Starting out as a graphic designer, it can be difficult to find clients when you've got next to no work to show for. You run into the chicken-and-egg problem of needing clients to get clients. One way to get around this problem is by using tools that allow you to create imaginary clients and projects. These tools can help you develop your design process, beef up your graphic design portfolio, and be a ton of fun in the process. In this blog post, we will describe five different tools that you can use to create imaginary projects. We will also discuss the benefits of using these tools. So whether you are just starting out or you have been in the business for a while, make sure to check out these helpful tools!

Don’t have a client or an idea for your graphic design portfolio?

As a beginner in the graphic design space, especially if you're self-taught, it's quite common to run into the issue of needing clients to find clients.

This can be super frustrating and start to feel like it's going to be nearly impossible to get your foot in the door.

I'm going to share with you a super effective way of getting around this. Keep reading to find out.

Generate an imaginary client using one of the following tools

As someone who's been in the design space for about 6 years now, one thing I can assure you of is this:

You definitely do not need clients to show what you can do. You can just make up a fake project (be transparent about this of course) and tackle it as if it were completely real.

It's all about showing that you have an amazing process and the ability to communicate your thoughts and decisions – If you can convey this in your portfolio, then whether the client is real or not doesn’t matter all that much. Not only does this beef up your portfolio but it does a myriad of other goodness that we'll discuss after I share this list of imaginary-client-generating tools.

1. FakeClients

FakeClients is a great tool that allows you to generate briefs for a variety of different design projects. The fake client briefs include everything you need to know in order to get started on the project, such as the client's story, target audience, business objectives, and any specific requirements. This is an excellent way to get practice working on real-life projects without the pressure of working with an actual client.

Generates client briefs for:

• Web design
• Logo design
• Graphic design
• UI design
• UX design
• Illustration
• Writing

What's included in a Fake Client brief?

• A short client story & industry context
• Their target audience (sometimes)
• A description of what they need from you
• Creative direction

How to use Fakeclients?

No sign-up is needed. Just pick a creative field (logo, web, UI, etc) from the dropdown and hit "Generate Brief".

If you'd like longer, more detailed briefs, then you can upgrade to FakeCients Pro for $5 a month.

Again, remember to be transparent about the fact that these are imaginary clients when you're sharing your work with others.

2. Goodbrief

Goodbrief is another great tool for generating fake client briefs. The difference with this tool is that it allows you to specify the industry of the project you want to work on. This is perfect if you know which industry you're most interested in getting clients for as it'll help you beef up your graphic design portfolio in that specific area (Example: You love designing and building websites for fashion-related businesses).

Generate client briefs for:

• Web design
• Logo design
• Graphic design
• Illustration
• Packaging

What's included in a Goodbrief brief?

• Company name
• Company description including a detailed description of the product, target audience, and a creative direction
• Job description which includes the business goals of the project and what the final product should contain
• A deadline

How to use Goodbrief?

No sign-up is needed. Pick a project type and and industry and hit the "Generate" button. You have the option of exporting the brief as an image or PDF to reference it elsewhere which is a fantastic little addition.

3. Sharpen.design

Sharpen is one of the simplest of the bunch, so if you're just looking for some quick practice this may be the one for you. There are no frills or extra features, just a straightforward way to get some graphic design portfolio ideas and practice in.

Generate client briefs for:

• Web design
• Logo design
• Graphic design
• UI design
• UX design
• Packaging
• Animation
  

What's included in a Sharpen.design brief?

• What to design
• For whom
• creative direction (on occasion)

How to use Sharpen.design?

Fire up the website, no sign-up is required. Pick a category and hit "New Challenge". If you see a challenge that you only partially like, you can lock in the part that you want to keep and continue to generate challenges until you're fully satisfied with the suggestion. Neat little feature if you ask me.

4. Briefz

Same deal as Sharpen.design. Briefz is pure simplicity. Makes for a great little daily challenge or something to post on Instagram.

Generate client briefs for:

• Web design
• Logo design
• Graphic design
• UI design

What's included in a Briefz brief?

• What to design
• For whom.

That's it.

How to use Briefz?

Load up the website, no sign-up is required. There's a singular button – "Give me a brief". Hit that button and you're off. That simple.

5. Designercize

Generate client briefs for:

• UI design
• UX design

What's included in a Designercize brief?

Designercize makes it very clear that you get 3 things with every brief:

1. What to design
2. The type of platform it's for (mobile app, web app, website, etc)
3. The target user

How to use Designercize?

Designercize has got some unique little features that the above-mentioned tools don't boast. You can pick a difficulty and time limit, which I think are fantastic additions – what if you just want to work on something easy and quick over your lunch break? Hit "Easy" mode and set the timer for 30 minutes and you're off.

Benefits of mock projects

Great practice. Fantastic confidence booster.

Mock design projects are great practice because they allow you to get a feel for what working on real projects is like without the pressure of actually having to please a client. This is the perfect way to experiment with new ideas and processes without the fear of messing up or disappointing anyone.

What's awesome is this process of repetition and experimentation will build your confidence tremendously which itself will be invaluable when working on a real project. Competence builds confidence!

Beef up your portfolio

In the midst of all this practice, you might just end up with something that makes you go "hmm I'm quite proud of that", in which case this becomes a potential portfolio piece.

If you end up with even just 3 portfolio pieces after a month or two of practice, that's a massive win in my book.

Lets you develop your process

Here's what I recommend you do:

• Identify a designer you admire who's shared their design process publicly (either on Youtube or IG)
• Write it down and use it to carry out these challenges
• Update and individualize the process as you go. Make it yours. Having your very own design process is what will lead to great work.
• Identify areas of your process where you need improvement. Learn whatever it is you need to learn. That's what it's all about – making the necessary changes and cracking on!

A ton of fun (less pressure because it isn’t “real”)

Last but not least, working on mock projects is simply a lot of fun. Without the pressure of real clients, you're free to experiment and have fun with your design process.

Wrapping up

As a graphic designer, you don't need clients to show what you can do.. There are a number of great tools that you can use to generate imaginary clients and mock projects. Not only will these exercises help you improve your design skills, but they'll also help you develop your own unique design process and maybe even beef up your graphic design portfolio in the process. That way you can finally have something to show for when interacting with clients. Get creating!