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'Put yourself out there' — and other survival tips for freelance designers
Those who like working alone may think that freelance is the way to go. But it can be hard going, and a freelancer must learn to be several things at once.
"Essentially, a freelancer is a small business owner. And so your business is you, and you're responsible for everything—marketing, business development, and fulfillment and execution. You're taking a lot on your shoulders. Not everyone necessarily realizes that right away," said Jason Aiken, community director at 99designs, an online platform for freelance designers.
Aiken shared tips on making it as a freelance designer—or any kind of freelancer, really—at the recent 99designs meet-up in Manila.
The 99designs meet-up in Manila last month. Photo by Carmela G. Lapeña
Network, network, network
Building a referral network is the number one requirement for a freelancer, said Aiken. "You need to be making sure that people understand who you are as a designer, what you bring. You have to say 'Hey you know, if you have people who could use my services, please pass me along,' things like that. You have to constantly be marketing yourself," he said.
The internet is a valuable tool for freelancers, as it connects them with potential clients and serves as a venue where they can interact with other freelancers, if it comes to a point where they start to crave some company.
Platforms such as 99designs help designers find clients, and the added element of competition also allows designers to improve their skills and learn from each other. "You have to present yourself, say, 'This is who I am, this is what I do. This is the value I can bring to you.' You have to put yourself out there," said Aiken.
For the younger freelancers, the website can be where they get their first big break. It's also a learning opportunity. "You're working on real projects for real clients and getting real feedback, and you're seeing how everyone else is approaching the same design problem, so you can actually learn quite a bit," he said.
Meanwhile, those who are more advanced use the site to develop and maintain relationships with clients. "The ones who've been around for a while have realized that the true power of it is about the relationships," said Aiken, explaining that these designers approach the contests from that angle.
"When they start submitting, they introduce themselves and they really sell their design, what they've done, why they've done it that way, what sort of strategic thinking they're bringing and what they could bring to a future relationship," he said.
Stay up-to-date
Whether they're just starting out or have been in the industry for years, Aiken noted that it's important for designers to keep up with current trends. "You have to constantly stay in touch with what's happening right now or you're just going to be dated and out of touch," he said. For instance, a big trend in web design is responsive design — which means the website is constructed so that it automatically reorganizes itself to fit the user's device, whether it's a desktop, tablet, or smartphone.
Another example was flat design for apps, where the images no longer represent a physical object in the real world. For instance, notepads no longer look like actual notepads, or calendars no longer look like actual calendars.
"Apple did this originally because they wanted people who aren't used to interacting on a digital platform to know how to use their software. Now people are a bit more accustomed to all of this, so it seems like with the younger generation, they wouldn't have necessarily used like a diary, it doesn't have the same meaning because they're like, 'What's that?'" said Aiken.
Get to know your peers and competitors
Projects on 99designs come in the form of contests. There are around 200,000 graphic designers from all over the world, including 35,000 Filipinos. Every month, the site runs around 8,000 contests for different clients.
While the site facilitates virtual interaction, Aiken said they encourage designers to get together offline. "It gives them a support network, and it also by extension deepens their relationship with us and the community at large. It takes on more meaning," Aiken said.
Meet-ups have been held throughout Indonesia, as well as in Manila and Davao. The Filipino community is very active, and is among the top five designer communities on the site. "The US is another top five market for us from a designer perspective, but $300 in San Francisco vs $300 in Manila is on a sort of different scale. In the Philippines, certainly there's a lot of incentive for them to participate," he said.
"I think they're quite talented, there's a lot of good talent here," said Aiken, who noted that knowing how to communicate in English is a big advantage for Filipinos. "Filipinos have an advantage over Indonesians because the communication is key and they are able in general to do it more easily," he said.
While there's no guarantee of winning a contest, participating allows the designer to build his portfolio. "Some of those [contests] might yield direct clients, some of them won't, but you'll certainly learn a lot. And you'll become a better designer, and that's actually quite valuable," he also said.
Grab opportunities
Aiken stressed the importance of following up and maximizing opportunities. "If you're a freelancer, you need to learn how to follow up on your business and how to really make the most out of your needs," he said.
By understanding the model and their own strengths, freelancers can learn how to put the site to work for them, he added. For instance, even when a design is not chosen, a freelancer can still sell this in another avenue. "That's another piece to this puzzle, that we try to create a sort of ecosystem of ways for people to connect and create opportunities for themselves," he said.
Aiken also said that designers can develop their personal style by having an opinion. "Everyone is always influenced by everything around. We're constantly bombarded with imagery and design and whatever it might be... despite the external influences, you sort of have certain things that become immutable," he said.
