Post Status Cache Up With Kyle Van Deusen

In this podcast episode, host Michelle Frechette interviews Kyle Van Deusen, who runs a small web agency in Richmond, Virginia, and founded "The Admin Bar," a community for freelancers and agency owners. They discuss the 2025 WordPress Professional Survey, which Kyle conducted to gather insights from web professionals. The survey, which received 1,233 responses, highlights the experiences and challenges faced by freelancers and agency owners. Top Takeaways Many Agency Owners Lack Business Fundamentals: A lot of agency owners start by accident, not with a business plan. As a result, many undercharge and lack confidence in setting prices. Kyle pointed out that few are reaching their income goals—not due to market limits, but because they don’t know what’s possible. This shows a big need for basic business education around pricing, value, and financial planning. Marketing and Networking Are Largely Overlooked: Nearly 60% of respondents aren’t doing in-person networking, and many aren’t investing in marketing. Too many rely on being found organically, which isn’t enough anymore. Kyle and Michelle highlighted that growth requires showing up, building relationships, and actively promoting your services. Community Helps Build Confidence and Clarity: Talking with peers can shift your mindset and pricing strategy. Kyle shared how learning what others charged helped him raise his rates confidently. Community support helps agency owners avoid mistakes, learn faster, and feel less alone in their journey. The Survey Is a Valuable, Underused Resource: Kyle stressed that the real power of the survey lies in how people use it. By digging into the data, agency owners can find paths others have taken to success. The more participation it gets, the more valuable and representative it becomes for the whole community. Mentioned in the Show: https://theadminbar.com/2025-survey/ https://theadminbar.com/ https://www.facebook.com/groups/2147806538801573 🙏 Sponsor: A2Hosting A2 Hosting offers solutions for WordPress and WooCommerce that are both blazing fast and ultra-reliable. WordPress can be used on ANY Web Hosting plan from A2. You can deploy WordPress easily on Shared, VPS, or Dedicated Hosting plans. A2 also offers Managed WordPress and WooCommerce Hosting. Take a look at a2hosting.com today! 🐦 You can follow Post Status and our guests on socials: Kyle Van Deusen (Founder, The Admin Bar) Michelle Frechette (Director of Community Relations, Post Status) Olivia Bisset (Intern, Post Status) The Post Status podcast is geared toward WordPress professionals, with interviews, news, and deep analysis. 📝 Browse our archives, and don’t forget to subscribe via iTunes, Google Podcasts, YouTube, Stitcher, Simplecast, or RSS. 🎧