Today Has Power Interview With Justin And Chaunna From SiteFling

Usually when talking about internet marketers a few things come to mind. Some of those things aren’t so good. That is why I wanted to interview this husband and wife dynamic duo. I believe they get it right. Their site is SiteFling.com.

Hey Justin and Chaunna, thanks so much for taking this time to share a piece of your story with Today Has Power.

Rob: It hasn’t always been ‘picture perfect’ according to Justin’s bio. Can you tell us a little about your backgrounds and what might have been a turning point?

Justin: I’ve always been selling stuff from as far back as middle school when I sold candy and juice boxes out of my backpack. And my grandfather taught me how to build a website when I was 14, which was back in 1996-97. Had I not had these experiences in my early years I don’t think I would have gone the direction I did, which was to own my own business, specifically an Internet business.

Chaunna: I started working from home with Justin after “the turning point”  ..while he was spending days researching and testing and trying to make this online thing work I was finishing up my bachelors in Elementary ed. Then a couple years later, Justin would drive me to work every morning and tell me “he made my paycheck while we were sleeping.” Once that was a regular occurrence I stopped teaching and came home to help him with our growing business.

Rob: Many folks (not our readers!) get caught up in the get rich quick products out there. Can you tell us how long your ‘overnight success’ took?

“…I’m still trying to reach “success”…”

Justin: Hmm… In my eyes I’m still trying to reach “success” so I’d say it’s been over 5-6 years now. I started out in late 2005 and made zero dollars for the first 5 months. Then I made $30/month (one recurring sale per month) as an affiliate for several months. Then I learned how to increase that one sale into 10 sales and was making $300/month for quite awhile. Then one day after a lot of studying and a lot of failures I tried something new and had my first $1,000/day.This was a short report I sold for $11 about how Squidoo was better than EzineArticles and it was the first time people were hearing about Squidoo, especially about using it for article marketing.

“…when I thought he was just wasting all his time…”

Chaunna: Like, justin said… we struggled through 5 LOOOONNNNGGGG months of nothing. I wanted to be the supportive wife that let him follow his dreams, but we were almost to the point where I was going to ask him to get a “real job” when he started making random sales… then consistent sales. It worked out in the end, but I can still remember the days when I thought he was just wasting all his time during the day.

Rob: Again, most people look at the success of a person and don’t consider the work put in. Tell us about the times you almost quit this altogether and what kept you going?

Justin: I don’t think that feeling ever really goes away. I still have bad days where I just want to delete everything. There will always be good times and hard times, life is not perfection. Humans make mistakes. However, whenever I start getting too many projects going on or losing focus on the main goal is usually when those hard days become more frequent. When I am focused on one thing, one website, one project… That’s when life is good and the money flows easy.

Chaunna: There are still times when we consider how having a “normal” job might be better. And at the beginning of every school year, I miss meeting my new class, and setting up the classroom. BUT then I remember the very long hours that teachers have, and the daily struggles between home and work and realize that what we have is MUCH better. If we have a down day, we try to turn it around the following day by demolishing our todo lists – when we work as a team we can do anything!

Rob: I’ve been a fan and follower because of the matter-of-fact and honest approach you both have. Not all marketers are considered matter-of-fact or honest. What principles guide you?

“…because I never want to forget that lesson…”

Justin: My family is watching me, literally. I have sisters, cousins, uncles, brothers, and even one of my dad’s who routinely check out some of the stuff I do. They are interested in the business and because I’m family they check things out from time to time. But it’s not just that someone is watching me that keeps me on the clean side. I was young and dumb in my past, even went to jail for a night because of stealing a car. That mistake haunted me for years after when I would try and get a job or apply for an apartment. I saw very clearly how doing the wrong thing even just once can haunt you for the rest of your life. I have never expunged my record even though I was awarded that ability in court, because I never want to forget that lesson.

“…treat others how you want them to treat you…”

Chaunna: I try every day to teach my son that you should treat others how you want them to treat you. I can not stand when I get poor service or sub-par products from a business. I don’t think I could live the great life we live if we didn’t follow that principle with our business as well. I wouldn’t put out a less than stellar product just to make some extra money because I wouldn’t want someone doing that to me.

Rob: Finally, my wife (and daughter)(and even 6 year old son) and I work together. Tell us a little about Justin and Chaunna, the married parents, working together. How do you stay sane?

Justin: Our backs face each other so we don’t have to look at one another! hahaha just kidding. The truth is it takes a lot of communication and compromise. Sometimes hard things have to be said and sticky discussions are made. Sometimes she doesn’t like my ideas, sometimes I don’t like hers. We try to find a meeting ground and sometimes we know we just have to let the other person win this time and next time will be our turn for the win. Communicate often!

Chaunna: Justin said it well – communication and compromise. It can have it’s tough days, but you HAVE TO, HAVE TO, HAVE TO talk through whatever is holding you up. If you hold on to the smallest grudge or pet peeve without telling the partner that is with you 24/7 it escalates into an argument that could demolish your business.
When someone wants to make a change, talk through all possible outcomes. If you feel there is a better option or you think the direction your heading isn’t going to be a profitable one – you have to voice your concerns.
Also, divvy up the roles… as much as you want to do everything – giving the others a specific role with help everyone master their role and make a cohesive engine. Justin and I overlap just a little when it comes to the business, but for the most part we both have individual jobs inside managing our different websites, which helps us not step on each others toes.

Rob: Thanks so much for taking the time out of your busy schedule to touch base with our readers.

Justin: You’re welcome, and if anyone ever has any questions or needs any help they can come hang out with us on our facebook fan page and we’ll be glad to help.

Chaunna: You’re welcome! We’re always here to connect and help people reach their goals. Please contact us on our fan page with any of your questions.

Live it LOUD!