Going Independent - making it as a freelance web professional

GOING INDEPENDENT A Developer’s Guide to Making it Solo

INTRODUCTIONS Michael Kimsal Web since 1995, PHP since 1996, ASP, Java, etc Solo developer since 2007 (2nd time around) Podcaster, publisher, author, blogger, developer

CONFUSED ABOUT GETTING STARTED?

IT CAN BE SCARY! Not sure where to begin? Too stressful? Not enough savings? Too many things to do?

RELAX!

WHY ARE YOU GOING INDEPENDENT? Extra part time income? Be your own boss? Enjoy new things? Freedom / ﬂexibility? Recently laid off? Bootstrapping other idea?

TIME FRAME? Already independent? Near future? (<6 months)

TODAY’S TOPICS Getting set up Finding work Doing the work Getting paid

GETTING SET UP • Organization / structure type • Legal / ﬁnancial issues • Contracts • What are you selling? • Work environment • Hardware, software, tools

TYPES OF STRUCTURE • LLC •C Corp •S Corp • Sole proprietor • Other?

FIND A GOOD LAWYER

FIND A GOOD ACCOUNTANT

WHAT TYPE OF WORK? • Services • Hourly or ﬁxed price? • Products • Software As A Service • Desktop Applications

CONTRACTS Using your own vs Using the client’s

CONTRACTS Have clear deﬁnitions of work to be done and how to determine when you’re “done”

CONTRACTS Consider accepting or offering changes

TOOLS getting the job done

HARDWARE Laptop Multiple monitors Printers Fax? Extra batteries Cables / adapters Carrier bag

SOFTWARE BASICS Invoicing Time tracking Screen sharing Ticketing / issue system

DEVELOPER SOFTWARE Are you still using Notepad? :)

DEVELOPER SOFTWARE IDEs Debuggers Version control

DESIGNER SOFTWARE Adobe still rules Photoshop Dreamweaver GIMP still works for some :)

SMARTPHONE? Time tracking Invoicing Presentations Voice calls!

FINDING CLIENTS

NETWORKIN’ Local events Regional events Chamber of Commerce User groups

JOB BOARDS Monster / HotJobs Craigslist Authentic Jobs Indeed.com SimplyHired.com

WORK SITES ODesk Elance Guru.com

BEING FINDABLE

MAIN SITE Proﬁle site - main hub Contact information Link to portfolio, resume, blog

PORTFOLIO Designed sites, samples Code samples or links to projects

SOCIAL MEDIA LinkedIn Facebook Twitter StackOverﬂow etc

GETTING PAID What we’re all doing this for :)

RATES Will vary by region Don’t forget taxes! Keep competitive

RATES US Example Original rate $50/hour -15.3% SE Tax $42.35 -20% Income Tax $33.88 1200 billable hrs $40,656

INVOICING Terms

INVOICE LIKE CLOCKWORK! Weekly? Bi weekly? Never get too far behind

MAKING IT EASY TO PAY PayPal, Google Checkout, paper checks

COLLECTIONS! Arbitration, small claims court Should you hire a collections ﬁrm?

REPEAT! Keeping the cycle going

MULTIPLE STREAMS OF INCOME Multiple clients Multiple projects Recurring revenue (hosting, content sites?)

BUILD A SUPPORT NETWORK Find like-minded people to support you

QUESTIONS?

THANK YOU Michael Kimsal @mgkimsal michaelkimsal.com 919.827.4724

Going Independent - making it as a freelance web professional

by Michael Kimsal

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