The first steps towards starting a design business

Personal

May 31

Or really I should title this post, MY first steps towards starting a design business. Starting a graphic design business can take many forms. For those who are already experienced in the industry, it may be as simple as setting up a professional website and reaching out to a network of potential clients. Others may choose to work as freelancers or consultants, building up a client base over time through referrals and networking. Another option is to start as a small agency with a team of designers, offering a wider range of services and the ability to take on larger projects. But beyond the overall approach, I wanted to share some of the finer details and steps that have lead me here - because that is aaaalways what I’m most fascinated about!

I took on freelance projects and started to see increased demand
Throughout university and my first few years working full time, I worked on design projects on the side. It started with applying to do freelance work for someone who was hiring a contractor and then slowly as people found out that I did design work, they’d reach out to me. It was mostly friends and family at first, but then I started getting messages from referrals outside of that circle and that’s when I started to think… maybe there’s something here.
I spoke to other business owner friends
It wasn’t until being about 3 years out of university that I got more curious about entrepreneurship. I never felt a calling to climb the ladder at the two companies where I worked full time and I started day dreaming about creating something of my own. I had a few friends who ran different businesses and I became more and more fascinated and inspired by them. So I followed that calling and met each of them for lunch to chat about how they got where they are, what some of their biggest challenges were and what they loved about being entrepreneurs. Each time I left feeling lit up with ideas and possibility.
I tested out selling custom illustrations on my own website
Now this part came out of nowhere. It started with the random idea to illustrate one of my favourite photos of me and my best friend, and then being curious about running an online shop. I was familiar with Squarespace and also loved figuring out a system or process that could help me automate. So I started by illustrating portraits of four girlfriends of mine that inspired me and sold them as pre-made prints. Then I began getting requests for custom pieces, and that’s where the momentum really began. I didn’t want this to be my full time work but it really helped me gain confidence financially, knowing this stream of income would help in combination with my web design and branding work.
I worked through the logistics… kind of
I thought through the things I knew how to do, like setup a website, create a logo and start an Instagram account. But I really didn’t know how I wanted to schedule my time or even what kind of projects I wanted to take on. For my first year I wanted to be open and look at everything as an experiment. I didn’t want to commit to a niche or a business model before I had time to figure out what my ideal clients’ needs were and if I even liked providing those services! So I did my best in mapping out what I thought my days would look like, but I was open to trying out hourly work, quoting custom projects, offering design packages or joining freelance design websites.
I set an end date at my job and chose to have 100% faith in myself!
I actually knew my end date for about a year ahead of time, which was a unique situation. I was working full time at the Toronto Blue Jays in game entertainment and since sports are seasonal I looked at every year as a decision making opportunity. I loved the job and felt really in my element, but I couldn’t see a role beyond mine that I really wanted to pursue. So when signing the contract for the 2019 season, I was completely open with my bosses and told them that it would be my last one. As the end of the season neared and more people in the office started asking why I was leaving, it was a really good exercise in having confidence in myself. At first I was nervous what people would say or think but I realized pretty quickly that it didn’t matter at all, I would tell them I was starting a business and that was pretty much that! I was so ready to put the 150% effort I had put into my full time jobs into my own damn business.

If you’re about to start your own business and you have questions, I’d love to chat!

Feel free to reach out to me on Instagram here.