Want to start a company-Need some solid advice

25 replies
Hello fellow Warriors.
I need some help. I'm 19, currently doing web development ( WordPress) projects on Fiverr. I make around $500-700/month.
Its been 2 months now and I want to upscale it by launching my own web development company. Wan't to make it Bigger and on a Larger scale. Can someone please advise me regarding the costs and initial investment? Any kind of feedback would be very much appreciated.
Thanks all!
#advice #companyneed #solid #start #wordpress
  • Profile picture of the author HCFGrizzly
    Originally Posted by kodewhizz View Post

    Hello fellow Warriors.
    I need some help. I'm 19, currently doing web development ( WordPress) projects on Fiverr. I make around $500-700/month.
    Its been 2 months now and I want to upscale it by launching my own web development company. Wan't to make it Bigger and on a Larger scale. Can someone please advise me regarding the costs and initial investment? Any kind of feedback would be very much appreciated.
    Thanks all!
    There are a number of things we need to know first.
    Also, have you considered using freelancer.com to get more jobs?
    Have you considered partnering up with another guy and give him projects before you create your own company?
    Also I want to congratulate. You are so young and you are thinking to create your own company. The world needs more kids like you
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    • Profile picture of the author Kay King
      You don't need to "start" a company - you need to grow your current service into a company.

      You are on Fiverr - are you on all the other top freelance sites? Do you have your own website built where you demonstrate and advertise your web design service? That could be in your signature here but I don't see it.

      Don't' get hung up on "getting ready to do business" - If you are earning $500+ per month...work to double that in the next 2 months and then continue to build from there.

      With a service business, I think it's better to grow the business you HAVE and expand your reach...hiring help when and if you need it to build a team of people you trust.
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      • Profile picture of the author kodewhizz
        Originally Posted by Kay King View Post

        You don't need to "start" a company - you need to grow your current service into a company.

        You are on Fiverr - are you on all the other top freelance sites? Do you have your own website built where you demonstrate and advertise your web design service? That could be in your signature here but I don't see it.

        Don't' get hung up on "getting ready to do business" - If you are earning $500+ per month...work to double that in the next 2 months and then continue to build from there.

        With a service business, I think it's better to grow the business you HAVE and expand your reach...hiring help when and if you need it to build a team of people you trust.
        Thanks.Yes that's exactly what I initially thought. A website to showcase my services is very important. Then slowly build on from there.
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    • Profile picture of the author kodewhizz
      Originally Posted by HCFGrizzly View Post

      There are a number of things we need to know first.
      Also, have you considered using freelancer.com to get more jobs?
      Have you considered partnering up with another guy and give him projects before you create your own company?
      Also I want to congratulate. You are so young and you are thinking to create your own company. The world needs more kids like you
      Thanks for the kind feedback. Yes I'm already outsourcing alot of my work. I just want to make it BIG. Like to have a proper well reputed company.
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  • Profile picture of the author Matthew Iannotti
    Initial investment depends on way to many things to sum up on a forum post, including any additional office equipment that may make your life easier.

    You can do most of it on the cheap if you stick to using Paypal and use their invoicing as well as getting a website up that includes a portfolio. You really don't need much more than that when you're starting out to be honest. As you grow, you can add a CRM into the mix that is synced up with your landing pages for optin's and automation. As well as other tools, such as Basecamp or something similar for project management and the list can go on and on...
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    • Profile picture of the author kodewhizz
      Originally Posted by Matthew Iannotti View Post

      Initial investment depends on way to many things to sum up on a forum post, including any additional office equipment that may make your life easier.

      You can do most of it on the cheap if you stick to using Paypal and use their invoicing as well as getting a website up that includes a portfolio. You really don't need much more than that when you're starting out to be honest. As you grow, you can add a CRM into the mix that is synced up with your landing pages for optin's and automation. As well as other tools, such as Basecamp or something similar for project management and the list can go on and on...
      Thanks for the feedback. Yes the first thing that i'd love to start off with would be a professional website to showcase my work and credentials. I basically outsource alot of my work to other online fellows,Would I still need real time employees?
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  • Profile picture of the author marieocean9
    My best suggestion is get an LLC in Nevada aND start blogging about youright passion
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  • Profile picture of the author EPoltrack77
    I just want to say congratulations and keep up the good work! You can register as a business, incorporate yourself and even patient your business name. Start the branding process... All of this you can do for under 2 grand!

