Pricing Your Services
A potential client who's interested in your copywriting services calls and asks how much you charge to write a four-page Web site. How are you going to respond?
Most freelance copywriters, even those with a lot of experience, find quoting and pricing to be a nerve-racking experience. And for good reason! If you quote too high, you may price yourself out of that project. If you quote too low, you risk looking like an amateur — and still not get the project!
That's why quoting a client a realistic price is key to getting the job.
Hourly Rate or Project Fee?
The first thing you need to decide when pricing your services is whether to quote an hourly rate or a project fee. Quoting an hourly rate means you bill the client for the amount of hours you spent working on the project. Quoting a project fee means you quote and are paid an agreed-upon fixed price regardless of how long it takes you to complete the job.
A hourly rate seems like a simple, safe, and fair way to quote. However, this method of quoting is fraught with problems.
First, many clients don't like to hire freelancers this way. It's too much like writing you a blank check. They're going to insist that you at least commit to an estimated number of hours for the project (which isn't much different than quoting a project fee).
Secondly, when you charge by the hour, you actually get paid less the faster and better you get. For example, if a sales letter normally takes you five hours to write, but in a surge of productivity you finish the job in three hours, you can only bill for three hours of work. That's a 40 percent cut in pay!
That's why most freelance copywriters prefer to charge a project fee rather than an hourly rate. Clients prefer it. And it's usually better for the bank account, too.
Quoting the Job
Before you can estimate your fee for a project, you have to ask the client several questions. You goal is to find out as much as you can so that you fully understand the work that is required as well as the client's expectations.
Here are some typical questions you should ask:
What is the size of the project? How many pages or screens does it have? What is the size of a page?
When is the deadline? Do you require an outline to be approved first? If so, when is that due?
How do I learn more about the product and target audience? What background materials are available? Who should I contact if I have questions?
Do we need to meet in person? Or can we exchange project information by phone, e-mail, and the Internet?
How many people will be reviewing the copy? If revisions are required, how quickly will you need these completed?
There may be several other questions you need to ask depending on the nature of the project. Once you're confident that you understand everything completely, then you're ready to prepare a quotation.
Move quickly. If possible, prepare and send the quotation the same day the client contacts you with the request. You want to take advantage of the momentum and the client's desire to get the job done. Also, you don't want to wait too long or the client might get a quotation earlier by another copywriter — and then hire that person for the job.
How Much to Charge
Unfortunately, there is no generally accepted rate schedule published in the copywriting industry. There are, however, typical fee ranges that clients expect to pay for certain types of projects. For example, most clients are willing to pay $500 to $1,000 for a one-to-two page sales letter. So if you quote within that range, you're pretty safe. Of course, there are many inexperienced copywriters who will charge much less, and a few superstar practitioners who can get away with charging much more.
Here are estimated fee ranges charged by full-time freelance copywriters. Some professionals charge more, others less, depending on their experience and track record.
Estimated Copywriting Fees
Full page print advertisement … $500–$2,000
Advertorial … $500–$1,000 per page
Sales letter (1–2 pages) … $750–$2,000
Direct-mail package, to generate leads … $1,500–$3,500
Direct-mail package, to generate sales … $2,500–$7,500
Postcard or other self-mailer … $750–$2,000
Teleselling script … $750–$2,000
Web site, home page … $750–$1,500
Web site, other pages … $500–$750
E-zine ad … $500–$750
Banner ad … $500–$750
Landing page … $750–$1,500
Microsite … $750–$1,000 per page
E-mail marketing … $500–$750
Brochure … $500–$750 per page
Catalog … $250–$750 per item
Press release … $500–$750
Article … $750–$1,000
Case study … $750–$1,500
White paper … $2,000–$5,000
Presentation slides … $75–$150 per slide
How do you decide where to price a specific job within the above fee ranges? That will depend on your experience, track record of success with the type of project you're quoting, the deadline (“Is this a rush job?”), and the volume of work you can expect from the client in the future.
Quoting isn't easy. It's one of those things in the freelancing business that you get better at over time. If you're just starting out, you're bound to make some mistakes when pricing jobs. When that happens, use what you learned to quote the next project more accurately. Before long, you'll be quoting with confidence.
