I have started many side businesses in the past. Most of them (well, all of them, really) kind of flopped.
Many years ago, there was an idea to do in-person WordPress coaching for business owners. Then some drop-shipping. A sightseeing-in-a-box experience I did with my wife and our best friend. And so many more.
And you know what…every time I struggled. Juggling a full-time job and a side business meant that I had to prioritise. To find my groove. To figure out how it fits into my life. And well…in all of these endeavours, I haven't.
Now, I am running Magic Pages, a Ghost CMS hosting provider, and I feel like I unintentionally found it – without even trying.
But let's backtrack a little.
Magic Pages is around a year old now. There was a pre-sale that brought in around 15 people who wanted to support this from the beginning. I then focussed on building the product – and disregarded any marketing. Sporadically, somebody would reach out and ask whether the lifetime deal was still available.
Then, in summer, nothing happened for a long time. No sales. The existing customers didn't seem to work on their websites. It felt…odd. I even thought about abandoning Magic Pages. Keep all the existing websites running. And focus on building custom websites for clients instead.
One day, out of nowhere, I received an email from a Magic Pages customer. They were wondering if one of their friends could still get the lifetime deal. I said yes.
A few days later, somebody else, who also heard about Magic Pages from an existing customer, emailed me as well. Another sale.
Then, a week after that, my friend Christine sent out a newsletter, promoting Magic Pages. Another sale.
And the fire was lit again 🔥
I started to implement a free trial. Tried to split my time between development and marketing. Experimented with different marketing channels. Newsletter sponsoring, Reddit ads, and so much more.
And guess what happened. Nothing.
…I thought.
There were no sales. Just lots of people signing up for trials. Nobody seemed to start any actual blogs though.
This was in the end of November 2023. And again, I thought that's it.
Well, sometimes short-term dopamine boosts fool us. Things won't magically fall into place overnight. They rarely do.
In the second half of December, I noticed a lot more traffic on Magic Pages' website. The surprising part: They came from all over the internet. People were sharing the link to Magic Pages on Threads, on Twitter, and on their own blogs.
It was just a handful of people, but the Magic Pages landing page was buzzing.
Trials flowed in. Emails arrived in my inbox. The live chat was active for the first time.
I have been helping new users with their migrations from other Ghost hosting providers, Substack, or other platforms. Fixed technical issues. Debugged setups. And got a lot of feedback.
Positive feedback.
And there was one clear theme in there: the level of customer support is outstanding.
As somebody who has worked in customer service for years, this felt wonderful. Kind of like a full-circle moment.
I dropped out of university. Had to get entry-level jobs in customer service, because I wasn't qualified for anything else. Taught myself how to code. Started a side business. And now I apply all the things I have learned in the past couple of years.
So, I think I've found it. Not the gold-mine that will let me retire in 2 years. But my groove. My business groove.
A tech-business that actually delivers great customer support. And sees it as more than just a fancy bullet point on their landing page.