Ok, so I gave myself a raise. And part of the way I did that is by raising the rates I charge to my clients. For me, there are three parts to raising my rates: First, having a pricing strategy. Second, math. Third, psychology. Pricing strategy: I put a lot of thought into the rates […]

I’ll be raising my hourly rate in February, 2012, and I needed to let some of my clients know. I did not notify clients if I only bill them by project price quote, since they don’t need to know my hourly rate. And I decided to only notify clients who I have worked with recently. […]

This is part 4 of the “what do I charge” post. Value isn’t all about low prices. Why is it important to quantify the value you offer to clients? Think about two different designers. Designer Jane has 10 years experience in food packaging design, has created several packaging lines that sell well in supermarkets, and […]

This is part 3 of the “what do I charge” post. Knowledge is power! I’ve found it very empowering to have a good idea of what other people and agencies in my area charge, and to know what other people charge across the country. There are salary surveys and freelance surveys available online, which are […]

This is part 2 of the “what do I charge” post. It’s a big subject! In part 1, I talked about the expenses that freelancers have. Now let’s think about how much time you can work. You might do the math: As an employee I worked 40 hours a week, and I got paid for […]