Ask HN: Finding a designer for a side project

[twlng]

Hello,

My side project is now at the stage where I would benefit from the influence of a good designer (both visual and interaction).

The project is TwLng.com which I'm currently spinning as a Buffer for Content.

There are three main areas that need work: 1. The landing page 2. The dashboard and setup 3. The content that is viewed by users.

What is a good approach for finding a designer for side projects in 2015?

[hakanderyal]

The answer can vary a lot depending on what are you offering to the designer.

As a co-founder? Employed with salary, full time/part time? Contractor?

You can check out monthly freelancer/who wants to be hired threads on HN. You can check out designer news[1] (HN for designers). You can hunt on dribble. You can put an ad on your local job board.

[1]: https://www.designernews.co/

[wingerlang]

Off topic, but what makes your site different from the other identical sites?

This one, for example, even looks "identical". http://www.twenth.com/

[twlng → wingerlang]

The main difference between Twenth (which was recently sold on Flippa) and http://www.TwLng.com, is the content scheduling via a Calendar, the queue & circle data structures and the Twitter marketing tools.

Having reviewed Twenth, its acknowledged that the design is similar, but the request for design assistance will take this in a difference direction.

[cookiecaper]

I found an awesome designer by searching LinkedIn for professional local designers, checking out the portfolio he had listed, and sending him an InMail asking if he was open to freelance. Just something that worked for me.

[webstartupper]

If your project does not generate any (or enough revenue), then it might make sense to purchase a $20 theme from websites like themeforest.net or wrapbootstrap.com.

These look polished enough that your customers won't know that you purchased a theme v/s hired a designer (they don't care anyways)

Once you have enough revenue coming in, you could then hire a designer to create a custom website for you (if you still really want to).

[kiraken]

I'm a web designer, and i can probably help out, leave an email and we'll talk

[AznHisoka]

The click through, and even view rates for such tweets will be abismal.