My New Business

[jtwhite]

So after looking for a job for months on end, I've decided to start my own business designing and developing Web sites. I've always been a fairly professional, businessy person.

My portfolio is located here: http://justinsnetwork.com

Unfortunately, I've not been able to find any clients. I've mailed letters out to potential clients to no avail.

Does anybody have experience in running/marketing a small business? Could you offer me some advice?

 

[adamparkzer]

So after looking for a job for months on end, I've decided to start my own business designing and developing Web sites. I've always been a fairly professional, businessy person.

My portfolio is located here: http://justinsnetwork.com

Unfortunately, I've not been able to find any clients. I've mailed letters out to potential clients to no avail.

Does anybody have experience in running/marketing a small business? Could you offer me some advice?

How much are you charging for your services?

 

[jtwhite]

Here are my typical rates... Well. Let me define some terms first.

• Web design: Starting from scratch.
• Web site usability: Redoing or modifying an existing template to make it more useful.

Okay, back to the rates:

Web Design
First 3 hours is $25/hr, thereafter it is $20/hr

Website Usability
First 3 hours is $20/hr, thereafter it is $16/hr

Script Installation
$10 flat fee unless something time consuming is involved

 

[adamparkzer]

You're going to charge by the hour? Wouldn't you end up making less and less money as you get more experienced, because you'll be able to whip together new websites faster and better as you get more and more customers?

 

[jtwhite]

I can always change the prices down the road.

Or charge more for more advanced things.

 

[adamparkzer]

I can always change the prices down the road.

Or charge more for more advanced things.

Wouldn't some customers accuse you of intentionally stalling to make more money? Or say that the number of hours it took you to make the website was way too long for what they believe the website should have taken.

Wouldn't it be better to charge by characters written or pages created? Something where the customer can see the work done, and their payment is based off how much actual content they're receiving.

 

[leafypiggy]

$25 is very high.

I'd do something like maybe:

$18/hour + $5/page after 5 pages.

Makes more sense.


Not a big fan of the one page portfolio.

 

[jtwhite]

Wouldn't some customers accuse you of intentionally stalling to make more money? Or say that the number of hours it took you to make the website was way too long for what they believe the website should have taken.

Wouldn't it be better to charge by characters written or pages created? Something where the customer can see the work done, and their payment is based off how much actual content they're receiving.

Nope. I don't think so. I think an hourly rate is much more professional and cost effective. The client and I would be under contract where I promise not to boost up the hours and they promise to pay. If I find that it's going to take more time than the estimate I give them, I will contact them and inform them before continuing.

Also, if it's businesses such as a roofing or stone company, they will want images on the site. I need to charge by the hour in order to have image editing included.


Edit:

$25 is very high.

I'd do something like maybe:

$18/hour + $5/page after 5 pages.

Makes more sense.


Not a big fan of the one page portfolio.

Most professionals charge $30/hr - $200/hr. My prices are very cheap compared to others.

 

[adamparkzer]

Nope. I don't think so. I think an hourly rate is much more professional and cost effective. The client and I would be under contract where I promise not to boost up the hours and they promise to pay. If I find that it's going to take more time than the estimate I give them, I will contact them and inform them before continuing.

Also, if it's businesses such as a roofing or stone company, they will want images on the site. I need to charge by the hour in order to have image editing included.

Hmm, didn't think of the image thing. Dunno, if you think you're better off with the hourly charge, then go for it. I have absolutely no experience charging other people for making websites for them. The only websites I make are my own (which fail design-wise -___- ) and free ones for my friends.

How many letters have you sent out so far?

 

[jtwhite]

How many letters have you sent out so far?

I've mailed out 5 letters to varies different company types such as: computer repair shops, restaurants, and a stone work company.

Edit: 1000th post

 

[adamparkzer]

I've mailed out 5 letters to varies different company types such as: computer repair shops, restaurants, and a stone work company.

Edit: 1000th post

What do you include in your letters? Maybe you have to be more convincing.

And I should go delete one of your posts so that becomes your 999th post. lol just kidding

 

[jtwhite]

What do you include in your letters? Maybe you have to be more convincing.

And I should go delete one of your posts so that becomes your 999th post. lol just kidding

I tell them I'm a web designer from the area and how I believe their business will succeed more with a proper online identity. I enclose an estimate and a pricing structure list.

