The average cost of design per hour....

[bigdave]

With recent controvasy over quoting low and public quoting I thought it migt be interesting to have some visual representation of the average price per hour charged by members.

I don't intend this to be a public name and shame for budget / over inflated pricing so just ticking a box on the poll would do.

You never know, it could actually be very useful for prospective clients to see roughly what forum members as a collective charge before requesting a quote and either getting a shock or getting greif.

[printbar]

Not a terrible idea. Only thing that would be a potential problem would be if the same folks that low-balled previously then started low-balling on the poll, thus skewing....

[bigdave]

True, but as long as the majority of frequent users submit their vote, the few would stand out as a minority.

Something that I hadn't thought about untill now was that this could alienate anyone who is seen as charging 'over the odds' when it comes to quotes.... hmm.... perhaps this is a bad idea?...

[Boss Hog]

something that I hadn't thought about untill now was that this could alienate anyone who is seen as charging 'over the odds' when it comes to quotes.... hmm.... perhaps this is a bad idea?...

The poll is anonymous...

[dedwardp]

The poll is anonymous...

I think he means that if you look back and see you're the only member charging £50 more than everyone else you might then feel a bit silly yourself?

[Katedesign]

But if you're busy then you'll congratulate yourself at charging more than everyone else... and if you're too cheap you might be convinced to put your charges up.

[Dave L]

It is a balancing act, certainly. I charge quite a lot to my bigger clients (national organisations paying consultancy rates) and less in other cases; I could certainly be busier but don't need to do much work at the higher end to earn a living wage - the danger being in the temptation to turn your nose up at the smaller fees.

[Ian Bonner]

It is a balancing act, certainly. I charge quite a lot to my bigger clients (national organisations paying consultancy rates) and less in other cases; I could certainly be busier but don't need to do much work at the higher end to earn a living wage - the danger being in the temptation to turn your nose up at the smaller fees.

I'm with Dave. I have three rates for three different type of clients. I base it on the exposure that the work will have and the size of the business. My middle rate is my usual hourly rate.

[bigdave]

I currently have 3 rates:

Rate 1 is my higher normal rate.

Rate 2 is trade rate and a 'one time special offer' rate for when I feel a perspective client may be wobbling over a quote. It's often very helpful for them to perceive a bargain is being had. On one occasion I had a client add extra work onto the job to benefit from the special price, bumping it way over the cost of the original quote.

Rate 3 is a student rate. I make almost no profit on this rate but I've found it's a great way of advertising myself. Students who are running events are often quite open to the idea of my logo and website being on their posters, flyers etc, if they get a discount. I don't put my details on student rate business stationery but I see that as a good way of building a future client base (and steering them away from the dreaded Vistaprint).

[dedwardp]

To be fair I just pretty much have one rate which can fluctuate slightly depending on the particular job and the instinct I have over it i.e. if I can tell it's going to be a bit of hassle etc.

The idea of charging upwards for larger corporations though is something I think you'd have to consider, just need to get that work in first!