I figured I should introduce myself before blogging a bit more:
My name is Cory Becker and I am the lead developer behind Email Responder Pro. I am also a full-time college student at the University of Nebraska at Omaha (good news: I graduate in about one year!) I work on products, such as this one, in between my hectic school schedule.
Becker Web Solutions, LLC was started three years ago as a high school graduation gift from my neighbor. He was trying to find a graduation gift and thought a nice watch would be good. His wife disagreed and told him he had to do something more memorable so he arranged for me to meet with his attorney to start a company. The bad news is that, although a company was a great gift, I had no business plan or sense of direction; I kept working on freelance web design projects.
Now going into my third year in business, I have decided to take a step back from what I had been doing to determine where I want the company to be in three years. The biggest goal that I have set is that I want the company to be sustainable. The advantage of freelancing is that it is a quick way to make money. The disadvantage is that as soon as you stop working on a freelancing project, only one thing continues to come in: bills.
To reach the goal, I must do these three things:
- Transition the company from freelance to a product-based company
- Keep customers happy
- Have fun and create a strong culture
What are your thoughts on freelancing? How did you transition your company from freelancing to a product-based company?
