freelancer has their own daily routine and rituals that help them feel productive and creative,

whether
it’s a morning cup of tea or a half-hour of sketching outside.

While little rituals like these vary from person to person, you’ll find that the work process followed by
freelance designers is largely consistent across the board. Once that cup of tea’s been drained, every
professional has a step-by step process for completing their design work to a high standard.

Here we take a look at the process freelancers employ to bring a design brief into reality for their clients.
From building mood boards and mock-ups to assessing print proofs and consumer testing, these are the
building blocks of any pro’s work process. Read on to discover how to make your own workflow
smoother and more efficient every time.

Stage One: The Brief

When a client contacts you with a job in mind it is your opportunity to extract as much information from
them as you can. No designer is a mind-reader, so it’s important at this early stage of the graphic design
process to assess exactly what the client is hoping for, and for you to communicate what they can
expect from you within the timeframe.

Step 1: Client Meeting and Brief Analysis

writing a design brief

A client might get in touch with you over email or phone proposing a design project. If the client is new,
they may expect an initial face-to-face meeting before proceeding to the quote stage. Agreeing to meet
for a quick coffee will help you to assess whether the client is serious about commissioning a project.
Take along portfolio items that are relevant to the project the client has in mind. This helps the client
see if your style and approach will suit them, as well as give some food for thought in terms of the
direction of the project.

Following this first meeting you can send the client a contract and quote and request a written brief. It’s
very important to get these documents in writing, preferably as stand-alone Word or PDF documents
rather than simply in email format. This will help set a professional tone from the very outset of the
project, and allows both parties to refer to what was quoted or briefed if any dispute later arises. For
designers a written contract is particularly important to have to hand, as it’s not unheard of for clients to
change their minds about what they want later down the line. This in itself is not a problem, but you do
need to ensure that the client is willing to pay for extra hours if the brief is altered.
You can provide the client with a design brief form for them to fill in, including sections on the details of
the project, the deadline and their own ideas for the style or direction they would like for the design (if
they have any). If they are able to provide information about their business’ brand ethos and
competitors within their sector this is also very helpful, and access to brand guidelines, if available, is
essential for brand-centric projects. Even simple brand elements, like a color palette or fonts, can be a
fantastic starting point fo