FAO Website Creators

hybrid · 26 Nov 2006 at 12:28

Just wondering how many of you actually make money out of designing website and if so, do you have a registered company name or do you just do it on the side?

Reason im asking is because someone came to me and asked me to do a website for a non-profitable company.

Where do i stand?

Any help would be great.

Cheers. :-)

Beansprout · 26 Nov 2006 at 12:32

We're a limited company, but most web designers are probably sole traders if they operate on their own and do lots of freelancing. There's various benefits to each option, but for your situation I wouldn't bother forming a company

hybrid · 26 Nov 2006 at 12:34

Nice info thanks.

How do people who freelance go about payments though? Does it all have to go through the books and whatnot or do you just run the taxman risk?

Sic · 26 Nov 2006 at 16:51

you should declare everything. however, if you're only doing small jobs on the side, you can try and get away with this. i, in no way advocate it, or do it myself, as all income earned by me in freelance projects is run by the tax man. just not worth the risk

Beansprout · 26 Nov 2006 at 16:58

hybrid said:
do you just run the taxman risk?

robmiller · 26 Nov 2006 at 17:04

I never even come close to earning £5,035 a year in anything, so I don't declare it. This might change this year, 'cause I want to do more work and save up for both a car and a 350D, but I don't know

Boycie · 26 Nov 2006 at 17:27

We run it along side our primary business activity just for a quick money maker. We've never advertised it and we usually just do it for people who have been recommended to us by a past client. :cool:

Luke

Cheetah Designs · 26 Nov 2006 at 17:38

robmiller said:
I never even come close to earning £5,035 a year in anything, so I don't declare it. This might change this year, 'cause I want to do more work and save up for both a car and a 350D, but I don't know

.....but some of us are good...

Only kidding, i'm awful so i can hardly talk

zetec452 · 26 Nov 2006 at 17:54

I get paid in camels, avoids all tax implications and I get enough food off one to last at least a month. Sometimes a scabby donkey will do.

Mr^B · 26 Nov 2006 at 17:54

I earn too much working for other people to think about the hassle of setting up my own business.

robmiller · 26 Nov 2006 at 18:23

Cheetah Designs said:
.....but some of us are good...

I charge the going rate, I just don't work that much—a combination of laziness, not needing the money that much, and a lack of clients—if people were hammering the door down to get me to work for them then I'm sure I'd do more.

I could probably get more work if I really wanted to, which I will do over the next year (hopefully!).

joeyjojo · 26 Nov 2006 at 18:34

On the side here. Friends of friends and word of mouth, no proper advertising. Just for fun really, I aim to give myself about £10/hour when speccing costs, which is nice as I don't have a proper job (lazy student).

toString · 26 Nov 2006 at 20:09

robmiller said:
I never even come close to earning £5,035 a year in anything, so I don't declare it.

Is that the limit before you have to tell the tax man?

I'd love to do freelance web work, however I don't think I really have the skillz.

Sic · 26 Nov 2006 at 22:39

JonRohan said:
Sometimes a scabby donkey will do.

fnar!

sorry...thought i was in GD

zetec452 · 27 Nov 2006 at 00:06

Sic said:
fnar!

sorry...thought i was in GD

GET OUT

Augmented · 27 Nov 2006 at 00:34

As a full-time, employed web developer I make my living from website design, which the taxman takes more than his fair share. So anything else that I happened to do on the side, if I was, would be my pocket-money... and mine alone.

Personally I think that doing it [fulltime] freelance is a bit of a feckless task. Why bother with all the extra hassle beyond the fun designing stuff, when you can get someone else to deal with all that malarkey and pay you for the privilege

. Plus you get free coffee, biscuits and hot chicks.

blade007 · 27 Nov 2006 at 01:21

i do internet stuff. I am sole trader. But I only do that some of the time .. can't depend on that income. so i work as IT manager part-time. freelance web and seo guy all other.

Tony Williams · 27 Nov 2006 at 01:59

Adverts tbh.

robmiller · 27 Nov 2006 at 07:35

KingAdora said:
Is that the limit before you have to tell the tax man?

It's the tax allowance for anybody under 65. I'm not sure if you still have to declare it or not, but AFAIK it's only a problem if you break through the threshold and don't declare it. IANAA, though.

Dj_Jestar · 27 Nov 2006 at 09:01

Augmented said:
As a full-time, employed web developer I make my living from website design, which the taxman takes more than his fair share. So anything else that I happened to do on the side, if I was, would be my pocket-money... and mine alone.

Personally I think that doing it [fulltime] freelance is a bit of a feckless task. Why bother with all the extra hassle beyond the fun designing stuff, when you can get someone else to deal with all that malarkey and pay you for the privilege . Plus you get free coffee, biscuits and hot chicks.

Something about working only 1 or 2 days a week from home, yet gettting the same amount or more, being your own boss, and working when *you* want to.. but meh, the hot chicks throws all of that away.

I came close to registering a company, but laziness got the better of me.