How to make a web studio effective and start making money? 15 steps from WebCanape

My name is Vasily Churanov. I am the director of WebCanape. The next few months I want to spend on systematizing the knowledge and experience that helped WebCanape enter the top 100 web studios and start making money in the most competitive market - website development. I plan to reduce this experience to 15 materials that, perhaps (really hope), will become for web studios with a small staff and big ambitions - useful practical instructions in this difficult way.

I will not write about how to look for customers and build sales. I will not write about what design should be, about the quality of the code, etc. I will gradually describe the creation of a working business - a sequence of steps that include business planning, technology, motivation system, KPI system, search and organization of work with employees, accounting , work with leads, organization of work of departments, accounting of subscriber services, etc. Exactly as if I were now opening a web studio from the very beginning. My task is to tell you how to make the studio work more efficient, profitable and faster. For the studio’s profit lies in the time that it loses in vain on routine operations.

Why am I doing this?

First of all, I want to systematize my experience in order to develop further. We have a working system where my participation is now minimal. I am sure that, having completed this work, I will have a clear vision of where to go next. And your questions and comments, your experience of using our best practices will also help in this.

Why do you need this?

I’m sure that if you follow the advice, then in 2-3 years you can build a company that will make a monthly profit the size of, say, a brand new foreign car (unless of course you put everything into development :) And you can spend 2 years of life and be disappointed in this business. You decide.

Be prepared that in the technology that I will describe - there are many places that can be improved, but for some they have already been decided. Fine. We will develop together. We are not at the beginning, we are in the middle of the road.

So a few words about WebCanape

Today WebCanape processes a month about 120 applications for website development, 80 applications for advertising and promotion, issues 30-40 sites, is in the top 100 cmsmagazine studios and most importantly, is in the top 3 (of 5000 studios) who works with budgets up to 100,000 rubles. Why is it important? Because clients with budgets of less than 100,000 rubles are the majority, they are easier to find for a beginner studio, but it’s most difficult to work with them (to be profitable). Anyone who learns to do this can be calm about their future. You are not dependent on a specific client. Even if someone is pulling with a payment, then you will have the means to pay the salary. If this seems like a trifle to you, then I will tell you that it is on this trifle that most of the studios are closed.

For some, our performance looks impressive, but for someone it’s not much at all. In fact, it does not matter whether it is a lot or a little. Everything is very relative and everyone decides for himself. Most importantly, this is a system and it works. It works and fulfills the basic rule - value creation and systematic profit-making.

Due to what you can earn more - price. WebCanape works at the lowest price. For us it was a matter of principle. We tested ourselves for strength and created the conditions in which innovations that can overcome difficulties can be born. With great confidence, I can say that something we do can be sold at a higher price, which some of our partners do. If we increase prices by 30%, our turnover will grow by 30 percent, our profit will grow by 30%. This is significant money, but for customers it will not be so noticeable.

Here is such a chart hanging in the WebCanape office and every day we see how we come closer to the intended results.



You will also be approaching the goal every day.

And in conclusion about budget sites

And let someone tell you that you are doing “ shit budget sites.” Take your time to answer this. You create sites that really help businesses earn their first money. Just learn to do it well and quickly. Our client "Rehau Portal" started from a site for 12,000 rubles. Today, it has only 40 times more advertising revenue than the site’s value. He continues to work with us and is in the first lines of the search. Together with him we earn. Our client "Sushi To-Se" today has more than a hundred orders and goes to other regions. He also began with a site for 12,000.

How will I build my story?

1) Business planning for the web studio
2) Team, distribution of roles and responsibilities
3) Product formation: hours, deadlines, profitability
4) We set up business processes in CRM and the order chain
5) Virtual pipeline for website development and automation
6) Last mile or how to hand over the finished site to the client
7) Monitoring of production work - necessary metrics
8) Setting up the staff motivation system
9) Organization of the support service
10) Organization of the advertising and promotion department
11) Meetings, summing up, plans monitoring and control
12) Analytics, decision making techniques
13) Employees: search, involvement, growth system (basic characteristics of a person)
14) Organization of the office
15) PR studio

In the process of description, I will share the tools that we use. I am sure that most of them will be useful to you. Join the “profitable web studio” group , all discussions will be there. For all questions, you can write to me on Facebook or in the comments to posts. Our group is in a telegram .