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An Experienced Freelancer's Guide to Finding Clients

Paul Jarvis When you decide to pursue freelance work, you might not have a clue how to actually find clients. But if you start with research and ask businesses what they look for in freelancers, as well as ask your peers for advice, your network will begin to grow and you'll already know what clients are looking for.

This post originally appeared on OkDork Most freelancers start out their business like this:

They decide to pursue their passion and try to get great at what they do.

They build a website that talks about their expertise.

They set up their social media profiles and start promoting themselves.

They wait for clients to come to them.

When it's laid out like that, you can see the obvious flaws. And yet, this is how a lot of freelancers try to start working for themselves . They think that simply being good at what they do is enough to have clients knocking on their door. But you need to be more than good to get attention.

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How to Get More UX Clients - A Beginner's Guide

So you want to start working with User Experience Design companies? Great! But where should you begin looking for these jobs?

Here are 5 ways to find UX design clients:

1. Use your network of friends and family: If you have a large social circle, ask them if they know any businesses that could use some help from an experienced user experience designer. You can also post on Facebook or LinkedIn asking the same question. The best part about this is that it’s free.

2. Look online at job boards like Dribbble, Behance or LinkedIn: These websites allow designers to showcase their work in hopes of finding new projects. This way, you don't need to rely only on word-of-mouth referrals.

3. Search Google for “user experience design company near me”: There are many different search terms you can type into Google such as "UX Designer" or "User Interface Design." Type those keywords into the search bar and see what comes up.

4. Reach out to other designers that have worked with a company in the past: Ask around among your peers who has previously done freelance work for a client. They may be able to recommend someone else who might be interested in doing so again.

5. Make yourself available: Finally, make sure that you're always reachable by phone or email when potential clients call or send messages through platforms like Slack or Trello. It shows that you're committed to being responsive and accessible whenever needed. 

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The focus of the web design industry is changing.

There are reports suggesting that web designers are becoming more aware of the User Experience. It's a term that is thrown around more frequently.

The web design industry isn't limited to designing pages on the internet. There is a shift towards designing experiences around customers.

A change in the web design industry is the switch to user experience. Website designers used to focus on delivering webpages built around the idea or product. Many renowned agencies are now looking to switch from web design to user experience design.

A key technique of designing websites that function better, build an emotional connect, and help people remember and advocate a brand, business, company, or organization is to work on customer points of interaction.

One of the CTA touchpoints is the most important. There are websites that are interactive, fast and responsive. The purpose of these is to make them more user-friendly.

The principle behind this shift is that navigating on and using a website should be the same as interacting with a product and in some cases, even using a product. The business loses out if the experience is not good.

Bad web design such as spammy pop-ups, bad legibility, blocked content, slow-loading pages, unrefined formatting, bad choice of colors, and so on can interfere with the hassle-free use of a website.

UX aims to solve this problem. The idea that more and more web design agencies are adopting is that the user's experience through a website should be hassle-free, well-guided, and hierarchical - making the whole process of completing a purchase, doing an activity, or performing an action on the website as easy as possible

The satisfaction a user gets after completing an action on a website can be improved by the web design agencies. If you want to give a visual confirmation as well as a feeling of accomplishment to the user, animated ticks are a great way to do it.

Agencies might also use more elaborate animations, slo-mo effects, high-end script function, and more. One great example of this trend can be seen on websites designed by many Phoenix web design, according to Frank Chimero, a published author and a Brooklyn-based designer. It's become a part of the work culture of popular web design companies as well.

This shift from design to UX design is a much-needed customer-centric edge that the world always needed.

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How to Increase Your Chances of Getting More Freelance Clients

 There are strategies that can help win more freelance graphic design clients.

 The 8 Powerful Strategies That Will Help You Get More Consistent Work as a Freelance Graphic Designer

Finding and Winning New Freelance Graphic Design Jobs

 1. Be clear on your value

You'll have more value for your clients.

Your value to potential clients is what sets you apart from your competition.

Ask yourself the following questions

How to communicate your value

Create and manage all your paperwork with Bonsai

2. Ask for recommendations

Set up an official referral and affiliate program

Ask your clients for referrals and recommendations.

Don't Be Afraid to Refer Your Competitors

3. Make sure your portfolio is the best it can be

Take the time to explain each project.

Share your portfolio far and wide

4. Create valuable content

The time you spend on your portfolio will pay dividends in building confidence with potential clients.

6. Network, network, network

Creating valuable content that appeals to your potential clients is a great way to build a professional reputation.

Creating content is an excellent way to build your professional reputation

Writing about graphic design topics can help you attract new clients.

8. Don't underestimate the power of a follow-up

I've had clients from different industries approach me after writing about designing for those industries.

 How to start winning more freelance graphic design jobs

Make sure your design portfolio and social media profiles are up-to-date

Make sure that you're easy to get in touch with

You're not working as a designer.

How to Build Relationships with Graphic Designers

Meet people with the intention of getting to know them.

Social Proof in the form of testimonials can go a long way

When prospective clients see that you've worked with other organizations, it gives them reassurance

Connect with others on an authentic level

Ask Past Clients for Recommendations

You've sent a proposal and haven't heard back

Send a follow-up after three days

Send a follow-up after you've met them

Setting up follow-up tasks with Bonsai

Don't send more than one follow-up.

Follow-ups show you value working with them

Build a relationship rather than just nudging them to give you business.

Dribbble's Free Freelance Project Board

Make prospective clients feel comfortable working with you

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User Experience (UX) Design Interaction Design (ID) Visual & Graphic Design. Market segment by Application, split into. Software and APP Web Page

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How to Get More Product Design Clients - A Beginner's Guide

Getting product design clients has never been easier thanks to online platforms. However, getting those projects done successfully requires a lot of skill and knowledge. Here are 5 ways to get started.

