It's hard to be a freelance designer. Our profession is highly competitive and often involves long hours, stressful deadlines, and a lot of self-promotion. But with the right mindset and an honest assessment of your skills, you can market yourself as a successful designer without losing your soul in the process of a freelancer to work.
Establish your personal brand
Establishing your personal brand is the first step to marketing yourself as a freelance designer because it defines who you are and what you stand for.
Your brand is the sum of all that you have done, and it’s also a reflection of your personality. Your brand is what others see when they think about working with you; it helps them understand how they would benefit from collaborating with someone like you.
If you want to attract business as a freelancer, then defining your personal brand is essential—especially if you want people to think of your work when they need help solving design problems or creating something new.
Present yourself as a business
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Create a business plan. A business plan gives you the structure to brainstorm, organize and execute your freelance design career. You can use this as a guide to help you determine your goals and how to achieve them.
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Use a business bank account. Open an account at a bank that is best suited for businesses, such as Charles Schwab or Wells Fargo Business Checking; they offer lower fees and higher interest rates than most personal accounts. The bank should also have very strong security features in place so that if something happens with one of your clients or customers, they can't access any of the money in your bank account without going through proper channels first (and if they do get into it by accident, there's no worry about losing any funds).
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Get a business license or certification from your local government department responsible for issuing these types of things (usually called “the Department of Licenses & Permits”). This will ensure that anyone looking up information about who owns this company knows exactly what legal name it was registered under—which should be yours! It also provides some peace-of-mind knowing that everything else associated with running this new enterprise has been taken care of legally too; otherwise someone could come along later on down
Write a convincing artist statement
Your artist statement is your opportunity to explain what you do and why it’s important to the world. It’s a chance to showcase your unique vision, process, and style.
The goal of this section is for potential clients to understand that you are a good fit for their project based on their needs rather than just because you happen to be available at the time.
Every freelance designer should have an artist statement that they can use in all of their marketing materials: from emails and website bios down through proposals and invoices.
Define your ideal client
You’re probably already doing some of these things, but if you’re not, it's time to take your freelance business to the next level.
Why? Because when you know what your ideal client needs and wants, it will be easier for you to sell yourself as a designer who can help them achieve their goals. This is exactly how my design agency works: we have a very specific target audience in mind when we create our design projects. We always keep this in mind during our creative process and make sure that everything we do is based on what would appeal to our audience best. For example: if one of your clients has an e-commerce site selling shoes online, then it makes sense for them to have a high-quality image gallery where customers can see all the different types of products they have available for sale. But if another client runs an online magazine about street art – then maybe having an interactive map with all the locations where street art is displayed would be more useful instead!
We've identified four key areas where freelance designers can help businesses grow: revenue growth (or increasing sales), cost reduction/savings (for example by reducing printing costs), efficiency gains (such as speeding up payment processing) and increased employee satisfaction (by helping employees work more productively).
Develop your portfolio
A portfolio is a collection of your best work. It can be published in print or online, and it should demonstrate your ability to create high-quality design. The kind of portfolio you choose depends on the nature of your freelance business, but both types have their own particular strengths and weaknesses.
A printed portfolio: This type of book has traditionally been used by freelancers who want to show off their finished work as well as their process (the steps they take in creating designs).
An online portfolio: Your online presence may be one of the first things potential clients see when they search for designers, so it’s important that your website looks professional and polished.
Create a website that's easy to navigate
A website is the best way to get your name out there. It's essential you make sure it's easy to navigate, mobile friendly, search engine friendly and easy to update.
Your website should also be easy to find on search engines like Google and Bing. This means that you need a domain name that captures the essence of your business (for example: freelancerdesigner) and uses keywords related to what you do (for example: web design).
Your website can be a blog or just an online portfolio so long as there are links back from it linking back into other places on the Internet where people will find more information about who you are and what services/products/ideas etc.
Price yourself appropriately
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Consider the market: The first thing to consider when pricing yourself is what other designers are charging. If you're not aware of their rates, ask your colleagues or look at their websites.
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Consider the quality of your work: You should also be aware of how much time and effort it takes you to complete a project, as well as how good or bad that final product looks. If a client wants something simple but fast-paced, you might discount your rate—but if they need something complex and elaborate with lots of revisions involved, it may be worth asking for more money!
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Consider your experience: The more experience you have working in this field (and probably other fields too), the easier it'll become for clients to trust that their work will get done on time—and done well! This could mean higher paychecks down the line once people start hearing about how awesomely creative “Shannon from last month” was.”
Organize your online presence
Now that you’ve decided to become a freelance designer, it’s time to organize your online presence. Your website is the first thing potential clients will see when looking for a designer. It should be clean, easy-to-use and include:
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Your portfolio of previous work
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Contact information (email address and phone number)
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A list of skills, including any certifications or specialties
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An FAQ section with answers to common questions about what you do as a freelancer
Decide how you want to get paid
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Decide how you want to get paid.
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Payment methods can include: cash, cheque, bank transfer and PayPal. Choose a payment method that is easy for you and your clients to use, as well as reliable. If you are going to accept payments online (such as PayPal), there may be fees associated with processing the transaction.
Conclusion
You don’t have to be a big company or famous artist to reach your audience. Think about what you do well, who you want to attract, and how you can market yourself as the ideal candidate to accomplish their goals. Start small! As you build credibility with clients, they will trust your expertise more and hire you on larger projects that pay better rates per hour.
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