Unlike some couples, my husband actually reads some of the blog posts I write for FreelanceSwitch. Which makes me really happy considering my own parents hardly read the articles I write for the regional magazine I work for. Heck, Shane even reposts some of my blog posts on his… read more
It’s incredibly common to freelance on the side: if you’re working a day job, it’s inevitable that you’ll come across someone who wants you to exercise your skills off the clock. Some folks take it farther: actively seeking out freelance projects to do after they get off from their… read more
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Getting sick is no fun for anyone. For a freelance designer (and other freelancers), getting sick (or injured) might spell financial disaster. That’s because freelance designers who don’t work don’t get paid. There’s also the risk of losing a client.
In this post, I examine some of… read more
This post is part of our daily series of posts showing the most inspiring images selected by some of the Abduzeedo’s writers and users. If you want to participate and share your graphic design inspiration, You can submit your images and inspiration to RAWZ via http://raw.abduzeedo.com and don’t forget to… read more
The last installment in Tut+ Premium’s freelancing course, Freelance Bootcamp, is all about advancing your career. If you’re a Premium member and following along, this is your space to share your ideas with fellow FreelanceSwitch readers! The section starts with Marketing for Freelancers. In the last section of the… read more
The author's dog, Miles the Chihuahua.
The International Journal of Workplace Health Management recently published a study investigating the presence of dogs in the workplace on employee stress and organizational perceptions. As a dog owner, I was interested to see what the results were.
The study focused on studying three groups… read more
There are a lot of last minutes when it comes to freelancers and taxes. If you freelance full-time in the U.S, you’re expected to send in quarterly estimated payments, in addition to doing your yearly routine.
Even though taxes can be fairly routine, it’s worth making sure that you’re… read more
Marketing has taken more evolutionary leaps in the past two years then it has in the time since cave men adorned their spears and clubs with rocks and bones to differentiate their awesome possessions. Throughout the history of marketing and advertising, there have been a couple of commonalities: The first… read more
I got a call from a friend a few days ago and it seems his small business is getting smaller by the minute. Not only is he on the brink of collapse financially, his one major customer looks like they will be folding up shop soon and that will… read more
Responsive web design is a web development philosophy that has rapidly spread through the design community. A responsive web site is one that is built using W3C and CSS3 media queries to allow the site to perform optimally across various platforms and screen resolutions. Meaning the site will look correct… read more
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In the summer of 2011, when I was lingering in the Time Square shopping mall, I suddenly received a phone call from the owner of New Forest Restaurant. He probably found my contact details from my website. He told me the brand of the restaurant needed a… read more
Being a freelancer, I’ve tried many applications to help me produce effective and professional invoices for my clients. I’ve experimented with everything from Microsoft Word to other applications on Mac OS X and iOS. Recently, I have come across Billable, a web-based application for invoicing clients.
Billable allows you to easily create beautiful and… read more
This post is part of our daily series of posts showing the most inspiring images selected by some of the Abduzeedo’s writers and users. If you want to participate and share your graphic design inspiration, You can submit your images and inspiration to RAWZ via http://raw.abduzeedo.com and don’t forget to… read more
In the past year or so a new social service has been gaining huge popularity, almost explosion-like you might say. You’ve probably heard of it, its called Pinterest. Now, I won’t go into detail about what Pinterest is or what it can do, I am sure you will… read more
I really liked what blogger Emily Heyward had to say on her recent FastCompany.com blog post called Desks, Where Creativity Goes To Die. The SXSW attendee stepped outside of her comfort zone at the conference and learned a thing or two.
Initially, I tried to attend talks or panels directly… read more
It’s been almost a year now since I did my last business card template roundup. As design trends tend to come and go, I thought it might be a good time to have another.
Here’s are a few of my favorite business card templates from our sister site GraphicRiver. Enjoy!
Quirky… read more
It’s easy to see the financial benefits of using certain tools: for some freelance niches, not having the most recent copy of the Adobe Creative Suite is the same thing as walking away from every client who is more up to date. But project management tools don’t have such… read more
In 2009 we launched our Facebook fan page, four years and lots of posts and comments later we’re proud to announce that we now have over 30,000 fans! To celebrate this milestone Vectortuts+ is giving away some fantastic prizes, including a grand prize of a 1-year membership to Tuts+… read more
One of the most difficult things to deal with when working with a client is when they’re unengaged, absent, missing, and seemingly disinterested in the work you’re doing.
