How to Become a Freelance Graphic Designer in India?
If you are interested in graphic design and want to pursue it as a career, you might be wondering how to become a freelance graphic designer in India. Freelancing in graphic design can be a flexible and rewarding way of working that allows you to choose your projects, clients, and schedule. However, it also comes with its challenges, such as finding work, managing finances, and staying motivated.
In this blog, we will guide you through the steps to becoming a freelance graphic designer in India, from choosing the right design course to build your skills and portfolio to finding clients. We will also share some tips and resources to help you succeed as a freelancer in this competitive industry.
Get a Bachelor of Design Degree
The first step to becoming a freelance graphic designer in India is to get a bachelor of design degree from a reputed institution. The B Design course is a four-year program that covers the fundamentals of graphic design, such as visual communication, design principles, typography, color theory, digital tools, and more. It also exposes you to various domains of graphic design, such as branding, advertising, web design, illustration, animation, and more.
- There are many institutions in India that offer these design courses in graphic design. So if you are searching for the best graphic design institute in Mumbai or any other metropolitan city in India, this list below should be useful:
- National Institute of Design, Ahmedabad (NID)
- National Institute of Fashion Technology, New Delhi (NIFT), the best graphic designing institute in Delhi
- Indian Institute of Technology, New Delhi (IIT)
- LISAA School of Design, Bangalore
Learn the Essential Tools and Skills
The next step to becoming a freelance graphic designer in India is to learn the essential tools and skills that are required for the job. Graphic design is a dynamic field that constantly evolves with new trends and technologies. Therefore, you need to keep yourself updated with the latest tools and skills that are in demand in the market.
Some of the essential tools that every graphic designer should know are:
Adobe Photoshop
Adobe Illustrator
Adobe InDesign
Adobe XD
Sketch
Figma
Apart from these tools, you should also learn some of these essential skills from a graphic designer course in India:
Also Read: Graphic students visit MAP Bangalore
Typography
This is the art and technique of arranging types to make the text legible, attractive, and effective. Even a bachelor of architecture student is trained in this skill of how to choose, combine, and apply fonts, sizes, colors, and styles to text.
Color Theory
This is the science and art of using colors to create harmony, contrast, and mood in your designs. The use of color schemes, color wheels, color psychology, and color combinations to your advantage is essential to a design career and even BSc Interior design courses teach this skill.
Layout
The arrangement of elements on a page or screen to create balance, alignment, hierarchy, and flow in your designs, layout is a concept that is fundamental to any design course. This involves the use of grids, guides, margins, padding, and spacing to organize your content.
Branding
The process of creating a unique identity and image for a product, service, or organization, branding is another skill taught in every design course. In graphic design, it involves creating logos, color palettes, typography, icons, and other visual elements that represent the brand’s personality and values.
Web Design
This is the process of creating websites that are functional, user-friendly, and aesthetically pleasing. Graphic designers from LISAA know how to design responsive, interactive, and accessible websites that work across different devices and browsers.
Illustration
This is the process of creating drawings or images that communicate a message or idea. A good design course will teach you how to create illustrations that are expressive, original, and relevant to your project.
Build Your Portfolio
The third step to becoming a freelance graphic designer in India is to build your portfolio. Your portfolio is the showcase of your work and skills as a graphic designer. It is what potential clients will look at when they want to hire you for a project. Therefore, you need to make sure that your portfolio is impressive, professional, and up-to-date.
Your portfolio should include:
A brief introduction about yourself, your education(the design course or certification/s you pursued), skills, and experience as a graphic designer.
A selection of your best and most recent projects that demonstrate your range and quality of work. Include the project brief, the client’s name, the objective, the process, the outcome, and the feedback.
Links to your website, blog, social media accounts, or online platforms where you showcase your work and interact with other designers and clients.
A contact information section where you provide your email address, phone number, and location.
You can create your portfolio using online tools while pursuing your graphic design courses in Mumbai or any other city with tools such as Behance, Dribble, Wix, Squarespace, or WordPress. Alternatively, you can also create a PDF or a printed version of your portfolio that you can send or show to clients.
Find Clients
The final step to becoming a freelance designer in India and making up your investment in fashion designing course fees, or graphic design course fees is to find clients. Finding clients is one of the most challenging aspects of freelancing, as you have to constantly market yourself and compete with other freelancers. However, there are some strategies and tips that can help you find clients and grow your freelance business irrespective of whether you pursued product design courses or a course in graphic design.
Some of these strategies and tips that you can use to make up for the fees of graphic design courses, which can become quite expensive, are:
Network with other designers and professionals in your field
Create a strong online presence
Ask for referrals and testimonials
Cold email or call potential clients
Create a blog or a newsletter
Also Read: The Different Types of Graphic Design Careers to Explore
Conclusion
Becoming a freelance graphic designer in India is not an easy task, but it is definitely possible if you sign up for a design course, preferably a bachelor’s degree, learn the essential tools and skills, build your portfolio, and find clients.
Freelancing as a graphic designer can be rewarding, as you get to work on diverse projects, choose your own schedule, and express your creativity. However, it also requires discipline, dedication, and perseverance to succeed in this competitive industry.
FAQs
- How can I start freelancing as a graphic designer in India?
To start freelancing as a graphic designer in India, all you need to do is to have the relevant skills, experience, or qualifications to find jobs and other opportunities
- How much does a freelance graphic designer earn in India?
A freelance graphic designer earns INR 3 LPA, according to Ambitionbox.
- How do I become a freelance graphic designer with no experience?
To become a freelance graphic designer with no experience, you’ll need to have at least the right qualifications, like a B Des degree. - What is the salary of a 3-year graphic designer in India?
The average salary for graphic designers with 3 years of experience is INR 2.9 LPA. - Do freelancers get paid in India?
Yes, freelancers definitely get paid in India. While there are always some bad players in every industry who take advantage of inexperienced freshers looking for freelancing gigs and not paying them afterward, a report by Paypal said that most Indian freelancers earn an average of INR 20 LPA. - Is freelance graphic design easy?
No, it takes a lot of commitment, upskilling, discipline, knowledge, and investment to become a freelancer in graphic design. However, it can be quite rewarding as well, for various reasons.