Andrew Martinez is a known WordPress expert. In this interview, he talks about his entrepreneurial journey, why having an online presence during this pandemic is a must and about his upcoming bootcamp.
Andrew, Thank you for talking with us. Entrepreneurship is not new to you. However, before your current venture, you had the taste of entrepreneurship on various occasions. A few mildly successful ones and a few failures. Tell us something more about your journey.
Thank you for having me. It was around 2007 when I was introduced to the world of entrepreneurship. I was attending church with my girlfriend at the time, and another member of the congregation gave me this newsletter from a nutritional network marketing company and asked me to consider the opportunity. It talked about the benefits of having a home-based business and also had some suggested reading.
One of the books from that suggested reading list was Robert Kiyosaki’s Rich Dad Poor Dad . I found the title very intriguing and ordered a copy for myself from Amazon. After I finished reading it, I felt it was the most eye-opening book I ever read.
I remember thinking to myself “wow it would be nice if they taught this kind of stuff in school!” In a nutshell, society programs us that the path to success is to go to school, get good grades, graduate with honors, find a good-paying job with benefits, and then look forward to retirement after ~40 years of working. Unfortunately, it does not always work like this.
Ever since I read Rich Dad Poor Dad and eventually his other book Cashflow Quadrant, I just knew that I did not want to work for someone else forever. Instead of working for my money, I wanted to eventually have my money and other resources working for me. I did eventually decide to give that nutritional network marketing company a try.
However, in less than a year I ended up quitting as it was a challenge to recruit others. I ultimately lost money from that business opportunity.
Over the next few years, I also attempted a few other ventures such as real estate bird dogging (locating properties for other investors for a referral fee), affiliate marketing (making money selling other people’s products), freelancing, and creating my own products.
With real estate bird-dogging, while I was able to maintain a buyer’s list (of investors ready to pay cash on the right deal), it would be an ongoing challenge finding deals for those investor buyers.
Then in 2012, I came across an online ad about an affiliate marketing online course. The basic premise of the course was to create a self hosted WordPress blog where you picked a niche, produced relevant content for that niche, strategically inserted affiliate links here and there, and also encourage people to sign up for your email list.
I invested in this affiliate marketing course. This is where I also first learned about the benefits of a WordPress website in addition to email marketing. When I was going through this course and building my WordPress website, I became fascinated with the whole website creation process.
Ever since then, I have taught myself more about web design, web development, and online marketing via platforms like Codecademy and Udemy. That affiliate marketing course from 2012 really kicked off my career in online entrepreneurship.
In 2014 I took on my very first client project – creating a website for a local makeup artist. It was such a huge thrill to have another person pay me money to put my techie skills to work. This also taught me an important lesson: it’s ok if you’re not a total expert at something. As long as you’re a step ahead of your audience (further along than them), and they are gaining genuine value from you, then this is all that matters.
I then eventually came up with my own website Powerful Digital Solutions where the focus would be helping service-based solopreneurs, startups, and other non-techie entrepreneurs establish their online presence.
For a while, I was doing this as a side hustle while working another full-time job. In October 2017 I made the plunge into full-time entrepreneurship and became a full-time WordPress Website Consultant. For a while, I had a steady flow of client projects including referrals. Eventually, I had a dry spell and realized I needed to make some adjustments. I also came across some resources about “productizing” your service and how freelancers can turn what they do into a digital product.
I remember one day I joined this Facebook group for people considering creating their own online course. When I made my introductory post and mentioned how I’ve considered making a course that would teach others how to build their own WordPress website, I got quite a bit of feedback.
Although I had not yet begun any official market research, a number of people commented and asked if I planned on releasing soon. Another person talked about the frustrations she had with making her own WordPress website. From that point on, I knew that I had to create a course.
Another milestone in my entrepreneurial journey was when I read Choose by Ryan Levesque. This book is all about teaching you how to pick your niche (one that is willing to spend money).
I remember this one part in the book that talked about the best types of business for your personality style. For instance, if you’re an introvert by nature then selling infoproducts and/or memberships would best suit you.
If you’re naturally extroverted, then selling coaching and/or live events might best suit you. Although network marketing was not categorized in this context, one could argue that it’s better suited for extroverts.
As an introverted entrepreneur, this insight was huge. This made me realize how it’s important to play to your natural strengths. This inspired me, even more, to work on my online course as well as consider other possible digital products in the future (such as a membership or Kindle book).
As of 2020, in addition to working on client projects, I am also coming up with do it yourself (DIY) resources for those who don’t want to hire someone. I know what my strengths and weaknesses are, and I make sure to play to my natural strengths while outsourcing my weaknesses. I take very much pride in creating beautiful and professional WordPress websites, offering DIY resources, and also offering
relevant affiliate products.
What were the initial challenges that you faced in your endeavor?
When I joined that nutritional network marketing company back in 2007, I was told to make a list of my family, friends, and everyone else I knew and to share the products as well as the business opportunity. It was definitely a challenge finding interested prospects this way.
