How to Price Your Work
Before you pick a random number that sounds sexy - take a step back and reflect.
1. Your time is valuable. What do you need to earn per hour of working time to make you feel good about the decision to do X instead of whatever you’d be doing otherwise.
When you say yes to one thing, it means you’re saying no to something else. To feel good about your “Yes” - weigh the hourly rate against that walk, that project, that post - whatever you’d be doing otherwise.
2. How long will it take?
Get really clear on the scope of work. Drill down into every category of work product. It takes longer on the front end, but it saves time, confusion, and disappointment later on.
Consider how much time to allocate to execution, how much time to allocate to presentation, feedback, refinement, etc. Be open about the resources you need to make a project happen. You can always scale down the deliverables to fit the budget, but you want to be transparent about the true time commitment.
3. Are there expenses?
If you need supplies, materials, external resources - factor it in. If you maintain an office or a studio, pay for your phone, your internet, your website… If you have business insurance, a finance system… roll it in.
It’s great to start small. The less overhead. The better. As you begin investing in your business, it’s important that you reflect those costs. They can be listed out as line items, or rolled into your rate - but they need to be covered.
Final thoughts (for now):
Not everyone can afford what you offer. Its OK to turn down a project that doesn’t work for you.
Sometimes, a lower rate will be worth it. It’s OK to say yes to a project that might not work for someone else.
It’s GOOD to be transparent about your rates. Even if a client says no, you’ve educated them, and helped advocate for your industry.
Money isn’t the only form of compensation, but it is a very important one. Be clear on what you need to feel good about the exchange of time/energy/product and if it isn’t a YES - it’s a NO.