{"id":36154,"date":"2013-11-25T07:59:34","date_gmt":"2013-11-25T15:59:34","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/graphpaperpress.com\/?p=36154"},"modified":"2013-11-25T08:25:37","modified_gmt":"2013-11-25T16:25:37","slug":"double-freelance-rates-without-clients-knowing","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/graphpaperpress.com\/blog\/double-freelance-rates-without-clients-knowing\/","title":{"rendered":"How To Double Your Freelance Rates (Without Your Clients Knowing)"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"increase-rates\"Raising rates is a frightening prospect for many freelancers. It’s reasonable to expect that any business will raise the cost of its products and services over time to account for inflation and other factors, yet the self-employed seem to find raising their rates an almost loathsome task.<\/p>\n

Not only do you have to figure out how to introduce your rate increases to your existing clients in a positive way, you also have to have a strategy in place for those who try to bargain with you (or even flat out refuse).<\/p>\n

With static prices, your business will never grow and you’ll be stuck earning the same money year after year, no matter how much your service has improved. You wouldn’t accept this in a salaried job and you shouldn’t as a freelancer either.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Luckily, for those of us that break out in a cold sweat at the idea of asking a client for a higher fee, there is another option. By thinking out of the box and reorganizing your way of working, it is possible to increase your rates by as much as 100% or more without your clients even knowing.<\/p>\n

Set A Per-Project Rather Than Per-Hour Rate<\/b><\/h3>\n

One of the easiest ways to give yourself a pay rise is by changing your fee model to a per-project rate, rather than charging by the hour.<\/p>\n

Many freelancers start off by charging an hourly rate as it often seems the easiest way to estimate prices. If you’re just starting out and find it difficult to estimate how much time a whole project will take you to complete, you may decide that logically, it makes the most sense to charge by the hour. If you’ve just made the move to freelancing from a salaried position, you may be tempted to work out your pay per hour when you were working for a company and aim for a similar rate in your new freelance business.<\/p>\n

I advise against freelancers charging by the hour under almost any circumstances.<\/strong> By putting such a finite price on your time, you are severely<\/em> limiting your earnings potential and setting yourself up for a battle every time you want to raise your rates.<\/p>\n

When you are<\/em> paid by the hour, there is no way to increase your earnings per job without working longer hours. This can make it tempting to work more slowly in order to earn more money, which is a sure fire way of ending up in your clients’ bad books.<\/p>\n

However if you’re already working on an hourly basis with your current clients, there’s nothing to stop you from switching to a project-based fee model. Rather than increasing your hourly rates, simply set a price per task.<\/p>\n

For example, you may publish a set price for:<\/p>\n