You’ve recently graduated from your graphic design program, and you’re eager to get your foot inside the industry door. You’ve made a couple of contacts through school networking events, and you’ve perused the online creative job sites, but something tells you that you should be doing more to get yourself out there. You want to promote yourself to the right people, but you’re not sure how to do it.

We’ve got you covered. Read on to discover how you increase your brand identity and business with these promotional tips.

Get Your Ducks in Order

The first step in successful self-promotion is to ensure that all of your work, on and offline, is perfectly presentable. You’ll want to get your portfolio ready and if you haven’t already done so, make a striking and unique website. If you’re unclear on constructing a portfolio or creating a personal website, you could probably ask a mentor or school friend to put you in the right direction.

Ask yourself a few questions about how you’d like to market your personal brand to the masses. For example, what kind of audience are you reaching? What are you ultimately trying to achieve? Why do you love what you do? Consider creating a mood board to get all of your ideas onto something visual that you can work with as you go along.

Utilize Your Social Media Accounts

The internet allows you to show your work and passion to anyone who passes by your name. Consider making a professional account separate from your personal Instagram, Twitter, or Tik Tok pages and keep them strictly business. You can save your cute cat pics for close friends and family.

The idea of utilizing social media accounts isn’t exactly groundbreaking, but it’s still worth mentioning because it remains impactful for upcoming designers. Tagging the right person at the right time could make a massive difference in your career, and also remember to use appropriate hashtags to boost your posts. Instagram is, of course, a popular creative social media site, but do some research to see what other aspiring designers are using as online outlets.

Customize Branded Clothing

Is there anything more promotional than wearing your brand on your sleeve or around your neck? Consider working with a company that lets you design your own bandanas, t-shirts or sweatshirts, to print your personal logo on clothing to sell at events and via your social media. You and your friends could wear your personal brand all over town, promoting your business.

Are you looking for face masks to give to your friends and family? Find a screen-printing company that offers the option to print on comfortable, reusable COVID-19 facial masks. Sadly, the virus isn’t going away anytime soon; people continue to wear facial coverings everyday. Why not give them custom-designed facial masks? Most people are tired of wearing the same masks every day and would be more than happy to support local artists like yourself.

Graphic design is an incredibly exciting and creative field. Once you figure out precisely what it is you want to bring into the world, putting your hard work into the social media sphere, and making customized branded screen-printed clothing and masks, you’ll be starting your first official job or freelance gig in no time.