Coaching series: Can Zach get this beginner freelancer (Maia) to a 6-figure income ($8,333/mo) within 6 months?

Follow their journey through the ups and downs and watch them grow!

Milestones from today’s episode:

• Maia streamlined her services and pricing, focusing her business model on greater profitability
• Enhanced project management efficiency through better task delegation and team coordination
• Prioritizing building a strong case study portfolio over immediate social media expansion

Coaching highlights from today’s episode:

• The importance of a focused branding offer to help Maia in service streamlining
• Marketing alternatives to social media, suggesting diversification for better ROI
• Delegating non-strategic tasks and considering a road mapping service to engage clients

Original coaching call recording date: 10/11/2023

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AI-Generated Summary:

• 0:00 – 2:00 — Zach introduces the podcast series focused on helping freelancers like Maia reach a six-figure income, outlining the series’ format and goals.
• 2:00 – 4:00 — Maia shares her progress, including creating a new deck, simplifying her offer suite, raising her prices, and booking a new client, which signifies a major transformation in her approach.
• 4:00 – 6:00 — Zach and Maia discuss the changes in her business model, including pricing adjustments and the elimination of content strategy from her services, emphasizing a more focused branding offer.
• 6:00 – 8:00 — The conversation shifts to Maia’s team dynamics and project management challenges, highlighting her strategy for more efficient project briefings and task delegation.
• 8:00 – 10:00 — They explore the potential for Maia’s content strategist to take on more project management responsibilities, considering tests to assess her capability in keeping projects on track without oversight.
• 10:00 – 12:00 — Maia emphasizes her team’s potential beyond junior roles, urging them to engage directly with clients and build personal portfolios.
• 12:00 – 14:00 — Zach discusses the necessity of a project manager to oversee the project phases, ensuring tasks are completed on time.
• 14:00 – 16:00 — Maia decides to delay starting a new Instagram profile until her service suite is more established, focusing on building case studies.
• 16:00 – 18:00 — Discussion on the investment in case studies for Behance, Instagram, and Pinterest to enhance their studio’s online presence.
• 18:00 – 20:00 — Zach questions the readiness and fears surrounding the launch of a new business Instagram, while Maia contemplates the balance between fear and necessity in marketing strategies.
• 20:00 – 22:00 — Zach discusses the value and necessity of social media channels, questioning their importance and effectiveness compared to other marketing strategies.
• 22:00 – 24:00 — The conversation shifts to exploring alternatives to social media, like joint ventures or paid advertising, to diversify marketing approaches and potentially yield better ROI.
• 24:00 – 26:00 — Maia outlines her refined offer suite, emphasizing streamlined services, clearer pricing, and a shift away from custom proposals.
• 26:00 – 28:00 — Details of Maia’s offer suite are discussed, including “Base Camp,” “Essence,” and “Expansion,” along with the rationale behind their pricing and structure.
• 28:00 – 30:00 — Zach and Maia discuss the strategic focus of Maia’s services and the decision to delegate non-strategic design work, underlining the importance of strategy in Maia’s offerings.
• 30:00 – 32:00 — Zach suggests considering a standalone road mapping service to lower financial commitment barriers for clients, which could later be applied to the full project cost.
• 32:00 – 34:00 — Discussion on ensuring project profitability, especially with plans to hire a project manager in the future and the importance of incorporating project management costs into pricing.
• 34:00 – 36:00 — Maia is not yet considering hiring a project manager due to her efficient project management system, seeing it as a potential 2024 goal.
• 36:00 – 38:00 — Zach emphasizes viewing time as a valuable resource even for solopreneurs and the importance of understanding project time demands for profitability.
• 38:00 – 40:00 — The conversation moves to the necessity of tracking project management time per client to ensure accurate cost and profitability analysis.
• 40:00 – 41:44 — Future plans include Maia finalizing her service deck for client presentation and beginning to track project management time more precisely for profitability analysis.