    You can also just go to someplace like elance and provide your service. The nice thing about sites like fiverr and elance is your traffic is already 90% complete. The other side is you can create your own website and market your services that way. Build an email list!!! At the same time learn about delegating some of you work and you can use the same sites.

    Again, keep up the good work
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    • Profile picture of the author kodewhizz
      Originally Posted by EPoltrack77 View Post

      I just want to say congratulations and keep up the good work! You can register as a business, incorporate yourself and even patient your business name. Start the branding process... All of this you can do for under 2 grand!

      You can also just go to someplace like elance and provide your service. The nice thing about sites like fiverr and elance is your traffic is already 90% complete. The other side is you can create your own website and market your services that way. Build an email list!!! At the same time learn about delegating some of you work and you can use the same sites.

      Again, keep up the good work

      Thanks for such a detailed feedback. Yes i'm definitely looking at my own website where I can showcase my work.It also makes it look more professional and authentic. What about the stage of hiring employees or people I can use to outsource my work to?

      THANKYOU!
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  • Profile picture of the author Nico Puegher
    You don't need any investment at all to do it, well just simple stuff that you probably already have, not big deal.

    I mean a website and hosting, that's all you need but to go by yourself you need a decent amount of clients already, you can charge them for maintenance (not sure if you're doing it) or maybe they want to add or change things after a few months and you can work with them since they trust you and like your talent.

    I recommend you to try freelance sites like Freelancer or Upwork, you can find tons of new projects to work with and lots of new clients (long term) but also new contacts, networking is always important for a business.

    The only thing you need to have success there, it's patient, good portfolio and catchy speech, if you have talent it will be super easy for you, otherwise you will need to invest some more time.

    Start being social with the best networks for your niche, for example Behance and Dribble where you can share your works and have a fan base.

    I would recommend you to start your own email list, you can offer a free wordpress in exchange of their emails, not provide just crap, provide a high quality wordpress site/theme for free because your email list will be one of the most important aspects inside your business.

    To work by yourself you will need a lot of traffic or a good amounts of clients already in your portfolio, if you can do it just go for it! if not just create an account on Freelancer and Upwork and keep doing what you know best, in the end you will be able to move from there to your own business where you don't need a 3rd party to find clients, they will be finding you instead from your website, social media or other strategy you're doing.

    Also If you have good knowledge about wordpress and you can create themes, I highly recommend you to check Themeforest, start selling themes there because you can be doing a lot of money, top authors already made over 1 million just by selling themes, they are not just selling themes there they have their own business where people can ask for a custom wordpress theme.

    It's quite common there, because some clients don't want to have a theme that other people can have, if they like your work it's probably that they will ask you for a custom theme and that's a direct client.

    The best choice to drive traffic it's offering freebies on Behance and Dribble, there're tons of blogs related to freebies that will post your stuff and they've decent traffic, free exposure just by giving free value.
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    • Profile picture of the author kodewhizz
      Originally Posted by Nico Puegher View Post

      You don't need any investment at all to do it, well just simple stuff that you probably already have, not big deal.

      I mean a website and hosting, that's all you need but to go by yourself you need a decent amount of clients already, you can charge them for maintenance (not sure if you're doing it) or maybe they want to add or change things after a few months and you can work with them since they trust you and like your talent.

      I recommend you to try freelance sites like Freelancer or Upwork, you can find tons of new projects to work with and lots of new clients (long term) but also new contacts, networking is always important for a business.

      The only thing you need to have success there, it's patient, good portfolio and catchy speech, if you have talent it will be super easy for you, otherwise you will need to invest some more time.

      Start being social with the best networks for your niche, for example Behance and Dribble where you can share your works and have a fan base.

      I would recommend you to start your own email list, you can offer a free wordpress in exchange of their emails, not provide just crap, provide a high quality wordpress site/theme for free because your email list will be one of the most important aspects inside your business.

      To work by yourself you will need a lot of traffic or a good amounts of clients already in your portfolio, if you can do it just go for it! if not just create an account on Freelancer and Upwork and keep doing what you know best, in the end you will be able to move from there to your own business where you don't need a 3rd party to find clients, they will be finding you instead from your website, social media or other strategy you're doing.