Developers and designers people crave recognition. We love hearing “this is wonderful”, whether it’s from a peer, client, or anonymous blog comment…. read more
WordPress! is an award-winning CMS, which enables you to build Blogs, Web sites and powerful online applications. Many aspects, including its ease-of-use and extensibility, have made WordPress the most popular blog software available. Best of all, WordPress is an open source solution that is freely available to everyone.
There are… read more
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Fuel Your Photography's Facebook cover photo of the month.
Creative Fuel is a periodic collection of design and creativity awesomeness found around the web. Find out about new apps and services, the best freebies, and other significant news from the design community!
35 Great Resources for Compass and Sass
With… read more
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Getting started in freelance web design is an exhilarating process. Along with the added stresses of daily work you actually become your own boss, set your own hours, and even choose who you will work with. It’s truly a great way to earn a living!
Now consider… read more
This post is part of our daily series of posts showing the most inspiring images selected by some of the Abduzeedo’s writers and users. If you want to participate and share your graphic design inspiration, You can submit your images and inspiration to RAWZ via http://raw.abduzeedo.com and don’t forget to… read more
Today we have 5 premium editions of Step by Step UI Design to giveaway. Written by Sacha Greif and is a must ebook for all UI designers.
All you will have to do for a chance of winning one of these books is leave a comment below telling us… read more
If you are a solopreneur, branding yourself is key. You want to make a statement and interest people while being true to who you are as a person and a professional. No matter your niche, creating a brand for yourself is important! But how do you do that as… read more
How much of your time do you spend sending outbound emails? How much time and effort do you put into every pitch, hoping that a client will select you over countless others?
Successful freelancers know that there is another path. Instead of going to the client, have them come to… read more
Once a week, we feature a fantastic freelance-themed comic from the talented N.C. Winters. Why not also take a look at our comic archive?
What do you do if you have one main client and for some reason the work from that client dries up? Perhaps the client goes out of business or goes in a different direction or just has a lull in business?
Your main source of income is then gone. Which… read more
The wallpaper of this week is an image created by François Leroy. The image is entitled ‘Come to life’ and it’s from the last Slashthree exhibition entitled ‘Fairy Tales’
François Leroy began his journey into graphic design as a student, before eventually teaching himself the art of digital composition. Today, he… read more
This post originally appeared on the American Express OPEN Forum, where Mashable regularly contributes articles about leveraging social media and technology in small business.
The Limited Liability Company (LLC) is a hot business structure for startups right now — and for good reason. It offers all the personal liability protection without… read more
It’s time for our best news of this week. We have a lot of graphic and web design, a bit of architecture, ads, tech news, awesome reads and other crazy stuff! So take a look at the links we’ve selected for your inspiration and to keep you updated about what’s… read more
View engaging conference lectures, interesting how to discussions, and high quality freelance advice via video here on FreelanceSwitch.
This week we look at Beware online “Filter Bubbles” by Eli Pariser. As web companies strive to tailor their services (including news and search results) to our personal tastes, there’s a dangerous… read more
As graphic designers, it is so important for us to always keep learning in order to stay at the top of our game. Outside of classes, and actual on-the-job learning, there are many outlets for us to teach ourselves new tricks. One of my favorite new places to… read more
Meet Austin Schindel, sports fans. You’re going to wish you had his new job.
For the next year, he’ll travel around the country to some of the country’s funnest sporting events — starting with Major League Baseball games and the NFL and NBA drafts — to tweet his behind-the-scenes experiences… read more
Dave Copeland of ReadWriteWeb talks about what I preach to my journalism students every week in his blog post titled “Want To Save Journalism? Start At The Bottom“. It’s not enough to just be a good writer or a good photographer these days—you have to be good at everything.
“When… read more
I’ll be honest– my home life is completely insane. My house is like a zoo with two feral monkeys on the loose, tearing apart everything they can get their little hands on.
