Building a Website? Turns Out I Was Building My Business the Hard Way

A founder’s honest story of false starts, costly mistakes, and finally partnering to build a high-converting website that truly works.

Prologue: The Day I Googled “Cheap Website Designers”

It all started on a quiet morning at my kitchen bench—laptop open, coffee brewing, and big dreams ahead.

I’d finally nailed down my business name, secured the domain, and even designed a logo I was proud of.

Now, all I needed was a website.
Nothing fancy—just something professional-looking, something that would show people I was legit.

A few clicks later, I found a promising freelancer platform. There it was:

“$350 AUD for a complete website in 10 days.”

Done and dusted, right?

Not quite.

Chapter One: The Shortcut That Took Me Nowhere (And Took Months)

The freelancer seemed great at first—polite, responsive, and confident he could deliver quickly.

He promised the website would be live in 10 days.

But 10 days stretched to 30. Then 45. Then nearly three months of delays, broken fixes, and vague updates.

I’d send feedback late at night, only to get slow or confusing replies days later.

By the time the site finally went live, I wasn’t excited—I was burnt out.

The site had the basics:

• Homepage

• About

• Services

• Contact page

• A couple of stock images

But it felt hollow, like a brochure with no story.

Still, it was live.

I shared it. Posted it on social. And launched some ads.

Chapter Two: The Invisible Problem That Burned Through My Budget

I told myself maybe I just needed more traffic.

So I invested more money:

• $1,200 on Google Ads

• $600 on social media campaigns

• $500 on a Fiverr SEO “fix”

• A few hundred more on blog content

Nearly $3,000 AUD spent in one month.

And what did I get?
A handful of random visits.
One spam lead.
Zero real business.

That’s when I installed Hotjar.

Watching people on my site broke my heart.
They landed, scrolled aimlessly, clicked nothing, and left—within 30 seconds.

The problem wasn’t traffic—it was trust.
My website wasn’t converting because it wasn’t speaking to anyone.

Chapter Three: A Different Kind of Web Team

I started looking again.

I wasn’t looking for cheap. I was looking for clarity, purpose, and results.

That’s when I found EB Pearls.

A post on LinkedIn from another founder caught my eye:

“EB Pearls turned our website into our highest-performing sales channel.”

I booked a call, expecting another sales pitch.

Instead, I got questions.

Questions like:

• “Who is your best customer?”

• “What do they need to feel in the first 10 seconds?”

• “What’s stopping them from trusting you?”

• “If they leave your site quickly, what did they not see?”

That call flipped my whole thinking.

Chapter Four: Discovery That Felt Like Business Therapy

Our project began with a strategy sprint—not design.

We dug deep:

• Customer pain points

• Real objections

• Competitor blind spots

• The actual buying journey

They ran user interviews and shared feedback with me that was tough but needed.

One user said:

“Your homepage didn’t feel like it was made for someone like me.”

Another said:

“I wasn’t sure what made you different, so I left.”

That was my wake-up call.

I’d built a website to impress myself, not to serve my customers.

Chapter Five: Designing a Story, Not a Site

The next phase was pure magic.

Using the StoryBrand framework, EB Pearls positioned:

• The customer as hero

• Me as guide

• The website as the map

• My CTA as the clear next step

We built wireframes. Tested copy. Refined calls to action.

Every design decision was rooted in user behaviour, not opinion.

At last, the site had a voice—but it wasn’t mine.
It belonged to my customer.

Chapter Six: A Build That Was Fast, Flexible, and Future-Proof

Development was smooth and transparent.

Weekly demos kept me involved. No surprises.

They built using a headless CMS, so I could update content easily without tech headaches.

They optimised every page for:

• Speed (under 2 seconds load time)

• Mobile-first experience

• SEO with schema and metadata

• Conversion tracking from day one

Google Lighthouse scored the site 97 out of 100.

Chapter Seven: From Frustration to Flow

Here’s what changed in the first 90 days post-launch:

Leads started saying:

“Your site made it easy to understand what you do.”
“It felt like you were speaking directly to me.”
“I trusted you before even calling.”

Chapter Eight: What I Know Now (That I Wish I Knew Then)

If you’re thinking “I just need a website,” here’s the truth:

• Don’t build fast. Build right.

• Don’t chase traffic. Focus on converting traffic.

• Don’t make it about you. Make it about them.

• Don’t hire on price. Hire on process and partnership.

Your website isn’t a brochure.
It’s your best salesperson, working 24/7.

If it’s not doing that, it’s just expensive decoration.

Epilogue: The Website Was Never the Goal

I thought I was building a website.

What I really built was:

• A way to explain my value clearly

• A filter to repel tire-kickers

• A platform that sells—even when I sleep

And I couldn’t have done it alone.

EB Pearls didn’t just build my site.
They helped me rethink my entire business—from the homepage outwards.

Ready to Build the Website Your Business Deserves?

If you’re tired of guessing why your website isn’t working, let’s build it right the first time.

Book a free discovery session with EB Pearls

Take the Website Health Check — find out what’s helping and what’s hurting your site

Because your website isn’t a brochure.
It’s your most valuable sales asset.

Author Note

This story is based on real EB Pearls client journeys. Some details have been adapted for privacy, but the transformation is true—and repeatable.

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