General Discussions

**Mohab** · 02-16-2007, 06:11 AM

I mean do you charge by the hour, page or Kbyte

I guess charging by the page wouldn't be accutrate as some pages don't require much work while others might have lots of elements in them.

**houdini987** · 02-16-2007, 12:14 PM

I charge a flat fee but that's just because I'm getting started and want to build a solid client base. I under-charge currently but again, same reason.

I've never seen someone charge by the byte-size.

I don't think that's really applicable nowadays since different design methodologies would use different amounts of web space.

My fees don't have upper limits on # of pages designed, but that's only because I haven't encountered a potential client who needed a massive amount of content. I'm sure when the time comes, I'll have to set limits.

**InfTekHosting** · 02-16-2007, 12:22 PM

I think it depends on what is easiest for you. I think most charge a flat fee or by the hour. It keeps things simple. Customers don't want to have to try and discern a long convoluted invoice. In contrast, you don't want them doing this anyway because it leads to questions. And who has time to answer questions about that kinds of stuff? Just keep the billing simple so that getting paid is simple too.

**Mohab** · 03:47 PM

InfTekHosting, charging by the hour is surely the easiest but it's the hardest when a customr says; "How much for a site that includes....?"

By the way, I was joking when I said by the Kilobyte

**vangogh** · 02-16-2007, 10:54 PM

I think it depends on what's easiest for your customers. Easiest for me would be telling a client what my hourly rate is and then taking however long it takes and then charging them. That's the last thing a customer wants.

Your customers will generally want to know the total cost for the project in advance. I talk to them and spend some time working with them to create the requirements for the project. Once we agree on what the work will entail I estimate how many hours I think it will take me to complete the work and add a little extra to that total since there's almost always something unforeseen that will happen.

I take that time estimate and multiply it by my hourly rate and come up with a price for the project. There might be some negotiating with the client after that until we settle on a price.

**houdini987** · 02-17-2007, 01:35 AM

Yeah I agree with VanGogh regarding hourly charges.

If you are skilled in defining and writing clear specifications (and sticking to them), then an hourly rate may be more profitable than charging by the job.

If however you're not sure of yourself in terms of your skillset and/or how long you think you can get things done (vs. how long they -should- take), then hold off on charging hourly rates.

Sticking to a spec is also huge when you're charging hourly, because the client may want some wiggle room halfway through the project. I'm a software designer (non-web related) at my full time job and we're under fairly strict guidelines when it comes to this aspect.

If the client tries changing the requirement, we gently remind them that we have to stick to the spec and can change things after the initial work is done (of course, such rigidity wouldn't necessarily work with something as fluid as site design but you get the picture).