Freelance or Company?

So I see a lot of designers taking different routes when starting up. Some go for the proffessional company with a proper name and all and refer to them as 'we'. While some prefer to use their real name and refer to themselves as 'I'.

So, which one do you use and why?

I suppose saying "We" makes it sound like its a big company with more resources whereas "I" implies a one person set up. I think it terms of getting customers some companies actually like to work with "I" as it implies personal service. When I contract I sometimes called myself my name plus "and associates" implying I can get more resource if required.

If you are only one person you should never go around calling yourself "we", as sooner or later someone is going to find out it is only a "one man band" and you will lose respect. Not to mention that most of the start up "designers" attempt to give themselves a professional image and call themself "we" instead of going with their own name or alias.

If you start an LLC/LTD (same thing essentially, different countries) you end up paying taxes twice. You can freelance under your own name, or get a DBA / ANC / Sole Proprietorship and be a legal entity paying taxes only once.

I use "I", simply because I am the developer, designer, consultant, general do everything guy and run my business on my own.

If I had a group of freelance programmers contracted to me then I suppose I could call it "we".

It is simply unprofessional to call yourself "we" when you are a sole proprietor. I understand it would be to try to make yourself look bigger than you really are, but it is untruthful. Saying "I" would mean you were offering a more personal product/service, and shows honesty.

I think using I if you are a one-man-deal would make you seem like a honest professional and I might even help getting business in some cases..

yeah as mentioned if you from an LLC you will pay taxes twice.. but this is not the reason why people start LLCs or s-corps, legal protection that is what makes people to incorporate.. if someone wants to sue you lets say for the copyright of the design or something your personal assets will be protected..

It depends on what kind of customers you are going to approach. Are you targeting large companies or small webmasters? Are you getting customers from the net and freelance sites or you participate in offline contests?
In general the small enterpreneurs who hire designers and programmers are looking exactly for a single professional. They don't want to pay all the expenses of hiring a company. They are looking for more personal care and thin prices.
I would also agree with these who chosed the approach of honesty. If you are one man show, say "I". If you are a team, say "we".

Just go self employed, easiest

i prefer 'i' when designing but most consumer targeted a bigger corp or company to manage their design or developing.....so if you're want to target more then 'we' is somethin to start from the begin and you can change to your own name later....hehe....