Ever feel overwhelmed by all of the different tech options out there? I’m going to break down how to choose the right platform for your business and your needs. This is not an episode where I’m going to specify to use certain platforms, but rather helping you think through a few questions before you dive into a platform.
TRANSCRIPT:
Hello, hello, welcome back to another episode today we’re gonna be talking about how to choose the right tech for you in your business. And this is not me laying out, okay, you need to use this platform in this platform and this platform. These are questions and things to think about, as you decide what tech to use.
Now, I have talked before on the podcast about different platforms, you can always reach out to me on Instagram, if you have questions about like, Hey, I’m thinking about this platform or that platform? Or have you used this before?
I’m happy to answer questions. But today, I’m just going to be walking you through what to consider when choosing platforms. This is something that comes up a lot with my clients, because, yes, of course, I’m often helping people decide do you want to use WordPress or Squarespace? but inevitably, I also have clients who are like, um, what about ConvertKit? Or MailChimp? What about this? Or that? Do you have?
What do you have an opinion on this, you have an opinion on that. So I wanted to kind of walk you through how I help clients make those decisions, or even how I make those decisions myself, too. So there are three things I want you to think through. The first is be realistic about what you actually need for your business. Be realistic, just because everyone is recommending kajabi, or whatever other platform, I’m not trying to just throw shade at kajabi.
But whatever platform doesn’t mean, it’s actually the right fit for you, and what you are actually looking to do, what features Do you really need for your course, your membership, your website, whatever it is, what features are you actually looking for? In some ways, we do want to think about the future and our plans. You know, we want to keep in mind, what do I have planned for the future?
Maybe it’s, you know, in two years, I want to launch a membership, or next year, I’m planning to launch a course next alongside my membership, you know, anything like that. But there’s a big difference between I really plan to or I hope to launch a membership, launch a course launch a podcast. So I want this platform because it can do XYZ. And well, I mean, those features will be nice if I if I ever planned to do that.
I don’t know, maybe I’ll launch a course. There’s wishful thinking and there is strategic planning. So be honest with yourself. And is this platform is this app is a software, something you need now, is it something you will need in the next few years, as you develop more and more products and services and that kind of thing. And I know obviously that that things come up, you may not have any plans for course right now. But two years from now, you suddenly get the the idea for a course, you can always change platforms. It’s not fun, but it’s also not the end of the world. I’ve done it.
So again, think about what you actually need right now, just because everyone’s recommending kajabi, or WordPress, or Squarespace or whatever. It may not actually be what you need right now or right now plus the next few years. The second thing I want you to think about is your budget. Obviously, we need to take into consideration the price of this platform or this app. But beyond that, I also want you to think about how the price of this platform or app will affect your profitability is this app or software really worth it. And I think this is especially true for things that you are buying for one specific purpose.
Your website can serve many, many purposes. And I’m using that as an example. Obviously, yes, I’m a web designer. So I’m a little biased, but I’m really thinking about the apps that you know you are using for one thing for example, I pay for Thinkific every month and I really only use it for my membership. So that’s the only Only thing that I really count that cost against.
I don’t think about, you know, my website in terms of like my monthly costs on my website is not factored into my membership and my just services and digital products that I have and the podcast like, because the website does so many things Thinkific I really only use it for the membership, I have a few like mini courses on there. But I do not really sell those, I don’t really market them.
They’re just kind of there in case someone asked me like, do you have a resource on such and such. So going back to the budget, let’s say you have a course, available for $99. And right now, you average around four sales a month from it, let’s say unless you’re doing a launch, but you have an evergreen, and you get about three to four sales a month.
But you are paying for a webinar platform to because you have an evergreen webinar to get people into your funnel, you’re paying for deadline funnel, because you have a limited time bonus for people if they watch your webinar, and join, you know, sign up for your course through this dealt, you know, in this 24 hour action bonus. And then you have the course platform itself, you know, think if ik, or kajabi, or whatever, all adding up to around $200 a month, you all these platforms, these three platforms that you are paying for, to get people in your funnel to get people to sign up for your course, all that kind of stuff, $200 a month, but you are only selling four courses a month, and making around $400 a little less, you are cutting your profits in half.
By paying for all these things. Now you could look at this one of two ways you could really try to sell more of the courses, obviously, that’s the more that’s the preferred thing, because one, you have more profits. And you are helping pay for all of these platforms. But also, you know, just bringing in more revenue for your business. Obviously, that’s the preferred option.
But also think about are there cheaper platforms are there other ways that I could do this kind of setup for cheaper. And again, maybe it’s like everyone recommended this webinar platform. So you’re like, Well, everyone uses this, this is great, but it’s the more expensive option. For example, I’ll be totally honest, I do have a free workshop, quote unquote webinar as a funnel into my membership community. And I do not actually use a webinar platform. I only use Vimeo pro to host that workshop video and embed it on my website.
Now, there are some downsides to this. I don’t get all the stats that other webinar platforms have. So there’s a lot of analytics that I miss out on. There are some things some ways I could like tag people in ConvertKit better if I did have the webinar platform. But Vimeo Pro is a lot cheaper. And compared to how many people I get into the membership, how many people are already in my membership.
