With companies across multiple industries focused on making their websites and apps easy to use, UX designers are in high demand. While the opportunities to work in UX design as a freelancer can be great, getting started can feel difficult and be overwhelming.
Luckily, there are several ways to get started as a freelance UX designer, involving learning UX skills, building a strong network, and finding relevant clients.
1. Learning UX Skills
When learning new UX skills, one method can be to self-teach. With plenty of online resources to learn design software, teaching yourself how to create wireframes and prototypes with programs like Figma can be more cost-effective.
Meanwhile, another method to learn UX skills can be to enroll in a bootcamp. While this approach can be more expensive than self-teaching, it can also be more efficient, with many bootcamps taking 3 months to complete.
2. Networking
When building a strong network, it can be helpful to use websites like Linkedin to connect with other UX designers and learn how they got into the industry.
Additionally, the website, Meetup, can be a great way to find local UX groups and attend in-person events with other UX designers.
Furthermore, participating in hackathons can allow you to meet other people in tech while collaborating on a project together and building case studies.
3. Finding Clients
When looking for clients it can be helpful to ask people in your network to see if there are potential projects in need of UX designers.
Additionally, websites like Fiverr and Upwork can be a great way to connect with clients quickly and gain real-world experience.
Wrap-up
In conclusion, learning UX skills, networking, and finding clients can be a great way to get started as a freelance UX designer. Nonetheless, there is no right way to do it.
It can take time to learn skills, build professional networks, and connect with the right clients or projects to gain experience. Therefore, the most important thing to remember is to keep moving forward.
Sources & Further Reading
12 May 2022 ● 11 min read
Sakshi Gupta
