11,000 Freelance Designers Worldwide Share How They Thrive In 2020 Amid COVID-19
Image by 99designs and featured with permission
It’s no surprise that the coronavirus pandemic has affected the livelihood of many people around the world. However, a new study by 99designs, called Design Without Borders: The Freelance Revolution, found that the freelance design industry has been thriving.
The study enlisted freelance creators across 146 countries to share their valuable insights and experiences on how they managed to stay afloat amid the virus crisis.
Despite the tumultuous year, around two-thirds (63 percent) of the participants were extremely optimistic about their future in the design industry, while a third (23 percent) considered working on additional non-creative work to keep up with the hardship spurred by COVID-19.
Among the participants, 26-percent lost a salaried job, and six percent of designers chose to work freelance as they couldn’t find a job elsewhere.
The broad majority of designers (81 percent) succeeded in learning new professional skills during the lockdowns, which is a 60-percent huge jump from the report in 2019.
Around 72 percent of this group taught themselves the new skills via YouTube tutorials, while 36 percent attended online courses.
To seek more perspective in their personal lives, the survey found 42 percent of freelancers with better work-life balance in 2020.
Now that most communications are taking place online, it might seem like freelancers would have a harder time interacting with their clients. However, the study showed that 30 percent of the group reported that their clients improved their collaboration and communication skills.
More than three quarters (77 percent) of designers are looking forward to more businesses hiring remote talent as work-from-home has become the new normal.
Overall, 47 percent of freelance designers are ready for the digital nomad lifestyle after the pandemic simmers down and travel restrictions are lifted.
In the long run, 98 percent of the participants are thrilled about the design industry in the next decade, and 49 percent of freelancers stated that they are set to earn more in 2020 in comparison to their earnings in the previous year.
View the in-depth analysis from the study below.
Image by 99designs and featured with permission
[images by 99designs and featured with permission]
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