| Always more to learn, but I've been happy with the results so far. My rule when I was unhappy with my rates was simple: 1. Double my rates. 2. If the client mentions my rates, but still agrees, then I haven't increased them enough. Go back to step 1. 3. If the client says no because of my rates, I move on (this can be a good sign - if no one is turned away because your prices are too high, you don't have too high of prices). If enough potential clients say no because of my rates (50% lower conversion rate is break even when you've doubled your rates, so # of clients must more than half), then I lower my rates. I quickly climbed from $20/hour to my current rate using this strategy. There's a nice effect here where higher rates suggest higher quality, which in turn attracts the right types of clients and makes them more willing to pay. I've also found that I want to give them $X/hour quality work, so I'm more focused and the quality increases as a result. Lots of happy feedback loops. For your specific situation - do you have many repeat customers? One trick that worked well for me is to price my first project with a client at an introductory rate 20% lower than what I actually want to earn (positioned as a "first project discount"). When that project goes well and they come back for more work, the introductory rate doesn't apply, and you've earned yourself a 20%/hour bonus. |
I have had repeat customers through the service I work for. It's a completely different ecosystem and doesn't translate to external clients. I like working for the service and I don't plan to leave it, but I want to also develop outside clientele.
Assume that trying to get clients outside that platform is a recent effort that I haven't pursued too hard, in part because I don't know how.