Thoughts and Tips From a Freelance Web Developer

 I have spent the last 2.5 years as a freelance web developer working with a variety of clients of different shapes and sizes. Throughout this time I have learned a lot and developed some best practices for freelancing remotely. I will share some of my thoughts on the matter here on Steemit.  

Scheduling

Day to day or month to month, when working on multiple projects across different clients it is important to organize and plan your time. There will always be another fire to put out, but constant context-switching is detrimental to your productivity.

I like to plan my weeks based on my clients needs and schedule them for a particular day or days during the coming week. It is important to also inform your client of this scheduling so that they know when is best to reach you. 

Inevitably, clients will try to pull you from your schedule from one reason or another. You must use your best judgement to determine when to get pulled and when to politely tell them you will get to their matter later.

New Client Leads

Leads on new projects don’t always appear at the most opportune time. Opportunities frequently pop up when my schedule is fully booked. When this happens, I try to engage the prospective client as promptly as possible and schedule a call to learn more about their project. Depending on their timeline I determine how best to work them into my schedule.

Getting Paid

This may seem obvious, but many colleagues have had significant difficulty when it comes to getting paid. It is important to have the terms of your payment (your rate, the project’s budget, etc..) clearly defined before you get to work. Get this in writing, and make sure both you and your client fully understand and are in agreement on the terms.

If you are in a position where a client is not paying you, you must stand up for yourself. If you were expecting payment and have not received it, follow up with them. If you have a client who is refusing to pay, you have options. Services like Just Tell Julie can help you get paid by difficult clients.

I welcome thoughts and feedback, give me a shout in the comments. Thanks!

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