How I Went From Freelancer To Starting My Own $150K/Month Marketing Agency

Igor Volovyi

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Published: November 24th, 2023

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Igor Volovyi

Founder, Elit-web

$150K

revenue/mo

Founders

120

Employees

Elit-web

elit-web.com

from Chicago, IL, USA

started January 2014

$150,000

revenue/mo

Founders

120

Employees

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Notion

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Zoom

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Hello! Who are you and what business did you start?

Hello everyone! My name is Igor Volovyi, co-founder and CEO of Elit-web, a marketing company that helps businesses grow online. We have been in the industry for 10 years and have a team of 120 experts from around the world. We have offices in five countries.

We work to help businesses grow online and provide the best possible experience when working with a marketing agency.

We offer services in SEO, PPC, SMM, performance marketing, as well as white label. We can help with any task of any complexity.

Our key expertise is SEO promotion. Here, we have the most experience and the coolest results for our clients. We have over 1,200 clients and more than 2,500 successful projects. We are currently working on 350 promotion projects, average monthly revenue of $120,000-$150,000 per month.

What's your backstory and how did you come up with the idea?

Many years ago, I worked as a website optimizer. At the time, not everyone was talking about it yet. I had a whole team, and we had amazing results. I worked freelance, and eventually, I decided it was time to take it to the next level - to start my own company.

I proposed to my friend, who already had an IT company, that we start a marketing agency together. The demand for this service was high, and I saw a lot of potential in it.

I handled all operational processes, my partner developed his separate IT company. I conducted a study of competitors, and I understood that it is necessary to bet on effective promotion. Our competitive advantage has become the predictability and measurability of SEO.

The new company started to grow very rapidly. In addition to SEO, other services appeared. We were looking for ways to give clients more value and create a great service. It was a completely new product, and people didn't trust it. Therefore, we created a transparent analytics dashboard where clients could track the progress and metrics of their website at any time.

This gave us a significant competitive advantage. Our clients started to trust us. Over time, we reached a new level - and now we work with clients on a partnership basis. We measure our success by the success of our partners.

Take us through the process of building the first version of your product.

The first step in the process of promoting a website is always meeting the client. We meet and conduct a detailed briefing to learn more about their business, goals, and needs.

Find a problem you can solve. This is the most important thing you can do as an entrepreneur. If you're not solving a problem that matters to people, then your business won't be successful.

During the meeting, we discussed the following questions:

What industry does the company operate in?
What are the goals of website promotion?
What keywords and phrases are relevant to the business?
What resources are available for website promotion?
Business and website analysis

After meeting with the client, we analyzed the business and website. This allows us to better understand how to improve the website's visibility in search engines. As part of the business analysis, we study competitors, the target audience, the client's website (technical audit, structure, content quality, links, usability), and the overall specifics of the business.

Based on the results of the analysis, we developed a website promotion strategy. This includes improving the website's technical condition, content, structure, internal and external linking, and conversion rate. We also forecast the future efficiency of promotion and set KPIs.

Next, we implement the strategy. We constantly monitor the results and provide monthly analytics to our clients.

Promoting a website is a long and complex process that requires a team of experienced professionals. We at Elit-Web have experience working with a variety of businesses and have helped many become top of mind in their niche.

Describe the process of launching the business.

In the early years, we found clients through freelance exchanges (Similar to Upwork). This was a quick and inexpensive way to attract clients. There was a lot of work available, and we didn't have any problems.

Then, when we realized that our service was superior to other freelancers, we started creating our website. SEO site promotion is the best way to attract customers. And by that time we already had a good base of copywriters. This was a long time ago.

We created and started promoting our website, investing a lot of money and effort into it. Now our website is our primary lead generation channel, generating 80% of our orders. A good site and quality services allow us to implement our services with a project cost of $50k+.

Currently, our team consists of 3 key departments for services: SEO, PRS, and SMM. We have a large marketing department that is actively engaged in SEO, content marketing, outbound lead generation through LinkedIn and email, contextual advertising, and social media advertising.

Since launch, what has worked to attract and retain customers?

Don't skimp on content. Content is king on the internet.

Since the launch of Elit-Web, we have been using a variety of marketing strategies to attract and retain customers. Some of our most successful strategies include:

1) SEO (search engine optimization):

We invest significant resources in SEO to ensure that our websites appear on the first pages of search results for relevant keywords. This allows us to attract organic traffic from search engines, which is one of the most valuable sources of traffic.

We have created many landing pages for different locations to best optimize your local ranking.

2) Content marketing: We create high-quality and informative content that is relevant to our target customers. This allows us to attract traffic to our website and position ourselves as experts in our field.

