Congratulations to our sixth Power Elite creator, Brandon Jones of MDNW (Make Design, Not Conflict), previously EpicEra. Brandon likes to maintain issues small, and designs and develops all of the merchandise himself, getting some assist with buyer help and bookkeeping from his brother and spouse. “We produce stuff that we expect is beneficial, and we deal with our clients like we might our pals.” One million later, that easy motto appears to work!
Completely satisfied MDNW Day!
We requested Brandon a couple of questions concerning the journey to the $1,000,000 milestone. Learn on to seek out out the key behind his success, what makes MDNW particular and the way it feels to achieve a $1,000,000 price of gross sales!
Inform us somewhat bit about MDNW and the way you bought right here?
My identify is Brandon Ryan Jones and I run “Make Design, Not War”, which is the enterprise behind our MDNW (previously EpicEra) account on ThemeForest. I used to be born and raised in Southern California and I’ve been an online designer for over a decade now.
I loved a really profitable freelance design profession for seven years earlier than I found ThemeForest. I began releasing a few of my work on ThemeForest in 2009 and I had stop my freelance profession by 2010 after realizing how a lot enjoyable it was. Not that freelancing wasn’t enjoyable—promoting merchandise on-line simply made extra money for the period of time I spent on it.
Throughout that point I’ve completed my greatest to provide again to the group the place I might. I spoke at internet design conferences, helped write a e-book about creating WordPress themes, and wrote a bunch of instructional articles about internet design and WordPress. I additionally had the privilege of working as an editor forWebdesigntuts+ and Wptuts+ earlier than I'd ultimately take a while off to give attention to my household final 12 months.
I design and develop the entire merchandise myself and up till about six months in the past, I answered each help query personally as properly. Now, I've assist from my youthful brother who manages the shopper help aspect of the enterprise, and we've a few different helpers that help with managing our discussion board at makedesign.ticksy.com.
I’ve sometimes tried out partnerships with different designers and builders, however I’ve discovered that the enterprise works greatest when it’s small. As such, I like to think about it as a small, household oriented operation. My spouse does all of our bookkeeping, my brother solutions a lot of the help questions, and we work with all of our clients on a one-on-one foundation to assist them get what they want from our merchandise.
There’s no magic formulation to what we do. We produce stuff that we expect is beneficial, and we deal with our clients like we might our pals. It’s a superb system that’s labored rather well for us during the last couple years! Briefly, we thrive on protecting issues small, easy and grounded.
How does it really feel to have offered over $1,000,000 of things?
Surreal! It’s superb how briskly it’s occurred. I do know different authors have gotten right here sooner than I've, however for essentially the most half I by no means actually pushed onerous to provide large, mega-selling themes. I’ve at all times simply made tasks that I take pleasure in and launched them for different individuals to make use of. It’s loopy to see that quantity although!
What does this milestone imply for you and your group?
I suppose the “1 million” mark is an enormous monetary milestone once you see it typed out, but it surely’s what it symbolizes that’s so superior to me. It represents a number of years of having the ability to present for my household, all whereas engaged on the hours and phrases of my selecting. Particularly, it represents me having the ability to take nearly half a 12 months off to give attention to my new child daughter final 12 months. Positive, I labored throughout that point, but it surely’s a special sort of labor when you are able to do it out of your sofa at any hour of the day. That’s cool!
It additionally represents having labored with practically 25,000 completely different clients across the globe. That’s fairly loopy when you consider it. Within the final 12 months alone, we’ve answered nearly 5,000 mixed emails, help tickets, and product questions on ThemeForest. It’s onerous to actually categorical how thrilling that's to us, to go from a life the place I had a handful of purchasers that I’d work with over a 12 months to a life the place I join with anyplace from 25 to 75 completely different clients in a single day.
Financially, 1,000,000 bucks looks as if it’d be loads if I made all of it in a 12 months. I made it over a number of years although, so my story is much less “get wealthy fast” and extra “keep centered and hold delivery”. I really like what I do, so the cash is kind of only a signal that different individuals additionally take pleasure in it!
