[mharroun]

My suggestion is when asked off the cuff always toss an estimate that is astronomically bigger then what you expect it to be. Then come back a day or 2 later and claim after further research we can do it in (2x your real estimate).

[chiefalchemist]

Agree. __Always__ start high and then you've "reserved the right" to adjust down. Else, most people will think you're trying to rip them off.

One of my TODOs for 2019 is to come up with a checklist (for building websites / basic web-based applications). There's no sense assuming the client is thinking of all the things I'm thinking of, and vice versa.

The little things always add up. For example, does the client expect 1 hour or 3 hours of edu on using the CMS?