This article is written by Klaus Heller, the founder of the Creative Lunch Club, who built a successful career as a digital marketing freelancer before establishing the Creative Lunch Club. In this article, he shares his valuable insights, lessons learned, and tips from years of experience to help aspiring and established freelancers thrive in their creative journeys.
What is a Creative Freelancer?
As a creative freelancer, you are an expert in one or more creative disciplines, such as graphic design, photography, or copywriting.
Unlike an employee, you offer your services as an independent contractor. You collaborate with companies or organizations under a work contract or a freelance service agreement. Your services are billed on a self-employed basis.
As a creative freelancer, you can work directly with companies or organizations, as well as with marketing agencies, providing services for their clients.
Unlike a marketing agency, which also offers online marketing services, you are a one-person business. This means you don’t have employees. However, it is common to collaborate with other freelancers on projects. Some freelancers even form collectives to present a stronger presence externally.
What does a creative freelancer do?
As a creative freelancer, you can work in one or more of these areas:
- Graphic Design
As a freelance graphic designer, you create visual concepts and designs to communicate ideas, brands, or messages for your clients. This can include logos, brochures, advertisements, or digital content. - Photography
As a freelance photographer, you capture professional-quality images for various purposes, such as events, portraits, product photography, or editorial work, tailoring your style to the client’s needs. - Copywriting
As a freelance copywriter, you craft compelling and persuasive text for websites, advertisements, blogs, or marketing materials to help clients engage their audience and achieve their goals. - Illustration
As a freelance illustrator, you produce custom artwork for books, magazines, branding, or digital media, bringing creative concepts to life with your unique style. - Filmmaking
As a freelance filmmaker, you conceptualize, shoot, and edit videos or films for various projects, such as commercials, short films, documentaries, or corporate videos, delivering compelling visual storytelling. - Strategy
As a freelance strategist, you analyze client goals and market trends to develop tailored strategies, whether for marketing, branding, or business growth, ensuring measurable and impactful results. - UX/UI Design
As a freelance UX/UI designer, you focus on creating intuitive and user-friendly designs for websites, apps, or digital tools, ensuring a seamless and engaging experience for users. - Animation
As a freelance animator, you create motion graphics or character animations for videos, advertisements, games, or digital platforms, transforming static visuals into dynamic storytelling. - Video Editing
As a freelance video editor, you assemble and enhance raw footage to create polished videos for marketing campaigns, social media, or storytelling projects. - Content Creation
As a freelance content creator, you produce engaging and original content for various platforms, such as blog posts, videos, social media, or podcasts, helping clients build their brand and connect with their audience. - Social Media Management
As a freelance social media manager, you plan, create, and manage content strategies for your client’s social platforms, helping them build a strong online presence.
What skills do you need as a creative freelancer?
The skills you need as a freelance creative depend on the services you offer. While it’s helpful to have a basic understanding of various areas, you don’t need to be an expert in all of them.
In addition to specific skills for your services, there are a few general skills you should possess.
Business Skills and Financial Thinking
As a creative freelancer, you are an independent entrepreneur.
This means you are responsible for ensuring the financial success of your business. You need to plan your finances, understand your expected income and expenses in the coming weeks and months, and be aware of your tax obligations. Additionally, you'll need to create proposals and issue invoices.
But don’t worry—you don’t need a degree in business to manage these tasks. Most of these skills can be learned with a bit of guidance and practice.
Project Management
As a creative freelancer, you are responsible for ensuring your projects run smoothly.
You don’t need formal training in project management, but you must know how to organize yourself. Project management tools can be a great help, but they also require proper usage. In many cases, a handwritten to-do list remains one of the most effective tools.
What’s important is finding a process that works for you, so you can keep your projects under control.
Sales and Acquisition Skills
As a freelancer, you are also your own sales department.
This means you need to sell your services to potential clients and demonstrate the value you can provide. You’ll need to determine a pricing structure that reflects your worth while remaining competitive. Additionally, you should think about how to attract new clients and the best way to approach them.
Creativity
Creativity is of course an essential quality of a successful creative freelancer.
As a creative freelancer, you’ll often face challenges and obstacles. Sometimes the budget is too small, other times there are limited resources, or the timeline for a project is extremely tight. In these situations, you need to be able to come up with innovative and effective solutions.
Networking
Networking is an essential skill for any creative freelancer.
Building and maintaining professional relationships can open doors to new opportunities, collaborations, and clients. Attend industry events, join online communities, and connect with like-minded professionals to grow your network. Remember, networking isn’t just about finding work—it’s also about exchanging ideas, gaining inspiration, and staying updated on industry trends. Strong connections can often lead to long-term partnerships and valuable recommendations.
Teamwork and Collaboration
Even as an independent freelancer, teamwork is an important skill to master.
Many projects require you to collaborate with clients, other freelancers, or even entire teams. Being able to communicate effectively, share ideas, and adapt to different working styles is key to ensuring smooth collaboration. While you might work independently most of the time, being a team player can help you build trust, strengthen relationships, and deliver better results. Remember, great teamwork often leads to future opportunities and recommendations.
Pros and Cons of Creative Freelancing
I've worked as a creative freelancer for eight years, and I haven’t regretted this decision for a second.
