I was at a coffee shop near South Congress and overheard a client bragging about paying a designer $20 an hour for logo work like it was a flex. Am I the only one who thinks we should be defending our rates instead of acting like cheap work is a win?
He cornered me at the laundromat in Bushwick and kept saying how easy it would be, like I was asking for too much. I told him my rate is $75 an hour and he laughed, so I walked away. Anyone else have a family friend or neighbor try to use that connection to get a deal?
I bought this fancy template from a popular site last month because it looked SO clean in the demo. Took me three whole evenings to customize it and the images kept breaking on mobile. Then I found out the coder hid a monthly fee for updates that wasn't in the listing. Anyone else get burned by one of those 'one time purchase' templates that turned out to be a trap?
Last month I was talking to this guy about writing blog posts for his ecommerce site. He liked my samples and everything, then hit me with the classic "your rate is a bit steep for my budget." I held firm at $50 because I know my work is solid. He goes quiet for two days then comes back and says he found someone for $25 an hour. I checked out that writer's portfolio and it was full of typos and broken links. I just let it go and moved on. Three weeks later he emails me asking if I can do a rush project because the cheap writer flaked. I quoted him $75 this time and he actually paid it without arguing. Has anyone else had a client come crawling back after trying to lowball you?
I got tired of people asking me to match some random quote from a guy who works out of his van for $40 an hour. So I added a line that says all quotes are based on a written scope of work and any change to that scope triggers a new price. Last week a guy tried to talk me down from $150 to $100 and I just pointed to that line and said sorry, that's the rate. He actually hired me anyway. Has anyone else found a simple contract tweak that saved them from haggling?
I was sitting in my home office last Tuesday when a long-time client said they'd pay the full $1,200 after I finished the site redesign, even though our contract clearly said 50% upfront, and I had to decide whether to walk away from the project or hold my ground and risk losing the gig - has anyone else had clients try to rewrite your payment terms mid-project?
Back in 2019, my uncle who used to do graphic design in the 90s told me to always quote clients 50% higher than what I actually want. He said they'd negotiate down and I'd still get my number. So I tried it on a web design project for a local coffee shop in Portland. I quoted them $1,800 when I would have been happy with $1,200. They didn't even counter. They just said no thanks and ghosted me. I heard later they found someone on Craigslist for $400 who made a terrible site. So I lost the gig and they got a bad product. Has anyone else had advice from old timers that just doesn't work anymore?
I took my 2015 Honda to a shop in Austin last Tuesday for a simple brake pad swap, and they quoted me $185 per hour for labor... I was floored. The mechanic actually said "that's just the going rate around here" when I asked why it was so high. Am I wrong for thinking $185 an hour is a total cash grab for something that takes 45 minutes?
I used to just throw out random numbers for web design projects and hope for the best. Last month I tried that free calculator from the Freelancers Union and realized I was undercharging by like $400 on every single site build. Has anyone else tried one of those tools and had their mind blown?
I switched to flat fee pricing back in April to try and land bigger contracts. Seemed like a good idea until a client kept asking for revisions on a $1,500 web design project. I ended up working 60 hours on something I budgeted for 20. Charged hourly for my next three clients and made $400 more on average with way fewer headaches. Has anyone else gone back to hourly after giving flat fees a shot?
I had a client push back on my $200 hourly rate twice before they finally agreed, and when that invoice cleared for the full $5,000 I realized their haggling was just a test to see if I'd fold.
My buddy Dave who does web dev kept telling me to add a 50% rush fee for any project under a week. I thought he was being greedy and figured I'd just lose work. Last month a client asked me to turn around a 40 page editing job in 3 days. I said sure for my normal rate, pulled two all nighters, and then they asked for revisions. I was exhausted and underpaid. Finally tried Dave's advice on the next rush project and the client didn't even blink. Now I kick myself for all those late nights I could have charged double for. Anyone else have advice they ignored forever?
Everyone wants the agency in Chicago with the $10k budget. I landed them. Three revisions in one day. Emails at 10pm. They wanted me to match a style guide from 2018 but make it 'fresh.' Felt like I worked 80 hours for that check. Has anyone else had a high paying job that totally wrecked your schedule?
I had this one gig last week where a lady wanted me to rewrite her entire website copy, do a full blog calendar, and fix her email sequences. She offered $25 an hour and said I could work from home (which I already do, so that wasn't a perk). I told her my rate is $65 minimum for content work like that. She came back saying she could "find someone on Fiverr for $10" and that my price was "unrealistic for a beginner." I've been freelance writing for 6 years now (started part time while plumbing to pay the bills). I just said "good luck with that" and moved on. Has anyone else had a client try to use the Fiverr threat like that?
I had a regular client who always paid $50 an hour and I was scared to ask for more, but when they dropped me for someone charging $35 I realized my work was worth that $15 difference. Has anyone else had a lowball situation actually make them rethink their pricing for the better?
She said I should charge half what I do since I don't have a degree, and it stung way more than any client lowball ever has. Has anyone else had family undermine their pricing like that?