Considering of becoming a freelance web developer

Hi all,

I am keen of setting up becoming a freelance web developer but i have serial things i wanna discuss

first thing is there much a difference between a company that user cpanel than a company like webs.com the reason i ask is because today if any of the people at my software in keen of hosting quiet a few of them said they would rather use webs.com now some of them are artists and they prefer to use a proper host since ive got a reseller account myself i actually pay for with cpanel i tried to offer them good webhosting for what they need to do either it be for themselfs or clients quiet cheaply and it seems to me they are just up tight i tried to explain that it look unprofessional using webs.com for a client and or yourself portfolio.

i would of thought if they were in the design side they should know alittle bit more regarding to look “professional” is there much difference between a company like webs.com and wix.com and a company since im trying to be good co-worker and offer them cheap hosting. Since normally they have a thing for 3rd floor hates 1st floor since my software company i work for is actually split up into 2 floors in a 3 story building.

i try to talk to one of the guys he just tells me to drop it and i just dont understand if your a freelance designer of some sort wouldnt you want to use a proper paying host since hosting is cheap these days and not using a free host i even tried to offer them a $5 a month shared hosting account to host with me with plenty of space and bandwidth just doesnt seem correct to me.

So what do you guys think i know at my work people on the 3rd floor do special offers for each other and sumtime free but when i try to do a special offer they seem to not think about their professionalism for the way their clients and or own websites look i mean paying hosting is cheap these days i would try and explain but they wouldnt listen to me.

other thing on my mind is what would be the best way for me to start out as a freelance web developer should i team up with some one who does webdesign as a freelancer aswell and have agreement with them aswell as setting up contracts are these actually required to do if i am freelancing? is there anything else i need to be worried about on the legal side of things?

since i have my own hosting since i would be starting out should provide hosting for my clients or just redirect them to another host and set it all up for them?

If anyone can answer my Questions it would be good,

Thanks,William

awhile ago i purchase the webdesign business kit and would it be a good idea to use the contracts from that???

Thanks,William

Absolutely, that business kit was created to help individuals starting up. I’ve not seen the contracts myself but I’ve heard they cover pretty much what you’ll need.

Just be sure to read through them first to make sure you agree with and customise them for your own start-up’s needs :slight_smile:

No company in their right mind would want to use a free host like “webs.com”, not only will you have serious limits imposed (perhaps even non-commercial usage), it reflects poorly on the business if their too cheap to even buy themselves a decent website (and place for it to be hosted on the web). Though your question makes little to no sense, if you want to know what you can do about an existing business that won’t buy hosting, you’ll need to build up a case and take it to the boss (either that or quit and go work for someone who isn’t ignorant of professionalism). As for your second question, it depends. Some people like to offer coding services alone, some prefer to work with others who can complete the offerings they provide. If you do work with other people you’ll want to establish firm contracts between payment, expectations and you’ll need to ensure the tax people are aware that you have become an employer (unless you’re a partnership which has it’s own rules), in regards to contracts for freelancing, there’s lots you’ll need to consider. Your site may want to have the usual copyright, privacy, terms of use statement (potentially an accessibility one), but when working with contracts you’ll need agreements relating to work (contractual obligations), payment (invoicing) with clients (among other things) and you would do well to research what you’ll need to consider carefully. Legally once you have a good contract for work (between you and the client) and good practices in place, and as long as you declare your earnings properly to the government (don’t wanna get in trouble) you should be fine. It’s all about having an agreement which covers you, the client and states that both parties agree and will do their part as signed upon. :slight_smile:

PS: Not sure how good these are, but they might be a good place to get you started: http://sessions.edu/Design-Career-Center/Design-Tools/Freelance-Design-Contracts-Templates.asp