I for now wanted to just stick with Vimeo pro and just lose out on the analytics. If I eventually decided to upgrade and start using something else I can and then switch out how everything is set up in the funnel. So think about your profitability and what tools you are using to set up and sell your products or services or whatever it is and how that might be cutting into things.
The third thing I want you to look at to think about is where your recommendations are coming from. Is it someone saying Oh, my friend Lisa uses Squarespace and she loves it? Or is it someone saying well, I tried WordPress for two weeks and I hated it. Neither of those are great resources. I’m sorry. But But two weeks is not giving any platform a fair shot, especially if it’s something in depth.
Like you’re trying to set up a whole website. But those aren’t firsthand. I mean the two weeks is technically a firsthand but you’re not giving an you’re not getting an accurate recommendation from somebody. I mean, what would you tell someone? If they were like, yeah, I went to the gym for two weeks, and I didn’t like it. So I gave up. You went for two weeks? Like, I know, the first thing I would say is okay, what did you like about it? Do you need to try different time?
Do you need to go to one of the classes? Do you need to just do a different type of workout? Or do you need to try and work with a trainer like there are lots of different ways we could approach going to the gym, and what you do at the gym, before you totally discredit the gym. So think about where your recommendations are coming from. And are they a trusted source. The other thing that often comes up is wondering if people are recommending a product because they actually use it and like it. Or if the platform just has a really good affiliate program.
Great example Bluehost. I don’t know if I’ve mentioned it on the podcast in a while. But disclaimer, Bluehost is awful. They are awful. And I do not recommend them. Do not use them. Their site speed is slow and their customer service is awful. Do not use them. My recommendations are flywheel or siteground. They will move you to their their host for free, they will move your entire website for you. So you don’t even have to mess with it. And yes, I do have an affiliate link for both of those just Greenwood comm slash flywheel or slash siteground.
But I don’t if you don’t use my affiliate link, that’s okay, you would still have a much better WordPress host. And would be much better off. So I would recommend them even without my affiliate link. So that’s one thing to be aware of is the affiliate programs. Because a lot of people I say Bluehost isn’t good. And they’re like, but so many people are recommending them.
Yeah, because they have a killer affiliate program, a killer affiliate program. So consider the source. Is it another dietitian recommending Bluehost? Just because that’s who they use. And they saw that blue? How Bluehost had an affiliate program. So they signed up and thought, oh, maybe I’ll make a few extra bucks here and there? Or is it a web professional like me, or any other web designer who could give you detailed information about hosting and about websites and about different options you could use?
Is that person that’s making the recommendation for that platform or app? Are they talking about it more than just when they want to throw out their affiliate link. If you follow me on Instagram, you will hear me talk about siteground or flywheel. I would say at least once a month that I will mention it. And I don’t always mention my affiliate link, I will just say someone moved to siteground.
And they told me how much faster their their site is great. See, like I’m not lying. Or I’ll talk about setting up a client on flywheel or like whatever, I will just talk about these resources because they are really good platforms. So if you see someone throwing out an affiliate link, and you’re like, Okay, but is this platform actually good or not? Look on their site, look on their podcast, look on their YouTube channel, look through their Instagram, or even just dm the person and say, Hey, I saw that you you know, LinkedIn, your Instagram stories and affiliate link to, you know, Bluehost?
Can you share your experience with this platform? What is your personal experience with it? Do you use them? How long have you used them? What else can you tell me about them? That’s what you need to ask have they been using Bluehost for three months, and they’re an affiliate, they don’t have a ton of experience. So really consider the source. Consider their expertise and whether or not they are truly a good resource to trust for this platform.
Or if you need to go find somebody who’s in that industry and can give you a trusted recommendation because they know these platforms in and out. That is so important. Because I see so many people on Facebook groups who are just giving out recommendations left and right. And I’m like, but but you’re not a web designer, you don’t know the best platforms.
You are not a social media manager. You don’t know the best platforms. Just like you probably hate to see people giving out meal plans or workouts that have no business doing that. We there are, there’s no reason that people should be just making recommendation blanket recommendations left and right. And I know that it is helpful to hear what your colleagues are using.
So maybe if you see, okay, a lot of people are recommending WordPress, a lot of people are recommending practice better. take that as a starting point. And then go do some more research. Find someone who does systems and workflows and ask them. What are your thoughts about practice better? Talk to a web designer or developer? What are your thoughts about WordPress, or Squarespace or show it or whatever it is, you can use the recommendations as a starting point.
Just don’t leave it there. Continue to do some research. And again, find out if it’s an actually if it’s actually a good fit for you. So to recap, when you’re trying to figure out what tech to use in your business, think about what you actually need, what features you need now what what features you plan to use in the next few years. Be aware of your budget, and your revenue and if the cost of that product is going to cut into your profitability too much.
And third, be aware of where your recommendations are coming from. I will also add just because someone like Pat Flynn or Amy Porterfield have an affiliate link for something, doesn’t mean they actually use it. They are humans too. They like affiliate money too. And with a big audience like they have. It’s very easy to just throw out an affiliate link and make some extra money. So go to a trusted source.
I hope this was helpful, gives you some things to think about as you choose tech in your business because I know there’s always new tech to check out new tech to start using. If you have questions of course you can DM me on Instagram at Jesscreatives. Otherwise, I will see y’all next week.
