For those developers that work for themselves...
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Can you give a few pointers on getting that first client? I am looking to go off on my own but really not sure if 'cold calling' is the way to get jobs or hit up my networks to see if anyone knows anyone that needs something. How many jobs would you hold at one time? Meaning, I would think one job would/could take me a few months to do (working 8+ hours on it). That alone doesn't seem like it would be enough to make a living but, taking on more than one project seems like I would constantly be working. Also, how did you set up payments for the project? Do you require a percentage down up front and the rest upon completion or bill them monthly based on hours worked? Thanks
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Can you give a few pointers on getting that first client? I am looking to go off on my own but really not sure if 'cold calling' is the way to get jobs or hit up my networks to see if anyone knows anyone that needs something. How many jobs would you hold at one time? Meaning, I would think one job would/could take me a few months to do (working 8+ hours on it). That alone doesn't seem like it would be enough to make a living but, taking on more than one project seems like I would constantly be working. Also, how did you set up payments for the project? Do you require a percentage down up front and the rest upon completion or bill them monthly based on hours worked? Thanks
Swelborn wrote:
Can you give a few pointers on getting that first client?
Its hard. You have to network like mad and I mean you better have a few dozen cards that you carry with you at all times and hand them out like you do candy. Follow up on every potential lead until you've gained a solid enough reputation to start picking and choosing. The first half-dozen are the hardest but don't let that put you down. Its extremely rewarding and enriching working for yourself. That said, I wouldn't have a cold start if I were you. Freelance on the side a little then when you feel comfortable, take it into high gear. Keep one thing clear. Contacts, contacts, contacts! There are 1001 administrative issues that you need to follow up on, so make sure you know them before hand because work is NOT just about coding. If you become incorporated then you will almost certainly need accountancy services.
Swelborn wrote:
How many jobs would you hold at one time?
Ideally, as many as you can comfortably hold.
Swelborn wrote:
I would constantly be working
That is almost a given because you have no job security to speak of. You're next guaranteed customer is your safety net.
Swelborn wrote:
Also, how did you set up payments for the project?
That depends on the project. A long term project, working from home then I'd split into several installments (possibly monthly if its long enough). If its a small gig, it can go as high as 50-50 and by small I mean something that will be completed in 30 days max.
If the post was helpful, please vote, eh! Current activities: Playing Star Craft II. Don't bother me, eh? Now and forever, defiant to the end. What is Multiple Sclerosis[^]?
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Can you give a few pointers on getting that first client? I am looking to go off on my own but really not sure if 'cold calling' is the way to get jobs or hit up my networks to see if anyone knows anyone that needs something. How many jobs would you hold at one time? Meaning, I would think one job would/could take me a few months to do (working 8+ hours on it). That alone doesn't seem like it would be enough to make a living but, taking on more than one project seems like I would constantly be working. Also, how did you set up payments for the project? Do you require a percentage down up front and the rest upon completion or bill them monthly based on hours worked? Thanks
Swelborn wrote:
I am looking to go off on my own but really not sure if 'cold calling' is the way to get jobs or hit up my networks to see if anyone knows anyone that needs something.
Network network network. You are one of many in a sea of $5/hour rentacoders living 20 people to a shack in momma's basement. Did I mention network?
Swelborn wrote:
How many jobs would you hold at one time?
Do at least two to start with so you have money in reserves. You *will* have downtime, so get ready for it.
Swelborn wrote:
Also, how did you set up payments for the project? Do you require a percentage down up front and the rest upon completion or bill them monthly based on hours worked?
You may get lucky and have the company willing to payout every week or two weeks to keep in line with their payroll system, and you just send out hourly statements. If you don't get that lucky then and if it's a long term project then take a lesson from general contractors building homes... and use draws! During the initial meeting(s) where you determine scope you also set incremental deliverables and timelines. Each deliverable signed off on should accompany a payment. If it's a short project only spanning a couple of days, big whoop just collect when it's done and everyone is happy.
