What to charge?

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Xrproto

Xrproto

Waste of e-space
Aug 1, 2006
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I'm not sure how/what I should charge for this huge project I was finally talked into.

Anyway, what I'm being asked to do is take over every aspect of their site. From redesign, scripting, database management, graphics, SEO & marketing. The whole deal and on top of it they want me to continue managing everything.

Now this is a high dollar industry and they need to get branded on the net. They have a existing site but I'm going to have to do a complete redo - code and layout is a mess.

So any ideas on how I should approach the fees? Urgh...I'm tired of trying to crunch numbers and figure a sweet spot.
 


You should keep a log and charge an hourly fee of whatever your time is worth to you. If they require a quote then estimate how long it will take you and give them a range by figuring out the minimum you would do it for, and the maximum you think they would pay.

An hourly wage is the only fair way for either party.
 
  • You need to start with how much you WANT for the project.
  • How many HOURS do you think it will take.
  • How many dollars an hour will you be getting paid then?
  • Is that in line with what the current designers make... with like what... $50 an hour or something?
  • Seeing as how you're doing much more than design I would double whatever the "standard" hourly amount is on it
  • Where does that put you?
Do the same routine for the "maintenence" and show them everything as "projected" numbers.

Another idea would be to break everything down into tasks and charge a price to complete each of the tasks so you're basically invoicing each little bullet-point of the job you're doing.

Just ideas off the top of the dome... i'm no expert.
 
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Thanks for the feedback. I've charged hourly in the past but that was always for one certain area at a time. Not everything so I started to go nuts trying to break down each section and determine a hourly rate for each one while estimating the time it would take.

I've thought I would take an hourly average for all the areas and charge by that.

More feedback is welcomed.
 
Alright, another questions. What do people charge to manage PPC campaigns? They want me to do this also and well...I've never done it for someone else.
 
Here's an interesting thought. You're worth exactly as much as you make them believe you are.

9/10 times the person with the better skills at selling themselves and negotiation is going to make WAY more money then the person good at their job.

Unfortunately that's just how the world works. Which is good and bad. Good if you know how to make people believe they can't live without you and you're a perfect fit for the position. Then you can write your own ticket.

Funny story I have a good friend that knew nothing about being a security analyst. Went in to a company said he was the best, they believed him and paid him 200k a year to do it. Because it was a large corp it took them about 6 months to find out he didn't really know what he said. But he was learning the whole time he was there from the other security guys. He did this 3 more times and kept getting more and more on the job training learning a little more and lasting a little longer each time. Until he eventually knew what he was doing.

Now talk about on the Job training!
 
Xrproto said:
Alright, another questions. What do people charge to manage PPC campaigns? They want me to do this also and well...I've never done it for someone else.
Click to expand...

Farm this part out - you can't do everything and you will get better results from someone who lives and breaths PPC shit.

I've been quoted about 150 an hour plus a percentage of my spends. I've been quoted lower but if they are good at PPC they can make more by doing their own thing than helping you if it's a low ball estimate.

I hate PPC for this very reason :)
 
Good points above, but your comment here
determine a hourly rate for each one
Click to expand...
interests me. They're hiring you, aren't they? They want you for your skills, your knowledge and your expertise. They're not hiring separate coding, SEO, database, maintenance, data input services. So why on earth should you charge differently for different tasks?

If someone is aware of what you can do, hires you, then wants you to do transcribe audio tapes all day, then they should pay your rate for that, not whatever they think an adequate rate for audio transcription is. They're not hiring an audio transcriber, they're hiring you.
 
The reason I was trying to break down everything with their own rate was so I could get and idea of what I should charge on average overall. They will be paying me one rate for everything regardless if I'm coding or designing graphics. I do plan on outsourcing some of things that are simple but very time consuming and cheap to outsource.

Thanks for the input everyone.

sleepylee said:
Good points above, but your comment here

interests me. They're hiring you, aren't they? They want you for your skills, your knowledge and your expertise. They're not hiring separate coding, SEO, database, maintenance, data input services. So why on earth should you charge differently for different tasks?

If someone is aware of what you can do, hires you, then wants you to do transcribe audio tapes all day, then they should pay your rate for that, not whatever they think an adequate rate for audio transcription is. They're not hiring an audio transcriber, they're hiring you.
Click to expand...
 
Be wary of "overall price" make sure you

- Calculate a buffer, do not underestimate the time needed
- Have all the requirements in writing
- Do NOT accept any last minute requirement / scope changes (aka feature creep)
- Do charge extra for all new/changed requirements and get them in writing as well

::emp::
 
you could easily charge $80 - $100 / hour for that kind of work. A friend of mine owns a local design company and charges clients $125/hour and has no problems finding work. I pay my programmer $75/hour and he's my brother in law.
 
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