Tag Archive for: Crain

How Do You Calculate What You’re Worth?

Ever wondered how people calculate what they are worth, per hour, or per job?

Due to being asked about why I charge $88 per hour (minimum 3 hour blocks), I thought it would be interesting to ‘investigate’ and finally answer this question.

OK, let’s get to it.

First up, I’d like to say that I’m not the highest paid WordPress Professional. There are many freelancers like me, that took it upon themselves to build their own name / brand, instead of working for another company, for a lot less money – resulting in more hours needed to work for the same money.

In the beginning, it is hard – no doubt. YOU need to chase work, often working many more hours for roughly the same money you’d earn working as an employee – or less!

The best advice I could give you (if you’re deciding to go down the freelancer road), is to have a willing partner who can see and understand what you are ‘trying’ to do, and support you, both morally and financially. My Mrs is the best.

My hourly rate has not changed in about 3 years. As of January 1, 2019, I am actually increasing it to $100 per hour (minimum 4 hour blocks).

Demand for my ‘skills’ are increasing due to the fact that more websites are being built with the WordPress Platform, both privately (blogs) and Business Websites, both static and eCommerce.

Being skilled in numerous coding languages is an obvious benefit. I learned basic HTML, CSS and JavaScript about 20 years ago, and followed this up with with PHP and SQL a few years later. I’m also quite ‘fluent’ in JQuery, JAVA, Ruby and Python to a lesser extent. There are pro’s and con’s with all languages. Some developers will absolutely love one code, and hate another, but in reality, they ‘can’ work together if you know how to implement properly.

Obviously, the deeper the understanding of ‘how’ the WordPress Platform works, the better.

To be a successful WordPress freelancer, you also need to know about a large number of plugins, how they ‘work’ and how to customize them, if need be. With new plugins being released every day, and existing plugins being updated regularly, there is a lot of work you need to do to stay on top of the game. BUT, if you enjoy it, it’s not a problem.

Right, the nitty-gritty of this post – MONEY.

There are websites that will give you an idea of what current rates are for freelancers, such as Hello Bonsai. Hello Bonsai gives you some options to choose from, see below.

As you can see, I’m actually on the lower end of what the going rates are. I believe (although cannot be certain), if you’re paying $140+ per hour, you are probably also paying for graphics etc. Personally, I just stick to what I do best – WordPress.

Is there a ‘demand’ for work at $120 per hour? Absolutely. BUT, as I’ve stated above, knowledge of various coding types and plugin (customization) is a must. My rate incorporates the knowledge and understanding of numerous coding types and plugin development, allowing me to do the work of, lets say 3 or 4 people. If you were to go to a Web Dev company offering what I can do, your website will cost you $200+ per hour. On that basis alone, I’m cheap.

Don’t get me wrong, sometimes I do get stuck on something, but it’s easy for me to pick up the phone, send an email or get onto a forum to help me solve a ‘problem’. That’s on me.

Instead of just taking my word for it, visit wpmudev to find out more of what I’ve screen-grabbed below, about Pricing Your Services.

If you visited this blog because you found it via Google etc, thanks for visiting.

There are lots of resources out there that allow you to judge what you should charge / pay (if you’re a client). Some people may have differing opinions on how to charge, and that’s fine. I haven’t been short of work for a long time, so I guess I’m doing something right?

Again, everyone will have their own ways to calculate their worth, with regards to WordPress freelancing. If you are just starting out, may I suggest that you work for an organisation for a few years to gain more of an insight into the industry, and gain some contacts. I did it the hard way, which isn’t bad, but at least I can offer the advice now.

For the record, I am contacted by at least a dozen people each week, wanting to know if I can help them. I can, but I’m up front about what I charge, and they say no thanks. It’s interesting to note, that some people have gone off and had work done by others, only to ‘come back’ when their website ‘breaks’. Sometimes I’ll help them, most time, I say no.

When you can choose who you work with, you know you’ve done something right. Word of mouth in this industry is supreme.

If you are looking at getting into this line of work, I wish you well, and if you require further help, please get in touch. If you came hear to read my thoughts and find out about how and why I charge what I do, I hope you now understand.