Jeremy Falcon
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Can you give a few pointers on getting that first client? I am looking to go off on my own but really not sure if 'cold calling' is the way to get jobs or hit up my networks to see if anyone knows anyone that needs something. How many jobs would you hold at one time? Meaning, I would think one job would/could take me a few months to do (working 8+ hours on it). That alone doesn't seem like it would be enough to make a living but, taking on more than one project seems like I would constantly be working. Also, how did you set up payments for the project? Do you require a percentage down up front and the rest upon completion or bill them monthly based on hours worked? Thanks
Here[^] is the first of a series of excellent articles you should read first IMO. :)
Luc Pattyn [Forum Guidelines] [Why QA sucks] [My Articles] Nil Volentibus Arduum
Please use <PRE> tags for code snippets, they preserve indentation, and improve readability.
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Can you give a few pointers on getting that first client? I am looking to go off on my own but really not sure if 'cold calling' is the way to get jobs or hit up my networks to see if anyone knows anyone that needs something. How many jobs would you hold at one time? Meaning, I would think one job would/could take me a few months to do (working 8+ hours on it). That alone doesn't seem like it would be enough to make a living but, taking on more than one project seems like I would constantly be working. Also, how did you set up payments for the project? Do you require a percentage down up front and the rest upon completion or bill them monthly based on hours worked? Thanks
The easiest way to get started is to start small as an IC through recruiting firms building your skill set and in the mean-time building your cash base. With regard to making a living, the largest mistake most independents make is taking some amount per hour * 2080 and calling that a salary, use my Contractor Rate Calculator[^] to see what you should charge. I personally take on as many clients as possible and sometimes I have 4 active at a time. Usually one with a large project (40+ hours a week) and a few smaller ones at 2 or 3 hours a week (with a much higher rate). In the end I make a living but my tax return does not show me as the wealthy consultant my clients seem to think I am ... business expenses add up, fast! For small projects I have two payment options: 1) If I can control the source (ie, Windows forms, etc) I disable the app based on a date and bill standard terms NET 15. When the balance is paid and the project is finished I remove the lock and deliver the source. This is a good compromise. 2) For Web Based work on a client's server I require prepayment, period with no exceptions. For large projects with large corporations that are multimonth, I do whatever they ask. Unless you are awesome DO NOT BILL PROJECT, bill hourly.
Need custom software developed? I do custom programming based primarily on MS tools with an emphasis on C# development and consulting. I also do Android Programming as I find it a refreshing break from the MS. "And they, since they Were not the one dead, turned to their affairs" -- Robert Frost
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The easiest way to get started is to start small as an IC through recruiting firms building your skill set and in the mean-time building your cash base. With regard to making a living, the largest mistake most independents make is taking some amount per hour * 2080 and calling that a salary, use my Contractor Rate Calculator[^] to see what you should charge. I personally take on as many clients as possible and sometimes I have 4 active at a time. Usually one with a large project (40+ hours a week) and a few smaller ones at 2 or 3 hours a week (with a much higher rate). In the end I make a living but my tax return does not show me as the wealthy consultant my clients seem to think I am ... business expenses add up, fast! For small projects I have two payment options: 1) If I can control the source (ie, Windows forms, etc) I disable the app based on a date and bill standard terms NET 15. When the balance is paid and the project is finished I remove the lock and deliver the source. This is a good compromise. 2) For Web Based work on a client's server I require prepayment, period with no exceptions. For large projects with large corporations that are multimonth, I do whatever they ask. Unless you are awesome DO NOT BILL PROJECT, bill hourly.
Need custom software developed? I do custom programming based primarily on MS tools with an emphasis on C# development and consulting. I also do Android Programming as I find it a refreshing break from the MS. "And they, since they Were not the one dead, turned to their affairs" -- Robert Frost
Ennis Ray Lynch, Jr. wrote:
Unless you are awesome DO NOT BILL PROJECT, bill hourly.
How often do you typically receive payment? Weekly? Monthly? or on completion of a specific count of hours?
