decide estimate price of a task
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as a freelancer ,in a normal situation they charge hourly or fix rate per project but sometimes came a situation when the issue is very critical but the solution is very simple , like a small change in web config file or just modify some select query. basically you hardly need 2 to 5 mins to solve things. in such condition, how would you suggest to charge to client? P.S. skip the situation where he/she is your regular client and you have a good relation with him/her so you would do it for free or nominal price.
Ravi Khoda Humanity is the best religion and smile is the best medicine.
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as a freelancer ,in a normal situation they charge hourly or fix rate per project but sometimes came a situation when the issue is very critical but the solution is very simple , like a small change in web config file or just modify some select query. basically you hardly need 2 to 5 mins to solve things. in such condition, how would you suggest to charge to client? P.S. skip the situation where he/she is your regular client and you have a good relation with him/her so you would do it for free or nominal price.
Ravi Khoda Humanity is the best religion and smile is the best medicine.
ravikhoda wrote:
P.S. skip the situation where he/she is your regular client and you have a good relation with him/her so you would do it for free or nominal price.
In which case you charge them for an hour or a half hour if you think you may get work later. You can also charge them for an hour and refund them with a lower bill later if you get more work. Remember - they are not just paying you for the time it takes but for your experience too. The often quote example of the car mechanic who charged $100 for changing a bolt on a car in 3 minutes, the bill read "Price of bolt $0.50, price for 3 minutes of work $1, price for 40 years of experience and knowing how to perform job in 3 minutes $98.50".
“That which can be asserted without evidence, can be dismissed without evidence.”
― Christopher Hitchens
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as a freelancer ,in a normal situation they charge hourly or fix rate per project but sometimes came a situation when the issue is very critical but the solution is very simple , like a small change in web config file or just modify some select query. basically you hardly need 2 to 5 mins to solve things. in such condition, how would you suggest to charge to client? P.S. skip the situation where he/she is your regular client and you have a good relation with him/her so you would do it for free or nominal price.
Ravi Khoda Humanity is the best religion and smile is the best medicine.
Depends. You have to figure in all your time: the time to load the project (from archive if necessary), make the change, test it, document the change, implement change control procedures, release and distribute the new version, archive the project again, and provide support in case the change was not what they expected. Experience, depreciation, electricity...profit... :laugh: In addition, there are indirect costs: time, effort, and materials to raise the invoice, cost of paying it into the bank, dealing with taxation on the income, and - frequently the biggie - chasing the customer to pay the invoice in the first place! But...sometimes it's worth doing it cheap or free and taking a loss, particularly if it may lead to more work in the future which will pay. That's why a mechanic costs £40 per hour when he gets minimum wage, because you are paying for the building, the tools, the office staff, the building rates, the taxes, the ... That's why I have a variety of rates, which mostly depend on how much I like the customer (and that's related to a huge extent by how much hassle it is to get the money out of them) - if I know they are a PITA, or do a lot of "feature creeping" then they get a higher rate!
Bad command or file name. Bad, bad command! Sit! Stay! Staaaay...
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Depends. You have to figure in all your time: the time to load the project (from archive if necessary), make the change, test it, document the change, implement change control procedures, release and distribute the new version, archive the project again, and provide support in case the change was not what they expected. Experience, depreciation, electricity...profit... :laugh: In addition, there are indirect costs: time, effort, and materials to raise the invoice, cost of paying it into the bank, dealing with taxation on the income, and - frequently the biggie - chasing the customer to pay the invoice in the first place! But...sometimes it's worth doing it cheap or free and taking a loss, particularly if it may lead to more work in the future which will pay. That's why a mechanic costs £40 per hour when he gets minimum wage, because you are paying for the building, the tools, the office staff, the building rates, the taxes, the ... That's why I have a variety of rates, which mostly depend on how much I like the customer (and that's related to a huge extent by how much hassle it is to get the money out of them) - if I know they are a PITA, or do a lot of "feature creeping" then they get a higher rate!
Bad command or file name. Bad, bad command! Sit! Stay! Staaaay...
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ravikhoda wrote:
P.S. skip the situation where he/she is your regular client and you have a good relation with him/her so you would do it for free or nominal price.
In which case you charge them for an hour or a half hour if you think you may get work later. You can also charge them for an hour and refund them with a lower bill later if you get more work. Remember - they are not just paying you for the time it takes but for your experience too. The often quote example of the car mechanic who charged $100 for changing a bolt on a car in 3 minutes, the bill read "Price of bolt $0.50, price for 3 minutes of work $1, price for 40 years of experience and knowing how to perform job in 3 minutes $98.50".
“That which can be asserted without evidence, can be dismissed without evidence.”
― Christopher Hitchens
GuyThiebaut wrote:
Price of bolt $0.50, price for 3 minutes of work $1, price for 40 years of experience and knowing how to perform job in 3 minutes $98.50".
Cost of losing a customer because the mechanic needed 40 years to learn how to change a bolt - $100.
If it's not broken, fix it until it is
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GuyThiebaut wrote:
Price of bolt $0.50, price for 3 minutes of work $1, price for 40 years of experience and knowing how to perform job in 3 minutes $98.50".
Cost of losing a customer because the mechanic needed 40 years to learn how to change a bolt - $100.
If it's not broken, fix it until it is
Smart arse tax $50 ;P
“That which can be asserted without evidence, can be dismissed without evidence.”
― Christopher Hitchens
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Smart arse tax $50 ;P
“That which can be asserted without evidence, can be dismissed without evidence.”
― Christopher Hitchens
:cool:
If it's not broken, fix it until it is
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as a freelancer ,in a normal situation they charge hourly or fix rate per project but sometimes came a situation when the issue is very critical but the solution is very simple , like a small change in web config file or just modify some select query. basically you hardly need 2 to 5 mins to solve things. in such condition, how would you suggest to charge to client? P.S. skip the situation where he/she is your regular client and you have a good relation with him/her so you would do it for free or nominal price.
Ravi Khoda Humanity is the best religion and smile is the best medicine.
ravikhoda wrote:
in such condition, how would you suggest to charge to client
Fixed price for that bit of work. Make it wort your wile.
Once you lose your pride the rest is easy. In the end, only three things matter: how much you loved, how gently you lived, and how gracefully you let go of things not meant for you. – Buddha
