Finding Your Niche as a Web Designer

Working as a freelancer in web design is not as simple as it used to be. The competition is high and widespread. Most freelancers not only compete with web designers in their community but also with designers around the world. Additionally, with web designers offering their services for very low costs on sites like Fiverr, the competition is also about cost.

One way in which a freelance web designer can improve their chances of finding work is to define a niche market. This can take a little bit of work on your part but it’s definitely worth it. Why? Because it diminishes the competition considerably and keeps you true to your self worth as a web designer.

To be able to find your niche as a web designer, there are some things to consider and steps to follow. Let’s look at what you need to do to find your niche and get more work.

Who do you want to work with?

The first order of things for finding your niche is to ask yourself, who do you want to work with? The best way to answer this is to think of all the websites you have created so far and consider which of them you enjoyed the most. Don’t just think of the actual design but also of the people behind the business who hired you.

Did you enjoy the large e-commerce site or the small jewelry maker? Did you like creating a child theme from scratch for that writer you met through social media or did you prefer that site for the veterinarian you put together with a ready to use layout?

These are the questions that will help you understand who you want to work with and how. For example, you might enjoy the design aspect of things more and not so much the development part, or vice versa. It’s one thing to build a website with a ready-made theme and layout and another to build from scratch. This takes us to the next question:

What kind of work do you really enjoy?

As I mentioned earlier, a website can be built from scratch or with a ready-made theme. Who makes these themes? Web designers who have decided to niche their work as theme designers. Is that something that would interest you?

Maybe you are the kind of designer that enjoys working one on one with clients creating custom sites for them with CSS stylings and plenty of code to make it just how they want it, if not better.

Another angle you might not even have thought of is to teach other people to build their own website on a DIY platform like Squarespace or Wix. If you have a knack for teaching, this might just be what you most enjoy.

Yet another option you might not have considered is that of building websites with only one theme. For example, the Divi Theme has a great community of both web designers and web developers providing their services around the world. And not surprisingly, there are even more niches inside that already niche community.

Finally, you can also niche your services to a specific type of business. For example, you could design websites for musicians, or for restaurants or for doctors. Choosing an industry is not necessarily enough, you also need to decide what products or services to offer to that particular industry.

And that takes us to the next consideration:

Positioning yourself

Positioning yourself in the market is easy once you know who you want to reach and with what products. Once you have figured out who you really want to work with, you are in a good place to start positioning your freelance business to possible clients.

First of all, you need to find other people who have positioned themselves in the same niche as you. Look at how they promote their unique service, how they word things and how they price their offerings. Do the research and see what fits with you and what doesn’t.

At this point is where you decide if you want to charge more and have fewer clients or charge less and have more clients. How much do you need to earn to feel like you are making enough? Find a balance between the two and set your prices.

Start marketing yourself with your new niche and positioning. As long as you are sending the message to the people who you want to work with, they will know you are the perfect web designer for them.

Conclusion

Finding your niche as a web designer is not exactly complicated, but it does need effort and persistence. I am sure that once you have it figured it out, clients will contact you knowing that you are a perfect choice. Your freelance web design business will be just how you want it to be.