Starting a freelance business from scratch

When I first started my freelance business, I did what most people would avoid like the plague, the dreaded cold-calling! I knew clients weren’t going to just fall into my lap, I had to go out and get them. So I picked up the local Yellow Pages and phoned all the companies I thought would need graphic design services.

I know, I know! That’s scary stuff, right? But I don’t regret it for a minute, because after the initial few months of doing that, I never had to self-promote or look for business again throughout my entire 15 years of freelancing.

My goal was simple, find the right clients. Treat them like kings. Provide amazing service and the power of word-of-mouth and client loyalty will do the rest.

For me cold-calling was one of my proudest and bravest moments in my career, I was determined to create my own reality. I wasn’t about to leave the success of my new business to chance, it was just too important to me. Learning to back myself, discovering what it felt like to be out of my comfort zone and ways to manage that, are all skills I’ll use for the rest of my life.

We all have to start somewhere, and this can be pretty daunting. That’s why in the latest episode of The Honest Designers Show, we chat about starting a freelance career from scratch – what we did then, and what we’d do now! So if you’re new to the game, or keen to hear if your story is similar to ours, head over to Episode 7 to have a listen.