Gain Work Experience.
If you’re already working and have gained industry experience in graphic design, congrats! Chances are that you’ve picked up some crucial skills before getting into freelance.
If you’re fresh out of school and are looking to dive right into freelance this may not be exactly want you want to hear. But personally, working 9-5 designing for a web development team was a huge learning curve for me when it came to developing a sense of clients’ general design expectations. I must have worked on projects for at least a couple hundred clients designing web page mockups, newsletters, banners, logos, and miscellaneous marketing pieces. After 3 solid years at the company, I gained a general understanding of the industry and walked away with confidence in knowing I probably knew enough of what I was doing to go freelance.
If there is anything I can recommend before going freelance, it is to get some work experience at a 9-5 job that requires design work. Meet their deadlines, push out work on a daily basis, and go through the necessary daunting revisions. At least do it for a couple months, if not a year. By undergoing this sort of “design boot camp”, you will gain a trust in your design skillset and naturally become better at the unspoken language of “designing for clients”. This is something you’ll only gain an understanding of after you’ve done it repetitively on a day-to-day basis.
Secure a part-time job.
Do yourself a favor and get a part-time job. I personally came across a job for 8 hours a week as a remote contractor for an app company. These jobs are out there, you just have to look for them. They’re perfect in the sense that they give you security in knowing you will get some kind of paycheck if you run dry, and the freedom to excel at your own freelance game the rest of the week.
Before you quit your job, get on Craigslist and start replying to part-time offers every day until you land something. Once you do, you’ll lose a lot less sleep over the fact that you just quit your 9-5.
Put up a good website.
This should also include your portfolio. Put some thought into it! This is ultimately what you are presenting face-to-face to prospective clients when you’re not actually face-to-face. Ideally, it will be a reflection of your brand and a portal into your skill level. You’re the designer, make the most out of this amazing opportunity to showcase your best assets via the web. It really has the potential to make or break you when trying to get work from clients that you are trying to break through to without any personal connections.