Regards, Nish
My technology blog: voidnish.wordpress.com (recently moved from web-host to wordpress)
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Ennis Ray Lynch, Jr. wrote:
Unless you are awesome DO NOT BILL PROJECT, bill hourly.
How often do you typically receive payment? Weekly? Monthly? or on completion of a specific count of hours?
Regards, Nish
My technology blog: voidnish.wordpress.com (recently moved from web-host to wordpress)
NET 15. I usually invoice no sooner than weekly but will trigger an invoice with a small client when the work exceeds a few grand. With an established client who pays regularly I don't really pay attention as the money comes when the money comes. The worst I ever had was last year I took a NET 60, ugh. It really depends a lot on the situation. However, for long-term work I always invoice either weekly or bi-weekly regardless of the payment terms. Most pay on time, some lump invoices, some don't.
Need custom software developed? I do custom programming based primarily on MS tools with an emphasis on C# development and consulting. I also do Android Programming as I find it a refreshing break from the MS. "And they, since they Were not the one dead, turned to their affairs" -- Robert Frost
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NET 15. I usually invoice no sooner than weekly but will trigger an invoice with a small client when the work exceeds a few grand. With an established client who pays regularly I don't really pay attention as the money comes when the money comes. The worst I ever had was last year I took a NET 60, ugh. It really depends a lot on the situation. However, for long-term work I always invoice either weekly or bi-weekly regardless of the payment terms. Most pay on time, some lump invoices, some don't.
Need custom software developed? I do custom programming based primarily on MS tools with an emphasis on C# development and consulting. I also do Android Programming as I find it a refreshing break from the MS. "And they, since they Were not the one dead, turned to their affairs" -- Robert Frost
Okay, thanks Ennis. I did see you mention NET 15 but I didn't know it referred to the billing period.
Regards, Nish
My technology blog: voidnish.wordpress.com (recently moved from web-host to wordpress)
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Okay, thanks Ennis. I did see you mention NET 15 but I didn't know it referred to the billing period.
Regards, Nish
My technology blog: voidnish.wordpress.com (recently moved from web-host to wordpress)
It refers to the payment period. For instance if I bill weekly, NET 15 then an invoice delivered Friday the 17th, 2010 would be paid on or before October 1st, 2010. I also charge a massive late fee of 18% (the usury limit). The only clients that balk are the ones that have trouble paying. Really helps with reliable payments.
Need custom software developed? I do custom programming based primarily on MS tools with an emphasis on C# development and consulting. I also do Android Programming as I find it a refreshing break from the MS. "And they, since they Were not the one dead, turned to their affairs" -- Robert Frost
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It refers to the payment period. For instance if I bill weekly, NET 15 then an invoice delivered Friday the 17th, 2010 would be paid on or before October 1st, 2010. I also charge a massive late fee of 18% (the usury limit). The only clients that balk are the ones that have trouble paying. Really helps with reliable payments.
Need custom software developed? I do custom programming based primarily on MS tools with an emphasis on C# development and consulting. I also do Android Programming as I find it a refreshing break from the MS. "And they, since they Were not the one dead, turned to their affairs" -- Robert Frost
Ah alright. Thank you.
Regards, Nish
My technology blog: voidnish.wordpress.com (recently moved from web-host to wordpress)
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It refers to the payment period. For instance if I bill weekly, NET 15 then an invoice delivered Friday the 17th, 2010 would be paid on or before October 1st, 2010. I also charge a massive late fee of 18% (the usury limit). The only clients that balk are the ones that have trouble paying. Really helps with reliable payments.
Need custom software developed? I do custom programming based primarily on MS tools with an emphasis on C# development and consulting. I also do Android Programming as I find it a refreshing break from the MS. "And they, since they Were not the one dead, turned to their affairs" -- Robert Frost
I 5d all three of your posts. This is good free advice :-)
Regards, Nish
My technology blog: voidnish.wordpress.com (recently moved from web-host to wordpress)
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I 5d all three of your posts. This is good free advice :-)
Regards, Nish
My technology blog: voidnish.wordpress.com (recently moved from web-host to wordpress)
Remember, Net 15. Expect Ennis' invoice soon
If the post was helpful, please vote, eh! Current activities: Playing Star Craft II. Don't bother me, eh? Now and forever, defiant to the end. What is Multiple Sclerosis[^]?
