I’ve recently had several people asking me to help them build websites. Given that it’s kind of “what I do”, and that my employer only pricks their ears up if numbers far in excess of those being suggested are mentioned, I am probably pretty safe earning a few beans here and there.
It opens another can of worms with HR at work though - who take an interest in the amount of work we are doing. They (quite rightly) see freelance work in the same light as our normal professional work, and worry that spending time and energy with computers away from the office will impact our performance within it. Where that understanding falls down of course is in the realisation that computers and the internet are my life.
I spent on average 12 hours each day in front of one screen or another. 7 of those hours are working. The remainder are spent variously surfing, learning, absorbing, playing and communicating. Without those hours I would have nothing like the knowledge I have of HTML, Javascript, CSS, and a raft of other technologies and products. Attaining that knowledge through more conventional channels would take perhaps a day out of each week, and would cost tens of thousands per year in training costs.
So. I’m going to start doing some freelance work. It therefore made sense that I have some kind of base on the internet to market myself…
Beckett Web Design burst into existence during coffee breaks today. It’s amazing what you can do in a couple of hours given a little know-how, a little knowledge, and a few ideas.
I am also looking at SugarCRM as a centralised client relationship management solution that I can use going forwards. I have used Basecamp in the past, but it annoyed the hell out of me. I heard about SugarCRM while listening to one of Leo Laporte’s TWiT podcasts.
Although I haven’t advertised the fact yet on the site, I’m guessing the advantage I have over most web design bods is that I can write code… invent databases… that kind of thing. I can also make websites look pretty too - which apparently is quite rare - to have both skills.
So! If you want a website built, fiddled with, altered, changed, designed, or otherwise monkeyed with, feel free to get in touch - you can even send an email to my shiny new address - jonathan@beckettwebdesign.com.