Turn Your Designs into Cash: 9 Sure Ways on How to Make Money with Graphic Design

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Graphic design is one of the most lucrative businesses to venture into. It’s fun, and it’s something you can do as a hobby, get paid for it, and build a business out of it. 

Illustrating exceptional business cards, creating appealing infographics, designing the perfect logo for your website, and many more are just a few of its applications within the market.  

Graphic design has it tough on the internet especially if you are not an artist or designer. It is something that anyone can do but getting money for it is another thing. Here are 9 sure ways on how to make money with graphic design.

1. Create and sell templates to make money with graphic design

One popular way to make money with your graphic design talent is through creating and selling templates/themes. Templates are simply pre-designed designs that come with a set of matching elements. Selling design templates can be easy when you have an idea that people want. 

Perhaps your biggest market is people who need a professional design for a blog, website, or other business or personal project. If you enjoy acting as a designer and can create your original templates, why not make them available for purchase? 

This will likely lead people to contact you about more jobs which will eventually lead to more recurring income for you. Furthermore, one trick is creating a ‘lite’ and ‘pro’ version of the template. This way, you can charge for the more expensive version while giving the basic version out for free.

2. Start graphic design consultation

One of the most profitable businesses to start within arts and graphic design is graphic design consultations. The consultation for graphic design can be done in person or online. Besides, graphic design consultation can be an easy business to start. 

You do not need to invest much money to undertake this operation. Get in touch with local small business owners, real estate agents, and educational institutes. They need visual marketing materials like collateral, ads, brochures, invitations, and events posters for their respective businesses. 

This is a great innovative business idea as you can get compensated by giving recommendations without spending much money. This is one of those reasons why graphic designers are in an excellent place to earn potential income with their talent.

Learn more: How to Make Money with Graphic Design

3. Share your knowledge through workshops or webinars

How many times have you chosen a website to learn from because someone was willing to share their expertise with the world? Hopefully, it’s quite a few. Nothing is as effective in terms of money-making as sharing your knowledge with a live audience

So, are you good at graphic design? Online learning has made it an option for many students to learn online and also for more people who want to further their knowledge or careers. 

In the graphics design industry, sharing your knowledge and skills with others is one of the best ways you could think of to increase your audience and make money but it’s also one of the easiest. 

If you are a beginner graphic designer, setting up a workshop or webinar is an easy way for you to promote yourself and your work. It will also be in a perfect location for you to learn more about your work and what you can do better.

Learn more: Best webinar software choices.

4. Make smart use of freelancing apps/websites

This is big money in the graphic design niche, and one of the top ways to make big cash in this business. Thousands of people have gone online to find professional graphic designers who can work for them on a per-project basis and offer specific layout and design work. 

There are a lot of talented designers out there with experience in various aspects of graphic design. It’s possible to make commissions via freelance websites or marketplace websites like Fiverr, Freelancer, or People Per Hour – just by showcasing your templates to potential buyers.

These websites are where you find web designers or freelancers who work on various projects for clients worldwide. As a newbie graphic designer, you need to increase your visibility by getting more experience in the field. 

The easiest and quickest way to do this is by mastering online freelancing sites.

5. Create and sell fonts to make money with graphic design

I think it’s fair to say that one of the best ways you can make money with graphic design is to create your font library. The reason why is because once it’s created, others will try and use it in their designs and pay you for the privilege. 

Fonts have been a unique way of making money online but more and more people are now finding out the truth about this amazing business. You do not have to be a professional graphic designer to start selling your font.

Learn more: How to make money with good handwriting.

6. Offer business branding services

Business branding is a crucial aspect of any company whether small or large. It is the process of encouraging trust in potential customers because they will recognize your logo when they see it on other products and services. 

They will recognize it even if you are outsourcing that particular product or service to the competitor. Besides, this does not only give businesses instant recognition but also works as advertising for them. 

So, if you’re a graphic designer, then perhaps you can create an identity for your clients and draft logos for them. If you can offer a business branding service, there is a good chance that the client will want to get other design works done from you as time goes by.

7. Invest in tools to make money with graphic design

We live in a fast-paced world where there are always deadlines to meet, and projects to finish. Because of this we always need these pieces of software that can help us to accomplish more tasks in a day. 

