So, you want to be a freelance web designer? Ah, the glamor of it all.

Your own boss, answering only to the call of your creative muse… get up, feel inspired, do some work, go for a walk, laugh knowingly with other freelancers who have also discovered The Secret of: high profile projects, the big bucks, expensive coffee, conferences in glamorous European cities, laughing at the corporate rats you’ve left behind… enjoying the high life that you so richly deserve. Hurrah!

Or… welcome to a world of uncertainty, of irregular income, of blurred lines between work and home. Where, instead of having just one boss telling you what to do, you have 20 bosses across 3 different time zones who want their logo bigger now, dammit!

The truth lies somewhere in between, of course – but you’re more likely to achieve the success you would like (and the balance you strive for) if you can create a plan and structure for your freelance business early on.

In this post you’ll learn the main issues you need to consider to set up your freelance web design business. Up front though, I’m going to make some assumptions about you – I’m going to assume that you’re motivated to do this. It’s not something you want to fall into by accident.

I’m going to assume that you have some basic skills in web design – that you’ve learned your craft and that you’re ready to promote your services to potential paying clients. And I’m going to assume that you have a little business savvy, a good amount of time, and a real commitment to doing this. Okay? Okay! Let’s get started. Continue Reading

View awesome conference lectures, engaging how to discussions, and high quality freelance advice via video here on FreelanceSwitch.

This week we look at Web Development from Scratch Video: Helpful Dev Web Apps by Jeffrey Way of Nettuts+. In this video (aimed at beginner web designers) Jeffrey takes a step back from coding just long enough to bookmark ten very helpful web apps that you should be familiar with. This is part of a video series on Web Development from Scratch.

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Credit: John Morgan on Flickr

Who Am I? I’m Allan, a designer who went from freelancer who was grinding out a meager living to co-founding a highly profitable web shop, now we build our own apps, we host conferences and workshops.

Here’s the skinny… Too many designers are sitting at home, talking about the elusive “portfolio” they plan on building or waiting for word of mouth to take them where they want to go. Here’s some tough love: what good is your portfolio if no one is talking about you or visiting your site?

Word of mouth can take you a long way if people truly are referring you to their friends, but instead of waiting around for others to do you favors, try putting the words in their mouths for them through collaboration marketing.

You need to get out there and network. Share your work, participate in communities, and look to collaborate. Get out of the house and shake some hands, add some real value online, and make things happen.

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Credit: freeparking on Flickr

Many designers stumble into the web industry from a fine arts background. Working commercially is a natural progression for artists – not only does it make for a reliable income, but you have the pleasure of making something useful for a wide audience. Furthermore, both art and design draw on many of the same concepts and we artist/designers are often able to incorporate our art skills into designs and illustrations.

Sometimes, however, the inspiration behind creating original artwork is missing from the design process, especially when cranking out content-managed websites or banner campaigns. A return to artistic roots often becomes an unavoidable want, and for me, such an instinct meant deciding to paint thirty portraits in three weeks during a trip back home. What surprised me was how much I discovered portrait painting could actually make me a better graphic designer.

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The Simple Newsletter System

Hi folks. My name is Dave; I’m currently in my mid 20′s, and am living in Australia. I went straight from High School into a Bachelor of IT at University, and then worked full-time in the IT industry for four years. Over the past two years, however, I’ve transitioned to a freelance web developer, and am making a good portion of my income by selling code snippets and scripts: newsletters, themes, shopping carts…you name it!

CodeCanyon is like eBay for web developers.

CodeCanyon is like eBay for web developers. They sell a wide range of top quality scripts, widgets, plugins and Javascripts. Authors (like myself) create digital items and upload them for sale. Website owners and developers from around the world can then browse, demo and purchase our items to enhance their website (or their client’s website).

What’s neat is that, from time to time, authors will update their items with new features. Once a buyer has purchased an item, they can download all future item updates for free!

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A few weeks back, in partnership with Adobe Catalyst Business, we held a contest to redesign a fictional pizza business website, currently in all it’s 90′s glory. We had a huge number of submissions, and it was an incredibly tough job for our staff to vote on a winner! There were so many great designs, I wanted to take the time to show off some of the runners up. It’s not often that you get to see more than two dozen different takes on the same concept from great designers.

To refresh your memory, here’s the original Mario’s Catering masterpiece…

How can you possibly improve on such brilliance? Read on to see some of the best of the FreelanceSwitch community’s ideas! Continue Reading

“The shoemaker’s children go barefoot.”

You’re not a shoemaker but the saying still fits. Between client projects, conferences, and social obligations (okay, okay, WOW clan meetings may count as social obligations), your site has been sorely neglected. A neglected website might not seem like a big deal if you’re flush with work. But what happens when, Zeus forbid, work slows? You’ll start pushing for new work, realize that your site is a mess, and spend time working on your site you should have spent landing new contracts.

As a reminder for the veterans and a guide for those just starting out, here are seven elements of a successful freelancer’s website:

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The search engine ranking game is full of pirates and marauders; sort of like the high seas of the 18th century. In order to navigate through these treacherous waters (and protect the good name of links to and from your clients’ and your websites), it pays to understand your enemy.

This article provides a short overview of the downside of search engine optimization as well as offers tricks and tips of how to ensure that your websites legally reach the page rank they deserve so you can attract clients.

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Photo by phunkstarr.

When running a start-up web design business, unless you have some kind of incredible good luck (or no competition), you’re always working hard to acquire new business. Sales leads are valuable, regardless of where they come from. The number varies, but for every ten leads you contact, you’ll be fortunate if two or three of them turn in to paying clients. This means you have to talk to a lot of people. Still, getting a new lead is exciting because it has the potential to be your next big sale, helping you pay your bills and getting you one little step closer to start-up success.

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My web design sucks!

If you’re like me you’ve probably said that to yourself at least once in your career. When you browse through sites like cssBeauty and FaveUp, you are wowed by the beautiful designs, and you can’t help but ask yourself “What am I missing?”

I know some freelancers who come from a development background assume that programmers just can’t design. Others have decided to go back to school to take a course in design. But to be honest, when you are already well invested in your career, it’s often not practical or even reasonable to head back to school.

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Photo by James Sarmiento (old account)

Students in Springbook High School’s Web design classes get a real-life glimpse into being a designer—their teacher is also a freelancer!

Zac Gordon, 26, graduated from this Maryland high school just eight years ago. For the past four years, he’s been freelancing in the design business. Because he’s got a side career going, it’s the perfect platform for his students to see what being a designer is really like. Now he’s created a business platform that will enable him to work with his students after they’ve graduated. He’s still teaching in the classroom, but has found that the benefits of his full-time job have translated into a thriving business.

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Freelance designers have a number of different methods for finding work. In many cases, simply getting your profile and your work exposed to more people can lead to an increase in work. There are a number of sites that provide excellent opportunities for designers to show-off their work and send visitors back to their own portfolio site.

Some of the sites on this list require more of an ongoing effort in order to truly produce results. I don’t suggest trying to use all of these sites. For the best results, choose a few that you think will work best for you, and become an active user.

1. Behance Network

Behance Network is a huge, “free platform for the world’s leading creative professionals.” You can set up a profile, share some of your work, network with other designers and professionals, and even look for work.

2. Flickr

While flickr is primarily a place for users to store their personal photos, it’s also used by a growing number of designers to display and share their work. Users can set up their own accounts and profiles, and they can also join groups, such as the PSDTUTS group.

3. Virb

A good percentage of Virb users are in the music industry, but it is a home to all things creative, and many designers are setting up profiles. The pages can be completely customized to show off your creativity if you’re ambitious. Continue Reading