Does this actually generate that many sales, though? Like, how many people would go out of there way from general discussion to buying a discord channel related hoodie/t-shirt? You’d be lucky to get a sale, let alone make it worthwhile.

A better use of this scenario is to direct traffic to a website that offers similar interests to the channel that you can monetize e.g. perhaps your own YouTube channel or game specific videos offering hints and tips. The diverted traffic will likely lead to more interest from members not part of the original discord group.

It’s abhorrent that gambling companies have their clutches deeply embedded in the sport. Youngsters are growing up with the perception that gambling is a normalised activity. This sets a perilous precedent.

I’ve personally grappled with a gambling addiction. Believing that one can simply “stop” is akin to telling a heroin addict to abruptly cease using the needle. It’s an illness, and certain personality types are more susceptible to it.

I popped a bottle of champagne the day the maximum bet for Fixed Odds Betting Terminals (FOBTs) was capped at £2 per spin. By then, I had overcome my addiction, but I knew many who frequented these machines and lost substantial sums. The government’s sluggishness in updating regulations underscores the deep entanglement of gambling firms in politics. The decision to limit bets was straightforward, yet these bookmakers contended, “But the average person only loses £20 an hour,” which is complete nonsense. A mere visit to a betting shop at that time revealed the rampant nature of gambling addiction. I’ve seen numerous instances where individuals, in frustration, smashed FOBT machines, and the staff hardly reacted, seldom even calling the police.

Nevertheless, online gambling remains largely unregulated. Individuals can still easily wager up to £1,000 per spin on roulette from their own homes. It’s alarming how many might be struggling with addiction in private.

Gambling should be drastically curtailed in terms of its advertising, particularly in relation to sports, and online gambling needs to be either banned or stringently regulated to prevent people from falling into this trap. Football, in particular, should sever its extensive ties with gambling. Even if this leads to financial losses for the sport, it would be a sacrifice for a commendable cause. Perhaps then footballers won’t receive such exorbitant salaries.

I like how you claim I’m angry on the simple basis we don’t agree.

I’ve spent my career in technology, including web design and UX at a corporate level. Unlike some of your clients, I feel that I have a good opinion on what is good value - and judging by the end result, $8k for that website is not good value, even with the bespoke/personality services taken into account.

Much of what you have said also doesn’t make sense. Sure, website speed and accessibility has an impact on a website rating, but it also depends on other factors, including things like keyword saturation and general market saturation. In reality, a website loading at a difference of tens of milliseconds faster will have no noticeable benefit to end users - many customizable out-the-box solutions will be more than adequate for most needs.

If there was some uniqueness in the design e.g. something like this then I could see where you are coming from, but the design of that site is quite underwhelming.

Most business owners know fuckall about fiverr and websites.

Agreed, but your target market are then:

A - Small businesses that are cash-rich and willing to pay a staggering amount for a basic website like the $8k, above. B - Small business owners that are not happy with a self-build non-technical approach (think Wix).

Larger companies will have the means to hire help in-house and would likely already have a website. Overall, your target audience is small and likely to reduce over time when more self-build non-technical solutions arise.

That website comes up a LOT LOT LOT slower than /u/Citrous_Oyster’s website.

Well, it’s a demo site… It’s also a lot more complicated and advanced than OP’s website. Removing unused features combined with a good hosting package, and the speed difference wouldn’t be noticeable to an end-user.

Most people don’t purchase a business product or service until there are at least 7 communications with them. That’s standard. It takes a lot of work to earn someone’s trust. The way /u/Citrous_Oyster builds trust is his complete and total domination of the thing he excels at, which is static websites that come up in less than a second. His website that has a lot of valuable content. And trust is just one part of intangibles that businesses want. Maybe they just want someone who lives in the same city because they want to make sure they can directly talk to the website designer. Maybe that’s not important to you, but you are not them.

Sorry bud, but that sounds like a sales pitch again. The website also doesn’t have “lots of valuable content”. It’s a very VERY basic website that lacks all that one would expect from an e-commence store. Even the products page looks so amateurish that I would run a mile before thinking about making a purchase… Two items for sale and one image for each? With one of those images being pixelated and blurry? Come one, man.

I talk to prospects a lot. If we have a series of long conversations, and he or she is serious, at some point in the conversation, I’ll send them a thank you card with a Starbucks card worth $10, and the note states that whether they use my services or not, I appreciate all their time they’ve spent.

Again, a sale pitch/tactics. That’s nothing new and irrelevant to the website.

Why? Because it shows I care for them as a person. I send out birthday cards, anniversary cards, congratulations cards if I have that information. It shows I care, and I actually do.

No you don’t and you are lying to yourself. You do that because there is self gain in the hope it will lead to new business. I laugh when people kid themselves into believing “they care” but the elephant in the room is to ask if you would build them a site for lower margin if asked? Would you? Because if you “truly cared” and did what you did because you “cared” then profit wouldn’t be your main objective.

You’re talking complete and utter nonsense.

No offence, but those sites don’t seem any better than what you can do through Shopify, PrestaShop of Wordpress. I really don’t know how people are willing to pay $8k for something you can quite easily achieve by even hiring help from websites like Fiverr.

This is an example of a $350 Shopify theme. Customizing the template is fairly simple to your needs and the administrative panel makes is very easy for someone not technical to set up stock and manage orders.

Not to sound negative and I applaud you for finding business, but what makes your business attractive compared to all the options out there?