      Also If you have good knowledge about wordpress and you can create themes, I highly recommend you to check Themeforest, start selling themes there because you can be doing a lot of money, top authors already made over 1 million just by selling themes, they are not just selling themes there they have their own business where people can ask for a custom wordpress theme.

      It's quite common there, because some clients don't want to have a theme that other people can have, if they like your work it's probably that they will ask you for a custom theme and that's a direct client.

      The best choice to drive traffic it's offering freebies on Behance and Dribble, there're tons of blogs related to freebies that will post your stuff and they've decent traffic, free exposure just by giving free value.
      Thanks for such a detailed reply.wow every point you mentioned is gold. Yes I want to build my own site first where I can showcase my portfolio. It just gives it a more professional look overall. I normally get around 7,8 clients per week. Some of them are returning clients while most are new. With my own site,I'd also be able to easily target local clients and businesses. And about employees, I'm already outsourcing alot of my work to other online freelancers. What would you suggest? Should I build my own office with real time employees or just do it online? Thanks once again. Can I have your skype for a detailed talk?
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      • Profile picture of the author Kay King
        You are still complicating this. If you are advertising/getting clients only from FIVERR - and you are outsourcing much of the work....I have to wonder where you are finding the outsourcers?

        What if you did the work yourself for these 7-8 new clients a week? Wouldn't that increase your income right there?

        Should I build my own office with real time employees
        Do you have the money to pay "real time" employees? Why would you need them? If you want to work for yourself - why would you want the expense and problems of an "office"?

        Forget the "image of being in business". "Having a business" isn't the physical sign on a door or a fancy logo - it's the work you do, the customers you attract, and the money (net profit) you earn.
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        Saving one dog will not change the world - but the world changes forever for that one dog
        ***
        Please do not 'release balloons' for celebrations. The balloons and trailing ribbons entangle birds and kill wildlife and livestock that think the balloons are food.
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        • Profile picture of the author kodewhizz
          Originally Posted by Kay King View Post

          You are still complicating this. If you are advertising/getting clients only from FIVERR - and you are outsourcing much of the work....I have to wonder where you are finding the outsourcers?

          What if you did the work yourself for these 7-8 new clients a week? Wouldn't that increase your income right there?



          Do you have the money to pay "real time" employees? Why would you need them? If you want to work for yourself - why would you want the expense and problems of an "office"?

          Forget the "image of being in business". "Having a business" isn't the physical sign on a door or a fancy logo - it's the work you do, the customers you attract, and the money (net profit) you earn.
          Those are some real hard cold facts right there. Yes totally agree with you. What I meant was that,if there is a project that I'm not able to do,I outsource only that single one. Plus,the margin of my profit is still alot. More than 70%.
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  • Profile picture of the author kilgore
    If you want to "make it BIG", the first thing to understand the top development companies aren't really development companies -- they're creative companies. And there's a huge difference between the two. The business that you're talking about is a company that hacks together Wordpress websites. But what a creative company does -- especially the "big" ones -- is conceive and implement digital campaigns. When you hire one of these companies, you not only get a few developers to build you a website, you get a whole team to conceive of and implement a successful campaign. People like designers, a project manager and a creative director. And I'd add that only part of these goals might be related to a website. Social media, email, digital advertising and even more traditional media such as TV and print advertising can come into this process.

    And it should be no surprise that the best creative agencies have top-tier talent -- not a bunch of second (or third) rate coders that you find on Freelancer. My background is in web development, DevOps and IT management, so I know good code. And having hired a couple of jobs from oDesk and Freelancer, I can tell you that there's a reason most of the rates are so low on those sites. I've also seen what most designers on those sites come up with and again, it's not work that screams top-tier creative agency, which is exactly why they're doing gigs on Freelancer in the first place.

    The last thing I'll mention about most top-tier creative companies is that they are almost always founded by people who have worked in other top-tier creative companies. A couple of friends will leave one company to start another, often taking a few of their clients with them. Which makes sense: a creative agency is business-to-business focused, not business-to-consumer focused, which means that having a pre-established network of clients and former clients is crucial.

