Stop Charging an Hourly Rate (Do This Instead)
Get paid more for the same work
What if I told you that you could get paid more for the same work.
Yes, you can, if you make some changes in your fee structure.
What I’m about to tell you, I wish I had figured this out earlier. I could have earned a lot more in my copywriting career.
A lot of experienced freelancers will tell you, “You’re not getting paid what you’re worth if you are charging by the hour.”
And they are right!
I began my career as an employee copywriter, not a freelancer, and signed up for hourly pay years ago during my first graduate job.
I realized the mistake I had made by the end of the first week itself.
(By the way, I have created a detailed YouTube video if you really want to get down to the nitty-gritty of charging the right price and earning more for the same work)
If not, then here’s a quick explanation of three different fee structures:
Hourly Rate
It’s simple. You get paid for the number of ‘billable’ hours. Oh yeah, the ‘non-billable’ hours are unpaid.
I wish I knew this. I mean if I wish I knew there were going to be billable and non-billable hours.
My meetings with clients, lunch breaks, etc. were unpaid. So, even when I was engaged in work for 9–10 hours, I only got paid for like 7 hours.
Anyway, let’s talk about freelancing hourly rates now.
Suppose if you want to make $2000 from a freelance project, and you’re so good at your job that it’ll only take you 10 hours to complete the project.
In this case, you’ll make $200 an hour.
However, if you tell the clients that you’re going to charge $200 an hour, they might tell you it’s a lot.
They might say that paying $2000 for a 10-hour work is too much. “We have a guy who’s willing to spend 30 hours on this and charge $1500,” they might say.
Well, what if that person is inexperienced and hasn’t figured out how to get the project done sooner?
Seems like you, who have mastered your skill (graphic design, copywriting, Facebook Ads consulting or whatever it is), and can get the job done sooner, is expected to earn less.
Not fair, right?
Project-Based Fee
Now, instead of saying $200 an hour, how about you quote a one-time project-fee of $2000?
There’s nothing wrong with it.
You’re NOT charging for the hours you put into the project. You’re charging for spending so much time and money into honing your skills for all these years. And for that reason, even a project that might seem difficult to a novice is a piece of cake for you.
You could even do the whole project in 5 hours instead of 10, and make $400 an hour with that rate.
Remember, for us creatives, watches and clocks are blockers of creativity.
Unfortunately, people from the corporate world don’t get it.
We like to be free and take our time to do things.
On the other hand, if it takes you 14 hours instead of 10, don’t ask for extra pay for those 4 hours. Just enjoy the whole process and love what you do.
Value-Based Fee
Suppose you’re a Facebook Ads consultant, and you help your client generate $1,000,000 for their Boxing Day sale campaign through your Facebook Ads skills.
In this case, you could ask them to pay you a base fee and some commission on top for the revenue that you help them generate.
For example, if you ask for 5% of the revenue you help them generate, you could earn $50,000 as a consultant.
This only applies to situations where revenue can be calculated. For example, if you’re a graphic designer, you can’t say, “My logo helped you generate $50,000.”
Even if it contributed to a company’s brand image, calculating a numerical financial value is not possible in all cases.
Heck, the lady who designed the Swoosh logo for Nike got a one-time fee of $35!
Conclusion
Don’t keep charging your age-old beginner rates forever. Think outside the box, and get paid what you’re worth.
Yes, it is totally possible to make a lot of money through freelancing.
Just because you’re a freelancer, not an incorporated company, doesn’t mean you can’t get hefty bank deposits.
Let me know what you think about this.
