Serious question, why does everyone say to start with low prices? I tried that and it backfired hard.

I was at a coffee shop in Austin last month, finishing up my first freelance graphic design gig for a small bakery. I quoted them $200 for a logo, which was way below what I felt it was worth because every forum said to underprice until you have a portfolio. They agreed fast, but then they kept asking for changes every two days, like 8 versions of the same thing. I spent 30 hours on it total, and when I finally sent the invoice, they said they expected more for that price and acted disappointed. So I made like $6 an hour and got a bad review anyway. Has anyone else dealt with people treating cheap prices like an invitation to demand the world?

3 comments

3 Comments

adam1861d agoMost Upvoted

I read somewhere that cheap prices attract the worst clients because they're looking for a bargain, not quality work. Your experience with the bakery totally backs that up. They treated you like a cheap labor source, not a professional, and the constant revisions prove they didn't value your time. A higher price upfront would have filtered them out or at least made them respect the scope of work. How do you set your rates now to avoid that kind of entitlement?

brooke_murray1d ago

Do you actually raise your rates every time you get a bad client, or do you just set a floor and stick with it?

abby_fisher1d ago

Oh man, that bakery story is brutal and I am so sorry that happened to you. It's like they saw a low price and thought "great, we can boss this person around as much as we want." I completely get that feeling of working for peanuts and still getting a bad review, it's a special kind of insult on top of injury. Your time and skill are worth more than $6 an hour, no doubt about it. It's a hard lesson but a necessary one, and it sounds like you learned it the hardest way possible. Solidarity from a fellow freelancer who has been there way too many times.