We have created blogs on such resources as medium.com, it-rating.com, quora.com, blogger.com, articlebiz.com, etc.

3) Social media: We actively use social media to promote our services and engage with our target audience. We publish engaging and useful content, as well as run social media advertising campaigns.

4) We pay special attention to the Clutch: We ask customers to leave reviews about us, and we regularly add cases.

5) Partner marketing: We collaborate with other companies through partner marketing. This allows us to reach a new audience and attract more customers.

We have individual specialists who are constantly looking for partners at various events and with the help of newsletters. We exchange guest posts, announcements, and leads.

We also use other marketing strategies, such as public relations, email marketing, and contextual advertising. However, SEO and content marketing are our most effective strategies today.

If I could give myself advice when I was a beginner entrepreneur, I would say the following:

Always start by defining your target audience and understanding their needs. This will help you develop an effective marketing strategy.
Don't be afraid to invest in SEO. SEO will yield the best results in the long run, and the sooner you start, the easier it will be to establish yourself in your niche.
Don't skimp on content. Content is king on the internet. Until your website has high-quality content that is relevant to your target audience, you will not be seen as an expert in your field. A website for the sake of a website will not bring you customers, it has to be useful and informative.
Your brand is what will allow you to grow. Take the time to develop a strong brand identity that will resonate with your target audience. This will help you build trust and credibility with potential customers.
Don't put off working on social media. Social media is a great way to connect with your target audience and build relationships. Be sure to create valuable content and interact with your followers regularly.
Don't be afraid to partner with other companies. Partner marketing is a great way to reach a new audience and grow your business. Look for companies that have complementary products or services that your target audience would be interested in.

How are you doing today and what does the future look like?

Elit-Web is a growing company that has been steadily increasing its number of clients and gross revenue each year. The pandemic did not have a significant impact on the company, as many businesses moved their operations online, which led to an increase in demand for Elit-Web's services.

However, the war in Ukraine did have a negative impact on the company, as many of its Ukrainian clients were forced to suspend their operations. As a result, Elit-Web had to shift its focus to European and American markets.

Our main service is SEO promotion, which accounts for 60-70% of projects. Another 30-40 are divided between different types of advertising. As for profit, we are now investing heavily in a new website, marketing, and the development of the Elit-Web brand.

Through starting the business, have you learned anything particularly helpful or advantageous?

Yes, I have learned a lot from starting a business. Here are some of my observations:

The importance of focusing on the customer. Everything you do should be focused on your customers. You need to understand their needs and wants, and you need to provide a product or service that exceeds their expectations.
The importance of building a team. No one can achieve success in business alone. You need to build a team of talented and dedicated people who share your vision.
The importance of resilience. There will be challenges along the way. You need to be able to pick yourself up and keep moving forward.

What platform/tools do you use for your business?

I use a variety of platforms and tools to manage my business, including:

Notion: Notion is a note-taking, task management, and wiki creation app that I use to organize all of my work. It is a powerful tool that allows me to create my databases, boards, and pages to meet my specific needs.

Google Workspace: I use Google Workspace for email, calendars, documents, spreadsheets, and presentations. It is a reliable and easy-to-use suite of tools that helps me stay productive and organized.

Zoom: Zoom is a video conferencing tool that I use to meet with clients and team members remotely. It is a reliable and easy-to-use platform that allows us to communicate face-to-face, even when we are not in the same place.

Worksection is a project management platform that helps teams organize their work, collaborate, and achieve common goals. I use Worksection to manage projects.

These are just some of the tools that I use for my business. There are many other great tools available, so it is important to choose the ones that best meet your specific needs.

What have been the most influential books, podcasts, or other resources?

Here are a few books that have truly inspired me and my business:

The Hard Thing About Hard Things by Ben Horowitz. This book is an honest look at the challenges of running a business. Horowitz shares his own mistakes and successes, and he doesn't shy away from talking about the tough stuff. This is a book I go back to again and again when I'm facing challenges.
Rework by Jason Fried and David Heinemeier Hansson. This book offers a different perspective on running a business. Fried and Hansson encourage readers to work less, but smarter. They also offer practical advice on how to create a company culture that fosters creativity and productivity.

Advice for other entrepreneurs who want to get started or are just starting out?

If you dream of owning your own business, then you probably already know that it's not easy. But it's also a very rewarding and fulfilling work.

Find a problem you can solve. This is the most important thing you can do as an entrepreneur. If you're not solving a problem that matters to people, then your business won't be successful. Don't be afraid of failure. Everyone fails at some point. It's important to learn from your mistakes and keep moving forward. Build a strong team. You can't do everything yourself. Surround yourself with talented people who share your values.