I see a lot of freelance writers often relating their challenges of charging “too much” or “too little” for their services.
This is the bottom line:
– The minimum you charge should be the minimum you need to sustain your life.
– Increase the cost by the value you think your work and quality is worth, based on your previous client experiences. If 8/10 clients are thoroughly impressed you might be under-selling yourself. If 1/10 clients is impressed, you may be over-selling.
– Charging by the hour vs. by the project? A popular thing to do is grab a free time management software to track time and log your billable hours. Alternatively, if you know a 2,000 word article is worth $500, but you charge $45/hr and finish it in 3hrs, then you’re missing out on a lot of profit. My advice? Do both. Have hourly accounts on Freelancer (or your preferred freelancing service webiste) and have your own personal website that has packaged deals.