① Can you introduce yourself?
I’m Bryn — from the UK and now based in Copenhagen, Denmark.
I’ve been designing for the last 12 years, have worked for a handful of small and larger agencies, and then moved to more product-focused roles at tech startups — like at Thriva, Monzo and then Pleo.
I’ve been freelancing for the last 4 years. I design marketing websites and digital products, and also offer Webflow and Framer development for websites. I mostly work with venture-backed tech and software companies, but I also partner with a few agencies.
② Why did you start freelancing?
For a few reasons: I loved the idea of investing 100% in myself. As a freelancer or business owner the success and failure is all down to you. Because of that the highs feel super real and meaningful. Of course the lows can be worse because of that — but I think that’s good motivation in itself.
When you work full time for a company the wins and losses are diluted to you as an individual. If the company you work for takes off, you as an employee could see some of the success your self: for example through equity options, through a bonus, or through reputation growth. But for all of those, in a small way compared to the founders. And on the flip side if the company goes bust, you as an employee come out of it better than the founders. So essentially as an employee you’re taking less risk than the founders so the wins and losses affect you less.
“I loved the idea of investing 100% in myself. As a freelancer or solo-business owner the success and failure is all down to you.”
Also, before freelancing I was a “senior designer” for a handful of years and I fairly quickly ruled out the idea that I wanted to be a people manager. So realistically the ceiling in terms of seniority, impact and compensation was limited. All levels above me were people managers. Kinda sad it’s very hard to progress up a company without managing people.
Conversely, the ceiling for a freelancer is pretty much non-existent. You can really shape it in a way that plays to your strengths and what you love. And you can take your career in so many different directions. All dependent on what matters the most to you.
③ What’s one mistake you made early in your freelance career?
I’ve made many mistakes in my freelancing career. It’s a valuable stage of learning. I would say most of my mistakes come into the category of communication.
So things like not letting a client know that I’d be uncontactable for a few days while I was on holiday without my laptop. And it just so happened to be the time my client chased me for something.
I’ve hired a few freelancers myself too — so I’ve seen it from the other side too. And now I really understand how frustrating it can be if a freelancer goes quiet and you need to chase for simple things.
I don’t think it can be overstated how important strong communication is for a freelancer.
④ What’s something about freelancing that most people don’t know?
How much the breadth of your role will instantly multiply. If you’re experienced in your field and transition from a permanent role into freelancing you’ll probably feel comfortable with the main focus of your job. Which could be design or development for example.
But as a freelancer that will only be a small slither of your job going forward. You’ll also have to spend time on business strategy, project management, marketing your work and services, day-to-day operations, bring in work, and the legal aspects of running a business.
⑤ What resources have been a game changer for you?
Pricing Design
The second edition of this book was released just recently by Dan Mall. You can read the whole book on the website for free. Dan ran an agency for over 10 years and has distilled everything he knows about how to price design work. It has a load of real-life case studies, walking through the whole pre-project process too.
Jamie Brindle
Jamie Brindle’s Instagram account is a treasure trove for freelancers. He posts a lot of great advice, tips, and lessons about how to run your freelance business. It’s practical things that you can implement too — like scripts for how to handle client situations or email templates you can copy.
How to build an independent design practice
I love Kevin Twohy’s approach and in this video, he shares a lot of knowledge about freelancing and running a design practice. Full of fresh perspectives and he covers interesting topics like: getting up to speed quickly with a new team, staying aligned with clients, and whether to position yourself as a studio or a person.
⑥ Where do you see your freelance business in the future?
More so now, my role is diverging more into an entrepreneur. Rather than 100% providing services to clients I spend a lot of my time working on my own ventures. I run Freelance Things (the website you’re on now), A1 (a website inspiration gallery), Good Garms (a marketplace for sustainable fashion), and sell Webflow and Framer templates.
Currently, I spend about a third of my time on my own things and two-thirds on client work — and the plan is to gradually increase the time I spend on my own things.
⑦ How do you find new work?
Luckily, I’ve had a constant stream of inbound work enquiries from pretty much the start of my freelancing. And I receive way more work enquiries than I’m able to take on. So here is a list of things I think really increase the amount of work coming your way:
- Be easy to work with: I think this is really the most impactful thing to get more work. Way more important than the quality of what you deliver. To me this means being communicative, proactive, receptive to feedback, and nice.
- Be visible online: It could be on social media, it could be your own website, it could be forums or something else. People need to know you exist, and once they know you exist they need to know what you can help with.
- Be dependable: Follow through on what you said you were going to do. Did you say you were going to deliver something on a specific date? Did you say you’d share an update? Did you say you’d look into something? Then do it.
- Nurture your network: Actively focus on building and nurturing your network. Understand that a network won’t happen automatically overnight. Put in the work. Make genuine connections online, support your friends and clients, and learn from others. It’ll do wonders for your business among many other things.
⑧ Anything you want to plug?
Check out A1 for all of your web inspiration needs. And if you want to launch a new site fast — I’ve built Webflow and Framer templates for all categories. Sites for portfolios, agencies, startups, blogs, directories, events and more.