    My point is not that you have to create a company that does the things mentioned above. But if you really want to be "big", that's the bar you're going to have to meet. On the other hand, you can scale down your expectations and still be relatively successful (though I still think outsourcing work on Freelancer is a really bad model for this sort of company.)

    One thing you have going for you is your age. Instead of creating a low-tier web development shop now, you could some time working at an existing creative agency, getting paid to work on exciting projects for important clients, gaining valuable experience, knowledge of what it takes to run a successful company and building up your network. Even if you spent the next 10 years working for someone else, you'd only be 29 when you started your own company. Something to consider anyway.

    A last point is that I think few people on the WF really have any experience with these sorts of companies. If you really want to find out what it takes to build and run a company like that, why not contact a few? Most of these agencies are pretty small and if you were to do a little research, I bet you could find email addresses for some of these companies founders. Why not send a few of them an email introducing yourself and asking if they'd be willing to chat with you for 15 minutes on the phone? Clearly not all of them would be willing to chat, but I think you'd be surprised at how many would be glad to give you a bit of their time if you pitch yourself right. And who knows? Maybe they have positions open too!

    Good luck!
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    • Profile picture of the author kodewhizz
      Originally Posted by kilgore View Post

      If you want to "make it BIG", the first thing to understand the top development companies aren't really development companies -- they're creative companies. And there's a huge difference between the two. The business that you're talking about is a company that hacks together Wordpress websites. But what a creative company does -- especially the "big" ones -- is conceive and implement digital campaigns. When you hire one of these companies, you not only get a few developers to build you a website, you get a whole team to conceive of and implement a successful campaign. People like designers, a project manager and a creative director. And I'd add that only part of these goals might be related to a website. Social media, email, digital advertising and even more traditional media such as TV and print advertising can come into this process.

      And it should be no surprise that the best creative agencies have top-tier talent -- not a bunch of second (or third) rate coders that you find on Freelancer. My background is in web development, DevOps and IT management, so I know good code. And having hired a couple of jobs from oDesk and Freelancer, I can tell you that there's a reason most of the rates are so low on those sites. I've also seen what most designers on those sites come up with and again, it's not work that screams top-tier creative agency, which is exactly why they're doing gigs on Freelancer in the first place.

      The last thing I'll mention about most top-tier creative companies is that they are almost always founded by people who have worked in other top-tier creative companies. A couple of friends will leave one company to start another, often taking a few of their clients with them. Which makes sense: a creative agency is business-to-business focused, not business-to-consumer focused, which means that having a pre-established network of clients and former clients is crucial.

      My point is not that you have to create a company that does the things mentioned above. But if you really want to be "big", that's the bar you're going to have to meet. On the other hand, you can scale down your expectations and still be relatively successful (though I still think outsourcing work on Freelancer is a really bad model for this sort of company.)

      One thing you have going for you is your age. Instead of creating a low-tier web development shop now, you could some time working at an existing creative agency, getting paid to work on exciting projects for important clients, gaining valuable experience, knowledge of what it takes to run a successful company and building up your network. Even if you spent the next 10 years working for someone else, you'd only be 29 when you started your own company. Something to consider anyway.

      A last point is that I think few people on the WF really have any experience with these sorts of companies. If you really want to find out what it takes to build and run a company like that, why not contact a few? Most of these agencies are pretty small and if you were to do a little research, I bet you could find email addresses for some of these companies founders. Why not send a few of them an email introducing yourself and asking if they'd be willing to chat with you for 15 minutes on the phone? Clearly not all of them would be willing to chat, but I think you'd be surprised at how many would be glad to give you a bit of their time if you pitch yourself right. And who knows? Maybe they have positions open too!

      Good luck!
      Thanks for such a detailed reply. So much to learn here. Really valuable suggestions. I was blown away by most of the stuff I read here. I will definitely take massive action on all of this.
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  • Profile picture of the author RoVaMarketing
    I like Kay King's post. Technically you already have a company, you're offering your services to the market and making money. This is referred to as a sole proprietorship, a type of business. If you want to take the next step, I would look at using a site like Legal Zoom to formally and legally form a business entity to operate through. You don't even need to change your current strategy (which is apparently working). An LLC will allow you to open a bank account in the name of your business, and open the doors of credit in the name of your business. All of which will be a requirement for expanding your business in the way you intend.
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    • Profile picture of the author Enfusia
      1st off, congratulations. You're farther along than most will ever be already.

