In step 1, I encouraged you to tap into your personal network to find clients. Part of learning how to become a freelance graphic designer includes learning how to work with people, meet new people, and provide value to people. His new networking technique that actually gets clients is bound to help.
The truth is, on your journey to become a freelance designer, almost nothing will be more valuable than your network—including your clients, potential clients, former clients, acquaintances, former co-workers, family, and lots more. Not to mention, one bonus side effect of building a network? It makes freelancing far less lonely. The feast-famine cycle. And it happens far too often to people striving to learn how to become a freelance graphic designer—and make it stick. No matter how much extra work you have to do; no matter how many client projects you currently have; no matter how swamped you feel; always make time to find new clients.
Dedicate a certain number of hours each week to client outreach activities such as cold-emailing, networking, or SEO. So one mission-critical task when learning how to become a freelance graphic designer is to collect your payments on-time.
At first, it can feel a bit embarrassing or awkward to ask for payment from your clients. Getting paid is just part of doing business. Tools like Freshbooks can not only send invoices, but also collect payments, remind clients their invoice is due, remind them again when they forget to pay, and take credit cards right on the invoice itself. No expensive ad campaigns. No constant cold-outreach. No pestering local businesses at a meet-and-greet.
But getting automatic word-of-mouth promotion can be difficult early on in your journey learning how to become a freelance graphic designer. Start by asking for referrals from your existing clients. Every time you have an especially positive interaction with a client, ask them if they know anyone else that might benefit from hiring a freelance graphic designer. Each time you deliver a project on time and over-deliver too, remember?
If you need some extra help, this referral-getting email script may come in handy. After you do enough quality work for enough people, the referrals will become a bit more organic. But if you want to become a freelance designer, you can do it.
For more support, to ask questions, or learn from other freelance designers who are growing their business, you should join our free facebook group and chat more with us there.
Over 10, of us are having daily conversations over in our free Facebook group and we'd love to see you there. Join us! Preston Lee is the founder of Millo where he and his team have been helping freelancers thrive for over a decade.
His advice has been featured by Entrepreneur, Inc, Forbes, Adobe, and many more. Connect with Preston on Twitter. Depending on your capacity, that might require turning down something smaller in the immediate term to secure a bigger project a little later on. Levit worked as a freelancer for many years before building her own company and insists that no matter how amazing your design skills are, you need an arsenal of other abilities to be a successful freelancer.
She encourages aspiring freelancers to cultivate an affinity for entrepreneurship to complement your passion for design. The truth is that not all clients are dream clients. She points out that you will occasionally have clients who let you flex your creative muscle and have some fun with a project. Speaking of working with all kinds of clients, some of them will test your patience. You will often encounter clients who seem to know exactly what they want but have no concept of how to achieve it.
The ability to name your own price is one of the perks of becoming a freelance graphic designer. But if you want to stay in business, Schwartau says you should do your homework before setting your rates. When it comes to things like setting your rates or marketing your services, McKee recommends finding a seasoned freelance designer to turn to for advice.
Having an experienced mentor can be extremely helpful to navigate the unique logistics of the job. It also opens up another level of connections in your network. Even those already working in graphic design continue to practice their craft and learn new things. For June Escalada, founder of IllustratorHow , keeping up with current design tools helped improve her design business. Whether you already have design experience or are new to the craft, one of the best ways to get started is by ensuring you have a solid foundation of skills.
Learn more about how you can set yourself up for success by earning a Graphic Design degree at Rasmussen University. Adobe Creative Suite is a registered trademark of Adobe, Inc. There are some errors in the form. Please correct the errors and submit again. By selecting "Submit," I authorize Rasmussen University to contact me by email, phone or text message at the number provided.
Making an annual business plan, rather than a monthly one, will enable you to navigate your finances knowledgeably and efficiently. Working with clients is a tricky art form of its own. Going into it, remember that your work is valuable. Your clients have a need, and you provide them with a solution — a service business that deserves compensation, with actual money.
Follow these guidelines to ensure that you get what you deserve:. A contract is an important method of protecting your rights and preventing major surprises from popping up down the line such as the client suddenly asking for an animated GIF version of the logo on the day of the deadline. The contract should also detail the work process, so that both sides know what to expect.
You'll also want to specify the number of revisions you plan on doing from there. Also, make sure that your contract protects your intellectual property rights. The standard is usually 30 days since terminating the project. In case a client is late on payment, enforce your right to be paid on time. You can also charge interest on late payments look into legislation on this one, too.
Before accepting the project, set payment stages so that you get paid as you go. You can determine a schedule that includes a deposit to be paid upfront before you begin working , followed by an extra payment stage midway, and finally the majority of the total to be paid at the end of the project.
Define clear dates for each of the stages, and include those in your contract. Therefore, always base your pricing on market research.
Establish a minimum rate, so you know not to take on projects below that number. Differentiating work from personal life is much easier when you leave the office at the end of a work day.
Leave room for your personal life by setting daily work shifts and not going overtime. Work for a total of eight to nine hours per day, but no more.
Create a working environment that puts you in the right mood, and be sure to keep distractions to a minimum in order to better manage your time. One rule of thumb we can vouch for: working in bed is never a good idea. Find people you trust and make a point of asking their professional opinion from time to time, or hop on a video chat.
Knowing when to say no to a job offer is part of the game, too.
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