Protecting Your Hourly Rate
I recently read a post from a fellow freelancer who had just learned a valuable if not painful lesson about freelancing. She had secured a client and the job seemed straightforward enough so she didn’t press into the details too much. It also happened that there wasn’t a written agreement in place addressing things that could arise during the course of the project.
I think most of us can tell where this is heading…
That’s right. The client turned out to be a royally demanding, non-communicative beast whose vision of the project was pretty darned unreasonable for the fee charged. After several rewrites and revisions, the freelancer lamented about the plunging of her hourly rate.
Anyone who hasn’t been there, please raise your hand.
No hands? That’s what I thought.
Whenever we are looking at a project, it’s crucial that we keep in mind anything that can go wrong. Contingencies are a necessary part of the quoting process and they are critical to any contract paperwork we use with our clients.
The reason we put contingencies in place is two-fold. We want to protect our hourly rate from scoundrel clients and we want to send a clear message to our clients about exactly what they are receiving for the fee (and more importantly, what they are not receiving).
When you are deciding what to quote for a project you need to determine what is fair and reasonable based on fair and reasonable conditions. So, you may include a single revision as part of your price, with requests over and above that subject to an over and above fee. Now is not the time to be timid or shy. It’s not the time to be a nice person. If you don’t include these fee structures as part of your contract then at some point an unscrupulous or just plain demanding client is going to suck the lifeblood out of you and leave you disenchanted to say the least.
There have been times in my freelance writing career that I’ve strayed from charging the client what I had a legitimate right to charge for. In these cases, the client has been very easy to work with and I’ve felt their request was reasonable and that it would not break my bank to do the work. I’ll also say that in these instances I am not shy about asking for some type of testimonial. Most clients are happy to oblige.
As an independent contractor, you need to know what your minimum hourly rate is. When determining this rate you need to factor in all kinds of things such as taxes, overhead, profit, marketing and all of those other business savvy things that help keep you afloat. If you get stung too many times with dismal hourly rates, you will soon reach the point where your business is no longer viable.
Take the time right now to review your standard contract and make certain you have built in the necessary contingencies that will protect your hourly rate.
About the Author: A writer living in Alaska. A simple man with few passions: My daughter, writing, soccer and now and then a good cigar.
John Soares | Oct 12, 2010 | Reply
A good contract is crucial for all freelance writers. It’s important that it spells out what will be done, when, for how much, and when payment is required.
My specialty is writing for college textbook publishers, and sometimes there’s “scope creep”: slowly increasing the amount of work without increasing the compensation. If it’s minor I’ll usually go along in the interest of keeping good relationships with editors, and because the pay is usually quite good. When it’s too much, I ask for more money.
Steve | Oct 12, 2010 | Reply
George:
Good one. As one of my writing mentor’s says as well, “Figure in a PIA fee” as an extra, as this particular client certainly was.
Also, I THINK (and maybe you disagree) that you should always get some sort of payment up front PRIOR to the project. That way, if a client decides to burn you, you get something for your trouble.
Also, what are your feelings about prospective clients saying, “We’d like to see what you can do with this first beforer we make a decision.” I’ve been a freelancer for 15 years, and now I flat out say, “Find someone else.”
Steve
George Angus | Oct 13, 2010 | Reply
Steve,
PIA fee. I love it.
I’ve had projects where I’ve asked for partial up front. If the client is legitimate and even slightly seasoned, they accept this as part of doing business. I don’t do it with every job but I have employed this in the past.
As far as a sample, yup I point them to my web site that is chock full of my writing. I’m not giving anyone a freebee anymore. I learned those painful lessons when I first started and was answering Craigslist ads.
George
Mark | Oct 17, 2010 | Reply
Hey George,
Yep, you’re the pro and you have to think for the client who may have no clue what effort is involved, or realise that sudden spec changes may leap into their head at the most inopportune times. There are few things more soul-destroying for a writer than seeing your hourly rate dwindling away as you put in extra hours you or the client didn’t bargain for.
Cheers bud.
tumblemoose | Oct 20, 2010 | Reply
Hi John, and sorry for the delay. Your comment got sucked into the spam filter thingy.
I pretty much won’t work without a contract these days. Whenever I’ve tried to just wing it with a client it has blown up in my face. I get it all in writing now.
George