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Remember, Net 15. Expect Ennis' invoice soon
If the post was helpful, please vote, eh! Current activities: Playing Star Craft II. Don't bother me, eh? Now and forever, defiant to the end. What is Multiple Sclerosis[^]?
:eek:
Regards, Nish
My technology blog: voidnish.wordpress.com (recently moved from web-host to wordpress)
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Can you give a few pointers on getting that first client? I am looking to go off on my own but really not sure if 'cold calling' is the way to get jobs or hit up my networks to see if anyone knows anyone that needs something. How many jobs would you hold at one time? Meaning, I would think one job would/could take me a few months to do (working 8+ hours on it). That alone doesn't seem like it would be enough to make a living but, taking on more than one project seems like I would constantly be working. Also, how did you set up payments for the project? Do you require a percentage down up front and the rest upon completion or bill them monthly based on hours worked? Thanks
Swelborn wrote:
Meaning, I would think one job would/could take me a few months to do (working 8+ hours on it)
If you're looking at going alone, then be prepared for working 18 to 20 hours a day for the first few months (at least). One of the worst mistakes that you can make is think that the time you dedicate to developing the software is all the time you need to invest. Running a business is a hard, hard task with a lot of administrative tasks that you don't realise that you need to do, and these really eat into your time. One of the best pieces of advice you can get is to build up a serious financial cushion before you take the plunge. Estimates of the cushion range from half a year of your current salary through to a year and a half. That way, when times get tight, you'll still be able to afford the luxuries such as food.
I have CDO, it's OCD with the letters in the right order; just as they ruddy well should be
Forgive your enemies - it messes with their heads
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Can you give a few pointers on getting that first client? I am looking to go off on my own but really not sure if 'cold calling' is the way to get jobs or hit up my networks to see if anyone knows anyone that needs something. How many jobs would you hold at one time? Meaning, I would think one job would/could take me a few months to do (working 8+ hours on it). That alone doesn't seem like it would be enough to make a living but, taking on more than one project seems like I would constantly be working. Also, how did you set up payments for the project? Do you require a percentage down up front and the rest upon completion or bill them monthly based on hours worked? Thanks
You've got some good replies here, do your research, read the going solo articles. Be very sure you want to go down this path. Coding is by far the easiest and simplest part of the job. If you just want to code and have some control then stick to contracting. You need some entrepreneurial flair to work for yourself, you need to enjoy networking and you have to be competent as an administrator. If you can't tick those three then save yourself a lot of heartache and quit NOW. I say this from experience, I spend the early 90s as a consultant (self employed, fixed and hourly jobs) and am now a contractor because I can't tick those 3 requirements.
Never underestimate the power of human stupidity RAH
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Can you give a few pointers on getting that first client? I am looking to go off on my own but really not sure if 'cold calling' is the way to get jobs or hit up my networks to see if anyone knows anyone that needs something. How many jobs would you hold at one time? Meaning, I would think one job would/could take me a few months to do (working 8+ hours on it). That alone doesn't seem like it would be enough to make a living but, taking on more than one project seems like I would constantly be working. Also, how did you set up payments for the project? Do you require a percentage down up front and the rest upon completion or bill them monthly based on hours worked? Thanks
Generally... pick a busy, but vacant street corner...
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Generally... pick a busy, but vacant street corner...
PIEBALDconsult wrote:
vacant street corner...
One that already has a couple of girls working it might attract more potential customers...
Will Rogers never met me.
