Just a question......

How many of you use Coffee Cup Software to design websites for others, commercially. In other words you design websites for compensation, like a web design freelancer?

If so, how do you go about looking for clients and getting their business.

Just a thought......

The sites I currently maintain mostly just fell into my lap. I would be talking about my personal site and they would ask if I did it myself, and they they would say something like "Our site is a mess. Think you could fix it?" Next thing I knew, I had five sites including my own.

I think I have read that others have walked down a business street offering their services to build websites.

I have been fortunate enough to work full time hours for my current employer. Do I freelance? Sure, on my own time. I only agree to accept work that I feel 'overqualified' for, and for a fair price. That way, I know that I am more than capable of getting the job done, and feel that I am adequately paid for my time. This means that I turn down more than 90% of the freelance work offered to me....and it's not because I feel under-qualified.

I do not use the Visual Site Designer for freelance work. If someone wants to 'take over the site' after it is built, VSD is the perfect choice due to ease of use and built-in ftp, so I do keep that option open.

As for looking for clients, my only tool is my website. To "get their business", I offer a free 'example' of my work, using their company logo and colours I design a template and examples of what they might need...database, forms, online quizes, slide shows, navigation and such. If they like it, we go from there. If not, no problem. That first 'look at what I can do for you' is always free, so the client has their freedom to choose without an up front cost.

I have done two sites for some clients, but only using the VSD, I have tried using the HTML editor but don't have much time to mess around with it.

At times CSS and HTML seem very confusing!

I like doing web design for others, especially when the see how useful their site will be.

Any tips on how to advertise or market such services?

Build your own site showcasing your ability.
Produce some business cards and don't be shy to hand them out.
Watch for opportunities. I often hear "If I knew a web designer, I'd hire him on the spot!". They are not always serious, but it's a foot in the door.

Be carefull not to oversell your abilities. If you can't hand code, you may have difficulty making any custom pages. Some customers will want more than what VSD can produce.

Seriously. Bulletin boards in restaurants where professionals eat lunch. Tuck one in each library book before you turn it back in. Drop them by the sink in restrooms. Annoy your golf league buddies with their own copies. See if your local chamber of commerce has a bulletin board. Move those cards like a drug dealer with a load of crack.

Thanks for all your suggestions.....

How would you all recommend the best way to quickly learning HTML and CSS along with programming.

I know its a vast field but I'm looking for some solid groundwork....

Thank you,

Have you checked out w3schools.com?

Check out the CoffeeCup Online Store and you can download a PDF book ($19) about web design.

Cheaper way is to find something you want to do, and view the source in the page. You can generally see how someone else did something, and then you can modify the technique to your own site.

Try to do something on your own, get stuck trying to do it, and post a link here. Then you will have several that have learned something in the past looking at what you are doing, and giving you help.

AND BOOKMARK w3schools. They have sections on html, css, javascript, etc.

Another source of help can be about.com. There are sections on many different topics, and many toutorials.

One last place to get information is http://www.wpdfd.com/ which I found as a link provided by CoffeeCup on the help page.

Another excellent way to get clients for Website Design services is to build a website talking about your services and then optimize it to draw people to it.

What better way to prove your value then by people finding you the way that they want their businesses to be found.