The document is a guide for freelancers by Jonathan Bossenger, emphasizing the importance of proper client management and setting realistic expectations. Bossenger shares his personal experiences, including his transition from agency work to freelancing, and outlines three keys to success: money, quality, and customer service. He highlights the need for proper pricing strategies and effective communication to ensure successful freelance relationships.

1. DON’T PANIC !
A developer's guide to
freelancing
@jon_bossenger https://jonathanbossenger.com

2. A little background.
● Open source developer of 15 years
● Husband and father of two
● Business co-owner and freelance developer
● WordPress community deputy/meetup organiser/WordCamp
organiser
● https://jonathanbossenger.com/

3. Why I hate the word ‘freelancer’.
● Poor deliverables
● Incomplete projects
● Unreliable
● Unresponsive
● ‘Take the money and run’ attitude

4. The blame game.
The angry client...

5. There are no such things as
bad clients, only bad freelancers, who
don’t manage their clients’ specific
expectations!

6. A timeline of “bad clients”.
● Left agency work at the end of 2015
● By July 2016 I was burnt out and ready to give up
● https://jonathanbossenger.com/remembering-why/
● In September 2016 I joined Codeable
● Doubled my earning potential since 2015

7. The clients were not the problem, I was
the problem!

8. The three keys to success I learned from
Codeable.
1. Money
2. Quality
3. Customer Service

9. Let’s talk about money.

10. Getting paid.
● The #1 reason freelancers burn themselves out, is because
they don’t charge enough “Jonathan Bossenger - 2018”
● Calculating your billable rate?
● https://jonathanbossenger.com/rates
(Nathan Jeffery, @nuclearpengy)

11. Hourly rate vs charging by value!
1. How much work is it really?
2. How complex is the problem you are solving for the client?
3. How urgent is this to the client?
4. Codeable estimates are calculated “based on the total
scope to be completed, complexity, and urgency”.
5. PERT - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Three-point_estimation

12. Commitment to Quality
‘Why won’t this !@#$ing thing work’
‘Argh, I !@#$ing hate PHP’
‘Ok, now this %!@# should work’

13. Fail to plan
● Find your niche
● Project scope
● Estimates (the Pi factor)
● Sweat the small stuff
● Test
● Measure

14. The customer is king

15. A commitment to customer service
1. Build a rapport.
2. Learn when to say no!
3. Communication is oxygen.

16. The three one keys to success I learned
from Codeable.
1. Customer service = Time
2. Quality = Time
3. Time === Money

17. When you charge according to the
project, not according to your “skills”,
everyone wins!

18. Questions?

19. Thank you!
@jon_bossenger
https://jonathanbossenger.com