Struggling to find job.....freelance maybe??

What do you guys reckon? Im needing to relocate soon to another part of the Uk but am struggling to find suitable full time jobs!! GAHHH!!! I am still new to web design and have learnt most of what I know from a home learning course and teaching myself.

So am starting to think freelance maybe the way to go. So do you need to have similar qualifications to go freelance as companies would look for in a full time employee? Or is it just a case of showing work already done?

Guess its all a little scary! I have a good full time job at the moment and leaving that it a BIG deal! But life changes and I need to move!

Any advice be fab!!

C

Usually clients don’t care what education you have as long as you appear professional. They wanna see samples of your work so they can imagine what they would get from you – presentation is one of the most important things to get a foot in the door (but don’t promise things you can’t do). I, for example, have never taken any web design or HTML class, and yet, I’d consider myself as a bad a$s front-end developer and a good designer and I’m making a good living with it for my standard (freelancing; more with coding than with designing, though).

The internet has a lot of jobs to offer that you can do remotely without ever meeting your client. But as graphic designer actual personal contact with clients etc. is more important as are good conversational skills since this is a very subjective and creative type of work that requires explanation, education (of clients), and communication. Freelancing is not easy, especially in the beginning when nobody knows you and you have no big portfolio but over time you’ll build up your client base and if you’re good they come back to you and/or recommend you. Also you can freelance for agencies and maybe it evolves into a contract position or whatever.

So far I have been able to survive being a freelancer. :)

You could try to take some low profile freelance jobs from sites such as vworker.com. Once you gain experience and credibility you will have lot of option. Patience is the key to success. Good luck

If you don't have a formal qualification in Web Design or a related degree then freelancing is a good way to start off. Once you get a little experience under your belt then you can always apply for a full time web design/development position with a company.

Employer's want someone who can do the job at the end of the day, a degree is always a plus but if you can demonstrate skill and experience then you're gold.

I started off freelancing before sites like Elance or Scriptlance were around - It sounds like you are starting out and still learning so you can likely pick up some low profile jobs on these sites to build up your confidence and get some experience under your belt.

Which part of the UK are you moving to?

Take a look at eLance at the jobs being posted and the pay. This may discourage you as you have to compete on wolrd-wide rates. There are lots of eastern Europeans, Indian, and Filipino developers, very skilled, with low rates. Much of website development is going over to Wordpress and Drupal and the like with professionally designed templates and lots of plug and play widgets. A chance might be in developing plugins for these platforms, or something for mobile platforms.

I have sent you a pm, Claire.

Thanks for this post I was just about to ask the same question. It is one thing to be hungry for work and willing to work hard, but another finding the jobs and getting them to give YOU the work. I am in the same boat trying to find work, but new...though I am in school for programming.

Shane

well i must suggest you If you are good in English Language start you career as freelance blogger and you will see how things will change

Digitally Imported are hiring. It's a remote position too so can work from home. http://di.fm/jobs

Its easy to find freelancing jobs but they are not trust worthy as there are no surety of money for work done.

Once you forward the work to them and the money is not transferred, then you can not do anything.

There are many people doing freelancing, they are earning good but there is a risk also.

Thanks
Bacati.com

Its easy to find freelancing jobs but they are not trust worthy as there are no surety of money for work done.

Once you forward the work to them and the money is not transferred, then you can not do anything.

There are many people doing freelancing, they are earning good but there is a risk also.

Thanks
Bacati.com

Only a fool would turn over the finished product without full payment first.

Thanks for replies people! keep the advice and ideas coming as Im interested in everyone's thoughts!

Am abit stuck at the moment as the course I am taking has gone abit wrong! The provider isnt allowing me to complete it as we are in a battle over time scales......grrrr!!

Fingers crossed for it all tho! I do currently do a freelance job one day a week which has been an eye opener and great experience so will keep eyes and ears peeled for more opportunites!!