How to Start Freelancing in the Graphic Design Industry
Photo by Keenan Beasley on Unsplash
So you’re interested in becoming a graphic designer but don’t know where to start? There are many paths to the design industry, I’ll explain the steps I took to get there.
The first step before the first step is knowing what kind of designer you want to be. There are many types of designers with different skill sets and specialties. The kind of work you’re interested in doing will affect how you approach your journey.
For me, I wanted to focus on brand design. This was something I had some experience in, but more importantly, there was a passion to dive deep & see what I could do.
The motivation to learn and practice is crucial. If you want to be great at anything, you need to put in the work. The more you practice & learn design, the better your work will be & the more you will enjoy doing it.
Step 1: Learn the Basics
The first thing I did was find a bunch of books & set myself a reading goal for the year. The goal is 10, I’m almost done & I’ve learned so much. Some books can be dense, they come packed with a lot of interesting history & information, so I recommend these three to start. One to help learn the fundamentals, one to inspire creativity, & one more tailored to branding.
The Elements of Graphic Design
Steal Like an Artist: 10 Things Nobody Told You About Being Creative
Zag: The Number One Strategy of High-Performance Brands
After some books, I reviewed what I learned & found videos to help teach me Illustrator. Along with designers on YouTube who post more day-to-day content, there are many full-length courses & tutorials you can watch for free. Here are some that have helped me; save these for later.
Adobe Creative Cloud offers great information on their software as well as other helpful design practices. They feature live classes with designers walking you through their creative processes, short how-to’s & more.
Flux Academy has countless quick videos that have helped me with the basics, as well as more advanced topics such as learning website design and different software.
Although their channel doesn’t focus on graphic design, GCFLearnFree has a fun series that helped me get the basics down & put them to use. They offer quick videos on the fundamentals of design, typography, layout & composition & much more.
Step Two: Start Designing
This step is pretty self-explanatory. Practice, practice, practice. Start learning more about your preferred software, playing around with different styles & figuring out what it is you like to create.
One thing that helped me gain confidence as a freelance designer, was finding gigs through Upwork. This platform is great for beginners who are just starting & want to get a feel for working with clients that aren’t family members.
You can submit your own rate, but many of the design gigs I see, have a pretty tight budget. Not all, but some. Because of this, it may not be worth your time searching through gigs if you’re more experienced, but I do believe it can be beneficial for beginners.
Regardless of the money; it’s a great way to build up your portfolio, improve your client communication skills, & develop a design process that works for you.
Step 3: Share on Social Media
When I first started sharing on social media, I focused on figuring out my style & what I liked to create. I wanted to post as much as possible so you were at least able to scroll through my Instagram profile. Now that I feel more established, I make sure potential clients know I’m available for hire across all platforms.
Being active across various social platforms helps get your work in front of the most people. Most of my clients have come from Instagram, but I’m also active on Pinterest & Behance, working on growing those audiences.
You never know who’s going to see your work, like your style & want to get in touch.
There are many tips and tricks out there that help you grow an audience on any of these platforms. They all say consistency is key. For me, figuring out a consistent posting schedule I could upkeep without feeling burnt out was key. I post one project a week, split into in two posts with one reel.
That’s what works for me, but the more reels the better when it comes to Instagram.
Don’t forget to engage with your current audience. Join design challenges, share & comment on others' work, & have a conversation with your followers whenever possible.
Build your community while also building your portfolio.
As your portfolio & audience grow, people will reach out asking to learn more. Be sure to have a link in your bio to direct potential clients to more information. I set up my links using Milkshake, but there are many options out there.
I have links to my portfolio, brand packages, onboarding process, & inquiry form. When your process & service information is easy to find, you’ll receive more serious inquiries & less confused DMs.
You’ll also be on your way to building your freelance business.
There are many paths to being a graphic designer, these are the first steps I took to get started. With developing new skills & promoting your best work, the clients will come to you.
As your freelance business grows, you’ll gain even more experience & confidence in your abilities. From there, the opportunities you can create for yourself are endless.
THANKS FOR READING!
How did you get started freelancing in your industry?
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