Take your Time on Price Quotes
When asked for a price quote, it is essential that you take your time and supply accurate information that is going to work to your advantage. This holds true in every industry, and freelance writing is no exception. I am always receiving emails asking how I arrive at my quotes, and what goes into the process. While every situation and potential client is different, there are some things that I always do.
As mentioned above, you should always take your time. Sure, it can be exciting to be asked for a price quote, but if you jump the gun you could end up doing one of two things: you could offer too low of a price and leave money on the table or you could quote too high and scare the client off. If you take your time you will be able to compare the project to past work, think about all of the work that is entailed, and of course, cross reference with your current rate sheet.
If possible, it would be nice if you could find out what type of budget the client has for the project. You may find that the client is searching for a bargain price that you cannot meet. Finding this out early on can go a long way in saving both parties a lot of time.
When working on any price quote you should take every last detail into consideration. This is going to change based on who you are working with, but you should consider things such as: past work for the client, your current workload, how bad you want to work with the client, etc. Anything that will affect the project and your career should be taken seriously during this process.
With all of that being said, for me, giving a solid price quote is all about taking my time. If I leave myself enough time to get together all the details, providing an accurate quote is usually an easy task.Â
