A Beginner's Guide to Freelance Development

I've been a freelance developer for a few years now. I've worked with a lot of different clients, and I've learned a lot about the freelance development process. I've also seen a lot of people make mistakes when they're just starting out. I want to share what I've learned with you, so you can avoid making the same mistakes I did.

The Business Side of Freelancing

A lot of people suck at business.

They're good at coding but the whole "talk to clients... follow up with clients... get off on the right foot" type of stuff is hard to pick up.

I made a simple template for the first meeting that's served me well, so I figured I'd share it.

Client Meeting Template

1. Pre-Meeting Preparation

• Research the client - Understand their business, competitors, and industry
• Draft key questions - Cover their goals, target audience, must-have features, and design preferences
• Clarify budget & timeline - Ensure alignment on expectations

2. Key Questions to Ask

Business & Goals

• What's the main purpose of this website? (Lead generation, e-commerce, portfolio, blog, etc.)
• Who is your target audience?
• What problems are you solving with this website?
• Are there any competitors or reference websites you like?

Content & Features

• What core pages do you need? (Home, About, Contact, Services, Blog, etc.)
• Do you need a CMS? (e.g., WordPress, Next.js + headless CMS, Webflow)
• Will you provide content (text, images, videos), or do you need help creating it?
• Any integrations required? (CRM, email marketing, payment gateways, analytics, etc.)
• Any custom functionalities? (User accounts, booking systems, interactive tools)

Design & Branding

• Do you have existing branding? (logo, colors, fonts)
• Any specific design preferences or examples you love?
• What's the visual style? (minimal, bold, corporate, creative, etc.)

Technical & Logistics

• Do you have a domain & hosting, or do you need help setting that up?
• What's your expected traffic volume?
• Do you need multilingual support?
• Any compliance requirements? (ADA, GDPR)

Timeline & Budget

• What's your desired launch date?
• What's your budget range?

3. During the Meeting

• Take detailed notes - Or record if they allow it
• Confirm priorities - Some features might be optional for phase two
• Sketch or map out ideas - Even rough wireframes can help visualize their needs

4. After the Meeting

• Summarize key takeaways & send a recap
• Provide a timeline with milestones
• Suggest the best tech stack based on needs
• Get sign-off on scope before development

Final Thoughts

This template has helped me close more deals and avoid scope creep. The key is being thorough upfront – it saves time and headaches later. Feel free to adapt it to your style and the specific needs of your projects.

Remember: good communication is just as important as good code when you're freelancing.