What number of hours do you spend on designs for the Pollwp Market?
That varies loads. After I launched Tremendous Skeleton for WordPress, it had taken me nearly 4 constant months of tinkering with issues to get it working the best way I needed. That was an enormous improvement cycle. It was all brand-spankin’ new. I launched different stuff throughout that point, however Tremendous Skeleton was my child. Tons of of hours have been put into that, not counting the years of expertise constructing as much as that time.
My newer merchandise can take as little as 20-30 hours although. That doesn’t make them any much less worthwhile for my part. It simply reveals that I’m constructing on prime of an current product framework that’s confirmed itself over 18 months to be actually good at what it does. Customers find it irresistible as a result of it’s straightforward to arrange. I find it irresistible as a result of it’s straightforward to work with and I can construct new stuff with it actually rapidly.
When it comes time to tear all of it down and launch a brand new framework, my time per product will return up into the lots of once more. That’s simply a part of the event cycle with internet templates.
Have you ever had any designs rejected and what did you do about it?
No, by no means. The actually nice theme authors by no means face rejection as a result of they at all times do stuff proper the primary time. /snark
Just about each certainly one of my tasks has been rejected in the course of the launch cycle. That’s not a foul factor for my part. The requirements for themes at ThemeForest are at all times going up. New requirements imply new guidelines, and new code guidelines that I don’t catch by myself will get seen by the reviewers even when they don’t “break” something on the product. It normally takes a matter of 90 seconds to patch them up, and it offers me an opportunity to assessment the product as a complete once more earlier than it will get to satisfy the general public.
Rejection is sweet although. Embrace it! Having individuals try your work and criticize it's the easiest way to enhance your self and your work.
What phrases of encouragement do you could have for any budding authors who wish to make Energy Elite stage?
Don’t be afraid to deviate from the norm. The overwhelming majority of merchandise that I see on ThemeForest all have the identical “really feel” to them, however a few of my very own favourite themes have been those that basically push exterior of the field like ShapeShifter or Collect. They won't promote in addition to the usual templates, however you’ll be taught much more about your work within the course of, which finally makes your “vanilla theme” stuff higher in the long term.
What's your workplace house like?
Easy and purposeful! Typically it’s the spare room on the second story of our little rental. Typically it’s the balcony exterior my bed room. Typically it’s the sofa in my lounge or the espresso store a couple of blocks away. I attempt to let work simply occur by itself, which signifies that the workplace actually is extra a couple of headspace than a bodily place.
I've a secret obsession with constructing computer systems from scratch, however I actually don’t have the fanciest computer systems or tools, partly as a result of I believe that’d skew the best way I work. Most patrons have atypical setups so why would I create my merchandise on the rest?
I’m nonetheless a gadget nerd at coronary heart although, so at any level I’ll have a handful of tablets, telephones, and different stuff to check out my merchandise in an actual life test-environment. That a lot is fairly essential. Fancy places of work aren’t price a lot to me, however having the ability to see your merchandise as your patrons would, that’s important.
How do you get inspiration to your designs?
I normally have one or two “favor” tasks at any given cut-off date. These are normally pro-bono tasks for pals, household, or charities. Engaged on them normally spurs concepts for brand spanking new themes that I'd produce as a result of it offers me some hands-on expertise with the those who finally find yourself utilizing my themes.
I additionally get a variety of inspiration within the type of suggestions from current customers. We get a variety of ideas and concepts for brand spanking new theme options from our purchaser group. A few of these concepts are so large that it requires fully new themes to be constructed. The top result's a product that actual individuals have requested, which is a very nice method to know that it’s going to go over properly with new customers.
I’ll toss within the normal stuff too—there are the myriad of design assortment, awards, and different websites that catalogue what’s “good” in internet design at any given cut-off date. That stuff is a given, for my part. Anybody can verify them out and they need to, however the perfect inspiration that I get is at all times going to be from actual individuals who have actual use-scenarios for their very own tasks. How individuals use a product says much more about its effectiveness than no matter scorching new type is on the scene at any given cut-off date.
