{"id":20298,"date":"2017-03-02T03:11:36","date_gmt":"2017-03-02T11:11:36","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/wpbeaveraddons.com\/?p=20298"},"modified":"2017-07-19T10:42:48","modified_gmt":"2017-07-19T17:42:48","slug":"customer-spotlight-katie-obrien","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/wpbeaveraddons.com\/customer-spotlight-katie-obrien\/","title":{"rendered":"Katie O’Brien – Building frustration-free WordPress websites for Professional Coaches"},"content":{"rendered":"

Today, we have Super Mom Katie O’Brien<\/a> in our Customer Spotlight<\/a> series. Katie specializes in building beautiful websites for Female Entrepreneurs. From being a Life Coach and Virtual Assistant to becoming a full-time entrepreneur, Katie has shared her\u00a0inspiring story with us.<\/p>\n

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Q: Hi Katie! Tell us something about you and your business.<\/h4>\n

Hi! I build Simple + Chic (frustration-free) WordPress websites for coaches and consultants. Simplicity is always my number one goal within my designs and the backend of the site. I\u2019m really passionate about building gorgeous sites\u2026 but also sites that are easy for my client\u2019s to manage themselves, if they choose to.<\/span><\/p>\n

Q: How did you start your business? Is there an interesting story here?<\/h4>\n

Oh boy. Well\u2026 it was to kinda escape. I had a successful life coaching business I launched in 2011. My daughter was born 2013 and I quit my 9-5 to stay home with her and become a full-time entrepreneur. Entrepreneurship took on a whole new meaning as a mother\u2026 but then in 2015 it got even ore interesting. I welcomed home my son and decided to move into a new home within a few weeks of each other. So I was balancing running a business and staying home with an infant, toddler\u2026 in a brand new home. Needless to say, I was the one who needed a life coach at that time!<\/span><\/p>\n

So for everyone\u2019s sake, I took an indefinite maternity leave from my coaching business and thought I\u2019d return in a few years. Well just a few weeks later I had the entrepreneur-itch. I needed something for myself. You know, aside from changing diapers and going grocery shopping.<\/p>\n

So I launched a virtual assistant business in early 2016 where I supported entrepreneurs with all their WordPress needs and a few other odds and ends. But soon learned I didn\u2019t like having to be so responsive or working hourly. But what I did get a taste for was web design and decided I wanted to transition from a virtual assistant business to a web design business.<\/p>\n

In May 2016, I closed out all of my hourly clients and vowed to only take on design work from then forward. And the rest is history \ud83d\ude09<\/p>\n

Q: What does a typical day in your life looks like? How do you keep yourself productive?<\/h4>\n

I\u2019ve purposefully kept my business small. It\u2019s a HUGE priority in my life but my family comes first. On top of staying home with the kids, my husband is in law enforcement and his work schedule can change by the minute. So my days are centered around work or the business. I have more of a holistic approach.<\/span><\/p>\n

Mornings I try to sneak in some quiet before the kids wake up to pray and get centered. I might get a HIIT workout in and then I start on breakfast for the kids. Then we relax a bit and I try to sneak some email checking in. I get them dressed and really it\u2019s always different\u2026 they either stay home with me, if my husband\u2019s home they might go to the gym with him, some days we\u2019ll have playdates and other days my daughter will go to school for a few hours.<\/p>\n

Afternoons are routine though! Lunch with the kids and they both go down for naps by 12:30. On a good day I\u2019ll get 4 hours. And those are dedicated business hours. No dishes, no housework, no slacking. 100% client management and client work.<\/p>\n

I do my most important pressing tasks first then try to be done by the time the kids are up. Then the afternoons are dedicated to them\u2026 or sneaking in some work while they play out back.<\/p>\n

Evenings are also dedicated to family and myself. If I try to work in the evening it causes more harm than good, so I don\u2019t.<\/p>\n

So long story not-so-short, I basically run my business during naptimes and the random bouts of free-time I get in my husband\u2019s schedule when he\u2019s home.<\/p>\n

Q: You do a lot of websites for Female Entrepreneurs, Speakers, Coaches. Why did you choose that?<\/h4>\n

