[smacklan]

Originally Posted by DirectPixel

Designing custom skins, on the other hand, is not only great fun, but also becomes more profitable than reselling skins, in the long run. Contrary to smacklan's post, I will heartily disagree about the business potential of doing custom work. Providing custom forum skins is not too different from designing a custom website. I've worked with many clients who needed not only a custom vBulletin skin, but also server setups, backend-programming, and even database administration. Contrary to what's been mentioned by just about everyone in this thread, there are companies that are more than willing to spend tens of thousands of dollars on their websites. In my experience, working with companies on a one-to-one basis provides more income with a faster turnaround time than simply selling pre-made skins to mostly individuals and small companies.

You make some good points. There is good money to be made in both markets and there is also good residual income to the pre-made market. Alot of whats making me successful are the little things I provide to my clients that invaribly leads to more work and is a great source of satisfaction for me...it's not just about selling you a skin for me and many of my clients will attest to that.

Not all pre-made skin sites operate that way. Just as not all custom designers do either. One disadvantage custom designers have is they have a larger pool of competition as do they (sometimes) have a harder time proving a reputation for support.

I would venture to guess, that most freelance designers aren't going to have the 5 figure opportunities you have, nor the skills to follow through on those opportunities if they present themselves.