I saw this question on a graphic design message board. Actually, I see this question a lot.
Q: How much should I charge to design a simple one-color flyer?
A: Sounds like a simple question, but it can get complicated. The short answer is, “It depends.”
Things to consider and questions to ask:
How fast do you work? How much do you charge? How long will it take?
Are there photos or illustrations? If yes, are they ready to use or will you need to create clipping paths, change to greyscale, do something else to them?
Will you need to look for stock photos or illustrations?
Is there a logo? Is the logo ready to use? Is there a good greyscale version of the logo or will you need to tweak it to look good in one color? (That “one-color” in the question is really a red herring. It seems like it means everything will be easier, but that’s not always true.)
Is there an established look for the client’s materials? If yes, do you have the fonts and graphic elements the look uses, or will you be re-creating it?
If no, there is not an established look: does the client have a good idea of what they want? If yes, is it realistic and are they likely to approve the layout without a lot of revisions?
If no, the client doesn’t have a good idea of what they want (or it is not realistic, or they are likely to want a lot of revisions): how long is initial design (choosing fonts, basic layout, overall look) likely to take you? How many revisions will the client need?
Is the copy (headline, text, prices, product descriptions) completely written, proofread, and approved? If not, how long will it take to get the copy correct? How many revisions will you need to do if you place text that later changes? How long will it take to change if, for example, the headline is changed from one word (SALE!) to several (Big Leap Day SALE! February 29 only!)?
As I said, it depends. A simple flyer could take one or two hours, or it could take ten hours or longer. Each project is different.
By the way, this is another place where time tracking is helpful. If you’ve done previous projects which are similar or previous projects for the same client, you can review how long those took to get a better idea of how long this one might take.
What other questions would you ask or variables would you consider when a client asks for “a simple flyer”?