So… you want to be a freelance web designer? Good luck…
Strategies to take advantage of the new guy on the block
Ah, the new freelance web designer guy. There he is, sitting in a crowded Starbucks, working hard on the open MacBook in front of him, a mug of steaming coffee by his side. Is he perhaps working on a new web project for his very first client? Or maybe he is trying to find a new angle to market his professional web design services?
Whatever it is he is working on, I am sure that he is both excited and driven to do his best at the start of this new career. Big dreams, bigger aspirations.
Time to burst that bubble.
Tips to Get The Most out of the New Guy
New guys are fun to work with. Need a new website? Here are some ways you can squeeze every minute and cent out of that poor chap and get for yourself or your company a spanking new design for your website.
Tell him you are doing him a favor. That’s right, a stunning portfolio is one of the most important things for any designer (web, digital or print) to have. And any new designer will have no portfolio to show. So tell the new guy that you are taking all the risk by giving the job to someone with almost no experience — him. Better still, ask him to do it for free! And in exchange, vaguely promise him a recommendation or two on your social platforms.
Ask for multiple mockups to get a “better” idea. We all know a picture is worth a thousand words, so even before awarding the project to the new guy, always request several design mockups to “test out” his design skills. If the project negotiations do not work out, you can always take one of the designs that you liked and give it to a cheaper pencil pusher. What is the new guy going to do? Sue you? He will not have the money, time, or resources to do it. Even better, ask him not to watermark his designs so that you can get a clearer view of the mockups and the images that he used.
Pay as little as you can. After all, the new guy has almost no idea what the standard man-hour rates are for such a job. And you can always inform him that your “nephew”, who has attended some online WordPress course, can do up a full website for just $200. Ask the new guy why should you pay up to $100 per hour for a professional freelance web designer when your imaginary “nephew” can do up a similar one for a fraction of the price?
Pay as late as you want. The new guy will probably also not know that any web design projects require a deposit from the client before work actually starts, usually up to 40% of the total project cost. And when he finishes the project, inform him that there is a “testing” period of about six months to get comments and feedback from your users after your website has gone live. And the payment terms? What payment terms? Was anything ever written down in a contract? What contract?
Make as many changes as you like. Who cares if the new guy has to put in more hours to make multiple changes to a pre-confirmed design or template? The client is always right! Change colors, change font types, use a different picture, use back the original picture, put the company logo on the top left, top right, in the center… you get the idea. The new guy won’t have that many projects to do anyway, so he should have plenty of free hours to make these changes for you. You won’t be stuck behind a measly two-change limit if you play your cards right.
Get the entire source code. This is the most important point! Once the new guy has finished the project to your liking and specifications, always ask for the source files (i.e. the HTML and CSS codes, any stock images that were bought and used, any JavaScript files or codes that were implemented into the website) before making your final payment. This way, you can upload the entire website onto your own server, go live your site and hold off any payment to the new guy as long as you feel like it. There is nothing he can do! Oh, please ensure that he doesn’t have access to your domain name either…
The Inconvenient Truth
All right, enough with the satire. It is certainly not easy to start off as a new web designer, especially if you are doing it on your own. While most of the examples given above are somewhat exaggerated, I am sad to say that I have experienced these problems in one way or another in my 20 years as a web developer.
I still remember pitching for a design project at an oil and gas company. After spending hours trying to find a suitable stock image for a mockup (and buying the said image… stupid me), I did a 20-minute presentation to the company’s representatives. They seemed to like my design, asked me to include my mockup as a part of my proposal to them, shook my hand, and assured me that they will get back to me in a few days’ time.
Of course, I never did hear back from them again even after emailing them a number of times. Out of curiosity, I checked the company’s domain address after a month, and lo and behold, I saw my own design staring back at me in the face. Could I do anything about it? Take on a multinational corporation in a legal battle? Nope. But from that moment on, I never did a single piece of a mockup for anyone, anymore.
So, you want to be a freelance web designer? Be prepared to be taken advantage of at the start, but learn fast. Know your man-hour rates, build up your portfolio by doing small projects on your own, set up contract templates and ensure that your clients sign them, and never, ever give your source codes out to anyone without having them pay you first in full.
And finally, do not worry. Keep pushing onward, learn from mistakes, know who your good clients are and stick with them and steer clear from those that want to “do you a favor”. You’ll get there!
If you are not really freelancing but looking for a job as a programmer, this is an interesting article by Sandra Jasionowska on why programmers prefer to ignore recruiters.
