Name of your website?Freelance advertising copywriter John Kuraoka
Your name?
John Kuraoka
Your Location (city, etc)
Sunny San Diego
Please give us a short summary of your website?
My website is my primary online marketing tool. But it also has lots of useful information aimed at brand owners, advertisers, and even aspiring copywriters.
What inspired you to launch your own website?
I've always sought new ways to get and maintain client relationships. I've been in business long enough that I remember landing copywriting gigs just because I had this newfangled thing called a "fax machine." Most ad agencies and businesses had one, but almost no freelancers. I'd regularly win projects because I could fax portfolio samples, project estimates, copy drafts, and the like.
Then it was email (potential new client: "you mean you can email us stuff? Wow!"). Then it was a website.
So, what inspired me to launch a website? The constant need to develop and enhance business relationships!
When did you launch your first website, and what was it?
Well it's a tie between my family website and my professional website, both of which were launched around 1997.
How did you decide on a name for your website?
Back in those days it was easy. My own name, dot-com.
What makes it different from other, similar offerings?
It's simple and fast, because it's pure HTML.
It has a ton of content, including professional advice, actual samples of my work, and the world's clunkiest blog about advertising.
One unique thing I offer, is the world's first online copywriting mentorship program. I help one lucky (?) aspiring copywriter dial up his or her portfolio, and in return I get fresh insights.
What is your eventual goal? (To sell it, keep it for income, secure a book or other mainstream media deal?)
Oh, this'll be my website forever. Even if I retire, I'd keep it up as a resource for others.
How does your investment of time and money balance against your success?
You don't earn success unless you make an investment of time and money. So it balances out. If anything, I'm way ahead.
If you had an unlimited development budget for development, how would you change your site?
I wouldn't change a thing.
I've had designer friends offer to redesign my website, but sticking with this archaic structure has actually helped a good deal. Nothing is hidden. There's a lot of content, and it's all visible.
If your site got really big, really quickly, would you be able to keep up with the demand?
Absolutely!
What unexpected costs and headaches have you had to deal with?
Probably the major unexpected headache was Spam. But now my ISP's Spam blocker is so good, that that's less of an issue.
As for unexpected costs, I'd have to point to my family website for that. The thing keeps growing, with photos and videos of our kids. It seems every year I run out of space and have to upgrade my hosting plan! But, it's been a few years now, and I'm starting to get a handle on the projected growth curve there - so although the costs go up, they're not unexpected.
What has been your biggest challenge?
Staying fresh.
What method has been most successful for promoting your website?
The sheer volume of original, relevant content.
But, in my particular situation, to talk "website promotion" is sort of the wrong approach. I could "promote" my website all I want, and completely miss serving my clients and potential clients.
The key issues are about business development and relationship management - and the website is one component of those larger tasks.
How has running your website differed from your expectations?
My original online ID was a five-digit CompuServe number. I mention that because I was online in some of the later early years, and I knew that there was something emerging. But the totality of how the web enmeshed itself in our lives - that I don't think I expected. Although it happened so gradually, it's not like I woke up one day and said "whoa, this is bigger than I thought." It just happened, and now, looking back, I can see that my original assumptions were, well, naive.
How long have you run the site already, and how long will you continue to keep it up if you don't enjoy big gains in traffic, income or popularity?
This particular site has been up since about 1997, I think, although there were earlier incarnations of it. I'll always maintain it, although as technology evolves it could become like my fax machine, sitting over there in the corner. I still use the fax - it's great for getting things like vendor application forms in the right hands immediately. But it'sno longer a core competitive edge.
What is your website address?
Freelance advertising copywriter John Kuraoka
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