A fellow web designer recently asked me, "How do you prepare for a meeting with a prospective client?" Here's my answer: It depends on the conversation that led up to the meeting. When I schedule a meeting, I usually ask the person (or people), "How can I best prepare for our meeting? Are there any […]
On January 1, 2013, I'll have completed my transition from my day job to being a full-time freelance web designer. How did I do it? To find out, listen to Episode 104: Become a Full-Time Freelance Developer of the Your Website Engineer podcast (one of my favorite podcasts). In this episode, I had the pleasure […]
These are my favorite audio podcasts about web design and development, both the technical and business sides. They also feature topics such as marketing and freelancing. My last post on the best web design podcasts was from June 2012, so it was time to update the list. I’ve listed them roughly in order of preference, […]
The Referral Engine: Teaching Your Business to Market Itself by John Jantsch My rating: 5 of 5 stars This is one of the best marketing books I’ve read! Jantsch, clearly a master marketer, shows how to guide prospects to you. How? Educate, and you won’t need to sell. He tells how to build a referral […]
Design Is a Job by Mike Monteiro My rating: 5 of 5 stars This succinct book is densely packed with sage business advice for designers (especially web designers). Monteiro rightly calls it “a guide to making a living as a designer”, and shows that he has a lot of experience in the industry. It’s quite […]
I've used Wave Accounting for over a year, and I highly recommend it for freelancers and small businesses. It's like Mint, except for business accounting rather than personal finance. You connect your bank accounts, and Wave automatically imports income and expenses. You can also manually enter transactions. Like Mint, Wave Accounting is free to use […]
I had the awesome opportunity to be featured in two episodes of This Week in Web Design, one of my favorite web design shows. I didn't personally appear in episode 32, but I did in episode 33. In Episode 32: How do I plan a website redesign?, they analyzed my/OptimWise's attributes and my clients' attributes, and […]
The question of how to price services is age-old. Web designers and developers generally charge by the project or by the hour, or use some combination of the two. I believe that whenever possible, you should charge based on the value you deliver to your clients. That value is based more on your skills, experience, […]
These are my favorite audio podcasts covering the technical and business aspects of web design. They also feature topics such as web development, usability, marketing, freelancing, and entrepreneurship. For podcasts focused on WordPress, see my post Best WordPress podcasts, Spring 2012. My last post on the best web design podcasts was from October 2011, so it […]
Today is my first full day of freelancing as a web designer! Until now, I’ve been moonlighting; working in the mornings before my day job, on my lunch breaks, during evenings, and on Saturdays. Starting today, I’ll be freelancing 1 full day each week, and I’ll be adding days over the next few months, transitioning […]
The Web Design Business Kit 2.0 by Brendon Sinclair My rating: 5 of 5 stars This SitePoint kit is packed with actionable advice and recommendations for web design and development businesses. The author draws on 10 years of firsthand experience plus tips from other successful web professionals. It’s a well-organized, easy read with summaries and […]
I refreshed my branding for 2012 because I converted OptimWise from an IT services business to a web design business. The branding refresh included a new logo and color scheme, so I redesigned my web design business site, OptimWise.com. Besides branding, the other impetus for the redesign was to use responsive web design, so the […]
