Password Protection CRM / Prospecting Outreach Tools Audit Tools Contracts & Invoicing Hosting Social Media Automation WordPress Stack

Protecting pbsplaybook.keganball.com

Yes — you can password-protect an entire subdomain using HestiaCP's built-in HTTP Basic Authentication. Here's exactly how:

Step 1 — Create the subdomain in HestiaCP
  1. Log into HestiaCP at your server IP (as user fcprngoel)
  2. Go to Web tab → click Add Web Domain
  3. Enter pbsplaybook.keganball.com as the domain
  4. Enable SSL (Let's Encrypt) — check the box
  5. Click Save
  6. Upload all manual HTML files to: /home/fcprngoel/web/pbsplaybook.keganball.com/public_html/
Step 2 — Enable HTTP Basic Auth password protection

HestiaCP doesn't have a GUI button for this, but it takes 2 minutes via SSH:

  1. Connect via SSH: ssh fcprngoel@5.78.182.164
  2. Create a password file (replace kegan with your preferred username):
    htpasswd -c /home/fcprngoel/conf/web/pbsplaybook.keganball.com/.htpasswd kegan
    Enter and confirm a strong password when prompted.
  3. Create or edit the .htaccess file in the public_html folder:
    nano /home/fcprngoel/web/pbsplaybook.keganball.com/public_html/.htaccess
  4. Paste this content:
    AuthType Basic
    AuthName "PBS Operations Manual"
    AuthUserFile /home/fcprngoel/conf/web/pbsplaybook.keganball.com/.htpasswd
    Require valid-user
  5. Save and exit (Ctrl+X, Y, Enter)
Result: Anyone visiting the subdomain will see a browser login dialog. Only you can get in. Works on all pages of the subdomain automatically.
Step 3 — Add DNS for the subdomain
  1. In HestiaCP, go to DNS tab → find keganball.com
  2. Click RecordsAdd Record
  3. Type: A, Name: pbsplaybook, Value: 5.78.182.164
  4. Save. DNS propagates in 5-30 minutes.

CRM & Lead Management

Chosen tool: GoHighLevel — All-in-one CRM, email sequences, SMS, voicemail drops, pipelines, review automation, and landing pages. Starting here instead of migrating later is the right call. Everything below covers GHL setup.

GoHighLevel ✅ (Start here)

$97/mo Starter · $297/mo Agency

Replaces: Prospect Rocket, Slybroadcast, SimpleTexting, and most of a standalone review platform. One login handles all outreach channels, all sequences, all pipelines. Scales to any volume.

gohighlevel.com

GoHighLevel Initial Setup — Step by Step

Account creation and basic configuration
  1. Sign up at gohighlevel.com → choose Starter plan ($97/mo) to begin
  2. Create your first Sub-Account for Post & Beam Studios (GHL uses sub-accounts to separate businesses)
  3. Go to Settings → Business Profile → fill in PBS business name, address, phone, website, email
  4. Settings → Email Services → connect your sending domain (postandbeamstudios.com) — GHL walks you through adding DNS records. This replaces Brevo for marketing email.
  5. Settings → Phone Numbers → buy a local Michigan number ($1.15/mo) — this is your SMS and voicemail drop number
  6. Settings → Integrations → connect your Google account (for Google Reviews automation)
  7. Settings → Calendars → create a booking calendar for free consultations (embed on your website)
Build your pipeline stages

Go to Opportunities → Pipelines → Add Pipeline → name it "PBS Prospects" → add these stages:

StageWhat it means
New LeadJust scraped or just reached out to
ContactedFirst outreach sent
Audit SentHealth report delivered
Proposal OutQuote/proposal sent via 17hats
WonContract signed, deposit collected
Not Right NowInterested but timing is wrong — triggers nurture sequence
Not InterestedDead lead — archive after 90 days
Build your automation sequences

Go to Automation → Workflows → Add Workflow. Build these four:

Workflow NameTriggerSteps
Cold Outreach SequenceTag added: "Cold Lead"Day 1: Email (initial outreach), Day 6: Email (follow-up 1), Day 14: Email (final touch)
Not Right Now NurtureStage moved to "Not Right Now"Day 30: Email, Day 45: Email (success story), Day 60: SMS, Day 90: Email (final)
Post-Delivery Client NurtureTag added: "Project Complete"Day 7: Email (check-in), Day 30: Email (SEO update), Day 90: Email (upsell)
Review RequestTag added: "Request Review"Immediate: Email, Day 3: SMS, Day 7: Final email
All email content for these workflows is in the Prospecting and Follow-Up sections of this manual. Copy the scripts directly into GHL's email editor.