 

[adamparkzer]

I tell them I'm a web designer from the area and how I believe their business will succeed more with a proper online identity. I enclose an estimate and a pricing structure list.

Seems like your profile's empty. Wouldn't you get better results if you made some sample designs and websites for yourself and used them as examples when you send out your letters?

 

[jtwhite]

Seems like your profile's empty. Wouldn't you get better results if you made some sample designs and websites for yourself and used them as examples when you send out your letters?

Yeah I should probably do that. I'd really like to get some real clients to put on the portfolio though. Much more professional.

 

[adamparkzer]

Yeah I should probably do that. I'd really like to get some real clients to put on the portfolio though. Much more professional.

If you're really bored, you could pre-design a site for a nearby company that doesn't already have a website. Then, tell them that you already made a website for them and they can acquire it immediately just by paying the fee. If they take it, you have something to add to your portfolio. If they don't take it, you can add it to your portfolio anyway, seeing as you made it, and nobody will know it was rejected.

 

[jtwhite]

If you're really bored, you could pre-design a site for a nearby company that doesn't already have a website. Then, tell them that you already made a website for them and they can acquire it immediately just by paying the fee. If they take it, you have something to add to your portfolio. If they don't take it, you can add it to your portfolio anyway, seeing as you made it, and nobody will know it was rejected.

Hmm. That's really smart! I just wish I knew how to get my business "out there." Right now, 5 companies know about it.

 

[leafypiggy]

Adam: deleting a post wouldn't make him have less posts. You'd have to recount the posts, in which cause you'd have like 300 posts..

Anyways:

Justin: Why not advertise on twitter and facebook? Just by having a bunch of followers and getting word out about your site, you can get a lot of hits, and a lot of potential customers.

Also, find bulletin boards in your town, and towns around you. People will see them, and maybe even call!
Edit:

Nope. I don't think so. I think an hourly rate is much more professional and cost effective. The client and I would be under contract where I promise not to boost up the hours and they promise to pay. If I find that it's going to take more time than the estimate I give them, I will contact them and inform them before continuing.

Also, if it's businesses such as a roofing or stone company, they will want images on the site. I need to charge by the hour in order to have image editing included.


Edit:

Most professionals charge $30/hr - $200/hr. My prices are very cheap compared to others.

Sorry for double post:

You're not a professional. You can't call yourself a professional, especially when you don't have any work to show. Honestly, you're not going to get many customers why charging $25+ dollars/hour.

As a beginner (as I am as well), I'd even look towards a flat rate, of like $300 for one package, $500 for another, etc.

I always give my clients options, such as by the hour, and flat rate.

 

[adamparkzer]

Adam: deleting a post wouldn't make him have less posts. You'd have to recount the posts, in which cause you'd have like 300 posts.

Stop pretending to know more than you really do. Deleting a post lowers the poster's post count by 1, I've done this enough to spam to know what happens. If you don't stop bothering me on the IRC's private messaging system and over the forums, I'm going to start picking through everything you do and have done on here and show you the real difference between someone who really knows what they're doing and someone who's pretending to be better than they really are.

 

[Sharky]

Slightly offtopic here guys, how about keeping the nice threats between yourselves and logged instead of public.....

jtwhite: Take a small business management course. A few semesters of my degree were on small business management, it was very insightful and interesting, and worth it if you want to start your own business.

 

[adamparkzer]

Slightly offtopic here guys, how about keeping the nice threats between yourselves and logged instead of public.....

jtwhite: Take a small business management course. A few semesters of my degree were on small business management, it was very insightful and interesting, and worth it if you want to start your own business.

lol Neil can't threaten me anywhere else anymore. Only people I approve as friends (which is 23 people right now) and administrators can private message me on the forums, and I /ignored Neil yesterday on the IRC because he was annoying me. So now he resorts to forum harassment

Justin, you're still in high school, so you could probably fit in some business management courses into your schedule. I don't think you should bother with the basic stuff - my high school requires some sort of business education course to graduate, but they give you a chance to test out of it. Supposedly 95% of everyone that takes it fails, but I walked into the test and thought it was so easy that it can be answered by common sense. (Oddly, I was the only person in my high school to pass it. -____- ) After talking to you over IM, I'm pretty sure you have enough background knowledge to be able to pass it too, thus making the basic class useless.