Today, I answer your questions on staying professional when working with agencies, why I decided to become a freelancer, and how you can drive traffic to your online products.

"As a freelancer, how do you take steps to stay professional when you have been subcontracted by an agency?"

Question from Austin Saylor

‍Doing work for agencies is a bit different from working with a small business or another individual one-on-one. because you're most likely working with a larger team.

The biggest difference when working with an agency is they have their own process that may differ from how you're used to doing things – and for good reasons. They have to factor in a much larger team, different departments, and their own client base. As much as I'd like to say the agency must fall into your process, that's just not the case for every situation.

A professional relationship with any client starts with great communication, and understanding every aspect of the project you're working on.

Will you be working with the agency's client directly, or will you be working alongside the agency's team?What are the payment terms? Does the project require charging hourly? What if they're on Net30 payment terms (send payment after 30 days of receiving the invoice)?

‍It all comes down to communication.

‍Make sure you and the agency are on the same page at all times, and most importantly, set expectations. Establish responsibilities, get a contract signed, then move forward from there.

"Why did you decide to be a freelancer as opposed to working for someone else?"

Question from Femke

‍Long story short, I spent all of my time in high school learning how to design – just for the fun of it. I followed this passion for design which presented some opportunities to do freelance work.

After getting a taste of what it was like to be a freelance graphic designer, I instantly knew it was what I wanted to do.

Immediately after graduating college, I took the major risk to freelance full-time, and I've stuck with it ever since.

If you'd like to hear the long story, check out my video, How I Became a Freelance Graphic Designer. I share in detail my early years of getting started as a graphic designer, and what opportunities I took to get to where I'm at today.

"How should I bring traffic to my products on Gumroad?"

Question from Muneeza Shahid

‍Alright, this isn't going to be the easy advice you want to hear, but it's the advice you need to hear.

You're either not getting sales because no one needs your product or wants it, which means no one is willing to pay for it.

I hate to break it to you, but you can't just launch a product and expect people to start buying.

‍If you aren't building up interest before the launch or actively build your own audience for what you're doing, then no one will know they exist.

From the looks of your Gumroad shop, it seems you're selling t-shirts. With physical products, you have to tell a story. If you're not telling a story behind each product, then people that land on your shop aren't going to connect with it. they're purely going on looks, and of you're not delivering the best possible user experience, then you can expect people not to buy.

It's not going to be easy. But what you need to do is create valuable content around what you're doing, and do it consistently.

‍Why did you create these products? Why do these products matter?

Use social media to your advantage. Use Instagram, utilize video, and create valuable, free content around everything you're doing – targeting your ideal audience.

Answer this...

What are you doing to drive traffic to your website?

‍Add to this in the comments below, and share your tips.

If you want a shout out and have your question answered, tweet me using the hashtag, #AskBrentG!