Resonates so much. So, so many people never launch because of that fear. Good advice to reduce all the pressure on the single launch event. You can launch as many times as you want.
Heh, good point. Fixed. The explanation is obviously intended for non-technical folks, so the distinction is probably lost there, but I do want to be correct.
So many comments from people who clearly did not even read your page! The subtitle states "I'll WRITE, design, and code a custom page...", and the very first paragraph describing your offer states: "I'm an expert COPYWRITER and designer, and I want to help you...".
Don't let the ADHD crowd get you down. Beautifully done.
An expert copywriter would know he has to optimize for the "ADHD crowd" (which is about 80% of people on the internet), for example by mentioning he provides copy in at least one of the subheads, instead of keeping his head in the sand like you suggest.
Thanks for this—very insightful. I do include copywriting. For the case study, Justin already had copy that was in great shape. Other clients might not, so I'll provide writing from scratch in those cases.
As for the conversion rates, totally agree that the metric I shared is somewhat vague. Every project has different goals, and sometimes even a fraction of a percent is a major win, such as with major display advertisers.
Also, your point about showing the increase in conversions for my projects is way more powerful. Unfortunately, since this is brand new, I don't have better data to share. Hope to have some soon.
Sorry, but the metric isn't vague, it's bullshit. You can't promise a conversion rate. Probably not even a conversion improvement, since the people you're targeting won't have enough traffic for testing. I'd stay away from making such claims if I were you. Making nice, clear landing pages with good copy is a good enough value proposition for people who suck at writing and/or building websites.
Design for Hackers by David Kadavy is also well written. He explores the more traditional way to learn design, with the history of fonts, color theory, etc.
A different approach might be reading about creativity. My friend Paul Jarvis has some great books about creativity, especially his new one, The Good Creative, if you’re looking to get inspired:
Great place for topic-specific books. Some of these are more advanced and intended for designers. I'd suggest these for after you read up on the basics.
My book focuses on design fundamentals instead of advanced theory. It's intended as a starting point for things you can do right now. Actionable, focused on building skill instead of knowledge.
I think a lot of cultures (including much of startup culture) place too much emphasis on ideas. So many creative ideas really are stupid ideas.
However, that doesn't mean creativity should be criticized--it just means we need to teach people to do more than have ideas. Creativity comes into play when problem solving, and determining whether ideas are worthwhile, too.
Knowing the value of an idea is difficult until we see it in hindsight, already fulfilled. I think that pretending to know the value of a creative idea when it's merely an idea is presumptuous.
The article describes how the reception of creativity is all about risk--that we don't know its value immediately. I think this is a more logical way of looking at it.
