Customer service first

The key to keeping clients is to provide top notch customer service. An unfortunate generalization about designers is that we are unreliable. The more unfortunate part is that this is true in a number of cases. Therefore, to set yourself apart, follow through on your promises and deadlines and you will become indispensable to your clients. In fact, the quality of your work is secondary to the level of service you provide. Here’s a few tips on providing excellent customer service:

• Always deliver on time.
• Don’t promise unrealistic timelines, under promise and over deliver.
• Respond to emails and phone calls in a timely manner.
• Be honest, don’t mark up services like printing without telling your client.
• If a job is outside your area of expertise, don’t take it on. Refer your client to someone who can better help them.
• Care about your client and their business, not just your pay check.

How to increase your rates

Your clients average work day doesn’t revolve around what you are working on. They are focusing on running and building their business; design is just one part of that. Therefore, the last thing they want to do is babysit a designer or chase them for work that is late. You need to be dependable, the guy or gal who always delivers on time. Believe me, it might not seem like a big thing to you, but it is one of the best services you can offer a client if you plan to keep them.

Anyhow, getting back to raising your rates, let’s create a sample scenario. Let’s say your hourly rate is $50/hr and you’d like to raise it to $75/hr. Now that is not an insignificant hike, and your clients will definitely notice a difference. Instead of being worried about how they will react on their next quote, get out in front of the problem and let them know that the price of doing business has just changed. When you email or call them, you need to hit a couple of key points:

• Thank them for being a great client.
• Let them know why you are raising your rates.
• Let them know when the new rates will go into effect.

That might not seem like much, but if you have been doing a good job of being indispensable that is all it should take. The reality of the situation is, your client has an established relationship with you. They like you (hopefully), they know what calibre of work you are capable of, and they know you give excellent customer service.

As long as you are providing good work and awesome service, the client is not going to want to go to the trouble of finding a new designer. They don’t want to jump through all the hoops of finding someone new, testing out their quality of work, etc… Bottom line, you’re not selling your work, you’re selling yourself. Therefore, if you’ve been doing a good job of meeting their needs, they will not balk at the price increase.

The exception to the rule

There will be some clients who will have a problem with the rate increase. Much of the time this might be small business clients, who don’t have a huge design budget. In these cases, if it’s a long established client, I would recommend offering them a discount. This technique is a judgement call you need to make. Some of the factors you should consider are:

• Are they a good client?
• Do they pay on time?
• Are they easy to work with?
• Do they provide you with a regular stream of business?

If you answered yes to one or more of those questions, I would recommend offering them a discount. Good clients can be as hard to find as good designers. Reward your good clients by offering them a compromise. In this case everyone wins because you still get to increase your rates and you make the client happy by showing that you care enough to be flexible so you can continue doing business. As far as how much of a discount to offer, I’d recommend 10-25% off.

Well that’s it. I hope this post has been helpful for all the freelance monkeys out there. If you have any questions, or would like to share some techniques that have worked for you in the past, please leave a comment below.

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One of the biggest mistake newbie freelancers make is under valuing their services. $100 for a logo an stationary package is not acceptable. If you choose to work for these types of rates, it is a slippery slope and you will always be working for below average pricing. Why would a client pay market rate to you once you have already lowered the bar? Not to mention, any possible referral work they send your way will also be expecting the same discount.

Trying to set your rates can be a confusing problem. My recommendation would be to charge what you feel you are worth. If they hourly number you quote makes you feel content with the work you are producing then that is all that really matters.

Commit and be organized

If you want to be successful at freelance design, it needs to be your main focus. The easiest way to commit to your new found freedom is to quit your day job. I know it might sound scary but if you aren’t comfortable quitting your job, you probably shouldn’t be freelancing. Another crucial aspect to freelancing is to be organized. You are now in charge of not just design but accounting, sales, marketing and other various small business responsibilities. A good way to keep your projects organized is to use a project management service like Basecamp. Also, it would be a good idea to pick up a copy of Open Office to keep your accounting organized. There are a number of other personal accounting systems out there so search around for the best fit for you. A final exercise that is a good way to keep your business growing is to dedicate a set amount of time each week for marketing your business. Whether it be through google ads, social media websites like Twitter, or simply checking in with your clients from time to time to see if they need a hand with any projects.

Don’t sell yourself short

Do not, I repeat do not ever work for free! If you are a qualified designer, you have spent several years building your skills and it isn’t fair to be expected to work for nothing. Aside from the personal aspect, it cheapens the design industry and helps to spread the notion that design isn’t a valid trade. If you are fresh out of school or only have a small amount of experience, you should be charging $25/hr minimum for your services. If you are an experienced designer, you should be charging $50-$100/hr. It comes down to what you think you are worth – I understand that working for free or cheap when you are starting out may sound like a good idea to get your feet wet. However, if you start working at a rate of $10/hr, you will always be working at that rate. Why would your client pay anymore once you have established that rate with them? As well, any referral work they throw your way will be expecting the same discounted rate. “I know this great designer that works for peanuts! You should really give them a call.” Believe me, that is a headache you don’t want. Most of the time, clients that offer low-ball pricing are not businesses you want to work with in the first place. They generally will push you the hardest and pay you the least. Remember the following quote as it has helped me immensely:

Fast, Cheap, Good. You can have two of those terms but it will cost you the third. For example, if you want it fast and cheap, it isn’t going to be good.

Keep it legal

One of the great advantages of freelance design is the ability to register your own business. This is allows you to take advantage of business expenses that you can write off against your income. Therefore, paying less tax at the end of the year. I’m not going to pretend I’m an accountant so I would recommend you find yourself a good accountant to do your taxes for you. You should also look into registering your business as a sole proprietor.

Now that you are an official business person, it is time to start acting professional. What does that mean? NO PIRATED SOFTWARE. This is your full-time business and you should invest in it. If you are using pirated software and your client(s) find out this could negatively impact your company. As well, we are trying to be professional here and pro’s don’t steal software. This also holds true for fonts, vector artwork, and photography. If you expect to be paid $50/hr for your services, don’t ask a photographer to do a photo shoot for free. One of the most important things you can do as a freelancer is act professional and provide excellent customer service to your clients. If you hope to one day work with the nikes of the world, you need to project an image of success and professionalism.

This is just a start. Freelancing is a continuing learning experience and experiment. In the near future, I’ll plan to write more about freelancing. If you are interested in the specific details of registering your business in Canada, please leave your questions below in the comments.