I do! I get their world so much and I love their world so much, that\u2019s why I chose to specialize in their sites. I\u2019ve just recently niched down a bit more to work solely with coaches and consultants. I want to really dedicate my business to getting to know their industry and help make a difference in the world of websites for them. Particularly, I love working with non-tech-savvy coaches who are intimidated by anything tech-related and then helping them simplify down everything everyone\u2019s every told them they \u2018had\u2019 to have or \u2018had\u2019 to do with their website and grant them one gorgeous looking site that\u2019s super simple to manage.<\/span><\/p>\n

I feel there is so much business to go around that all web designers should find their niche and get known there. I always refer out clients who aren\u2019t my target audience to fellow designers. I don\u2019t want to take on a project I\u2019m not passionate about, that\u2019s not fair to the client. Plus I want to spread the wealth!<\/p>\n

Here are some beautiful sites that Katie has built. If you are looking for one such website, get in touch with her<\/a>.\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n

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  1. Financial Wealth Being<\/a><\/li>\n
  2. Vision to Reality Coaching<\/a><\/li>\n
  3. WisConcierge<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    Q: What has been your favorite business experience? How do you keep your clients happy, any tips?<\/h4>\n

    I\u2019m not sure if I have any one favorite experience, I\u2019ve had some rock-star clients though and they just make my job the best.<\/span><\/p>\n

    I pride myself on how happy my clients leave me. And they don\u2019t really even leave, they\u2019re pretty much client\u2019s for life after working together.<\/p>\n

    I tend to under promise, over-deliver. I hit deadlines. I simplify processes. I\u2019m super transparent. I\u2019m not afraid to tell them no to an idea that I don\u2019t think will serve them in the long run. I aim on serving. I stand by my worth (ie don\u2019t discount prices or discount my value). I really just treat them the way I\u2019d want to be treated. So far, that\u2019s worked \ud83d\ude42<\/p>\n

    Q: What business tools and resources do you use and recommend?<\/h4>\n

    A: I LOVE Asana<\/a>. I set every single one of my client\u2019s up in Asana and that\u2019s where we do all of our communicating throughout the project term. I also really like Acuity<\/a> for scheduling calls. <\/span><\/p>\n

    Q: What made you chose Beaver Builder? How has it transformed your business?<\/h4>\n

    I can\u2019t even remember how I stumbled upon Beaver Builder<\/a> but I\u2019m so glad I did. I build all of my client sites with their theme and plugin suite. There are a lot of other frameworks and themes out there but I\u2019ve stuck with Beaver Builder because my clients LOVE it. They can easily grasp how to make updates, tweak copy or images without jeopardizing the design of their site. They love it and I love it. It\u2019s really simplified the entire site building and design process.<\/span><\/p>\n

    Q: Let\u2019s talk a bit about PowerPack. What are your favorite features and how it helps you with your client sites?<\/h4>\n

    I most frequently use PowerPack for the smart buttons<\/a> and subscribe forms<\/a>. I\u2019ve found your modules make those features so much easier to customize and tweak to my client\u2019s needs. I also really like the ability to customize Gravity Forms<\/a> with your plugin. All of the others are just a bonus \ud83d\ude09 and which ones I use really depend on the individual client I\u2019m working with.<\/span><\/p>\n

    Q: What are your plans for 2017?<\/h4>\n

    Slow, steady and strategic growth. I\u2019ve planned out my entire 2017 client calendar while only working with a limited amount of clients at once to really allow ample time and energy for their projects. I book clients in advance to secure their slot on the calendar but also grant some of them a bit more space to gather the required elements. I\u2019m all about simplicity. 2017 will be more about doing what works and cutting out the things that seemed to complicated from 2016. <\/span><\/p>\n

    Q: Lastly, If you had one piece of advice for someone just starting out, what would it be?<\/h4>\n

    Don\u2019t \u00a0overcommit. There are times when I felt paralyzed with the amount of work I said \u2018yes\u2019 to in 2016. I definitely overcommitted because I was so excited for the growth. But that came with long nights, early mornings and stressful days. It was a huge learning curve for me and forced me to re-evaluate the type of business and lifestyle I wanted. I should have turned people away or staggered them out on my schedule. That learning curve was the driver behind why 2017 is so strategically planned out now.<\/span><\/p>\n

    Get connected with Katie:<\/h4>\n