Tracy Levesque is one half of Yikes Inc, a WordPress and Cold Fusion shop in Philadelphia. She speaks at WordCamps, teaches at Girl Develop It and is a big fan of getting up close and personal with her fears. In this episode you’ll discover how they have grown their team, learnt to say no to clients and how Tracy uses Trello to keep her life organised.
This week we're giving away a lifetime license of the Video User Manuals plugin. Leave a comment under the video and tell us the #1 thing you're afraid of in your business.
Congratulations Val Hudgins! Tracy has chosen you as the lucky winner of the competition! Thanks for your contribution and keep elevating! (December 2014)
Some of the highlights of this episode include:
• knowing when to hire and how to find good people
• how networking can be awesome
• why it’s important to know what you don’t like doing (and what to do about it)
Elevation Round Answers
Here are the answers to the questions in our Elevation round. Watch the interview to get the full scoop.
1. Hosting
2. Get involved in the community
3. Just don’t
4. Find a “Jodie”
5. Salesforce
6. Trello and nagging emails
7. Do a really good job
8. Great customer service
You can reach out and thank Tracy on Twitter at https://twitter.com/liljimmi.
Tracy Levesque suggested I interview Zoe Rooney from http://zoerooney.com/. Zoe, keep your eyes on your inbox.
Hint: to enter the competition, leave a comment below and tell us the #1 thing you’re afraid of in your business.
19 Responses
The biggest thing that I am afraid of about in my business is my contingency plan (or lack thereof, officially) in case something happens to me as a 1-man shop.
The biggest thing that I am afraid of about in my business is my contingency plan (or lack thereof, officially) in case something happens to me as a 1-man shop.
Tracy – I really want that Lifetime License! Hook it up!!!
One of my biggest fears is that I will underwhelm my clients because I can’t deliver exactly what they want.
One of my biggest fears is that I will underwhelm my clients because I can’t deliver exactly what they want.
One of my biggest fears is estimating. As much as I scope things up, there always seem to be unforeseen circumstances that come up during a project. I find it difficult to figure out how much buffer to add to an estimate for those.
One of my biggest fears is estimating. As much as I scope things up, there always seem to be unforeseen circumstances that come up during a project. I find it difficult to figure out how much buffer to add to an estimate for those.
My biggest fear is underestimating the time/effort needed for a project and then be vastly underpaid for the work.
My biggest fear is underestimating the time/effort needed for a project and then be vastly underpaid for the work.
Great show Tracy seemed to be a charming lady and answered all the questions intelligently and honestly.
Great show Tracy seemed to be a charming lady and answered all the questions intelligently and honestly.
My biggest fear, at this point in time, is that clients will not pay high end prices for my website services. I am working on conquering this fear though!
My biggest fear, at this point in time, is that clients will not pay high end prices for my website services. I am working on conquering this fear though!
My biggest fear, as I move from a one-woman shop to a four-person services company is not being taken seriously, primarily due to my age. I retired from UX/UI in the cable industry years ago and LOVE working now. I have no plans to quit. I’m learning that the clients that don’t see my experience as helpful are just not for us. (And I stopped in the middle of the grocery store to write this cuz it’s an awesome prize.) Great interview, Troy and Tracy! Thank you.
My biggest fear, as I move from a one-woman shop to a four-person services company is not being taken seriously, primarily due to my age. I retired from UX/UI in the cable industry years ago and LOVE working now. I have no plans to quit. I’m learning that the clients that don’t see my experience as helpful are just not for us. (And I stopped in the middle of the grocery store to write this cuz it’s an awesome prize.) Great interview, Troy and Tracy! Thank you.
Great episode! I’ve only been developing and designing wordpress sites for a year, and my biggest challenge and fear has to be telling a client that changes or additions they want beyond the contract will cost more.
Even though it is written and signed, and we discuss it at the beginning of the project, I have a tendency to simply keep working, expanding the project as they wish, without charging more. They love my flexibility, and it has been great for referrals, but it ends up costing me in the long run and leaves me sometimes turning down other clients I would have had room for.
I deeply enjoy working with and engaging all the clients I’ve had, and find it rewarding, but saying “no” or “it will be an additional cost” seems so difficult!
Great episode! I’ve only been developing and designing wordpress sites for a year, and my biggest challenge and fear has to be telling a client that changes or additions they want beyond the contract will cost more.
Even though it is written and signed, and we discuss it at the beginning of the project, I have a tendency to simply keep working, expanding the project as they wish, without charging more. They love my flexibility, and it has been great for referrals, but it ends up costing me in the long run and leaves me sometimes turning down other clients I would have had room for.
I deeply enjoy working with and engaging all the clients I’ve had, and find it rewarding, but saying “no” or “it will be an additional cost” seems so difficult!
Hi Elizabeth. You have to stop doing that right now 🙂 Not getting paid for extra work will only hurt you and your clients in the long run.
The easiest thing to say is “that is out of the original scope of work, and I can provide you with an estimate for that if you like.” No one is going to get angry and people will still refer you to others for a job well done. You will have more time and resources to do a good job for your clients if you are getting paid for your time.
Doing work for free is unsustainable and will keep you from growing and may even eventually stop you from continuing. Trust me, getting firm on out-of-scope work now will totally pay off.
Best of luck!
Hi Elizabeth. You have to stop doing that right now 🙂 Not getting paid for extra work will only hurt you and your clients in the long run.
The easiest thing to say is “that is out of the original scope of work, and I can provide you with an estimate for that if you like.” No one is going to get angry and people will still refer you to others for a job well done. You will have more time and resources to do a good job for your clients if you are getting paid for your time.
Doing work for free is unsustainable and will keep you from growing and may even eventually stop you from continuing. Trust me, getting firm on out-of-scope work now will totally pay off.
Best of luck!
nice show Tracy,,, I also have my website of Love Cover Photos on wordpress and i am loving it and have no fear because i believe that i will get enough what i deserve 🙂