This made me wonder if I was even cut out for entrepreneurship. Fast forward to October 2017: when I went full time with my side hustle of building websites, it did have its challenges. I had to teach myself how to better manage my time and prioritize my tasks. I also had occasional challenges with finding qualified prospects (especially those who would respect my expertise and not haggle me on price).
After investing in some resources (including a little coaching and mentorship), I learned how to better manage my time, qualify prospective clients, and manage client expectations. Over time I was able to really hone my internal systems and processes for success.
“If a business is not on the internet, the business does not exist at all.” Though a cliche, many businesses miss this point. What are your views on this?
Bill Gates once said “if your business is not on the Internet, then your business will be out of business.” I strongly believe that success leaves clues. When a billionaire shares some form of business advice with you, you might want to listen.
I firmly believe that if a business is serious about their overall long term success, then they need a professional website in place that is fast, secure, and search engine optimized.
A website should be treated like a member of their team: like a sales & marketing rep that works 24/7 to share their brand, serve customers (current & prospective), and ultimately contribute to the bottom line.
Some people might think that a Facebook business page (or other social media page) is all they need. However, since their algorithms can change over time, this can hurt a business’s organic reach. Plus it is nearly impossible to have your own look and feel on a social media page.
Many businesses are reluctant to have an online presence. Some think they are technically not sound to create their business’ digital presence. How justified is their fear? Also, do you think that irrespective of the nature of your business, a solid online presence is a must?
I can see why some businesses might be afraid. Creating a website does involve spending quite a bit of time in front of a computer, and some business owners may not have the time, focus, or concentration to be able to be in front of their computer for an extended amount of time.
Many also simply don’t know about the benefits of a WordPress website and how it makes the website creation process easier. People fear what they do not fully understand. If more entrepreneurs gained at least a basic understanding of WordPress, then they would see that the whole process doesn’t have to be overwhelming.
No matter what type of business you have, a solid online presence is a must for long term success.
People will often visit a business online before visiting in person.
If a business wants to get found on Google by prospective customers, maintain their credibility, and also have that 24/7 sales & marketing rep that never sleeps, then a professional website is needed.
Covid-19 has hit brick and mortar businesses hard. Those who are not adapting to the whole situation are filing for bankruptcy. How do you see the whole situation so far? What strategies can businesses adopt in order to tackle this unprecedented business challenge?
As of May 2020, I am seeing conditions slowly improve. I’ve noticed that more and more businesses are reopening while maintaining social distancing and other precautions.
I feel that this situation is an excellent example of the need to have an online presence in order to better adapt and survive. This whole situation has also been a reminder to me to never rely on just one source of income (nor on just one product/service offering).
Just as individuals should diversify their income, businesses should have an overall diversified strategy (e.g., some restaurants have been selling groceries in addition to prepared meals).
The number one suggestion I could offer to businesses during this time is to figure out how they can innovate and diversify their offerings. If someone runs a service-based business (such as an accountant or barber), maybe they could offer mobile services or somehow productize their service. I know that the online learning industry is a billion-dollar industry and recession-proof.
As part of a diversified business strategy, a small business owner could maybe come up with DIY resources for the public. At the same time, small business owners could use this downtime to audit their business strategy (figure out what has and has not been working before this pandemic) and then make improvements such as giving their website a revamp. In addition to merely surviving this pandemic, businesses should also ready themselves for after this pandemic is done with.
One final point I’d like to make is that many successful businesses were formed during a recession such as Uber and Groupon. This should serve as inspiration to focus more on innovating and less on how bad present conditions are.
You believe that taking your business online should not be a mystery and small businesses should not be looted in the name of making websites for their businesses. Tell us more about your upcoming Bootcamp which demystifies the entire website building process.
My 3 Day Website Planning Bootcamp which begins May 18, 2020 is all about helping service based solopreneurs, startups, and other non techie entrepreneurs make a plan for their online presence.
Whether you just need a basic “online brochure” or something more complex like an online shop, it all starts with a written plan. On Day 1, participants will receive an overview of the website creation process and how it’s not so bad once you get a bird’s eye view of it.
I also cover how WordPress makes it easy for any non techie to create and/or update their own website. On Day 2, participants will receive guidance on creating their own style guide – picking the right fonts and colors for their website and overall brand. They’ll learn how to make their own style guide in the form of a Google Doc.
On Day 3, we’ll get into completing the rest of the “website blueprint.” In addition to knowing what fonts and colors they’ll use, they’ll also have access to a website planning worksheet. This will help nail down their online goals, which web pages they’ll need, and other related questions.
The main goal of my bootcamp is to take participants from feeling lost or overwhelmed about the website creation process to feeling more empowered and having a written blueprint to help determine what direction they’d like to go. People can get more details and reserve their spots for this bootcamp.
Update: “The 3 Day Website Planning Bootcamp has already passed. However, there is an evergreen version of this bootcamp called How to Plan Your Website Blueprint. People can get more details and sign up here.
What suggestion would you give to those businesses who are facing enormous challenges due to the ongoing pandemic?
The number one suggestion I could give is to figure out how you can innovate and diversify your overall business strategy. Current and prospective customers can often help in this regard.