On the other hand, Aiken said there is always a balance. "You don't want to be so rigid that you never change and adapt," he said, adding that the trick is to construct one's principles in such a way that they are open enough that there won't be a need to change them. "You just have to find, how do they apply now in the scope of what is the trend right now," he said. — BM, GMA News
Building a referral network is the number one requirement for a freelancer, said Aiken. "You need to be making sure that people understand who you are as a designer, what you bring. You have to say 'Hey you know, if you have people who could use my services, please pass me along,' things like that. You have to constantly be marketing yourself," he said.
The internet is a valuable tool for freelancers, as it connects them with potential clients and serves as a venue where they can interact with other freelancers, if it comes to a point where they start to crave some company.
Platforms such as 99designs help designers find clients, and the added element of competition also allows designers to improve their skills and learn from each other. "You have to present yourself, say, 'This is who I am, this is what I do. This is the value I can bring to you.' You have to put yourself out there," said Aiken.
For the younger freelancers, the website can be where they get their first big break. It's also a learning opportunity. "You're working on real projects for real clients and getting real feedback, and you're seeing how everyone else is approaching the same design problem, so you can actually learn quite a bit," he said.
Meanwhile, those who are more advanced use the site to develop and maintain relationships with clients. "The ones who've been around for a while have realized that the true power of it is about the relationships," said Aiken, explaining that these designers approach the contests from that angle.
"When they start submitting, they introduce themselves and they really sell their design, what they've done, why they've done it that way, what sort of strategic thinking they're bringing and what they could bring to a future relationship," he said.
Stay up-to-date
Whether they're just starting out or have been in the industry for years, Aiken noted that it's important for designers to keep up with current trends. "You have to constantly stay in touch with what's happening right now or you're just going to be dated and out of touch," he said. For instance, a big trend in web design is responsive design — which means the website is constructed so that it automatically reorganizes itself to fit the user's device, whether it's a desktop, tablet, or smartphone.
Another example was flat design for apps, where the images no longer represent a physical object in the real world. For instance, notepads no longer look like actual notepads, or calendars no longer look like actual calendars.
"Apple did this originally because they wanted people who aren't used to interacting on a digital platform to know how to use their software. Now people are a bit more accustomed to all of this, so it seems like with the younger generation, they wouldn't have necessarily used like a diary, it doesn't have the same meaning because they're like, 'What's that?'" said Aiken.
Get to know your peers and competitors
Projects on 99designs come in the form of contests. There are around 200,000 graphic designers from all over the world, including 35,000 Filipinos. Every month, the site runs around 8,000 contests for different clients.
While the site facilitates virtual interaction, Aiken said they encourage designers to get together offline. "It gives them a support network, and it also by extension deepens their relationship with us and the community at large. It takes on more meaning," Aiken said.
Meet-ups have been held throughout Indonesia, as well as in Manila and Davao. The Filipino community is very active, and is among the top five designer communities on the site. "The US is another top five market for us from a designer perspective, but $300 in San Francisco vs $300 in Manila is on a sort of different scale. In the Philippines, certainly there's a lot of incentive for them to participate," he said.
"I think they're quite talented, there's a lot of good talent here," said Aiken, who noted that knowing how to communicate in English is a big advantage for Filipinos. "Filipinos have an advantage over Indonesians because the communication is key and they are able in general to do it more easily," he said.
While there's no guarantee of winning a contest, participating allows the designer to build his portfolio. "Some of those [contests] might yield direct clients, some of them won't, but you'll certainly learn a lot. And you'll become a better designer, and that's actually quite valuable," he also said.
Grab opportunities
Aiken stressed the importance of following up and maximizing opportunities. "If you're a freelancer, you need to learn how to follow up on your business and how to really make the most out of your needs," he said.
By understanding the model and their own strengths, freelancers can learn how to put the site to work for them, he added. For instance, even when a design is not chosen, a freelancer can still sell this in another avenue. "That's another piece to this puzzle, that we try to create a sort of ecosystem of ways for people to connect and create opportunities for themselves," he said.
Aiken also said that designers can develop their personal style by having an opinion. "Everyone is always influenced by everything around. We're constantly bombarded with imagery and design and whatever it might be... despite the external influences, you sort of have certain things that become immutable," he said.
On the other hand, Aiken said there is always a balance. "You don't want to be so rigid that you never change and adapt," he said, adding that the trick is to construct one's principles in such a way that they are open enough that there won't be a need to change them. "You just have to find, how do they apply now in the scope of what is the trend right now," he said. — BM, GMA News
