Yesterday we got personal, today we get serious. About clients. How many that is. How many you need before taking the big leap. A slippery subject, it depends on several factors, not the least of which are:

• Your overhead
• Your revenue goals
• How much time you have to work on freelance projects
• How good you are at marketing your talents
• And of course, how talented you are

Can you start out a business with only one client? Sure. Some designers, like James Archer of Forty Media, have even done it with none.

For the designer who heads out with just the one, it’s typically due to a client giving them a good amount of work. But if that relationship sours, it’s potentially big time dangerous. Unless you have adequate capital to cover yourself (and most don’t), you’re back out looking for an in-house job. Real quick.

Walk a ways with us to see what often happens … You get a freelance client. They give you a ton of work. So much so that you’re bringing in more money than at your in-house job. You take the leap of freedom, but in essence, you only changed jobs. You were figuring that you’ll get more clients being on your own. Problem is, Mr. Big Client is keeping you so busy, you don’t market your business. Then disaster strikes. Your contact leaves the company and the new person brings on “their people.” Or another designer snags them. Or you have a falling out. Or the company goes under. Or they just don’t need you anymore. Instead of enjoying the next phase in running a business, soon you’re flat broke. You’re scratching through the want ads. Or worse.

Here’s three thoughts on single clients and income

1. The typical client/designer relationship last three years
2. If you’re making the majority of your income from one client, the tax people may want to classify you as an employee
3. If that one, single client represents more than 40% of your total revenue, you could be on shaky financial ground

A good target would be at least two “anchor” clients that generate, say, 50% of your revenue. If one goes south, you’ll take a hit, but will still be floating. The other 50% comes from four to six smaller clients.

And don’t forget the turnover rate of three years. New business really is the live blood of a designer’s practice. So to keep the client flow, you really do need to keep marketing.

Coming next will be couple of client confessions. Ours, not the client’s. (Oh, how, we, wish!)

See you there,
The BoDo Team
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Welcome to BoDo’s first Podcast Humpday.

Midweek, on Wednesdays (hence the hump in Humpday), I’ll review podcasts on the business of design, running a business, pretty much anything to do with BoDo’s subject matter. Later on there will be a mix - BoDo podcasts, as well as those we feel are a ‘must hear’.

If you are a podcaster, contact me as I’d love to hear from you.

Now on to our first Podcast Humpday …

James, the internal entrepreneur, goes external.

You won’t find distractions on Sean Tierney’s (Grid7 Venturecast) interview with James Archer. What you will find is roughly 45 minutes of pure business talk. A near-on 45 minutes of James. Delivered, as promised.

The subject of this podcast is entrepreneur and owner of Forty Media, a web design, web development, award winning branding agency in Arizona, USA. Confident of their services, Forty Media invites visitors to shop around at their competition. Rare. I’m impressed.

An incomplete synopsis of the podcast (only enough to tantalize) is how James slide into web design via technical writing. How he moved into project management, where he learned how to work with clients, proposals, designers, etc. It goes on to tell how James reached a point where his fear of going out on his own and failing, was less than his fear of never doing it.

The conversation flows well, with tips business of design start-ups should pay special attention to - the kind of information seasoned business owners know well.

Listening to the podcast, I thought about the domain name been-there-done-that.com (btw - it’s taken) as that’s exactly what we’ll be doing here on BoDo. Bringing in advice from those like James, who have been there, done that.

Advice from James:

The creative side and working with clients are just a portion of your business … there is a lot of stuff you don’t want to learn, but you’ve just gotta learn … you have to do it because it’s what keeps your business operational.

The key to surviving in a small business is willing to take those hits, learn from them, and move on.

Lessons learned:

The value of a good contract and writing good proposals (as you never know where things are going to go).

A contract doesn’t do you a whole lot of good without guiding the client in what’s going to happen. Write contracts to allow flexibility, yet with clear guidelines.

What qualifies as an entrepreneur:

… the willingness to learn and change quickly … the ability to come in, see a situation, decide you want to do and conquer it … decide what you want to get done and just get it done … even if it’s not pleasant, do it anyway.

Elevator pitch:

40 media is a solid Branding and Creative firm. We understand how to get inside your customer’s head without being detached from the technical side.

An interesting and well-done podcast, it continues on with communication tools, modern compared to pre-google systems, project management applications, zoho creator, notepad, productivity, GTD, 37signals, Fruitcast, podcasts, 9rules, Arizona, the start up mentality, doing something different, bad clients, bad contractors, Refresh Phoenix and making a difference.

James Archer’s parting comment:

Get good at what you want to do and do it. No looking back.

Until the next
Podcast Humpday,
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