I was recently interviewed by a graphic design student from a near-by University and a few of her questions made me think more about my career as an owner of a creative design and development studio . It also made me think about how it was to start out in the design industry…the things I did to get myself known, and the jobs that I took to gain experience.
One question the student asked me really struck a note; "What is the main thing you would tell a design student / freelancer starting out in the design industry?". ONE THING!? I can think of about a thousand things they need to know. My immediate answer was "Find a different career, designers are never fully satisfied with their work, life can be easier! :)"
So, I took a few moments to think about my actual serious answer and here it is:
Always strive to further your skill set, your experiences, your knowledge and your overall "sellability". What is "sellability"? - well, it’s not an actual word but I like to use it when I speak with students and freelancers trying to get a career in design going, and "sellability" seems to perfectly group all aspects of what I think are extremely important for designers trying to make a living out of playing with pixels and vectors.
"Sellability" is your ability to make money from being a designer. The higher your sellability is, the more successful you will probably be. How do you increase your sellability? Well, you do every thing you can to be ahead of the competition; the guy or girl sitting next to you in University,;the local freelancer down the road.
Here are some ways to do this: (not easy ways, but this isn’t an easy business. Those that think it is are in for a rude awakening.)
- Increased Skill Set : do you only work with print design? Guess what, you are missing out on more work than you actually receive. Everything is online now, and if you don’t understand CSS and HTML, you need to. Right now. Understanding website coding gives you the ability to not only create and control your own online marketing, but it also gives you the ability to provide this as a service to potential clients. When my company receives a new client, they rarely just come to us in need of a newspaper ad design. They almost always require some work online, whether it is a new website, or some touch-ups to their current site.
- Be Likeable/Interesting : obtaining clients and projects is very similar to dating. (no, seriously!). Just like single people looking for someone at a bar, clients look around for different companies/freelancers to do business with. They eventually pick one to move forward with, just like that single person in the pub. A girl can get chatted up by 50 guys in one night, and guess who the one guy is that gets her "real" number….the interesting guy that is likeable and is different than all of the other 49 suiters.As a freelancer/design student/business owner, are you likeable and different than the average designer? What makes you interesting? If you are not sure, you need to figure it out. This will help you to increase the percentage of leads you receive that turn into actual conversions.
- Be Confident : confidence plays a huge part in the success of an entrepreneur. I cannot speak enough about how important it is to be confident in every part of your life. Confidence displays strength, lack of confidence displays weakness. Guess who survives in the jungle….the strong. You may not be the best designer in your area, but then again, who is? Why do you think that? When you speak with potential clients, make them think that you are the best choice for a number of reasons. Especially if you are a design student, you now have the official education to back it up. That should give you the extra confidence to really present yourself and your skills well. Confidence builds trust and when people trust you in business and your career, you will be successful.
- Folio, Folio, Folio : do you feel like your portfolio of design work is a little bare? Invest some hard work and time into increasing the number of pieces in your portfolio. Create fake companies, design things for real companies etc. Anything to get your portfolio more stacked is great, and allows you to really display your ability. Some designers seem to like the No Spec stuff on sites like 99designs.com where they compete in design contests , in the hope to win $100 or so. This will give you real life (sort of) experience, and it will boost your portfolio if you take part in these contests, but many experienced designers do not agree with these contests and what they promote in our industry.
- Be Dedicated : do whatever it takes to get projects completed, and completed well. For the first year of starting my own design company, I could count the hours of sleep I got each day on one hand. Now when I look back on it, I am proud to say that I worked extremely hard to get where I am and to set myself up with a career that I love and always dreamed about. Drive and dedication are key to success. Almost everyone wants to work for themselves, but it is only the ones that have this exceptional passion for success that ever achieve it.If you are trying to make it as a freelancer, or entrepreneur, can you look back at your last year and think to yourself, "Man, I worked my ass off"?
- Be Organized : organization makes it easy to move forward with your goals. Do you have a "To Do" list each day? If not, start doing this each morning, and you will be shocked at how much your productivity will increase. Once the day is over, you will look back and see that you got a lot of work done, and you will feel great knowing that you accomplished the entire list.
