Dilemma faced by designers on pricing their services
A dilemma on pricing your services is faced by all web designers as it is very difficult to set a specific monetary value on your time and experience. A lot of factors need to be considered in order to price a project correctly. And all the projects cannot be priced at unanimously one figure as different projects need different services. This section of the article discusses varied factors that need to be considered when pricing your web design services.
Services -Hourly or Fixed?
Web designers normally charge a fixed price or on an hourly basis for every particular project. Clients in general prefer when they have to pay a fixed price for design work as fixed price allows them to estimate in advance the full cost of a project. It is almost preferred by all designers as well as the client to know up front what the cost will be. It is best to analytically evaluate each project and know the pros and cons of each charging option before you agree terms with the client.
Find out the Market Rate
Study the market well, knowing what your competitors price for a particular design work and services will help you price your own services effectively. It is crucial for you understand the market you will be targeting: small businesses or large companies? Smaller jobs (e.g. logos, banners) or bigger projects (e.g. complete websites)? Conduct a comparative analysis to ensure that you have a realistic estimate of the market rate of your services.
Evaluate Your Own Skill Level
Self -evaluate the quality of your services against competitors. This will help you determine whether you can charge more than the market rate. Take in to consideration factors such as years of experience, your expertise etc. Being aware of your own skill level will allow you to price your rates accordingly and justify these rates to clients.
Build a portfolio
In the initial phase of your career when you are just starting out, it is better to drop your rates initially in order to build up a portfolio. This will help you secure projects and gain momentum in the market as a recent entrant into the market. When there is more demand you can tactfully price your services high and increase your rates. You can then increase your rates if you have a lot of enquiries about work.
Identify Your Own Costs
Be aware of your business costs when you are pricing your services. You should incorporate the cost of any stock images or templates you need to purchase for the project. You should include outsourcing designer or developer charges, if any. Additional costs incurred on telephone calls, insurance, travelling expenses too have to be wisely calculated to establish the costs that have been incurred by you. Smart pricing will ensure that any expenses you incur will eat into your profits. Therefore, they should be incorporated into your pricing structure from the start.
Sign a Contract
Before you set to start up the project it is most advisable to sign a detailed contract before you work together. The contract has to be made elaborately on paper to avoid any moments of business displeasure or negative outbreaks with the client .Key factors that have to be included in the contract are:
- Estimated time to complete the project
- After sales service terms and conditions.
- No of revisions included other than the initial draft
- Mode of payment
- Conditions to be met to cancel the project early
- Additional fee charges, if any
Get set to some serious business, having understood the tricky business of price quote.