Breakdown your process

Clients need to understand what they are being billed for when designing artwork or coming up with a campaign; the common mistake we all make is we fix our price on execution and forget the process.

E.g 1 a logo has mainly four steps. Research, Conceptualizing, Sketching & Design Execution. Within my logo pricing I consider all of those steps, what time and resources go into each one and I attach a rate to it which creates the final project rate. E.g 2 Photography isn’t just about the final images or how many you’re giving the client, most times, the photographer suggests the location or goes location scouting, they direct the shoot, edit the images / maybe retouch and then the final production. That to me is a process with steps that all play a role in the final product, why not consider them and bill for them.?

Try & Determine Value

I currently have a client that has serviced apartments. He pays over 150K a month to a third party booking platform as commission because his clients book via them and not directly through him. He’s asked us to build his business a platform that can accommodate the same booking features as his service provider. If you ask the right questions and try and find out why a client wants a specific solution, you’ll be able to determine how much money you’ll make for your client or save them which = value. So if I’m building you a platform that will potentially save your business 150K a month, I can be able to determine the value I’m adding into your business and price myself accordingly.

Application

Projects are executed in different formats and go onto different platforms, they also behave differently on those platforms. A photographer billing you for content that you’ll use for Instagram compared to content you’ll use on billboards for a year is different, even if you’re the same client.

As a creative you need to consider which mediums and platforms our work will live on, the client with a small outlet store in your community might get their logo done for R1000.00 that will be placed on a board outside their store, while a startup company might get it for R5000.00 because they’re going to use it on many different platforms and mediums.

Anchor high

Most clients would want to negotiate your rate so anchoring high might be a good place to start your negotiations. If your rate for an example is R1000.00 you could charge R2000.00, if a client accepts it then great, but if they negotiate then you’re negotiating in a safe zone, where your value will eventually be paid for at the end.

Consider Overheads

Considering your expenses also helps you realize how much you need to make and how many clients you need to get to make sure you’re sustainable, but also what quality of clients you need to get. Overall you need to determine your clients’ needs before you can bill for projects. Understand your process, your beliefs, the value you’re bringing, your time and input and you’ll be able to “charge what you’re worth”.