Our guest for today’s show is Adam Mills of Bottomless Design. Adam is a successful business owner and has valuable experience in both theme design as well as client relations.
Today, Adam shares his insights on how to balance the boundaries of working at home, how to interact and succeed with clients, and the true meaning behind his company’s unique name.
This week Adam is donating a copy of his most popular WP theme, Birch Theme! Just tell us what the number one thing is that’s preventing you from growing your business. Leave you answer below.
Update: Congratulations Ruth Eastelow! Adam has chosen you as the lucky winner! Thanks for your contribution and keep elevating!
Adam discovered his interest in the Web after he graduated from college, originally as a carpenter, but went back to school to learn web design and creation. He currently owns and operates the popular web design company Bottomless Design
In 2010 Adam discovered the WordPress dashboard and it changed his entire approach to his business!
Adam lives a natural lifestyle, and accredits some of his success to extending this to his business. Most of his business comes from creating themes for his many clients.
In his spare time, Adam enjoys being with his wife, living their natural lives, traveling and reading comic books. He says that comic books have influenced his theme design due to the sequential artistry. If anything keeps Adam awake at night, it is his extensive to-do list. Working in his house requires a specific schedule and a realistic mindset. Having clear boundaries and an honest motivation aids in his successful home business.
Adam considers the responsibility of hiring potential employees to be a process of laying a new foundation. Educating himself on how to hire and retain good people is something Adam is currently working towards, perhaps he will gain his first employee via this interview.
The name of his company, Bottomless Design, came from the idea of the bottomless well of information, but it also has an ulterior meaning. The second meaning is that working from home allows Adam to literally be bottomless, or without pants, for as long as he likes!
The confidence Adam has that his themes will sell comes from the fact that he constantly changes them and makes them unique. He made a list for each theme and searched for a commercial mindset, or making a theme that could work for many different people. He strove to answer two essential questions about the client’s goals and the audience they are seeking.
He prides himself on always staying true to his core values and only providing products that both he and the client are happy with and proud of. The power to be able to say no allows him to have complete control over his business and what he produces.
Please join us at WordPress Elevation in thanking Adam Mills for being with us today, and thank you as for being here too. Join us again next time on WordPress Elevation!
Elevation Round
Q: What’s the #1 thing any freelancer needs to know?
A: Boundaries. Knowing what they are and sticking to them.
Q: What’s the best thing you’ve done to find new customers?
A: Launching my first theme on MojoThemes.
Q: How do you stop competing on price?
A: I never started. Knowing your value and your boundaries are crucial. I know the value of the service I offer. I’m confident it’s a fair price.
Q: Any tips for writing better proposals?
A: Really good communication. Make it easy for them to say yes by detailing the value that’s in it for them.
Q: What’s your favorite CRM tool?
A: I use a combination of Asana and Google suite of tools.
Q: What’s the best way to keep a project and a client on track?
A: Great communication. Being upfront about client relations and deliverables. Being responsive. Have a couple of pre-scheduled meetings.
Q: Any ideas for getting referrals from existing customers?
A: Make certain that the client is satisfied with the experience. Having a referral policy with an incentive.
Q: What’s the #1 thing you can do to differentiate yourself?
A: Let your personality shine through. Allow the client to feel the connection. It will create a better work environment, more trust and more respect and a better product in the end.
You can reach out and thank Adam Mills on www.bottomlessdesign.com or Twitter @bottomlessdsign.
Adam Mills suggested I interview Adam Warner. He is a wealth of WordPress and business communication and has played a vital hand in the growth of Adam’s business. Adam, keep your eyes on your inbox.
Hint: to enter the competition, leave a comment below and say what the number one thing is that’s preventing you from growing your business. You can enter here.
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