Trailblazer FM: WordPress without the drama

🎃 How to do more with form data. In this series, Lee looks at a range of WordPress tools that can add value to both the development process and client interactions. For each episode, Lee will define a problem, discuss his agency's solution, and share a use case. Full show notes: https://trailblazer.fm/give-form-data-an-afterlife Join the conversation: https://trailblazer.fm/give-form-data-an-afterlife/#respond All WordPress tools to try before you die: https://trailblazer.fm/category/halloween-2022/wordpress-tools/

🎃 How to ensure emails are delivered from your WordPress site. In this series, Lee looks at a range of WordPress tools that can add value to both the development process and client interactions. For each episode, Lee will define a problem, discuss his agency's solution, and share a use case. Full show notes: https://trailblazer.fm/website-emails-resurrected Join the conversation: https://trailblazer.fm/website-emails-resurrected/#respond All WordPress tools to try before you die: https://trailblazer.fm/category/halloween-2022/wordpress-tools/

🎃 How do you get control of all those SPAM comments in WordPress? In this series, Lee looks at a range of WordPress tools that can add value to both the development process and client interactions. For each episode, Lee will define a problem, discuss his agency's solution, and share a use case. Full show notes: https://trailblazer.fm/fighting-a-comment-apocalypse Join the conversation: https://trailblazer.fm/fighting-a-comment-apocalypse/#respond All WordPress tools to try before you die: https://trailblazer.fm/category/halloween-2022/wordpress-tools/

🎃 How to import complex datasets into WordPress. In this series, Lee looks at a range of WordPress tools that can add value to both the development process and client interactions. For each episode, Lee will define a problem, discuss his agency's solution, and share a use case. Full show notes: https://trailblazer.fm/handling-scary-data-imports Join the conversation: https://trailblazer.fm/handling-scary-data-imports/#respond All the WordPress tools to try before you die: https://trailblazer.fm/category/halloween-2022/wordpress-tools/

🎃 How do you cope with large volumes of data in WordPress? In this series, Lee looks at a range of WordPress tools that can add value to both the development process and client interactions. For each episode, Lee will define a problem, discuss his agency’s solution, and share a use case. Full show notes: https://trailblazer.fm/dealing-with-monster-websites Join the conversation: https://trailblazer.fm/dealing-with-monster-websites/#respond All the WordPress tools to try before you die: https://trailblazer.fm/category/halloween-2022/wordpress-tools/

As an agency owner, it can be tough to decide whether or not to host your client's websites. On the one hand, there are some clear benefits to doing so - you have access to more data and can provide a better overall experience for your clients. However, there are also costs associated with hosting such as maintenance, support, and downtime risks. In this episode, we interview Austin from 20i about the pros and cons of hosting client websites. He helps us to understand the risks involved and provides insights into how 20i can help you make the right decision on a per-project basis. Full show notes: https://trailblazer.fm/should-i-host-client-websites

As a third-generation business owner, Stephen knows a thing or two about the ups and downs of running a company. So when his family's business came to an end, he didn't waste any time getting back on his feet. In no time at all, he had launched a new venture as a copywriting provider. He developed three core sources of leads: website, networking, and LinkedIn. But Stephen didn't stop there. He also took the time to build relationships with potential clients, often going above and beyond to provide value. As a result of his hard work, Stephen has quickly become one of the most in-demand copywriters in town. Full show notes: https://trailblazer.fm/words-win-business

Having developed an agency focused on providing unique in-person experiences for their customers, Candy had to pivot her agency's unique service during the pandemic. Full show notes: https://trailblazer.fm/from-in-person-to-online

In an awesome office with a growing team, situated a stone’s throw from the beach, Barbara was living the dream life. Right? Barbara shares how she only works 10 hours a week and is more profitable. Full show notes: https://trailblazer.fm/i-know-youre-busy-but

With raw honesty, Darren shares their journey from doing it all themselves to building a large thriving team. He describes starting with content and developing a range of digital services. And how they automated the most time-intensive task with a lot of initial coding elbow grease. Full show notes: https://trailblazer.fm/invest-now-get-paid-later

🎙 Michael shares his agency journey from musician to Co-founder of DoneDone Full show notes: https://trailblazer.fm/getting-things-donedone

