- We live in a culture that devalues creative skills.
Maybe because puritans founded the United States,
creativity has a bad rap.
It's fun, so it can't be worth real money.
Unfortunately, many designers believe the same thing
and are the first to underprice and undervalue what they do.
You have a talent that your clients don't.
Good clients understand this
and expect to pay for your services.
You're not in competition with the client's nephew
who has Photoshop.
Don't devalue yourself.
Smart people know you get what you pay for.
Before discussing fees of any kind, you need information.
How much do you charge for a logo
can't be answered immediately.
Have questions ready to go
when speaking with a potential client.
What type of company or product is this for?
What is your timeframe?
What are the deliverables?
What is the goal of the project?
Once you start the project and begin the research phase,
you'll have other questions,
but these can help formulate a fee structure.
There are many ways to create a proposal.
You can find many resources here.
I use phases on my proposal.
It helps me understand how to price a project
and sets up a timeframe.
Let's presume you've discussed the project with a client
and prepared a proposal.
Your next step is to go over the proposal, line by line,
and explain what each part of the process is
and how the fee is broken apart.
I don't use hours as the basis for the fee on the proposal.
This penalizes me if I work efficiently.
From experience, I know that it will take x amount
to do the first phase, second phase, et cetera.
When a client asks why is the fee a thousand dollars
for a Phase 1, I explain based on similar projects,
this is based on the amount of time and labor needed.
If a client comes back to me and says,
this is above my budget, could you do it for half the cost?
If it's doable, I'll explain that I can,
but I need to cut some of the deliverables
or work on the project.
If you priced it fairly to begin,
you can't take one half of the fee and make a profit.
If you say, okay, sure, I can do it for half,
you look like you made up the first number.
If a client says, I can't afford that,
but I have other work, run.
Why would you want more underpaying work?
Most of us feel uncomfortable discussing money
because we enjoy what we do
and creativity was the fun thing growing up, we avoid it.
In the end, it's only business.
You provide a valuable service for a fee
is the same as a mechanic, doctor, or lawyer,
and they have no problem giving an estimate
and expecting compensation.