Web Designers: How long did it take you to get your first high paying project?

[DeletedGuest63x]

I know that I shouldn't be asking this as someone who's still in the learning process, but I am really curious about it.
Thanks.

 

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[alexkuzmov]

I know that I shouldn't be asking this as someone who's still in the learning process, but I am really curious about it.
Thanks.

What does "high paying" mean?

 

[DeletedGuest63x]

What does "high paying" mean?

Anything over 1K for me. I think it's high considering that many people get paid like 200 bucks a website on freelancing marketplaces.

 

[alexkuzmov]

Anything over 1K for me. I think it's high considering that many people get paid like 200 bucks a website on freelancing marketplaces.

You can probably get that within 6 months starting with 0 knowledge.

 

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[Oso]

There isn't a timeline.

I've met developers and designers that were making 5 figures/mo. within a couple of months of learning. Similarly, I've met people who've been developers and designers for literal decades, but would never be able to land a 4-5 figure client on their own. The determining factors are typically "how much value are you actually providing," and "can you sell yourself, your agency, and your products/services well enough?"

I'm a full stack web developer that recently sold a digital marketing agency. That said, to give you a general idea:

* At 3 months of developer experience, I was taking freelance jobs in the 300$-800$ US range (HTML, CSS, basic JS; basic website redesigns)
* At 6 months of developer experience, I refused any job under 1500$ US
* At 1 year of developer experience, I was researching starting an agency, and typically refused any job under 2500$ US
* At 5 years of developer experience, I started an agency, landed quite a few clients, and then sold it 8 months later for 12X,XXX. I'm now working on my next app/business.

Cheers.

 

[Absar]

At 3 months of developer experience, I was taking freelance jobs in the 300$-800$ US range (HTML, CSS, basic JS; basic website redesigns)

What method did you use to get clients?
I am in that phase and your info would really help me.

 

[Subsonic]

What method did you use to get clients?
I am in that phase and your info would really help me.

Ill tell you a secret tip with which you can get clients for any service business.
Ready?

You run ads...


No but for real. If your a web dev you should be able to make a great landing page and get leads through that and pcc/facebook ads.
That makes the sale easier since now you can say: Hey you said your interested. You also know firsthand that my websites convert, since it worked on you.

The thing is, this take some balls because you will have to spent anywhere from 10€ to 30€ per lead. This should still be profitable however since you will make 500 to 1k per job easily.

 

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[Andy Black]

What method did you use to get clients?
I am in that phase and your info would really help me.

What have you tried to date and how has it worked out?

Have you got your first client yet?

 

[alexkuzmov]

Ill tell you a secret tip with which you can get clients for any service business.
Ready?

You run ads...


No but for real. If your a web dev you should be able to make a great landing page and get leads through that and pcc/facebook ads.
That makes the sale easier since now you can say: Hey you said your interested. You also know firsthand that my websites convert, since it worked on you.

The thing is, this take some balls because you will have to spent anywhere from 10€ to 30€ per lead. This should still be profitable however since you will make 500 to 1k per job easily.

This doesnt seem like good advice to me.
Running ads on a landing page.

I`ve had much more success by helping people on:

1. Forums
2. Facebook Groups
3. Through word of mouth

People constantly have problems on their websites, be it with their design or functions.
Usually they look for help so you just have to be where they are looking.
It took me literally weeks of just helping random strangers for no money to start getting clients.
Without a landing page, without ads and without much effort.

 

[Subsonic]

This doesnt seem like good advice to me.
Running ads on a landing page.

I`ve had much more success by helping people on:

1. Forums
2. Facebook Groups
3. Through word of mouth

People constantly have problems on their websites, be it with their design or functions.
Usually they look for help so you just have to be where they are looking.
It took me literally weeks of just helping random strangers for no money to start getting clients.
Without a landing page, without ads and without much effort.

Yeah that is also a great option.
I guess I am biased because I love ads and using them in hustles where people typically only use cold messaging etc.

 

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[Oso]

What method did you use to get clients?
I am in that phase and your info would really help me.