Full show notes : https://trailblazer.fm/spice-up-your-proposals

Full show notes: https://trailblazer.fm/one-page-avatar

Full show notes: https://trailblazer.fm/refocus-on-linkedin

Full show notes: https:/ /trailblazer.fm/five-star-profiles

Full show notes: https://trailblazer.fm/one-sales-activity-a-day

We often believe doing things ourselves is the most cost-effective way. This may have been true in the early days of setting up our agency, but as our businesses grow, the demand for our time increases. Are we becoming bottlenecks by hanging onto menial tasks that could be outsourced? Full show notes: https://trailblazer.fm/outsource-one-small-task

With the busy pace of agency life, it is easy to let things slide. Before you know it you’ve amassed a range of subscriptions that are costing your agency money, eroding your profitability and not adding any value. We’ve saved thousands by reviewing what we use. How much could you save? Full show notes: https://trailblazer.fm/cancel-a-subscription

Constant interruptions rob us of our productivity and compete for our attention. Trying to get your head back into a task can be difficult. Being able to minimise disruptions can help us focus better and get more done in less time. Full show notes:

Develop your SOPs as you record your screen! Writing a process document takes time, leaves room for error, and is boring. Many of us prefer video explainers that we can follow along with and pause as needed. By removing blockers and efficiently documenting our systems and processes, we can educate our teams and free up our time for other important agency tasks. This episode explains how. Full show notes: https://trailblazer.fm/record-your-screen/

The brain was not designed to store memories. I have lost count of the number of ideas I’ve had, told myself I will remember then promptly forget minutes later. In this season, our mantra will be, "slight changes, spectacular results". You'll get the idea from that mantra that we are going to be sharing some really slight, minute, micro, tiny changes that you can make to your day-to-day agency life that will eventually yield spectacular results. Full show notes: https://trailblazer.fm/write-every-idea-down/

We wrap up Season 42 with messages from our agencies and some festive music. Our guests share their thoughts and advice for winding down, enjoying the season and starting fresh in 2020. My cohost Edison joins me in introducing the episode and shares his favourite hosting platform also! Full show notes: https://trailblazer.fm/seasons-greetings-2021

As many agency owners will relate to, the holiday season can be the most stressful time of the year. You have projects that you have to wrap up. You have work that you have to put on hold. You know that the following year is going to be busy the moment you get back. How on Earth do you get to relax? The same goes for any holiday. Have you ever said you need a holiday to get over the holiday? In this episode we hear how our agencies wind down before the holidays. Full show notes: https://trailblazer.fm/winding-down-for-the-holidays

Worry about being interrupted during the holidays? Will your clients be at the back of your mind when you are trying to take some down time? In this episode, we hear how our agencies manage client support during the holidays. They share their processes for setting client expectations, communicating the ground rules and ensuring everyone gets some time to relax. Full show note: https://trailblazer.fm/support-during-the-holidays/

How do you avoid a ruined holiday when something goes wrong? In this episode, we comfort our agencies as they share ghosts from Christmas and holidays past. Sometimes it’s great for us to be able to hear those horror stories that others have been through in order to help protect ourselves from similar situations. Full show notes: https://trailblazer.fm/ghosts-of-holidays-past/

How should you show your appreciation to your clients this season? Our agencies share their ideas, experiences and one crazy idea we do NOT recommend. (Cough... looking at you Travis). Full show notes: https://trailblazer.fm/giving-gifts-to-your-clients/

Wondering what sort of gift to give your team this holiday season? I spoke with our agency owners to discover how they handle the art of gift giving. Enjoy a plethora of unique ways you can bless your team throughout the year. We explore the gift of time, shared experiences, gift ideas and more. Full show notes: https://trailblazer.fm/giving-gifts-to-your-team/

Celebrating the holidays and ensuring we honour our teams and supporting our clients can be a challenge. This season, we are interviewing agency owners from around the world, asking them key questions. How do they celebrate the holiday season? Do they give gifts to their team or their clients? Do they have any of those ghosts of Christmas past to share that we can learn from? How do they manage support during the holidays? How do they wind down before a break? And finally, we celebrate in episode 7, together, this holiday season, with words of wisdom and messages to take you into 2022. Full show note: https://trailblazer.fm/agencies-and-the-holiday-season

he shares five common mistakes agencies make when hosting summits for their clients. To learn more about summits, get guidance on coming up and validating your profitable summit idea, and understand all processes involved in hosting a summit, sign up for Jan's free workshops (running live every month) at agencytrailblazer.com/vsmworkshop Full show notes: agencytrailblazer.com/329

