How to Sell Websites With No Experience

Everybody who sells websites had a first client who took a chance on them. You don't need years of experience or a portfolio full of sites to get started. You need to show an owner something good, be honest about where you are, and make it easy for them to say yes.

Here's how to get from zero to your first few clients without faking anything.

Your preview is your portfolio

The usual advice is "build a portfolio first." That's slow, and a portfolio of made-up businesses doesn't convince anyone.

There's a better way. Before you call a business, build them a preview of their own site, with their name, their services, their hours and their real photos. Then the owner isn't judging your past work. They're looking at the work you did for them, today.

This flips the experience problem around. An owner who sees a clean site with their business name on it doesn't usually ask how many sites you've built. If they do, the next section covers what to say.

When they ask "how long have you been doing this?"

Don't lie. Don't inflate it. Owners can tell, and in a small town it gets around.

Or:

Being upfront usually goes over better than you'd think. A lot of small business owners started out the same way and respect it.

Learn just enough to build a solid site

You don't need to be a developer. You do need to be able to make a site that:

• Looks clean and professional on a phone
• Has a tap-to-call button that works
• Loads quickly
• Is secure (https)
• Has correct business info

Pick one tool and learn it well rather than trying five. A site builder, a template system, or a tool that generates previews for you all work. What matters is that you can produce a good result consistently and fix small things when owners ask.

Read what to include in a small business website once, carefully. It covers most of what owners care about.

Practice on real businesses before you call

Before your first call, build three or four previews for real local businesses, without calling anyone. Look at them on your phone. Would you trust that business if you saw this site? Is the phone number obvious? Do the photos look good?

Then compare them to a few established local web designers' sites. Notice what looks more polished in theirs and fix it in yours.

This is your practice round. Nobody sees it, and you get better fast.

Learn the calls by making them

You will be nervous on your first calls. That's normal, and it fades through doing, not through reading more guides.

What helps:

• Use a script word for word at first. The cold calling script is a good starting point.
• Start with your least important leads. Practice on the businesses you care about least, then call your favorites once you've warmed up.
• Write down every objection you hear. After ten calls you'll see a pattern and can prepare better answers.
• Don't judge yourself by any one call. Plenty of good calls end in "no thanks."

Price your first clients fairly

When you're new, it's reasonable to charge less than established designers. You're taking a little risk with your process, and the owner is taking a little risk on you.

Some ways to do it without undervaluing yourself forever:

• A "first clients" rate on the setup fee, while keeping the monthly fee normal.
• Waive the first month of a monthly plan.
• Ask for something in return: permission to show the site to other businesses, and an honest review if they're happy.

Then raise your prices once you have a handful of live sites. The pricing guide walks through how to set your numbers.

What not to do: work for free with no end date, or promise results you can't control, like "this will double your business."

Reduce risk for the owner

Owners hesitate with someone new mostly because they're afraid of getting burned. Make it obviously safe:

• They see the site before paying anything. The preview handles this.
• The domain goes in their name. They own their web address no matter what.
• Simple terms in writing. Price, what's included, how to cancel.
• A small deposit, not a huge one, for the first projects.

Turn first clients into proof

Once you have even one happy client:

• Ask if you can mention their site when you talk to other businesses. "I just built one for a landscaper over in [town], want me to send it?"
• Ask for an honest review on whatever you use for your business, if they're comfortable.
• Note what they liked most. That's your pitch for the next one.

Real, local examples beat any portfolio of practice work.

What you can skip for now

• A fancy logo for your own business
• Your own elaborate website (a simple page is fine)
• Paid ads
• Courses that promise specific incomes
• Business cards (nice later, not needed to start)

Spend your early time on the two things that matter: building good previews and making calls.

Stay honest the whole way

Use your real name. Don't claim to be an agency or a team if it's just you. Don't say you work with Google. Don't promise rankings or customer numbers. Keep a do-not-call list and respect it. Being the honest new person beats being the slick one, especially when you're selling in your own area.

Rover is set up for people starting from zero. It finds local businesses with no website or an outdated one, builds a preview for each in one tap using their name, colors and photos, and writes the call script, voicemail, text and email. You bring the phone calls. If that sounds like a good way to start, you can sign up here.