These days, anyone can create their own website and start selling their services online. But what if you want to sell something else instead? What if you wanted to offer products instead of just services?

If you want to get into product design but don't know where to start, this guide will help you understand how to find clients who need your services. It also includes tips on how to pitch yourself effectively so you can land those jobs!

  How To Find Product Design Clients

Finding product design clients isn't easy. In fact, there are tons of people competing for every project. So how do you stand apart from everyone else? Let's take a look at five key things you'll need to consider before starting your career as a product designer.

What Is Your Unique Value Proposition ?

Your UVP refers to the value you provide to customers. Think back to all the times you've bought something online. Did you ever wonder why certain items were cheaper than others? Or did you notice that one brand was consistently priced higher than another? That's because each item offers its consumers a unique set of benefits. For example, does your iPhone come with a warranty? Does it include AppleCare+ coverage? Do you receive discounts on accessories? All of these factors contribute to the overall price tag.

The same thing applies to product design. When designing a product, think about what makes it special compared to similar offerings. Are there features that no other product provides? Can you add extra functionality that would benefit users? Once you answer these questions, write down everything you learned. Then go ahead and share your insights with prospective clients.

Create An Effective Website And Landing Page

Once you figure out what sets your product apart from competitors', you need to show off exactly what you bring to the table. Create a landing page showcasing your skillset and portfolio. Include links to examples of previous designs you created.

  This is an opportunity to showcase your work in action. You might even be able to use some of your past client testimonials here too.

You should also have a separate web presence dedicated solely to promoting your business. If possible, try creating a blog where you regularly post content related to your industry. The more information you put out there, the better chance you have of attracting new clients.

Start Building Relationships With Potential Customers: Build A List Of Prospects Who Need Your Services

Now that you're ready to promote your company, it's time to build relationships with potential clients. Start by reaching out to companies directly through LinkedIn or email. Ask them whether they'd like to collaborate on future projects. Also ask if they could refer any friends or colleagues who may need your services.

In addition to building up your network, you should also reach out to influencers within your niche.

In summary, this means finding bloggers, journalists, designers, developers, etc., who cover topics relevant to yours. Reach out to them via social media or their websites. Offer to create custom products for them based on their needs.

If you want to get really creative, start looking into crowdfunding platforms such as Kickstarter or Indiegogo. These sites allow individuals to raise money for specific ideas. They often offer rewards for backers who donate large sums of cash.

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The freelancer's guide is a great resource for finding and keeping clients.

Learn more about how to find freelance clients below:

How do I market my portfolio?

One way to do this is by utilizing searchable portfolio sites, like: Coroflot.com Graphicartistsguild.org Hireanillustrator.com Another way is to blog (which we'll get to next).

How do you get started?

To attract potential freelance clients, you need to market it. One way to do this is by utilizing searchable portfolio sites, like: Coroflot.com Graphicartistsguild.org Hireanillustrator.com Another way is to blog (which we'll get to next).

What should I do?

To name a few: – For developers – GitHub – For designers – Dribbble Behance – For photographers – Flickr Photo Critique – For videographers – Vimeo Like with LinkedIn, maintain an updated profile with relevant work samples.

If you want to find your first freelance clients, there are some ways to do it.

Why do recruiters use LinkedIn?

Recruiters and other types of hiring managers search on LinkedIn to hire .

What should I do?

Make a memorable first impression by keeping yours updated and polished.

What are the benefits of LinkedIn?

(They even have an entire tool for that exact purpose.) Moreover, LinkedIn profiles tend to show up high in search results when people Google your name (which almost every recruiter/employer does).

What should I write?

Writing about topics relevant to the field you want to work in gives you a chance to demonstrate your expertise.

What are the benefits of blogging?

Key takeaway: Blogging is another way to passively market yourself and your services.

What is the best way to get more people in front of your website?

Key takeaway: Creating content for others gets you in front of more people, meaning more potential clients.

Why should you create content for others?

Write (or create content) for *others* When you create content for others, you put yourself in front of more eyeballs (including those of potential clients!).

What are the best ways to meet new people?

Attend conferences and local Meetups .

What is coworking?

Coworking spaces are buildings or large rooms used by groups of entrepreneurs/small business owners/freelancers.

What is the best way to network?

Key takeaway: Even with all our technological advancements, nothing compares to face-to-face networking.

What are the benefits of coworking?

Key takeaway: Coworking has many benefits, including networking with others who could need your services.

What is Upwork?

Long favoured by the freelance community, Upwork offers its users a place in which to find more clients to help fuel small business.

What Are The Best Way To Find New Clients?

To help our Shillington graduates and entrepreneurial friends in the design industry, here are 15 essential websites to help freelance graphic designers find new business:

What is Elance?

Soon to become part of the Upwork family, Elance offers a community for creative freelancers looking to find work.

What is People Per Hour?

People Per Hour promises to help its users “start small, move fast and build up” through its profile and proposal search.

What is OnSite?

OnSite describes itself as a platform for quality, curated freelancers, with no middleman and no percentage.

What is YunoJuno?

Pitched as “the future of work”, YunoJuno is an all-in-one platform that connects clients to the “best freelancers in town”.

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Startups and small businesses can't afford such a luxury. Speed determines user/customer experience. Both UX design and user experience can help a ...

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There are 7 unexpected ways to get design work

There are 7 unexpected ways to get design work.

How do freelance designers get clients?

The life of a freelancer is very interesting, with many aspects. It can be hard to find a stable flow of work when there is a global pandemic or you are in the beginning of your career.

You're going into self-employment the first time, only to get made redundant when you return to work.

We have collected together some of the best tips from the creative community, so you can find more work and clients if you need to.

1. If you want them, ask for testimonials.

You can sometimes feel pulled in two different directions when you don't have a full-time job. You can work on a portfolio in the time that is available, so you want to use it. You think you should focus every waking moment on finding new clients and making more money.