The best graphic design tools will save you time. Then, you can be more productive and efficient at what you do. Although, great tools cost money they pay for themselves. Good tools help you make a business, not just a living. 

They help you stay on top of your game and continue to grow your business. Furthermore, having the right tools can help you expand, and it is an investment in making money with graphic design that will last and grow with your business. 

It’s no surprise the average professional graphic designer carries a hefty price tag. They also happen to be some of the most lucrative businesses to start if you’re looking for a way to make money with graphics design.

8. Sell printable party decorations to make money with graphic design

Selling printable party decorations online is another way of making extra income with your graphic design skills. Printable party decorations usually have pretty bright colors, are usually made of paper, and occupy just a page or two. This makes them really easy products to buy from someone else. 

Get your creative juices flowing and start designing fabulous party decorations for birthday, graduation, any occasion party that you can print out your works to share. 

You can offer your services to help your customers design these printable party decorations using both free images and images you have purchased or licensed. Great way to make money online.

9. Design social media graphics and highlight covers

If you are a graphic designer, then social media is the best way to get started. Social media covers is yet a trending business that a lot of graphic designers are taking up. If you have an eye for graphics and can do a bit of Photoshop wizardry, you too can take on this business! 

You need to design a Facebook cover, Instagram header, and Twitter headers for potential clients that will attract website traffic. Every social media platform has distinct features that help users portray and express what they want. 

The colors, the choice of fonts, and the images are other factors to make a design one of a kind. These factors will work best if you know how to combine them and make the most out of your graphic design.

FAQs

How much money do graphic designers make?

Graphic designers make an average of $17.67 per hour. The most successful graphic designers usually specialize in a specific area such as print design, corporate identity, web design, and packaging. 

Those with strong computer-aided design (CAD) skills typically earn more than those with just design skills. The highest salary for a graphic designer is $48,000 per year or $23.00 per hour.

If you don’t want to do client work, what should you be doing as a graphic designer?

The best way to make money as a graphic designer is by first doing client work. But if you are just looking to have a portfolio that demonstrates your design capabilities, there are a few options. You can do your work on the side and have it showcase your abilities to attract potential clients. 

Your projects can be anything from websites to logos, brochures, books, eBooks, posters, and other things that can be sold or used as templates for companies with similar needs for in-house design.

How can you start making money with your drawings as a beginner artist?

As a beginner, you should start learning the fundamentals of design and art. The more you know about how to draw, the easier it will be for you to make money with your drawings. 

Besides, don’t expect to make a living right away. Be realistic with the time you have or would like to spend on your drawings. Learn how to make money by creating graphics based on what you enjoy doing. 

One way you can make money online is with your own T-Shirt business. If you have artistic talent and are also tech-savvy, this could potentially be a great option for you. Furthermore, you can also upload your images to Stock Images. 

How long does it take to become a freelance graphic designer?

Becoming a freelance graphic designer is a lengthy and time-consuming process. 

You must create a portfolio that includes your work, talk about design and display your graphic skills, as well as complete an extensive period of apprenticeship (the period of being trained by someone more experienced). 

This process often takes around two years to complete assuming that the person works on it consistently.

How is graphic design related to digital marketing?

Graphic design is a creative art and a critical part of digital marketing. It is designed to communicate and persuade people. To attract more customers, companies spend a huge amount on advertisements. 

The main objective of advertisements is to connect with target customers emotionally so that they remember the company’s products. 

So, in the world of digital marketing, graphic design techniques allow you to capture website visitors’ attention, inform and educate them about your business, and persuade them to buy from you.

Conclusion

To conclude, graphic design is one of the highest paying freelance jobs on the Internet. People are always looking for affordable graphic designers to create logos, websites, banners, and more. 

Furthermore, effective graphic design is essential to the process of selling a product or service. Graphic design is used to communicate with consumers and is usually the key factor in what image they associate with a particular brand.

If you have great art skills and can design a good-looking website or banner, you could potentially start an ongoing income stream.

Thank you! You made it to the end. I hope that you’ve found this compilation of 9 sure ways on how to make money with graphic design useful and are now rearing to go and start making money with your graphic skills.

Thanks for reading.