- Look for Help : I’m not saying that my own site is a great help for freelancers or design students, but all of the blogs and tutorial websites provide a ridiculous amount of information and guidance to really help you along. Seeing as you found my site, you are probably on the right track with reading information online to do with your career.Here are a few sites that provide excellent information, often relevant to beginners, and freelancers.Spoon Graphic Blog : Chris Spooner | Abduzeedo | CSS Globe | PSDTuts | Web Designer Wall | N-Design Studio | David Airey | Randa Clay | Just Creative Design | Six Revisions | Tracey Grady
Always make sure that when you look back over the previous year, that you can truly and honestly say "Wow, I learned and accomplished so much! I can’t believe how much I have progressed."
Experienced designers, entrepreneurs and successful freelancers, what would be the single most important thing you would tell a design student ? Add your comments below!
Great article Brian, i’m one of those “Design Students” and finding good advice is hard. It’s good to find that i’m doing some of the stuff already, and i’m even happier to find some things here for me to work on that i might find difficult (especially the confidence part, as i’m not very confident about my abilities!).
Dan Matthews’s last blog post..Cheap & Cheerful chicken stir fry (quick too!).
I’d add further to the Portfolio advice:
Don’t jam everything in there. Only pick your best of the best work there. Many young designers tend to put everything they’ve done in their portfolio, good or bad. One single bad design can negative the impression of the whole portfolio.
Also, start a blog. It doesn’t have to be updated regularly. A blog tells a lot about you as a designer to potential employers. They’ll not only learn your design process, discipline, and how you stay on top of trend/technology, but also your personality.
Good post.
Jin’s last blog post..PS Tut: MiniHendrix
Good advice; I think specifics on getting started are hard to come by for a beginner.
It’s easy to hear “work hard and get informed” but with so much information out there we know how easy it is to feel swallowed and surpassed before ever getting started.
Follow Brian’s tips, and then just jump in yourself. Trial by fire is a great way for a design student to start learning those hard lessons about client interaction, contracts, and productivity. Test the local waters! Who needs a text book and class credit when you’re learning the lessons of your own book.
West Joslyn’s last blog post..Test Post 1
I second Jin’s advice: start a blog. Put your work online and then network as much as possible. Get to know other designers online by participating in the discussion on their sites, link to them, etc. After you have established relationships, let them know what you specialize in and tell them you’d appreciate any referral business they might be able to throw your way.
With the business you get to start out with, blow your clients away by exceeding their expectations.
Randa Clay’s last blog post..Trying out Google Chrome
Yeah, I can relate to Jins comment. I few years back, I was in a rush to go for an interview with a design agency, but forgot to check over my folio. There was some totally rubbish pieces of work in there from Uni (At the time in Uni, I thought they were good!).
Needless to say, I didn’t get the freelance contract, but I learned my lesson and gave my portfolio a trim down, showcasing my best works.
Less is definitely better.
Andrew Kelsall’s last blog post..Logo Design for J Smith Marine Consultancy Ltd
Another great post here Brian,
Well, I am by know mean an expert when it comes to design, I am still learning day by day, and with my age on my side, I believe I can become alot better, but day by day I do learn new things which come in very handy, so my main point I would get across if I was being asked that question would be, ‘don’t give up’ put all your effort into everything you do, and not only will you be so pleased at what you have achieved, others around you will aswell, and then the referals come in.
Craig Farrall’s last blog post..Lets see your workstations game
Thanks. Yeah, the confidence part is a major factor when speaking to potential clients. A lot of students and freelancers don’t have any business or sales training, and confidence can sometimes make up for this.
Jin, and Andrew,
I agree with both of you. I should have elaborated on the “folio” section. It is important to only have good quality in your portfolio. My point sort of sounded like “throw anything you’ve got in there” which isn’t what I meant. It was more that they should create work and projects themselves that can display all of their design talents.
Great points you both made, thanks very much for the comments!
Craig,
I agree. Referrals end up being a huge part in the success of freelancers.
Brian’s last blog post..Most Important Thing I Would Tell A Design Student
I was recently asked this in an interview, my reply was:
Never give up. Practice and read a lot. Stay up to date with the industry. Don’t undercharge and always give the client what they need, not what they want.
Jacob Cass’s last blog post..Top 7 Most Overused Techniques & Elements Used In Graphic Design
This is a really good post / dicussion, some excellent reading material here and points to think about, well im off to refine my porfolio. thanks
My advice would be;
“GET OUT! GET OUT NOW WHILE YOU CAN!!!”
Just kidding. I would agree with everything you said Brian. A small portfolio with a few good quality pieces is so much better than one with 20 pieces of rubbish in it. Be very selective about what goes in the portfolio.