Recently found, the two are not always exclusive as was recently discovered by Mark Leary, a designer and photographer. He got new referrals and testimonials from past clients during his time off, but he also asked for them to come back on his website.

2. Speculative briefs are something we need to work on.

Are you working but not earning the same amount of money? If you would ideally like to do a piece in that area, it's best to work on an idea for a short before sharing the project online. Any type of project you might have a penchant for can potentially help you make some extra money.

3. Be direct

If people don't know about you, they're not going to hire you, so it pays to be direct. "As I've got older I've got braver and cheekier, and often I'll just contact people and companies that I'd like to work for,"

"Sometimes you don't hear anything, but sometimes people are so amazingly positive about my work and say yes!" You shouldn't see this as a chore but enjoy it, adds typographer and designer. Just how to Find New Clients for Graphic Designers 

4. Wear what you need for your job.

It is always good to have a new and inventive way to promote your work, as well as make people know about it.

"I wanted to be known as a designer so I put out a top with my own printed fabric design." says Rachel Taylor.

It's always good to come up with new ways to market your work, especially if you're a print and pattern designer.

5. Make your own badges.

James says making badges has helped lead to some work in the visual arts. I don't get asked this question often, but when I do, I think of the guy who makes badges. There are a couple of these on display at the museum. The postcards of your art are also a good way to get people interested in your work.

6. Don't waste time scrolling through your social media feed.

A lot of people put their images onto the social network because they don't know what to do with them and so their feed can be messy and disorganized. She paid off most unexpectedly because she took the time to think about her feed.

She had been a fan of my calligraphy work so I thought it was funny that she reached on to me. She sent an email to tell me we were going to meet for coffee. Ian got a new project recently thanks to his work on several social media channels for the past year. People will get in touch with good work even if they don't always say it.

7. Discuss your topics with your friends.

It's too busy to look for a job to have a conversation with your friends. It's possible you don't know that the most unexpected opportunities for work can be found in random chats with friends. A marketing manager at a huge shopping centre inquired if I'd like to do some mural work there, after I lived with her at university. These were my first painted murals, which was a big deal since I've never done chalkboard murals before. It had a huge influence on my own career in the business world.

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You can integrate user interface/user experience (UI/UX) design principles, as well as add variety to the learning modules through a balanced mix of ...

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There are 5 pro tactics that can be used to get graphic design clients.

Are you trying to get graphic design clients? Here's how real freelancers find clients or (even better) get design clients to come to them.

It takes time and money in order to get a graphic design client.

In 50 miles or so you can expect to find a group of design clients networking and congregating.

 How to Get Graphic Design Clients Right Now 

1. Sign up for design job sites

2. Go where graphic design clients already are

3. Use cold outreach to get design clients

4. Optimize your portfolio for client conversions

5. That's how to get your first graphic design clients

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Good UI and UX design. Then of course, it also has to be functional. This means that the interface or UI design is neat and easy to ...

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UX case studies are an exercise in communication

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How to Get Your First Freelance Design Clients

For the past several months or years, you've been honing your design skills in order to become a freelancing graphic designer. If you've mastered everything, taken enough classes, and built a nice portfolio of sample projects, you're ready to start your career as a free-lancer.

But now, what is the next step? If you're trying to find your first clients, how do you know if they are paying or not? How do you persuade people that you're a good hire and that you can make a living doing it? We talked to a group of design mentors at RookieUp about ways to grow your business and find new clients.

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 Be prompt about communication and responses.

Communication between clients and a work team online is important. You need to ask questions and give updates since the project will not be possible in person. There will be no in-person meetings so you need other means of online communication.

One of the advantages of working online is you can depend on asynchronous communication, such as email or workstream messages on freelancing websites. This means you don't need to be present and live at the same time as the client, which is especially useful when the client is in another time zone.

You can use other tools if you are not a good writer or client is better in their verbal communication. A project can be completed without ever having to speak on the phone.

Communication is not always two-wayIt's been a while since we've last had that sort of activity. I want my clients to respond to my questions and help me out with my work. If the client has a bad experience with communication, then it's likely to be frustrating. If you need to wait, ideally within a few days. You should remind your clients to send feedback on your latest draft if you're been waiting for replies.

 What is the best and easiest way to find freelance graphic design clients

How do freelance designers get clients

Where do designers find clients

Where can I find freelance clients

Where do freelance designers work

how to get freelance clients graphic design

 Take the work that you've done and put it in a portfolio. Do you don't have a sufficient number of projects? It's a good time to create some more.

Portfolios are one of the things that you need to keep an eye on in your arsenal. This is a great opportunity to show off your skills and let clients know which work you're most interested in. It's fine if you don't showcase much work from the clients in a portfolio, but if you're just starting out it won't be an issue.

Make your own projects while you're looking for real ones. Not only will this improve your abilities and bolster your portfolio, but it will have you ready to go once the projects do come in.” To figure out the best sorts of projects to work on when you're building up your portfolio, think about what aspects of design interest you the most and focus your projects around this. The easiest selling time to clients is likely the work that you showcase on your portfolio. If a client is interested in you, they want to be aware that you've done similar work before even if it's just from personal projects.

It's a hot debate in the design community if you should provide detailed written explanations for each piece of your portfolio. If you work in visual designing, you should do the work on your own and speak for yourself. A case study is more crucial if you're a UX designer. Regardless, focus on surfacing your best work as quickly as possible and don't showcase anything that isn't up to your highest standards.

If you need some additional project inspiration, check out these articles on Skillcrush HOW Design for some unique project ideas.

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When legendary IBM industrial designer Eliot Noyes expressed this opinion in 1944, he was referring to how the best everyday physical objects wed functionality and aesthetics. Now, seventy-five years later, that same focus on intentionality and un-fussiness also serves as true north for digital design — especially user experience (a.k.a. UX) design.

