Need help earning...

Hello, I have been working as a web designer for about 3 years, in them 3 years I have done a lot of free work for customers they all want to get a style, but when I say, it's at a cost, no one seems to care anymore... I like to create phpBB styles, my portfolio: http://www.bradleyv.com

Can someone please help me, I need to start earning some cash..
I want to move to paid softwares like IPB and Xenforo, but I need money to buy them..

 

There in lies the problem. Human nature being what it is, if you're willing to work for nothing people will pay you nothing. You can't expect people to place a high value on your work if you don't at first do this yourself.
Demand payment, be assertive about it and do it upfront. Being "Mr.Nice Guy" might give you a warm fuzzy feeling, but that won't pay the bills.

 

I see, but since I said I want money, I have had no requests for 3-4 months now...

 

We need to appreciate ourselves. It is ok to be nice but, by being nice we do not pay the bills. We need to learn to charge people for our time and work. If we do not do it. Who will do it? nobody.

 

I understand what your saying, I just need that one customer then hopefully that works out then more follow, that's how it worked when I did them for free...

 

Oh ya for sure, I'll just bet you had *lots* of "customers" when you were doing it for free!

 

You can play it in a smart way and take advantage of these ''customers'', keep on doing free things and sell something on your website for a reasonable price, remember, $1 item in a free market is expensive.

 

You can be your very own best customer. There are hundreds of new ways to earn money on the internet, just educate yourself in a topic you have not considered yet, such as launching a product on your own website that is optimized for traffic with your existing skills. Sometimes you need to get the ball rolling in a different realm in order to get in the groove of making money and network with people who will gladly pay for your skills. Best of luck to you

 

Did you at least get reviews from the people you helped for free? You can start by possibly selling your stuff on here with reviews. A lot of people are in need of website design. Also get ranked for some keywords so people can find you through the search engine, so more people will see your portfolio. Hope this helps!

 

You can check out some freelancers website like odesk and freelancer websites.

 

I have seen some bad commens and reviews from Freelancer users.

 

I have tried that, still nothing...

 

Hi BradsFX, you can use my forum in my signature link to promote your service. You can put your works and promote it.

 

I have seen some bad spelling and grammar from DP users.

 

LoL, i missed a '' T '', even though i'm sure I typed it, does it count ?

 

You can start to work with companies like Theme Forest. They can sell your web designs for their clients when you have problems with found one.

 

Yep....your keyboard has let you down again.

 

I don't remember saying that my English is perfect, still around 40% to make it as good as yours mon amie , ( Nobody's perfect anyways ).
Learning is a lifetime process, and i'm still in my early age, unlike my keyboard, which is few weeks away from the trash.

 

Your English is 90% and I'd like to see you at 100%, and that is possible. Just slow down mon ami. I too have struggled with English and I was a hard taskmaster on myself. I offered myself no excuses when I screwed up, neither should you. Go for 100% or quit completely.

And OP no excuses for you either, go out there and make money....we *never* settle for less than 100% in life....never.

 

The more you charge, the higher value people will see your service as, it's basic human nature. Don't be afraid to charge for your services!