      The two things you need are a website to show the world what you can do, I.E portfolio and to sell them on your services.

      The 2nd thing you need is really high quality targeted traffic.

      For the site, it sounds like you will likely have that covered given your skill set.

      For the traffic might I suggest a post by a very good traffic getter/seo guy by the name of Brian Dean. You can read all about it here: Link Building Case Study: How I Increased My Search Traffic by 110% in 14 Days


      After that, everything else is optional.


      So, in truth you don't need but about a $20 budget.


      Have fun and enjoy the growth.


      Patrick
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    • Profile picture of the author kodewhizz
      Originally Posted by RoVaMarketing View Post

      I like Kay King's post. Technically you already have a company, you're offering your services to the market and making money. This is referred to as a sole proprietorship, a type of business. If you want to take the next step, I would look at using a site like Legal Zoom to formally and legally form a business entity to operate through. You don't even need to change your current strategy (which is apparently working). An LLC will allow you to open a bank account in the name of your business, and open the doors of credit in the name of your business. All of which will be a requirement for expanding your business in the way you intend.
      I'm from Pakistan. Is it still possible? And would much cash would I need for the initial investment? Thanks
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  • Profile picture of the author Asadullah72
    Hi,

    I am in the same position as like you though am a markers. I guess you should take one more year and build up your won team. Then when you have 10-20 people in your team you should go for company. Thanks
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  • Profile picture of the author DURABLEOILCOM
    Originally Posted by kodewhizz View Post

    Hello fellow Warriors.
    I need some help. I'm 19, currently doing web development ( WordPress) projects on Fiverr. I make around $500-700/month.
    Its been 2 months now and I want to upscale it by launching my own web development company. Wan't to make it Bigger and on a Larger scale. Can someone please advise me regarding the costs and initial investment? Any kind of feedback would be very much appreciated.
    Thanks all!

    Get yourself an excellent reputation on Fiverr start offering more upscale extras. Get your services on every single Free Lance website out there.
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  • Profile picture of the author kodewhizz
    UPDATE: Got 2 Big clients in the last 2 days. I've agreed $450 each for both websites (Woocommerce stores). Plus two new orders from returning clients ( Around $500) .All this is so overwhelming. Thanks everyone.
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  • Profile picture of the author Sumon2k7
    Originally Posted by kodewhizz View Post

    Hello fellow Warriors.
    I need some help. I'm 19, currently doing web development ( WordPress) projects on Fiverr. I make around $500-700/month.
    Its been 2 months now and I want to upscale it by launching my own web development company. Wan't to make it Bigger and on a Larger scale. Can someone please advise me regarding the costs and initial investment? Any kind of feedback would be very much appreciated.
    Thanks all!
    To make a web development company, are you considering to opening up a new website or a new office?
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    • Profile picture of the author kodewhizz
      Originally Posted by Sumon2k7 View Post

      To make a web development company, are you considering to opening up a new website or a new office?
      Both. First the website,then office.
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      • Profile picture of the author DWolfe
        Since you are from Pakistan look up the laws and tax requirements in your country, they will be different than the US were a lot posters are from in this thread. What type of accounting system are you going to use to keep track of tax information.


        Here are things to consider with a office:


        A office is going to cost monthly rent, do you have a budget to cover it ? The office will also require utilities figure that into a budget. What supplies are you going to need every day, week, month, etc. You will also need basic office furniture these are things to consider. You can go spend a small amount or a large amount but have a idea in how much you can afford each month.

        Work out of home as much as long as you can. Once you outgrow it and can afford a office then look to get one. Employees can be another headache the more you hire the more it costs you. Some great businesses run with very few people and make a fortune. Once you lose your best employee, or have to fire a few to get the right staff you quickly realize it is not easy.

        Try to increase your profits and sales with dealing with fewer and fewer customers over time. Better to have a few who pay more then dozens that will never be satisfied.You do not need to be as big as Apple or Google to enjoy running a business.
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  • Profile picture of the author paladinseo
    so ur fine with the 20% fiverr fee and now want to pay 50-60% fee to your goverment? + taxes + papers etc
    If u wanna upscale just hire some va's
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