Pivoting WP in One Month

Do you know the story of Pixar? It’s a really interesting one that I strongly recommend you read all about in Creativity Inc. Here’s the gist: Pixar started off as a piece of hardware inside LucasFilms, and the team was tasked with pushing the technological envelope for live-action movies. When Lucas had to sell off that division, it was purchased by Steve Jobs and they tried for a number of years to sell hardware before pivoting and making their first featured length animated movie, Toy Story. It took about 20 years, but Pixar found its true calling. While I am not at all comparing myself to Pixar, I am taking an important less from them: you may not find success in your first iteration.

[bctt tweet=”You may not find success on your first try.” username=”jcasabona”]

It’s a lesson I see every day when I write code. Your first try might not be your best one. It might not even work. I’m looking at WP in One Month the same way. When I started it in November, I envisioned offer weekly classes for folks who wanted to attend. I learned over the next few months that (at least in the smaller city I live in), this might not be the best direction to go in. I made a few mistakes, I didn’t invest as much into advertising as I probably should have, and turn out was pretty low.

Rethinking my Strategy

In February I started to think about what I can do to make WP in One Month better. My 2 criteria for “better” were to have a big turn out at events and to make it sustainable as a business.

After talking to a few friends, it seemed like I had a few options ranging from video courses (like what you see on WP101) to traveling to cities and having the workshops there. There was also a recurring recommendation that struck a nerve with me: Live Webinars.

My whole selling point for WP in One Month was that they were live and in-person, but if I could at least keep the “live” part, I’d be able to have a much greater reach, build demand, and then hopefully be able to offer the in-person workshops in the future. So I began to pivot. Thankfully it didn’t take 20 years 🙂

This is where I fight to urge to use that pivot gif from Friends.

Webinars & Workshops!

I’m very happy to announce that I have partnered with some great folks in the WordPress community to offer free webinars at least monthly. The first one is this on Wednesday, April 13th at 2:00pm EST, and it’s all about how to use Beaver Builder. I want to thank them for being the first to sign on as a WP in One Month partner. They have an excellent product and I’m excited to show it to you.

Over the coming months (minus most of June due to a previous engagement) I will be growing WP in One Month, offering live webinars, live workshops, and providing other helpful content and resources. Head on over to the WP in One Month Parters page to see all the great folks I’m working with, and what you have to look forward to. It took longer than I thought it would, but I have found the right people to help me build something great.

[bctt tweet=”Find the right people and you will build something great.” username=”jcasabona”]

image from e2ua