Freelancing: how does it work? /// #1

Here's a post for anyone interested in freelance graphic design. If that doesn't apply to you, then surf on my friend. Let the waves of the Internet carry you to more exotic (and probably more interesting) seas.

One of my new year's resolutions is to become a self-reliant, fully automated, well-oiled graphic design machine. I've started to research how freelancing works, and I've found that there's lots of advice out there, and not all of it is good. In fact, not all of it makes sense.

Enter this blog!

I'm hoping to write a series of posts as a way of clarifying how a typical project works for a freelance designer. Maybe these will become a resource for others like me, who are trying to make sense of it all. Consider this Brent's Adventures in Freelancing #1.

An Overview

Here's what used to think a typical project looked like:

It's not a false representation, but after a little research and experience, I discovered that it's terribly oversimplified. In reality, a project is much more multi-faceted:



I feel like I can break a project down into three phases: The preliminary stuff, the actual work, and the delivery. What surprises me is how little of this process I know about. In school I learned how to do the actual work, but I know next to nothing about the other two phases. Freelancing is much more than design: there's business, project management, and communication involved too.

Next time I write I'll delve into what I've learned about the preliminary stuff. I've got more than a few questions: What needs to be learned at an initial client meeting? How do you create an estimate? What are the parts of a proposal and a contract, and why are they necessary?

I'm (hopelessly, impossibly) new to all of this. Room for improvements abound. If you have any criticisms, advice, questions, or cat gifs, please leave them in a comment. Let's work this thing on out!

Cheers,

B