Perserverence is also very, very important. It can be tempting to give up at times but if you just keep pushing on it can be very worthwhile.
Jennifer’s last blog post..Google Chrome Comic Parody
Brian, You have a pretty good list going here (I’ll defiantly be sending my students to have a read) However, there’s on thing I would add to you list.
Find a Mentor and soak up all the information you can. This person doesn’t even have to be a designer, just find someone you admire who is willing to let you into their process of living/learning. There is so much hard information available via blogs, magazines, design school, etc but all that is no substitute for someone who will continuously challenge you to reshape your expectations and build real knowledge based on actual thought and experience.
“Stay up to date in the industry” - that one is huge!
Max,
Thanks for stopping by. Good luck with the portfolio work!
Jennifer,
Hahaha, that is the same answer I got from some twitter friends when I asked them what my answer should be! “Get out while you can!”
Bryce,
excellent comment. I wish I had a mentor like that as I was learning all of this…I ended up being my own mentor as I was so driven to learn and challenge myself as much as possible. A mentor like that would be a really useful asset for someone learning. Hey, the great artists of our history all had masters that they served under as apprentices…so if it worked for them….
Great read. Time to work on my online portfolio =].
Be humble. Just because you have an art degree doesn’t automatically make you a Creative Director. You have to be willing to start at the bottom and work (and kick and fight) your way to the top of the ladder. Learn from those around you. You’re first few years out there should be an extension of your education. Try everything and take everything in. A lot of young designers do not know how to take criticism and think their shit doesn’t stink. They get careless and tend to not listen to the clients needs or desires. The end result gets muddied with “artistic integrity”. When I look back at my early days as a designer I look at my book and go, wow, what was I thinking. It wasn’t bad design, it just wasn’t the right design for the task at hand. Compromising to meet a clients requests does not mean your selling out. You can stay true to your art and make the client happy, but it’s a fine line to walk. You have to stay true to your ideas and integrity, but you have to flexible and humble enough to know that you’re not always right and that there is always room for improvement.
Just my jumbled 2 cents.
Communication skills is always something to work on.
Hey Hey Brian,
Saw you on twitter and checked out your site. Good stuff here. Thanks!
-SC
Shadowcall’s last blog post..a timely “goodbye” to summer
Great article, Brian. You’ve covered a lot of bases. The only thing I can think of to suggest as an addition is to have focus: work out what you want to achieve one year out from graduation, and five years out. Discuss your thoughts with your teachers or other designers to get a sense of what’s realistic. It’s ok to change your plans as you go along, too. Having a clear focus on your goals is a surefire way to make progress and have the design career that you want.
Tracey Grady’s last blog post..10 great articles on website inspiration
Thanks very much
Tracey,
Great addition, a plan and set goals is definitely something I subscribe to. Thanks!
Not only is this great advice for design students, experienced designers can benefit from being reminded of these tips too.
My favorite tips are with regard to the portfolio and not being afraid to get help. One of the great benefits of being socially connected and building relationships with other designers is the ability to learn from each other and support each other.
Char’s last blog post..Website Optimization Book Review
Oh wow, great post. As an aspiring designer, I admit I fall short in most of the things you listed here, especially with the folio and confidence bit! I always feel like I’m not good enough! Doesn’t help I’m trying to juggle it with a 10-hour a day job!!!
Very true…we all can get in a routine of not continually thinking about these aspects, so hopefully this refreshed a few people! Thanks for your comments
Onyeka,
That’s a tough schedule! After meeting many freelancers over the the past few years, I found that many lack confidence in their own ability, and don’t sell their services the way they should. We are designers and our job is help companies sell their message…so we need to be able to do this ourselves! and be able to do it well!
gr8 article Brian for a budding web designer…………really it’s cool.
Thanks
Brian Yerkes’s last blog post..New Website Launch | Good Time Charters
Good advice! Points to personal branding, in my opinion, which is a good step for all creative professionals.
Meg’s last blog post..All Artichoked Up
I think this is a great list. Someone was just asking me what advice I had for a new website designer and I had the same reaction… There is so much to know! Nice write-up.
Great post Brian. I have to completely agree on the confidence factor. I have had so many clients look at my portfolio when I was first starting out, and seeing not a whole lot, but hiring me because I seemed to be so enthusiastic and carried a confidence they were impressed by.
If you don’t believe you’re worth $1,000,000, find a way to think it, because, believe me, it shows!