Comments on: The Freelancer Pricing Conundrum

By: The Freelancer Pricing Conundrum | CrazyLeaf Design Blog

The Freelancer Pricing Conundrum | CrazyLeaf Design Blog — Sun, 09 Nov 2008 18:03:03 +0000

[...] Whether you’re looking to get into freelancing, or in the thick of it, there always exists the topic of rates a freelancer should charge for his/her work. How do you come up with a price for your work? View source [...]

By: Federico

Federico — Wed, 05 Nov 2008 10:12:41 +0000

Hello, I work in both hourly rates and per project pricing (as Adrian). Usually I work per project pricing at the beginning and then charge per hour for updating or for adding new functions.
By the way, working for web as designer or developer is really difficult to find the right solution. It depends on client needs.

(sorry for my little english).

By: Mary

Mary — Wed, 05 Nov 2008 07:55:58 +0000

We recently published a free e-guide called “The One Piece of Advice You Need to Get the Fees You Deserve” (http://www.raintoday.com/onepiecefees.cfm). It includes 12 articles on pricing from experts in the field of professional services with insights on how to maximize your fees. If you’re interested in learning more about services pricing, it’s a good read.

By: Wordpress, @font-face, project pricing & some inspiration: The Daily News | SFNaim

Tue, 04 Nov 2008 23:25:35 +0000

[...] charge for …” It comes up over and over again. Freelancer Magazine has a great post on how to price yourself. Whether your just starting out or have been at it for a while have a read and check out how you [...]

By: Adrian | Rubiqube

Adrian | Rubiqube — Tue, 04 Nov 2008 19:07:34 +0000

I used both hourly rates and per project pricing. For me, the second one works best for precisely the reason you mentioned in the article: the estimate is for working at a regular pace, but I usually work much faster. I consider this to be my “premium”, along with the quality of my work.

Another great tip that I recently read about is to use 3 levels of pricing. That way, clients can choose a “plan” based on what their budget and expectations. Clients will never tell you everything and since humans can’t (yet) read minds, it’s best to give him some options right from the start.

By: Christina Warren

Christina Warren — Tue, 04 Nov 2008 17:33:23 +0000

I do both. I have an hourly rate (and that rate is what I use when computing a per project fee), but I’ll also do per project if the client requests it. If it’s a larger project, I almost always do a project fee — with the understanding that the price can increase if we decide to go in a different direction or if they decide to add on requirements during the course of the process. So $X gets you this, regardless of how long it takes. If you want more, it has to be added to the bill.

Per hour typically works best for quicker or smaller projects, where I can give them an estimate in advance of how long it will take, or if I’m doing IT work, which is just easier to bill hourly.

By: Webseiter

Webseiter — Tue, 04 Nov 2008 11:38:32 +0000

My prices are per project. Of course at the beginning your estimations won’t be that good. You get better over time.

Some customers don’t want to know the total, but even what I charge per hour and how many hours I think I will need. It differs a bit. You ca’t really estimate how many hours it will take to get a design done. But if you are to code some modules or something, hours work fine.

If the customer’s needs change whilst in a project or whenever you feel you’re putting way more work in it than you previously thought, you should think about why it happens and maybe talk to your client. If it isn’t fully your fault chances are your client proves he know the worth of your work and agrees to pay you some more.

By: Sean

Sean — Tue, 04 Nov 2008 11:01:03 +0000

I’m with Paul. I price on a per project basis, but calculate it on my estimate of how long it will take me. I’m also very careful about scope creep and try to ensure that everything is clearly detailed in the contract that the client signs.

By: Matthew

Matthew — Tue, 04 Nov 2008 10:01:33 +0000

I would never quote for a full project, always a daily rate.

The problem is clients very rarely know exactly what they want and exactly what it will entail. Additionally they will often leave you waiting for their own delevirables or decisions.

I tend to agree a daily rate and then agree how many days we think the project should take. It’s generally easier to negotiate extra days due to scope creep or unavoidable delays than it is extra money; even if the two add up to exactly the same thing.

By: Rob Hofker

Rob Hofker — Tue, 04 Nov 2008 09:53:32 +0000

Although pricing per project is a safe approach from the client’s point of view, it can also bite you in the behind when you do not get your planning correct or get into trouble with things like scope creep.
Make a detailed list of work you will do in the project and make sure the client signs off on that. You will be okay with that.

I usuall do my pricing on per-project basis. It will also make me work harder as my revenue will go up