Often conflated with digital graphic design, UX is essentially the process of improving and simplifying the user experience for a digital product — it's not all about how a tech product looks when you use it. The way a brand’s logo pops up when you click on an app isn't really UX. But the way your favorite restaurant directory or weather app defaults to your current location — that’s a deliberate UX choice.

We talked with four UX design pros — some emerging, some long-established thought leaders — about breaking into the industry, how to advance, how they approach projects and what they love about their work. Those who shared their insights include: Sydney-based Adham Dannaway, a freelance UX designer and UX Twitter luminary who’s worked for Qantas, Growth Giant and more; Kevin Lucius, creative director of SmartFinancial (and HGTV-featured printmaker); Lauren Howerter, senior UX designer at Solstice; and Laura Klein, an industry veteran who co-hosts the What is Wrong with UX podcast and has written two books about UX.

HOW DID YOU FIRST GET INTO UX?

ADHAM DANNAWAY

Freelance UI/UX Designer and Front End Developer

I actually started out studying computer science at UNSW Sydney. I was lucky enough to get an IT internship after that, where I discovered my passion for websites and design. I then studied a Master of Digital Media to learn more about design, and built websites on the side to pay the bills, mainly helping small to medium-sized businesses with branding and site design. After my master's, I worked at start-ups, tech companies (Campaign Monitor, Freelancer.com), agencies and larger corporations (including Qantas, St. George Bank and Westpac) to gain experience and build my skills.

KEVIN LUCIUS

UX Designer at SmartFinancial

I always loved art and design as a kid, so I decided to pursue it as a career without knowing exactly what I wanted to do. I got a bachelor's degree in technology and studied visual communication. The curriculum included web design, photography, graphic design and marketing. One of my first jobs out of school was at a commercial sign company. We designed way-finding signage for hotels, airports and hospitals. That was my first experience at a professional level designing something with a user in mind. Our goal was to move people through a space and guide them toward an endpoint. So later on, when I got more into web design, I found it interesting that the same concepts applied. I picked it up quickly and really enjoyed it.

LAUREN HOWERTER

Senior UX Designer at Solstice

Like many Freelance UX designers, I started off in a more traditional graphic and print design job then worked into digital. UX design is similar in that, as a designer in general, I follow the same core design principles that a graphic designer or print designer or web designer might follow. But as a UX designer, the scope of my responsibilities and work has increased. I'm thinking big picture, thinking strategically. And that involves a lot of not-so-glamorous design work, like diagrams and whiteboarding — a lot more collaboration than any other realm of design I've worked in.

It's really a more objective design practice in that very little of what I do is dictated by subjective opinions, whereas marketing design or brand design is very subjective. You collect feedback that's like, "I don't like blue," or, "I don't like the color of this thing," or, "I don't like the type style." And in UX, I’m thinking so much more about how someone interacts with what we're designing. What's legible to them, what colors are visible on a screen in daylight. The mindset is very different in that way.

LAURA KLEIN

Principal at Users Know Author (Build Better Products, UX for Lean Startups)

I started off doing user research at a think tank. I was very low level but got to learn from some really experienced folks and got really lucky. Then I went and learned how to program. People who were actual interaction designers at that point, the ones that I knew, all had master's degrees in it — and that was not me. So I went off, learned how to program, then became an engineer.

I had started a master’s program in computer engineering, but then a friend offered me a [role] at her design boutique she had just started. They liked the fact that I knew how to do research, how to write well and how to do end programming, so I could do prototyping (creating early test models of designs in order to gather feedback). Turns out, if can do research and know how to prototype, they can teach you the middle part, which is the actual design part. So mine was a weird kind of wandering road.

DO YOU THINK THERE’S A “TRADITIONAL” PATH TO BECOMING A UX DESIGNER? IF SO, DID YOUR OWN PATH MIRROR OR DEPART FROM THAT?

Dannaway: Back when I finished high school, there was no such thing as a “UX designer.” These days there are private courses you can study to get into UX design. My path wasn’t a particularly efficient path, but it made me the designer I am today and gave me strong technical foundations in development, which have been helpful in my career.

Lucius: There are plenty of educational opportunities to learn UX now, but when I was in college the term wasn't widely used, if at all. I probably followed the same career path as a lot of other designers from that time. I graduated with a basic foundation of web design knowledge that I continued to build upon. As the industry has changed, I’ve had to adapt and learn a new set of skills — which is not a bad thing.

Howerter: I think it's very common for UX designers to have a background in print design, and it's also common to see people that come from a lot of different backgrounds. I've known engineers who’ve converted to design. I was a biochemistry major and ended up taking the long, scenic route to a design career. I don't think UX design is brand new, but I do think tech is so booming and changing and evolving that it’s attracted a lot of different kinds of specialties in the industry. And I think you see that in design as well.

Klein: I started working in the mid-'90s, so there was no traditional path into any of this. None of this existed yet. When I started, I think there was still a website that listed all the new websites on the web. If you talk to folks who've been doing this stuff since the early- to mid-'90s, some were doing it as human vector stuff (for example, creating scalable, digital illustrations) or information architecture. We all had super weird career paths — because that's what there was. And there were way more generalists back then. There was a point where I was a webmaster because I could kind of design and kind of code and kind of write, so that meant you were a webmaster!

IS A MASTER'S DEGREE NECESSARY FOR GETTING A GOOD JOB IN UX?

Dannaway: Even though I gained a bachelor's degree as well as a master's, I don’t actually think either of them are necessary to be a good UX designer. The most important thing in my opinion is the practical experience gained by working on projects with other skilled people. There are also a lot of UX design articles and books to learn from, and you can always get involved in a side project for some extra practice. [Note: Dannaway compiled this list of 10 must-read UX design books in 2015.]

