I’m Michael Savage, President and Owner of MDS Web Studios in Lilington, NC. I started creating websites when I was thirteen years old. I’m currently 18 and I’m a sophomore at Campbell University. I started MDS Web Studios my junior year of high school but didn’t seriously pursue work until my senior year.
A few notes for the young entrepreneurs that are still in school. I know how it feels to be a “businessmen” while still stuck in a classroom for 6 hours a day. Point out to your teachers that you work and manage your own business. Some teachers will understand and give you some slack when you are tired and running a little slow some days. But that is no excuse to take advantage of that and not all teachers will cut you slack or believe you. It is still worth pointing it out even if they don’t cut you any slack.
Now, moving on to business in general. Business is a weird creature. You have to approach each client differently because each has different views about their web site and different ideas. Do research. Take an hour out of each day and find informational sites. Add them to an RSS feed reader.
Some great sites to subscribe too: (Note these are only a few. I recommend you do some digging and find some you like as well)
and of course the one you’re reading
To name a few popular RSS Feed readers:
- Google Reader (My Choice)
- Mail.app (Mac Only)
- NetNewsWire
Once you get started reading and realizing that in no way can you be a jack-of-all trades, sit down and start evaluating. This is what I call an S&W analysis which simply stands for Strengths and Weaknesses Analysis. Start with your strengths and then you can weed out your weaknesses. Remember only include real strengths, not things you plan to learn or coding languages that you’re not skilled at. For reference I’ve included one below.
Strengths
- Personable
- Website Management/Updating
- xHTML
- Marketing
- Search Engine Optimization
Weaknesses
- Server Side Coding
- Designing for Print
- Taxes
*Note this is not a good S&W but just for sake of example I kept it short my real S&W Analysis is almost a page long.
Once you have built a list you feel really covers all your strengths and weaknesses start thinking about how you will fill those gaps. Are you going to learn how to code a language like PHP? Are you going to study the tax code? It’s very important to remember that you will never be able to do it all.
What I have done to offset my weaknesses is build what I call a “Down List” (this list is a great help and should not be viewed negatively!), a list that I can call upon at any time I need a particular skill set. For example, when I am preparing a project proposal, I do a “needs assessment” for the prospective website. If I can’t do something the web site needs in-house, I immediately grab my down list, locate the category I can’t satisfy, and call up the first person on my down list in the category. I give them the details and get a quote from them and reaffirm all the details including timeline, revisions, and etc.
I have a list of contacts and not just one because what if one of my contacts doesn’t have the time or ability to fulfill what I need. If not, I move on to the next name on the list. That’s why it is key to make sure your down list is a list and not 6 names in one category on a piece of paper.
Owning and running a business is very much a learning experience and mostly trial and error. Think through your decisions and make sure what you do is in the best interest of you, your client, and your company.
Perhaps I came off a little too harsh, the “tell your teacher you own your own business” bit really got to me.
Keep at it Michael and you will get places, but for now focus more on making a name for yourself through your work, not publicity.
Also, the portfolio items are the works of a beginner, as I had mentioned. The MDSWebdesign homepage looks great, very professional.
Thanks.
Nice article, cant wait for more, so glad I came across your blog, has a bunch of useful stuff.
Michael, please don’t let the negative feedback discourage you from continuing to write. It’s a lot easier to criticise a good article than it is to write one.
Your writing is actually pretty good, and I don’t give such praise lightly. You write to a higher standard than most people, and much higher than is typical for your age.
Obviously your perspective is that of a young business owner, who perhaps does not have a great deal of experience under his belt. So what? It’s a valid perspective, and one that I find more engaging than the “I’ve seen it all” self-aggrandising bluff that many “experienced” (read, “jaundiced”) business owners push.
Actually, I think it’s interesting to hear how you’ve had to manage the competing pressures of business and school. Although it’s not relevant to me, I’m sure it’s very much on the minds of other teenage entrepreneurs.
The article is, after all, called “Tips from a Young Entrepreneur”. It’s not as though you’re pretending to be some grizzled, battle-hardened magnate.
Finally, note that the WebSqueeze would not have published your article if they felt it wasn’t good enough. You’re not good enough to write for the Financial Times (yet!), but you are good enough to write for TWS. Well done.
It’s a harsh world out there for us writers. Take heart, and I look forward to your next instalment.