There are spills, wrecks, crying jags, minor explosions, loud thumping sounds (heads on walls probably), and occasional… read more
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If you’ve ever had to give a logo a lively, energetic feel while working with, for instance, a juice bar or sports organization as a client, you know it can be difficult to pull it off with the inanimate logo. Energy is all about movement and animation…. read more
Video Inspiration is a weekly(ish) post where we either feature a specific artist or show a sort of “best of” list of videos we’ve discovered during the week. Everything here may not be brand new, but we felt it worth sharing with the community. If you have good… read more
Icon sets although are very small design elements but hold great importance when it comes to overall design. Having a high quality collection of icon sets come in handy at the time of need. This is the reason why designers believe that having a freebie collection of icon sets is… read more
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Managing money can be a problem for a freelance designer. If you’ve been a freelance designer for any length of time, then you already know that your income can fluctuate as a freelancer–sometimes a lot.
Many freelance designers find the financial ups and downs of freelancing to… read more
A recruiter recently announced an employment opportunity but it came with a test. Candidates would have to write a business plan they would implement in their first year with the company. The request was to “be innovative with your thinking!”
The recruiter insisted candidates needed to “wow!” this company. With the… read more
By 2016, there will be three billion Internet users across the globe, according to a new study by The Boston Consulting Group. That’s half the world’s population!
The study focused on Internet use by consumers and businesses in the G20 countries, which includes Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, the EU,… read more
There’s a realization that every freelance designer must go through at some point: client work isn’t enough to ensure your long-term financial security. What if you get sick? What if you can’t find clients? What if you want to take a vacation?
One possible answer to this problem is earning passive… read more
In this issue of Ask FreelanceSwitch, we look at repeat clients and increasing your workload. Ask FreelanceSwitch is a regular column here that allows us to help beginners get a grip on freelancing. If you have a question about freelancing that you want answered, send an email to askfreelanceswitch@gmail.com.
Question… read more
When I was in journalism school (in both the late 1990s and mid 2000s), the AP Stylebook was our bible. We didn’t go to class without it and frequently had quizzes and assignments built around it.
I recently wrote a blog post about the future of journalism and how astonished… read more
Freelancers are often frustrated by fluctuating income. And when you don’t have the luxury of getting regular paychecks, there is the tendency to make money mistakes. But you can avoid overspending and make better use of your money by practicing good money management.
Reaching your financial goals doesn’t mean… read more
Bid sites have become a part of freelancing, no matter how much some of us dig in our heels and scream otherwise. It’s become very common for a freelancer to land her first clients through a site like Elance or Odesk, or for a freelancer to pick up some… read more
At this time, we have come with another electrifying collection of some of the very astonishing iPad apps for web designers and developers. The iPad without a doubt is very helpful in particular for those people whose career are online designing, freelancing and others. We compiled this post especially for… read more
We are very happy to present a sample chapter from the upcoming printed Smashing Book #3, written by Aarron Walter. In this chapter, Aarron explains how sharing our personalities can help us create lasting relationships with users, and how it can improve the bottom line of our business. The sample… read more
Today it’s more common to find a skilled web artisan who understands desktop support over mobile. This appears to be a symptom of building on the desktop browser for decades as opposed to other screens. Yet there is a growing case to argue that mobile development is the… read more
It’s coming—the Facebook pages update. March 30th is almost here, and if you haven’t updated your page yet (like me) you’re in for some big changes.
Mari Smith, a social media speaker and author, has a great marked up screen shot on her blog you should check out.
I’ve complained about… read more
Freelance marketers have one of the best jobs on the planet.
There’s a never-ending stream of exciting new projects to work on and clients to work with, and at the end of the day, your work is about helping business grow, which means a better livelihood for everyone involved. Not… read more
I would like an e-commerce site just like someothershop.com – how much would that cost me?
It’s a common enough question, and one that always leads your average freelance web designer to take a deep breath and sigh ‘Well, let me see …’. There are many factors that influence the… read more
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Job boards are one of the worst ways to get clients. They’re great for entry-level gigs, but if you want to thrive, then you need to figure out how to move beyond that. The best way to get a job is to not even apply.
Because responding to job… read more
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The lifestyle of a freelancer can be very hectic at times. You have to juggle multiple projects and meetings with clients all to make sure your bills are paid. And the only way you’re going to keep ahead is by managing your money properly!
Freelancers don’t often… read more
Why Freelancing Is Not The Dream Job For You
Underwater Dogs is a funny series of photographs by Seth Casteel. Based in Los Angeles, Seth delivers spontaneous and priceless results to capture our favourite pets in images that will surely last forever. Some of are really funny and some a bit scary, you’ll be the judge!
