Some big questions to ask myself

Instead of wallowing in my free time, I have been using it to finally set up a website for my freelancing services, general writing news, links to my blogs, etc. It's going to be through Google Sites because I just don't have the money to front for my own domain/web host yet. But there are still so many questions I have because I want to do this right. It's for my business, after all. Some of my questions include:

* Do I have to register a business name if I want to use something other than my legal name?

* Should I advertise prices or make customers query every project?

* Is there a way to add html/javascript (easily) apps to these types of sites?

And I know I'll have many more questions as I get further into this process. Also, through all of this I need to keep up writing, working and find a better job to replace the last one (yep, I'm still procrastinating about that one).

That's why I spent the day yesterday finishing up the revisions on 277 Miles. These are finally out of the way so I can leave that project for awhile to get a fresh perspective later. This will also leave a little time for my poetry book. But, I still can't find the time to write any new work.

That's where a lifesaver is coming in: Yahoo Calendar. I have used this service off an on for years, but never really got the hang of checking it on a daily basis to make sure that I stick to my schedule. Now it will be pulled up every morning so I can better manage my time. This will keep me from those mid-morning podcast breaks and mid-afternoon Twitter checks.

A website on the horizon?

If you want to run a business, it’s all about the image. I have been thinking about that a lot lately. I’m still in the planning stages of getting a website together for my freelance work, and I know that most of the work will be in the design of the website. The design is not only what attracts traffic in the first place, but it is also what keeps customers coming back.

I have been to plenty of poorly designed websites before. I look around to find the information that I want, and usually it’s so hard to find (or not even there!) so I give up and find another website that provides better organization and information. And it’s sad, because some of these sites could really be useful with a little design work.

That’s why when I start my website (as soon as I have a year or so of fees and such saved up), I’m probably going to hire a web design expert. I’ve been looking around already at some, including Web Development Denver colorado and other smaller companies to see what exactly I can get and how affordable it will be. Surprisingly, it’s more affordable than I thought it would be. I’ll make no promises, but I think by this time next year I should have a professional freelancing site on the web. Ooh… something to look forward to!