Lucius: I would never discourage someone who’s considering expanding their education, as I’m sure it would be very beneficial. But in my opinion, there’s nothing more important than experience. To be hands-on with different projects, make mistakes and learn from those mistakes, is what makes you better as a designer. I had a professor in college who would often say, “The most important thing we’ll teach you is how to learn.” That’s always stuck with me and is a good reminder to always keep pushing to get better.

Howerter: That's such a difficult question, mostly because of the astronomical cost of education. There are some really good programs out there. I think if you do post-secondary education, do a lot of research and figure out what programs are best. Even an MBA coming into the field with exceptional business knowledge can be super valuable, or coming with a human-computer interaction degree could be super valuable in this realm. I think there's plenty of opportunity for people who study outside the direct realm of design to get into the field. Channeling those different backgrounds can really set you apart.

Klein: Let's just say that I’ve seen people with those degrees and without those degrees, and I have not seen any sort of pattern. The interesting thing is that some of the best design and product people I know just seem to think in a particular way. They're able to think at the high level and low level at the same time. They're able to think strategically about what the user needs, and they're very good at digging down into the details and all the secondary stuff. They don't get hung up on just doing the process. So, yeah, I know good designers who had all kinds of education and I know good designers who I would also say that wasn’t true of.

WHAT ARE THE CAREER ADVANCEMENT PROSPECTS LIKE IN UX?

Dannaway: In terms of career advancement, I think the career of a UX designer is quite flat. You can stay a UX designer for a long time and progress to work on larger more complex products. Some UX designers become team leads or managers, others go into product management or service design. Once you’re confident enough, you can become an independent consultant and contract directly with companies (rather than being an employee). Some UX designers use their unique skill set to start their own businesses. It really depends where your passion lies.

Lucius: Absolutely. It’s a growing field, and it feels good that so many companies now understand the importance of design. In the past, I think it was oftentimes overlooked and sometimes written off completely. But good design is what makes things work. It attracts customers, builds desire, solves problems and makes things easier.

Howerter: It depends on where you work. I work at a consulting firm and there’s a lot of potential to move up quickly, but it might be different in house.  I think a good question to ask going into a job is what sort of advancement structure exists. How many levels do you have for UX design? Within the realm of design, what are the levels? Is there a director position? Is there a VP position?

And then if you have an opportunity as part of an interview process to talk to other designers, you can ask how many times they've been promoted, how long they've been there, where did they start that. But in general, in tech, just the way that companies are scaling up quickly, a lot of opportunity comes with that.

CAN YOU CLARIFY THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN A UI AND UX DESIGNER? HOW INTERRELATED DO YOU SEE THE TWO?

Dannaway: User interface (UI) design is simply part of the user experience design process, which roughly includes: researching user needs, defining the problem, coming up with ideas to solve the problem, creating prototypes (this is done by a UI designer), validating the ideas via user testing and finally creating the visual designs (this is also done by a UI designer). As you can see, UI designers perform a subset of the tasks that a UX designer does.

Lucius: I think UI is very important, but it’s just one small subsection of the overall design process. It sits alongside research, analysis, prototyping and testing. UX is the all-encompassing communication that a company has with a user.

Howerter: It's a common point of confusion. As the industry has evolved, we've started to hear the phrase “product designer” come up a lot more. And I think part of that term is an attempt to eliminate confusion between UI and UX. At Solstice, UI and UX are very interrelated. We expect the UI designer to do typical UX activities like wireframing and information architecture and things that are less visual design-related, as well as the visual work. And then work with developers to make sure the thing is being built to spec. So our UX design role is really more like what you might hear in the industry as a product design role, which is somebody who can use design from end to end. Some companies separate it out, which allows for someone to hyper-specialize in one thing over the other and get really, really good at it.

I've worked at companies where the two are split out, but I really like an approach where, as a designer, I'm able to see something through. And I think that also eliminates any gaps that exist in handoff. Anytime you hand off, say, wireframes to a visual designer, there's always potential for things to get lost in translation, which can cause delays and just not be the most efficient.

WHAT'S THE SCOPE OF YOUR WORK?

Dannaway: I like to be involved in the entire design process. It usually involves conducting research to understand user needs, defining the problem, coming up with ideas to solve the problem, creating prototypes, validating the ideas via user testing, designing the interface and building the front end (although I do less development work these days). It’s also important to balance the user needs with the business needs during the design process, which can be tricky.

Lucius: SmartFinancial is both a B2C and B2B brand, so I'm constantly shifting back and forth between the two. Each one has its own unique audience and objectives, so it can sometimes be tricky. On the consumer side, we provide a library of articles and guides to help shoppers fully understand the complexities of insurance. We also provide a platform that allows customers to compare insurance rates side-by-side from national carriers and filter their options however they want.

On the business side, we provide insurance agents and carriers with tools to help them reach new customers and grow their business. In either case, it’s my job to oversee all design and interaction we have with our customers. I fall somewhere between a creative director and UX designer. We’re a small company so we have to be lean and aggressive and work very closely as a team.

Howerter: My role at Solstice encompasses everything from early strategic work with clients — figuring out what to build, which usually includes a lot of workshopping, an ideation session. From there it usually involves collaborating with product and engineering to figure out, now that we know what to build, how should we build it. So that's really early, like wireframing (outlining a design layout) and just putting things in a loose framework. Usually that includes testing. So we have user experience researchers and bosses who own most of the user research that we do. Then once we collect user feedback, we take our designs to high fidelity — so design that's ready to be developed, basically. So we'll have good documentation for all the animations or interactions that we want to include, and then working with developers when they're being built to make sure that they're doing so correctly.

WHAT DO YOU FIND MOST REWARDING — AND CHALLENGING — ABOUT WORKING IN UX?

Dannaway: I’ve always enjoyed the challenge of solving problems and the creativity required to build things. I think that’s why I love designing websites and apps so much. There are always new problems to solve, and in my field these problems are usually solved by building a new website or app feature, or tweaking an existing one. It’s rewarding to make problems disappear and to have some fun in the process.