For me, life as a freelancer comes with more advantages than disadvantages, and there are ways to address the few downsides. That said, freelancing isn’t for everyone—it requires a lot of self-motivation and discipline.
If you have those qualities, I can wholeheartedly recommend a career as a freelancer.
Advantages of Creative Freelancing
Here are the biggest advantages of a freelancing life compared to being an employee, based on my experience:
- Flexibility
As a creative freelancer, you decide when, how much, and from where you work. There will be weeks when you work a lot, but you can also easily take a few days off when needed. - Better Income
Freelancers typically earn more than employees. However, it’s important to remember to set aside enough money for taxes and retirement savings. - Autonomy
Freelancers have the freedom to choose which services to offer and which clients to work with. - Improved Work-Life Balance
In my agency job, I sometimes worked 60+ hours a week. As a freelancer, I no longer do that. I can also take mornings off for exercise or personal errands when needed. - Saving Money and Time
Working from home saves time on commuting and money on travel expenses. In some cases, you can even deduct part of your home expenses from your taxes. - Location Independence
As a freelancer, the world is your workplace. For instance, I’ve worked for two months in South Africa and often move my office to a beautiful lakeside spot in the summer. - Variety
Freelancing offers a lot of variety. You meet with clients, work on different projects, and handle diverse tasks. However, it’s important to remember to work on your business, not just in your business, to ensure long-term success. - More Purpose
For me, working as a creative freelancer brings significantly more meaning and purpose to my life compared to being an employee. I’m building my own business, making my own decisions, and reaping greater financial rewards when I do great work.
Disadvantages of Creative Freelancing
Of course, there are also downsides to the freelancing life. However, in my experience, there are plenty of good ways to address these challenges.
- Potential Financial Uncertainty
Especially in the beginning, it can be nerve-wracking not knowing how much you’ll earn next month. Unlike employees, freelancers don’t receive a fixed monthly salary—income can vary greatly. It’s important to save for slower months and maintain a financial cushion. - Constant Client Acquisition
As a freelancer, you need to continually find new clients and secure new projects, which can be stressful alongside your ongoing work for existing clients. Two ways to mitigate this:
- Aim to work with clients on monthly retainers, which is particularly suitable for many creative services.
- Deliver excellent work—word-of-mouth recommendations can go a long way. Over 80% of my clients come through referrals.
- Loneliness and Isolation
Freelancers often work alone, which can feel isolating, especially if you work from home. Build a network of fellow freelancers early on. Meet up for coworking sessions or consider working in a coworking space to stay connected. - High Responsibility
As a one-person business, you’re responsible for many different tasks, which can sometimes feel overwhelming. Don’t hesitate to seek help when needed or outsource certain tasks. For example, I’ve worked with an accountant since I became self-employed. - No Delegation Options
As a freelancer, you don’t have colleagues to delegate tasks to during peak times. Be careful not to take on too many projects at once. Ideally, you can pass tasks to trusted freelancers in your network during busy periods. - No Paid Leave or Sick Days
Freelancers don’t get paid vacations, and if you’re sick, your work may pile up. These are challenges you need to prepare for. Again, having a network of fellow freelancers can be a lifesaver, as they can step in to help when needed.
How Much Does a Creative Freelancer Earn?
As a Creative Freelancer, you set your own rates.
This means you decide how much you want to earn per working hour. However, this only works if you can find clients who are willing to pay your rates. Your pricing needs to be competitive, or you must effectively demonstrate to clients why your services are worth more than those of other freelancers.
Typically, as a Creative Freelancer, you will earn more than you would as an employee. Highly skilled and experienced freelancers in this field can earn six-figure incomes and more annually.
Keep in mind, though, that you need to set aside money for taxes and retirement savings.
How Do Creative Freelancers Find Jobs?
Client acquisition is one of the most important—and often most challenging—aspects of freelancing.
Especially in the beginning, when you have little experience, it can be very difficult to attract new clients. However, once you’ve completed your first projects and can showcase some references, it becomes easier. Ideally, your existing clients will recommend you to new ones.
To get started, these two articles might help:
- 20 Ideas to Land More Jobs as a Creative Freelancer
- 3 Smart Ways for Creative Freelancers to Gain Attention
How Much Does a Creative Freelancer Earn?
As a Creative Freelancer, you set your own rates.
This means you decide how much you want to earn per working hour. However, this only works if you can find clients who are willing to pay your rates. Your pricing needs to be competitive, or you must effectively demonstrate to clients why your services are worth more than those of other freelancers.
Typically, as a Creative Freelancer, you will earn more than you would as an employee. Highly skilled and experienced freelancers in this field can earn six-figure incomes annually.
Keep in mind, though, that you need to set aside money for taxes and retirement savings.
Do You Want to Become a Creative Freelancer?
Has this article inspired you to start your own career as a Creative Freelancer?
That’s fantastic! Freelancing can be challenging at times, but it’s also incredibly rewarding. For me, it’s a lifestyle I wouldn’t trade for anything.
On my website, you’ll find plenty of tips to support you on your journey. If you’d like, you can also subscribe to my newsletter or follow me on Twitter for regular updates and insights.
To get started, I highly recommend reading the article, "How to Become a Creative Freelancer – Step-by-Step Guide."
Another must-read is "My Experiences and Learnings from Over 8 Years of Creative Freelancing."