Note: The next season of the podcast starts in September 2021. Have a wonderful summer! Angled Crown launched in early 2013 and was my passion for many years. Yet at the end of 2020 I began to close things down. I’d fallen out of love with what I was doing and it was draining me, physically, mentally and financially. As the host of a show dedicated to helping agencies build an agency they love, it felt right and proper to close down what I was doing in order to allow my other agency to flourish! In this weeks episode, I share what the warning signs were, why I quit, how I quit and my anticipation of the future! Full show notes: https://agencytrailblazer.com/328

Meet Marie-Louise from the local networking scene here in Northamptonshire. Over years of networking, Marie-Louise noticed that those who were very specific about what they did and who they did it for were far more interesting and memorable. Backed by 16 years in design, branding, and her Design Degree, Marie-Louise shares how she's developed her niche utilizing, of all products, Canva! Full show notes - https://agencytrailblazer.com/327

Since 2015, many of you have left reviews that have helped spur me on and have helped change the direction of this podcast. In this week's episode, I read just some of your reviews which had a massive impact on me and share some of the background stories as to where I was at. Thank you for supporting the show over the years. If you would like to support us with a review, please click here. Episode page: https://agencytrailblazer.com/326

With the cost of entry dropping so rapidly for web design and development, how does an agency stand out when trying to generate new leads? According to Beth Livingston, they need to stop selling websites and start selling solutions to problems! In this episode, Beth unpacks the benefits of building a relationship and engaging in a much wider conversation with potential clients. Full show notes: https://agencytrailblazer.com/325

Do you stare at your screen overthinking the copy you need to create? Frustrated that you didn't write the perfect content first time? Struggle creating the content for your website? Chances are, many of your clients are facing the same struggle. What if you could beat writers block and support your clients? Full show notes: https://agencytrailblazer.com/beating-writers-block/

In this episode, we catch up with Imogen Allen. She takes us on her journey of discovery as she learns more about herself and unlocks her own potential. Her business takes an unexpected shift, she recognises the value she can bring in helping others unlock their identity and the story they have inside. This has enabled her to launch a product to help others and created a fantastic opportunity to partner with one of her main clients. Full show notes: https://agencytrailblazer.com/323

"When one door closes, another window opens." In this episode, we meet with Paul Lacey who made the difficult choice of closing down his agency. Having realised that keeping their agency going was not for them, Paul and his business partner agreed to part ways and are embarking on their own separate plans. Full show notes: https://agencytrailblazer.com/322

Last week, Nicole shared what an awesome experience she had with Design Box during her rebrand. What was it about her experience that we can replicate in our businesses? We ask Tom that very question and he delivers!

Over the last few years, Nicole has been refining her audience and building an awesome business providing support to agency owners. Having originally served many niches, she realised her existing brand did not reflect who she was any more, nor did it necessarily attract those she wanted to serve. She connected with Tom and the team at Design Box Media, and thus began their rebrand process. Full show notes: https://agencytrailblazer.com/320

Have you been underestimating the value of support contracts? This week, Dave shares how his care plans helped support his business through Covid. He discusses the initial impact Covid had on his mindset, how his care plans provided a recurring income and how he's been able to add immense value to his clients. Full show notes: https://agencytrailblazer.com/319

I was trapped in my agency and utterly hated it. Several experiences became the catalyst for change. In this episode., I'd like to start a bit of a raw conversation and find out how you are doing. I’ll share a couple of experiences as an agency owner and how tough I found them. To discover the transformation stages we went through to turn things around, be sure to check out Episode 200. Full show notes and transcript: http://agencytrailblazer.com/318