GHL vs. Brevo — What Each Handles Now

TaskToolWhy
Cold outreach email sequencesGoHighLevelTied to CRM pipeline, triggers automatically
SMS outreach and follow-upGoHighLevelBuilt-in SMS with your local number
Voicemail dropsGoHighLevelBuilt-in — no Slybroadcast needed
Review request automationGoHighLevelBuilt-in review request workflows
Contact form confirmations (transactional)Brevo SMTP relayServer-level mail from Nextcloud and WordPress forms — keep active
Client project emails (one-to-one)Nextcloud Mail via Brevo relayPersonal, direct — not campaign email

Lead Tracking Spreadsheet (minimal, free option)

If you want a simple backup or starting point, use Google Sheets with these columns:

ColumnContents
Business NameSmith Plumbing LLC
Owner NameJohn Smith
Phone(989) 555-1234
Emailjohn@smithplumbing.com
Websitesmithplumbing.com
Problems FoundNo mobile, slow (28 score), no SSL
StageContacted / Audit Sent / Proposal / Closed / Not Now
Date First Contact5/15/2026
Last ActionSent audit report
Next Follow-Up5/19/2026
NotesInterested, wants to think about it

Outreach Tools

GoHighLevel handles all outreach channels. Email sequences, SMS, and voicemail drops are all built into GHL — you don't need Slybroadcast, SimpleTexting, or Prospect Rocket. The only separate outreach tool is Brevo's SMTP relay, which stays active for transactional (non-campaign) email from your server.

Email Sending — Domain vs. Gmail?

Use kegan@postandbeamstudios.com for all outreach. GHL sends on behalf of your domain after you verify it in GHL Settings → Email Services. Domain reputation warm-up guidelines:

  1. First 2 weeks: under 20 outreach emails/day
  2. Weeks 3-4: ramp to 40-50/day
  3. After 4 weeks: up to 100+/day safely
  4. Check your spam score anytime at mail-tester.com before a bulk send

GoHighLevel ✅ (All outreach)

Included in $97/mo plan

Email sequences, SMS, ringless voicemail drops, call tracking — all in one dashboard. Replaces Slybroadcast, SimpleTexting, and Prospect Rocket.

gohighlevel.com

Brevo SMTP Relay ✅ (Keep active)

Free tier (300 emails/day)

Stays active for server-level transactional email: contact form confirmations, Nextcloud Mail, WordPress form notifications. Not used for campaigns.

brevo.com

Setting up voicemail drops in GoHighLevel

  1. GHL → Marketing → Voicemail Drops
  2. Record or upload your voicemail audio (45-60 seconds)
  3. Create a workflow trigger: when a contact enters a stage, send voicemail drop
  4. GHL deposits the voicemail directly to the recipient's voicemail without ringing
  5. Cost: included in GHL plan (LC Phone charges apply — approx. $0.015/drop)

Audit Tools

Chosen audit stack — build toward this: Free tools now → add Screaming Frog first → add BrightLocal → add Agency Analytics. Full details, checklists, and report generation process are in the Audits section.

Free tools (start here, use always)

PageSpeed Insights ✅

Free

Mobile and desktop performance scores. Run for every prospect before outreach. Screenshot = your most compelling audit evidence.

pagespeed.web.dev

Google Mobile-Friendly Test ✅

Free

Pass/fail mobile test with specific issues listed. Add to every audit report.

search.google.com/test/mobile-friendly

Check My Links (Chrome ext.) ✅

Free

Highlights all broken links on a page instantly. Takes 10 seconds per site — always run this.

Chrome Web Store

Ahrefs Webmaster Tools ✅

Free (for sites you verify)

Free backlink data, keyword rankings, site audit for verified sites. Verify each client site to unlock free ongoing data.

ahrefs.com/webmaster-tools

First paid add (when you have 2+ active clients)

Screaming Frog SEO Spider ✅ (Add first)

Free (500 URLs) / £219/yr (~$280)

Crawls any site in minutes — finds broken links, missing meta, redirect chains, duplicate content, image issues. Pays for itself by making website audits 10x faster. Buy the license when you close your 2nd client.

screamingfrog.co.uk

BrightLocal ✅ (Add when active with GBP work)

$39+/mo

GBP audits, local ranking reports, citation analysis, review monitoring — all white-labeled for client reports. One GBP Optimization sale ($300) covers months of subscription. Add when you start selling GBP services regularly.

brightlocal.com

Mature stack (when managing 5+ active clients)

Agency Analytics ✅ (Add at scale)

$12/mo per client campaign

Live dashboards combining Google Analytics, Search Console, GBP, social media, and rankings — all white-labeled with your branding. Send clients a live link instead of a monthly PDF. Becomes a major retention tool.

agencyanalytics.com

Contracts, Signatures & Invoicing

Chosen tool: 17hats. You know it, it does exactly what you need (Quote → client approves → contract auto-generated → invoice → online payment — all in one link), and you're past the learning curve. Restart the account. Full setup details are in the Contracts page.