What's the neatest thing about your job?
The liberty. It’s cliché, but it surely’s truthfully very nice to have the liberty to arrange my days round my household and my life, not round my work. I’m a tough employee and I’d work 14 hour days, each day, if I didn’t have the rest happening as a result of I find it irresistible. That’s simply not the case in my life proper now. I've a one-year previous daughter to chase round the home and all types of different stuff happening. It’s very nice to have the liberty to flex with my household life moderately than stress about the way it’ll match into my work life.
My subsequent favourite factor is the patrons. Having the chance to assist small companies, internet designers, and all types of other people understand their on-line presence with out having to spend a ton of cash is superior. It was once that for individuals to have an internet site, they needed to both know somebody, or spend upwards of $10,000 to get a decently designed web site. These days, all it actually takes is a little bit of time and $45. That’s superior. Seeing individuals pop up enterprise web sites in a day and begin a enterprise that they're passionate concerning the subsequent day is unbelievable! Being a part of that course of is absolutely rewarding.
In the event you might select any house on the earth and create a design for it, the place would it not be and what would you make?
Wired Journal, fingers down. It’s not an area, but it surely’s my favourite journal on the earth and I’d be extremely stoked to have the ability to design a selection or fifty for them.
I gave up print design means again firstly of my profession as a result of I knew that internet design would have higher job safety, however ever since then I’ve at all times had a secret longing to do print design, particularly journal design.
Now that the majority magazines launch each print and “digital” variations, it looks as if it’s solely a matter of time earlier than I discover myself investing time into creating stuff for that house once more.
How do you retain motivated and impressed?
That is the query the place I reply with some flowery, artsy quote about wanting on the world round me and discovering inspiration. That’s not it for me. It’s positively the cash that retains me producing an increasing number of cool stuff. I do know that the marketplace for these merchandise will both be over-saturated or changed by one other platform in a matter of some years, so I’m motivated to maintain on making cool stuff whereas the iron is scorching. There. I stated it. Cash is a superb motivator!
I can get a bit deeper after all. I believe individuals wish to purchase cool stuff, however greater than that, they wish to purchase cool, “usable” stuff. I’m at all times going to be motivated to provide new designs—that’s the place my coronary heart is at as a designer. That’s a given. However my actual ardour recently is in simplifying my themes in order that they're simpler for patrons to make use of. What’s the use in a stunning web site design if it’s a ache within the butt to truly use the factor?
The entire level of those web-templates is to assist different designers out, to avoid wasting enterprise homeowners time, to create a system the place web sites are straightforward to publish. So even when cash weren’t an element, that’s the place my inspiration would come from. Serving to individuals create stunning web sites, simpler; making excellent design accessible to extra individuals.
What's the hardest a part of your job?
Buyer help yo! It’s additionally the perfect a part of my job as a result of it helps me to actually perceive the pain-points that customers have, which after all offers me a straightforward set of pointers for making themes higher with updates. That stated, answering 50+ questions a day can get tough on the times the place you simply wish to take a break day and experience your bike or spend time with your loved ones. Hiring my youthful brother to assist out on the help discussion board has been large although, so these days even buyer help isn’t an insanely tough activity as a result of it’s break up between two individuals.
I'll make this level although: Buyer help is the one most essential a part of my enterprise. I actually don’t like to think about what I promote as simply themes or templates. What I promote is the flexibility to construct an ideal web site within the simplest way attainable. That normally requires a little bit of assist although, so buyer help has turn out to be an enormous a part of how I consider my merchandise.
Serving to clients informs how I construct my subsequent merchandise, and in flip, it makes them higher. I do know that the coverage at ThemeForest is that creator help isn’t required, however for my part, you’d be a idiot to disregard it outright.
Is there the rest you wish to say?
Not likely. I’ll give a shout out to my canine, Ender. You’re the good canine on the planet! Let’s go hike this afternoon!
