How to Effectively Price Your Services as a Freelance Web Designer

There’s a lot of fear behind the question, “How do I price my services as a freelance web designer?”

I can feel it everyone time someone asks me.

And, I get it.

In the early days of being a freelance web designer, it feels like most of what you’re doing is just guessing followed up by an immense amount of googling. Or, is that just me?

After all, you don’t have a ton of experience in this area just yet and so it’s easy to feel unsure about most things ESPECIALLY when it comes to money.

Pricing your services right as a freelance web designer can be the difference between being successful and giving up on freelancing all together.

If only there was a simple way to know exactly how much to charge as a freelancer no matter what the situation!

But, wait…there is ?

Michael Janda: Freelance Pricing Guide Professional

Michael Janda has been freelance as a web designer before it was even called Web Design not to mention more modern job descriptions like UX/UI designer.

He started in the late ’90s and went on to build a thriving agency that served top-tier clients like Disney. He later sold his agency and began coaching freelancers to try and help them overcome the same struggles he experienced building his business. Sound familiar?

Michael wrote the book on how to price your services as a freelancer. No, like literally, he wrote a book about it.

And, he’s got a great course that is the Ultimate Guide to Freelancing.

And, he shares that with us on this week’s episode of the Self-Made Web Designer Podcast

Three Factors to Help You Determine How to Price Your Services as a Freelance Web Designer

Michael teaches us that there are three factors to consider most when pricing your services as a freelancer:

1. Production Costs
2. Market Value
3. Client Budget

Production cost is how much it would cost YOU to build the project the client is wanting to hire you for. This is where you look at what you would charge for your hourly rate.

When I was first getting started I looked at how much money I could make if I went and got a job at Starbucks. You would take whatever you charge hourly or what you know what you could easily make if you were to go get a job somewhere.

Then you look at the market value of that project. Market value is how much other’s are charging for a similar project. You learn this just by asking. If you have friends that are freelancers you ask them. OR you can do like I did and pretend that you are a potential client and ask web designers how much they would charge you for a website ??‍♂️

No, don’t do that. I shouldn’t have but hey I was stupid and just getting started. You can ask freelancers that you find online how much they charge BUT just be honest about your intentions.

Finally, you determine what the clients budget is for the project. If you determine that you need to charge $4k for a website but a client only has $2k you’ve got more work to do in winning this one.

Just because the client doesn’t “have the budget” for what you’re asking doesn’t necessarily mean that you should part ways. It means you might want to dig a little deeper as to why they have the budget they do AND maybe you need to express your value a little bit better as a freelancer.

All of this is weighed against how busy you are. If you’re super busy you can charge more because, HEY, you don’t really need the work. On the other hand, if you’re not very busy it might be a good idea to lower your prices closer to your production cost.

I love Michael’s formula because it really validates the ups and downs that every freelancer sometimes feels.

The Truth About How to Price Your Services as a Freelance Web Designer

The truth is you should never look at your prices as a freelance web designer as set in stone. They will go up and down.

Learning how to price your services as a freelance web designer the right way is pivotal to making sure your prices go up more than they come down.

I know you’re going to love this episode with Michael AND it’s a two parter. So, he’ll be back next week to tell us even more.

You’ll Learn:

• How to prices your services as a freelance web designer
• How to convince your client to increase their budget
• How to sell your freelance services by your value rather than your hourly rate
• How to overcome objections from clients when it comes to pricing

Resources:

• Ultimate Freelance Course
• Michael Janda’s YouTube Channel
• Michael Janda’s Website
• Michael Janda’s Instagram

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