Please Please Please understand I appreciate everyone's opinion about this subject.
I think there is place for everyone in this business ( except human traffickers or any sort of forced situation) I truly am trying to help folks in the industry out. I am so hoping to keep the thread on track and avoid the pile on effect that commonly happens.
I am not able to put this in a men's only forum and am truly looking to get answers from hobbyist. Not that provider input isn't important as I am planning a survey for them as well. I am not trying to say butt out however if the thread goes to far astray or gets insulting or ugly, it will be lost or stopped. ECCIE has a strict policy about hi jacking threads, using threads to be threatening and such, so I am just hoping yall will let this one ride...PLEASE
I wish all the best
Thanks
In answer your concerns you raised about my business.
One must also learn to define things. I had a call from a provider friend who was very upset about how slow things were for her. Turns out, she felt that "only" making $1200 for the week was just unbelievably, devastatingly slow. Slow is a very subjective term. Ladies sometimes lose perspective when they get used to the money during the "milk and honey" times.
You are absolutely correct about terms like slow being subjective. That is why I always ask what they consider slow. Plus there were many other questions I sought and still seek answers to, but I only mentioned the simplest and most common denominator (money) as I thought it was the least controversial and something we could all relate to. I thought everyone especially providers could benefit from hearing it staight for the horses mouth ( a few hundred horses mouths from various hobby sites) I see I was wrong about the controversial part.
I appreciate the fact that you are trying to look into the market by conducting your survey, but I have to say that the time to do this level of market research is BEFORE you take on clients who are paying for your marketing services. I also have to chime in and agree that if I paid someone for website design, I would be furious if what I got was a template generated site that I could make for free if I had the time and inclination.
As I stated before business is an ever changing thing. I personally know that the climate of hobbying is different now than it was 5 years ago. I have also built my provider business twice in two different areas of the country which meant my client base changed.
As for My websites Which is not what this thread was about. All my clients know I use Wix before ever deciding to have me do a site for them. As a matter of fact many choose me because of that. I offer them a way that once the work is done they can then simply manage the site themselves. All my sites are built from nothing. I do not use Wix templates or graphics unless a client prefers.
I often liken what I do to what a hair dresser does coloring hair. A customer can color there hair themselves if they have the time or inclination to. But many still go see a hairdresser. The color products that hairdressers use are available to the public and yet hundreds of thousands of people a day choose to have someone else do it. and At other times they do it themselves It's just a matter of personal choices. Like any choice everyone has their reasons. But there is no efforts by me to bamboozle clients.
Another thing to bear in mind is that not only does the market fluctuate based on economic factors--- location is also an issue. I travel a little bit as well as maintain a home base. What I make at home, I would consider unacceptable in say, Boston for example. I am in a tough home market that is known for having one of the highest populations of providers per capita in the US. But it is home. Location has a HUGE bearing on market trends. You may be better served to attempt your surveys on a more "local" level.
Your point is very valid. However my provider clients are not only local, thus the question on the survey asking what cities the hobbyist hobbies in.
Originally Posted by GracePreston
All I ask is that you talk to me get to know me and my business practices be before judging me publicly.
Originally Posted by Still Looking
