Building a client Base for Your Web Design Business

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Once you have decided that you are a competent web designer and that you want to expand your knowledge and skills into a viable business, you must cover all the bases to make sure that you are successful. First and foremost, this means gaining clients, and keeping them. An easy way to start is by making your presence and availability known within your community or across the Internet. Read some ideas here about how to get going in the right direction.

Classified ads have long been the way to gain business without taking out expensive ads in magazines or newspapers. Now that most marketing has gone online, this still remains the most common way to make your presence known. Fortunately, there are free or very affordable ways to post your services on classified advertising sites such as Craigs List. If you are offering services to the public, you will generally be able to do it at no cost. Open an account and then start posting. Use photographs to draw in the reader and to give an example of your web design skills.

Look around you and identify the numerous sources of gaining visibility for your web design skills. Ask neighbors and friends to recommend you to their associates and social circles. Donate your time and skills to local schools and charities, gaining recognition for your contribution, while also raising your profile in the community. Visit online forums for small businesses who may not yet have their own site, or who want to upgrade from using templates.

Make flyers and post them anywhere you can in your city. Order business cards and make sure they are very professional. These can be ordered online for a fraction of the cost of standard print shops. Learn how to use the online tools to create your own cards. You can even get them for free if you are willing to pay for shipping and put the printer’s logo on the back of your cards. Make a logo for your web design business and use it on everything that you do, in order to create an association with your business. Consider donating sports clothing such as t-shirts or jackets to local teams, and have your logo and business name places on the items.

Be sure to choose a business name that is easy to remember, and one that reveals immediately what your business is. You do not want to lose out on a potential client just because people do not know exactly what you are selling. Choose a domain name that has your actual business name in it, as well as one that indicates that you are a web designer. If it is easy to remember, then people will not have to use a search engine and potentially bring up names of your competitors.

Use these foundational methods to bring attention to your skills as a web designer, and to ensure that you are the one that gets that call when someone needs a new site. Promoting yourself is an art, but one that you can easily master.