Case Study: Stephanie Kerwin

How did you find out about WP Rockstar?

So I found out about WP Rockstar through TikTok. It was probably back in February when Julia started blowing up my page, and I had already been shopping around for the right program for me. And after I watched her videos, I was like, Oh, this is it. I am done shopping.

What was your life like before you joined WP Rockstar?

I was feeling pretty hopeless and helpless and probably depressed just because when COVID happened, it just changed the way that we do our jobs. And I found myself working upwards of 90 to 100 hours a week and it never went back to how it was before COVID. So I feel like I've just been robbed of a personal life for the past three years, and I just was feeling like I had no control over the quality of my own life. So I feel like, you know, I took control, like I'm changing things. Everything's going to be okay.  So I'm just hoping, you know, like, I need to do something so that I can be in charge of the hours that I work. Right. If I want to stop work at 2 in the afternoon, then, you know, because I found myself. I was working from the second I woke up, until the second I went to bed at night and I'm like, This is not okay. So yeah, I want that freedom.

What actions did you take as a result of taking the course and being part of the Rockstar Community?

I named my business. I designed my logo all by myself. I got an EIN number and opened up my business bank account and I built my website for the Phase 1 project and took my website live. It’s been great!

Did you have any experience as a freelancer or building websites prior to joining WP Rockstar?

Absolutely none.

Have you ever had any contact with coding before the course or did you feel intimidated by it?

Have I ever had any contact with coding or did I feel intimidated by it? No, I never had any experience with coding and I felt super intimidated by it. But once I started, like the five day coding challenge, I was like, Oh, I can totally do this.  And then I was like, Oh my God, if I do this, if I type this in, then it does this. Like, this is so cool.

How long did it take you to earn back your enrollment investment?

So I bought the course, I would say, in March, March of this year. But I didn't really start it until June. And then in September I got my first client and made my money back. So it was three months.

Can you talk a little bit more about how you made your first thousand dollars and if it was one project or more, and how did you find your first client?

Once my website went live, I posted to my personal Facebook page and just said, if anybody needs a website, just feel free to refer them to me. And one of my Facebook friends who is a digital marketer reached out to me and said that one of her clients who had a really old, outdated, hand coded website was ready to update that.  She put me in touch with him and we met a couple of times. He's close to my area and he signed a contract and paid me.

How much time on average did you put into the course?

I think probably like 4 to 6 hours a week, give or take, you know, an hour or two, depending on what was going on during the week.

Did you feel supported when going through WP Rockstar and being part of the community?

OMG yes, like an amazing support. So we have the Facebook group where I probably annoyed everybody by posting questions all the time, but like so many people were so happy to respond and help me out. I joined the coaching program and like that has been huge. So we have the Slack channel for that. So I post in the Slack channel and again, like people respond. Like Shannon Payne, Shannon Wynn, even Julia's responded, like Julia herself has responded to me.  So it's just been really nice in like the different coaches that come on each month, like the guy Tim, the SEO guy. I followed all of his SEO tips to the letter and on my website, I show up like on page one of Google, like right at the top. So I'm like - This is amazing.  They are all amazing! Tim, Pamela, Helen, Julia, Shannon and Shannon. Everyone.

What are your future plans?

Oh my God. To do this full time. So I started doing a digital marketing course too, so that I can combine the two and add those services along with website design because I feel like they complement each other really well.

What stood out to you about GeekPack and WP Rockstar?

From the start, like from watching Julia's on TikTok videos, like when I first found out about in the program, her energy like it's just so positive and her vibe and she really like sends across the message that she really wants to help people learn how to code, learn how to build websites, learn how to start their business. And she really uses like, you know what, what's worked for her, what didn't work for her to sort of help us. And it's just she's really like a good person. Like she's so giving and generous with her knowledge. And I really like that.

What would you say to someone who's on the fence about joining WP Rockstar?

Don't even hesitate. Just do it. You will not regret it. It's really the best thing I've ever done. One of the best things.

How’s WP Rockstar Coaching Program helped you?

I think it's just like it was more like accountability for me. Okay, I've invested in this other part of the program and it's going to keep me on track, right? So instead of getting distracted, like, oh, you know, I'm going to take a couple of weeks off, I'll get back to it. I didn't want that to happen to me because I wanted to get through the program as quickly as possible.  So just joining the coaching program and having different things every week. So like the coaching, the coaching calls, the tech hour, all that stuff really helped keep me on track and where I wanted to go and, you know, all the things I said, like Tim, the SEO, stuff like that was gold. And then like the mindset in the Pamela Like it's just I can't even speak highly enough about all of those people and how much they've helped me. I signed up for another six months too!