Like always, if you have a question, contact me.

/by

What is WordPress?

So, you were wondering what WordPress is. Let’s find out.

OK, Wikipedia describes it best (?), so here – ‘WordPress is a free and open-source content management system (CMS) based on PHP and MySQL. Features include a plugin architecture and a template system. It is most associated with blogging, but supports other types of web content including more traditional mailing lists and forums, media galleries, and online stores. Used by more than 60 million websites, including 30.6% of the top 10 million websites as of April 2018, WordPress is the most popular website management system in use. WordPress has also been used for other application domains such as pervasive display systems (PDS).’

You might still be thinking, Um ok, so what is WordPress?

Put simply, WordPress was originally used as a blogging platform, which after years of development (still ongoing really), allowed people, like me, to develop websites for personal use, as well as design, develop and build business websites – from a simple ‘this is me, this is what I do and I’m located here, so click here to contact me’, to a fully functioning eCommerce website allowing businesses to sell products and services online.

What WordPress allows any user to do, is almost limitless.

If you’re interested in setting up a ‘family’ website (for example), showing off some family photos you’ve posted on Instagram, and writing a blog post about work you’ve done on your house, or you may want to write about your holiday, it’s just so easy. Done right, you can set up affiliate links throughout your posts, advertise a friends’ business or use Google AdSense to earn revenue – even if it just pays for the website and hosting.

There are some drawbacks to operating a WordPress website.

Now, these drawbacks have nothing to do with WordPress itself. It has to do with people being cheap – paying for cheap hosting, using slow themes, as well as starting a project, thinking that it will be easy and the moment it seems too hard, people call it quits.

It’s not expensive to contact someone like me to help you through the initial setup phase. I can also teach you how to update your website themes and plugins, and guide you through to self management.

WordPress is not necessarily easy to navigate, but at the same time, you don’t need to be a rocket scientist to manage your own WordPress website.

Given the popularity of the platform, its’ usage will only grow bigger, and the need for more WordPress Professionals will also increase. You never know, you too, may find it as interesting as I do, and make a pretty good living from working your own hours, building and maintaining websites for others

Any questions? Like usual, Contact Me.

 

/by

ToR Browser and YOU

I’ve only ever had to deal with a couple of clients who won’t do anything online unless they use a ToR Browser.

My intention was to write at length, what I’ve found out about ToR and the people who use it, but what I began to write (original post was 7000 words and counting), was just way to complex for the average internet user to understand, and if you could understand it – it was pointless. I’ve kept this post to just over 1200 words.

Simple terms. If you don’t want to accept the following, what happens, will happen.

In my opinion, the vast majority of people that use the ToR Browser fit into just a few categories. The rest? Well, they’re just misinformed.

Paedophiles. Yes, those pieces of scum that ‘get off’ looking at kids. You understand.

Common (not very good at what they do) criminals. You know the type, the one with a backyard drug lab that orders their chemicals and what-not online. They ‘chat’ with other common thugs and criminals online, share their stories and ‘get off’ believing they are smarter than other people – such as police and computer forensic workers (hackers). Then you’ve got the even more petty ‘common criminal’ that deals in stolen goods. You might have a neighbour, for example, that heard you talk to your missus about something you wanted to buy, and suddenly they have one and then one day tell you they ‘have a mate’ that can get you one ‘at mates rates’. Odds are, this neighbour uses ToR, and deals with stolen goods.

The Paranoid. Some people are just generally paranoid about their internet usage. For example, you might like looking at porn, but don’t want ‘other people’ to know that you look at it. But who exatcly are the other people? The ones that run the porn site?I’ve got some very general and basic news for you (Mr Paranoid). That person that runs the porn site just does not care who you are. They do not care where you came from or what you do. All they want you to do, is to click on some advertisements, or sign up for premium content. And funnily enough, you have people using ToR Browser because they want to be anonymous, but end up signing up and paying for premium content – WITH their Credit Card. You’re no longer anonymous people!

The Misinformed. Fair enough, you’ve heard your friends mention this thing called the ToR Browser. They speak of it like it has it’s very own halo around it. It doesn’t, and it’s very far from it.

