A common question people ask me is whether they should go the “independent” way, as opposed to getting a job or setting up their own web design company in Pakistan. If you are like me and prefer to learn by reading, read on. If you prefer to learn through discussion, here is a video I made recently on this topic:
Whether you should become independent depends on your particular situation. That being said, you can live very comfortably if you choose to work independently. So let’s discuss whether you should go the independent route and, assuming it’s for you, how you can make money doing it.
How to make money as an independent developer business tips
Those who freelance, without trying to take their business to the next level, can end up being a failure. Like 30% of small businesses that fail in the first year.
I guess you want to be in seventy percent of the people who succeed. Assuming you don’t oppose prosperity, let’s get to that.
Should you become an independent developer?
The first question in deciding your career is to determine if freelancing is really right for you. This comes down to two questions.
Do you have the personality type to work independently?
Can you make money doing this?
Let’s look at each of these in turn.
Whether or not you have the personality to be independent depends on whether you have a strong sense of discipline. Do you need the structure provided for you?
When you work for yourself, there’s no one to tell you that,
You have to be at the office for a while
You need to start working on a project in the first month to make it to the end of the month
You need to return phone calls to your customers, etc.
This means that you need to be able to force yourself to do these things and avoid the many distractions that exist in today’s world. This includes the ability to watch Star Trek on Netflix.
If you have the ability to “self-regulate”, then you have the personality type to be independent. If you do not have this ability, then you are better suited to work in an environment where your employer gives you that structure.
If you are someone who needs the structure provided for you then, I can not stress enough, that there is nothing to worry about. Many people who develop in an independent environment would not do well at work and vice versa. It’s just a matter of personality types.
How to stand out from other independent software developers
If you decide to work independently, it’s important to stay away from your competition. Otherwise, you might as well have a desk sign that says:
How to make money as an independent developer business tips
I don’t know about you – but I don’t think it’s easy to be used to it. Fortunately, getting out of the crowd is not difficult. This is because most developers fail to really connect with their customers. If you choose to connect with customers correctly, then you will have work in line for many months to come.
I strongly believe that there is a disconnect between the development community and companies that would hire a developer. Do a Google search in your city for local web designers. There is no shortage of people willing to build websites for small businesses. Despite this surplus labor, about thirty percent of small businesses do not have a website. Whenever you have a surplus of providers, whose services are not used, you have a situation where these providers fail to connect with their customers.
The reason why developers do not connect with customers is obvious. When you perform the search mentioned above, to find developers, you will notice a common pattern. Developers fill their websites with technical stammers about coding languages, etc.
If a small business owner does not have a website in 2017, they may have no idea what coding jargon means.
Also, if a small business owner thinks “I need a website to help get more customers”. How would you know if this technical jargon will actually help them get more customers. In other words, most developers do not answer the questions their customers ask. This is the reason for the disconnect between the development community and small businesses.
It’s not hard to complete the “developer disconnect”. Just talk about what your potential customers are looking for and discuss how you will solve their problems.. First, your own website should explain how you help companies solve the problems they face. Don’t use first impressions (your website) to talk about things that people don’t understand or care about. You need to present yourself as a problem solver and tell potential customers how you will solve their problems. You will then be able to remove the disconnect between developers and small businesses. This, in turn, will make your independent concert grow by leaps and bounds. Let’s have a discussion about how to sell your services so that you can see ways to present yourself as a problem solver.
How to sell your services as an independent developer
Selling is something that many people do not feel comfortable with. But, one of the biggest parts of success is being willing to learn and do things that make you feel uncomfortable. You can also find out how to sell your services. Don’t worry it makes you feel uncomfortable. Remember that the comfort zone is where their dreams die. I know this is easy for me to say, because selling comes naturally to me, but you can learn to do this and after a while it will seem as easy as pressing a button.
How to make money as an independent developer business tips
The sale of your services can be divided into three parts
Your initial contact with a potential customer
Putting together a proposal
Closing the transaction
Let’s look at each of these.
The initial meeting (usually by phone) is the most important contact you will have with a potential client. This is your first impression. Most developers go around and miss using this meeting to talk about their skills, coding, etc.
As we just discussed in the discussion above, it is a mistake to take such an approach. You should use this meeting to ask questions about your potential customer’s business and to determine the issues they want to resolve .
If you are talking to a pizza owner who needs a website, then you need to ask questions about his business. E.g,
Do they just go out or do they have a dining room?
Do they have a bar?
How many locations do they have?
What is the demographic data of their customers?
There are a lot of questions to ask. Once you understand the business, then you can identify their problems.
Once you have identified your client’s problems, then you can tell them how to fix them. This is the stage of the proposal. Considering the same example, if the pizzeria has a dining room, you can suggest to include a lot of photos that show how fun it can be to dine there. If they have a bar, then the website should also appear. Am I near a college? If so, then there should be a section containing “college specialties” and you may also want a mobile app so students can order online. These are just a few examples of proposing solutions to potential problems.
When trying to close the sale, it is important to explain how the proposed solutions will meet the customer’s need. As you engage in this discussion, it is important to speak from the perspective of a “problem solver” and not from a “developer” perspective. The more you speak your client’s language, the more likely they are to hire you.
Most developers try to “sell”, but they promote their technical expertise and talk about software. If you want to sell effectively, then you need to think about solving your customers’ problems.
Where independent developers can sell their services
Freelancers can be just as frustrated when they figure out where to sell their services and how to sell. Let’s look at three places where you can start getting some customers.
A good way to connect with potential customers is through networking events. One of the biggest mistakes I see developers make is going to network events where most of the participants are other developers. Don’t do that. Instead, you want to go to events with many small business owners and where you are the only developer. A great way to do this is to join the NBI. This is a group where you will meet many different types of small business owners and you will all open your address book. For example, if a car mechanic in the group meets someone who needs a developer, then you will receive the recommendation. In turn, you will send people to other members of the NBI chapter. You will find this far more effective than talking to other developers.
Another way to do business is to sell your services through third-party services such as Fiverr or Thumbtack
The upside to using these services is that they have a lot of people looking for the same services that you are willing to offer.
The two disadvantages are this,
You must pay a fee for each customer you receive through these services and
You will tend to work for clients at a much lower rate than you would normally charge. That website that you would normally build for $ 3,000 can only cost $ 1,200 for one of these services. These types of platforms can bring you a large number of customers, but you will work with very small profit margins.
A third option to get business is to do this through your own website. The downside is that you will pay customers the full rate. The only thing to think about is to pay to promote your site. The easiest way to promote your web presence, in a way that will actually bring you business, is to use the Google Adwords platform. These are the ads you see at the top of your search results. Paying for ads can be expensive, but you should definitely see a return on investment.
This discussion was a quick overview of the “basics” for starting an independent business. Do these things and you will be ahead of the competition. Are you currently working independently? What has been your experience so far? Let me know in the comments.