For more information about… read more
The Pew Research Center recently released their State of the News Media study for 2012, and, believe it or not, it’s not all bad news!
The annual study is an analysis of the health of journalism in America. This year’s study includes special reports on the impact of mobile technology… read more
Having valid code is something that is not only encouraged, but highly recommended when developing a website. Invalid markup doesn’t exactly mean that a website won’t be read or displayed properly by a browser, however, which leaves many people wondering what the point of having valid code is to begin… read more
Once a week, we feature a fantastic freelance-themed comic from the talented N.C. Winters. Why not also take a look at our comic archive?
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Freelancing is a scary thing. One month you might have twice what you need to live. Other times, you’ll be struggling to pay the bills — and generating some late fees in the process.
While the ups and downs of freelancing are simply a part of the deal,… read more
Being on the road often limits the amount of gear we want to take with us as photographers. By learning and getting more comfortable with natural light we can not only help lighten our bags, but it’s one of the most powerful ways to create dramatic images. Depending on the… read more
This post is part of our daily series of posts showing the most inspiring images selected by some of the Abduzeedo’s writers and users. If you want to participate and share your graphic design inspiration, You can submit your images and inspiration to RAWZ via http://raw.abduzeedo.com and don’t forget to… read more
Every other week we roundup some of the highest quality articles and resources that benefit freelancers from across the web. We present these articles here on various helpful topics. This week we have articles on learning freelance web development, grammar goofs, working on the road, and more.
7 Steps to… read more
This post originally appeared on the American Express OPEN Forum, where Mashable regularly contributes articles about leveraging social media and technology in small business.
Are you thinking about snapping up a new iPad? The post-PC lifestyle is especially intriguing for business owners who travel on a regular basis and want to… read more
View engaging conference lectures, interesting how to discussions, and high quality freelance advice via video here on FreelanceSwitch.
This week we look at Ep 20: Taxes, Accounting, and Business Structures for Freelancers by Freelance Jam. In this video the Freelance Jam duo look at: How do you run a… read more
This post is part of our daily series of posts showing the most inspiring images selected by some of the Abduzeedo’s writers and users. If you want to participate and share your graphic design inspiration, You can submit your images and inspiration to RAWZ via http://raw.abduzeedo.com and don’t forget to… read more
I got a call yesterday from a publishing house in New York City. One of my former interns had given them my contact information to use as a reference for the job she was applying for. I was pleasantly surprised to get the call.
A lot of the former interns… read more
While working as an account executive in my previous jobs, I quickly learned that clear communication from the very first meeting is crucial to understanding a client’s needs – and now, working as a freelancer has reaffirmed that many times over. It’s not easy though – between multiple meetings, scores… read more
Most freelancers are eager for tips and information, turning to forums, classes, and networking for ways to learn and improve. But did you ever consider looking to your canine for some wisdom? Here are a few things your dog knows that just may improve your freelancing life.
Walk it Off
If you… read more
As bloggers, we face a wide variety of tasks each day related to managing and building our blogs. Productivity and efficiency are vital, especially for part-time bloggers. A number of extremely addictive and time-consuming habits stand in the way, though.
I’m sure all bloggers wonder, “How did others make it to… read more
There are a lot of factors to consider before building and submitting a mobile application. Developers have plenty of resources on the web for consulting official documentation. But there are some traits you should consider about the overall process.
Whether you are building for Apple or Android-powered devices will… read more
This post is part of our daily series of posts showing the most inspiring images selected by some of the Abduzeedo’s writers and users. If you want to participate and share your graphic design inspiration, You can submit your images and inspiration to RAWZ via http://raw.abduzeedo.com and don’t forget to… read more
Video Inspiration is a weekly(ish) post where we either feature a specific artist or show a sort of “best of” list of videos we’ve discovered during the week. Everything here may not be brand new, but we felt it worth sharing with the community. If you have good… read more
Are women better leaders than men? This is the central question in a new survey by Utah-based Zegner/Folkman, a leadership development consultancy. The results of this survey might surprise you.
For the survey, 7,280 leaders had their leadership effectiveness evaluated by managers and executives who worked with them. It’s a… read more
Working as a freelancer may not conjure up images of being a tough cookie, but being a one-person show at your own business takes remarkable creativity, discipline, and good old-fashioned moxie. The Atlantic called freelancing the “next industrial revolution” of our time.
