Ep 68 | "We Charged 900 Dollars A Month... For Unlimited Design" - The Honest Truth About Subscription Based Pricing | With Keith Armstrong
Dec 19, 2023
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Keith Armstrong, founder of Flowsparrow, discusses the challenges of subscription vs. project based pricing, the importance of embracing failure for personal growth, and the struggles of giving constructive criticism. They also explore the balance between long-term partnerships and trying new ideas, and share their experiences with side projects and the pressure to succeed.
Relinquishing control and trusting team members is essential for growth and development within an organization.
Transitioning from subscription-based to project-based pricing may not be beneficial if the subscription model is already successful and provides ongoing value.
Deep dives
Failure #1: Not letting go of control and trusting team members
Keith struggled with relinquishing control and trusting his team members to carry out tasks. He would often take on all the work himself instead of empowering his team. However, he realized the importance of allowing team members to fail and learn from their mistakes in order to foster growth and development within the organization.
Failure #2: Subscription versus project-based models
Initially, Keith considered transitioning from a subscription-based model to project-based pricing. However, after examining the success and customer satisfaction from the subscription model, he realized that the retainer-based approach allowed for deeper client relationships and more ongoing value. Keith recognized the failure in trying to shift away from what was already working well for his agency.
Failure #3: Burnout and side projects
Keith admitted to often experiencing burnout due to his continuous pursuit of new side projects. While he values exploring different ideas, he has sometimes neglected his responsibilities to Flow Sparrow and experienced extreme burnout as a result. Balancing side projects with his main focus has been a challenge, and he acknowledged the need to find a healthier balance moving forward.
Welcome to Episode 68 of Webflail with Keith Armstrong.
In the about section of Keith's LinkedIn, it simply says 'a Canadian website developer with a stubborn drive to make the web better'.
This undersells Keith in my opinion. He is the founder of Flowsparrow, a subscription based Webflow service. He’s been involved with Flowparty, I’ve heard him share wisdom on Twitter Lives, he had a newsletter for a while called the div dive. He’s keen to help others is what I’ve seen and that goes a long way. Not only that, he’s just started Remote Supply - a clothing brand with a 90s feel.
But naturally, no road is perfectly straight!
The fails that we’ll discuss today are:
1. Not letting go of control and trusting team members