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If you're ready to start making money from your own graphic design business
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then stay tuned because today I'm going to show you exactly how to get started from scratch
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Hi there, I'm Josh from Millo.co where freelancers come to level up their business
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We've helped thousands of graphic designers start their own business over the last 12 plus years
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and today I'll explain exactly how you can start your own graphic design business too
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One that lets you do work you love while bringing in a nice paycheck
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So let's get started. The first step in starting a graphic design business is to find clients
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You might be surprised that we've put finding clients at the top of the list
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when other lists start with naming your business, getting a business license or designing your portfolio
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Those are all important but until you have clients who are willing to pay you for your services
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you don't have a business. Once you've got a few people who are actually willing to pay you for your work
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you won't believe how much excitement, energy and passion you feel about moving your business forward
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Therefore, goal number one is simple. Find graphic design clients. For more tips, click the video that we've linked here on finding more graphic design clients
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Step two, set your pricing structure. Before too long, make sure you give meaningful thought to your pricing structure
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Will you charge clients by the hour, by the project, on a monthly subscription or by the value you deliver them
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Charging hourly is probably the easiest and most common pricing structure for anyone
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starting a graphic design business from scratch. But you may want to explore other pricing models once you're a bit more established
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Trying to figure out what to charge when you're just getting started can be frustrating
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We recommend that you use the Bonsai Rate Explorer to see what other designers
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with similar experience and backgrounds are charging for their clients. We've linked to the free Rate Explorer in the description of this video
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Step number three, name your graphic design business. Now that you've got a few graphic design clients and you've considered your pricing structure
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it's time to continue building the foundation of your business. That starts with a well-thought-out business name
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Your graphic design business name can end up impacting many facets of your design business
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including how much you're able to charge for your design work, how easily people remember your design business
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the kinds of design projects you'll be hired for, whether or not people are likely to recommend you
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where you can do business without infringing on trademarks. You might be asking, should I use my own name or should I create a business name
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The short answer is simple. It doesn't really matter that much. Just pick something you like
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You can always change it later. If that's not good enough for you, here's more to think about
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First, keep it simple. Make your business name easy to say, easy to remember, and easy to spell
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Second, make sure it's available on the web, including domain names and social media handles
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Third, make sure you personally love it and it speaks to the vision of your company
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Finally, don't get paralyzed by having to make a choice. The ultimate enemy here is indecision
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Choose a name and then get back to the more important revenue generating aspects of your graphic design business
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Step four, create a portfolio website. As a graphic designer, it could be tempting to want to build
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the world's most creative and interesting web portfolio. What happens more often is designers become debilitated by the pressure
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to create the perfect portfolio and end up never getting a website published
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To avoid this common mistake, remember nothing on the internet is permanent
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You don't have to build the perfect website for your graphic design business
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Instead, focus on building what we call a minimum viable portfolio. Often, this could be accomplished with a simple one-page design
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A minimum viable portfolio is one that showcases your work, explains the value you bring to clients
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and provides a simple way for potential clients to contact you. That's all it takes
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As your business grows, you can add more to your portfolio. But for now, start simple
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If you're looking for a few easy tools to help you build a graphic design portfolio
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we've linked a few of our favorite resources down below. Step five, make a business plan
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Now that you've got a nice foundation of early clients, you've named your business, and you've got your portfolio online
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it's time to start thinking a bit more strategically about growing your graphic design business
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And for that, you'll need a business plan. You might be wondering why we didn't include the plan first on this list
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Frankly, we've seen too many people get stuck in the planning phase of starting a business
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While having a strong plan is important for long-term growth and sustainability
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getting started is even more important. For starters, your business plan should be simple as well
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It might not even need to be more than one page long. In fact, we'll link to a few one-page business plan templates
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in the description of this video in case you want to download them. For an even quicker approach, grab a pen and paper, then answer the following questions
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What services will you provide? Who is your ideal client? How much will you charge
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What are your revenue goals? How many monthly clients do you need to meet those goals
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How will you find new clients? How will you retain current clients
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If you can answer all seven of those questions with clarity, you'll be well on your way to success in business
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Step 6. Deliver high-quality projects on time. As you begin to get your graphic design business off the ground
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it's important to get new clients and build repeat business. Delivering high-quality work within the agreed-upon timeline is one great way to ensure
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that you have happy repeat clients and lots of referrals. Use tools like Hectic, which we've linked to below
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to manage your time, projects and clients efficiently. Step 7. Send invoices and collect payments
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To stay in business as a graphic designer, you'll have to get paid. And in order to get paid, you'll most likely need to send an invoice
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The most basic option is to just create an invoice in Google Docs, Word or InDesign
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But we recommend investing in some high-quality invoicing software, like FreshBooks or Bonsai
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Using invoicing software helps you create, track and manage invoices much, more quickly, allowing you to get back to the work you enjoy most
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We'll link to our top invoice software recommendations in the description of this video
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Step 8. Ask for referrals. We've been working with freelancers for over a decade
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And most freelancers tell us their number one way for getting new clients is through referrals
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If you want your graphic design business to grow, you'll need to ask for referrals from your current clients
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You can also ask your friends, family, colleagues and social followers to send referrals your way
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Be intentional in asking for referrals and following up professionally in order to win more business
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And that's it. With these 8 steps, you now know what you need to start your own graphic design business
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And we'd love to hear from you in the comments. What's the biggest question that you've had while starting a graphic design business
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I'm Josh from Millo.co. I'll catch you next time. Bye
