7 Steps to Building Your Freelance Graphic Design Career on Fiverr

Being a freelance graphic designer is a dream job for many people with creative and artistic know-how. But how can you make the leap from dreaming do doing and join the ranks of successful graphic designers? Here’s some good news: You can launch and grow your graphic design career on Fiverr.

A leading global marketplace that connects freelancers with buyers, Fiverr is always a hub of activity. Many companies—from start-ups to major global brands—rely on Fiverr as their go-to source to find freelance graphic design professionals. Sign up and learn why Fiverr is considered one of the best freelance graphic design sites in the world.

Not sure how to begin? Just follow these seven success tips to make your mark in the thriving Fiverr graphic design community.

Step 1: Optimize Your Fiverr Profile

Every freelancer who signs up for Fiverr receives a personal seller profile. Your profile includes personal and professional information, along with links to social accounts. Your profile also lets you provide a profile description and a photo.

Keep in mind that your profile description is one of the first glimpses potential buyers have of you. Your profile characters are limited, so you’ll need to be succinct, but sell yourself too. Why should buyers choose you for freelance graphic design services? Describe your core focus areas, too. Are you a freelance flyer designer, freelance magazine designer, or have other specialties? Tell buyers in your profile description.

And don’t neglect the value of a great picture! If you have a professional headshot, that’s great—but no worries if you don’t. A smartphone photo of yourself against a neutral background can work well. Smiling and exuding confidence in your photo is going to capture the attention of prospective buyers, so feel free.

Step 2: Create Winning Fiverr Gigs

Each service you sell on Fiverr is called a “Gig” Although originally Fiverr Gigs started at $5, nowadays you can command higher pricing. Your experience, the complexity of the service you provide, and add-on services can net you hundreds to thousands of dollars per Gig.

Here are a few things to focus on to create Fiverr gigs that get noticed:

·         Title: Start with a clever, descriptive gig title. Your title is what buyers see in search, so you want to make it grab their attention. Find relevant keywords that accurately describe the services you’re offering and add them to your title to give yourself the best chance of being found in search.

·         Tags: Find the most common and relevant keywords for your service category and put them to use. Add them to your gig to help buyers find you.

·         Description: Tell potential buyers exactly what services you’re offering and why they should choose you. Do you have specialized skills or talents? What makes you different from other designers? Remember to be super clear about exactly what you’re offering, any upsells, and other custom service packages you can provide.

·         Price: Make sure you have a good idea of current freelance graphic design rates when pricing your project. Search the Fiverr marketplace to understand what other designers charge. Use these average rates as a baseline, then consider factors like your experience and job complexity and duration to set fair graphic design rates. It pays to do your homework on pricing before you set up a new gig!

Step 3: Showcase Your Best Work

On Fiverr, you also have an opportunity to create a “Gig Gallery” for each gig. Your gallery can house a portfolio to highlight your talents. As a designer, you should make the most of these visuals! If you’re a Photoshop designer, add some pictures that you’ve edited and enhanced. Brand-focused designers may want to add samples of freelance brochure design, advertisements, or web graphics. Choose your best, most relevant pieces to show off your skills.

Make sure each image in your gallery is high resolution. Pick original images that highlight your creativity and design capabilities. Have more images you want to share? You can upload a showreel video to feature your work samples.

Step 4: Use Videos to Make Your Talents and Personality Shine

Here’s an insider success tip every Fiverr seller needs to know: Gigs with videos outperform gigs with images alone.

Buyers often appreciate it when freelancers use videos to showcase their personality. You can create a short, friendly video to introduce yourself and share more about your experience and skills. All you need is your computer and free video recording software. Be sure to record yourself in front of an uncluttered background and use good lighting. Write a five to ten sentence script in advance and memorize it before you record. Look directly at the camera and smile.

As mentioned above, a showreel can let you highlight multiple design pieces in one video. Not sure how to create your own showreel? You can hire a freelancer to create a showreel right on Fiverr.

And if you’re a motion graphic designer, adding videos to every gig is a must!

Step 5: Clarify Project Expectations Up Front

As a freelance creative designer, you know what you need to make each project a success. Clarify these needs by adding FAQs to your gig. This lets potential buyers know what to expect when they hire you.

Fiverr provides options for you to include buyer requirements for each gig. You can think of buyer requirements as a data-collection tool. Use them to get the information you need for your gig. As a designer, you may need access to any standard colors or fonts and insight on buyer’s design likes and dislikes, along with any files to incorporate into your design.

Be as specific as possible with your requirements. For example, you may need to tell buyers to upload a file, but it can help to provide instructions on how to upload to help buyers out. Remember, it could be the first time your new client has ever sought to hire freelance graphic design talent online. Put yourself in their shoes and make the gig start-up process easy on them.

Also, tell buyers to be as specific as possible in their instructions to you. Clear, upfront communications help every project get off to a great start.  

Step 6: Build Positive Relationships with Buyers

Delivering high-quality work on time is always going to make buyers happy. But there are other steps you can take to build good working relationships with Fiverr buyers.

First, be responsive. Answer promptly when buyers reach out to hire you or if they ask any questions. You’ll make your customers feel appreciated and think of you the next time they want to find a graphic designer online.

And you’ve probably heard the phrase “under-promise, over-deliver.” That is an excellent strategy for all of your freelance graphic design projects. Can you wrap the project up a day early? Buyers are sure to be impressed. How about adding in something extra—maybe multiple sizes of the same image to save buyers time? Those little touches can have a significant impact.

Step 7: Keep Learning New Skills

Every graphic artist and designer knows that the field is evolving all the time. You need to keep up with trends and expand your software know-how. Cutting-edge skills will help you stand out to buyers looking to hire graphic designers online.

Through education, you can take your career in any direction. As a new seller, you may want to focus on a narrow niche like Fiver flyer design. Often, creating flyers is a great path to start out as a freelance print designer. Over time, you can look to take on more complex and strategic projects. You can transform yourself into a freelance digital designer focused on websites, apps, or videos. Or you could become a freelance branding designer who helps companies create their visual identity.

While every gig can help you learn, taking courses can help you level up your skills quickly. Through Learn from Fiverr, you can access on-demand courses taught by knowledgeable professionals. Fiverr offers a suite of Design and Branding courses, along with courses on popular Adobe Creative Cloud software. You can even take courses in complementary fields—such as digital marketing and storytelling—to make yourself even more valuable to buyers.

Accelerate Your Freelance Graphic Design Career on Fiverr

Whether you’re a new designer or a seasoned veteran, you can give your freelance career a boost on Fiverr. New companies and buyers sign on to Fiverr every day to hire freelance graphic designers.

What are these buyers seeking from the Fiverr community? Anything you can imagine — brochure design, game design, menu design—and much more.

If you’ve ever dreamed of finding success as a freelance graphic artist Fiver is the go-to freelance marketplace for companies of all sizes who need a freelance graphic design project completed. By following our seven steps for success, you can use Fiverr as the springboard to a successful freelance graphic design career.