Success Stories

The transformation from Freelancer to an IT-Solutions Startup as a Sri Lankan Undergraduate

It’s been 4 months since we started Inforwaves, an IT-Solutions company. As many people requested I thought of sharing the story behind Inforwaves and some tips for building the next icon in IT-Industry.

Freelancing is one of the things that many of the Software Developers and Tech guys are involved in nowadays. Some of them have made it their full-time job while some developers do it as a part-time business.

In Sri Lanka, many successful freelancers have done it really well and started highly profitable companies. As well as many freelancers are working on platforms like Fiverr, ‘Freelancer’, and Upwork to find projects.

My Story

When I started freelancing at the age of 16-17, I had some hands-on knowledge on web development and some intermediate knowledge on mobile application development. When I was schooling I managed to develop many IT Solutions for College, such as the school website, mobile app, scoring app for the big match, radio station apps for no cost. In return, I received priceless results in terms of experience, as well as in network growth.

Why Portfolios are important?

This is where all started; After knowing what I’ve done so far, many people reached out to me to get their projects done. Most of the projects were really interesting and it helped me a lot to shape up my carrier and I really appreciate everyone who helped me to keep my very first step. If you are a beginner to freelancing and trying to achieve big; initially don’t think much about the payment amounts you get; always keep your focus on improving your portfolio and gaining skills. Once you gather both knowledge and portfolio it’d be really easy to thrive in the industry. If you don’t have a portfolio to show, none of the clients will be convinced to get your service, which is why it’s essential to build up your initial portfolio by doing as many projects as possible even for a lesser price. Make sure you don’t go below the average price 😉

Knowledge Facts: Why most of the Startups struggle to find clients?
Competitive advantages and disadvantages

When it comes to the IT-Solutions industry there are many Startups in Sri Lanka, and the majority of these Startups are having the same goal to build up a reputed, loyal client base and become sustainable in the industry. In question form “Why would a client choose you/your Startup among many of other Service Providers?”, to answer this you’ll need to prove yourself that you are capable of delivering a solution on time with the best quality. It’s always advisable to follow the “quality over quantity” principle. Whatever the task you do, do it with perfection and the highest quality.

Story of Inforwaves

My freelance journey has been a rollercoaster with a lot of ups and downs and somehow managed to overcome the challenges. While doing all these I saw an opportunity to start my own business. Therefore I gathered a set of talented individuals who has the real potential to put in their ideas and grow the business in many ways. We’re not just a Startup anymore, we’re a family; We listen to each other, seek others’ success while putting our hard work into the same goal.

We Officially launched Inforwaves on the 24th August 2020 by launching our official website as well as the social media channels.

Knowledge Facts: How to choose the best Co-Founders/Partners?
A scale between friendship and business

Finding partners for a business (also for life) is a decisive and crucial task. When you start a business don’t just pick your best friends! Always choose people with fast learning skills, having the adaptability to any environment, and good in attitudes. Always keep your professional life and personal life as two separate entities and never try to combine those.

Workload balancing and delivery on time

To run the Startup smoothly, it’s essential to maintain a good organizational structure. When you get new projects always estimate the time accurately, as well as ensure that you calculate the human resource requirements too. If you don’t have enough human resources to complete a task consider hiring external freelancers. And always try to maintain the quality of your work.

How do we sustain further?

A Startup cannot be sustained on its own by just providing IT-Solutions. Therefore the need for our own products is mandatory. If you depend on Services, your Startup will fail for sure, as the future cannot be guaranteed.

Warren Buffet once said:

“If you do not find a way to make money while you sleep, you will work until you die.”

We are planning to launch Several products before the end of this year. And we hope that it’ll mark the future advancement of Inforwaves.

Future of Inforwaves

Apart from being a Solutions Provider, we have the future goal to become a venture development firm which is known as the “Startup Engine”.
Feel free to visit our website to find more details about it and much more information about our journey.

This is just our first step, We have got a long way to go!

Source: Medium