Freelancers, from independent creatives to technical consultants, juggle… read more
This is an interesting topic which isn’t often discussed between web designers. Getting started in Adobe Photoshop is difficult, and you feel an exhilarating rush when you complete your first web project. But what good is a website mockup if you can’t build it?
Arguably designers by definition do… read more
1. Milo Greene
@dawsonheringer
“The final Milo Greene show of SXSW. #AustinExhaustion”
Click here to view this gallery.
Max Blau is Paste… read more
For those of you who are following along with Freelance Bootcamp over on Tuts+ Premium, you’ll be into the second chapter of content: Running Your Business. The first couple videos in this chapter, “How to Get Your First Client” and “How to Find Your Ideal Client” deal all with… read more
I recently met with two new clients to discuss the development of their websites. I typically like to see if there are any specific colors they’d like to use, along with any preferences they may have towards layout and content. I was quite surprised to hear both of them tell… read more
Pomegranate is a mentoring emagazine for creative entrepreneurs—that’s you! Their March 2012 issue is all about creating value for your customers.
Creating value is the easiest way to differentiate you from your competitors. To be honest, when I choose vendors to work with, the lowest price doesn’t always win out…. read more
Nine out of ten freelancers will tell you that their biggest challenge is finding new customers.
And not just any customers – we’re talking about the good customers, the ones that really want to work with you, trust you to do a good job, listen to you, accept your guidance,… read more
Process Charting (also known as Process Mapping) is one of the oldest, simplest and most valuable techniques for streamlining work. It is used in nearly every level of production.
At the base of each product lays a properly designed production process that includes plenty of stages which help to channel efforts… read more
Life-saving customer service tips for freelance designers
Before I discuss writing for a content mill, it’s best to determine exactly what a content mill is. And, depending on who you ask, they will probably have a different definition.
Content mills (or farms) have been around since the 90s. The Center for Digital Ethics & Policy have described… read more
This week I’m proud to announce that we have 5 deals from Mighty Deals up for grabs! Mighty Deals is a great site that offers amazing and exclusive deals for web professionals – and you can win a deal of your choice!
Mighty Deals is a great place for any, and… read more
Here’s the deal. Sure, we love freelancing and what we do. But, we do this stuff for money. Dough. Moolah. We are authentic businesses after all.
We provide a valuable service and deserve to be paid for our labors. However, at some point in our freelance careers, usually early… read more
Leaping from whimsical Redditor to professional Hollywood screenwriter is the stuff of many Internet denizens’ dreams. But for James Erwin of Des Moines, Iowa, it’s just life these days.
During a lunch break last August, Erwin joined a Reddit thread and laid down the first installment of a sparse, noir-ish narrative… read more
This post is part of our daily series of posts showing the most inspiring images selected by some of the Abduzeedo’s writers and users. If you want to participate and share your graphic design inspiration, You can submit your images and inspiration to RAWZ via http://raw.abduzeedo.com and don’t forget to… read more
Rachel Bell's three children.
Working from home and caring for your children is a power struggle. Many stay at home freelancers want to be there for their children but also want to be their for their clients. It’s a delicate balancing act that can go on for years.
Many starry-eyed new… read more
Who am I? I’m Allan, a designer who went from freelancer who was grinding out a meager living to co-founding a highly profitable web shop, now we build our own apps, we host conferences and workshops.
In order to accurately discern which potential clients should earn the time and focus… read more
Once a week, we feature a fantastic freelance-themed comic from the talented N.C. Winters. Why not also take a look at our comic archive?
This post is part of our daily series of posts showing the most inspiring images selected by some of the Abduzeedo’s writers and users. If you want to participate and share your graphic design inspiration, You can submit your images and inspiration to RAWZ via http://raw.abduzeedo.com and don’t forget to… read more
The wallpaper of this week is an image created by Bram Vanhaeren. Bram is 20 years old and studies cross media design, after 2 years freelancing together with his brother. He’s been developing his style since his first pen tool experiments in Illustrator about 5 years ago. Bram’s style ranges… read more
It’s been a tough week for some of us to get back into the work groove after a week of networking parties at SXSW (First-World problems?) but never fear, because it’s the weekend again and we’ve rounded up this week’s features for you right here.
If you didn’t get to… read more