Pro tip: My neighbor, a freelance writer for 10 years, told me 'your first price is an anchor for your whole career, not just a one-off deal' over coffee last Tuesday.

That hit different because I was about to ask $50 for a full website rewrite, and now I'm stuck wondering if I should charge by the project or the hour for my first client in Phoenix.

3 comments

3 Comments

johnkelly4d ago

Your neighbor is dead right about that first price being an anchor. Fifty bucks for a whole website is crazy low, you'll never climb out of that hole. Charge by the project, but make that project price reflect a real week's work, not just an afternoon. Figure out what you need to live on and work backwards from there, even for this first client.

ryan8094d ago

Tell me about it. I once tried to freelance and priced my first gig like I was having a fire sale. Ended up making less per hour than I do cleaning up spilled beer. That neighbor's advice is solid gold. You start at fifty bucks and you're basically telling every future client your time is worth peanuts. Gotta value your own work first or nobody else will.

dixon.mia3d ago

That "figure out what you need to live on" part is the real kicker. How do you even do that math for a single project? Do you take your old salary and break it down by week, or just pick a number that sounds scary but fair? I'd probably stare at a spreadsheet for two days and still lowball myself.