Agencies and freelancers for WordPress are confronted with a wide variety of topics: From performance and positioning to SEO and social media. 9 questions for our agency partner Sven Jagata from Kreative Kommunikation: How does he deal with such requirements? And what are his best tips for proper project planning?
Infrastructure for WordPress hosting
Sven, you recently moved a WooCommerce store to us because it was mentioned on TV and you expected significantly more traffic. What is your experience with Raidboxes?
I am already a "repeat offender" with Raidboxes and can only say that it went absolutely smoothly as always. Your migration service alone took a lot of work off my hands. I also got a few tips to make the site perform even better.
I chose you because I am 100 percent sure that I can rely on an absolutely professional and, above all, reliable infrastructure for my customer projects. I always have a good feeling for myself and, above all, for my customers.
Apart from our managed hosting, how do you go about making a WordPress website as performant as possible?
Above all, the motto is: "Less is more". This means paying meticulous attention to image sizes during development and only installing absolutely essential plugins. In addition, I have had excellent experiences with the PrestoPlayer in conjunction with bunny.net as a streaming server and CDN, especially when integrating the video .
Another example is a knowledge platform with WordPress that you have implemented. Which plugins are used here?
Online courses for overcoming anxiety are sold on this platform. In consultation with our customer, , we opted for Tutor LMS. With a connection to WooCommerce and in conjunction with germanized. As with every project at Raidboxes so far, it was really fun to carry out the development directly in the BOX. With these loading times, a local development environment is simply no longer necessary.
Customer communication and advice
How do you generally proceed when planning a new customer project? How do you find out exactly what the customer needs?
For this purpose, I have prepared a document in which all relevant points are queried. Above all, the expectations of the website must be described very precisely. Advising the customer is always my top priority. Even if it means that the project becomes smaller. I also have the client's business described to me in such detail that I can sit in their chair.
My recommendations are therefore always made from the perspective of "What would I do in the customer's shoes?". This approach has absolutely proven its worth and ultimately means that everyone involved knows exactly what is expected of them: What is expected of them? Who has to deliver what by when?
During development, I make sure I communicate as closely as possible. Even if there isn't much news to report, a "sign of life" in between is worth its weight in gold. The longer a customer is in the dark, the more uncertain they become as to whether they have made the right decision in awarding the project. After all, from his point of view, a whole lot of "magic" is already happening, i.e. things he doesn't understand and doesn't need to understand. A jour fix is balm for the customer's soul. It builds trust, even if it takes time.
You not only help your customers to create a website, but also to position themselves in the market. What are the most important initial measures you can recommend?
The somewhat "annoying" word WHY is particularly important for solo self-employed people:
- Why does the customer do what he does as a self-employed person?
- Why is he where he is with his business right now?
- Why should others buy from him of all people?
Once these questions have been answered, the focus is usually on creating a persona. These are all questions and tasks that are not subject to entertainment tax, but without completing them, target-oriented positioning is simply not possible. Only then is the focus turned to the market competitors. In order to then tailor the products and/or services to the persona and the market situation.
Admittedly, this is a time-consuming process. However, if you follow it consistently, you will end up with a tailor-made strategy with a high potential for success. If you want to reach everyone, you will ultimately reach no one. Creating this understanding in the client is often the most difficult task.
You have customers from different industries. How do you manage to put yourself in the shoes of the respective target group?
This is probably a combination of several factors. On the one hand, I have been able to carry out many different activities and get to know many industries in my professional career and in my 50 years of life. Secondly, I specifically visit the customer's premises, especially at the beginning of a customer dialog. This allows me to develop a feel for the business. Asking questions and listening are also key to being able to put myself in the customer's shoes.
SEO needs preparatory work
Many companies would like to invest more in SEO and social media. Which initial measures bring a relatively high level of visibility with little effort?
Search engine optimization is always a marathon and never a sprint. In my experience, it is essential to clarify at the beginning what search engine optimization actually is. And what it is supposed to achieve. The ideas of this "sport" are sometimes adventurous - and unfortunately this is often shamelessly exploited by some agencies. Just like at the cheese counter, "a piece of SEO" is offered.
Without substantial preparatory work and strategy development, you quickly run into nothing. This wastes valuable time and money. So if entrepreneurs are unsure how to get started, or if they are not or only partially aware of the complex interrelationships, I recommend getting help from a consultant. At least at the beginning of the project. Keyword research is an important factor here.
The optimization measures are carried out on this basis. If you make mistakes here - for example by not taking the search intention or the competition into account - you may lead visitors to your own site. However, they have no interest in the products or services. Instead, for example, they simply want information, only to disappear again immediately afterwards. Or, despite your best efforts, you simply don't make it into the top 10 on Google & Co.
Once the goals have been set, the keywords (search queries) have been selected and an at least brief action plan has been drawn up, you can also do it yourself with the help of an appropriate plugin. I personally prefer the current version of Rank Math as an optimization plugin. However, you should always keep an eye on the development of your own rankings and your competitors. I personally have been working with the Sistrix solution for years.
However, since this software is not cheap either, it may well be advisable to have an agency provide the developments during the project. It must be decided on a case-by-case basis which resource is more valuable for the entrepreneur: time or money. One of the two must be used in any case. Two recommended measures that everyone can and should take themselves are Setting up and maintaining your Google My Business account and seeking links from other websites. These can be suppliers, customers and business portals.
Social media: The right choice
What do you recommend and why: would you prefer one social media channel, and the right one, or several right from the start?
It depends. Many forget the word "social" in "social media". Interaction is of the utmost importance. This means that if you simply don't feel comfortable on a platform even after several weeks, you are unlikely to be successful. Furthermore, the choice of platform is heavily dependent on the target group to be reached. It simply doesn't make sense to drive your butcher's wagon to a market for vegans.
Then it depends on how much time you can or want to spend. It is therefore often advisable to check exactly which channel is the right one. To gain initial experience on just one channel. The level of awareness of the service or products should also not be disregarded. The less well-known a product or service is, the more sensible it is to have a presence on social media channels, as you can proactively approach your target group here.
Shortly after the invention of the car, nobody would have searched for a car in a search engine, but for a carriage or a horse. The same applies here - regardless of the size of the company: without a clear definition of the target group, an analysis of the competition, the market situation and a strategy, it is virtually impossible to be successful on the social web.
A few words about you and your agency?
Through my father's company, I started to get involved with IT in general back in the mid-90s. This involved setting up a company network and creating an industry software solution that did not yet exist at the time. I was also entrusted with the design of sales brochures. Even back then, the combination of creativity and technology was a big attraction for me. Shortly afterwards, I created the first website based on HTML.
By learning on the job and through regular further training, I became a generalist almost by myself. Even if you hear from every wall that you MUST specialize. My experience with my customers is quite different. My target group is individual and small companies. And they really appreciate the fact that they can turn to me for help with creating and expanding their website, as well as with questions about search engine optimization or social media. After all, small companies are not in a position to hire their own agency for every task or problem.
For the past two years, I have been working more and more on mapping sales processes under WordPress. I have now developed various solutions for my customers. For example, a ticket system, a platform for online courses or the sale of digital products and face-to-face seminars. If you ask me today whether I will specialize in one of my topics in the future, the answer is a clear "no".
I'm passionate about the variety of digital possibilities and really enjoy learning new things every day. I am fully aware that there will always be someone out there who can do the individual task better than me. As long as I communicate this openly and clearly to my customers and prospective customers, I will never create false expectations that I cannot fulfill. The customer always knows where he stands with me and my agency. For me, this - along with absolute reliability - is the key to a partnership of equals.
