How should I set up my website and social media accounts when testing a new business without a single ICP?
You can create different landing pages for each offer and direct traffic there. You could also set up multiple main pathways—for example, a track business, a physiotherapy service, or whatever—so visitors choose their path when they land. Honestly, it's not that important; you won't use your website for the bulk of your business. Your website is mainly a sanity check to confirm you're not a serial killer or scammer, since websites do cost a little money. So that's how I'd approach it.
It’s not strictly necessary at the start, but it can be helpful. Some people will click your cold‑email link and want a site, so having a simple page adds credibility, lets you showcase social proof, and gives you something to share on calls. I usually wait until around day 12 of the program before building a site, and I keep the initial effort to about an hour or two, focusing first on lead generation.
My blueprint starts with reaching out to prospects with a basic HTML template, then using AI to customize it based on information scraped from their website, Facebook, or Instagram profiles. I deliver the customized website upfront at no cost, with no maintenance or ongoing fees, to provide immediate value and demonstrate capability. If they want further work or future web‑dev help, I’m happy to discuss payment. On the back end, I use any capable AI model (GPT‑4, Gemini, Claude, etc.) to merge the template with the scraped data and produce a ready‑to‑go website that I can transfer for free. The key is front‑loading leads by giving away a high‑value, no‑cost website to build trust and open the door for paid engagements.
It's a common problem for beginners to spend too much time thinking about the business model instead of actually doing it. You're likely stuck in your head wondering what niche to pick, how to reach people, and which platforms to use. Rather than overthinking, you should test an idea in the market. Pick three things: choose an outreach minimum per day on platforms you have experience with—like DMs on Instagram, X, LinkedIn, communities, Reddit—and run it for a month without changing anything. After 30 days, if you do about 10 pieces of outreach per platform, you'll have contacted nearly 1,000 people, giving you real data to inform your next step. For example, you might find that your web development offer converts at 2.9% while your cyber offer doesn't perform as well, letting you focus on what works. This approach turns you into a scientist of your own life, gradually carving out the solution space and increasing your chances of success.
Well, you guys don’t have any revenue or clients, so you’re really just working on a project. Your first priority should be solving the no‑clients, no‑revenue problem. Don’t waste time building out a product or website—just get something sold. I’d have you and your friends create profiles on Upwork, Freelancer.com, and Fiverr. Each day, pool your school money or whatever you can and submit ten Upwork applications. In those applications, tell prospects exactly what you can do (X, Y, Z) and how you’d approach their project, showing rather than just telling your experience. This avoids the inevitable ‘show me your portfolio’ question because you demonstrate your process. If you do this for three days you’ll have sent about ninety applications, and the odds of landing at least one $200 project are high. Once you have that $200 project, you now have a real business—you’ve made money online and can stop pretending. You’ll learn more from that small project than from hours of my talking. After you land a client, get them on a call and confirm the money is changing hands or there’s a monetary agreement, like escrow on a platform. If I built you a solution that automated all of this outreach and follow‑up, it would definitely save you time and money—that’s the vibe I’m advising. So give it a try.