Lucius: I love solving problems using design. It is, however, certainly challenging at times. It’s a delicate balance of art, design and science. The key is to solve the problem, but do it in a way that’s beautiful, sexy and meets the needs of both the business and customer.

Howerter: I love how fast tech, and the digital realm in general, moves. I love that I can design something and two weeks later it's a real thing that real people are using, and we're getting live feedback. It's such a close feedback loop, and it's really gratifying to either have success really fast or fail really fast.

Also, you learn at an accelerated pace. And as a UX designer, I love working with people from different walks of life. I was on an agriculture project about six months ago and went to farms and saw how it all works. You realize it's really not about the tech; it's about the lives of these people. It's about how they do their work, and finding opportunities to make that easier. Being able to connect the work I do on my computer screen to real people in real situations is always really motivating and inspiring.

Klein: I still just really like making things that make people happy, things that they like using and make their lives better. The other day we were testing out features and someone who had just received access to a new feature Slacked me and said, “Oh my god, I showed this to my associate, and he was so jealous and wanted to know why he didn't get access to it!” She was like, “I just did the tasks I had to do in record time, and it was so great.” And hearing that is the best feeling in the world.  So that's why I do the challenging stuff.

I spend a lot of my time talking people out of ideas and kind of having the same conversation over and over. “Oh, that’s an interesting feature. Why do you want to do that? What do you think you're going to get from it? What other things do you think we could do in order to achieve those same results?” Like, some people just come and say, “We should add machine learning.” And it's like, no, we 100 percent should not. Or maybe we should, but let's talk about what you think you’ll get from machine learning and figure out if there's a cheaper way to get something similar.

WHAT’S A TYPICAL PROTOTYPING PROCESS LIKE FOR YOU? HOW MANY ITERATIONS DOES A PROJECT NORMALLY GO THROUGH?

Dannaway: Every project varies in size and complexity, so I don’t think there’s an average or “correct” number of prototype iterations. You need to keep iterating on a prototype until it works. For example, you might be tweaking a sign-up form to try and reduce the number of drop-offs. You may only be able to come up with one new idea that you believe is worth testing. Whereas if you’re lucky enough to start building a new app from scratch, you might have several different directions you’d like to test.

I think a prototype should look and feel as close to the final product as possible to yield the best results. Sometimes I create a quick website with a dummy back end; other times I can get away with an InVision prototype (a set of images linked together using clickable hot spots). Once you’ve validated that the prototype meets the user needs, it’s time to build the real thing.

Lucius: I like to go a bit old school and begin with paper and pen sketches. To me, that’s still the best way to start getting your initial ideas flowing. From there, I’ll continue to refine the design, build a prototype and then start getting some feedback from users. At SmartFinancial, it’s sort of an unwritten company motto to not overthink things too much. By that I mean, we’re given the time we need to research and design a product, but we also try to get it in front of our customers as soon as we can. That can sometimes be hard to do when I feel it’s not yet perfect, but it always pays off. We’re able to get real, actual feedback from customers and then continue to improve it. None of our projects are ever really done; we’re always adding new features and improvements.

Howerter: Iterations vary. It's very rare that you'll do anything right the first time — extremely rare. So an early prototype, we'll go through five, six, seven revisions, until it’s at a place that’s ready to be tested. And then after testing, depending on the question you hope to answer, it might go through several more rounds of iteration. It’s all really determined by the confidence level that the team and client have in investing and building that thing. That's what that early phase is all about: Is this at a place where we all feel confident that our users are going to be able to use it, engage with it, find value in it. Then at the point where we feel confident that it's worth the investment, then usually you pull the trigger.

I've used everything from framers to Proto.io to InVision. I think it's always determined by the objective of the prototype. So if I know that I'm prototyping something that we're going to put in front of our client customers and we want to learn about how they place the return online or something like that, we'll figure out what we want to put together. I like to create a storyboard. Sometimes we'll use sticky notes so they can move things around. And then based on that storyboard, based on what we know we want to learn from the test, I'll figure out what tool does the job most easily. And I think fidelity in the prototypes means a lot too.

So if you're trying to learn a really specific thing, and you need some interactions in there to really get close to what the actual experiences look like, then it's a good time to move into something like Proto.io, where you can really do some careful animating and create interactions to give customers a real feel of the experience. But if you're early on and you're like, “Hey, is this even a feature that you would find valuable?” It’s not necessary to get to that level of detail. You can do something more low fidelity. So it varies on the objective.

Klein: I wrote a blog post about this called "The Right Deliverables," which talks about all the different kinds of prototyping. Well, more deliverables and artifacts, but that includes a lot of prototypes and all the different levels on how you might decide: Do you need a sketch? Do you need an interactive prototype? Do you need a pixel perfect mockup? Because those are all things I've heard people call for. So I’ll do anything from a description and a user story to a Balsamiq mockup to a quick sketch with the engineers to a fully interactive prototype to a somewhat interactive prototype with annotations. That's my favorite. It just depends on what I need to do.

WHAT’S YOUR USER RESEARCH PROCESS LIKE? ARE THERE ANY METHODS YOU SWEAR BY OVER OTHERS, OR IS IT ALWAYS SITUATIONAL?

Dannaway: User research in a nutshell is asking users the right questions to figure out their needs. Interviewing users or watching them as they perform their tasks is usually what works best. During an interview it helps to have two people; one doing the talking, and the other observing and taking notes. You can also record the interview session to play back later to take further notes.

Lucius: This might sound obvious, but I can’t stress enough how important it is to fully understand the problem you’re solving and clearly define the goals before you get started. It’s easy to get caught up and breeze through this step faster than you should. This part of the process should not be overlooked. It’s where you can uncover possible issues and determine the best way to solve the problem.

