The Essential Freelance Documents All Graphic Designers Need in Their Toolbox

Sep 12

Moving into the big, scary world of freelance graphic design can be, well, scary. But one major thing that can make the process much smoother for you is having the correct documents to hand, ready to go when you need them.

This was something that I struggled with in the early days. When I got my first client, I completely overlooked the fact that I’d have to send them an invoice. Perhaps I just assumed that one would magically appear without my doing anything? Who knows! All I do know is that I didn’t have one.

This meant that I needed to spend a bunch of extra time putting a whole, bespoke document together on top of completing the project for the client. The moral of the story here is that, had I had the template there and ready to go, everything would have been so much smoother!

So, what documents should you have to hand? Let’s find out!

Invoice Template

Obviously, this has got to be number one! In the early days, I had mine in word, but I eventually moved over to InDesign to put together something a bit more professional. But with that being said, it doesn’t really matter what tool you use, all that matters is that your template includes the essentials, which are:

Who the invoice is for (client)
Who the invoice is from (you)
Date and invoice number
Services carried out
Total costs
Any terms/requirements
A thank you note (not essential, but it’s nice!)

Contract Template

When both parties are happy with the project scope, it’s time for the contract! This will include concrete outlines of the duties for both you and the client, plus highlight any special circumstances. The contract template should include:

Outlines the obligations of both parties (you and the client)
What you are going to produce and by what date
How much the project will cost
A payment plan (ideally 50% deposit, 50% on completion)
Signatures from both parties

Brand Guidelines Document

As a freelance graphic designer, there’s a good chance that you’ll be working on a few branding projects in your career. The icing on the cake, when the project is complete, is putting together a fleshed-out branding guideline document.

When everything is made to a super-high standard, all you need to do is slot the elements into place in your template. But, if you don’t have a template? Making the brand guide can become a huge pain.

In a brand guidelines document, you should include:

The brand’s mission and values
All logos, wordmarks, etc
All typefaces and their variations
Iconography styles
The full colour palette
Use guides for all of the above

When you’re working on a branding project, you should always keep in mind the 10 graphic design rules that should NEVER be broken.

Emails

Working as a freelancer means sending and receiving endless amounts of emails every day. If you find yourself in that situation, sitting down to write emails from scratch can take up a huge amount of your time.

It’s a great idea to write out a bunch of all-purpose emails that you can copy, customise, and paste when the time comes. You’ll be surprised how much time you’ll save. Email platforms like Gmail even let you include the templates directly in the app.

Some of the email templates I have include:

For expressing interest in a project
For sending the client a contract
For turning down a project
For arranging a meeting

Requirements Template

You likely have a set list of questions you ask when you start working with a new client. An easy way to collect this vital information is by sending a quick survey in the form of an editable document (I use Google Docs.)

This will allow your new client to answer all of your questions, and provide any additional information they think you may need.

Your document can include: