The Freelance Resource: Setting your Own Price

Working as a freelance basically means that you are your own boss, and work when you want it and how you want it. However, there are some disadvantages of being your own boss, and just one of them is that you have to set the price of the services that you offer on your own. There is not Human Resources, no Project Manager, no CEO, nobody. This is just you and the client,and whatever you say will be the final word for the client. Of course, it is after this that the client will decide whether the price that you are quoting is feasible for them or not. Here are some tips on how to set your own price. 

Never Set your Price, but the Price of the Service Rendered: When you are talking to a client, make sure that it is always about the price of your time that you would be putting in for the project, not a general calculation that you offer on a per hour basis.  Of course, you would have to decide on the time on basis of whether you would have to put some more resources to complete the job, and whether how much time it would actually take for you to complete the project, and many other such aspects.

Try to Gauge the Budget that the Client would be Willing to Pay: If you have had a few freelance gigs, you would by now know the type of money that is paid for this kind of work. Try to gauge the amount that is normally paid in the market for that kind of work.  This will not only help you in cracking the deal, but also give you an idea of the market rates for the said project.

Look at the Competition: Another good idea to set your own price would be to look at the competition and find out what they would or are charging. It would be foolish for you to either overcharge or undercharge drastically as compared to your peers.

These are just some of the aspects that you should keep in mind while setting up a price for any assignment that you get as a freelancer.