What is ZippyKid?
ZippyKid is a boutique web hosting service that manages WordPress for you, so you can manage the content of your website.
How did you get started?
Over past 3 years, I’ve noticed an increase in clients asking me help with their WordPress sites. I wrestled with outdated plugins and insecure configurations for ~30 sites before I started to notice patterns. Being a programmer, I automated the things I could and looked for tools to help me manage everything else.
Tell us a little more about the tools you use on a daily basis.
It can vary, but this is what you’ll find me using on most days:
- 15 inch macbook pro
- iPhone
- Omnifocus
- Omnioutliner
- Netbeans
- Vim
- Github
Can you tell us a little about your backoffice infrastructure?
Github/Git for version control, Rackspace Cloud for hosting, Chargify for billing and custom scripts to install/update WordPress across multiple servers.
What were some of the biggest mistakes you made in growing your business?
I waited 365 days way too long to launch the site. I kept thinking about all the things I thought I needed: a rock solid billing system, proper control panels, status monitoring, [insert 435820746254 other excuses here]. I should have started this a long time ago.
If someone wanted to start a business similar to yours, what advice would you give to them?
Don’t wait. If you’re honest with your customers, they’ll understand and help you. I’ve told my customers that it’s just me and one person to answer emails, this helps manage their expectations and mine. I don’t promise 24/7 support, I promise fast loading, secure, and reliable websites.
***
A couple things I noticed while talking to Vid:
- He’s a smart guy and has managed to avoid over-engineering the product. For example, he’s using an off the shelf billing system to avoid having to build it in-house (which, traditionally, is a nightmare to build and maintain). Notice that most of the workflow steps are manual — he hasn’t invested time/money into building anything fancy just yet. Instead, he’s proving that the business is viable before investing too much into it.
- Three words: Monthly Recurring Revenue. My favorite kind of business.
- The service and/or the process isn’t groundbreaking or new, he’s simply using his expertise to make his consulting life a little easier.
You can find Vid at Third Party Code, check out ZippyKid, read other Back Office Exposed features andsubmit yourself for a Back Office Exposed feature.