How much money do you make freelancing

[codeguy]

I'm trying to get a rough estimate on how much you guys and gals here make money freelancing online. Is this something I should pursue full time or take it slowly. What are the pros and cons of being a freelancer online.

[eero4492]

Anywhere from 'nothing' to a 'meager living'.
But have fun.

[superscripts]

I make over $550,000 a year freelancing online. I only started freelancing for about three years when my last job decided to fire me after 5 years of hard work and labor building their business for them. I feel a job is never as safe as your own business. In my fist year I made about 75,000. My second year I topped 150,000 and this year I already made over 370,000 and only half the year is over.

Well let me give you some great tips.

1. I never forget to keep my clients happy which always has them coming for more. Don't think about the money too much when dealing with a client always think of a client as am opportunity. Then when they need you they will be willing to spend more to someone they trust can get the job done and be honest.

2. I always tell them of other services that I offer. So I sell them on other things that I have. If they trust me with programming their internal systems what makes you thing they wont trust me when I sell them my hosting package.

3. Never forget to keep the client happy at all time. Money is not everything in life. But making a new friend is.

4. Never accept a bid that is way to low for the work to be done. I mean it. Even you India programmers should not do it. Trust ma a client doesn't want a shitty job just as much as a freelancer doesn't want $20 for an entire website design project. If a freelancer is getting paid a fair amount for a job, they will feel more indulged to put their best work in for a client that cares for them. Even if that means tightening up the code and implementing security features that the webmaster never even asked for.

Most webmasters need to understand that programming and design is the same as art. You will never get anywhere if you think you will get services for cheap. Let them know you want to get creative. Remember, just like a lawyer, you the web designer are in charge. You are the one that they need. Let them know up-font "You pay for what you get". If they take care of you, you will in return take care of them. Remember this!

For those webmasters that do not have a lot of money to start building their ideas, try to negotiating. A webmaster can offer sales incentives and commissions off sales for a cheap upfront payment for design work done now. Webmasters will often keep their promises, cause they know you will be the one that will take their business to new levels.

I found myself having to negotiate with webmasters a lot especially if they didn't have much to spend. But in the end both I and my client ended up with working together for the long term. I did my best job for them knowing that it was going to pay off and it did.

[superscripts]

#1 rule is to keep garnering clients and sell them services that you offer. I offer services such as hosting and programming. So anytime they need this service from me my clients just hit me on IM. By the time I develop a relationship with my clients I earn their trust just as much as they earn mine. I also gather a few freelancers that I use on a few of the freelance sites and I pay them for tiny jobs that I cannot do myself. As long as I am administering my freelancers the job always gets done and I can now handle more work for my clients. I currently have about 300 clients right now. About 30 of them IM me almost everyday for little jobs worth an average of $50 - $100 a job. You do the math. The rest I have as hosting clients and I charge a total of 20 for hosting per month. Everyday I also get a lot of odd jobs, but the jobs just keep on coming in. Just use the freelance sites to get your clients and do everything possible to retain them with reliability and trust. You will do just fine.