 Welcome to The Journey. Today we're talking about 10 ways to find more web design leads. Finding new freelance web design leads can sometimes feel like you're just stuck on a hamster wheel. You're constantly chasing the next project, competing with hundreds of other designers for that same job, and really fighting to break through the noisy inboxes of your potential clients. To help you out, we put together 10 unusual and underused sources of web design leads for freelancers and agencies, starting off with teaching everything you know. I know this can sound counter-intuitive, but it's actually going to attract potential leads who would pay to apply your expertise and knowledge to their business. I think when it comes to videos, we think, well, if I teach them how to build a website, they're just going to build a website for themselves. Now I can look online and watch a video of how to fix a radiator on my car. That does not mean that I'm going to go out there and fix a radiator on my car, but I did watch someone that is an expert, they're local, probably going to hire them to do this. I just successfully watched them do it themselves. Now, while blogging these days is more about the quality of content than the quantity of content, it's still critical that you publish new content to your blog on a regular basis. Blogging regularly demonstrates your credibility and reliability to your audience. It helps your site stay relevant to search engines. Yeah, and if you aren't a great writer, don't worry. I mean, just try creating short videos, audio recordings, podcast episodes instead, but ask your past clients which formats they prefer and pick the one you enjoy the most. The next way to find more web design leads is to create a gateway product like a short ebook or an email course. So the best way to prove that you're the best web designer for your prospects needs is to show them you know how to, not just that you can solve their problems. And digital products also act as a gateway into your more expensive services. So pricing your product as an impulse buy makes it easier to turn prospects into customers, bypassing that, you know, potential risk of investing in high cost services up front. So buying a $5 ebook is much easier decision than buying a $5,000 site redesign. Next up, you can start an email newsletter. I mean, once you've created your content or gateway product, you still need a way to get in front of potential clients who may not get you ready to start a web design project. And newsletters, I love newsletters, they keep you at the top of clients' minds, even if they're not quite ready to work with you on a web design project. Yeah, and owning a list, that means that you're not subject to the changing social media algorithms or ever increasing cost of paid advertising. But the most important reason to start email newsletter is to really build trust with your audience and nurture them from potential leads to customers, to paying clients for your web design services. Another way to become a podcast guest. Ooh, I would love to do that. Podcast need is taking off nearly one third of Americans have listened to a podcast within the last month. I know that's been what's been in my earbuds all quarantine. Building your own podcast audience, it does take time. Instead, take advantage of other people's audiences and become a guest on podcasts your prospects are already listening to. Yeah, that podcasting helps you establish credibility with potential clients who naturally see you as the expert. And by borrowing this credibility from hosts, you can grow your audience much more quickly. So start by finding the right podcast to target. Ask past clients which podcasts they're already listening to or search iTunes, SoundCloud or Spotify for industry specific keywords. Next, reach out to each host. Make sure you don't just describe what you do as I'm a web designer. Can I get on your podcast? That's not going to go very far, but instead focus on how having you on their podcast will benefit their audience. Like what are you bringing to the table? Absolutely, which brings us to the next part, specialize in a particular service or niche. Being a jack of all trades web designer might feel like it gives you a little more project variety, but marketing yourself to potential leads is much more difficult when you help everybody with everything. So instead, consider choosing something specific, like a specific service to target with your messaging. And this could be either a particular vertical like websites for dentists or coffee shops or a horizontal service you can offer across many different industries like Shopify, story design or custom WordPress themes. Yeah, and that's absolutely great advice there. And now another way to generate more leads for your web design business is to take advantage of your LinkedIn profile. Now out of over 250 million active monthly users on LinkedIn, only three million share content on a weekly basis. So it allows you to really stand out from the competition. It's also much more effective for generating leads than other social networks. So potential clients are already searching for freelancers on LinkedIn. And since visitors are in a business oriented mindset, posting content is much more likely to lead to engaging conversations, the potential leads. In fact, a study by HubSpot found that visitors from LinkedIn converted at nearly three times the rate from Twitter or Facebook. And also don't forget to lean on past clients. I mean, most freelance web designers rely on referrals as their biggest source of leads. And past clients are your most obvious referrals. And when asking for referrals, be polite, keep the focus on the client as much as possible. And you don't want them to feel like you're using them to get to their friends and colleagues. Next up, write detailed case studies showing how you help. And in terms of bang for your buck, it's hard to be a good case study as a marketing tool for web designers. Case studies are great. They let you turn your customer's success into sales for your freelance business, helping you attract and convert potential leads and showing them the value that you can provide. Your case studies should really showcase past clients before, during and after you worked with them. And it's important to focus not on the work you did. Again, you can use this content in email courses or educational ebooks, but instead describe the benefits and value that they experience as a result of that work. For example, as a web designer, don't just stay, a client came to you wanting a new website and I made them a website. Now, once you've written that case study, share it on your website and send it to prospective clients when they first inquire about working with you. Case studies can amplify your marketing and sales and they'll help set you apart from the pack. Absolutely nearly. And next up, partner with other freelancers. You might be a first class web designer, but no one can be great at everything. Collaborating can be a great way to, you know, both strengthen your work and generate web design leads. And it's worth reaching out to other freelancers, not just to find new leads, but to make new friends, build relationships and have real conversations. And once you have a network of other freelancers to back you up, the referrals will start coming in naturally. Yeah. And now start to think about these freelancers as people that can really compliment your business. So what are the services that you provide that you do really well and what are some of the things that your clients have asked you to do that you either try to figure out or just told them flat out, no, and then seek out those freelancers. Now, myself personally, I do that with a local graphic design company. They do awesome graphic work, but they don't want to mess with websites. So it ends up being about half of my leads right now, especially during these hard times. So it's been a fantastic source for new web design leads and I don't have to go out and search for these leads myself. That's awesome, Nealey. I love that. Thanks for sharing another idea. Start a side project or side hustle, as we say, go daddy. Side projects can be another great way of getting yourself in front of potential clients, even if they don't directly lead to sales. So starting a side project lets you show off your design talent and expertise without the usual constraints that come with client projects. So you can go deeper and have more fun when you're building the project on your own. So side projects are all about reaching new people, but it's important to retain the connection with them. Use your side project to drive leads back to your web design services, but for ways to capture contact details so that you can nurture your new leads, and you might even end up with more work than you can handle, which is always a good thing. Yeah, no matter which tactics you use to generate new leads, business is all about relationships and freelance web design is no different. All right, that's a wrap. You just learned 10 ways to find more web design leads. Be sure to comment below and don't forget to subscribe to our channel. 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