How do I figure out what to charge

[photos]

I am setting up a new business and wondering how I should figure out what to charge. Should I have set fees or hourly rates, etc?

[Jazzee]

What kind of business?

[aboyd]

Without going into hard numbers, I have some general rules I follow. First, whatever I estimate the time is to completion, I double it when I talk to the buyer. If she asks for an afternoon of small fixes, I tell her it'll take a day. If it seems like I can do it in a week, I say "two weeks." Better to finish ahead of schedule than behind. If I finish very much ahead of schedule, I will not charge the full estimate. This ALWAYS makes a client happy.

Second, if the client cannot agree to a limited, set scope, then I'm charging a day rate for however long they keep me employed. If they agree to a fixed list of features, I'll provide a flat fee (time estimate, doubled), with the understanding that changes cost extra.

As for the actual hourly cost for your time, in general, you gotta figure out how much it costs you to work for an hour -- all of it: the cost of the computer (spread the cost out over a couple of years, as you won't buy a new computer for each job), the cost of the office, the cost of expenses, the cost of your salary to yourself, etc. That's what you charge. If you find that you get slaughtered by competitors who undercut your price, find out what they did that was more efficient, match or beat those efficiencies, and use the cost savings to match their price.

[talkfreelance]

I would really need to know what type of business it is before evaluating the costs/charges involved. If it's a freelance type of business (design, programming etc) then you would charge by the hour (I usually work for around $40/hour)

[jamestcs]

Originally Posted by talkfreelance

I would really need to know what type of business it is before evaluating the costs/charges involved. If it's a freelance type of business (design, programming etc) then you would charge by the hour (I usually work for around $40/hour)

is this $ 40 / hour is the market rate in U.S.A ?

__________________
James Tan
eco-friendly product and erosion control mat
super premium dog food and pet food supplier