How much do I charge?

**"* F* M* <m*@sympatico.ca>**

Depends on your level of experience with this kind of thing and how 
confident you are that you can deliver satisfaction.

I've done A LOT of corporate work (as I call it). That's how I saved up 
enough to switch into periodical writing full time.

Up here in big-city Toronto, $30 is pathetically low. A good rule of thumb 
is to calculate what an employee would make and charge double that to cover 
your cost of doing business -- paper, computer, health insurance, sick pay, 
vacation pay, furniture, etc. When I did corporate budgets for my 
communication dept, that was how it actually worked out -- each employee 
ended up costing the company roughly double their salary.

You can approach the client a few ways. Find out as much as you can about 
the job, then give them a cost for your initial product. Tell them your 
per-hour rate for work beyond that (helps prevent ongoing revisions).

Or tell them a per hour rate along with an estimate for the total job. That 
way, the client won't feel they're signing a blank cheque.

Or, if you can, ask them if they have a budget for this project. Sometimes 
you find out they've set aside a lot more money than you expected, and you 
can say, "I don't think there will be a problem working with that" as you 
silently jump up and down with gratitude.

As others have said, you can charge a lower daily rate if there's a block of 
work. And you can charge a lower rate if they're providing the office, 
phone, etc.

FYI, around here, I charge abt $70 to corporate clients (sometimes less to 
non-profits, individuals, etc.). If they think that's too high, they can buy 
cheaper quality somewhere else. I'd rather not feel bitter about my work.

Mary Fran

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