Are you a graphic designer, illustrator or creative hobbyist? Today we are excited to share our top 5 ways you can start earning money through your design skills!

1. Create and Sell on Print on Demand sites

Ever wanted to see your designs on a t-shirt? or turn your artwork into products such as stationary, apparel, greeting cards and art print, you can do so by using print-on-demand sites.

These sites handle the ordering, manufacturing and shipping while the artist purely focuses on creating art. Here are a few of our favourite sites for apparel and art prints:

2. Sell on Stock sites 

You can upload your illustrations, photographs or design templates on Stock sites. These sites then sell the images/artwork to others to use on creative projects!

You then keep a percentage of the profit, and this process keeps repeating without you having to do anything. The more you upload, the more you could potentially make. Here are a few of our favourite stock sites:

Want to learn more about selling on Adobe Stock? Check out the following tutorials:

In this tutorial, we look at Marina's beautiful artwork from Molesko Studio and uncover the secret ingredients that make her work stand out from the crowd and gain popularity on Adobe Stock!

In this tutorial, you will learn how to make passive income from using Adobe Stock!

3. Start Teaching Online

Are you a Photoshop wizard? Do you enjoy helping others? Perhaps you have a unique design style that you want to share? Then teaching may be a perfect option to make extra money.

You can teach online courses, teach at universities and creative events, or even write an e-book on your creative process! 

FUN FACT: Yes I'm A Designer founded by Martin Perhiniak grew into a successful Online Education provider teaching Adobe Applications to thousands of students globally. Martin initially started sharing his passion for design on YouTube and on third-party educational platforms whilst working as a full-time designer.

4. Enter design competitions on Crowdsourcing sites

Entering contests is a great way to work on projects you want to specialize in and grow your portfolio. These sites are a great way to boost your skills, and find recurring clients and make some money.

Want to learn more about using Crowdsourcing sites successfully? Check out the following tutorials:

5. Be open to Freelance work

Here are a few approaches that have worked for me and many of my designer friends to get freelance work!

Use your connections

Sometimes looking for work a little closer to home is the best way to get freelance gigs. Go through your contacts or directly approach brands or influencers on Instagram or Facebook that you will love to work with!

Online presence

Being active online is a great place to market yourself. Make it easy for potential clients to find you on different platforms (choose the ones that suit you and spend time updating them and engaging with others). There are loads of great online spaces for creatives to meet potential clients. We love Behance, Dribbble and Instagram!

Collaboration

Get to know other designers and collaborate on a project! Collaborations are a great way to make friends in the creative industry and attract new clients. I found Instagram to be a great way to connect and collaborate with other designers.

Networking events

Conclusion  

There are several ways you can make extra income; however, all require a lot of trial and error! Try to avoid using all mediums and expecting instant success, instead choose an area or two you feel most comfortable and put all your energy onto that.