[davismwfl]

I get wanting to have a plan but don't overthink it too much either. Get out and meet people and network. That is the only way to grow your network and get more work.

Also talk to your primary and ask them for recommendations to clients they turned down for being outside their target demographic. Also make sure you get your primary to provide you a written recommendation as early as you can in these projects. I know this sounds odd but all software projects will have struggles and I always found getting recommendations early meant I got much better ones then when schedule changed etc. Even if we were not at fault the recommendation would be less then I would have liked when I waited too long.

Last comment. As for your plan the one key thing to identify is your ideal client type, size etc. It is less about Technology and more about client demographics. This helps you create a target client list and start hammering the ground finding contacts in to them.

[wildengineer]

> This helps you create a target client list and start hammering the ground finding contacts in to them.

I don't have any experience in sales, but I'm eager to learn. Any advice on which content I should consume in this area?

[davismwfl]

Reading your responses to others too, you'll need to find your feet in sales quick before years end. Personally, I have grown and sold a couple of consulting businesses (failed at lots of things too). The key for me was never really which technology we used, it was always about finding a customer demographic I could target and where I had some expertise to help. We crossed nearly all industries but in general I targeted clients with a minimum of $1M/revenue per year up to $50M/year and less than 400 people and privately owned (non-public companies) -- including startups. The key is finding companies who have quick decision processes and who are not as formal as large public corporations generally. We did have a few large Fortune 100 clients as we grew but they were decidedly outside our target clients but we had expertise they would pay well for.

I always recommend people new to sales/marketing read "Crossing the Chasm", it has been continually updated and is essentially how to sell new technology products to the general market. While you aren't selling a product in the traditional sense, you are selling a dynamic product which is you and your skills. So while there will be parts of the book that seem not as relevant it will still help you get a broad understanding of how to market/sell your services. And think of the product as yourself, that's what you are selling when you are a one person dev shop.

I am happy to share my experiences if you have specific questions, I struggled starting my first agency as I didn't have anyone to ask questions to and just had to screw up a ton to figured out what to do. I was super lucky many many times that I didn't tank that business, but was within days of doing so multiple times.

[GoldenMonkey]

A rule of thumb here. Companies with 20-30 employees can afford $75-125/hr contracting rates. And these smaller companies will take less time to sign contracts and start.

[wildengineer]

Thank you. I will pick up that book. Perhaps I can send questions your way once I've digested all this advice and books?

[davismwfl]

Sure, you can find my contact details in my profile.