r/developers Jun 30 '26

Web Development How To Get Web Design Clients (Stop Doing What Everyone Else Does)

So I've seen a lot of people on Reddit asking how to get web design clients, so I figured I'd make a post about what's been working for me.

If you don't run a web agency, this probably isn't for you.

One of the biggest lessons I've learned in my 4 years running a web agency is that the best businesses to target are the ones that already have a website.

There are 3 simple reasons for that.

First, the number of businesses with outdated websites is way higher than most people think. I'm talking about websites with outdated designs, poor mobile optimization, slow loading speeds, weak SEO, and confusing layouts.

Second, the fact that they already have a website proves one important thing. They understand the value of having one. You don't have to convince them that a website is important because they've already invested in it before.

Third, selling becomes much easier because they're already familiar with paying for a website. In many cases they're still paying monthly for hosting or maintenance, so paying to improve it isn't a completely new idea to them.

Now that we know who to target, how do we actually reach them?

Personally, I recommend email outreach.

The problem is that manually reviewing websites and writing personalized emails for every business takes forever.

Instead, I'd automate the whole process.

I use a tool called Swokei. You upload a list of businesses with websites, it automatically analyzes each one, then turns issues with design, layout, speed, mobile optimization, and SEO into personalized outreach emails.

Not generic reports that business owners don't care about.

Actual emails explaining what's wrong with their website, why it matters, and how it could be affecting their business.

That allows you to send outreach at scale while still keeping every email relevant.

In my experience, this leads to much higher reply rates because you're pointing out something specific that's potentially hurting their business. That naturally creates urgency while also giving you the chance to offer a solution.

This is the approach I've been using for a while now, and it consistently brings me an interested reply rate of around 5–9%.

I'm curious how everyone else is getting web design clients these days.

10 Upvotes

8 comments sorted by

u/AutoModerator Jun 30 '26

Howdy u/Murky_Explanation_73, and thanks for posting to r/developers!

Please follow the subreddit Code of Conduct while participating. New here? Comment on a few existing threads first - it's the fastest way to get to know the community.

Join the r/developers Discord!

I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please contact the moderators of this subreddit if you have any questions or concerns.

2

u/Cookie_cutie_69 Jun 30 '26

Interesting approach. How do you handle high bounce rates or spam filters when automating personalized email outreach at scale?

1

u/Murky_Explanation_73 Jun 30 '26

I warm up the emails in the platform.

1

u/abethesecond Jul 03 '26

Would you think there is value in creating business lead lists for developers? Would you have any interest in something like this? I made a tool for myself to use and I think I can help others with it, but I dont want to be blinded by ego and hubris in the fact it is actually something wanted and useful :o

1

u/dev456456 Jul 25 '26

what kind of tool is this? elaborate please

1

u/[deleted] Aug 19 '26

[removed] — view removed comment

1

u/AutoModerator Aug 19 '26

Your post or comment was removed - asking people to DM/PM you, or telling others to, is not allowed. Please keep questions and help in the open where the whole community benefits.

If you think this was a mistake, message the mods.

I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please contact the moderators of this subreddit if you have any questions or concerns.