s tutorial I’ll show you how to create the absolute best contact form that […]
How to create a FAQ page for your website
If you’ve got any sort of business that deals with clients and the general public (and especially if you’re offering digital or software products), I’ll bet you’ve answered a lot of the same questions over and over again. In this Minima tutorial I’ve got a simple solution that will cut down on your customer support […]
How to create a simple placeholder page in less than ten minutes
Have you ever started a project and wanted to put up a placeholder page while you work behind the scenes? Or are you working on your site and want to put it into maintenance mode but keep your email opt-in available to your visitors? Today’s tutorial will show you exactly how to do it – […]
Two words that will change your business
Saying these two words – thank you – might be the smartest business move you make this year that influences your business for next year. I usually take this Thanksgiving weekend to send custom holiday cards to my current and past clients thanking them for the opportunity to serve. This is a super easy way […]
The art of organizing your work life
For the last few months, I’ve been teaching advanced web design to students at a top art school – and one thing that really surprised me was that I had to teach how to organize projects. Students initially had trouble finding where their current project files were – and they were getting easily confused as […]
Should you work for free?
So it happened again a few weeks ago…I got offered equity if i did design work for a start up company. I’m always open to hearing from new strategic partners – and this one came as a referral. The project sounded interesting…until we got to discussion of fees. Ah, the old equity offer. Full branding […]
How to get and stay inspired
Whenever I start a new project, my first step is to review my idea collection. I’m constantly scouring the web for inspirational textures, photos, layouts, and coding techniques and saving ideas I find for different needs – these hits of inspiration help form color and layout choices and push me to think differently. If you […]
Why being the nice guy pays off
If you've ever run any type of online business, you've probably encountered a tech issue of one sort or another. Servers have glitches, plugins don't co-operate, maybe you forgot to renew your domain and everything's down. At some point you're going to have to contact tech support (whether you're the designer, the client or the […]
My biggest business mistakes…
Over the years I’ve learned a thing or two or twenty (and some lessons I had to learn multiple times!) Here are a few lessons I hope you can take to heart and avoid my costly mistakes. 1. Buying products on behalf of the client A huge error I discovered a while ago — I […]
Everyone’s a critic…How to deal with haters + criticism
Here's the real deal that no one wants to talk about. You aren't imagining it. Everyone is judging you and the work you put out there. And yeah, they're looking at your source code too. And wondering why you didn't make that site responsive. Or why you used that photo. Or why you didn't make […]