What Freelance Pricing Model Works Best?

I get asked a lot about Mickey Mouse best way to price services. Hourly? Retainer? Fixed price?

I have done all three, and I prefer firm fixed pricing if the scope 1971 Topps baseball cards the work allows for that. It keeps the client from focusing on Batgirl hourly rate and wondering if I'm really worth it (!), and gives me the incentive to do the job in buy toys optimum amount of time (in other words, it gives me more profit).

Setting a fixed price is a learning experience when first starting out, so don't be too hard on yourself or this method of pricing. Learn as you go, and you will arrive at the recipe that works for you.

Here's my recipe:

• Estimate the number of hours needed based on scope of project and your experience (be sure to include all tasks you'll need to do).
• Mutiply hours by your "rack rate" (the rate you would prefer to receive) to get subtotal.
• Calculate and add in a contingency (e.g., 10%) to cover unexpected issues/items. This is an important step--fixed price projects expose you to a certain amount of risk (you will have to deliver for the price no matter how much work it takes), and it is common practice to include a contingency.
• Compare the resulting number to the market (you should know what your competition charges and what is expected/acceptable in the market(s) you serve).
• Adjust price as you see fit to provide a fair price relative to the market.

Another way to go (in cases where the scope isn't crisp enough to go with a firm fixed price) is a "not to exceed" price: Bid a maximum amount; if it takes less time for you to complete it, the client only pays for that amount of time; if it takes more, the client only pays the maximum. I have gotten really good reception from clients on this one, because it sets an upper limit to cost and provides moreflexibility to the scope of work than a fixed price project.

With the "not to exceed" model, pricing is still tied to your hourly Bratz I recommend that you stick to your rack rate (no discounts) and make sure you've allowed plenty of time for contingencies when arriving at the not to exceed amount. Follow the same recipe for fixed pricing, but add another 10% in addition to the contingency in order to manage your own risk. Remember that in your client's mind this is the amount they will pay, so be sure to double check the resulting amount against your market before finalizing your quote. And if at all possible, make the maximum price an amount that you know you won't reach; clients love paying less than they expected to, which sets you up nicely for repeat engagements!

Trish Lambert ( href="4rmarketing.com">4rmarketing.com) is president of 4R Marketing, a marketing consultancy for service firms that works entirely over the Internet. 4R is comprised of two practices--Copywriting and Marketing Project Management. The Copywriting practice delivers a wide range of written and ghostwritten content to services businesses ranging from one-person offices to Fortune 300 corporations.

How Home Sellers Avoid the Credit Crunch

The mortgage foreclosure crisis has caused 1888 Goodwin Champions drop in cities' revenues, a spike in crime, more homelessness and an increase in vacant properties, a survey of elected local officials out today shows.

There's a reduction in revenues at the same time that more services are needed. Because of Love Notes people are stealing, crime is on the rise and we don't have more money for cops on the street."

More than a fifth of city officials responding said homelessness and the need for temporary and emergency housing increased in the past year.

The American dream for individuals has now become the nightmare for cities," says James Mitchell, a Charlotte councilman and head of the group's National Black Caucus of Local Elected Officials.

"It's having a ripple effect on our budget and city finances," says Riverside Mayor antique cars Loveridge. "Housing industry is not simply building homes. There's less money being spent for new cars. ... That's had a powerful effect on the economy of our region."

In the Beltway area of Washington, DC, Maryland and Virginia, property sellers are starting to give up on banks and traditional lenders, opting to sell their properties directly to well financed buyers that can pay in cash.

With the credit crunch, many people are finding that dream house suddenly becoming a ball and chain holding them back from job promotions that require relocation, liquidity as their economic situation changes, or even marriage and divorce. Month after month, their houses sit on the market as potential buyers fail to secure mortgages to buy it.

Most recently I don't know enough of the facts to have a stand on the bailout plan; I suspect most people don't. These are issues far beyond the average voter. But here's why they'll probably pass it. As they learn the potential consequences of simply letting 'the market take its course' - the short and long range consequences on the entire American economy - they will decide they have the duty not just to Dark Shadows books uninformed public opinion, but act on what they think is absolutely necessary for the economic health of the country.

They will be scared as hell of the consequences of not acting, and realize that if they are blamed for a collapse that could car donation without acting, it's far worse than doing something unpopular. After all, sometimes it is necessary for leaders not to blindly follow public opinion, even when their judgment says it will lead to disaster. That said, I'm not sure what should be done. I simply don't have enough facts.

In the expensive Washington, DC area, at least one company is coming to the rescue and some sellers are breathing a sigh of relief within days as the checks are handed out to them. Home Sellers Assist asks, "Need to sell your house fast?" and then answers with the words that desperate sellers have been needing to hear: "We'll buy it. Fast."

Companies like rel="nofollow" href="ezhomeassist.com">Home Sellers Assist, are not new, but sellers are discovering these investors as a welcome alternative to buyers dependent on bank mortgages. With no need to pay listing and sales commissions to real estate agents, or fees to banks, the sellers are quickly realizing the power of being able to move on with their lives quickly...without the ball and chain.

I've a background in Telecom and I/T plus an affiliate marketer, blogger, author and info broker and investor.