“Dream Job” as others  call it. Why not? In freelancing, you enjoy the benefit of working on your own time table, have your freedom and relax. But everything good comes with great hard work and hard-gripping effort. It’s a great responsibility and discipline having to work everything on your own, having to learn the operations and flow may take one the longest time possible. But like any other business it has its pros and cons, handling that depends on the freelancer. Dealing on the high risks that come along a freelancer should be ready.  In this article I will be sharing a guide for all freelancers from newbies to veterans, that if followed may help you reach success. But of course, the determination and passion is all in your hands.

Be Bound and Determined

The key to succeed in the business of freelance graphic designing is persistence. On the early stage of  this business, it’s not hard to notice that the operation does not progress fast for quite sometime and you may find it difficult to gain enough profit to last. So, don’t get discouraged and just keep climbing up that ladder to success.

Underselling is NOT an Option

At the beginning of the business, you may consider having your rate at a lower price to get recognized by clients. But in the later part, you realize that you get fully loaded with projects that make you work your butt off for more hours that you have exactly planned. After all the hard work you should consider and credit your effort in making the bill.

Build a good relationship with your clients and educate them of the work level you have in your hands. Proper setting of expectations and good communication helps. Once you have set the right price you can now prioritize your clients and sort out the good from the troublesome. The increasing demands from clients could mean that you may need the client to find another alternative or make it worth your time.

Calculate Before You Tag

To avoid any serious miscalculations, always remember that everything counts. The time, effort and resources. You have to know the worth of every project. Clients may have the tendency to assume that the project is easy. Saying something at the back of your head like ” why don’t you do it yourself if it’s so EASY?” – well, the fact is they can’t. That’s why they hired you to do it. Best to explain to them in the best way to make them understand. And again, proper setting of expectations is very important.

Advertise and Expose

Market your business everywhere and anywhere possible. The best way of advertising is verbal advertising or “word-of-mouth”. Proper exposure and social skills are essential. Impress people by participating in web design forums, web design blogs, webpage galleries and social networks (e.g facebook, stumble upon, my space, twitter, etc.) and gain credibility. The next thing you know, people will be talking about you and your work. The more credible you are, the more clients you get. First impressions usually lasts especially to clients, so carry a calling card with you wherever you go. You’ll never know when you bump into a potential client.

Aim for Major Business Growth

Specializing on a single field of graphic designing is always how you start on this business. But along the way, you may experience trouble with your market. expanding your business means adding more services. Primarily, you have target markets in focus that you are currently dealing with when you start the business. Always think outside the box and think of new ways to broaden your services.

Seeking New Clients

Top Priority in freelancing is to keep the business going by getting new clients as much as you can handle, as well as maintaining the services for the existing. Freelance graphic designers are also well aware that some of the clients are unreliable and inconsistent, so always be on the look out for new clients.

There are many places to look into when finding clients. The internet is a wide place and there are plenty of websites to look in and post your offered services. Most clients would bid for the cheaper price, don’t get blown by the wind in making decisions. You have to remember that you are looking for clients to stay on track, in order to do that you raise your prices slowly when the time is right. And of course, always improve your output and aim for excellence.

Connection with Clients

Getting the right exposure will surely get you the clients’ attention. However, maintaining them is another story. Strong relationship and connection should be built in order to gain that great trust towards each other. If it means to go the extra mile for your client to get that bond then, so be it. Being trust worthy and reliable means a lot to the clients.

It always helps to be punctual, competent and open to your clients. Make them feel important but in a way that you still stick to your bounds. Business is always business no matter how close you get.

Summary

Getting into the freelance graphic design business, you must acquire patience and tons of hard work. People often get the impression that freelance is all fun and less work, being able to work at your own comfort of time and space. When in fact it isn’t.  When everything gets wrapped up, it all boils down to who’s responsible for the development and down fall of the business – The freelancer. There’s no one else to blame but yourself. Learning the process and the where abouts is always good for the business.