In a break from the scheduled podcast and for personal reasons I’d like to share a few thoughts. Life is so precious. We spend much of it working hard and long hours. This impacts our mental health and our relationships deeply. Add lockdown to the mix and those who were already struggling with various mental illnesses are struggling so much more than many of us can possibly understand. I am grateful for the wonderful communities around us that help us all stay in touch. Shout out Facebook communities such as: - GoWP - WPBuilds - Admin Bar - And so many others Who allow us to feel connected and give us access to others to share what’s going on in our lives. We will all know someone who’s struggling at this time. I for myself have gotten so wrapped up with things, I often forget to check in on those I care about! Lockdown has been a miserable time for so many, so much more than most of us can comprehend. If you do not struggle with mental health, it’s hard to put yourself into the mindset of those of whom are in a dangerous place right now. Our lives are so busy, we have huge responsibilities, others that rely on us and so much more. We can be blind to what might be happening around us. We as a family have been reminded of the affects of mental health in such a tragic way. Life is so precious. Once it is extinguished, you can’t get it back. You can’t fix things. You can’t do what you wish you could have done. You are left with deep loss and regret. I’d like this episode to do one of two things: First if you are lonely and struggling with your mental health in any way, please connect with Big Orange Heart or a local mental health charity. Please also talk to your family or friends, even if you feel they will not understand. Please don’t struggle alone. People may not understand initially but talking will surely help over time. You are so valuable, wonderful and important. You are a wonderful talented individual who brings so much worth to your family, friends, business and the world. https://www.bigorangeheart.org Second, if you are not struggling but are aware someone might be, can I encourage you to connect with them no matter what else might be going on around you. Again the charity Big Orange Heart is a great place to give your time in supporting others and learning how to be more aware of what people might be going through. https://www.bigorangeheart.org Things are still so fresh, we don’t understand so much, we are heartbroken and there will be a long road ahead of healing for the family. I hope these thoughts encourage the community to reach out to each other more, even popping up at peoples homes or arranging a meeting somewhere. Bills and other responsibilities can be dealt with later. Life is so precious. Love you folks. Lets stay connected x

The battle of the gatekeeper is often the most fought by agency owners. When trying to connect with small to medium enterprises, you will often be greeted by an overzealous assistants or team members who tend to be super protective of their managers time and will often become the blocker to further communication. In this episode we discover ways to get past the gatekeeper in order to connect with the decision makers… but… with a twist! Full show notes: https://agencytrailblazer.com/316

On todays show we wrap our series with how to monetise your new podcast. These are all methods that we’ve applied to our podcast in the past and whilst there are many others, we like to teach what we know, not theory! We will look at: SponsorshipAffiliate opportunitiesPromoting servicesCustom products & servicesCreator donations Full show notes: https://agencytrailblazer.com/315

Over the last four weeks we’ve unpacked how to plan and create your show. With all that hard work, you will be ready to launch. In today’s episode we will look at: Pre-launchLaunch dayOngoing episodic promotionCommunity buildingMarketing evolution Full show notes: https://agencytrailblazer.com/314

This week we look at how and where you can host your new podcast and how to get it listed. We look at free or low cost solutions along with practical advice for ensuring you get the most out of the platform you choose. Remember this is part of our ongoing “How to start a podcast” series focusing on helping you build an MVP podcast to validate that idea you may have. As with previous episodes we get straight to the point. Full show notes: https://agencytrailblazer.com/how-to-start-a-podcast-editing/

This week we will unpack the process for editing your audio files and compiling your podcast. We focus Audacity, an open source and cross platform audio editor however the tips in here will work for most professional applications. As with our other episodes, we are focused on helping you get the MVP podcast up and running, so we don't beat around the bush. Full show notes: https://agencytrailblazer.com/how-to-start-a-podcast-editing

This week we will look at the hardware and software you can use to record your show. Our approach is as a minimum viable product (MVP) ensuring a good quality recording utilising low or no cost solutions in order to validate your podcast over the next few months. Full show notes: https://agencytrailblazer.com/how-to-start-a-podcast-hardware-software

Over the next few episodes, I will be breaking down how to plan, launch and grow a podcast in your industry niche. Each episode will come with a workbook to help take you through each step and by the end of the series you should be ready to go live with your first show. This series assumes you have already gone through the necessary journey of unpacking your why and defining your target audience. It also assumes you have some goals to achieve with your new podcast. Full show notes: https://agencytrailblazer.com/how-to-start-a-podcast-planning

After years implementing awesome WordPress solutions we are breaking up. It's not just us... it's WordPress too! We will stay friends, we love the community and will continue to work with it where it meets relevant needs. But since we started dating, we feel WordPress has changed and not for the better. Full show notes: https://agencytrailblazer.com/why-we-are-moving-beyond-wordpress

What if I told you there was a text focused protocol that is picking up steam? Whilst it is not about to replace the internet, it can teach us a lot about content, it's structure and accessibility. This week I'd like to explore the Gemini protocol with you and share some valuable lessons I've learned that are changing the way I build our future. Full show notes: https://agencytrailblazer.com/gemini-the-internet-youve-never-heard-of/