Our Web Designer Financial Trends Survey Is LIVE! Here's Why We Created It
What's inside this post: Hide
This all started with me and my co-host Diane Whiddon chatting behind the scenes about something that's been bugging us for months now. It was one of those topics that kept coming up in our podcast convos and random messages...the kind that makes you go “Wait, are we the only ones thinking about this?!”
Why We Created This Survey 🧐
Turns out, we were both struggling with the same question: what the hell is actually happening financially in the web design industry right now?
Every time I looked at an industry report, I'd see charts about trends & growth, but literally ZERO of the nitty-gritty financial info I was actually desperate to know. Like, am I the only one freaking out about all these software price hikes? (I'm looking at you, Markup with your $79/month nonsense. 👀)
One day in February, Diane and I were on a call and the conversation went something like this:
Me: “Did you see Google Workspace just increased their price too? Is everyone else also losing their minds about these ridiculous software price increases?”
Diane: “YES! And have you noticed people getting weirdly squeamish about prices they wouldn't have blinked at a year ago?”
Before we knew it, we were like two conspiracy theorists connecting dots on a corkboard. 😂 Except instead of string and pushpins, we had Claude (the AI) helping us draft survey questions, and we were excitedly building out the damn whole thing in one mammoth call.
It was literally the definition of “take messy action,” because honestly, in a world where we wear ALL the hats and our to-do lists are 1,000 miles long, sometimes “done” really is better than “perfect”! This wasn’t a small undertaking –especially not to get the number of submissions we want– but we wanted to know the answers badly enough that we MADE time to create & promote it so we could get it out there.
The Problem with Vibes-Based Financial Decisions 😬
Here's what's been driving us absolutely batshit the past several months: without good data, we're all out here making MAJOR business decisions based on... feelings & vibes?!
Does this sound familiar?
😬 “I think the market is getting tighter.”
🫣 “I feel like I should be charging more, but I’m afraid it’ll repel potential clients.”
🤔 “It seems like everyone else is making-bank, so where are all my clients?”
🤬 “If I get ONE MORE email about increased prices, I’m gonna start cancelling a bunch of shit!!”
🤨 “How much is everyone else spending on business expenses these days? I feel like I’m bleeding money!”
So many of us are saying these types of things, but where's the actual DATA to back any of it up? Just because it FEELS one way, doesn’t mean it actually is, because sometimes our brain gets confused between belief in the moment when things feel hard, –and the reality. Far too often, the data says something different than our experience of it from day-to-day.
But also, I’m sure I’m not the only one who wants to know if other designers have more than two months of runway saved? (ie: if you make NO MONEY for the next 2 months, how long can you keep running the business & paying yourself?) Or what percentage of their income they're investing back into their business? Or whether they're taking on more or fewer projects compared to last year?
Diane & I are both betting you're curious about these answers too! 😏
What Makes Our Survey Different
This isn't your average “how satisfied are you with your career on a scale from 1-10” industry survey. We're asking the awkward, money-specific questions that nobody else seems willing to touch, like:
What was your ACTUAL income from website design work last year?
How does your 2024 income compare to 2023's?
How many months of financial runway do you have saved?
Which economic factors are most concerning for your business?
What's your biggest financial fear as a designer right now?
And yes, it's completely anonymous. Because let's be honest, nobody wants to publicly admit they're making less this year than last year, or that they're secretly terrified AI is coming for their job. 😬
Results: What We've Found So Far...
We've been absolutely BLOWN AWAY by the responses we've gotten in just the first couple days!
Here's a sneak peek at some early trends:
On the business side of things:
The average optimism reported is a solid 7 (out of 10) for 2025! That's surprisingly positive given everything happening economically.
71% of respondents expect their income to INCREASE this year
with another 20% expecting it to stay the same
The biggest economic concerns are
shrinking client budgets (21%),
rising personal costs (20%), and
rising business costs (18%)
On the education & software/tools front:
39% are keeping their course/education budget under $500 this year
a surprising 41% are very likely to invest in AI tools this year (with another 32% somewhat likely)
most people (39%) are willing to spend $30-50/month on a tool that significantly increases productivity and/or profitability
The Year of Implementation, Not (New) Education
One interesting thing we discovered, in the first couple days of watching survey results, is that so far many designers (including both of us) are planning to focus less on education spending this year. Instead, we're declaring 2025 “The Year of Implementation” –taking what we already know or learned last year and actually DOING stuff with it. (ie: finishing courses/books/classes/etc we bought last year, before buying/learning more things)
After all, learning new things DOES NOT MATTER unless we actually implement what we’ve learned, and if we don’t implement we won’t see a return on that investment & it becomes just a waste of our hard-earned money! 😬
Why This Kind of Information Matters to ALL of Us
I assume you’ve noticed how everything is getting more expensive lately, from grocery bills or heating costs, to software subscriptions creeping higher every renewal... and finding actual usable free plans is like finding a unicorn wearing business-casual loafers. 🦄👞
On top of all those types of changes, the economic weirdness has left many of us wondering what the market can actually handle:
Are designers raising rates to compensate, or holding steady to stay competitive?
Are customers really getting more price-sensitive, or is that just in our heads?
If I lower prices, will I get more sales because it offers relief that most businesses aren't offering?
The hilarious (and slightly terrifying) truth is that we don't know – and we literally CAN'T know – unless we ask. 🫤
No Strings, Just Data (Promise!)
Let me be crystal clear: this survey is NOT leading to a sales pitch.
We're not going to add you to our email lists. We're not launching a course about financial management. We're not building an expensive membership.
We just want the data. Pure, beautiful, actionable data that we can all use to make smarter business decisions this year.
Once we hit or get close to our goal of 1,000+ responses, we'll compile everything into a comprehensive report and share it with EVERYONE. Because we're all out here trying to build sustainable businesses, and we could all use some actual facts to make informed decisions for our business, –versus just guessing and hoping for the best! 😊🤞🏻
How YOU Can Help
❶ TAKE THE SURVEY:
It takes just 7-10 minutes (we literally timed it), and you can stay completely anonymous. Or, if you'd like to receive the report directly in your inbox when it's ready, you can add your email at the end.
❷ SHARE THE SURVEY:
The more responses we get, the more accurate our understanding will be of what's ACTUALLY happening in our industry right now. Send it to your design friends, share in Facebook groups, post it on social!
The share links are:
swayrisecreative.com/survey
launchthedamnthing.com/survey
FYI: they both go to the same place!
What You'll Get
Just for participating, you'll get:
Diane's AI Prompt Guide for web design images and content
My Cheat Sheet and Templates for web images and video
The comprehensive industry report in Spring 2025
The satisfaction of helping create transparency in our industry
Your privacy matters
Your privacy is really important in all of this! So your responses will remain completely anonymous unless you choose to share your contact info.
And yes, you'll get the freebies either way!
What’s next?
We cannot tell you how excited we are to see these results!!!
Like, refresh-the-response-count-multiple-times-a-day excited.
Because honestly? I think we’re ALL tired of making business decisions based on guesswork and Instagram humble-brags. I'm ready for some cold, hard facts about our industry's financial reality – even if some of those facts might be a little uncomfortable to ask.
Are you with us?
Let's get some answers together!! 💪
Have questions about the survey?
Drop them in the comments below!
And don't forget to share it so we can hit our goal of 1,000 responses!
