Great post.

To extend your last statement there (re: traditional marketing methods) – don’t overlook the power of traditional face to face networking. A lot of people fall into the trap of relying too heavy on their web presence to generate leads for them but overlook the people right here in town who would gladly throw them cash to do work for them if only they met the freelancer in person. Not only that, but the trust level tends to be higher when there is a face to face meeting involved, which in turn, usually causes more referrals from them to other locals that they know. Thus, getting out to the chamber of commerce, toastmaster, BNI, or other networking meetings is usually a good source of leads and socialization.

Not only that, but be sure to go outside your normal circle of people – go where your customers are (Which is to say, if you are a web designer or social media consultant, trim down on the number of meetings you go to with other people like you). Don’t think like a power user or like someone in your industry, think about your extended family or the complete newbie – where would they go to socialize and to mingle? Regular business people tend to hang out in certain spots, so if you make yourself visible & available there, you’ll have a greater likelihood of earning some leads from the effort. Same with regular (non-technical) people who are either corporate buyers or influence the decision makers at their work – they have certain areas that they hang out, and so go where they are. It’s good to talk shop with other people who do what you do, but really, how much business is that going to generate for you? Fish where the fish are, not where the other sharks/fishermen are.

Anyways, found you via EmpireAve. Liked this post and thought I’d say Hello and comment.

Cheers,
@BruceServen

The topic of designing to a grid brings up a good point about having layout parameters. To get an in-depth understanding of an excellent grid system I would recommend checking out http://gantry-framework.org. This system is offered in both a 12 or 16-column layout and is highly customizable for CMS.

And by all means, it’s far better to have a sketch of your design, even if you can only muster “stick peolple”.

Your blog is inspiring. Good to know we are not alone. Ps I am a newbie web designer.

Now I have a core of good customers with whom I have an excellent working relationship the less time I waste on problem customers the more time I can devote to the good guys.