Klein: Direct observation and contextual inquiry are the gold standard. I can even do remote contextual inquiry in many cases, especially if it's a screen-based [project]. Remote is not the same as unmoderated, obviously. But again, it depends on what I want. I’ve written a lot about [the decision-making process of] when to use qualitative, when to use quantitative, when to interview people, when to observe them, when to run a diary study, when to do a survey.

Do you find that what clients say they want and what you observe differ at times?

Yes, 100 percent. And in fact, I almost never ask people what they want. I mean, I'll ask people what they want. And then the follow-up question, of course, is, “What do you hope to accomplish with that?” Or, “What do you think that will give you, or how will that help?” In some nice, non-confrontational way.

WHERE DO YOU SEE UX DESIGN HEADING NEXT? WHICH MAJOR TRENDS EXCITE YOU?

Dannaway: UX design is still in its infancy, especially in larger corporations. I’m hoping that the user-centric design principles that underpin UX design will continue to spread across different industries and technologies, like AI, voice interfaces and virtual and augmented reality. UX principles are already being used by service designers to help improve services.

Lucius: When someone thinks of UX, their mind probably goes straight to digital. But it’s more than that; it extends to the physical world as well. I think you’ll continue to see more of that. Companies are understanding and embracing the idea of looking at the big picture. Every interaction a company has with a customer, whether in the digital or physical world, is now being looked at in the overall design strategy — especially as the two worlds are becoming more interconnected. I think that’s really exciting.

Howerter: I think “product design” is a term you're going to continue to hear more and more frequently as more companies embrace the idea that design is really not limited to a certain skill set or creating certain deliverables. It's really about creating an experience. And I think there's going to continue to be a move toward leaner and more nimble teams. So designers who are really collaborative and work closely with product people and engineering leads on a daily basis will have the most success moving forward.

Klein: This may just be the circles I run in, but I’m seeing more ops stuff — design ops, research ops. We just did a podcast on this. I'm seeing more research around that and talking to more people who are keeping design consistent across large organizations and coming up with tools to support — which is great. You know, something beyond the shared sketch file, which is a lovely start, and 100 percent not the final answer. So I’m seeing more, “How do we make it easier for large groups of designers to design collaboratively across teams?”

Interviews were edited for length and clarity.

[uxoversight]

I have freelanced as a UX researcher alongside full-time jobs for almost my entire career, but I recently am coming out of a long stint where I was strictly a freelance UX research consultant. During this past year or so, freelancing was my only job, I had no other full-time gigs, besides a (very) part-time job as a UX Research instructor at Pratt.

I have had many people comment on freelancing as a UX researcher, and have had many people ask me, “should I do it?” I won’t lie, it sounds idyllic to most people, but before I answer that specific question, I want to delve deeper into my experience as a freelance user research consultant. Note, this is just my experience, so it very well will be different from other people’s experiences. It is best to ask a few different people in order to get a holistic view (heyo, user research on user research freelancing).

I’ll go backwards because I like ending on a positive note.

The Ugly

This is (potentially) your only source of income. This is bolded, and number one, for a very good reason — it is very difficult to rely on income that is not guaranteed, at least not in the same way a salary from a full-time job steadily flows into your bank account. This part can be very scary, and can often make or break your career. I know people who do side jobs (dog walking, Uber driving, check out at a grocery store, bartender) to help finance their freelance, but keep in mind, this takes away from your freelance business

Be very aware that you will no longer be given benefits (such things like health insurance). If you have a partner that can cover you, that is great. I did not, so I had to buy health insurance, which was extremely expensive compared to the health insurance you get through being a full-time employee. Keep this in mind as an added expense!

Being a freelancer can be difficult for those who are introverted. I am an introverted person, which means it is difficult for me to constantly be networking and selling my brand. I wrote an article on networking as an introvert in order to help those similar to me. It is something you can improve at (I definitely have), but it can be very exhausting at times, especially when you just want to do work and get paid

People may reach out to you, seemingly very excited for an upcoming project that (typically) has to start soon. You decide to take the project. You might turn down other opportunities because of said project. Suddenly, you are experiencing the work equivalent of getting ghosted. The original project is no longer happening and you are scrambling to control+Z (undo) all the projects you turned down for this one. This is an ongoing cycle

Companies have a hard time distinguishing the difference between UX research and UX design, especially in the freelance world. You will often get pinged for projects that are very UX design heavy. Freelance user research is still a fairly new concept to companies, so it takes a lot of patience and education

The Bad

You have to learn how to market yourself as a service, essentially. This means coming up with a brand. I have a brand called “The Product Therapist” that I have been using (and working on) for many years. When I decided to pursue freelance as my career, I had to work a lot on establishing my brand — this was through Facebook, a website, twitter, Medium, network, etc. I had to prove that I was a valuable candidate for jobs, and could offer something revolutionary, something that people needed right that second

As a freelancer, you are constantly on the look-out for work — whether that be for an immediate project, or something you can schedule into the future. Job websites and LinkedIn will become your two most frequently visited pages. You will troll the internet for work, especially work that is “contract-based” or freelance. It isn’t easy to find freelance work, in general, especially in user research, so you will always be searching and crossing your fingers that one of your connections has a connection to another connection with a project

Not a lot of people understand how user researchers can freelance, and I don’t necessarily blame them. It makes more sense for engineers or designers to hop into a project, complete their work and then leave. User researchers should be an internal part of a team, as they need to deeply understand the product, users and team dynamics. You need to make sure you have questions to how you would effectively bring actionable user research insights to a team in such a short amount of time

Although you don’t have a 9–5 job and office desk, you may also not have a weekend. Sometimes project timelines will get moved up and, suddenly, on a Friday morning, you get an email that a project deadline is now Monday. Since you weren’t there, it is hard to always keep track of changing deadlines or needs

When you are primarily working from home, it can become quite isolating. As someone who is naturally introverted, there would be days where I wouldn’t speak to another human or go outside. Of course there are ways to combat this, I went to the gym, ran errands, walked my dog, but certain days, it would have been nice to be working in an office, with a team

