🎫 6 Pricing Mistakes You Can Start Fixing Now · The Bunker #06

Let’s get started!

I remember when I started out, one of the most complex things I had to deal with was how to my price services. However, this is a completely separate conversation. But after giving different prices to different clients for different services, I realised that I was making some mistakes along the way.

Today I’m charging x10 more than I would have thought. This is what helped me the most:

The first thing I want you to understand is that getting the right price takes time.

Setting a definitive price for your services takes time, until you are clear about what your work is worth, and you will find out by corroborating it over time.

Some clients will tell you that it is too cheap or too expensive for the service you provide, and with the feedback you will be able to draw conclusions to improve your prices.

This brings us to the first point:

✱ · Feedback from clients

As I said before, to adjust the best price according to the dimensions of the problem you are solving, it is a matter of A/B testing. Set a baseline to start with and gradually collect the feedback you get, and little by little you will increase and shape your price.

For example, over time I've realised that if 4 out of 5 clients don't mention that my services are expensive, that means that I have to raise them because they are still cheap. When they hold their hands up to their heads and start debating prices, it's a sign that you're in the right place.

If 4 out of 5 clients don't mention that my services are expensive, that means that I have to raise them because they are still cheap

✱ · Offering discounts

Charge what you are worth, don't devalue your work. If the client does not agree to pay what you are worth, fire the client.

And that is all. Don't close customers in desperation. It's as simple as that.

Offering discounts is devaluing your work.

There are always strategies like:

• Your price is $1500, you argue to the client that your price is usually $2k-$3k and that this time you will make them an offer for $1.5k. I personally don't like it, I prefer to be honest and transparent with clients because that's the price my services are really worth, accompanied by a detailed breakdown. (Talking about pricing breakdown later).

✱ · Charging hourly

The first question my clients ask me is "how much do you charge per hour" and I always tell them that I work on commission. I'm honest with them and tell them that fortunately I'm a fast designer and that if I charged by the hour, it would work against me.

99% of them see it as logical, some even prefer a whole number to pay rather than paying a little at a time.

✱ · Charging all cliens the same

Another very common question is "how much would you charge me for a website", and an inexperienced designer will have a fixed price that he will offer to all his clients and thus have a consistent price to offer.

In reality it doesn't work like that. The price varies depending on:

• The responsibility you have. That is, the direct impact of your solution on the business.
• The value of the solution to them. If it's a major problem for the company, the value will be greater than if you just fix hover effects that don't work properly.
• Size of the problem. How big is the problem or challenge they are struggling with.
• Time and speed. The rush and timing of breaks (weekends) or holiday periods (Christmas, etc) or work.
• Tasks to be performed. Obviously, designing a single page or one-pager is not the same as designing a website with 4 sections. Nor is it the same to design an informative website (such as my personal website) than a website that is the product of an app, with a database, records (such as Airbnb).
• Graphic resources or extra resources/requests. We will have to charge extra if the client asks us to incorporate 3D elements. We can make them ourselves or simply buy them from the amazing designers out there.

✱ · Not charging for rush work

A very common question I often ask, obviously, is to ask about the deadline of the project.

Most of the startups or projects I have been involved in have answered: "ASAP always please". I have no problem with that, but you have to make them understand that the ASAP term has an additional cost.

✱ · Multiple tasks for the same price

Before starting the project, be clear about the tasks and sub-tasks to be performed. The price will be determined task by task, not per project itself. That is to say, many clients request your services as a "web designer", and pay you to do the web design + development in Webflow (maybe), but along the way they ask you "now make me a 3D to incorporate here, now make me an animation here, now prepare me a video here".

The sensible thing to do is to work out a price according to the tasks to be done or required by the client. Again, bullet-pointing the tasks + pricing-breakdown.

The more complexity or the more tasks to be done, the more expensive it will be. But come on, that’s logical. A mechanic will not charge you the same for changing just the grille as he will for a complete overhaul.

✱ · Not having a 50% deposit

It is not common, but from experience there may be clients who cancel the project and leave it half done, or who are unhappy with the process and cancel the project.

Make sure you charge 50% of the project up front, and put a clause in the contract that if the client cancels the project, they will have to pay the full amount.

Sometimes it is difficult to get clients to understand this, but once you explain it to them, most will say "it makes sense, don't worry".

Cheers, Jordi Espinosa.