Franz Jeitz, owner of Fudge Graphics, (an awesome source of freebies such as photoshop brushes, textures and vectors) was kind enough to assist us with out first ever investigation on how to break into a freelance design career. Franz is originally from Luxembourg, Europe, is 23 years old and  just graduated with a masters in physics. He has been living in london for  the past 4 years and has a great passion for live music and plays the guitar himself. On top of his Design career and a masters degree in physics he also played in a band in Luxembourg which is how he first got in contact with design (doing cd artwork, t-shirt graphics and myspace design). In a very short time Franz has built quite a name for himself within the design community and we thought he would be the perfect person to provide some tips for fellow designers.

What would you say is the one key to having a successful career as a freelancer?

There is not a single key to being successful as a freelancer. It all comes to down to different factors. In my case it came down to luck and persistence. I was lucky enough to be “discovered” by established blogs which took me into their blogroll and helped spread the word. Secondly I never took anything for granted. Just because people like one of your articles doesn’t mean you’ve made it as a design blogger. You’ll have to constantly come up with new and interesting post ideas otherwise you’ll end up a one-hit wonder. Most importantly you have to be active in the design community, whether it is on Twitter or by leaving valuable comments on other blogs. You mustn’t be selfish. Always be helpful and stay true to yourself. That’s what will get you the respect you deserve.

How important is creating a “brand” out of yourself when you are first starting out?

It is very important. I didn’t have much knowledge about branding when I first started out. I knew however that it was important to stick to certain rules such as using the same name on all social platforms. Having different aliases will only confuse people and makes you and your brand less recognizable. Over time I redesigned my logo a couple times until I was happy with it. I learned early on that the brand is not only defined by a logo. This is particularly true in the case of a one-person freelance business. The way you interact with people defines your brand, the words you use and the information you provide. Since it is your personal brand it should reflect your personality.

How much do return clients play a role in your business?

They play a major role in my business. Most of my projects actually come from returning clients. They know my procedure and the quality of work they get. Building a solid base of returning clients is one of the single most important tasks as a freelancer. Not only assures it that you get repeat work, but they usually refer you to other clients too. In fact every single client I worked for opened me new doors and led me to new projects.

What 3 Social Networking sites would you recommend designers absolutely be on and why?

As a freelance designer you have to be on Twitter. The design community on there is very strong and helpful. Everyone gets a warm welcome and people are only judged by the content they provide, not by how long they’ve been a member. It really is one big family.

Then there is Facebook, which I can’t live without. It helps me keep in touch with friends and see what’s going on with them. While spending most of your time in front of a computer it is important not to get disconnected from loved ones. Facebook is a great platform to stay in touch.

Last but not least I would recommend DesignBump. It is the best voting/bookmarking service when it comes to design. Anyone owning a blog should be on it to promote his articles.

Is it worth the time  a designer must dedicate to a blog or social networking or is someone just starting out better served spending time doing something else?

It is absolutely worth sticking with it. That is if you enjoy it. If you lack the motivation and struggle to sit down and write an article then the blogging world might not be for you. I’ve always enjoyed researching new posts and creating freebies. The appreciation you get from the community is invaluable and only motivates me to write more and better content. I’ve learned so much through running the blog and met awesome designers and bloggers along the way.

What has provided you with the most success in bringing on clients?

Word of mouth is still the best method of getting new clients. Like I said before, every client has referred me to someone else. Cold calling is another great method of gaining new work. Find your niche and contact prospective clients. Obviously the conversion rate is not that high, but when you get a client you’re sure that you’re enthusiastic to work with them.