The Good

Setting your own schedule is really freeing (but you also have to set boundaries for yourself). I could, and honestly did, turn on the TV and watch a show for 30 minutes (or an hour) as a break. Or I went shopping and ran errands. I (used to) go to Trader Joe’s to get groceries at 10:30am. I could go to the gym during off-hours. My hours were my own, and I molded them around my priorities (which were, at times, not well thought-out). Freelancing is a very flexible job, and come sometimes work better than a full-time job, depending on your life circumstances

A very cool part of freelancing is the ability to be on so many different projects, which can lend to a high variety of industries, products and team dynamics. It is really neat to see how differently people think about and want to implement user research. Seeing these differences is a really wonderful learning experiences — you build more diverse experiences in a shorter amount of time, which can give you more tools for your research toolkit or help you work through problems with different perspectives

Working from home is wonderful. I can’t tell you how much I loved hanging out with my cats and my dog. I can take my dog out for a midday walk, after I make myself lunch, which gets me out of my home office and into the fresh air. I could also choose to pop into a cafe or library if I needed a change of pace. Also, having no commute was super cool — I could wake up and start my day without worrying about train delays, weather or traffic

You can make a lot of money. You aren’t working for anyone, so the money goes straight to you, and you are able to charge a good amount, since you have to take into consideration the fact that you aren’t getting any of the securities you would from a full-time job. When I got my first freelance job, I timidly stated my hourly rate (you can do hourly or project rate), which felt way too much. If you are successful in managing projects and time, you can really rake in a lot of dough

Should you do it?

My boyfriend (a product manager), would be thrilled to hear me use his favorite product manager phrase, “it depends.”

Are you at the beginning of your UX Research career? I would highly recommend not going into freelance as a full-time job. Most companies who are looking for a freelance UX researcher want someone who has had a decent amount of experience, can lead projects and think about research strategy. A good way to get into freelance is to do some on the side during a full-time or part-time job. I would highly recommend you gain some experience before you jump into a freelance project.

Do you like structure? Unless you can create (and stick to) your own structure and have a sense of self-discipline, freelancing might not be the best idea for you. Oftentimes, you have to set your own schedule and it is 100% on you whether or not you get your work done on time. You will usually be working from home (many temptations reside there), and won’t be in constant communication with teams, so you really have to push yourself to stick to your work hours.

Where do you live? This can go both ways — there is often a lot of opportunities in bigger cities, but that also lends to a more expensive lifestyle. I freelanced when I was living in Brooklyn, New York. There were months where I was terrified I wouldn’t be able to pay rent. I was able to charge more, but it didn’t always mean I was constantly making enough. I remember when I had a vet emergency close to the holidays, the combination between the vet bill and how quiet it gets over the holidays was extremely stressful.

Have you worked in the field in a more structured environment and are looking to try something new? Maybe it is time! Freelance is a great way to get a plethora of varied experiences in a short amount of time, and it can be super fun!

So, how do you do it?

Start by asking yourself why you want to go into freelance — is it because it seems easy or looks cool? Probably not the best reasons, as it looks more glamorous from the outside

Look around at the “competition” out there — what are other freelancers saying or doing? How does this compare with what you want to do? I recommend doing a small SWOT analysis on what else is out there. It can give you an understanding of what you are getting into and what you need to convey

Begin by branding your freelance service. This includes a number of things, such as a clear website that states your services, being active on social media (twitter is a big UX place), having case studies/portfolio pieces to showcase your skillsets and decide if you want to be an LLC (helps when working with bigger companies). I would recommend completing some brand exercises to help you define your brand. These can focus on tone, language, color schemes, logo, font, as well as things like vision, values, etc. It may seem “flooffy,” but this is important step in creating cohesive stories on your website. I used this guide (it was awesome).

Generate a pitch for yourself. How would you pitch your services? What makes you special or valuable? What do you offer that people can’t do/find on their own? Have a small pitch ready in your mind for when you go out networking.

Make sure your LinkedIn profile is super professional, up-to-date and includes important keywords (qualitative research, usability testing, etc). A controversial idea is to say you are available for projects in your title — some people say this is a bad look, since you seem “undesirable,” but it can also let recruiters know you are looking for work

Create business cards! This is more fun :) It is important to have them for networking!

Set an hourly rate for your work. What should you charge on an hourly basis? It does depend on your skillset, where you live, general expenses, etc. I used this calculator, which is really robust, to help me determine my hourly rate. There are others out there, so it may be worth trying a few to see what the average is. Also, consider thinking about project rates. I switched over from hourly to project rates once I understood, in general, the number of hours certain tasks take me. I now prefer project rates, as it is more straightforward for clients and I don’t need to set a number of hours. Start with hourly until you have a good understanding of how long tasks take you and then go from there

Network all the time. Every chance you have to go to a social event (in your industry, not cocktail hour), go and bring your business cards. I can’t begin to count the number of meetups I went to or the number of conferences I attended. This is the best way to meet people in your field who may want to hire you for a project. This also means you don’t onlygo to UX research meetups, but also product or tech ones, which may give you a wider range of people looking for help. Even though you are looking for work, make sure you approach people in a genuine way — they are not just there to get you a job, they are people too

Overall, before you dive into the world of freelancing, make sure you think about it from both sides: what will you gain and what will you be giving up? Carefully weigh the pros and cons, as there are pros and cons to both sides. Talk to all the people you can who have gone into freelancing, they don’t have to be in your particular field, but it helps. Also, make sure you think about anyone else in your life that may be affected by this decision (including pets!), as the instability can greatly impact others!

Either way, freelancing is definitely an experience I recommend people to have, when they are ready. You can always jump ship and go back to a full-time job (which I’m doing)! The only thing I urge you to do is really think about and consider all sides! Happy freelancing!