In my opinion, the Tor Browser is even more sinister than Torrent Sites like PirateBay. I say this because even though torrent sites ‘allow’ movie studios, and software developers (for example) to lose money, they don’t peddle in criminal activities, like the ToR Browser allow people to do. You’ve heard of the ‘dark web’, well unless you’re accessing ‘sites’ through ToR, you’re actually not on the ‘dark web’. The misinformed form a very strange group of people. On the one hand, they listen to people they ‘trust’, but these people they ‘trust’ have absolutely no knowledge or training with regards to internet security. Then, a person with even a fraction of basic knowledge will tell them that what they think they know, is false, the misinformed then ‘attack’ the one with an understanding.

Browsers such as Google Chrome and Microsoft Edge are very secure browsers. For the vast majority (99%+) of users, these browsers are more than enough to secure your connections. Need more security? That’s a whole new topic.

BUT, at the end of the day, if you are accessing a website that is not secured, data you enter on that website may be compromised. This has much more to do with the website you’re dealing with, rather than the browser you’re using. In fact, your Chrome / Edge Browser may have provided a safe browsing experience for you, but if the website you accessed it not secure, your data could be hijacked / stolen from THAT end (from the server the website is hosted on) – after you’ve provide your credit card details, for example.

This brings me back to the purpose of this post. WordPress.

WordPress can be slow. If you are using a cheap hosting company, if you built your own WordPress website, or if you are using a lot of plugins and a slow theme, and if you haven’t optimized your website, it will be slow. It’s just a Fact.

If you have visitors using ToR Browser, they are being routed and re-routed all over the world – attempting to hide who they are. Personally, I don’t get it. As I gave in the example above, they want to be anonymous, yet hand over their credit card details to pay for a good / service. With more and more sites now using WordPress for eCommerce, it makes no sense to use ToR. The fact that ToR reroutes around the world, it slows down their connection time to your website. EVERY time they click on a link, there’s latency (wait time) for the linked page to load its’ resources.

THIS now explains the purpose of the post. It’s only happened a couple of times, but when clients have suggested their site is slow, I’ll do a quick 2 minute test. The website will load in under 3 seconds, which isn’t all that bad.

I have several suggestions.

  1. If customers complain that your WordPress website is very slow, ask them what browser they are using.
  2. If they are using ToR, ask them why. If you operate a secured site, tell them it’s secure, and to use Chrome or Edge.
  3. Block ToR Browser. It’s very simple. See below.

Think about where your customers are based. Do you operate internationally, nationally, or locally? If all of your clients are based in Australia, why do you need an international reach?

There are several ways to stop users of ToR Browser accessing your website. The easiest way is to use an IP Blocker, such as iQ Block Country. They are extremely easy to install and set up. You can select what countries you do or don’t want to access your website. You can leave a comment or message to people trying to access your website, such as “We only operate in Australia. If you are located in Australia, please use a Browser such as Google Chrome or Microsoft Edge.”

There are websites such as GeoPeeker.com that will show you how your website looks, when viewed in other countries.

I’ve set this website, for particular reasons, to be viewed by just a handful of countries. Knowing that some people use ToR Browser to send spam, they can attempt to visit my site, but they’ll keep hitting speed bumps, and eventually fail. I waste their time.

Not only does it prevent attempted website hacks, or prevent you from getting spam emails, it also speeds up your website because your server is not working as hard.

See below;

A Final Note.

If you are using ToR Browser, why? If you believe that what you are doing online is being protected, it isn’t. Your internet provider knows what data is coming and going from your location, including browser type, and even your machine name – plus other information. Using ToR Browser holds up a red flag, do you really want police to investigate you?

Anybody that has an understanding, can access your home router / wifi connection. There is always a ‘back door’ into everything. It’s not easy, but it’s doable. The days of having a van parked outside your home are gone. Access to your computers and internet usage is mostly done remotely now. If the authorities believe you’re up to ‘no good’, they’ll get you. Fact.

And just think about this – EVEN IF YOU USE ToR Browser, the data you read and accessed, is still on your machine.

There is no hiding. Even with ToR.

/by