17hats ✅ (Chosen tool)

$45-$60/mo

Quotes with pre-built service packages as line items, digital e-signature contracts, invoices, and automated follow-up. Client approves quote → signs → pays in one link. Works on tablet for in-person signing at Lowe's.

17hats.com

Hosting Tools

See the Hosting section for the full decision process. Quick reference below.

Hetzner ✅ (Your server)

~$15-20/mo total

Your CPX31 runs multiple client sites via HestiaCP. Best long-term value. Add clients for nearly free.

hetzner.com

SiteGround Reseller

$13.99+/mo per client or reseller plans

If clients want their own cPanel. Good for client accountability. You can white-label reseller plans.

siteground.com/reseller

Cloudflare (Free CDN + DNS)

Free

Add all client domains to Cloudflare for free CDN, SSL, and DDoS protection. Takes 5 minutes per client.

cloudflare.com

Social Media Management Tools

Chosen stack: Buffer + Canva Pro. Buffer for scheduling (start with free tier for 1-2 clients, $6/mo per channel as you grow), Canva Pro for all graphics with per-client brand kits. Meta Business Suite as a free fallback for direct scheduling when needed.

Buffer ✅ (Chosen scheduler)

Free (3 channels) / $6/mo per channel

Schedule posts to Facebook + Instagram. Multi-client dashboard. Queue-based bulk loading — load a month of posts in 20 minutes. Clean analytics included. Upgrade per channel as you add clients.

buffer.com

Canva Pro ✅ (Chosen graphics tool)

$13/mo

Brand Kit per client stores their logo, colors, and fonts. Build post templates once, duplicate and update text each month. 1080x1080 square format. Essential — don't skip this.

canva.com

Meta Business Suite (backup/free)

Free

Direct Facebook + Instagram scheduling at no cost. Use for 1-2 clients before Buffer paid tier. Less efficient for bulk scheduling but works well for small volume.

business.facebook.com

Automation Tools

n8n ✅ (Self-hosted)

Free (self-hosted on your server)

Visual workflow automation. Already running on your Hetzner server. Connect everything: new lead → audit trigger → email → CRM update.

n8n.io

Zapier

Free (5 zaps) / $20+/mo

Cloud-based automation. Easier to set up than n8n, more app integrations. Good for specific triggers where n8n is overkill.

zapier.com

Make (Integromat)

Free (1,000 ops/mo) / $9+/mo

More powerful than Zapier, cheaper. Good middle ground between n8n complexity and Zapier simplicity.

make.com

Outscraper

Pay-as-you-go ~$3/1000 leads

Scrape Google Maps listings at scale. Export business name, phone, website, address, review count, rating.

outscraper.com

WordPress Theme & Plugin Stack

Recommended setup: Kadence Theme (free) + Kadence Blocks, or GeneratePress (lightweight, fast). Avoid page builders like Divi or Elementor for client sites — they're slow and create vendor lock-in.

Theme

Kadence Theme ⭐ (Recommended)

Free / $149/yr Pro

Extremely fast, full-site editing compatible, great starter templates for trades businesses. Free version handles 90% of what you need.

kadencewp.com

GeneratePress

Free / $59/yr

Minimalist, fastest theme on the market. Better for hand-coded custom builds. No drag-and-drop templates.

generatepress.com

Astra

Free / $49+/yr

Popular, many pre-built templates for service businesses. Good choice if clients want a quick visual.

wpastra.com

Essential Plugins (every client site)

PluginPurposeCost
Yoast SEO or Rank MathOn-page SEO, sitemaps, meta tagsFree
WP Super Cache or WP RocketPage caching, speedFree / $59/yr
EWWW Image OptimizerCompress images automaticallyFree
Contact Form 7 or WPForms LiteContact formsFree
Wordfence SecurityFirewall, malware scanningFree / $119/yr
UpdraftPlusAutomated backups to Google Drive/DropboxFree
Really Simple SSLForce HTTPS, fix mixed contentFree
Broken Link CheckerMonitor for broken linksFree
Google Site KitConnect GA4, Search Console, PageSpeedFree
Insert Headers and FootersAdd tracking scripts without editing themeFree