How to Become a Freelance Web Developer

Nicole Young:

If you wanna become a freelance web developer, you've come to the right place. In this video, we are going to walk through what you should do as a beginner web developer to start building a profitable side hustle that you can do from just about anywhere. As a web developer, you will use your programming skills to create code that will determine how websites function.

There's also a few different types of web development available to choose from. There's front end development,  which is the development of the graphical user interface of a website so users can view and interact with it. Back end development, which is working on the server side software, which focuses on everything you can't see on a website, like website performance, databases to store information, logic, architecture, servers, and more. And there's full stack development, which combines both front end and back end aspects of development.

But before we get started, I'm Nicole, known on the web through my channels @nicoleyoungtech. Just a few years ago, I did the exact things that I'm going to touch on in this video to start my journey as a freelance web developer, and since have reaped so many benefits in my career from being able to break into the tech industry, gain real world experience, and maintain a stream of income outside of my full-time job. Sounds pretty great, right?

Well, in this video, we are going to the benefits of freelance web development, the steps you need to take to get started, the tools you will need, how to begin finding work, and so much more. So let's get started.

With the benefits of freelance web development. Web development offers a ton of flexibility and freedom. As a freelancer, you will have full control over the projects you take and how full your workload is. You'll be able to set your own schedule, choose to work on projects that you're passionate about, and work from just about anywhere in the world where you can bring your laptop and have an Internet connection.

Now, let's get into the steps you will need to become a beginner web developer. The first thing is to assess your current skills. The core skills of web development lie in HTML, CSS, and JavaScript. But don't worry if you're not a pro yet. When I was just getting started, I used free online resources, like those available on YouTube, to ensure that I knew the foundational knowledge of HTML, CSS, and JavaScript, and how each one of them works together to create the amazing websites that we can see today.

The best way to tell if you know enough HTML, CSS, and JavaScript to get started is if you can begin to complete web development projects, and then begin to add those projects to your portfolio, which would be the next step of getting started. Complete projects that will showcase your skills and compile them in a digital portfolio that will make it easy for potential clients to see what you can do.

Next, you should research current trends and prices that others offer. I would look online at platforms like Upwork to see how much freelance web developers can make, which right now is anywhere between $15 tand $30 an hour and is set to continue to grow over time. There are so many factors that should go into the rates that you set, like the turnaround time of a project, how many deliverables are being offered, and the complexity of those deliverables. I suggest creating packages to help you build predictability and how much you charge and your workload. When I was just getting started, I began with small projects. And over time, as I became more confident in my skills, I began to build up my offerings and adjusted my prices accordingly. And, I would suggest that you do the same.

Next, let's look at the tools that you will need to begin using as a freelance web developer. Upwork is a great platform to get started. It offers ways you can easily manage the business and administrative tasks with automation and integrated tools. And it makes it super easy to handle messaging, submitting projects, and taking secure payments all in one. It takes a lot of the guesswork out of the business side of things so that you can focus on creating those beautiful websites.

For project management, you may wanna look into tools like Notion or ClickUp to help you manage the progress of your projects and set realistic workloads for yourself. Some of my favorites are the AI tools that you can use to bring your websites to life, ChatGPT to create text and captivating headlines, or Midjourney and DALL-E to create unique images or icons that you can add to each of your websites. I also like using Adobe Creative Cloud or Figma to handle creating website mockups, wireframes, and graphics for the projects that I'm working on.

How to get work as a Freelance Web Developer

Once you've got all of these things in place, it's time to start putting yourself out there, applying for jobs, and creating a marketing strategy. You can use social media to share your work and that you are available for new projects, which is something that I did, which helped me bring in some of my first clients. Something else that I did was network and use word-of-mouth to help people I knew freshen up their websites and created new ones for new businesses. I suggest using Upwork and regularly searching and applying for freelance jobs there, and set up your profile with a description of who you are and what you do, and add links or video overview for your portfolio. By this point, if you do these things, I'm sure you will be successful.

But before we go, let me leave you with some tips to gain momentum as a beginner freelance web developer. The first is to create daily habits for applying, creating, marketing, and updating your portfolio so that you can continue to attract new clients. The second is to always get feedback and testimonials from those that you work with, which is easy to do on Upwork, but will allow you to help build trust with future clients. And the third is to never stop learning so that you can continue to get better and stay on top of current trends.

What questions do you have about starting your journey as a web developer? Leave them in the comments. I encourage you to consider freelance web development. Like I said before, it can offer so much freedom and flexibility to your life no matter where you are in your career. Check out Upwork's web development guide to take your first steps, and don't forget to subscribe for more tips and tricks from Upwork.