Co-founder of Conversion Factory, Zach Stevens, rejoined me on Ditching Hourly to give us an update on how he's growing his subscription SaaS marketing agency in year 3.

Links We Mentioned

• Conversion Factory Website
• Zach's partner Corey, on X
• The Superstruct Manifesto by David Guttman
• The "If You're Such An Expert" Ditcherville Comic

Chapters

• (00:00) - Introduction and Welcome
• (00:10) - Zach's Business Journey
• (01:19) - Conversion Factory's Growth
• (02:26) - Subscription Model Insights
• (04:04) - Hiring and Team Expansion
• (08:32) - Training and Onboarding
• (20:48) - Client Management Strategies
• (30:00) - Client Frustrations and Communication Strategies
• (31:04) - The Inefficiency of Phone Calls
• (33:19) - Setting Client Expectations
• (37:05) - AI in Copywriting and Design
• (45:53) - Subscription Model Benefits
• (54:49) - Final Thoughts and Future Plans

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Do you have questions about how to improve your business?

Things like:

• Value pricing your work instead of billing for your time?
• Positioning yourself as the go-to person in your space?
• Productizing your services so you never have to have another awkward sales call or spend hours writing another custom proposal?

Book a one-on-one coaching call with me and get answers to these questions and others in the time it takes to get ready for work in the morning.

Best of all, you're covered by my 100% satisfaction guarantee. If at the end of the call, you don't feel like it was worth it, just say the word, and I'll refund your purchase in full.

To book your one-on-one coaching call, go to:

https://jonathanstark.com/call

I hope to see you there!

Charles Miller of Platoon joined me on Ditching Hourly to discuss “good” taste, how you get it, why you might want it, and what to do when your clients don’t have it.

Links

• Charles’ personal site » https://www.charlesmiller.com/
• Charles’ portfolio site » https://www.platoon.studio/

Chapters

• (00:00) - Introduction and Guest Welcome
• (00:11) - Defining Taste
• (00:19) - Charles Miller's Background
• (00:59) - The Concept of Informed Opinion
• (02:20) - Developing Taste Over Time
• (05:50) - Taste in Different Domains
• (08:44) - Taste and Business Decisions
• (16:42) - Client Relationships and Taste
• (21:30) - Understanding Client Needs
• (24:00) - The Role of Taste in Design
• (25:28) - The Importance of Practice
• (27:09) - Releasing Your Work to the World
• (27:52) - The Role of Taste Makers
• (30:11) - Balancing Client Expectations and Creative Vision
• (34:36) - The Genius of Simplifying Complex Ideas
• (40:07) - Final Thoughts and Wrap Up

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Do you have questions about how to improve your business?

Things like:

• Value pricing your work instead of billing for your time?
• Positioning yourself as the go-to person in your space?
• Productizing your services so you never have to have another awkward sales call or spend hours writing another custom proposal?

Book a one-on-one coaching call with me and get answers to these questions and others in the time it takes to get ready for work in the morning.

Best of all, you're covered by my 100% satisfaction guarantee. If at the end of the call, you don't feel like it was worth it, just say the word, and I'll refund your purchase in full.

To book your one-on-one coaching call, go to:

https://jonathanstark.com/call

I hope to see you there!

Author of No BS Strategy, Alex M H Smith, rejoined me on Ditching Hourly to help define a very important word that few business people understand correctly.

Chapters

• (00:00) - Introduction and Welcome
• (00:11) - Guest Introduction: Alex Smith
• (01:30) - Understanding Business Strategy
• (02:02) - The Misunderstood Concept of Value
• (04:15) - Creating Value in Business
• (07:55) - Innovating Beyond Traditional Value
• (13:01) - Practical Examples and Market Research
• (18:14) - Unique Value Proposition
• (29:23) - Understanding Differentiation in Business
• (29:56) - The Importance of Unique Positioning
• (30:36) - Consulting Strategies and Unique Differences
• (31:32) - Examples of Effective Differentiation
• (33:23) - The Role of Specialization in Strategy
• (38:30) - Embracing Weaknesses for Strategic Advantage
• (40:53) - Balancing Specialization and Market Reach
• (41:51) - The Pitfalls of Over-Niching
• (48:28) - Rooting in Recognizable Categories
• (53:20) - Conclusion and Resources

• Alex's free resources » https://basicarts.org/welcome/
• Alex's book » https://basicarts.org/book/
• Alex's mailing list » https://basicarts.org/articles/
• Alex's LinkedIn » https://www.linkedin.com/in/alex-m-h-smith/

----

Do you have questions about how to improve your business?

Things like:

• Value pricing your work instead of billing for your time?
• Positioning yourself as the go-to person in your space?
• Productizing your services so you never have to have another awkward sales call or spend hours writing another custom proposal?

Book a one-on-one coaching call with me and get answers to these questions and others in the time it takes to get ready for work in the morning.

Best of all, you're covered by my 100% satisfaction guarantee. If at the end of the call, you don't feel like it was worth it, just say the word, and I'll refund your purchase in full.

To book your one-on-one coaching call, go to:

https://jonathanstark.com/call

I hope to see you there!