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Can you give a few pointers on getting that first client? I am looking to go off on my own but really not sure if 'cold calling' is the way to get jobs or hit up my networks to see if anyone knows anyone that needs something. How many jobs would you hold at one time? Meaning, I would think one job would/could take me a few months to do (working 8+ hours on it). That alone doesn't seem like it would be enough to make a living but, taking on more than one project seems like I would constantly be working. Also, how did you set up payments for the project? Do you require a percentage down up front and the rest upon completion or bill them monthly based on hours worked? Thanks
If anyone knew the answer to your question there would be no employees and we would all be rich doing our own thing! That being said you first need to come up with a business plan as to what your actually selling a product or a service etc. If your trying to be a consultant then you need to identify a Niche area where your expertise is required. The way I started out was to target small contract jobs and once you have built a client base you can offer to sell/develop larger projects. Cold calling for development doesn't work but it does work for admin work. For payments you need to break it up and get something upfront, it will be tough at first but once you start getting 25% of your money upfront consider your self arrived. So its something that you need to experiment with there is no one way to do this. But now since you have taken the plunge enjoy it .
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Can you give a few pointers on getting that first client? I am looking to go off on my own but really not sure if 'cold calling' is the way to get jobs or hit up my networks to see if anyone knows anyone that needs something. How many jobs would you hold at one time? Meaning, I would think one job would/could take me a few months to do (working 8+ hours on it). That alone doesn't seem like it would be enough to make a living but, taking on more than one project seems like I would constantly be working. Also, how did you set up payments for the project? Do you require a percentage down up front and the rest upon completion or bill them monthly based on hours worked? Thanks
Getting started is the hardest part! Unless you already have projects lined up, do your self a favor and count on having to survive about 3 years without much income from you business. Of course you'll have some income, but you'll also have unforeseen expenses, so make sure you have a backup plan to survive at least the 3 years. Try every avenue possible to get work. I've done cold calling (I hate that!) and gotten a little work that way, but by far the best jobs came from friends and other contacts, word of mouth. Don't get too disillusioned at the start, because unless you land a luck break, you will have some lean times. Remember that you contacts and network grows close to exponentially, which means it's slow getting started, but it will later snowball unless you screw up big time. Plan on working double your normal hours and make sure that you are doing something for your business even when you don't have a paying project. Sitting on your butt won't accomplish anything. As a good friend once told me, he stumbled on more business accidentally than he ever actually developed, but the secret is you have to be busy stumbling around or nothing will happen. Remember that the biggest problemyou'll have for the first while is that when you are working for pay you're not marketing and when you're out marketing, you're not getting paid. So figure out a way to market yourself while you have work and make sure you line up plenty of work as far in advance as you reasonably can. As far as billing, it depends on the customers and the situation. I've been burned a time or two, fortunately not so bad it put me out of business, but that happens. You can't take it personally, but you need to develop your own strategy for dealing with clients, billing, etc. With new clients I usually do a little work and send them a bill, maybe a few days at the most of my time. If they pay it, then I know we have a working relationship, they're honest and we go full steam ahead. If they don't I learned something important about them and didn't lose my shirt finding out. They usually do pay me in the end, but it has taken a year for some, so I tell them I need half pay in advance before we can work. All in all, I think the main think is to plan for the unforeseen, because it will happen if you don't plan for it, and be open to discuss things with your clients. Open communications is the best line of defense and if you can both agree n payment options, etc., then anything is possible. Good luck! Working for yourself is at times
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Can you give a few pointers on getting that first client? I am looking to go off on my own but really not sure if 'cold calling' is the way to get jobs or hit up my networks to see if anyone knows anyone that needs something. How many jobs would you hold at one time? Meaning, I would think one job would/could take me a few months to do (working 8+ hours on it). That alone doesn't seem like it would be enough to make a living but, taking on more than one project seems like I would constantly be working. Also, how did you set up payments for the project? Do you require a percentage down up front and the rest upon completion or bill them monthly based on hours worked? Thanks
Swelborn wrote:
Also, how did you set up payments for the project?
They pay me daily in trident layers. :laugh:
"I do not know with what weapons World War 3 will be fought, but World War 4 will be fought with sticks and stones." Einstein "Few things are harder to put up with than the annoyance of a good example." Mark Twain