portfolio or company website? Help please

[Ma|2ksman]

Ok, I am getting into the web designing business and I was going to print off some business cards but I wasnt sure if I should have a web designing company or just me as a freelancer and then have a website with my portfolio and stuff. I am thinking that the freelancer would be best but correct me if I am wrong. Thanks a lot.

[rafiki55]

Well are you a company? Do you have a regsitered company name? Would you trust a one (wo)man company?

Most likely you'll just want to be a "freelancer".

Don't try to be something you're not because clients see through that fairly quickly.


Just my 2 cents.

[LuxFX]

There are dramatic tax advantages for registering as a business and working under that name. Plus, while there will always be the occassional client that would rather work with an individual, generally acting as a business looks more professional and you might get more respect from your clients.

Of course, YMMV

[MG315]

...unless you're not a business. yes, you look more professional as a business rather than a freelancer, but you look even less professional pretending to be a business.


if its a one man "company", i'd go with a portfolio. if you have multiple people working under a company name, with all the things associated with a company, then go with company.

[LuxFX]

So what is a 'business'? A 'business' does not have to have multiple people in order to be a business, it just has to be registered as a business entity.

For many years I worked as a freelancer, then I decided to incorporate and registered as an LLC. I didn't hire anybody, or buy office space. The only difference was a bit more paperwork, taxes being a little more complicated, and opening a new bank account.

I've run this business for about a year and a half now, and my only regret is working for so long as a freelancer. All of my equipment, software, a significant portion of my rent, my cell phone, mileage on my car -- it's all tax deductable. And the respect has increased greatly -- my clients see my as a peer instead of a peon.

As long as you have professionalism, a registered business name, you give them a W-9 instead of a W-2, and you have a bank account so your clients can write checks to a business, then it's not pretending.

[MG315]

Originally posted by LuxFX
then I decided to incorporate and registered as an LLC...the only difference was a bit more paperwork, taxes being a little more complicated, and opening a new bank account.

correct, but what i was referring to was simply declaring yourself as a business because you have a domain name and think it "sounds better." of course if you are going to do all the extra paperwork, get the bank accounts...everything you need to establish a business, its ok. but simply calling yourself a business with nothing to back it up is not ok.

another thing that these "pseudo businesses" do a lot is refer to themselves in first person plural. Eventhough its just one person in their bedroom on a computer, they say things like "Our creative team will develop your new media experience in our in house development studio, utilizing all our resources, guaranteeing we can offer you more than any of our competitors..." you know, the general web design jargon you see on websites.

those are the two big problems people starting up do. to try and sound more professional and established, they pretend like they are a business and refer to themselves as "we" or "our" when usually its just one person. What's so bad about saying "I"?

[LuxFX]

Originally posted by MG315
correct, but what i was referring to was simply declaring yourself as a business because you have a domain name and think it "sounds better."

Ah, I see what you misunderstood. When I said "acting as a business" I meant it in the legal sense instead of the dramatic sense

I can see the 'I' vs 'We' thing both ways, and I end up using one as much as the other. When I'm talking to a client and they ask me when they can see a mockup, for instance, of course I say "I can get it to you on Friday...." But when I'm representing the Business (capital 'b') I will usually use plural. For instance, "We've recently add video editing and DVD authoring to our capabilities."

It's partly because the business is technically myself and my wife (she handles the paperwork and some of the accounting / ledgerwork, but after we have the baby this summer she'll be helping in a project-manager type fashion). But it's also partly because, legally again, the Business itself is an entity. So whenever I think about it consciously like that, it really feels like a 1st person plural situation.

I do not believe in a 'pretend' business using plural -- or really even somebody registered as sole proprieter instead of a corporation or LLC. (though I'd be lying if I said I never did it myself )