I had a team of 5 that handled my sales, client vetting, etc. They were commission-based. All I did was recruit said 5 people, and trained them enough to know how to connect the dots between "what the client needs" and "what solutions we can offer."

 

[Absar]

What have you tried to date and how has it worked out?

Have you got your first client yet?

Hi, I tried to post on facebook groups to get leads. I did get some applause and people in my dms asking for how much I charge, but nothing went further than that.
Freelancing sites have been a bad luck for me

I have got no clients so far for web design but I am really looking forward to get some in these holidays.

Firstly, I need to get my website up and probably get an email.

I have made quite a few websites that I'll use as my portfolio thing

The important step is how I'll be doing outreach, and that is where the problem lies, how I will get clients.

 

[Absar]

I had a team of 5 that handled my sales, client vetting, etc. They were commission-based. All I did was recruit said 5 people, and trained them enough to know how to connect the dots between "what the client needs" and "what solutions we can offer."

will it be good to use this method of hiring people on commission-based that will bring in clients in the beginning when I have not got any clients yet?

Also to get good margins I'll have to target people outside my country as margins are very low in India.

 

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[Oso]

will it be good to use this method of hiring people on commission-based that will bring in clients in the beginning when I have not got any clients yet?

Also to get good margins I'll have to target people outside my country as margins are very low in India.

That is perfectly fine. I would focus on making sure you have your services and packages in mind, so you can then base your training around what services you're offering.

Remember they're commission-based, so if they aren't landing clients you don't have to worry about paying them. The negative aspect to this is you will get a lot of lazy sales people who don't want to work, AND then they complain when they're making 0$. That happens. Replace them and find people that will work.

After you have a few months worth of data (e.g. sales reports/numbers), speak with your sales team about promoting someone from within. Promote a GOOD sales person to a salaried manager position when the time comes. You lose a good sales person, but the goal is to have that sales person train everyone (and essentially handle everything "sales") moving forward. Sacrifice 1 good sales person today to have 100 good sales people 2 months from now. Furthermore, promoting from within ensures the position isn't viewed as a "dead-end sales job." If it's viewed as such, you will get "quiet quitters" and the like.

 

[DeletedGuest63x]

There isn't a timeline.

I've met developers and designers that were making 5 figures/mo. within a couple of months of learning. Similarly, I've met people who've been developers and designers for literal decades, but would never be able to land a 4-5 figure client on their own. The determining factors are typically "how much value are you actually providing," and "can you sell yourself, your agency, and your products/services well enough?"

I'm a full stack web developer that recently sold a digital marketing agency. That said, to give you a general idea:

* At 3 months of developer experience, I was taking freelance jobs in the 300$-800$ US range (HTML, CSS, basic JS; basic website redesigns)
* At 6 months of developer experience, I refused any job under 1500$ US
* At 1 year of developer experience, I was researching starting an agency, and typically refused any job under 2500$ US
* At 5 years of developer experience, I started an agency, landed quite a few clients, and then sold it 8 months later for 12X,XXX. I'm now working on my next app/business.

Cheers.

Do you think JS is a must for freelancing? I have been trying to learn web development because i'm super into it but i thought only things like hmtl css wordpress were necessary for freelancers.

 

[Subsonic]

Do you think JS is a must for freelancing? I have been trying to learn web development because i'm super into it but i thought only things like hmtl css wordpress were necessary for freelancers.

nothing is "necessary".

What you need is a solution to a problem. If you can use java to get your clients more sales then its good.
If you can make a ultra high converting page in pure html then thats also fine.

 

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[Oso]

Do you think JS is a must for freelancing? I have been trying to learn web development because i'm super into it but i thought only things like hmtl css wordpress were necessary for freelancers.

No, but also "depends on your goals."

If you're aiming to be a WordPress Developer, then no, you will be fine not knowing it.

If you're aiming to be able to eventually create (freelance) your own web apps, then yes, you will want to learn it at some point.

You'll hear people preach "value" a lot here. That is obviously the goal. However, nowadays, it seems most business owners are beginning to see the value in automation and apps. So, while you can still land that "big, 20k WordPress website client," the reality is, by the time you've landed one of those WordPress projects, I'll have a 250k waiting list worth of app development projects.