WordPress Freelancing
Wednesday, October 30, 13
You are a business.
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A Gig A Business
TemporaryHanging Out
“Fun”Passing Time
ReliableWorking“Love”
Building
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The Perception
theoatmeal.com/comics/working_home
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Getting Legit
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Apply for a FEINirs.gov
Quick and freeDon’t give out your SSN
Use FEIN for all legal interactions
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Get a business licenseNeed to apply for city and county
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Get a separate bank accountKeep your church and state separated
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TN Sales & Use TaxRegister to prevent an audit
Filed quarterly even if no tax collected Only applies for code on servers in TN
www.tn.gov/revenue
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What’s your structure?
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Sole proprietor LLC
EasierCheaper
More liability
Harder to setupMore expensiveLess exposure
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Contracts!!Do not work without a contract in place
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Get a depositDo not work without covering your costs
Half up-front is standard
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What’s Your Work Mode?
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Contract Client-to-Client
Single projectFixed duration
More billable hoursDepth
Many projectsVariable duration
Less billable hoursBreadth
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Service-based Project-based
Steady workDifficult
scheduling“Tickets”
IrregularBetter
scheduling“Projects”
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What Should You Charge?
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Hourly Fixed-cost
Hard to estimateInterval billing
All time spent is billed
Always held to time standard
Easy to estimate Start & finish billing
Not all time is recovered
More freedom with your time
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Use your hourly rate to position yourself in the market, but quote jobs on a fixed-cost basis to keep clients
from “running up the meter”.
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To determine your rate, estimate the hours you’ll work in a week (~25 hours
billable) x 50 weeks. Be sure to remember biz expenses and taxes will
take a good portion.
$50/hr = $62,500$65/hr = $81,250
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Clients
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Plant Your FlagOnce you’ve determined your business structure, plant your flag. Stick to it and communicate what you do consistently. This helps people refer clients to you.
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Find your niche.Don’t chase everything. Be sure projects fit your company. Refer
projects that don’t fit back to your network (and they will return the favor).
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Always hone your client listIt’s natural for long-term clients to grow
in a different direction than your company. Don’t hang on to a bad-
fitting client out of nostalgia.
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Build your ecosystemGrow your community
Attend meetupsShare with your peers
Contribute
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Pitfalls
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Self-employment taxesSave at least 20% of every check for taxes. This is the biggest pitfall... it’s
hard to remember when you get that big check.
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Hire an accountantIt will pay for itself
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Use accounting softwareIt will pay for itself
Track your progress, rates and efficiencyAdjust your workflow or rates as needed
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Give clients a realistic expectation of your time
They think their project is the only one you have. Don’t be afraid to push back
and give them perspective on how they fit in your schedule.
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Be honestBe open about scheduling conflicts.
Life happens and good clients understand.
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Enjoy your business!
Wednesday, October 30, 13
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